New Earth!

For Friday, August 9, 2024:

2 Peter 3:13 NLT: “We are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he (Jesus) has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness.”

Fitness experts say, “No pain, no gain.” It’ll be like that as God re-builds the New Heaven and the New Earth. The remodeling will get messy, but God’s end result will be beyond magnificent!

Believers are blessed to be included in the remodeled residence. I believe God will put the world back to the perfect way it was originally designed, before mankind’s sinful nature changed things for the worse. Believer’s sins will have been forgiven and removed, separated from us as far as the East is from the West. The New Earth will be filled with righteousness, and – good news – believers get to live there!

Jesus will have prepared a place for all who put their faith in him!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Love Your Neighbor!

For Friday, January 20, 2023:

Matthew 5:20 NLT, Jesus speaking: “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”

Jesus didn’t have a lot of time for the Pharisees. They had memorized all the laws. They faithfully observed traditions (some of which were made up.) They held a high and mighty position in the Jewish pecking order, but they had forgotten how to love their neighbor. In short, Pharisees took care of #1 but ignored the teachings about being helpful and loving.

Pharisees all should have known Leviticus 19:18: “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.”

In Luke ch. 10 Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor?” and he responded with the story of the Good Samaritan, someone from another country with a different religion. Though they had little in common, the man from Samaria did his best to help the injured Jewish traveler, paying for the man’s care out of his own pocket. Samaritans were (unjustly) despised, and this one made the right humanitarian decision to be helpful, to do the right thing. By the way, a Jewish Priest and a Temple worker both passed by the injured man but did nothing, making the Samaritan look like a hero!

Heaven will be filled with souls who know Jesus and are nice, kind and helpful. We should all strive to be among them!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Tonight I’ll be teaching about War vs Peacemakers on the Jesus in the City Fellowship’s Facebook live-stream, 8pm Eastern, 7pm Central. Hope you can tune in!

Righteousness!

For Thursday, January 12, 2023:

Matthew 5:6 NIV: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

Jesus is blessing those in his audience that day. When they came to hear the Savior speak, they were in pursuit of righteousness! Jesus will fill them!

We see believers hungering after or intently pursuing many things, such as power, wealth and earthly happiness. But how many hunger and thirst for righteousness? We should pray, “Lord, let me live the way you want me to live. Let me diligently execute the plans you have for me.”

Spurgeon writes, “Oh, that my nature could be changed, so that I, the lover of sin, could be made a lover of that which is good; that I, now full of evil, could become full of holiness!”

Have you ever been really hungry and thirsty? I mean, totally starved! Jesus used this analogy because many of his followers had to forage for food daily. Most of us, probably not. Jesus promised to fill those searching for righteousness with as much as they could consume. It’s a curious filling that both satisfies us yet still keeps us longing for more!

Food is life. Righteousness is eternal life!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

New Heaven - New Earth!

For Sunday, November 27, 2022:

2 Peter 3:12b-13 NLT: “On the Day of the Lord, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness.”

In this one piece of Scripture, we go from judgement and destruction to righteousness and hope! Talk about bi-polar! (Just kidding!) The Day of the Lord means judgment for all, but believers will find that Jesus has us covered. He took away our sins, leaving us spotless, ready for salvation.

Just as there are fallen souls on the earth, there are fallen angels in heaven. God has most of them locked away, waiting for judgment day. But on the Day of the Lord, it’s time to clean house on both heaven and earth! As the Bible says, the sheep will be separated from the goats. Sheep go with the Shepherd – they know his voice. The rest go to eternal condemnation.

Then our Lord will re-make a new heaven and a new earth. I believe when God first made the heavens and the earth, they were perfect, and the new heavens and new earth will be restored to original specs. There, God will live among his people. His radiance will illuminate the new earth!

Believers will live in a world filled with God’s righteousness!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Truth!

For Sunday, July 31, 2022:

Psalm 85:10 NLT: “Unfailing love and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed!”

The psalmist is writing about God’s love for his people. God looked at everything he created – including mankind – and declared that it was “very good.” God’s love, truth, holiness and the peace that surpasses our understanding all walk hand in hand. They are the characteristics of God; I call them the “God-trend!”

God is incapable of lying. He only knows truth and has no patience for deceit and scheming. God will not be amused if we make up excuses for sin, if we try to rationalize it away. But the Lord is loving and forgiving if we repent and return to him. Climb back into your Father’s lap. Then you will know peace!

The closer you are to God, the farther you are from sin!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Seeds of Hope!

For Tuesday, October 12, 2021

James 3:18 Phillips: “The wise are peace-makers who go on quietly sowing for a harvest of righteousness—in other people and in themselves.”

Jesus said to love your neighbor, and to love your enemy. Jesus said to turn the other cheek. So no matter what happens, take the high road – just go on being nice!

The resulting crop will reflect whatever seeds you plant, so sow seeds of peace, harmony and justice – and love, kindness and gentleness. This wisdom that comes from God is first utterly pure, then peace-loving, gentle, approachable, full of tolerant thoughts and kindly actions, with no thought of favoritism or hint of hypocrisy. Plant for a good crop of right living. Plan for a future filled with hope!

May you bring in a bountiful harvest of righteousness!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Seek Righteousness!

For Tuesday, August 25, 2020. 

Matthew 5:6 NIV: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

This is part of Jesus’ greatest message, the Sermon on the Mount, which includes ‘The Beatitudes,’ lessons of extreme joy, blessedness and happiness. 

We all have basic essential needs, such as food, shelter and clothing. Without thinking about it, almost like an involuntary action, we make sure those provisions are in place. These are non-negotiable items for most of us.

I believe that each day God gives every one of us a yellow pad. Write at the top, “Agenda,” or, “Things To Do Today.” Number down the left side. Now we can fill up the lines, putting our day in order. 

I’m guessing that “food” would be #1 on a lot of lists. Actually “Loving the Lord” SHOULD be #1! Be sure to insert things benefiting OTHERS – mercy, kindness and love.

Somewhere on your list, Jesus wants you to include “righteousness” and “justice” - living in harmony with the Lord. We hunger and thirst after food and water, but do we hunger and thirst to be right with God? Do we long for a world actively seeking right standing with the Lord? On YOUR list, what number is “Standing Up for God’s Value-System?” Should it be a little higher? 

This scripture says that if we’re on God’s team, speaking out for His values, we’ll be blessed; we’ll be fed, filled and satisfied, both physically and spiritually. That what the Bible says, and that gives us a lot of hope!

Blessings and safety this day! 

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

Follow the Shepherd

For Friday, July 17, 2020.

Psalm 23:3a ESV: “He (the Lord) leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.”

When we became believers, we were adopted into the Holy Family. The Bible says we became children of God. Therefore we want our actions to reflect well upon the Kingdom. Simplified, stop doin’ all that bad stuff you used to do!

You don’t need to know HOW to walk a path of righteousness; you only need to know where the Shepherd is! Follow Jesus – do what he does. He’ll show you the green pastures, the still waters and the righteous path. God showed these things to David, and he will show them to you. Use the Good Shepherd as your spiritual guide.

Sidebar – I hate it when clergy do something bad, and it gets publicized. I want to say, “Get off my side! What you’re doing doesn’t reflect well on the church!” His “name’s sake” needs to be honored!

I used to see people wearing little bracelets inscribed WWJD – “What Would Jesus Do?” Run any situation through your “Jesus filter” – Is this good, right, fair, honest? Should we be doing this thing? WWJD? Remember, you’re representing the Holy Family now!

Blessings to all this week!

Pastor Norton

Jesus in the City Fellowship

3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

Waiting for You

Feb. 25, 2019 Monday Message

God wants us all to come back home, to return to heaven with Him. Unfortunately, mankind’s sinful nature renders us unacceptable in the Lord’s sight. Fortunately, God provided a means of forgiveness and reconciliation.

God sent his Son Jesus to be the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, and all those who repent and place their faith, hope and trust in Him would be forgiven and covered with Jesus’ righteousness, and thereby be made acceptable in the eyes of the Lord.

Jesus told his followers that he would be going on ahead to prepare a place for each one of us. “There is more than enough room in my Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?” (John 14:2)

When believers leave the earth and enter the next reality, Jesus will be there to greet you with open arms. A room is already prepared for you – it has your name on it!

Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship meets at 10:30 Sunday, March 3, 2019, 3249 30^th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406. We continue our “Basics of Christianity” series. This week Pastor Pilla teaches about the Kingdom.