Jesus is Lord

Todays readings are 2 Chronicles 17:1-18:34, Romans 9:25-10:13, Psalm20:1-9 and Proverbs 20:2-3

Romans 10:9-10

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.

These  are simple but sometimes misunderstood scriptures.  The thing that we sometimes forget is that these are action scriptures.  Meaning that we have to do something.  

It means to accept Him, and Him Alone as your Saviour, resolv-ing to make Him the Lord of your life, and to follow Him with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength as long as you live.

What does Lord mean?  A person who has authority, control, or power over others; a master, chief, or ruler.

Let’s make Jesus our Lord today and declare that to everyone.

Kelly Schlotter

THE HEARTBREAK WE ALL NEED

Today’s Bible readings are 2 Chronicles 14:1-16:14, Romans 9:1-24, Psalm 19:1-4, & Proverbs 20:1

Romans 9:1-3

With Christ as my witness, I speak with utter truthfulness. My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm it. ² My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief ³ for my people, my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ!—if that would save them.

When I read these words that were written by Paul, I hear his passion for reaching the people that he loved. I can almost see the desperation in his eyes as his heart aches for the people that needed Jesus. He was willing to spend in life in order that some might be reached. Yet, his heart was that all could be reached.

God called Paul to the ministry & put a love in his heart to reach people. After all the success that Paul had it would have been easy for him to sit back & relax in his accomplishments. That is what a lot of people do. What kept Paul for doing this was this relentless passion that was in his heart to see the world won for Jesus.

It must have been like a plague for him. No matter what he did it was a burden that never left him—the burden to reach the lost. I’m sure that there were times when the burden for the souls of the lost:

1.     Drove Paul to intense prayer.

2.     Caused him to weep in anguish.

3.     Left him sleepless.

4.     Was something that he tried to get away from.

5.     Sent him to his knees.

6.     Brought him to screaming.

7.     Caused problems for him.

Yet, with all of this Paul lived his life in the hope & anticipation that God would save at least one from the darkness that he himself had been trapped in. If that could happen, then it was worth it for Paul.

Why have we lost that passion for souls? Why is it that so many other things have become of greater importance to us than the reaching of the lost? Church life revolves around a bunch of stuff that JUST DOESN”T MATTER!

1.     We get mad because they don’t play the music we like.

2.     Something changes without our permission so we get offended.

3.     Maybe you didn’t get the visit that you felt you deserved.

4.     Some new person gets more attention than you.

It seems to me that we gravitate toward self-centeredness. We fall into the trap of thinking that it has to be ALL ABOUT US.

1.     It should be what I like.

2.     It should be what I enjoy.

3.     It should be MY decision.

4.     They should listen to ME.

5.     They should make sure I’M happy.

6.     They need to make sure that I’M ministered to.

7.     They should consider MY feelings.

These are all the things that I hear on a regular basis from so many people. Yet, when I read the words of Paul I hear HIS GREAT CONCERN FOR OTHERS!!!  He makes it clear that he would gladly give his life if it would result in his brothers & sisters coming to know Jesus. I don’t think that was just lip service either. He ended up spending his life for the gospel. He poured it out for others.

What will it take to get us back to a place of true humility? What is necessary in order for us to break free from the trap of self? When will we awaken to the reality that we are drifting down a path of selfishness? When will we taste the awful flavor of self-absorption?

Paul’s love for the lost is what kept him faithful to the ministry God had entrusted to him. It was His pursuit of Jesus that lead to the endless joy that he shared while he lived & worked for the King. It was the hope of winning more that kept him running so diligently. It was his willingness to be last in this life that caused so many to be impacted by him.

My prayer for today:

God, break my stubborn, selfish heart once again. Teach me humility. I don’t want to be selfish. I choose to die to self today. I pick up my cross. I will live a life of self-sacrifice s that others may be first. Help me stay humble, in Jesus name, AMEN!

Pastor Richard Schlotter

NOTHING CAN SEPARATE

Today’s Bible readings are 2 Chronicles 11:1-13:22, Romans 8:26-39, Psalm 18:37-50, & Proverbs 19:27-29

Romans 8:35-39

³⁵ Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ³⁶ (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) ³⁷ No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

³⁸ And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. ³⁹ No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It seems to me that the same things that people have always struggled with, when it comes to trusting God, have always been the same. Why is that? It is because the enemy uses the same old tricks to deceive people. One of his best tricks is getting people to think that because things don’t always go the way that they would like them to that God is not fair.

What is the first thing that you hear when tragedy occurs?

1.      How could God let this happen?

2.      Why did God do that?

3.      Why didn’t God stop it?

4.      If God is love then why do all these bad things happen?

It is as though God gets blamed for everything & thanked for nothing. I know that satan wants people to think that every time a bad thing happens it is because God does not love them. It is tempting to feel that way but it is not true.

When calamity comes it can’t separate us from God’s love. The truth is that it is His love that will get us through it. That is the primary reason that satan wants us to think that God doesn’t love us. Thinking this way will keep us from receiving what God offers—His great love.

The truth of the matter is that satan is the one behind destruction, death, & disease—NOT GOD!!!

John 10:10

¹⁰ The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

 

Acts 10:38

³⁸ And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

We see here 2 witnesses from scripture that proves it is the enemy, satan, who is behind sickness, death, & destruction. God is not the one who gives these things. He doesn’t have them to give. God gives exactly the opposite. He gives:

1.      Life

2.      Hope

3.      Peace

4.      Healing

5.      Deliverance

6.      Restoration

7.      Blessing

 

Don’t let the lies from satan convince you that God doesn’t love you. What we face in life is not proof that God is against us. It is proof that there is an enemy that is trying to destroy us. On the contrary, the fact that you have survived it & are here today is proof that there is a loving God who cares for you. It is also proof that those things can’t separate you from His GREAT LOVE. When things get tough never run from Jesus. Instead, run to Him. His arms are wide open & His love can’t be stopped!!!

 

Pastor Richard Schlotter

WHAT’S ON THE INSIDE MATTERS

Today’s Bible readings are 2 Chronicles 8:11-10:19, Romans 8:9-25, Psalm 18:16-36, & Proverbs 19:26

Romans 8:9-11

⁹ But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) ¹⁰ And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. ¹¹ The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

I once bought an old truck for $500.00. It was the junkiest looking truck that you could imagine. It was really about 3 trucks combined into one. It had white parts, red parts, & tan parts. From the outside, it didn’t look like it was worth much. But it was the best truck you could have ever wanted because inside it was build full of power.

I drove that $500 truck for 2 years & never did anything to it except change the oil & put gas in it. Then, I gave it to my brother-in-law who drove it for a 1 year. After he was done with it, he gave it back to me & I drove it for about another year. Then, a young man who I had mentored was getting married & needed a work truck so I gave it to him. He drove it for a short while then sold it for $500. That truck didn’t look like much on the outside but on the inside of that truck was a motor that wouldn’t quit.

This is a great illustration about what we have in us. Just like that truck, it looked flawed to the natural eye. There were all kinds of things that would cause some to think that it wasn’t much to brag about. Yet, under the hood & body of that truck was all the working parts that caused that truck to run with awesome effectiveness & power. This is what we are like now that we have the Holy Spirit in us.

On the outside it may look like we are still flawed but on the inside we are full of power. On the outside it may look like we aren’t much to brag about but on the inside we are full of a precious presence of the Holy Spirit. On the outside we may look powerless but on the inside we are powerful.

The bible declares to us that the SAME SPIRIT, WITH THE SAME POWER that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us. That means that in each of us is RESURRECTION POWER!

¹¹ The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

This power will cause us to:

1.      Rise above the temptations that have overcome us in the past.

2.      Be healed when sickness attacks.

3.      Have victory when circumstance come.

4.      Outlast the storms of life.

5.      Enforce defeat over satan until the return of Christ.

6.      Live even though our bodies may die.

GLORY TO GOD!!! This the power that is in you. You are not nearly as powerless as you might think if you have the Spirit of the Living God in you. In fact, you are full of power. Don’t spend so much time focusing on the external things about your life; your age, your education level, your past, your weaknesses, instead, focus on the inner working power of the Holy Spirit. What is in you is FAR MORE IMPORTANT than anything else on the outside!

Pastor Richard Schlotter