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

Redemptive Value!

For Sunday, January 21, 2024:

Mark 7:8 NLT, Jesus confronting the Pharisees: “You ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.”

Our goal should be to spend eternity in God’s presence. In the end, we all want to go to heaven, right? Heaven is the reward that makes this all worthwhile! That’s why we worship God, and lift up his Son Jesus – to see heaven from the inside!

But many who worship cling to old customs, rituals and traditions. Some are good, some are bad, but none will get you into heaven. Rituals and traditions are not what we call a “redeeming ordinance.” Performing a ritual will never save your soul. Observing an ancient custom has no redemptive value.

Jesus is the only way. God loved us so much that he gave his only Son to open heaven’s door for mankind. With Jesus in our hearts, the door will swing wide and heaven will welcome us with open arms. With Jesus as Lord and Savior of our lives, heaven becomes the only option for our life after this life!

Thank you, Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Simplicity!

For Thursday, March 17, 2022

Matthew 11:25 NLT, Jesus praying: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike.”

Sometimes we’re too smart for our own good. People fail to believe when they get hung up on some trivial theological detail. You may notice that Jesus didn’t call people to repentance in such a complicated manner as to require a master’s degree. He kept it simple.

I heard a pastor say, “The main things are the plain things, and the plain things are the main things.” Mainly concern yourself with redeeming ordinances, the simple rules and procedures that get us assurance of salvation. Sure, it’s always good to learn a little more, to increase our knowledge about God and his Son. But don’t let pursuit of knowledge shadow your view into eternity.

Never allow a quest for knowledge cloud your hope!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

What We Need To Know!

For Thursday, January 27, 2022

1 Cor. 15:3 NLT: “I, Paul, passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.”

John said it would be impossible to document every little thing about the life of Jesus. The resulting book would be far too large! So he freely admits that his Gospel is key points, essential principles, a “best of” book about Jesus.

I’ve often wondered the extent of what Paul was shown when he was struck blind on the road to Damascus. Here he admits that there may be more, but that he’s sharing only the most important things, a summary of what we need to know. We call these pillars of faith “redeeming ordinances.” It’s what we need to know to be saved. It’s “hope” in a short paragraph!

Christianity is pretty simple: Everyone has sinned at some point in their life; there’s a price for that sin; and Jesus himself stepped up to pay that penalty. Because of his work on the cross, believers get to see heaven from the inside, and that’s a promise straight from the Bible!

Your Redeemer’s name is Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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