Believers in Jesus should know what His gospel is. If you were to ask someone to define the gospel for you, they would most likely say, ‘It means good news.’ And, that’s right. But, what specific kind of good news is it?
[Tweet “What Is the Gospel? First, it is Jesus dominion over death, hell, and the grave.”]
Jesus miracles matter, especially His first one. Every Jesus miracle matters. Here is a modern day one. In Kissimmee, Florida, a tornado lifted Jonathan Waldick, only 18 months old, from his bed. It carried him 50 feet. It injected him into a five-foot-high clump of debris that corkscrewed itself into the splintered trunk of an oak tree. And there, after a frantic, 30-minute search, Jonathan was found, only one foot visible but wiggling with life. There he was found, still cocooned in his Perfect Sleeper mattress, still resting on his purple striped sheet. Relatives and friends call Jonathan Waldick “The Miracle Baby.” They call the event “The Miracle at 1400 Fair Oaks.” One woman, Janice Gassert said, “I think God has something planned for this boy. I believe there’s a special plan.”
A few feet away, old phonograph records sat atop the wreckage, left there by the wind. It was a recording by the Raker Evangelistic Party, a gospel group. The first song on the album was called, “Oh Lord, You’ve Been So Good To Me.”1 God does all kinds of miracles, and in today’s Light on Life Podcast, we continue to look at some of them like the very first of Jesus miracles in the Gospel of John. We are going to take a look at the turning or water into wine and why it matters.
Conscience and the Inward Witness: A Look at the Spirit Led Life
[Tweet “Jesus refused to do something for the sake of the doing. He waited until it was His hour.”]
No doubt, Your parents cautioned you as a child about the disrespect involved in talking back. But there is someone on planet earth that you should talk back to every single time. He is the enemy of your soul and the hater of all things righteous. Talk back to the enemy. Backtalk devils, demons, and evil spirits. How? You do it using the prayer of faith.
[Tweet “Sickness is an attack, an enemy attack pure and simple. Will you talk back to it?”]
Ephesians 6:18 (NKJV) — 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.
Ephesians 6:18 (TNIV) — 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Mark 11:12–25 (TNIV) — 12 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13 Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14 Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.
Matthew 22:18 (NKJV) — 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?
Acts 10:38 (NKJV) — 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
2 Corinthians 9:8 (NKJV) — 8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.
19 When evening came, Jesus and his disciples went out of the city. 20 In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. 21 Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!” 22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and do not doubt in your heart but believe that what you say will happen, it will be done for you. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
It’s time to rise up with sanctified backtalk in Jesus Name. Don’t roll over when the enemies circumstances rear their head in your face. Talkback and do it with the prayer of faith.
Question: How have you successfully thwarted an attack of the enemy? Sharing your testimony will help encourage someone else in their stand against the evil one. Please share your story in the comments section below.
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There is an old rabbinical legend that illustrates how a Jesus sign can fulfill your life. It goes something like this: “When Joseph was Prime Minister to Pharaoh, during the seven years of famine, he emptied the chaff of his granaries into the Nile River. It floated far away on the moving current, and the people on the banks at a great distance below saw it. It was only chaff, but it meant that there was corn in plenty elsewhere.” When the hungry saw the floating chaff, they were sure that if their strength held out, and they could reach the point at which the chaff was thrown into the river they would find plenty to nourish their life.1
Floating chaff was a sign to a hungry people that abundance was close. Signs are indicators. They are pointers of something up ahead — locater’s you could say. People who are traveling and lost are grateful for signs. In John’s gospels, the miracles of Jesus are signs that testify to who He is. They witness to His mission to save humanity and are distinct reasons to believe in Him. Today, we focus on the very first of Jesus signs at a wedding of all places.
[Tweet “There are 7 signs and the 1st one John records happens on the 7th day: not a coincidence.”]
Here are some simple secrets you can use when you spend time talking to God. In Saudi Arabia, according to Arab custom, reinforced by a 1952 decree of King Abdul Aziz, every subject has the right of access to his ruler—whether the ruler is a tribal sheik, a governor, or the monarch himself—to present petitions of complaint or pleas for help. Even the poorest Saudi can approach his sovereign to plead a cause. Crown Prince Fahd, speaking about this custom said, “Anyone, anyone can come here. That gives them confidence in their government. They know they may look to us for help.” Every Christian has the right to approach an even greater monarch, the King of Kings.1 Every believer has the right to spend time talking to God.
[Tweet “When talking to God, don’t put on a show, use your everyday language.”]
This podcast is the New Years edition of Light On Life. January is the time of the year where people think about things like resolutions, goals, and direction for the upcoming year. Soon after the completion of Disney World, someone said, “Isn’t it too bad that Walt Disney didn’t live to see this?” Mike Vance, creative director of Disney Studios, replied, “He did see it—that’s why it’s here.” 1 Vision is seeing things invisible. Do you have a new vision for this new year?
[Tweet “Vision is a picture of what God wants to do if we get out of the way and let Him do it.”]
What does the phrase ‘Jesus is Lord’ mean? More importantly, what does it mean to you? It’s a question every believer must know since it’s what one must confess to get into God’s family. So many think ‘coming to Jesus’ is a visit to the altar with a prayer recital to God for forgiveness. They don’t realize that Jesus coming into a person’s life as Lord means they have a new boss. The boss is the one who makes the call. It’s what happens in your job when you are at work. The boss gives the direction. He sets the vision for the day. Experiencing new life in Jesus means having a new boss. It means having a new vision. Jesus calls the shots. That’s the focus of today’s post: Why Jesus is Is Lord Means He is the Boss.
Conscience and the Inward Witness: A Look at the Spirit Led Life
[Tweet “To be successful in the Christian experience, understanding what the Bible is for, is a must.”]
God’s plan was thought up and set in motion before the foundations of the world (Eph. 1:4). Particular courses of events and situations, at times, align to bring into a focus a particular aspect of God’s wisdom and plan. Today, we are going to look at the birth of Jesus in this way. We are going to look at some of the events that came into view during the Christmas story and we are going to ask a rather startling question about one of those events, the appearing of the star. Here is the question: ‘What would have happened, had the Star of Bethlehem not appeared?’
[Tweet “God’s plan for your life was thought up and set in motion before the foundations of the world.”]
“A Visit from St. Nicholas”, more commonly known as “The Night Before Christmas” and “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously in 1823 and later attributed to Clement Clarke Moore, who claimed authorship in 1837. Some commentators now believe the poem was written by Henry Livingston Jr. The poem has been called “arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American” and is largely responsible for some of the conceptions of Santa Claus from the mid-nineteenth century to today. It has had a massive impact on the history of Christmas gift-giving.1. Here is a twist on this poem titled ‘Twas the Night Before Jesus Came.’
[Tweet “Twas the night before Jesus came and all through the house, Not a creature was praying, not one in the house.”]
Charlie Hainline is a layman at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He is a man who radiates the love of Christ, and is serious about sharing his faith with others. One year, his goal was to lead 1650 people to faith in Christ (5 a day)! Once, he was out witnessing with a couple of other folks, and though he didn’t share the gospel, he sat there and smiled broadly as a teammate did. When the teammate was finished and asked if the person would like to trust Christ and receive the gift of eternal life, the person replied, “If being a Christian would make me like him (point to Charlie), I want it!” Charlie’s life wasn’t a bed of roses by any means. His daughter was kidnapped, killed, and her head was found floating in a canal. When the murderer of his daughter was caught and convicted, Charlie went to jail in order to witness to the man.1 Witnessing of Jesus, that’s what we are talking about in this week’s Light on Life.
[Tweet “The scripture says, ‘There was a man sent from God to be a witness. Could they say that about you?”]
#S4-033: Why It’s Important to Flow in Faith’s Domain [Encore Podcast]
It has been said that “a child is not likely to find a father in God unless he finds something of God in his father.” Recently a gentleman asked the preschool class in their Sunday school to draw a picture of God. The intent was to use them as an illustration for the Sunday sermon. Toward the end of class, the children were excited to show off their work. They came up with rainbows and men with big hands. Finally, the daughter of this man showed him her picture: a man with a suit and tie on. “I don’t know what God looks like,” she said, “so I just drew my daddy instead.” What an awesome responsibility. You can live and blossom into the good man God wants you to be. A man who is respected and who models God the Father. What are some of the Bible characteristics of a good man? That’s what we are going to take a look at in today’s blog.
[Tweet “If you make your God important, He is likely to return the favor.”]
