Loving / Kind

I Learned A Lot From A Bible Study I Could Not Finish

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There are many great Bible studies that we can learn from and use to grow closer to Jehovah. We can study on our own and supplement with other resources from sources we validate as genuine followers of Christ. Typically we expect to finish a Bible study when we begin it. After conducting quite a few, I found one I could not finish. I was searching for all the places where the Bible references love so that I would study and compare and reflect on God’s love for us, the love He calls us to have for one another and for Him.  After quite some time I realized there seemed to be limitless references to love throughout scripture. I actually started to feel disappointed that it would be so hard to finish.

It was then that God showed me I was missing the point. As I contemplated if and how I would finish studying all application of “love” in scripture, the Spirit spoke to me. That was the point. God’s love is so boundless that even just to study it and try to understand it reveals to us how great His love is for us. I continue to study God’s love, but now I do so in more manageable increments… I still have not run out of scripture to study about God’s love. When I get through it all, I can study it again and learn even more. Our heavenly Father is truly wonderful!

1 John 3:1

1See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are.

1 John 4:7-13

7Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. 13By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 14We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

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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.

All Powerful / King of All, Father / Yahweh, Hearing from God, Holy, Holy / Set Apart, Prayer, Through Prophets, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Those Who Consecrate Themselves To His Purposes Will Draw Near To Him

Those who come closest to Jehovah are those consecrated to Him… that is to say dedicated and set aside for His use for His purposes. Jehovah reveals to us this truth through scripture as we see examples of those who dedicate themselves fully toward His purposes are often those whom He calls to serve as prophets or missionaries or leaders for His people. In Exodus, Jehovah calls forth Moses and Aaron, who are called to His purpose. He also calls for the priests to consecrate themselves, dedicating themselves to His purposes. The rest of the people remain at a greater distance from Him.

Exodus 19:18-25

The LORD Visits Sinai

      18Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. 19When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder. 20The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. 21Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go down, warn the people, so that they do not break through to the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22“Also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate themselves, or else the LORD will break out against them.” 23Moses said to the LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for You warned us, saying, ‘Set bounds about the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24Then the LORD said to him, “Go down and come up again, you and Aaron with you; but do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the LORD, or He will break forth upon them.” 25So Moses went down to the people and told them.

Whether we discuss priests and prophets in scripture or those who follow Jehovah today, the principle is the same. Those of us who separate ourselves from the world and dedicate ourselves genuinely and wholeheartedly to our Creator will be allowed to see and experience more of Him. Those who refuse to die to their own desires and the ways of the world but claim to follow Him will remain at a distance from Him.

Prayerfully and humbly pray to Jehovah that He would help you to dedicate yourself to His purposes, surrendering your desires and preferences and living out His instead.

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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.

Father / Yahweh, Holy, Humility, Learning To Pray Effectively, Obeying God, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Prepare Yourself For The Presence Of God

Our heavenly Father is amazing. He created the entire universe and holds it together… all powerful, present at all times and places, all knowing. Yet He is mindful of each one of us. He creates each of us and loves each of us as our Father. It is too easy to develop a casual attitude when we come before Him in prayer. Casual, open, and honest relationship with our Father is welcome as we grow closer and closer to Him. It is not difficult to see in scripture how those who were closest to Jehovah such as Moses or Elijah or David may have had this relationship with Him.  However, we do well to also remember that He is an awesome and powerful Creator, worthy of reverence. He is holy. Our only interactions with Him should not be while we drive or shower or “multi-task”. These behaviors are ok to engage our Father more often, but we should not neglect to also set aside time with proper reverence and focus to come into His presence focused solely on Him.

Exodus 19:10-16

      10The LORD also said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments; 11and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12“You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. 13‘No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people, and they washed their garments. 15He said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”

      16So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

Challenge yourself to set aside dedicated prayer time to come into Jehovah’s presence this week… and every week. Start with 15 minutes if that is all you have, then seek to expand and grow this dedicated prayer time. It is still ok to also talk with Him at other times, even while we are busy… but we should set aside dedicated time to know Him. We would never imagine we could build a meaningful relationship with a spouse by only talking to them while multi-tasking… so we should take care not to treat Jehovah this way also.

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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.

Father / Yahweh, Guide, Obeying God, Speaking, Through Prophets

If You Will Obey My Voice and Keep My Covenant

Even those of us who follow Jehovah as disciples of Jesus Christ do not often, if ever, experience Him in the direct and powerful manner in which He addressed Moses. Our Father performed many might miracles to set the Israelites free from bondage in Egypt and then begin to help them learn to follow Him. He used this time to communicate in a very direct and clear manner many instructions and guiding principles which endure forever. We do well to study them and remember that they still apply, even after Jesus Christ lived, died, and was resurrected.

A foundational element of our Father’s covenant with His people is the following… “if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be my own possession among all the peoples”. We do well to remember this core, foundational element to our relationship with our Father in Heaven. He calls us to obey Him. He does not even call us to agree with Him… so it is ok to obey even if or when we do not fully understand why He tells us to do something a certain way or not to do something at all.

Exodus 19:1-8

   1In the third month after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 2When they set out from Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped in front of the mountain. 3Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the sons of Israel: 4‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. 5‘Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; 6and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

      7So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the LORD had commanded him. 8All the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” And Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD

We are called first to obey Him in order to be His people. To obey Him, of course, we must study and pray for His help to understand His word properly. Then we must separate ourselves from the world sufficiently to lead our lives Jehovah’s way, in submission to Him rather than our own control and agenda or that of the world and culture around us. For us to “be to [Him] a kingdom of priests and a holy nation”, we must be different from others and set aside for and willingly submitted to Jehovah’s ways and purposes.

I encourage each of you to prayerfully reflect on your lives. Don’t rush this activity. Give it time and attention. Involve someone you trust to be honest and submitted to Jevovah, someone who will not just tell you what they think you want to hear. Are you really submitted to Him? Do you do everything His way? Do you obey all that He commands? None of us is perfect, but do not use glib expressions like that one to allow complacency to remain in your sin and stop changing your life to become more like that of Jesus Christ.

We must continue for our lifetime on the journey to study and become more like Christ. We will never “get far enough”. If we truly love the Father we will not choose to stop pursuing Him any more than we would claim to love our spouse and then say… “We have been together for 20 years, so now I no longer have to show love to him or her because I have done that already. I no longer need or want to consider how to please them more. I will just continue doing whatever I am doing my way, even if I know it hurts them.”

Our journey to become more like Christ, if genuine, lasts our entire lifetime and we never complete it…but it transforms us over time to be more and more pleasing to the Father. Continued obedience, as a sign of our love for Him, is how we fulfill our covenant with Him.

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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.

Anger (unrighteous anger), Grace / Patience, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Righteousness / Serving God

Be Quick To Hear, Slow To Speak, And Slow To Anger

All of us have experienced the opportunity to react in anger. Probably all of us have also responded wrongly in anger at some point or other in our lives. I certainly have. I can see the evidence of the Holy Spirit working in me in how He has led me over the past few years to respond less in anger and more with patience. How we respond to a situation does not have to be completely dependent on whether or not we are right. We can react gracefully and honor Christ in us even when someone treats us wrongly and we are right.

James 1:19-20

19This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; 20for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.

Being quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger can truly distinguish us as disciples of Christ from others around us. It helps us achieve the righteousness of God.

Prayerfully consider how you react even in frustrating situations when others that confront you are wrong and even rude. Pray that the Holy Spirit, who dwells within you as a true follower of Christ, would help transform you to be more like Christ Jesus and less like the world. Experience how much a patient and peaceful response on your part can diffuse a difficult situation and help you remain calm in the face of adversity… not to mention the opportunity it may open to share Christ with someone who may otherwise not listen.

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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.

All Powerful / King of All, Discerning / Judging, Help / Serve Others, Humility, Pride, Protector / Deliverer, Provider, Teachable, Wise

Listen To Wise Advice And Work With Others

Moses was chosen by Jehovah to lead His people out of slavery in Egypt. After many miracles and a deepening relationship with Jehovah, it would seem easy for Moses to be vulnerable to pride and not be open to the wise council and advice from someone else. However, Moses deserves credit for listening to and following the advice he received from Jethro.

Exodus 18:1

Jethro, Moses’ Father-in-law

      1Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt. 2Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away, 3and her two sons, of whom one was named Gershom, for Moses said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.” 4The other was named Eliezer, for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”

      5Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was camped, at the mount of God. 6He sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.” 7Then Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and he bowed down and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent. 8Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had befallen them on the journey, and how the LORD had delivered them. 9Jethro rejoiced over all the goodness which the LORD had done to Israel, in delivering them from the hand of the Egyptians. 10So Jethro said, “Blessed be the LORD who delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharaoh, and who delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. 11“Now I know that the LORD is greater than all the gods; indeed, it was proven when they dealt proudly against the people.” 12Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses’ father-in-law before God.

      13It came about the next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood about Moses from the morning until the evening. 14Now when Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge and all the people stand about you from morning until evening?” 15Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God. 16“When they have a dispute, it comes to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor and make known the statutes of God and His laws.”

Jethro Counsels Moses

      17Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. 18“You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone. 19“Now listen to me: I will give you counsel, and God be with you. You be the people’s representative before God, and you bring the disputes to God, 20then teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them the way in which they are to walk and the work they are to do. 21“Furthermore, you shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens. 22“Let them judge the people at all times; and let it be that every major dispute they will bring to you, but every minor dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. 23“If you do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people also will go to their place in peace.”

      24So Moses listened to his father-in-law and did all that he had said. 25Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens. 26They judged the people at all times; the difficult dispute they would bring to Moses, but every minor dispute they themselves would judge. 27Then Moses bade his father-in-law farewell, and he went his way into his own land.

When Jehovah gives us a responsibility to serve Him, we absolutely want to take it seriously and work hard at doing it right. However, we must be careful that we do not wear ourselves out by taking on too much of the burden on our own. We must learn to listen to wise advice and take it, whether from Jehovah or from man. We have greater and longer lasting impact when we can lean on others who can be trusted and let them help us do our Father’s work.

Are there any situations in your life that are putting a heavy burden on you? It can be work or family or even ministry… as in Moses’ case. Pray for Jehovah to send you help and wisdom on how to do His work most effectively and sustainably.

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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.

Addiction, Guide, Sin, Study the Word, Teachable

The Truth Will Make You Free

Many of us are captive to addiction and other sin and do not even realize it.  Some of us realize it and want to be set free, but struggle to break free. There are many programs that claim to help, and some of them are helpful. However to truly be set free from our addiction  we must learn and apply God’s truth to our lives. The truth will make you free from addiction (and other sin).

John 8:31-36

The Truth Will Make You Free

      31So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” 33They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”

      34Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. 35“The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. 36“So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

For any who are struggling to overcome addiction or sin, it is good to come before God and pray for His help. Study and learn His word and apply it to your life. Come together with others who share your faith in Christ and seek their help. Find others who follow Christ that have gone through what you are struggling with. Ask them about their journey to overcome addiction with God’s help.

There are many programs that claim to help, and some of them actually do, but to fully be set free from addiction and sin of any kind, we must lean on the truth of God’s word and seek His help to apply it in our lives.

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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.

Faith / Trusting God, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Protector / Deliverer, Speaking, Strong in Our Weakness, Suffering / Adversity, Through Prophets, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Sometimes We Must Fight, Even When God Fights For Us

Faithful followers of Jehovah seek to learn His ways and seek to know His voice and obey it. He is our wonderful Creator and He cares for His people. We can turn toward Him and trust in Him even when we come under attack and encounter adversity. Sometimes He will just take care of the situation on our behalf, but often He expects us to demonstrate our faith by participating. He may deliver the victory, but we are expected to show our faith by taking clear and decisive actions that show we trust in Him.

In Exodus 17, Moses did not just pray for Jehovah to wipe out Amalek and then sit and wait for Amalek to come. Moses sent Joshua to go and lead their people in battle physically while Moses than went up on the hill to call upon Jehovah’s power.

Exodus 17:8-16

Amalek Fought

      8Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. 9So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” 10Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed. 12But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set. 13So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

      14Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” 15Moses built an altar and named it The LORD is My Banner; 16and he said, “The LORD has sworn; the LORD will have war against Amalek from generation to generation.”

In this example, the people still needed to fight. They needed Jehovah for the victory, but they had to take up arms and go to battle. This is a common pattern throughout scripture… Jehovah expects His people to take decisive action demonstrating their faith and then He brings the victory. Gideon, Daniel, Shadrach, Meschac and Abednego all had to make choices about their actions that demonstrated their faith. Jehovah did not spare them the confrontation. Elijah had to leave to escape Ahab and Jezebel, even though Jehovah provided for him. It is not always for us to literally go to war, but we are often called to take decisive action to confront the situation while also seeking Jehovah’s help to win.

We should caution ourselves to avoid the assumption that when we call upon Jehovah to help us somehow we will be spared the confrontation or the battle. We must demonstrate courage and faith, but we can be encouraged knowing He is fully capable of delivering the victory every time.

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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.

Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, Father / Yahweh, Grace / Forgiveness, Loving / Kind, Merciful, Miracles, Mockers, Obeying God, Speaking, Through Prophets

The Patience of Our Father

Good parents exhibit patience with their children when they are learning to obey. Jehovah is no different. He is our heavenly Father. He loves His people. When He brought the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt, He understood that they would need to learn to obey Him. He was not surprised. As such, Jehovah exhibited great patience in dealing with them as they complained and whined about Pharaoh’s army and then food and water. Each time, Jehovah protected them and provided for them.

Exodus 17:1-7

Water in the Rock

      1Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. 2Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?” 3But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” 4So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me.” 5Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6“Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us, or not?”

Though Jehovah was patient and merciful with His people in this example, we should not take His patience for granted and we should not deliberately put Him to the test.

Luke 4:12

12And Jesus answered and said to him, “It is said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.’”

As we spend time with our children to teach them and help them grow, we eventually expect them to mature in their understanding, obedience, and respect.  Similarly, our Father in heaven expects this from us also. Let us strive to trust and obey our heavenly Father and praise Him for His patience with us as we grow in maturity, faith and understanding.

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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.

Depression / Discouragement, Heaven and Hell, Share the Good News, Suffering / Adversity

Absent of the Body Is Home With The Lord

All who live face suffering and trials.  All who live at some point die. These are truths no one can credibly argue against. However there is so much more! For the righteous who submit to and follow Jehovah through Jesus Christ, there is much comfort for the sorrows and difficulties we face in this world. As disciples of Christ, we seek to please Jehovah and know that when we die we will leave our earthly bodies and go to be at home with our Father.  We understand that everyone will face judgment and be welcomed to heaven or condemned to hell based on their own choices made during their life to truly accept or reject Jesus Christ. We are ambassadors from Him to come and share the truth of the gospel with others who do not know Him. We are to bring the joy and hope we find in knowing our Father to others and try to lead them to the grace that is offered in forgiveness of sin.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

      1For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, 3inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

      6Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7for we walk by faith, not by sight— 8we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 9Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

We, as followers of Christ, have hope in our Father in heaven. We trust in His promises and in the salvation He offers. What greater joy than to be able to share such good news with others? Let us seek to please Him while in this earth!

If someone was giving out $100 bills for free, you would tell everyone you know so they too could be blessed. So if Jehovah offers us forgiveness of sin by grace… eternal life in heaven with Him… should we not also be excited and joyful to tell others?

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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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