You can trust the LORD to help you. Amid trials and afflictions, quickly cry out to the LORD for help. His help will come as you wait on Him. As you wait for the help He is bringing, reflect on all He has brought you through in the past. He did it before; He will do it again. As others see you place your trust in the LORD, they also will learn to place their trust in the LORD. Read more from Pastor Greg...

Some of the Pharisees asked Jesus, "When will the kingdom of God come?" Jesus answered, "God's kingdom is coming, but not in a way that you will be able to see with your eyes. People will not say, 'Look, God's kingdom is here!' Or, 'There it is!' No, God's kingdom is inside you."

— Luke 17:20-21 ERV

It is easy to obey the Lord when we see results, but that is not where our faith is tested and perfected. Our faith is tested when our prayers go unanswered and we do not see the expected results. Our faith is perfected when we do not give up and continue to obey without seeing. Read more from Pastor Greg...

Life is all about following Jesus and continuing his point-of-need ministry in the power of the Holy Spirit. — Gregory A. Johnson

"Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did" (1 John 2:6 NIV).

"When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that [Jesus] was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’"

— Mark 2:16-17 NRSV

Bless us Lord, this Christmas, with quietness of mind; Teach us to be patient and always to be kind.

— Helen Steiner Rice #MakeItYourPrayer

Let's rejoice in the moments of glory and splendor received, but let's also recognize that these are just a glimpse, a tiny taste, of our great and glorious future with Jesus. Read more...

Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book. 

— Jesus, Revelation 22:7 NIV

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.

— Jesus, Luke 4:18 NLT

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

— Isaiah 9:6 NLT. 

Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means "God is with us."

— Matthew 1:23 NLT

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you — they are full of the Spirit and life.

— Jesus, John 6:63 TNIV

When Jesus said these things, a woman with the people there began to speak. She said to Jesus, "What a great blessing God gave your mother, because she gave birth to you and fed you." But Jesus said, "The people that hear the teaching of God and obey it — they are the people that are truly happy!"

— Jesus, Luke 11:27-28 (ERV)

From time immemorial men have quenched their thirst with water without knowing anything about its chemical constituents. In like manner, we do not need to be instructed in all the mysteries of doctrine, but we do need to receive the Living Water which Jesus Christ will give us and which alone can satisfy our souls. 

— Sadhu Sundar Singh

Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

— Jesus, John 4:23 TNIV

If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

- Jesus, John 8:31-32 ESV

Be ready! Be fully dressed and have your lights shining. Be like servants that are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. The master comes and knocks. The servants open the door for the master. Those servants will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that his servants are ready and waiting for him. I tell you the truth. The master will dress himself for work and tell the servants to sit at the table. Then the master will serve them. Those servants might have to wait until midnight or later for their master. But they will be happy when their master comes in and finds them still waiting.

Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time a thief was coming, then the owner would not allow the thief to enter his house. So you also must be ready! The Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him!

— Jesus, Luke 12:35-40 ERV

Look at the wild flowers. See how they grow. They don't work or make clothes for themselves. But I tell you that even Solomon, the great and rich king, was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers. God clothes the grass in the field like that. That grass is living today, but tomorrow it will be thrown into the fire to be burned. So you know that God will clothe you much more. Don't have so little faith! So don't always think about what you will eat or what you will drink. Don't worry about it. All the people that don't know God try to get those things. Your Father (God) knows that you need those things. The thing you should want is God's kingdom. Then all these other things you need will be given to you. Don't fear, little flock (group). Your Father (God) wants to give you the kingdom. 

- Jesus, Luke 12:27-32 ERV

So I tell you, don't worry about the food you need to live. Don't worry about the clothes you need for your body. Life is more important than food. And the body is more important than clothes. Look at the birds. They don't plant or harvest. Birds don't save food in houses or barns. But God takes care of them. And you are worth much more than birds. None of you can add any time to your life by worrying about it. If you cannot do the little things, then why worry about the big things?

— Jesus, Luke 12:22-26 ERV

When birds are sold, five small birds cost only two pennies. But God does not forget any of them. Yes, God even knows how many hairs you have on your head. Don't be afraid. You are worth much more than many birds.

 ~ Jesus, Luke 12:6-7 ERV

Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

— Jesus, Matthew 7:13-14 NRSV

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.

- Jesus, John 15:12-14 NRSV

But it will be bad for you Pharisees! You give God one-tenth of (everything you own) — even your mint, your rue, and every other little plant in your garden. But you forget to be fair to other people and to love God. These are the things you should do. And you should also continue to do those other things — (like giving one-tenth).

- Jesus, Luke 11:42 ERV

Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail.

- Isaiah 51:6 NIV

"I will send you the Helper from the Father. The Helper is the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father. When he comes, he will tell about me. And you will tell people about me too, because you have been with me from the beginning."

— Jesus, John 15:26-27 ESV

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

- Luke 2:11-14 ESV

All right then, 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").

- Isaiah 7:14 NLT 

No person takes a light and puts it under a bowl or hides it. Instead, a person puts the light on a lamp table so that the people that come in can see. Your eye is a light for the body. If your eyes are good, then your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, then your whole body will be full of darkness (sin). So be careful! Don't let the light in you become dark. If your whole body is full of light, and none of it is dark, then it will be all bright. It will be like you have the light of a lamp shining on you.

- Jesus, Luke 11:33-36 ERV

Be careful of false prophets. They come to you and look {gentle} like sheep. But they are really dangerous {like} wolves. You will know these people because of the things they do. Good things don't come from bad people, the same as grapes don't come from thorn bushes. And figs don't come from thorny weeds. In the same way, every good tree makes good fruit. And bad trees make bad fruit. A good tree cannot make bad fruit. And a bad tree cannot make good fruit. Every tree that does not make good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. You will know these false people by the fruit they make (things they do).

 — Jesus, Matthew 7:15-20 ERV

Truthful lips endure forever,
    but a lying tongue is but for a moment.
Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil,
    but those who plan peace have joy.
No ill befalls the righteous,
    but the wicked are filled with trouble.
Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,
    but those who act faithfully are his delight.

Proverbs 12:19-22 ESV

Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him. — Jesus, John 14:21 NIV

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:13

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 

— Ephesians 2:19-20 NIV

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. 

- Ephesians 2:10 NIV

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
 
- Jesus, Matthew 6:33 NLT

For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time - to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.
 
- 2 Timothy 1:9 NLT

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person — though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die — but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. 

I'm telling you to love your enemies and do good to them. Lend to people without expecting to get anything back. If you do these things, you will have a great reward. You will be children of the Most High (God). Yes, because God is good even to the people that are full of sin and not thankful.

- Jesus, Luke 6:35 ERV

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. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.

- Romans 8:3-4 NLT

After this Jesus went out and saw a tax collector sitting at his place for collecting taxes. His name was Levi. Jesus said to him, "Follow me!" Levi got up, left everything, and followed Jesus. Then Levi gave a big dinner for Jesus. The dinner was at Levi's house. At the table there were many tax collectors and some other people too. But the Pharisees and those men that taught the law for the Pharisees began to complain to the followers of Jesus, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and other bad people?" Jesus answered them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor. It is the sick people that need a doctor. I have not come to ask good people to change. I have come to ask bad people to change their hearts and lives!"

- Luke 5:27-32 ERV

For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all. Ephesians 4:4-6 NLT

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. Romans 5:8 NLT

All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all. Isaiah 53:6 NLT

"As the [Lord] has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my [Lord's] commandments and abide in [God's] love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete." — Jesus, John 15:9-11, NRSV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:1-5 ESV

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17 NASB

And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Luke 1:30-33 ESV

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 ESV

‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel’, which means, ‘God is with us.’ Matthew 1:23

"It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life." — Jesus, Revelation 21:6 TNIV

Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Philippians 2:14-16 ESV

For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord,
    my confidence since my youth.
From birth I have relied on you;
    you brought me forth from my mother’s womb.
    I will ever praise you.
I have become a sign to many;
    you are my strong refuge.
My mouth is filled with your praise,
    declaring your splendor all day long. Psalm 71:5-8 NIV

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The law of the Lord is perfect,
     reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
     making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
     rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is
          clear,
     enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is pure,
     enduring forever;
the ordinances of the Lord are
          true
     and righteous altogether.

Psalm 19:7-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Giver of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us, so also our consolation is abundant through Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. Hebrews 9:28 ESV

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. Psalm 34:18 NLT

"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." — Jesus, John 14:21

But for you who welcome him [the Spirit of Christ], in whom he dwells — even though you still experience all the limitations of sin — you yourself experience life on God's terms. It stands to reason, doesn't it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he'll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ's! — Romans 8:10-11 MSG

In a world that is being shaken, learn how you can live free from fear in this encouraging video by pastor, Gregory A. Johnson.

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For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. Romans 8:16-18 NLT

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the LORD. Psalm 119:1 NLT

"Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." — Jesus, John 3:20-21

"Continue in me and I will continue in you. No branch can make fruit alone. It must continue in the vine. It is the same with you. You cannot make fruit alone. You must continue in me. I am the vine and you are the branches. If a person continues in me and I continue in that person, then that person will make much fruit. But without me that person can do nothing." — Jesus, John 15:4-5 ERV

"If a person does not continue in me, then he is like a branch that is thrown away. That branch dies. People pick up dead branches, throw them into the fire, and burn them. Continue in me and follow my teachings. If you do this, then you can ask for anything you want, and it will be given to you." — Jesus, John 15:6-7 ERV

"You should make much fruit and show that you are my followers. This brings glory to my Father." — Jesus, John 15:8

"I loved you like the Father loved me. Now continue in my love. I have obeyed my Father's commands, and I continue in his love. In the same way, if you obey my commands, you will continue in my love." — Jesus, John 15:9-10 ERV

"I have told you these things so that you can have the true happiness that I have. I want you to be completely happy. This is what I command you: Love each other like I have loved you. The greatest love a person can show is to die for his friends. You are my friends if you do the things I tell you to do."  —  Jesus, John 15:11-14

"But the time is coming -- indeed it's here now -- when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth.” — Jesus

"I have many more things to say to you. But those things are too much for you to accept now. But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you into all truth. The Spirit of truth will not speak his own words. He will speak only what he hears. He will tell you the things that will happen. The Spirit of truth will bring glory to me. How? He will get things from me and tell them to you. All the things that the Father has are mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will get things from me and tell them to you." — Jesus, John 16:12-15

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

"In that day you will not ask me for anything. I tell you the truth. My Father will give you anything you ask for in my name. You have never asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive. And you will be truly happy. I have told you these things, using words that hide the meaning. But the time will come when I will not use words like that to tell you things. I will speak to you in plain words about the Father. In that day you will ask the Father for things in my name. I am saying that I will not need to ask the Father for you. No! The Father himself loves you. He loves you because you have loved me. And he loves you because you have believed that I came from God." — Jesus, John 16:23-27

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. — Colossians 3:23-24

For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. — 1 Peter 3:18

"We cannot thank Jesus enough for all he has done for us and all that he is doing for us. He came into our word and made the way to bring us to God. Thank you, Jesus!" — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:20-22

As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children-- with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts. Psalm 103:15-18

"The love of the Lord is forever with the faithful and the righteousness of the Lord is with their descendants. Beloved, be faithful to the Lord and his word. Be faithful." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help. Psalm 86:5

"Never fail to ask the Lord for help. You can do so throughout each day. As we ask the Lord for help, he wraps us in blankets of love and forgiveness, pouring his goodness upon us as we live dependent on him." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Living in a famine of truth in a day when fear threatens to overcome our society, learn how you can build hope within you in this short encouraging video by Pastor Gregory A. Johnson.

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Related Video: There Is Hope in a Famine of Truth

Life can be very challenging at times. Stress, panic, and fear threaten to destroy minds and bodies as people struggle to make it from day to day. Watch as Pastor Gregory A. Johnson describes the one reason why you made it through the night and how you will make it through any crises that come your way.

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So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.
Galatians 5:1

"Jesus set us free from the Old Testament law, giving us a new commandment of love — loving God and loving one another. Love God with everything you have and love others as Jesus loves you. It is how you stay free." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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"Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing." — Jesus, John 15:15

"Christ-followers depend on the one they follow, finding in him all that they need, staying connected with him, realizing that it is Jesus at work within and through them, doing good." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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[Jesus] unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” Luke 4:17-19

"His mission is defined by Scripture. His focus is on the marginalized. His anointing is by the Holy Spirit. Jesus comes into our world, calling us to follow him." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Watch as Pastor Gregory A. Johnson declares that there is hope in a famine of truth and where you will find it.

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God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives. 1 Thessalonians 4:7

"It is not optional. We are called to it. In these times of disregard for Scripture, we can do it. God never calls us to do what cannot be accomplished. As we follow Jesus, relying on the Holy Spirit he deposits within us, we live holy lives." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live." Luke 10:25-28

"Jesus sums up that the life of a Christ-follower is all about love, loving God with your whole being and loving others as yourself. This is the fruit of a genuine Christ-follower. According to Jesus, they will inherit eternal life." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:6, NLT

"Throughout life, I'm confident that Jesus pursues us. He comes looking for us, calling us, keeping us on the right path in our tendency to lose focus and veer, helping us along the way, leading us closer to our destination." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. 
Isaiah 43:16, 18-19

"Pray for your needs, knowing that the Lord will make a way for you. Don’t dwell on past failures and mistakes. Pray, expecting a bright future. It may not be in your timing nor the way you imagine, but the Lord is making a way. Follow him." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. — James 1:27

"We are to live and love as Christ did. Following Jesus, walking in holiness, helping those at their point of need, touching those who are often forgotten and overlooked, we are to live for Jesus. That is what being a Christ-follower is all about." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:4-5

"Jesus has done more for us than we think we deserve. He believes in us more than we do. He sees our bright future while we focus on present woes. He knows we are created in God's image while we see ourselves and others as less. Jesus loves us." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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[ Fulfilling the Law Through Love ] Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8

"It is all about Love. God loves us so much, he came into our world — Jesus lived as our example, died for our sins, was resurrected, and gives us eternal life. We live to follow Christ, fulfilling God's word as we love others." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org.

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If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:8-9

"We all are sinners, but Jesus has given us his spirit, the Holy Spirit, to help us with our sin problem. So, we have supernatural help available to us and the power of confession. As we confess our sins to Jesus, he not only forgives, but he also cleanses us from all unrighteousness. Thank you, Jesus!" — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

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You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.

"Life brings ups and downs, good times and bad times. As you follow Christ, you can rest assured that he will give you direction when you don’t know where to turn, he will bless you with his presence even when others shun you, and you can look forward to living with him forever." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org #ThankYouJesus

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39 

"God's love for you was completed at the cross of Christ. Nothing can take his love from you. There is nothing you can do to make God love you any more or any less. It is finished. Live in his Love, allowing it to flow through you." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

Learn how you can successfully navigate life in this encouraging three-minute video with Pastor Gregory A. Johnson.

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And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. Acts 2:47

"Jesus started the church with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. It is not a building or a weekly service, although these are good. Jesus builds his church one follower at a time. Christ-followers are the church."  — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. — Jesus, Matthew 16:18

"Jesus is the first to mention the church. He says it is his, that he will build it, and that nothing is able to destroy it. His teachings and actions reveal his church to us. It is made up of Christ-followers who will not be conquered by evil and hate. Not now. Not ever." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20

"As we follow Christ, he makes us more like him. That's our desire—to become more like Jesus. He does this work by his spirit that he deposits within us. It is finished when we leave this earth, becoming more than we can ever imagine or have prayed. The glory is his alone." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in God's word I hope. Psalm 130:5

"Because I believe God’s word, I wait. Because I long for Jesus to come, I wait. Instead of wishing for, I fully expect God to keep his promises. It keeps me going when I no longer want to go, during the times I think I can wait no longer. I wait." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, Founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. — Philippians 2:3, NIV

"Jesus walked this earth considering others better than himself. Leaving the glory of heaven, being birthed into poverty, coming into our world, Jesus walked in humility. His point-of-need ministry and his self-sacrificing life is the pattern for all to follow." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

The Bible, God’s word to us, is full of promises. With those promises come conditions. For example, the promise is that our prayers will be answered. The condition attached to that promise is... Learn more in this two-minute encouraging video by Pastor Gregory A. Johnson.

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Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 1 Peter 3:8 NRSV

"As Christ’s followers, we are to see others as he does. His compassion and mercy for ALL people are to be reflected through us. There is no tolerance for hate; it is evil. We love as Jesus loves. Love defeats hate." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org

I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the Lord sustains me.

"There is one reason why you made it through the night—the Lord sustains you. Your hope rests on it getting better for you, but the good news is that the Lord is here with you now, loving you, caring for you, healing you, and saving you." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org.

There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.

"Evil does not win. It never has, and it never will. It thrives in the fear that it breeds. Do not allow it place in your day or life. Stay focused on Jesus, following him. He assures your victory today and every day as you follow him." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org.

Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me."

"Jesus is relevant to your day today. He gives direction, never steering you wrong. He speaks the truth while others deceive, saying what they think you want to hear. He gives life, both abundant and eternal. Follow Jesus today; he will lead you to the Father." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org.

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"

"Jesus, make us brave today in the midst of adversity and injustice. Give us the strength, your strength, to not cower to fear so that we can make a difference in the world today, making it a more just place to live until you come, I pray." — Pastor Gregory A. Johnson, founder of LovingGodFellowship.org #ThankYouJesus

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand.

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But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. — Jesus

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
 

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. — Jesus

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. — Jesus

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ.

Do to others as you would like them to do to you (NLT). — Jesus

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (ESV).

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life (NLT)."

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (ESV). — Jesus

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God (NRSV). — Jesus

Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me (NIV). — Jesus

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old (ESV)...

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins (ESV).

For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God (NRSV). — Jesus

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (ESV). 

Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty (NLT)."

I know the LORD is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me (NLT).

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you (ESV). — Jesus

But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you (NRSV). — Jesus

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me (NRSV).

Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit (NLT).

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another (ESV).

In all your deeds and words you should look upon this Jesus as your model. Do so whether you are walking or keeping silence or speaking, whether you are alone or with others. — Saint Bonaventure

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.  “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”  When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed (NRSV).

Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother (ESV).” 

God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. [God] is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (NRSV)."

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God (NLT).

Jesus said, "No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar, but on the lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. (NRSV)"

But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love (NRSV).

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne (NLT).

May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (ESV).

When the men had come to [Jesus], they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’” . . . And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me (NRSV).”

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (ESV).

No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light (NRSV). — Jesus

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive (ESV).

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (ESV).

He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted (ESV).

I keep the Lord always before me; 
because [the Lord] is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
my body also rests secure.

For you do not give me up to Sheol,
or let your faithful one see the Pit.

You show me the path of life.
In your presence there is fullness of joy;
​in your right hand are pleasures forevermore (NRSV).

Then [Jesus] took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood (NRSV).” 

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake (ESV).

Jesus promised his disciples three things — that they would be completely fearless, absurdly happy, and in constant trouble. — G.K. Chesterton

Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death (NLT)?

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there (NLT).

The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you (NLT).

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners (NLT).

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (ESV).

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (ESV).

Jesus said, "And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you (NRSV)."

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (ESV).

When Jesus Christ asked little children to come to him, he didn't say only rich children, or White children, or children with two-parent families, or children who didn't have a mental or physical handicap. He said, "Let all children come unto me." — Marian Wright Edelman

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life (NLT).

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples (ESV). — Jesus

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth (ESV).

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples (ESV)!

Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.The Savior - yes, the Messiah, the Lord - has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David (NSV)!

Beloved, please know today that Jesus loves you. His love for you is demonstrated at the cross. His love for you is complete; it is finished. There is nothing you have done, or can do, that will make him love you any more or any less. Bask in his love today, receiving his forgiveness for all of your confessed sin (1 John 1:9). Love and forgive others, including your enemies, as Christ loves and has forgiven you. — Gregory A. Johnson

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise (ESV)!

And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit (NRSV).

Do you wish to honor the Body of the Savior? Do not despise it when it is naked. Do not honor it in church with silk vestments while outside it is naked and numb with cold. He who said, “This is my body,” and made it so by his word, is the same that said, “You saw me hungry and you gave me no food. As you did it not to the least of these, you did it not to me.” Honor him then by sharing your property with the poor. For what God needs is not golden chalices but golden souls. — John Chrysostom

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (ESV).

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight (ESV).

I have three words for you today—you are loved. Jesus loves you so much that He died for you on an old, rugged cross. He desires to be your strength today and always. — Gregory A. Johnson

The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for he will pluck my feet out of the net (ESV).

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you (ESV). — Jesus

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life (NRSV). — Jesus 

The Kingdom includes love, grace, peace, and life with race equality, gender equality, health equality, and economic equality for all. Is this list of Kingdom attributes exhaustive? No, but it is a start, and it is based on the teachings and the life of Christ. — Gregory A. Johnson

What Jesus was offering, in other words, was not a different religious system. It was a new world order, the end of Israel's long desolation, the true and final "forgiveness of sins," the inauguration of the kingdom of god. — N.T. Wright

[Jesus] stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (NRSV)

Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through [God] who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (NRSV).

Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing (NLT). — Jesus

It is not the uniqueness of "Christianity" as a system that we defend, but the uniqueness of Christ. ... So, because in no other person but Jesus of Nazareth did God first become human (in his birth), then bear our sins (in his death), then conquer death (in his resurrection) and then enter his people (by his Spirit), he is uniquely able to save sinners. Nobody else has his qualifications. — John R. W. Stott

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last [my Redeemer] will stand upon the earth; and after my skin has been thus destroyed, then in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see on my side, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me! (ESV)

God's redemptive revelation in Scripture is necessary to saving faith and peace with God. Faith in a risen Savior is necessary if the vague stirrings toward immortality are to bring us to restful and satisfying communion with God. — A. W. Tozer

[ To the Church in Laodicea ] “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me (ESV).

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (ESV).

It is to no purpose to boast of Christ, if we have not an evidence of His graces in our hearts and lives. But unto whom He is the hope of future glory, unto them He is the life of present grace. — John Owen

[ Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith ] Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us (ESV).

To take up the cross of Christ is no great action done once for all; it consists in the continual practice of small duties which are distasteful to us. — John Henry Newman

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin (ESV).

Jesus is our mouth, through which we speak to the Father; He is our eye, through which we see the Father; He is our right hand through which we offer ourselves to the Father. Unless He intercedes, there is no intercourse with God. — St. Ambrose

Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is great: [God] was revealed in flesh, vindicated in spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory (NRSV).

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (ESV).

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen (ESV).

And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children" (NRSV).

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few (ESV). — Jesus

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord (ESV).

But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments (ESV).

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (ESV).

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (ESV).

Not only do we not know God except through Jesus Christ; We do not even know ourselves except through Jesus Christ. — Blaise Pascal

Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them (ESV).

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive (ESV).

[ Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus ] And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it (ESV).

All we want in Christ, we shall find in Christ. If we want little, we shall find little. If we want much, we shall find much; but if, in utter helplessness, we cast our all on Christ, He will be to us the whole treasury of God. — Henry Benjamin Whipple

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward (NKJV). — Jesus

Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much (NRSV). — Jesus

At his ascension our Lord entered heaven, and he keeps the door open for humanity to enter. — Oswald Chambers

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (ESV).

[ Life in the Spirit ] There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death (ESV).

Now I would remind you..., of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures (ESV).

Nails were not enough to hold God-and-man nailed and fastened on the Cross, had not love held Him there. — Catherine of Siena

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved (ESV).

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high (ESV).

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised (ESV).

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God (ESV)

For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time — to show us his grace through Christ Jesus (NLT).

Let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved (ESV).

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake (ESV).

After this Jesus went out and saw a tax collector sitting at his place for collecting taxes. His name was Levi. Jesus said to him, "Follow me!" Levi got up, left everything, and followed Jesus. Then Levi gave a big dinner for Jesus. The dinner was at Levi's house. At the table there were many tax collectors and some other people too. But the Pharisees and those men that taught the law for the Pharisees began to complain to the followers of Jesus, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and other bad people?" Jesus answered them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor. It is the sick people that need a doctor. I have not come to ask good people to change. I have come to ask bad people to change their hearts and lives!" (ERV).

We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true — even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life (NIV).

Some Christians haven't even attempted to think about whether or not they would die for Jesus because they haven't really been living for Him. — DC Talk

I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him [the Holy One] remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit — just as it has taught you, remain in him (TNIV).

[Peter said,] "Then Jesus arrived from Nazareth, anointed by God with the Holy Spirit, ready for action. He went through the country helping people and healing everyone who was beaten down by the Devil. He was able to do all this because God was with him" (MSG).

The devil said to Jesus, "If you are the Son of God, tell this rock to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written {in the Scriptures }: 'It is not just food that keeps people alive.'" (ERV)

Then the devil took Jesus and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. The devil said to Jesus, "I will make you king over all these places. You will have power over them and will get all the glory. It has all been given to me. I can give it to any person I want. I will give it all to you, if you will only worship me." Jesus answered, "It is written {in the Scriptures }: 'You must worship the Lord your God. Serve only him!'" (ERV)

[Jesus said,] "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere — in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (TNIV).

Christians were never meant to be normal. We’ve always been holy troublemakers, we’ve always been creators of uncertainty, agents of dimension that’s incompatible with the status quo; we do not accept the world as it is, but we insist on the world becoming the way that God wants it to be. And the Kingdom of God is different from the patterns of this world. — Jacques Ellul

You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot (NRSV). — Jesus 

When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life (NLT).

Peter said to Jesus, "We left everything to follow you!" Jesus said, "I tell you the truth. Every person that has left his home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or farm for me and for the Good News will get a hundred times more than he left. Here in this world that person will get more homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and farms. And with those things, that person will have persecutions. But he will also have a reward in the world that is coming. That reward is life forever" (ERV).

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things (NIV).

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others-the armies of heaven-praising God and saying, "Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased." (NLT)

Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them...; 'Don't be afraid!' he said. 'I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior - yes, the Messiah, the Lord - has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!' (NLT).

[As the prophet has written:] "But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel" (NIV).

[Jesus said] "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (NIV)." 

Then [Jesus] looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh (NRSV)."

Jesus saw what happened. He did not like his followers telling the children not to come. Jesus said to them, "Let the little children come to me. Don't stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to people that are like these little children" (ERV).

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin (NIV).

If your hand makes you sin, cut it off. It is better for you to lose part of your body but have life forever. That is much better than to have two hands and go to hell. In that place the fire never stops. If your foot makes you sin, cut it off. It is better for you to lose part of your body but have life forever. That is much better than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. If your eye makes you sin, take it out. It is better for you to have only one eye but have life forever. That is much better than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell. The worms that eat the people in hell never die. In hell the fire is never stopped (Mark 9:43-48 ERV). ~ Jesus 

All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever (NIV).

Salt is good. But if the salt loses its salty taste, then you can't make it salty again. So, be full of goodness. And have peace with each other (ERV). -- Jesus

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? (NIV)

Then Jesus took a small child. Jesus stood the child before the followers. Jesus held the child in his arms and said, "If a person accepts children like these in my name, then that person is also accepting me. And if a person accepts me, then that person is also accepting the One (God) that sent me" (ERV).

Jesus sat down and called the twelve apostles to him. Jesus said, "If any person wants to be the most important, then he must make all other people more important than himself. That person must serve all other people" (ERV).

Jesus saw that all the people were running there to see what was happening. So Jesus spoke to the evil spirit. Jesus said, "You evil spirit that makes this boy deaf and stops him from talking--I command you to come out of this boy and never enter him again!" The {evil} spirit screamed. The spirit caused the boy to fall on the ground again, and then the spirit came out. The boy looked like he was dead. Many people said, "He is dead!" But Jesus held the boy's hand and helped him stand. (ERV)

May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

-- Galatians 6:14 NIV

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

-- Jesus, Matthew 6:6 NIV

Then a cloud came and covered them. A voice came from the cloud and said, "This (Jesus) is my Son and I love him. Obey him!"

-- Mark 9:7 ERV

If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.

-- Jesus, Matthew 18:8 NIV

"Holiness consists in doing God’s will joyfully. Faithfulness makes saints. The spiritual life is a union with Jesus: the divine and the human giving themselves to each other. The only thing Jesus asks of us is to give ourselves to him, in total poverty and total self-forgetfulness."

-- Mother Teresa

On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water."

-- John 7:37 NRSV

Then Jesus said, "I tell you the truth. Some of you people standing here will see the kingdom of God come before you die. The kingdom of God will come with power."

-- Mark 9:1 ERV

Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

-- Luke 5:31-32 NIV

"It is worth nothing for a person to have the whole world, if he loses his soul {in hell}. A person could never pay enough to buy back his soul."

-- Jesus, Mark 8:36-37 ERV

"The person that wants to save his life will lose it. And every person that gives his life for me and for the Good News will save his life forever."

-- Jesus, Mark 8:35 ERV

Then Jesus called the people to him. His followers were also there. Then Jesus said, "If any person wants to follow me, he must say 'No' to the things he wants. That person must accept the cross (suffering) that is given to him, and he must follow me.

-- Mark 8:34 ERV

After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.

-- Luke 5:27 NIV

Then Jesus began to teach his followers that the Son of Man must suffer many things. Jesus taught that the Son of Man would not be accepted by the older Jewish leaders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law. Jesus taught that the Son of Man must be killed and then rise from death after three days.

-- Mark 8:31 ERV

I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

-- John 5:25 NIV

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

-- 2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV

So Jesus held the blind man's hand and led him out of the village. Then Jesus spit on the man's eyes. Jesus put his hands on the blind man and asked him, "Can you see now?" The blind man looked up and said, "Yes, I see people. They look like trees walking around." Again Jesus put his hands on the blind man's eyes. Then the man opened his eyes wide. His eyes were healed, and he was able to see everything clearly. Jesus told him to go home. Jesus said, "Don't go into the town."

-- Mark 8:23-26 ERV

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

-- Jesus, Matthew 5:16 NIV

Jesus put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."

-- Matthew 13:31-32 NRSV

Then Jesus asked them, "How many loaves of bread do you have?" The followers answered, "We have seven loaves of bread." Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. Then Jesus took the seven loaves and gave thanks to God. Jesus divided the bread and gave the pieces to his followers. Jesus told the followers to give the bread to the people. The followers obeyed him. The followers also had a few small fish. Jesus gave thanks for the fish and told the followers to give the fish to the people.

-- Mark 8:5-7 ERV

Another time there were many people {with Jesus}. The people had nothing to eat. So Jesus called his followers to him. Jesus said, "I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me for three days. And now they have nothing to eat. I should not send them home hungry. If they leave without eating, they will faint while going home. Some of these people live a long way from here."

-- Mark 8:1-3 ERV

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

-- Matthew 28:18-20 TNIV

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ...

-- Romans 5:1 NIV

"So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven -- except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven. Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come."

-- Jesus, Matthew 12:31-32 NLT

Then Jesus left the people and went into the house. The followers asked Jesus about this story. Jesus said, "You still have trouble understanding? Surely you know that nothing that enters a person from the outside can make him wrong. Food does not go into a person's mind. Food goes into the stomach. Then that food goes out of the body." (When Jesus said this, he meant that there is no food that is wrong for people to eat.)

-- Mark 7:17-19 ERV

Jesus called the people to him again. He said, "Every person should listen to me and understand what I am saying. There is nothing a person puts into his body that makes him wrong. A person is made wrong by the things that come from him."

-- Mark 7:14-16 ERV

The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God’s Spirit -- it looked like a dove -- descending and landing on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.”

-- Matthew 3:16-17 msg

"It is [Jesus] whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil and struggle with all the energy that he powerfully inspires within me."

-- Colossians 1:28-29 NRSV

Jesus and his followers went across the lake. They came to shore at Gennesaret. They tied the boat there. When they were out of the boat, the people saw Jesus. They knew who he was. The people ran {to tell other people} everywhere in that area {that Jesus was there}. The people brought sick people on beds to every place Jesus went. Jesus went into towns and cities and farms around that area. And every place Jesus went, the people brought sick people to the market places. They begged Jesus to let them touch any part of his coat. And all the people that touched him were healed.

-- Mark 6:53-56 ERV

That night, the boat was still in the middle of the lake. Jesus was alone on the land. Jesus saw the boat far away on the lake. He saw the followers working hard to row the boat. The wind was blowing against them. Sometime between three and six o'clock in the morning, Jesus went to the boat. Jesus was walking on the water. Jesus continued walking until he was almost past the boat. But the followers saw Jesus walking on the water. They thought he was a ghost. The followers shouted with fear. All the followers saw Jesus and were very afraid. But Jesus spoke to the followers and said, "Don't worry! It's me! Don't be afraid."

-- Mark 6:47-50 ERV

Then Jesus said to the followers, "Tell all the people to sit in groups on the green grass." So all the people sat in groups. There were about 50 or 100 people in each group. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish. He looked up to the sky and thanked God for the bread. Then Jesus divided the bread and gave it to his followers. Jesus told his followers to give the bread to the people. Then Jesus divided the two fish and gave the fish to the people. All the people ate and were full.

-- Mark 6:39-42 ERV

Nobody worries about Christ as long as he can be kept shut up in churches. He is quite safe inside. But there is always trouble if you try and let him out.

-- G. A. Studdert Kennedy

But many people saw them leave. The people knew it was Jesus. So people from all the towns ran to the place where Jesus was going. The people were there before Jesus arrived. When Jesus arrived there, he saw many people waiting. Jesus felt sorry for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd {to care for them}. So Jesus taught the people many things.

-- Mark 6:33-34 ERV

“Those with whom Jesus identifies himself are regarded by society as misfits. And yet Jesus is that person who is hungry; Jesus is that woman who is confused and naked. Wouldn’t it be extraordinary if we all discovered that? The face of the world would be changed.”

-- Jean Vanier from, From Brokenness to Community

But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.

-- Galatians 4:4

It is not the business of the church to adapt Christ to men, but men to Christ.

-- Dorothy Sayers

The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David's family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord.

-- Romans 1:3-4 nlt

The woman thought, "If I can touch his clothes, that will be enough to heal me." When the woman touched his coat, her bleeding stopped. The woman felt that her body was healed from the suffering.

-- Mark 5:28-29 ERV

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit.

-- 1 Peter 3:18 tniv

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations."

-- Isaiah 42:1 TNIV

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

-- Isaiah 11:1-2 ESV

"Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that [God] in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses."

-- Jesus, Mark 11:25 NRSV

by Gregory A. Johnson

Not just during the Easter season, but each day, we are confronted with the cross of Christ and the empty tomb. What do they mean? Why are they so significant?

In the 1800's Ralph E. Hudson wrote the chorus to the sacred hymn, At the Cross: "At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by faith I received my sight, and now I am happy all the day!"

• At the cross, we realize how much God loves us (Romans 5:8).
• At the cross, we are justified and saved from God’s wrath (Romans 5:9).
• At the cross, we are reconciled to God (Romans 5:10).
• At the cross, we experience forgiveness of sins (Luke 23:34).

Continue reading >>

This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ's suffering and his great glory afterward.

-- 1 Peter 1:10-11 NLT

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.

-- Romans 3:21-22 NIV

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you -- even Jesus.

-- Acts 3:19-20 NIV

And we, who with unveiled faces all [contemplate and] reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

-- 2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV

Jesus stood up and commanded the wind and the waves to stop. Jesus said, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind stopped and the lake became calm.

-- Mark 4:39 ERV

Then Jesus said, "What can I use to show you what the kingdom of God is like? What story can I use to explain it? The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. The mustard seed is the smallest seed that you plant in the ground. But when you plant this seed, it grows and becomes the largest of all the plants in your garden. It has branches that are very big. The wild birds can come and make nests there and be protected from the sun."

-- Mark 4:30-32 ERV

Then Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is like a man that plants seed in the ground. The seed begins to grow. It grows night and day. It is not important if the man is sleeping or awake; the seed still grows. The man does not know how the seed grows. Without any help, the ground grows grain. First the plant grows, then the head, and then all the grain in the head. When the grain is ready, the man cuts it. This is the harvest time."

-- Mark 4:26-29 ERV

Then Jesus said to them, "Do you take a lamp and hide it under a bowl or under a bed? No! You put the lamp on a lamp table. Everything that is hidden will be made clear. Every secret thing will be made known."

-- Mark 4:21-22, ERV

by Gregory A. Johnson

Every year, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and continues until Easter. Spanning approximately six weeks, it is a wonderful season on the Christian calendar, being observed by Christ’s followers, Protestants and Catholics alike, who desire to fast something in recognition of our Lord's sacrifice for us.

It is good to give the cost of what is given-up during Lent to the work of the ministry, and the time associated with what you give up to works of faith and justice (Isaiah 58:6-11 ESV).

What are you giving up for Lent? The Spirit within you will help you decide as you pray and ask the Lord.

Continue reading >>

"[Jesus] said also to the one who had invited him, ‘When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.’"

-- Luke 14:12-14 NRSV

I tell you the truth. All sins that people do can be forgiven. And all the bad things people say against God can be forgiven. But any person that says bad things against (refuses to accept) the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. He will always be guilty of that sin." Jesus said this because the teachers of the law said that Jesus had an evil spirit (devil) inside him.

-- Mark 3:28-30 (ERV)

I am thankful that we are one day closer to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Media has utilized the date-setting false prophets of our day to desensitize society to the reality of the return of Christ, but that does not negate its truth. I feel the Holy Spirit compelling me, more and more, to remind people that Christ is returning as he promised, and we are to always be ready.

So many in our day, both inside and outside the walls of the church building, base what is right from wrong on what feels good, what is socially acceptable, what media and Hollywood suggests, instead of on Scripture. They are not hearing much different coming from behind the pulpits, and they are not reading the Bible on their own. Many go to church and only hear about receiving God's blessings. This bless-me-and-all-that-I-do message mimics many of the books written today by popular television preachers. Continue Reading >>

-- Jesus Christ Will Return, by Gregory A. Johnson

Jesus answered, "You have read what David did when he and the people with him were hungry and needed food. It was during the time of Abiathar the high priest. David went into God's house and ate the bread that was offered to God. And the law {of Moses} says that only priests can eat that bread. David also gave some of the bread to those people with him." Then Jesus said to the Pharisees, "The Sabbath day was made to help people. People were not made to be ruled by the Sabbath day."

-- Mark 2:25-27 ERV

Jesus went to the lake again. Many people followed him there. So Jesus taught them. Jesus was walking beside the lake, and he saw a man named Levi, son of Alphaeus. Levi was sitting at his place for collecting taxes. Jesus said to him, "Follow me." Then Levi stood up and followed Jesus.

-- Mark 2:13-14 ERV

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because [God] has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. [God] has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor."

-- Jesus, Luke 4:18-19 NRSV

A man that had leprosy came to Jesus. The man bowed on his knees and begged Jesus, "You have the power to heal me if you want." Jesus felt sorry for the man. So Jesus touched the man and said, "I want to heal you. Be healed!" Immediately the leprosy disappeared, and he was healed.

-- Mark 1:40-42, ERV

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy -- to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

-- Jude 1:24-25 NIV

"The good news of the resurrection of Jesus is not that we shall die and go home to be with him, but that he has risen and comes home with us, bringing all his hungry, naked, thirsty, sick prisoner [brothers and sisters] with him."

-- Clarence Jordan

"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you."

-- Jesus, Matthew 5:38-42

The people were amazed. They asked each other, "What is happening here? This man is teaching something new. And he teaches with authority (power)! He even gives commands to evil spirits, and the spirits obey him." So the news about Jesus spread quickly everywhere in the area of Galilee.

-- Mark 1:27-28 (ERV)

If you knew that only a few would care that you came, would you still come? If you knew that those you loved would laugh in your face, would you still care? If you knew that the tongues you made would mock you, the mouths you made would spit at you, the hands you made would crucify you, would you still make them? Christ did.

-- Max Lucado

Jesus replied, "I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life."

-- John 3:5-6 nlt

​

Jesus and his followers went to Capernaum. On the Sabbath day Jesus went into the synagogue and taught the people. The people there were amazed at Jesus' teaching. Jesus did not teach like their teachers of the law. Jesus taught like a person that had authority (power).

-- Mark 1:21-22 ERV

Jesus was walking by Lake Galilee. Jesus saw Simon and Simon's brother, Andrew. These two men were fishermen, and they were throwing a net into the lake to catch fish. Jesus said to them, "Come and follow me. I will make you {a different kind of} fishermen. You will work to gather people, {not fish}." So Simon and Andrew left their nets and followed Jesus.

-- Mark 1:16-18 (ERV)

While [Joseph and Mary] were [in Bethlehem], the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

-- Luke 2:6-7 NIV

You, however, are not controlled by the sinful nature but are in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.

-- Romans 8:9 tniv

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

-- 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 NIV

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

-- Ephesians 3:20-21 tniv

If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

-- 1 John 1:7

The real danger of legalism is that it produces a sense of attainment that short-circuits our call to live the life of Yes through Christ. Self-achievement brings a false sense of assurance that somehow we can live a pure life in our own ability. This attitude ultimately leads us to cut ourselves off from the heart of God and, in turn, to deny our true identity in Christ.

-- David Edwards

The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

-- Hebrews 1:3

[Jesus said,] "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

-- Luke 11:13 tniv

The Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begins with what the prophet Isaiah said would happen. Isaiah wrote: "Listen! I (God) will send my helper ahead of you. He will prepare the way for you." "There is a person shouting in the desert: 'Prepare the way for the Lord. Make his paths straight.'"

-- Mark 1:1-3 (ERV)

He [the Word, Jesus] was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

-- John 1:2-3

He (Jesus) gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time.

-- 1 Timothy 2:6, NLT

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

-- John 1:14, NIV

"For [God] delivers the needy when they call, the poor and those who have no helper. [God] has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy. From oppression and violence [God] redeems their life; and precious is their blood in [God's] sight."

-- Psalm 72:12-14

What we do is very little. But it is like the little boy with a few loaves and fishes. Christ took that little and increased it. [Christ] will do the rest. What we do is so little that we may seem to be constantly failing. But so did [Christ] fail. [Christ] met with apparent failure on the Cross. But unless the seeds fall into the earth and die, there is no harvest. 

-- Dorothy Day

And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross -- not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony.

-- 1 John 5:6 nlt

"The Word became flesh," John said ... He was touchable, approachable, reachable. And, what's more, he was ordinary. If he were here today you probably wouldn't notice him as he walked through a shopping mall. He wouldn't turn heads by the clothes he wore or the jewelry he flashed. "Just call me Jesus," you can almost hear him say.

-- Max Lucado

During the day, Jesus taught the people in the temple area. At night he went out of the city and stayed all night on the Mount of Olives. Every morning all the people got up early to go listen to Jesus at the temple.

-- Luke 21:37-38 ERV

Those who willingly receive God’s grace are forever transformed. They cease to do whatever they want to do and begin to do what Jesus Christ has for them to do. They no longer live for self; they deny self and follow Christ.

There is no better example of this transformation than the one recorded in Acts 9:1-9 of God’s word. A dramatic, definable, and undeniable change takes place in Saul, who would later be named the Apostle Paul.

Saul was living for self, believing in his interpretation of Old Testament Scripture and the prophets. Jesus did not fit Saul’s understanding of what the Scripture said of the Messiah. Saul and his religious buddies believed that the teachings and claims of Jesus were radical and threatened changes to the Law and the Temple. Saul was at the trial of Stephen where the frustrations of the religionists with the early Christ-followers came to a violent climax and ended in the stoning death of Stephen (Acts 6:8-7:60).

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How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

-- Jesus, Matthew 7:4-5 NIV

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does.

-- James 1:23-25 NIV

Jesus saw some rich people putting their gifts for God into the temple money box. Then Jesus saw a poor widow. She put two small copper coins into the box. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth. This poor widow gave only two small coins. But she really gave more than all those rich people. The rich people have plenty; they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor. But she gave all she had. And she needed that money to help her live."

-- Luke 21:1-4 ERV

Jesus said to the Sadducees, "On earth, people marry each other. Some people will be worthy to be raised from death and live again after this life. In that life they will not marry. In that life people are like angels and cannot die. They are children of God, because they have been raised from death. Moses clearly showed that people are raised from death. When Moses wrote about the burning bush, he said that the Lord is 'the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' {If God said he is their God, then} these men are not really dead. He is God only of living people. All people that belong to God are alive." Some of the teachers of the law said, "Teacher, your answer was very good." No person was brave enough to ask him another question.

-- Luke 20:34-40 ERV

"The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread."

-- 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 NRSV

But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

-- Jesus, Matthew 5:44-45 NIV

Some people think that faith is believing that God will do what you want him to do—if you pray and believe, God will act in the way you want him to act on behalf of your situation or circumstance. They have been taught that if you mix some fasting with praying and believing, you can really get God’s attention, and he will do more of what you want him to do. With this type of thinking, glory is given to the individual who can supposedly move God into action. A true move of God will be in such a way that only God receives the glory.

Faith is believing that God will keep his word, doing what is right because he is in control and loves his children. It is in prayer where we receive more of his grace and mercy in our time of need as we release all of our worries and anxieties to him. Our human nature tries to hold on to them, but his nature is to bear them all if we just release them to him.

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"Holiness consists in doing God’s will joyfully. Faithfulness makes saints. The spiritual life is a union with Jesus: the divine and the human giving themselves to each other. The only thing Jesus asks of us is to give ourselves to [God], in total poverty and total self-forgetfulness."

-- Mother Teresa, from The Love of Christ

When the followers heard this, they were very surprised. They asked, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at his followers and said, "This is something that people cannot do themselves. But God can do all things."

— Matthew 19:25-26 ERV

We wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

-- Titus 2:13-14 NIV

[Jesus said,] "I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative -- that is, the Holy Spirit -- he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. I am leaving you with a gift -- peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid."

-- John 14:25-27 NIV

We fear the search for who we are. Perhaps because we're afraid that having located our true souls, we might not like ourselves that much. So, we shrink to step across the threshold to our inner selves and invite God in.... But no matter how we love the busy world of our relationships, the fast-action theater of our noisy and hurried lives at last empties out. Then we find ourselves in lonely cells of bulky silence that compels us to turn from the outer things and face our inner selves -- and our mighty God. (A Hunger for the Holy: Nuturing Intimacy with Christ )

-- Calvin Miller

"Suppose a woman has ten silver coins, but she loses one of them. The woman will take a light and clean the house. She will look carefully for the coin until she finds it. And when she finds the lost coin, she will call her friends and neighbors and say to them, 'Be happy with me because I have found the coin that I lost!' In the same way, the angels of God are very happy when one sinner changes his heart."

-- Jesus, Luke 15:8-10 (ERV)

God has made a way for us to have eternal life through Jesus Christ. We can walk with Him every day, and one day He will take us to be with Him forever. God taking Enoch typifies the great gathering in the sky with the LORD that is to come for Christ-followers. Read more...

[Jesus said,] "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere -- in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

-- Acts 1:8 nlt

Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.

-- 2 Corinthians 2:14

Zacchaeus said to the Lord (Jesus), "I want to do good. I will give half of my money to the poor. If I have cheated any person, I will pay that person back four times more!" Jesus said, "Today is the day for this family to be saved from sin. Yes, even this tax collector is one of God's chosen people!"

-- Luke 19:8-9 ERV

"Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars: 'I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive -- but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God.'"

-- Jesus, Revelation 3:1-2 nlt

Jesus was going through the city of Jericho. In Jericho there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a wealthy, very important tax collector. He wanted to see who Jesus was. There were many other people that wanted to see Jesus too. Zacchaeus was too short to see above the people. So he ran to a place where he knew Jesus would come. Then Zacchaeus climbed a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus. When Jesus came to that place, Jesus looked up and saw Zacchaeus in the tree. Jesus said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry! Come down! I must stay at your house today."

-- Luke 19:1-5 ERV

"In the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. Then Peter remembered and said to [Jesus], ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you."

-- Mark 11:20-23 NRSV