Peace with God!

For Wednesday, May 27, 2026:

Colossians 1:20b NLT: “God made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.”

Sin and God’s goodness cannot coexist. But God’s desire is that everyone would repent and return. He wants us all to join him in the hereafter. Therefore, sin needs to be removed, blotted out from Heaven’s Book of Life registry. What could possibly pay the penalty for the sin of the world?

God, who has all resources at his command, knew that the earthly sacrifice of his Son was the only thing that could satisfy the debt. So Jesus went to the work of substitutionary atonement, paying for the trespasses of mankind through the ages. Past sins, present sins, and even future sins were paid for. Believers in Jesus have been granted special grace. When heaven looks up our name in the Book of Life, the column marked “sin” will be blank. No scratch-outs; no erasure marks; simply blank white space, as if we had never sinned. That’s how thorough Jesus’ forgiveness is!

As believers, we’ll be a part of the heavenly group only present because of the Son. “I’m with that guy sitting just to the right of the Father. He said he’d prepare a place for me in his Father’s Kingdom.”

And heaven will reply, “We’ve been expecting you!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Come Quickly, Lord Jesus!

For Tuesday, May 19, 2026:

Revelation 22:20 NLT: “He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon!’ Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!”

In the language Jesus spoke, the word was “maranatha,” “surely I will come quickly.” Jesus said he would return, and as the Bible wraps up, his promise is once again confirmed. No longer just prophecy, Jesus’ return will put the End Times scenario in motion right before our eyes!

Those who have read Christian theology clearly understand that life is better when Jesus is with us. So Christians pray, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!” Please don’t let too much time pass. We need you, and we need you now! There’s always an implied urgency in these prayers. “Come quickly, the sooner the better!”

As we strive to make disciples of all nations, God has started the End Times countdown. It will progress at His pace. God’s timing is always perfect!

Revelation concludes, “May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with all of God’s holy people. Amen!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

I Am the Way!

For Thursday, March 5, 2026:

John 14:4-5 NLT, Jesus: “You know the way to where I am going.”

Thomas: “No, we don’t know, Lord. We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Thomas is sometimes called “Doubting Thomas.” I wonder how someone could live with Jesus during his three years of ministry and not “get it?” The disciples all took meals together. They traveled everywhere together. Shouldn’t it have been obvious to Thomas by this time that Jesus is the Son of God?

But we need to be forgiving, gentle in our criticism of his apparent ignorance. The disciples – all of them – were witnessing things no one had seen before! Jesus, of course, knows it all. He had come from heaven. John tells us that Jesus was even present during creation. But most of the Hebrews were still trying to decide if there even is a life after this life. Jesus, as we well know, was certain of it! In his mind, he can remember the heavenly Kingdom. He’s already planning to prepare a place for all who will be joining him there.

Friends, if you know Jesus, you already know the way. We are saved by grace through faith, our unwavering belief that Jesus is who he said he was, and that he can do what he said he can do. His promises are always good, and his word is always truth. If Jesus promised that we will join him in the life after this life, don’t plan on being dead for too long! Remember, even Jesus himself walked away from the grave after only three days!

Paul taught in 2 Corinthians 5:8 that when we die, our soul, our eternal essence, would be, “Absent from the body; present with the Lord!” Count on it!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Grace = Free Gift!

For Sunday, February 8, 2026:

Hebrews 13:9b NLT: “Your strength comes from God’s grace, not from rules about food, which don’t help those who follow them.”

The Old Testament contains some dietary instructions. Certain animals can transmit various diseases, and God, who always looks out for us, wanted us to remain alive and healthy. But our meat-packing and inspection methods have so much improved that those kinds of diseases have long since vanished. And friends, dietary choice is not a redeeming ordinance. You’re not disqualified from heaven for eating a pig! That would imply that we could earn our way into heaven by doing something or not doing something, and that’s simply not true.

Our hope for our eternal future is God’s grace. It’s a gift. All we need to do is accept it. Our faith in forgiveness, Jesus taking away our sins, is our ticket to the hereafter. We are saved by grace through faith, not by obeying rules. But having said that, Christians strive to conform to God’s rules out of gratitude for all that Jesus did for us!

Salvation is God’s gift to those who place their faith, hope and trust in his Son!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

1-on-1 with Jesus!

 For Friday, February 6, 2026:

Luke 3:8 NLT, John the Baptist speaking: Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones.”

 How you live and what you do will be signs that you have discarded your sinful ways and repented and returned to the Lord. God has stretched out the hand of forgiveness. All we have to do is grab on and decide that God’s way is the better way.

 People tend to make excuses for not doing the right things. In those days before Jesus, the excuses ranged from, “I was born Hebrew,” to “I’m in the Synagogue every Sabbath.” Those are good things, but they won’t open heaven’s gates. Salvation is a contract between you and God. It’s dependent on your heartfelt belief, your faith in the Father and his Son. We are saved by grace through faith.

 When evangelizing, people tell me, “When I was young, I went to Sunday School; My mom was a Baptist; My wife attends a church; and We’re pledging members.” All good things, but they won’t get you into heaven. Assurance of Salvation is a 1-on-1 deal with Jesus, putting your faith, hope and trust in God’s Son.

 Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” The way to heavenly eternity, and everything he speaks is truth about the life after this life. “No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Pastor Norton Lawellin
Jesus In the City Fellowship
The Father’s House
Truth and Freedom Church

Goodbye Law!

For Friday, January 30, 2026:

Romans 6:15 NLT: “Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not!”

The Law enters people into a contest. Can we do enough good to outweigh the bad? Can we do enough good to qualify for heaven? Christianity doesn’t work like that. We are no longer under the Law.

Believers are living under grace. Our salvation is God’s free gift to us. His desire is to include us in his eternal heavenly Kingdom. Therefore, if we confess our wrongdoings and declare allegiance to the Son who took away our sin, we will be fully forgiven. Heaven won’t be filled with perfect people. Heaven will be filled with forgiven people. “I once was lost, but now I’m found.” God’s love and grace bring us home. Jesus said so!

I work with church musicians, and our goal is to bring our best to the Lord and the other believers. Mistakes will happen from time to time, but if everyone is doing their best, I can’t complain. I encourage grace for one another, and forgiveness. That’s what Jesus would do! God wants our love and offers us grace, undeserved favor, and forgiveness.

Pray and thank God for his grace and forgiveness, and always do your best for the Lord!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Miraculous Signs!

For Sunday, January 25, 2026:

Mark 16:17a,18 NLT, Jesus speaking: “These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”

These are some of Jesus’ last words, his final instructions before ascending back to the Father. He first gave us our “Priesthood of all believers” doctrine, saying, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.” This isn’t optional. Every Christian is to help make new Christians. Each of us will have a different portion of that task using our God-given gifts and talents. But encouraging others in their faith should be top-of-mind for all of us.

You should be aware that there’s a supernatural spirit-world operating alongside life on Earth as we know it. A lot of it is not good. Satan and his demons reside in the spirit dimension. Our goal is to settle in the Father’s heavenly Kingdom. Satan’s goal is to derail us, to keep our souls for himself. Obviously, God’s way is the better choice.

Jesus doesn’t throw us to the wolves. He leaves believers with his power and authority to deal with evil. We can bring back to life the victims of premature death. We can lay hands on our fellows and, in Jesus’ name, cure any sickness or disease. We can cast out demons, the source of much of the world’s trouble. Cast out the demons first, because they might be the root cause of the illnesses. That’s what Jesus did!

We are saved by grace through faith. Faith is the cornerstone of our salvation. Take a high view of the Bible. Every God-inspired word is truth, and every incident happened just the way the Bible says. Pray, do things in Jesus’ name, and repent of nonconforming scenarios. Know that this life is temporary, and have confidence that Jesus is preparing an eternal place for you. If you’re with Jesus, life couldn’t be better!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Jesus' Heavenly Plan!

January 5, 2026, Monday Message:

John 16:1 NLT, Jesus speaking: “I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith.”

The New Covenant gives us God on speed-dial. Direct access! Under the Old Covenant, the general public didn’t know a lot about God. They only knew theology the priests chose to teach. God bless the priests, but some would repeat rumors, theories and traditions. They were no longer speaking for the Lord. They were no longer speaking truth!

Christians have been given Assurance of Salvation. We are saved by grace through faith. Grace means that our salvation is a free, undeserved gift from above. Our faith is in Jesus, believing he is who he said he was, and that he can do what he said he can do. Jesus’ primary mission in coming to earth was the rescue of mankind, reconciling our relationship with the Father, and believers put their faith in Jesus’ promise.

So believers’ assurance comes not from any priest or rabbi. Our assurance is not from any church, denomination, synagogue or temple. Our salvation deal is authored and guaranteed by Jesus, God’s own Son. Bypass any middlemen. Lock in your eternal destination today. At the pearly gates, Jesus said we should use his name!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Change!

December 29, 2025, Monday Message:

Romans 6:1 NLT: “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not!”

A change of heart on our part would be evidence of our gratitude for God’s gift of forgiveness and salvation. The Lord’s efforts are effective and efficient. He doesn’t seem to waste his time doing needless stuff. So God planned to rescue those who need rescuing. (Friends, that’s all of us!) A Savior wouldn’t have been sent unless people needed saving.

Being born again implies a second chance to get things right, to prioritize the Lord in our lives. We should learn from our past mistakes. The Bible word translated ‘repent’ means to change, like a change of direction. “We were going north, but God showed us that we should have been traveling south!” Radical transformation should be the result of God’s gift, God’s grace. Continued sinning should be out of the question.

God’s gift should bring about positive change!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Name of Jesus!

For Sunday, December 21, 2025:

Luke 2:21 NLT: “Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived.”

Translated into the English language as “Jesus,” the name was originally “Yeshua” which means "Yahweh is salvation" or “God is salvation.” Angels are obedient, messengers sent by God himself. (Any who aren’t obedient don’t last long!) So Gabriel was just repeating the Lord’s instructions. God is sending His Son, confirming His intention to rescue mankind, to grant us salvation. God loves us, and his intention is that all would repent and return. God, who is omniscient, knew that Jesus would be persecuted and eventually crucified. The sins of the world would be placed on an otherwise sinless Jesus, who would leave our sins in the place of the dead. Forgiveness would be an important part of mankind’s restoration and our reconciliation with Heaven. So it appears that God, with his infinite wisdom, had this all planned out well in advance of its implementation.

Our Holy Family, Mary, Joseph and now their baby, consisted of loyal, obedient Jews. So eight days after Jesus’ birth, they found themselves in a Synagogue, in front of a Rabbi, to offer thank-you sacrifices for a successful childbirth and a healthy baby boy. Firstborn males were always dedicated to the Lord. While I’m not sure they understood the significance of all these events, I’m pretty sure they knew this baby was special. Mary was mentally piecing this puzzle together and kept these godly things in her heart.

As believers nowadays, we get more than glimpses of a scenario in motion. With our Bibles, we can read the “Jesus story” all the way to its conclusion. We know that, in the end, God wins, and we are the beneficiaries of His grace. Believers will be adopted into Jesus’ Holy Family, and have the right to call God, “Our Father!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

A Gift for Christmas!

For Saturday, December 20, 2025:

Romans 5:21 NLT: “Just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

I can’t tell you how many people didn’t see heaven before Jesus. This scripture tells us that sin ruled in our world, and the wages of sin is death. After Jesus, because of his forgiveness of our sins, many more people will get to see heaven from the inside! That forgiveness is grace, God’s free gift to mankind. We can’t buy it, earn it or trade for it. That’s not the nature of a gift. God sent the gift to us through his Son, Jesus. Our part is to put our faith, hope and trust in the Son. Believe that Jesus is who he said he is, and that he can do what he said he can do. Think of the truth in the Bible as a prophecy for our future.

Graciously accept God’s gift, personally brought to our world by his Son!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Mission Accomplished!

For Friday, December 12, 2025:

Hebrews 12:2 NLT: “We continue keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.”

When Jesus returned to the Father, God must have said, “Good job – well done! You have solved mankind’s sin problem!”

We honor God by claiming his Son as Lord and Savior of our souls. Our faith in Jesus includes us in the family of God. He was sent to rescue mankind, and from the cross he said, “It is finished. The job you sent me to do is completed. Souls of believers will now start coming home!” Jesus knew his mission, and – seeing the result – determined that the effort was worth the outcome.

Our Savior is now seated at God’s right hand, the seat of honor. His mission was a gift to all mankind because of our faith, trust and love for the Son!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

God's Gift!

For Wednesday, November 26, 2025:

Romans 5:2 NLT: “Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

 "Because of our faith…” This is why Heaven’s gifts keep raining into our lives. I wish we could see God. That way, we could watch him smile as we do things that please him. Surely God smiles when we worship him, and when we honor his Son. God wants to include us in his forever kingdom, where his glory shines!

 In the past, we might not have been worthy to live alongside the Father and his Son. But the Son, Jesus, took away our sinful nature as part of God’s vast eternal plan. So here we are, looking forward to our eternal lives because of what God had his Son put in motion. This is undeserved favor at its max! Mankind is the beneficiary of God’s grace!

 God, Jesus and believers all living in harmony, loving one another, forever! It doesn’t get any better than that!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

More Faith!

For Tuesday, October 28, 2025:

Hebrews 11:6b NLT: “Anyone who wants to come to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”

Today’s scripture honors “faith.” Christians repeatedly proclaim that we are saved by grace (undeserved favor from God) through faith (believing that God can and will do what he says.)

Abel and Cain both brought thanksgiving sacrifices to the Lord. Abel’s sacrifice was closer to what God had asked them to do, so his faith appeared to be greater. Enoch’s faith was so great that he was taken up to heaven – without dying! “He disappeared, because God took him.” Long before this incident, he was known as a man who pleased God.

We will see varying degrees of faith within our Christian communities, all the way from Cain to Enoch. If you’re Cain, you need to step it up a good bit. If you’re Enoch, continue your obedient love for the Father, but still seek an increase. You can never have too much faith!

Remember that God rewards those who sincerely seek him. Love the Lord and graciously accept your prize as he ends your journey!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Way, Truth, Life!

For Friday, September 26, 2025:

John 14:6 NLT: Jesus told Thomas and the others, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Everything Jesus ever said was true. Everything he prophesied came to be. Why would this statement be any different? Jesus is a walking example of truth!

I’ve had people tell me that choice of religion doesn’t matter. They’re wrong! Many religions seem similar, encouraging their congregants to lead good lives, be helpful and kind, to be the ‘right’ kind of people. They think that most everybody will wind up in heaven, but that’s not what Jesus said.

Good behavior alone won’t get people into heaven. The hereafter isn’t something that people can earn or buy. Life-after-this-life is grace, a free gift, given to those who call Jesus “Lord.” Think of it as the inclusion of family members. Jesus is God’s Son, and believers are his disciples. Christians show love and kindness out of gratitude for what Jesus did for us, not to earn heaven-points! You can’t work your way into heaven!

This fact differentiates Christianity from all the false religions of the world. Many hate us because of our preaching that Jesus is the only way. Jesus also prophesied that the world would hate us because of this, and again, he’s right!

Jesus is the only ‘way’ to afterlife in God’s Kingdom. ‘Truth’ is his middle name. And ‘life’ refers to eternal life, only possible with the Son. “No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Miracle of Faith!

For Friday, September 5, 2025:

Luke 18:35 NLT: “As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road.”

I love this story! I could preach on it all day. But I won’t!

As usual, a crowd was following Jesus as he made his way toward Jerusalem. A blind beggar heard the commotion and asked what was happening. He was told, “Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.”

It turns out that the blind man knew some theology and had heard about Jesus being the Messiah. It turns out that our blind man was a believer! So he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Some told him to quiet down, but he shouted the same thing over and over, louder and louder!

Jesus asked that the man be brought to him, and then asked, “What do you want me to do for you?“ Duh! Everyone knew the man was blind. What do you think he wants? But I believe Jesus also had a little sense of humor, asking the man to state the obvious!

It also teaches us that when we need help in this life, we need to ask. Who? God! We need to pray about our problems and our predicaments. We sometimes need to restate the obvious, what God already knows. God wants to be involved in our lives, and communicating our needs shows that we consider God our friend and helper. “Lord,” said the blind man, “I want to see!”

Jesus’ response was positive. “Receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” It’s always our faith in God’s grace that saves us. Faith in Jesus can restore sight, heal other infirmities, and give us the best gift of all, access , Praisingto the Kingdom of Heaven!

This miracle didn’t take a long time. Instantly the man could see, and he joined the others following Jesus, praising God all the way! And everyone who saw it praised God, as should we all when we receive God’s blessings!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship