Decision/Assurance!

For Saturday, April 18, 2026:

Romans 8:3 NLT: “The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.”

God’s preferred outcome is that every sinner would repent, return to Him and join Him in the hereafter. Mankind has been given free choice to accept God’s offer or not. The correct choice is obvious, so only a few will intentionally decide incorrectly. The biggest hangup in the US is procrastination by fence-sitters. If someone hasn’t decided to accept forgiveness through God’s Son, it’s counted as a ‘no’ vote. When I did work for Billy Graham, we had a daily radio show called “Decision Today,” the premise being that “today” is always the best day, the preferred day, to make your decision for Christ. Tomorrow may be too late!

Other parts of the world are littered with false gods. Friends, there is only one God, the Creator of everything. The false gods may appear good on the surface. They encourage everyone to do good things and to be kind. Think of a balance scale, where a person is trying to pile up enough good on one side to outweigh the bad on the other. When do we have enough good? I don’t know, and neither do they! In the false religions, no one is ever guaranteed heaven (or paradise.)

Christianity is different. Jesus personally paid the penalty for our sins, past, present and future. Therefore believers, having a clean slate, are eligible to spend eternity in the Lord’s presence. Jesus promised to go ahead to prepare a place for believers, and we are blessed with Assurance of Salvation, something no other religion has!

Now sing a chorus of Blessed Assurance, thank Jesus for covering your sins, put a smile on your face and have a great day!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Prophecy Fulfilled!

For Wednesday, April 8, 2026:

Luke 24:13 NLT: “The same day as the resurrection, two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem.”

The story of Resurrection Day wouldn’t be complete without a look at the walk to Emmaus. The two men were believers, and had traveled to Jerusalem for Passover. But the crucifixion put a damper on things, and the two decided to return home.

Their walk began as the women discovered the tomb open, and the body of Jesus missing. Where was he? Suddenly a third man began walking alongside the first two, and they struck up a conversation. The newcomer asked, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?”

The first two looked sad. “You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard about what happened the last few days; bad things that happened to Jesus of Nazareth.” Somehow, they didn’t recognize Jesus. “He was a prophet who did powerful miracles, and he was a mighty teacher in the eyes of God and all the people. But our leading priests and other religious leaders handed him over to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.”

Jesus responds by explaining scripture: “Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?” Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”

Arriving in Emmaus, it was getting late, and the two invited Jesus to stay the night with them. He agreed. As they sat down to dinner, Jesus blessed the bread, broke it, and... Voilà! Their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus, who immediately disappeared from sight!

The two did a 180º and headed back to Jerusalem. They felt compelled to share this Good News with the remaining 11 apostles. Jesus is alive! He can walk and talk! He has risen from the dead, just as he said he would!

To Jesus and those who love him, death is not the end!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Passover!

For Wednesday, April 1, 2026, Passover:

Genesis 17:7 NLT, The Father’s words: “I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you.”

The simplified version is, “I will be your God, and you will be my people!” This was God’s promise, God’s covenant with Abram and his descendants. God’s word is always good; God’s word is always truth. God will never renege on his promises. Hence, His commitment to the Hebrew people suffering under slavery in Egypt. It’s a long story, so I’ll jump right to the end,

God called Moses to approach Pharaoh, telling him to “Let my people go!” Pharaoh refused, so God set 10 disastrous plagues loose upon Egypt, the last being the death of the firstborn of everything. That’s right, the firstborn of all – livestock and people – would be visited by the angel of death. This was Pharaoh’s breaking point. He not only let the Hebrews go; he demanded that they get out of town! Of course, he later changed his mind, and most of the Egyptian army was lost in the Red Sea incident.

As for the Hebrews, God told them to have a lamb dinner the night before, and then mark their doorposts with the lamb’s blood. This would be a sign for the angel of death to bypass that house, hence the name, “Passover.” They were told to eat standing up, with their walking-stick in hand and their togas tucked inside their belts. God wanted everybody prepared for when it was time to go.

The Israelites were told to teach their children about God’s goodness as he rescued them from Egypt. Teach about the oppression, the plagues and about God’s eventual deliverance of them back to the Promised Land.

God’s words to Abram: “I will give the entire land of Canaan to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God.”

Jesus’ words to believers: “I will never leave you or forsake you!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

The great I AM!

For Sunday, December 14, 2025:

Exodus 3:14 NLT: “God replied to Moses, ‘I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you.’”

God was calling Moses to lead his people out of Egypt. At this point, God appeared as a burning bush that did not consume itself, so Moses had a fair question: “Who should I say sent me?”

God’s answer can seem a bit confusing, a little strange: “Tell them I AM has sent me to you.” This speaks to the eternal nature of God.

It’s not, “God WAS great, but he ran out of gas.” It’s not, “God is increasing, just now coming into his own.” Nor is it, “God has been coasting, but will soon achieve greatness.” The fact is that the goodness and strength of God are perpetual. Our Creator was, is and always will be the greatest of all time.

Furthermore, God’s timing is always perfect. He was at the end of his rope with Pharaoh. He knew just the right time to put Moses in motion. And as a solution to mankind’s sin predicament, he sent Jesus to Earth without a specific timetable. Jesus took ALL the sins of the world to the place of the dead. Offenses of past sins, present sins and even future sins not yet committed would be resolved through faith in God’s Son!

Our God is a really good God with kind of a strange name. I love it!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Messiah Prophesy!

For Wednesday, November 12, 2025:

Hebrews 11:26 NLT: “Moses thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward.”

A few people had questions about yesterday’s message, so let’s take another look. The question was, “How could Moses suffer for the sake of Christ since Jesus was born about 1,400 years later.” The scripture (above) was taken straight from the New Living Translation of the Bible’s New Testament.

The Message (Bible) tells the story like this: “By faith, Moses, when grown, refused the privileges of the Egyptian royal house. He chose a hard life with God’s people rather than an opportunistic soft life of sin with the oppressors. He valued suffering in the Messiah’s camp far greater than Egyptian wealth because he was looking ahead, anticipating the payoff. By an act of faith, he turned his heel on Egypt, indifferent to the king’s blind rage. He had his eye on the One no eye can see, and kept right on going.”

The Classic Amplified Bible explains it this way: “[Aroused] by faith, Moses, when he had grown to maturity and become great, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. Because he preferred to share the oppression [suffer the hardships] and bear the shame of the people of God rather than to have the fleeting enjoyment of a sinful life. He considered the contempt and abuse and shame [borne for] the Christ (the Messiah Who was to come) to be greater wealth than all the treasures of Egypt, for he looked forward and away to the reward (recompense).”

On the Gregorian Calendar, Jesus was born about year 4-6 BC. The birth of Jesus should be the dividing line between BC and AD, but Pope Gregory was off by a few years. Moses was born 1,400-1,600 years earlier, or counting from Creation, year 2,439.

Adam and Eve knew God. He walked with them in the Garden of Eden, along the stream. God sewed clothes for them after they sinned and realized they were naked. So mankind had known about God since their beginning. God gave them a list of “thou shalts,” and “thou shalt nots,” and filled their minds with many prophesies, including the fact that a messiah would soon be arriving. So God’s people watched and waited. They had faith. They trusted that God would do what he promised. Remember the Christmas Carol, “Come Thou long-expected Jesus?” Even though they hadn’t yet met the savior, their faith that he would be arriving soon was all that was needed.

The Hebrew people believed in a heretofore unseen Messiah! Again, the necessity of faith rears its head!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Ultimate Sacrifice!

For Saturday, September 6, 2025:

Hebrews 10:4 NLT: “It is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”

Animal sacrifices were the order of the day. God gave these instructions to Moses, who then told the priests and the people. Many would repent on the Day of Atonement, but sin would creep back into their lives. So these sacrifices were only a temporary fix. They did not solve mankind’s ongoing sin problem.

What would be better is a “once and for all time” permanent solution. Look out – here comes Jesus, the only one suitable to take away the sins of the world for all time. The Jesus-cure is effective as long as it’s needed, which could be forever! His obedience to the Father is never-ending.

Animal sacrifices originated in the Old Covenant, but Jesus as our Savior is from the New Covenant, a better way. You can only bandage a wound for a limited time. At a certain point, it becomes necessary to end the infection or lose the limb. God lets you choose, and He has provided His Son as the “once and for all time” solution. Choose wisely!

Sacrifices under the old system were required year after year, but Jesus is a “one and done” solution. Old Covenant sacrifices were a temporary fix, an imperfect cleansing, whereas Jesus provides the perfect cleansing. God does not want animal sacrifices. He wants our hearts!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Decision!

Daily message of hope...
For Friday, August 1, 2025:

Luke 16:28 NLT, The Rich Man’s dialog as Jesus concludes the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus: “I have five brothers, and I want Abraham to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.”

Every person living in every nation will get their chance to hear the Good News of the saving grace of Jesus. They will learn about repenting and returning. Everyone will learn about getting a second chance, a time to straighten out their relationship with God Almighty. So what about these additional brothers in Jesus’ parable?

They were told about God, His Kingdom and a life after this life by Moses and the other prophets. Jesus, the Messiah, was prophesied long before he arrived. They should have had all the information needed to make a decision.

In fact they had not decided in favor of Jesus, and those who are not for Jesus are against him. Jesus is saying, “You had your chance, but you turned me down! Don’t keep asking for more chances! You’ll probably just turn me down again!”

Which is why, when offered an opportunity to follow Jesus, our answer should be a prompt, “Yes, Lord!” A positive decision is what God wants. No straddling the fence. We need to pick one way or the other. Wishy-washy is the same as saying ‘no.’

Billy Graham used to have a daily radio show called “Decision Today.” I always liked that name, because TODAY is the best time to settle the question of your eternal destination!

Pastor Norton Lawellin
Jesus In the City Fellowship

Reconcile with the Lord!

For Thursday, March 6, 2025:

Exodus chapter 40 ends with the construction of the Tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting. The account of the Israelite traveling to the Promised Land continues in Leviticus.

Leviticus 1:1-2a The Lord called to Moses from the Tabernacle and said to him, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel.”

Building the Tabernacle had been quite a project. God had specified dimensions, materials to be used – even colors! The construction must have been satisfactory since the Lord now spoke to Moses from within that Tent of Meeting.

God details procedures and rituals from the Old Covenant, things that seem foreign to us nowadays. Leviticus chapter 1 deals with animal sacrifices. Chapter 2 talks about grain offerings. Chapter 3 asks for peace, and chapter 4 details offerings for those who sin, so they could reconcile with the Lord.

The New Covenant, brought to us by Jesus, does away with those things. Jesus himself, the Lamb of God, was sacrificed for the world’s sins. There is no greater sacrifice. In the “Great Exchange,” Jesus took the sins of the world upon himself, and imbued his holiness upon believers, those who would trust their eternal destiny to Jesus, the Son of God. He promised to go ahead and prepare a place for the faithful, and his word is always good.

Thank God for Jesus! Thank God for the New Covenant!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

God vs Calf?

For Wednesday, February 26, 2025:

Exodus 32:1 NLT: When the Israelites saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.”

Impatient and fickle. Ungrateful and totally wrong! “Please, Aaron, make a god for us.” Dumbest request ever! I can’t believe Aaron fell for it. Moses’ brother should have known better, but it’s hard to oppose mob mentality.

The throng thought God was taking too long. They thought Moses was taking too long. They decided that if the real God wasn’t getting it done, they would make a god of their own. A golden calf. Bad decision. No one can make a God anything like our Creator God!

The Israelites must have short memories, forgetting all God did to get them out of Egypt. They must have forgotten the 10 plagues, culminating with the firstborn of everything in Egypt dying – everything except what was in the Hebrew camp! Had they forgotten the Passover? God said to never forget that and to celebrate it annually!

The behavior of these people disgusts me. If I were God, I’d feel like wiping them off the face of the earth, and he almost did until Moses intervened on their behalf.

Nowadays, “golden calf” is a synonym for anything that may look good but is fake and actually worthless. Idol, graven image, false god, pagan symbol and even the almighty dollar are listed. (Dollars are only valuable here on earth; they have no eternal value!)

So friends, don’t fall for any golden calf stuff. Focus on God Almighty, and as Paul said, “Keep your eye on the prize!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Delegate Responsibility!

For Saturday, February 15, 2025:

Exodus 18:18 NLT: Jethro the priest counseling Moses: “You’re going to wear yourself out—and the people, too. This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself.”

Who hasn’t ever been to a McDonald’s? The corporation was founded in 1940 by the McDonald brothers in San Bernardino, CA. To grow, they opened multiple locations. Some were franchises, authorizing others to sell their products for a fee.

One franchisee was Ray Kroc, who eventually bought the company and moved its headquarters to Chicago. He understood that the path to big money wasn’t in selling individual hamburgers. Big money was in the franchising opportunity. Now, with almost 42,000 stores serving 69M customers each day, McDonald’s Corporation’s net annual income exceeds $8B!

Are you hungry yet? Sorry… My point here is that Ray Kroc didn’t think up the principle of multiplying his efforts by delegating work to others. It’s in the Bible! Moses was advised to continue to be the liaison with God, and to be the senior leader of the Israelites. But Moses being the judge and jury for all manner of disputes needed to stop. Remember, about 2.5M people had exited Egypt! Moses was counseled to appoint trusted leaders for smaller groups, and he followed that advice.

A challenge for church leaders is to step back from some things. Let others be responsible for certain tasks. A pastor can’t possibly be the best at all things! Encourage others to use their God-given gifts and talents!

We can multiply our efforts by allowing others to help. That way we can multiply the souls rescued, the decisions made for Jesus, and celebrate growth of God’s Kingdom!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Convinced!

For Thursday, February 13, 2025:

Exodus 18:10 NLT: “Praise the Lord,” said Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law and priest of Midian, “for he has rescued you from the Egyptians and from Pharaoh. Yes, he has rescued Israel from the powerful hand of Egypt!”

Moses explained to Jethro all the good things God had done for the people of Israel. Jethro was the priest where Moses had been living before the Lord called him to lead the Israelites. Even though Jethro believed in God and led others in that direction, a sign from the Lord would convince him absolutely. A sign from above would cement his relationship with God.

Jethro continued v11: “I know now that the Lord is greater than all other gods, because he rescued his people from the oppression of the proud Egyptians.” The only thing he got wrong is that there really are no other gods – only the one God!

Q: Are you waiting for a sign from above to know that God’s real? Did God already perform a miracle in your presence, but you missed it, you weren’t watching for it?

God wants us to keep our eyes and ears open. He wants us to see everything he’s doing, and appreciate it! When things happen around me that defy human explanation, I attribute them to God, or at least to angels that God sends. I can’t logically explain why some diseases get cured, why chains of addiction are broken, why misdirected lives suddenly become productive. Some people are born a second time, delivered far from Satan. Their lives are changed forever. These good things must be God things. Watch for them!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Lift Up Holy Hands!

For Thursday, February 13, 2025:

Exodus 17:8 NLT: “While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them.”

Joshua’s team was sent to defend the Israelites against Amalek’s attack. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron and Hur climbed to a mountain top. When Moses lifted his staff toward heaven, God gave the people of Israel the advantage. But Moses was old, weak and tired, soon unable to lift his hands any longer. So Aaron and Hur stood on either side of Moses, each of them lifting one of his hands. As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek.

After they were victorious, God told Moses, “I will erase the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And I ask you, friends, have you heard of any Amalek people anywhere on the earth nowadays? God’s word is always good! What did the Amalek people do wrong? “They raised their fist against the Lord.” Bad decision, and as you’d expect, God won!

As we follow the people of Israel on their journey from Egypt to Canaan, note the relationship Moses has with the Lord. Whenever a challenging situation arises, Moses runs the problem past God, who always seems to have a solution. And when God’s intervention can assist the Israelites, he contacts Moses. This is a 2-way and yet unequal partnership. Yes, God desires a relationship with his people, but the true beneficiary is always Moses and the Israelites.

Q: Do you have such a relationship with God? Is he your partner, your consultant as you do life? When life drops a roadblock in your path, is God your rescuer? If you maintain a 2-way relationship with your Creator, you and the people around you will be the beneficiaries! That’s how it works!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

God's Instructions!

For Tuesday, February 11, 2025:

Exodus 16:11-12 NLT: Then the Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the Israelites’ complaints. Now tell them, ‘In the evening you will have meat to eat, and in the morning you will have all the bread you want. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’”

The people of Israel are once again whining and complaining. And once again God meets their needs. Each of six mornings, manna, a bread flavored with honey, would fall from the sky. In those evenings, flocks of quail would land amongst the Israelites, providing meat for dinner. On the seventh day, the Lord’s day, the food gathered for day six would provide double the amount, so no one would have to work on the Lord’s day.

Having done this, God said, “Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.” God is an eternal optimist! The Israelites soon violate God’s plan. They were told to gather only enough manna for today, about two quarts. Some gathered too little; some gathered way too much. God evened it out; everyone had just enough. They were told to not set any manna aside for tomorrow. Some disobeyed, and found yesterday’s manna full of maggots and funny-smelling. But for some reason (God), the extra gathered on day six would still be fresh and wholesome on the Sabbath. Some of the people went out anyway on the seventh day, but they found no food. The Lord asked Moses, “How long will these people refuse to obey my commands and instructions?” How long, Lord?

In short, when the people of Israel followed God’s instructions, everything worked out great. They would have manna for 40 years until they reached Canaan. That same principle applies to believers and to our lives. If we follow God’s instructions, things always work out better. But if we insist on driving, our car often heads toward the ditch. God’s way is always the best way!

Manna means, “What is it?”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Fickle Faith!

For Sunday, February 9, 2025:

Exodus 15:26 NLT: God said to Moses and the Israelites, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the Lord who heals you.”

People can live a long time without food, but only a short time without water. God had Moses lead the Israelites into the desert for three days, and they finally came to an oasis with bitter water. God purified the water. Once again the God of provision had met the people of Israel’s needs. He then gave them the covenant in the above scripture. If the Israelites would be his people, he would be their God!

That sounds like a good deal, but it’s also a test of faith. Each time a problem arose, would the people trust the Lord completely or complain about God putting them in that situation? Of course the correct answer would be to leave everything in God’s hands. Turns out the people of Israel weren’t very good at that.

If we are growing in our relationship with the Lord as we ought, we should learn from our mistakes and make corrections. We should also take note when things go right, and intentionally repeat those behaviors. The Israelites had fallen victim to what I call, ‘Fickle Faith.’ They’re believers when things are going well. But at the least sign of trouble, faith goes out the window. Fickle Faith.

Trusting God is something of substance, something with eternal ramifications. Trusting the Lord should not depend upon your current circumstances. Pray that God would fill you with unshakable faith!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship