WHY YOU SHOULD BELIEVE AND TRUST JESUS CHRIST

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This is the prayer Jesus prayed to His Heavenly Father knowing He would be tortured and crucified the following day.

I would urge you to carefully read what it says and means considering the following: 1. In the context of Jesus’ life on Earth as recorded by His disciples, 2. His disciples all gave up their lives rather than deny the truth of Jesus Christ and His Word. 3. Jesus changed the world dramatically, B.C. and A.D., as many nations accepted the Judaeo Christian worldview, 4. The fact that there are over 300 prophecies by Old Testament prophets of Jesus’ first coming to Earth that were fulfilled to the letter. 5. There are more than 1,000 prophecies of Jesus’ second coming to Earth and I would suggest that they will be fulfilled exactly as the prophecies of Jesus’ first coming were fulfilled. Many have already been fulfilled, particularly one major one – the re-establishment of the nation of Israel in 1948. Biblical prophecies tell us that Jesus will return with the glorified Saints to rescue the nation of Israel at the prophesied battle of Armageddon. Prior to 1948 Israel as a nation did not exist. In the second century AD, the Romans crushed the revolt of Shimon Bar Kokhba (132 AD) during which Jerusalem and Judea were regained and the land of Judea was renamed Palaestina in an attempt to minimize Jewish identification with the land.

JESUS HIGH PRIESTLY PRAYER

“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.
“I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake, I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” John 17:1-26

You have to be blinded by the evil one if you cannot see the truth of these wonderful words. The truth about the one who spoke them and the truth of our Heavenly Father to whom Jesus spoke this prayer. What a wonderful God we have. How awesome it is that He loves us to the extent that He does.

LOVING THE UNLOVELY

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Don’t you wonder about the people who sought out Christ? Do you think they all were kind and loving or isn’t it reasonable to believe that, among the large crowds of people who clamored for His attention, there were more than a few who were unkind and maybe downright cruel?

The Bible makes one thing plain: pretty much all of them were out for themselves and didn’t care about the Person easing their suffering or what would happen to Him afterward.

The “many” that he cured were conspicuously absent at His trials and crucifixion.

This fact coupled with Jesus’ healing sessions brings to life a statement in Luke that reads, “for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men” (Luke 6:35).

In their commentary on the passage, Hendriksen & Kistemaker say, “The ungrateful are those who do not from the heart thank God for the blessings he bestows on them … They fail to complete the circle; that is, when blessings drop down from heaven upon them, they do not make any return in the form of humble praises rising from earth to heaven.”

But then Jesus said all of us were evil in His Sermon on the Mount (“If you, then, being evil…” — Matt. 7:11). 

You see where I’m going with this, right? As Christ’s followers, we’re asked to serve both the lovely and the unlovely. C. S. Lewis reminds us that, “with Christian morals ‘thy neighbor’ includes ‘thy enemy.’”

Now, when we imitate Christ in that way and are “merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36) to the unkind who are unbelievers and “bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just to please ourselves” (Rom. 15:1-3), there are two possible outcomes. One is that our acts of kindness are used by God to change their heart, lead them to Him, and ultimately alter the person’s eternal destination. Does that happen? You betcha.

For example, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Brian Johnson, the lead singer of the rock band AC/DC, talked about his upbringing in Dunston, England, which he described as “drab, hard, distant, and unwelcoming.” But when he was put into a different environment with a family that was loving and warm, he said “life there knocked the cruel out of you.”

The Jewish scholar Philip Holley had a similar experience while investigating Nazi war crimes, which made him so angry and depressed that he almost committed suicide. But when he read about a small village that showed courage and the love of God by rescuing 5,000 Jewish children during the holocaust, Holley described his internal breakthrough as “heart-cracking goodness.”

The other possibility, sadly, is that the expressions of help and love delivered have no change in the person’s heart whatsoever. Then, it’s not so much about them as it is about ourselves — God is using the same experiences His Son underwent with the heartless to uncomfortably mold us into His image.

On this point, it’s Lewis again who says: “Whenever we do good to another self, just because it is a self, made (like us) by God, and desiring its own happiness as we desire ours, we shall have learned to love it a little more or, at least, to dislike it less.”

What about us?

Let’s finish by switching gears and, instead of talking about us as caregivers to someone else, how about we chat about you and me being the patient?

If Christ doesn’t return in our lifetime, it’s going to happen to each of us. We’ll be the ones – hurting, unhappy, frustrated, and wishing for something better. How will we treat those around us at that time?

I know an elderly woman who has been a widow for decades now. If anyone asks me what a Christian is supposed to look like, I aim them at her. I check in on her from time to time and a few weeks back she wasn’t as prompt in getting back to me as usual. I got worried and pinged her again, and after a day or so I was relieved to see her come up on my caller-ID. I asked how she’d been and she said, “Oh Robin, this has been a hard summer for me.” But then she stopped abruptly and said, “But Robin, I’m content. I’m thankful for what I do have. I just want God to use me in any way He can.” Immediately, she then did a 180 and asked, “Now tell me about how you’re doing. How is Laura [my wife]? How are your girls? What’s new with them?” Having questioned me about myself and family for a while, she then moved on to God. “Tell me what new devotions you’re reading. How is your church? What is on your heart these days?” Having gotten answers on all those subjects, she wrapped up our call by saying, “Now let me pray for us” and did so by thanking God for our relationship and Christ who is our salvation. And yes, she’s like that with everyone.  

Do you know what’s the saddest thing I hear from those who minister to the mean and nasty that are dying? Sooner or later, they say, “I hate to say it, but right now, I’m not going to miss them when they’re gone.” Question: how do you think my widow friend who’s hurting right now will be remembered? Do you think she’ll be missed? She’ll be loved, missed, and remembered for who she is — an image bearer of Jesus. It’s my prayer that you and I can be filled by the Holy Spirit each day like she is so that, no matter our circumstances, we can be remembered the exact same way.   

This article has been adapted from an article by Robin Schumacher. He is an accomplished software executive and Christian apologist who has written many articles, authored and contributed to several Christian books

HOW JESUS CHANGES LIVES

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Jesus will love you into His Kingdom. This is a great authentic testimony from a girl who was living the gay lifestyle. You just know that she experienced the love of God in how she relates His dealings with her. How gracious and forgiving, He was at all stages of her journey and despite one major backslip.

Delafé Testimonies is a global evangelistic project with the mission of creating the world’s largest archive of Jesus’ testimonies. Their vision is to save souls, build community, and set people free through the testimony of Jesus. One of the ministries God has raised up for these last days prior to Jesus’ return.

https://youtu.be/jCAoIUEvToM

DO YOU KNOW THE EXTENT OF GOD’S LOVE FOR YOU?

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Why did Jesus of Nazareth endure a torturous death by crucifixion?  After all, he could have just stayed in Heaven and left us all alone to pay the penalty for our sins. Instead, “he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross”

“Who (Jesus), 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.” Philippians 2:6-8

But why? For one thing, God loves us dearly. All three persons of the Trinity were in agreement. God our heavenly Father was prepared to send His only Son to pay the penalty we deserve to pay. Jesus was prepared to make the tremendous sacrifice (incomprehensible) on our behalf and the Holy Spirit had to endure making it happen. 

“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Love is the biggest reason Jesus “endured the cross, scorning its shame” (Hebrews 12:2). 

Jesus suffered and died on the cross so that you and I could be rescued from sin, death, resurrection to face judgment, punishment, and a second death in the Lake of Fire. If we could have saved ourselves by our own righteousness, it would have been utterly foolish for the Father to send his only Son to redeem us. The fact of the matter is that Christ’s crucifixion was the only way we could be rescued. “If righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing” (Galatians 2:21). 

I assure you that the Messiah didn’t endure crucifixion for nothing! It was the only way God’s worldwide rescue mission could be accomplished!

Do you realize what happens to a person after death if their sins are not forgiven? Jesus made it very clear that the wages of sin are death. And because God does not want you to go to Hell, but rather to Heaven, he did the one thing that would save us from punishment and a second death. 

“The Father has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” Colossians 1:13-14

“Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.” Revelation 2:10-11

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” Revelation 21:8

The Bible says “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing” (1 Corinthians 1:18). We simply don’t understand any of it. It must be illuminated by the Holy Spirit working through the Word of God. The Lord opens our minds to understand the Bible, just like he did with his first disciples. “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45).

The prophet Isaiah foretold the crucifixion of Christ some 700 years prior to Jesus’ birth,

“He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds, we are healed” Isaiah 53:5)

This prophecy clearly foretold the suffering the Messiah would endure. Nevertheless, many people refuse to believe Isaiah’s message. “The 17th-century Jewish historian, Raphael Levi, admitted that long ago the rabbis used to read Isaiah 53 in synagogues, but after the chapter caused ‘arguments and great confusion,’ the rabbis decided that the simplest thing would be to just take that prophecy out of the Haftarah readings in synagogues.” So much for Biblical inerrancy.

Meanwhile, don’t forget: If Jesus had sinned even one time, he would not qualify as anyone’s Savior. In that case, he would need someone to save him. Thankfully, “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). A sinner cannot pay for anyone’s sins; a perfect sacrifice is required.

“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” 1 Peter 1:18-19

God not only forgives our sins when we accept the Messiah by faith, but he also gives us a new heart with which to love and serve our Creator.

The death of Jesus on the cross pays for our sins and reconciles us to God. When we repent of our sins, trust Jesus to forgive our sins, and are baptized, we receive the third person of the Trinity into our souls to enable us to live the Christian life and be in a right relationship with God. Apart from the cross, we would remain rebels and would lack the Holy Spirit which enters our soul the moment we are spiritually reborn (John 3:1-18). Jesus endured the Cross so that all who receive him (John 1:12) will enjoy a relationship with the Lord forever.

Have you placed your faith in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, or are you living under the delusion that your best efforts are enough to gain eternal life? If we could defeat sin and death with our own righteousness, then it would have made no sense for the Father to send his only Son to suffer such excruciating pain and unrelenting physical, spiritual, and emotional torment. 

If you have not yet bowed your knee, repented, and surrendered your heart to Christ, this is a perfect time to do so. Turn away from your sins and believe that the Messiah’s death on the cross paid the full penalty for your sins.

Repenting your sins and accepting Christ as your Savior is the path to peace with God, whereas rejecting the Messiah leaves a person on death row facing punishment and second death.

GOD’S LOVE FOR US

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God’s love for us should be the motivation that drives our life. Paul was able to say that the love of Christ controlled him, and other believers, and he gave us the reason why it did.

“For the love of Christ controls us because we have concluded this: that one has died for all … 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.

Let me add the other major reason: Jesus made it possible for our Heavenly Father to send the Holy Spirit to indwell our Spirit to be our counsellor, teacher, and comforter. The Holy Spirit produces the fruit of the Spirit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness, goodness, kindness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22). He also provides all nine gifts of the Spirit for ministry.

“God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” Hebrews 2:4

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-11

If you do not know the truth about God’s love for you, then you are missing a single most powerful force that has driven every man and woman of God who has ever walked this planet. When you realize how much God loves you, you will never lack for motivation to serve him with all your heart.

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this, the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him.” 1 John 4:7-9

Note what Paul prays that our Heavenly Father will provide for us: that the Holy Spirit will enable us to comprehend the breadth, length, height, and depth of the love of Christ so that we are filled with the fullness of God.

“He (Heavenly Father) may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have the strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.“

Paul understood this when he prayed this prayer for all the believers. Then they would be filled up to all the fullness of God so that the Spirit would work in them to do exceedingly abundantly beyond all that they had ever asked or imagined. Of all the doctrines described in God’s Word, if you miss the doctrine of love, you have missed God.

You can download the ebook “With all my love, GOD” from Jim McCotters website http://www.jimsbookstore.com

JESUS SPOKE THESE WORDS KNOWING SHORTLY HE WAS TO BE CRUCIFIED

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These words are proof positive Jesus is the Son of God and the only person you can trust for truth about this world and your eternal destiny. He spoke these words shortly before He knowingly went to the The Cross.

“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since You have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed...

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For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me… I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

We all know that Jesus twelve disciples (fishermen and tax collectors) not the Pharisees and Sadducees went on to transform Rome and then the World with the Gospel (Good News) of Jesus Christ.

Whom will you put your trust in for the truth of this world and eternal life?

WHITNEY HOUSTON SINGS JESUS LOVES YOU

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The evening before she was found dead in her Hollywood hotel room, the superstar vocalist performed an emotional rendition of “Jesus Loves Me” at the Tru nightclub in Hollywood.  “I’m gonna go see Jesus. I want to see Jesus,” she told her friends following the performance.

Her voice was truly a gift from God — and in her final performance, she used it to give him the GLORY. Even through her trials and tribulations, she knew she had a Saviour. If you’ve never seen this, watch it now.

Houston’s earliest songs were sung at church, and she often spoke of her strong Christian faith. Indeed, according to BeliefNet, Whitney spoke of “really wanting to see Jesus” shortly before her untimely death.