Son of God!

For Saturday, September 24, 2022::

John 10:30 NIV, Jesus speaking: “I and the Father are one.”

Prophets had told the Jews to expect a Messiah. So the obvious question for Jesus was, “Are you the one we’ve been expecting?” The people had seen the miracles and heard the teaching, so the answer should have been apparent. But these same people knew Jesus had been born to Mary (and Joseph) as a little baby, who grew up alongside their own children. Son of God? They’re just not sure.

Claiming to be God or the Son of God was serious business in the Jewish community. Claiming to be God when you weren’t could result in stoning, and these devoted Jews just weren’t too sure about Jesus. “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God.” They were not his sheep; they had not yet seen the light!

Friends, Christianity has only one God, known to us in three persons, three different forms. God-the-Father rules from Heaven, Jesus walked on earth alongside mankind, and the Holy Spirit is our helper until Jesus returns. But it’s all just one God. We need to understand that God – being omnipresent – could be in many places at the same time.

Don’t try to curtail God’s omnipresence. He knows what he’s doing!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Miracle Birth!

December 20, 2021 Monday Message

Matthew 1:20 NLT: “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.”

Wedding traditions were different 2k years ago. After a couple was married, they then went separate ways to prepare everything for their life together. Different Bible translations say Mary and Joseph were “married,” or just “engaged.” It makes little difference. Mary was, in fact, still a virgin; the couple had not yet consummated the marriage. But a divorce would have been required if they were to separate.

Imagine getting everything ready for your new bride, and when you arrive to re-claim her, to start your married life together, you find that she’s already pregnant! Yikes! God knew this would be a problem, so he had an angel appear to Joesph in a dream, explaining that the child was conceived through the Holy Spirit, and counseling Joseph to follow through with the marriage. This requires a huge amount of faith, and a lot of trust in the Lord!

And that’s the point of today’s message. When we hear this miraculous story 2k years later, do we believe? Incredible as a virgin birth sounds, do we truly believe? Do we trust God enough to share this miracle birth of the Son of God with our friends? God wants you to believe because he wants to include you in the Kingdom. “To all who believed ... he gave the right to become children of God.”

It’s not easy being the earthly stand-in father for God’s Son!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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