Justice!

For Tuesday, August 15, 2023:

Psalm 99:4 TLB: “Our mighty King is determined to give justice. Fairness is the touchstone of everything God does. He gives justice throughout Israel.”

We can always count on God for fairness and justice. Furthermore he cannot lie and he loves us unconditionally. If you think about it, God treats us with what we call the “Golden Rule.” He will treat us as we treat him. Those who love God and his Son will be rewarded with an eternal place in God’s Kingdom. Those who have no respect for the Lord will find themselves in a lake of fire. And as bad as that seems, it’s fair and honest.

Fairness, justice and honesty are some of the character traits of God Almighty. They’re not going to change! We can always count on these “God Trends!” If something seems ‘off,’ it’s mankind that needs to change, not God!

Nowadays God dispenses justice throughout the entire world, not just Israel!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Constant Contact!

July 31, 2023 Monday Message:

Psalm 81:7a NLT: Words of God: “You cried to me in trouble, and I saved you”

God is sending a message to the Hebrew people, referencing their rescue from Egypt. The people had been miserable, they cried out to God, and God responded with a solution, with a rescue. If God did that once, he can certainly do that again! God (and his Son Jesus) are unchanging, the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. I call that the “God-trend!”

The point is that our Father should be our constant resource. We should always be connected with God, so problems can be solved while they are still small. God should be a constant part of our lives, not a just last resort only when there’s trouble, only when there’s no other solution.

Life goes better when we’re closer to God!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Trends!

For Sunday, July 16, 2023:

Romans 1:30 NLT: “(Those who reject God) are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents.”

If you’ve been following this daily message for a while, you’ve read about “God-trends.” Love, forgiveness, reconciliation and family values are God-trends.

You can also spot trends among those who reject God. They tend to be rude and disrespectful, overly proud and boastful and have no time for their parents. And as if that weren’t bad enough, they go so far as to invent new ways of sinning! It’s as if their mission is to be anti-God!

In the end, there are only two groups: those who are with God, and those who are against him. Those who are with God have a future – eternity with the Father and his Son Jesus. Those who are against God will find themselves in a lake of fire!

God doesn’t send people to hell as much as they send themselves by choosing to reject the Lord! You DO have a choice!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Forgiveness!

For Saturday, July 15, 2023:

Daniel 9:9 NLT: “The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him.”

About 600 years before Jesus was Daniel. His name means, “God (El) is my judge.” As Jews were dispersed from Israel, Daniel found himself in Babylon. He is considered a prophet by Christian and Muslims, and Jews consider him to be the most distinguished member of the Babylonian diaspora, unsurpassed in Godliness and good works, unchanging in his adherence to the Law despite being surrounded by enemies who sought his ruin.

Though Daniel lived in that sinful land, he was loyal to the Lord, constantly trying to get others to do right things. And while quick to point out other’s sins, he also focused on God’s mercy and forgiveness. In the midst of his rant about obeying God’s Laws, Daniel inserts this one verse stressing God’s mercy and forgiveness.

God’s mercy and forgiveness isn’t a one-time event; it’s what I call a “God-trend.” When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God made clothes for them, loving them in spite of their sin. Daniel was sentenced to the lion’s den to die, but mercifully God protected him, and Daniel walked away from the whole incident. God gave his Son Jesus to be the sacrifice for the sins of the world, and all who put their faith in Jesus would become children of God, forgiven members of the Kingdom. Believers get to see heaven from the inside!

Forgiveness is a God-trend, and it’s for all who repent and return! It’s for all of us believers!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Teacher = Lord!

For Sunday, June 11, 2023:

Matthew 19:16-17a NLT: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

"Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good.”

The rich man was asking his Rabbi, his teacher about eternal life. In truth, he was asking God himself, but he didn’t realize it! (Jesus told us, “I and the Father are one.”) Each of us is to examine the evidence and discern the heavenly origin of our Messiah.

There is no one thing, no one good deed that will gain us entrance to the hereafter. When we understand who Jesus is and claim him as Lord, our lives change. We call it “Radical Transformation.” Believers don’t just go to church; we also do the “stuff,” the commandments and living as Jesus commanded. Christians aren’t known for just one good deed. Observers see a trend among the changed minds, changed lives and changed hearts. Forgiveness, kindness and being helpful are all part of the trend.

Watch for signs of the God-trend as you worship today!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Jesus = Hope!

For Wednesday, March 23, 2022

Matthew 12:35 NLT, Jesus speaking: “A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.”

Your reputation precedes you. If you’re known to be a good person, people will expect more good to come from you. If you’re known for evil, for a sour attitude, people will begin to disassociate from you. Most of us can’t tolerate any more evil coming into our lives.

The same principle applies to Jesus. He’s known for goodness and mercy, so people would follow him hoping to see more of the same. It’s the same nowadays. People still come to Jesus seeking hope, and the closer we get to Jesus, the more hope we have!

Jesus said, “Whatever is in your heart determines what you say.” (Matt. 12:34b)

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

God is Good!

For Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Psalm 77:13 NLT: “O God, your ways are holy. Is there any god as mighty as you?”

I believe that every word in the Bible is accurate, but sometimes not true. Psalm 77 is one of those times. This psalmist feels that God has abandoned him, has turned his back. I believe the psalmist is depressed, and truly feels that way. But it’s simply not true that God would leave a person in their time of need. That doesn’t fit the character of God, the God-trend!

By v13, the writer’s tone has changed to acknowledging the goodness of God. Turns out God is good, all the time.

Faith in God fills us with hope.

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

New Song!

For Saturday, January 15, 2022

Psalm 98:1a NLT: “Sing a new song to the Lord, for he has done wonderful deeds.”

God saw everything that he created and declared it to be “very good!” God continues to love us and help us, and drops extraordinary goodness into our lives, sometimes when we least expect it! That’s the permanent God-trend! God is good, all the time!

But even knowing that God is good, he can still surprise us with a new blessing we didn’t see coming. God follows the God-trend; it’s mankind who is freshly amazed! Sometimes we just have to sing a new song to the Lord!

Knowing that God’s love is never-ending fills us with eternal hope!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

Eternal Hope!

For Friday, January 14, 2022

Psalm 103:8 NLT: “The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.”

Familiarize yourself with the character traits of God. Then you can spot the “God-trends” and define your expectations when dealing with the Creator.

Here, David says we can expect compassion and mercy if we humble ourselves before the Lord. Slow to anger, God doesn’t just fly off the handle. His anger is overridden by his unfailing love and compassion for his created people.

If you truly know the Lord, you know eternal hope!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

Jesus' Character!

April 26, 2021 Monday Message

Titus 3:4-5 CEV: “God our Savior showed us how good and kind he is. He saved us because of his mercy, and not because of any good things that we have done. God washed us by the power of the Holy Spirit. He gave us new birth and a fresh beginning.”

I’ve been speaking lately about the character of our Savior. If I asked you all to write down the traits of a person of good character, and then we compared lists, a lot of the same items would come up over and over again - honesty, integrity, fairness, compassion, loyalty, humility, perseverance, forgiveness – this list goes on. But every one of these traits applies to Jesus.

Last Friday we looked at the compassion Jesus showed to the woman caught in adultery. This Wednesday we’ll look at Jesus restoring sight in a blind beggar. His faith also resulted in the restoration of the man’s soul. See? Good character is a God-trend!

If you look up “Person of Good Character,” a picture of Jesus will be right there. He’s the kind of person you want in your corner. It’s worthwhile to pursue and maintain your relationship with our Redeemer.

Jesus offers hope!

Blessings and safety to all this week!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406