I'll Be Back!

For Thursday, December 26, 2024:

Isaiah 7:14 NLT: “The Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).”

It’s Dec. 26^th, the day after Christmas – sort of. Most of you know by now that Jesus wasn’t actually born on Dec. 25. Traditional theories say sometime in April or May. Modern thinking says September, probably between 4-6 BCE. In the dead of winter, little work could be accomplished, so Dec. 25, near the winter solstice, seemed a good time for a major celebration. Does it really matter? This isn’t a redeeming ordinance!

God’s timeline is not our timeline. God, through the prophet Isaiah, promised a Messiah would be arriving soon. It took about 750 years for that to happen. If we estimate a generation to be about 25 years, the Messiah’s arrival took about 30 generations! That’s 30 times people watched, prayed, and eventually had to pass the dream on to their offspring! So when Jesus finally arrived, Israel was filled with skeptics and doubters, among them the Pharisees and Temple leaders! They weren’t about to step away from power, position and financial security to let some youngster get into the driver’s seat!

Remember, when the resurrected Jesus ascended into heaven, he promised to return. Optimists thought he meant perhaps by Friday, or certainly later this month. I’m sure the believers were amazed when a year passed and there was still no sign of the Savior! They’d be astounded that 2k years later, we’re still watching and waiting. Jesus may be busy preparing our place in the hereafter.

Everything Jesus ever said was truth, so we fully expect his return. Each day we’re one day closer!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Good News!

July 08, 2024 Monday Message:

Luke 4:17a NLT: “The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to Jesus.”

As we’d expect, Jesus was in the Synagogue on the Sabbath. It was considered an honor to be asked to read from the ancient scriptures, and Jesus was handed the prophesies documented by Isaiah, whose ministry began about 740BC. In other words, these words were written over 700 years BEFORE the birth of Jesus! Pretty distant prediction, but it all plays out right here!

Jesus read: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

Jesus was claiming that this ancient prediction applied to him! “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” Blasphemy to many, but today we know it to be true! Those words perfectly describe Jesus’ mission in walking alongside mankind. “Gospel” translates as “Good News,” which Jesus brings to the poor who previously had no hope. Remember, the first will be last and the last will be first in this juxtaposition of pecking order. Diseases will be healed; the blind will see; the deaf will hear! Those who were slaves or were jailed unfairly will be set free. As sinners, we were slaves to Satan, but Jesus came to set everyone free by paying the ransom for the sins of the world!

When we enter the next reality, simply explain that Jesus has already prepared a place for you. Jesus is the guy just off to God’s right!

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Friend of God!

For Saturday, March 16, 2024:

Isaiah 10:1 NLT, speaking as a prophet of the Lord: “What sorrow awaits the unjust judges and those who issue unfair laws.”

Jesus taught that we should be kind and help widows and orphans. At that time, people were living in a very misogynistic society. Women and children without a patriarch were at a supreme disadvantage. God is on that same page, because his Prophet Isaiah was teaching those things 700 years before Jesus! Isaiah said, “Unjust judges prey on widows and take advantage of orphans.” Woe to them!

Our God is always fair, honest and kind to the downtrodden. God is “just.” When you meet someone as honorable as God, you want to become their friend, to spend time with them. You eagerly look forward to your next encounter, and thoughts of your God fill your heart with joy!

God has thousands of cattle on thousands of hills, and he wants to share that abundance with believers. That way we can help the widows and orphans. We can be benevolent. The problem is that humans tend to be selfish and not share their wealth, which bothers God a lot! That’s why it’s easier to push a camel through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter heaven.

My father taught me to run decisions through his little test: “Is it good? Is it right? Is it fair? Is it honest? Should we be doing this thing?”

If we want to be a friend of God, we need to act like a friend of God!

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Prophecy!

March 11, 2024 Monday Message:

Isaiah 7:14 NLT, Isaiah speaking the Lord’s words: “The Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

We all recognize this as a prophecy or prediction of the birth of Jesus. That event happened just like God said it would. By the way, Immanuel means God with us. One important thing to remember is that Isaiah lived 800 years before Jesus! He personally had no knowledge of a virgin birth. Isaiah was simply speaking the words given to him by the Lord. Those words would come to fruition 800 years later!

Prophets have a unique job description. Some people think that prophets can predict the future, but that’s not true. Only God knows the future, and Isaiah is retelling the words God gave him. Listening for God’s voice is the end of Isaiah’s super-powers!

Are there prophets nowadays? Probably, but they don’t get a lot of attention. Journalists only focus on catastrophes, things gone wrong. Apparently Good News isn’t newsworthy. And you won’t hear about prophets in most churches. God is probably speaking, but we have our radios off and hear nothing. And it’s very difficult to hear a prophet if you don’t believe in them!

Same thing with evil demons. The subject of demons seldom comes up in churches nowadays. But let me warn you: Satan never takes a holiday! Satan enjoys an unrestricted earthly battle because so few believe in him. When churches stopped casting out demons, Satan jumped for joy! We rarely talk about the problem, so Satan runs free.

Jesus taught that we should: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons.” Especially nowadays we should follow Jesus’ instructions!

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Mission!

For Friday, March 08, 2024:

Isaiah 6:11 NLT, Isaiah, speaking with God: “Then Isaiah asked, ‘For how long, Lord?’”

Isaiah, now a prophet of God, had been given his first assignment. He was to call out Israel over their disobedience, hence their impending doom. Israel had scriptures but never bothered to open the book. God, who had rescued them and given them the promised land, no longer held a place on their agenda.

God had warned Isaiah ahead of time that no one would listen to his preaching. Sounds like a dismal assignment. But our take-away from this should be that when God says ‘Get going,’ we should do just that: Get up and get going! We shouldn’t question the mission or the reasoning behind it if the instructions came from the Lord. We should be living out God’s will for us!

If you’re a Christian, God’s laws are written on your heart. And Jesus said the most important things are to love the Lord and love your neighbor. If you love the Lord, hang out with his people sometimes. Show up at church. And if you love your neighbor, you have to interact with them also. That way we can all share the Good News!

When God lays a mission at our feet, our response should be, “Here am I; send me!”

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Deaf Ears!

For Thursday, March 07, 2024:

Isaiah 6:9 NLT, God, speaking to Isaiah: “Go and tell this people: ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’”

Considering he had just signed up for the ministry team, God was handing Isaiah a pretty rough assignment. It was almost guaranteed that nobody would pay attention to Isaiah’s preaching, and God warned him of this. He’s preaching to one tough audience!

God intends to give these people one last chance. It’s a test. If they fail to respond, then their guilt is certain. Isaiah probably wasn’t happy about this assignment. He’s facing a terrible crowd! The people weren’t happy either. They had no interest in listening to Isaiah. But God would be pleased when Isaiah completed his assignment! God is the only one who’s opinion matters.

If you’re a Christian serving the Lord, you may be given some challenging assignments. Sometimes ministry isn’t easy! Remember that we don’t always know God’s purpose behind an assigned task. We don’t really need to know!

Like Isaiah, our response should be obedience. “Here am I; send me!”

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Chosen By God!

For Tuesday, March 05, 2024:

Isaiah 6:1a NLT, Isaiah speaking: “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne.”

Isaiah was special, hand–selected by God. To complete his mission successfully, he had to know there was another realm; that death was not the end. When he counseled people to repent and return to the Lord, they wanted to know why. What’s in it for us?

Eternal life in the presence of the Father, that’s what! We call it heaven. God’s desire is that we could all join him in his Kingdom, in his time. God and sin can’t exist in the same place. Therefore if heaven is our goal, atonement for our sins should be a priority in our lives. Jesus became the sacrifice for the sins of the world, and he took the sin of the world to the place of the dead. Those who know Jesus repent and are forgiven, acceptable to enter God’s Kingdom.

I find it interesting that God presents heavenly things in human terms so that we can understand. God is spirit, and we come from spirit and will eventually go back to spirit. So does God have a human-like form? I doubt it. And I doubt there’s a giant chair in the sky, his throne. God, in his wisdom, presents things to Isaiah in human terms, so that he might better understand. For Isaiah, God is clothed like a King and sits atop the highest throne. Isaiah gets it, that God is the Supreme Being, the Creator of everything!

And Isaiah’s scene is preserved in Bible writings, so that we all might better understand!

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Send Me!

For Tuesday, October 11, 2022:

Isaiah 6:8 NIV: “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’

And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’”

Isaiah is one of the few people to be shown the inside of heaven in a vision. (Another being John the Apostle who wrote about it in Revelation.) Isaiah saw the Lord seated on his throne. The train of the Lord’s robe filled the temple with his glory. Above him were six-winged seraphim calling to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” One took a hot coal and purified Isaiah’s lips.

The Lord desired a steadfast prophet to carry his words to the people on earth, and asks, “Whom shall I send?” In a way, it’s a rhetorical question, since Isaiah had already been summoned to the meeting!

Without hesitation, Isaiah answered, “Here am I. Send me!” The Lord needs a never-ending personnel supply to be his hands and feet on the earth. Few jobs are as difficult as Isaiah’s. God will not call you to a task for which you are not qualified, but he needs you to say, “Yes!”

As Christians, we should always be prepared to answer, “Here am I. Send me!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Neverending Kingdom!

For Thursday, August 25, 2022:

Isaiah 9:7a NLT: “Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.”

700 years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah was telling everyone about the coming Messiah. He will be known as Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, and his Kingdom will never end. We call him Jesus!

Jesus left us to spread the Good News, to make disciples of all nations. He’ll soon return to rule over what has been his since creation. On judgment day, our Lord will separate the sheep from the goats. Only sheep will be left, and they will live in peace.

And his Kingdom will never end!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Year of the Lord!

June 20, 2022 Monday Message:

Luke 4:18-19 NLT, Jesus, reading from Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

Jesus, quoting Isaiah, is perfectly describing his earthly mission. The last sentence is most relevant for us nowadays.

The Lord’s favor – his grace – is being poured out, through Jesus, for all mankind. Jesus would personally become the offering for the sins of the world, thereby rescuing all who believe from certain damnation. Because of Jesus, believers are washed clean, suitable for eternal residence in the same place as God himself!

This is truly the ‘Year of the Lord,’ a turning point for mankind’s destiny. God’s forgiving grace is available to all who trust Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Believers get to see heaven from the inside!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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