Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
John 6:29
**Obey Jesus
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.
John 14:15
**Teach Others About Jesus
John 21:15-17
**Serve Jesus
14If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
Three main points emerge from this verse in John 16…….
**Christ has given us His Word. He has revealed to us the principles and precepts that we need for Godly living. We have not been left without a witness from the Lord.
**We will have difficulty and trials in this world. The life of a Believer is not easy, simple, or always comfortable. Jesus told us this and we ought to believe Him.
**We can have joy knowing that Jesus has overcome the world. These trials and tribulations we face are only temporary. Jesus has defeated death, hell, and the grave. Because of those things, the victory of the Christian is secured for evermore.
“Love one another.” (John 13:34) This command is given 15 times in the New Testament. Over and over again, we, as Believers, are commanded to love one another. It is one of the most oft-repeated directives in all of Holy Scripture.
We should love one another because Christ first loved us. (1 John 4:19) Jesus’ love was shed abroad through His life, ministry, death, and resurrection. He loved us when we were far from Him. (Romans 5:8-11) Therefore, we should love one another as God has loved us. Christ’s love for us should serve as an impetus for loving our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Let us also love one another because it reflects the character of God. The Scriptures teach us that “God is love.” (1 John 4:8) Love is not optional if we desire to accurately reflect the truth of God as we seek to minister and witness to the lost. Our love for one another is a most powerful “proof” that we are in Christ. (John 13:35) People can argue with many things. But, they can’t argue with our love for one another when it is portrays the nature of God.
We ultimately love one another because it is commanded by the Word of God. The command is clear and direct. If we are Christians who take the Scriptures seriously, we must love our fellow believers.
Yes, we are called to love all people. Learning to love all people begins with learning to love our fellow Christian. It is not always easy, but, it is always worth the cost. Will you make a commitment to grow in your love for one another today?
Serving Jesus should be a burning desire within the life of a Christian. We are called, commissioned, and sent to serve Christ through serving others. This post will deal with concrete reasons we can and should serve Jesus every day. Why should we serve?
*He loves us. Christ loves us, therefore, we ought to serve Him. His love was manifested to us when were at our worst. Shouldn’t we be willing to give Him our best?
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Romans 5:8-11
*We should also minister to others because it is worth the cost. Service is never easy. We would much rather be served than serve our fellow humans. In the end, attending to the needs of others will cost us. However, it also gives us blessing, strength, and joy knowing that when we love others we are following in Christ’s footsteps. Serving Jesus is always worth the effort.
For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6
*Finally, let us serve out of our growing love for Christ. Giving ourselves to others is an expression of our love for God. Let us serve Him because we love Him.
Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You who serve Him, doing His will. Psalm 103:21
And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also. 1 John 4:21
Dear Believer, commit to serving Jesus this week. After all, it’s the least that we can do!
But You, LORD, remain forever, And Your name remains to all generations.
Psalm 102:12
**Responsive
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; You will cry for help, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
Isaiah 58:8-9
**Communicative
1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions andin many ways,2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the world.
Hebrews 1:1-2
**Active
God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders, and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.
Hebrews 2:4
**Loving
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 Corinthians 1:9
God is faithful. Even when we are not faithful to Him He is always faithful to us. He is faithful in so many ways.
**God is faithful to provide for us.
And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19
**God is faithful to be with us.
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”
John 14:18
**He is faithful to give us eternal life.
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.“I and the Father are one.”
John 10:27-30
God is indeed faithful. He never leaves us, He provides for us, and we will be with Him forever. If God is faithful, what else do we need?
What should we do while praying? Consider the following
**Thank God
Pray without ceasing.
1 Thessalonians 5:17
**Praise the Lord
Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
Hebrews 13:15
**Confess Your Sins
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
**Make Requests
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Matthew 7:7
**Intercede for Others
Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men.
1 Timothy 2:1
**Meditate on God’s Word
Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 1:1-2
**Listen to the Holy Spirit
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
False teaching is prevalent in our society. We shouldn’t be surprised as false doctrine has always been front and center since the time of Christ. How are we to respond to this as Christians? Let us ruminate on three thoughts about false teaching today. Let us think on these three sayings that fall from the lips of our Savior.
*Jesus predicted that this would happen. Throughout His ministry Jesus warned His followers often that there would be false teaching and false messiahs. Knowing this fact should help us to be wary and test everything we hear.
“For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Matthew 24:24
*We need to be prepared to deal with false teaching as Believers. We will not be able to hide from false doctrine forever. Eventually, we must confront it in love and shine for the truth.
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. Matthew 7:15
*We must know the truth of Scripture. The only way to be able to identify the false is to know the truth. When we know the truth, we can then call out the counterfeit gospels that are so rampant in our society.
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.
John 8:31-32
May God bless you all as you pursue the truth that will last for all eternity!
What is sin? That’s a good question to ask in this age of confusion. The Scriptures describe sin in several different ways. Let’s examine three of those ways for this post. **Sin is missing the mark. Romans 3:23 tells us for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Because of their sinfulness, humans fall short of God’s intentions for His creation which he designed for His glory. Therefore, the sinfulness of people masks the glory of God in humanity. **Sin is breaking God’s law. We are told in 1 John 3:4 that whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. Disobedience to God’s laws and commands is a capital offense in the Heavenly courts. Lawbreakers deserve judgment. **Finally, sin is failing to do good when the opportunity arises. The apostle James teaches therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin. (James 4:17) Christians don’t always think of failing to do good as sinfulness. Nonetheless, the Scriptures teach this principle. I am thankful that Jesus paid the price for our sin. Through His sacrifice and resurrection, sins can be forgiven and atoned. Praise to the Lord, great things He has done. Tony French
mrtonyfrench 