All posts by John (HFJ Director)

Heaven and Hell

Prayer Request: Pray for Christians Facing Persecution Around the World

We are continuing our weekly extra post on Fridays. We have now expanded from “HFJ News”, providing updates and information about our website and other online resources, to also include specific prayer requests for our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world.

Today we are calling for our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world to come together in prayer for the persecuted Christians around the world. In particular, Muslims in the Middle East are trying very hard to commit genocide of the Christians there. Genocide is when one group of people is singled out for their race or beliefs and targeted for complete destruction. Sadly, many nations that could help, like the USA and Europe, are too busy trying to bring in Muslim immigrants rather than reaching out to the Christians that are being targeted for complete destruction. Political correctness and corruption works against God’s people.

Let us pray that God would be with His people around the world and protect and guide them.

Psalm 20

Prayer for Victory over Enemies.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

1May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble!
May the name of the God of Jacob set you securely on high!

2May He send you help from the sanctuary
And support you from Zion!

3May He remember all your meal offerings
And find your burnt offering acceptable!

Selah.

4May He grant you your heart’s desire
And fulfill all your counsel!

5We will sing for joy over your victory,
And in the name of our God we will set up our banners.
May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.

6Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the saving strength of His right hand.

7Some boast in chariots and some in horses,
But we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God.

8They have bowed down and fallen,
But we have risen and stood upright.

9Save, O LORD;
May the King answer us in the day we call.

Even for those who are persecuted and killed, we have hope in salvation through Jesus Christ! Our brothers and sisters who remain strong in their faith through persecution and death will go to be with the Lord in Heaven. Praise God for this promise and hope!

We invite you to pray with us whenever you have time or submit a prayer request of your own. Please visit our Prayer Requests section on our website.

May the grace and peace of Jesus Christ be with all of you!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Hearing from God, Salvation, Sin

Why Won’t God Answer Me?

“Why won’t God answer me?” This question has been relevant to God’s people for a very long time. Many today turn away from God or conclude He is not real or that He no longer talks to His people when they do not clearly hear His response to their prayers. There are several reasons why God may not respond to the prayer of a believer… but we must look within ourselves for the lack of communication with God rather than looking to God as the reason. God is unchanging and righteous and deeply loves His people. However, we as His people often separate ourselves from Him through our own sin… when we choose to do things our way or the world’s way rather than God’s way. We sin when we “miss the mark”, falling short of God’s standard for how we should behave and think.

Isaiah spoke of the problem of our sin getting between us and God a long time ago. The problem has not changed between then and now… it remains the sin within the believer who seeks God that separates us from him.

Isaiah 59

Separation from God

     1Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short
That it cannot save;
Nor is His ear so dull
That it cannot hear.

      2But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God,
And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.

      3For your hands are defiled with blood
And your fingers with iniquity;
Your lips have spoken falsehood,
Your tongue mutters wickedness.

      4No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly.
They trust in confusion and speak lies;
They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.

      5They hatch adders’ eggs and weave the spider’s web;
He who eats of their eggs dies,
And from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth.

      6Their webs will not become clothing,
Nor will they cover themselves with their works;
Their works are works of iniquity,
And an act of violence is in their hands.

      7Their feet run to evil,
And they hasten to shed innocent blood;
Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity,
Devastation and destruction are in their highways.

      8They do not know the way of peace,
And there is no justice in their tracks;
They have made their paths crooked,
Whoever treads on them does not know peace.

A Confession of Wickedness

        9Therefore justice is far from us,
And righteousness does not overtake us;
We hope for light, but behold, darkness,
For brightness, but we walk in gloom.

      10We grope along the wall like blind men,
We grope like those who have no eyes;
We stumble at midday as in the twilight,
Among those who are vigorous we are like dead men.

      11All of us growl like bears,
And moan sadly like doves;
We hope for justice, but there is none,
For salvation, but it is far from us.

      12For our transgressions are multiplied before You,
And our sins testify against us;
For our transgressions are with us,
And we know our iniquities:

      13Transgressing and denying the LORD,
And turning away from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt,
Conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words.

      14Justice is turned back,
And righteousness stands far away;
For truth has stumbled in the street,
And uprightness cannot enter.

      15Yes, truth is lacking;
And he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey.
Now the LORD saw,
And it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice.

      16And He saw that there was no man,
And was astonished that there was no one to intercede;
Then His own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.

      17He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.

      18According to their deeds, so He will repay,
Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will make recompense.

      19So they will fear the name of the LORD from the west
And His glory from the rising of the sun,
For He will come like a rushing stream
Which the wind of the LORD drives.

      20“A Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the LORD.

      21“As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now and forever.”

Blessed are we because of the Redeemer, Jesus Christ, who came to take punishment for our sin! Without Him, we would be unable to be reconciled with God. Praise God that He made a way for us to be forgiven! We must turn away from our sin and toward living God’s way, ask forgiveness through Jesus Christ, and do our best to sin no more. We will never be perfectly sinless, but we must certainly avoid conscious and deliberate sin for this is rebellion against God in any form. Grace covers our mistakes, not our ongoing rebellion. We must turn away from self and wholeheartedly seek to be more like Jesus Christ.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Bitterness / Resentment, Blessed, Faith / Trusting God, Peace / Rest, Righteousness / Serving God, Suffering / Adversity, Thankfulness

Find Peace Through Faith, No Matter Where God Places You

All of us have experienced hardship in our lives, but few of us experience the level of hardship that Joseph experienced as recorded in Genesis. After being sold into slavery by his family, slandered by his master’s wife and thrown into jail, and remaining in jail several years, Joseph maintained a righteous attitude and relationship toward God. In fact as God raised him out of his affliction after many years, Joseph was not bitter about the time of suffering but was thankful to God for what He provided.  Joseph found peace through relationship with God and faithfully executed the responsibility God had placed in his hands.

Genesis 41:50-57

      50Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him. 51Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” 52He named the second Ephraim, “For,” he said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

      53When the seven years of plenty which had been in the land of Egypt came to an end, 54and the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said, then there was famine in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. 55So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; whatever he says to you, you shall do.” 56When the famine was spread over all the face of the earth, then Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold to the Egyptians; and the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. 57The people of all the earth came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the earth.

In large part because of Joseph’s attitude toward God and men, his patience and lack of bitterness… his faith, God blessed Joseph with great responsibility and prosperity in a way that Joseph could certainly never have even imagined. God used Joseph to save many throughout Egypt and surrounding territory… including, as we will read further in Genesis, his own family.

With faith in God, Joseph was able to move beyond his past troubles and find peace in where God had placed him. I pray God would similarly help each of us as His followers to move beyond whatever trials and struggles we experience and find peace in faithfully serving God where He places us.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Study the Word, Thankfulness

HFJ News: Please Share God’s Word With Others

We are continuing our weekly Friday extra post of “HFJ News” which is intended to introduce our Christian community to different parts of the website or related resources that many find useful.  Links are provided for your convenience or you can just visit the site directly at HearingFromJesus.org and look around on your own.

Today we just want to encourage each of you to share God’s word with others. Thank you for joining us to study God’s word daily and for trying to apply it to our lives. It is a commitment and a journey to die to our sinful nature and to become more like Jesus Christ. Please consider sharing our daily devotions with others you know and care for. We hope it will bless them as much as it blesses us as we study to write it.

May the grace and peace of Jesus Christ be with all of you!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, False Prophets / Teachers, Grace / Patience, Justice / Judgment, Prophecy, Righteousness / Serving God

The Day of the Lord Is Coming… Prepare Now!

Many today mock the return of the Lord Jesus, claiming that if He has not yet come, two thousand years after He died on the cross then He is not coming. They further rationalize, incorrectly, that He will not come at all and certainly not come in judgment of the ungodly. They confidently pursue after their own lusts and sinful desires without regard for the word of God or for God Himself.

Even some genuine believers begin to doubt the flawless nature of the Bible when confronted by mockers about the amount of time that has passed without Jesus’ return.

Would it surprise you that Jesus and His disciples knew this would happen?  In fact, Peter wrote about it in 2 Peter 3.

Purpose of This Letter

      1This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you in which I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, 2that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles.

The Coming Day of the Lord

      3Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, 4and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” 5For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, 6through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. 7But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

      8But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. 9The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

A New Heaven and Earth

      10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

      11Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

      14Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, 15and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, 18but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Time from our perspective is different from that of God. We can not count time from our perspective and expect to fully anticipate God’s timing in fulfilling the prophecy. Further, God’s motives are higher than our motives. His delay is not because He forgot… it is not because He is just slow… it is because He is patient and loves us. I know personally that if God would have brought about the end of the age 15 years ago, I would be in Hell for all eternity. But now, through His grace, I have hope in the promise of Heaven with Him.

Many try to predict when the end of the age will come… to what purpose? God tells us we will not know when it comes… it will come like a thief in the night. We can not wait to predict it in order to prepare for it. As God’s righteous people, we must prepare now!

Through Jesus Christ we may be found in peace, spotless and blameless… prepared for His return. (Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.) Take heed of the warning from Peter that there will be many errors and wrong teaching about the word of God by unprincipled men. We are forewarned and should take action to prepare ourselves through prayer and consistent study of the scriptures. We must learn to discern truth from fiction in regards to God’s word. Laziness on our part to study the word is no excuse for living an unrighteous life.  Through prayer and study, we can grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As we grow in knowledge, we must also apply it continually to our lives, to transform ourselves away from our selfish nature and to become more like Jesus Christ.

Even if you do not believe the end of the age is coming during your lifetime, you will be judged based on your relationship with Jesus (or lack of a relationship) when you reach the end of your life… and none of our tomorrow’s are promised. Studies show that 5 out of 5 people die… and they do not all know ahead of time when that will take place. Prepare now!

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Faith / Trusting God, Hearing from God, Righteousness / Serving God, Suffering / Adversity

Learn How God Works In Your Life And Trust Him Always

Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers due to their jealousy of him. He remained true to God through adversity and troubles. He found favor in running the household of an Egyptian official, Potiphar. Then Potiphar’s wife lied about him and he was thrown in jail. Still, Joseph remained true to his faith in God. He found favor even in jail and gained a position of authority. It was from jail that we continue reading about Joseph in Genesis 40.

      1Then it came about after these things, the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. 2Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. 3So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the jail, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned. 4The captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he took care of them; and they were in confinement for some time. 5Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in jail, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation. 6When Joseph came to them in the morning and observed them, behold, they were dejected. 7He asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so sad today?” 8Then they said to him, “We have had a dream and there is no one to interpret it.” Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell it to me, please.”

      9So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, there was a vine in front of me; 10and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. 11“Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.” 12Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days; 13within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand according to your former custom when you were his cupbearer. 14“Only keep me in mind when it goes well with you, and please do me a kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh and get me out of this house. 15“For I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the dungeon.”

      16When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head; 17and in the top basket there were some of all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.” 18Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days; 19within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.”

      20Thus it came about on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 21He restored the chief cupbearer to his office, and he put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand; 22but he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

There are two aspects of this scripture which truly speak to me. The first is fairly obvious. Joseph remains faithful to God despite years of continuing struggles. One could easily complain and get bitter and give up… or get mad at God, blaming Him. Joseph did none of these things. He suffered through challenge after challenge, each time finding favor with God and man. God was able to then use Joseph in a powerful way because of this, as we will see as we continue to read later in Genesis. Joseph saves all of Egypt and his own family and is ultimately reconciled to his family. This was only possible because of his faith, patience, endurance, and good attitude through it all. His life stands as powerful testimony to living for God and trusting Him even thousands of years later.

The second aspect that is a bit more subtle is as follows. Though God can choose to speak to us or work through us any way He sees fit, He often demonstrates consistency in how He relates to each of us. For example, God gave Joseph a gift in receiving and interpreting dreams. He experienced it as a youth, to the envy of his brothers, but later it is still the same gift that God continues to use while Joseph is in jail with the baker and the cupbearer. God will use dreams again with Joseph later in Genesis when Joseph is released from jail by correctly interpreting dreams for Pharaoh. Ultimately this consistent gift of interpreting dreams had significant impact on Joseph’s life.

The lesson for us is to consider when we have seen God working in our lives we should look to recognize patterns and expect it is likely that God will continue to speak to us or work through us in a consistent pattern. If you feel God guiding you through dreams, or through your scripture study times, or through other Christians… look for patterns which may indicate how God chooses to communicate to you. It may help you to recognize future encounters and messages from God.  When you hear from Him, verify that what you think you are hearing lines up with what the Bible says to be sure it is from God rather from Satan or our own selfish desires. Then obey.

The same can be said for using the spiritual gifts that God gives each of us. Once we recognize how God has blessed us and how He works through us, we should try to honestly assess what gifts He has given us and consistently try to use them to glorify His kingdom!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Grace / Patience, Heaven and Hell, Kindness / Gentleness, Love

Be Patient With Everyone… Yes, Really

The world teaches us that we have a right to be easily offended by everyone who disagrees with us or acts wrongly toward us. The world teaches us we have a right to confront them and condemn them. The world teaches us to be angry and hostile to those who do not agree with us.

Jesus Christ teaches us a different way… a better way… patience and perseverance… self-control, godliness, kindness and love.

James 1:2-4 2Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

1 Thessalonians 5:14-15 14We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people.

2 Peter 1:5-9 5Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.

We certainly do not have to agree with or accept persecution from those who disagree with us. However, we can respond truthfully, confidently, boldly, and yet still be kind, patient, loving in our manner. We must look to the example of Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry and do as He did. That is part of why He came… to demonstrate the example of living a righteous and sinless life.

This is an area where many of us do well to pray and ask the Lord for help to overcome our natural defensive impulses and instead see people as God does… with patience and love.

However, similar to Jesus, we must never waiver about the truth. There is clear right and wrong… a clear message of the gospel… a clear warning that most of the world is on the path to Hell. We do not help them by remaining silent or accepting their wrong perception that there are many ways to Heaven or that everyone goes to Heaven or that Heaven and Hell do not exist. We help them by persevering in proclaiming the truth of the gospel through our actions and our words.

John 14:6 6Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Repenting from Sin, Righteousness / Serving God, Share the Good News

Living Submitted To Jesus… Baptism Is Only The Beginning

God sends His Holy Spirit in dramatic fashion to His believers in Acts 2 to fulfill what Jesus promised them. Crowds gather to see what is happening and Peter takes the opportunity to preach to them about who Jesus really was… the Christ… the Messiah… God Himself in the flesh. As we continue in Acts 2:36-47 we see how most of the crowd reacts to Peter’s sermon, which he preached while filled with the Holy Spirit. Thousands come to Jesus and create a community of believers that are filled with joy and praise for God while helping one another.

     36“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

      37Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” 38Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39“For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” 40And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” 41So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. 42They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

      43Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. 44And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; 45and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. 46Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, 47praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Many were moved deeply, “pierced to the heart”, by the good news Peter shared about Christ. They asked him what they should do next. Peter’s response is important to take note of… it is fundamentally the same message as that of Jesus and John the Baptist and many the prophets of God. Turn away from your wrongful ways and turn toward God, living according to God’s instruction.

38Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Note that Peter clearly identifies that we must be different from “…this perverse generation!” We must change our behaviors to do things God’s way instead of the way of the world. This is not just true at the Pentecost, but is still true today. Those who do not follow God are lost… perverse… motivated by selfishness and sin nature rather than the things of God.

Three thousand people made the choice to respond to Peter’s sermon.  We are always called to make public choice for God. Peter did not call the three thousand to just remain in the crowd amongst the others who did not accept Jesus that day. He called them forth. They took action… a conscious and public action to demonstrate their submission to Jesus. Baptism is a symbolic, public proclamation that we are submitting to Jesus.

But Baptism is just the beginning of our journey with Jesus, not the end. That is not all there is! After baptism, the followers of Jesus devoted themselves continually to receiving teaching, fellowship, breaking bread together, and to prayer. There is much to do to develop ourselves as disciples for Christ after we accept Him as Lord. Our personal relationship with Jesus takes us on a  journey to become more like Him that lasts our lifetime.

 42They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

God allowed many wonders and signs through the apostles. Notice the joy and praise-filled attitude that the early church had. They rejoiced in sharing God together and living according to His instruction. They voluntarily gave and shared to help one another. But take note, at no point is there a reference that the government took their wealth to give to others who did not share their beliefs or work to contribute to the community. There was no central “church” organization that collected everything from them. The sharing was done voluntarily, joyfully, by individuals to individuals in the name of Jesus. Neither a government nor large church bureaucracy was required. No one gave out of guilt or obligation. It was a genuine communion of fellow believers celebrating life in submission to Jesus and His teachings. It is no wonder in this environment and with this attitude that their numbers grew.

One last observation, however, scripture clearly shows it was the Lord who grew their numbers… not the disciples, not the people… but the Lord. This is how the Holy Spirit works. Coming together in prayer and fellowship, learning to live according to God’s word and the Lord will move amongst the people and the numbers of true believers will grow.  Prayer and the Holy Spirit are essential. We can not do it successfully without God.

Each of us should consider… what changes can I make to live my life more like that of the early followers of Jesus Christ? How can I help others with joy and praise for God? Am I coming together with other believers in prayer and fellowship?

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Prophecy, Share the Good News

What A Difference the Holy Spirit Makes!

In the beginning of Acts 2, we see God fulfilling His promise to send the Holy Spirit to help Jesus’ disciples. God makes it a very dramatic event such that it draws a crowd. Many were amazed and others just made excuses to try to ignore God’s miracle in action around them. Peter seizes the opportunity  to address the audience in Acts 2:14-36.

Peter’s Sermon

14But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: “Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words. 15“For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; 16but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:

17‘AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ God says,
‘THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND;
AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY,
AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS,
AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS;

18EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN,
I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT
And they shall prophesy.

19‘AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE
AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW,
BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE.

20‘THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS
AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD,
BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME.

21‘AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’

22“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— 23this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. 24“But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.

25“For David says of Him,
‘I SAW THE LORD ALWAYS IN MY PRESENCE;
FOR HE IS AT MY RIGHT HAND, SO THAT I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN.

26‘THEREFORE MY HEART WAS GLAD AND MY TONGUE EXULTED;
MOREOVER MY FLESH ALSO WILL LIVE IN HOPE;

27BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES,
NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY.

28‘YOU HAVE MADE KNOWN TO ME THE WAYS OF LIFE;
YOU WILL MAKE ME FULL OF GLADNESS WITH YOUR PRESENCE.’

29“Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30“And so, because he was a prophet and knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, 31he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO HADES, NOR DID His flesh SUFFER DECAY. 32“This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. 33“Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.

34“For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says:
‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD,
“SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,

35UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”’

36“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Note the power with which Peter is addressing the crowd and the depth of application of scripture and prophecy. He preaches now filled with the Holy Spirit. What a dramatic difference from the man who denied Jesus three times leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion.

Peter reprimands the mockers and shares with them who Jesus is… the Christ, the Messiah, God Himself in the flesh… in fulfillment of the prophecies documented in the scriptures from Joel and from David. He shares the gospel boldly, confidently, accurately. He is not apologetic. He does not compromise the message or shrink away from those who mock them. Nor does he act in violence toward them or mock them back. He powerfully preaches the truth of the gospel! We will see in our next study that it was effective. More than three thousand people respond.

We should follow Peter’s example. Give our lives to Jesus, accept the gift of the Holy Spirit, allow the Spirit to work through us… all for the glory of God. Take advantage of the opportunities that God provides where we have an audience, whether it is one person or thousands. Pray God would empower you to share the gospel boldly.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Archaeology

HFJ News: Archaeology and Other Evidence

We are continuing our weekly Friday extra post of “HFJ News” which is intended to introduce our Christian community to different parts of the website or related resources that many find useful.  Links are provided for your convenience or you can just visit the site directly at HearingFromJesus.org and look around on your own.

Archaeology and Other Evidence

Many try to discredit the Bible by claiming it is historically inaccurate and thus cannot be trusted. On the other hand, I have found it very encouraging as a Christian to read about and study example after example of archaeological evidence that continues to prove the Bible is an historically accurate document that can be trusted with great confidence.

For those who think we have found all the evidence there is… the Pool of Siloam was found in 2005. I am sure there is more to find and am excited to study and learn more when God reveals it. In the meanwhile, I enjoy periodically learning more about the evidence already found, but often not shared widely even amongst Christians.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2