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Beloved, we live in a day and age where the freedom to proclaim the Gospel is met with outrage and dissent. It is because of this that we need the boldness that comes from being filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes, this boldness to proclaim the Gospel brings trouble. A W Tozer once remarked, "To be right with God has often meant to be in trouble with men.” Sometimes this boldness brings pain and torture. Tradition records that at the Nicene Council, not more than a dozen of the 318 delegates had not lost an eye or a hand or did not limp upon a leg shrunk in its sinews by the burning iron of torture. Beloved, may we never fear speaking the truth in love!
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Beloved, there are many different types of callings in this world. God calls some to be lawyers and others doctors and others teachers. God calls some to be evangelists and others pastors and others bus drivers. But I do not believe that there is a greater calling than that of a mother. If God has called you to be a mom, it is a special calling indeed!
A Mom will love you when the entire world hates you! A Mom will believe in you when everyone else thinks you stink. And a mom will care for you in your deepest darkest times with love and care and compassion. Today we’ll look at a young lady called to be a mom and ever more than that, called to be Jesus’ Mom. Mary certainly had a unique call on her life, and she fulfilled it very well. You also have a unique call on your life and God will fulfill it as you trust in Him! By the way- Happy Mother’s Day! Beloved, the word, “unashamed”
means, “feeling or showing no remorse, shame, or embarrassment.” Are you unashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? The Apostle Paul said in Romans 1:16-17, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” Beloved, there is a world around us who desperately needs the love of Jesus Christ. May we be as unashamed of the Gospel as much as Peter and John were unashamed of the Gospel! Blessings, Pastor Joe Beloved, persecution is defined as hostility and ill-treatment, especially because of race or political or religious beliefs, causing the persecuted person to suffer because of their belief.
Acts 4 is more than a historical record. It is a template for all disciples of Jesus to follow when (not if) persecution comes. Acts 4 is one of those chapters in which we would do well to spend focused time, meditating and soaking up the truths, so that they may become part of our innermost being (Jn 17:17). Peter and John's response to persecution teaches us how we are to respond to persecution. Peter and John were surely not surprised for Jesus had taught them "Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also." (Jn 15:20) Beloved, each year we celebrate Easter Sunday with sunrise services, stadium gatherings and vast amounts of picnics and food. This year will be no different. Unlike the past couple of years, there will be public gatherings as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
There also will be hope. In the midst of the war in the Ukraine, rising prices and such, HOPE remains, and His name is Jesus Christ and He rose from the dead. Whatever you or your family may be enduring remember that there is great hope in Jesus Christ. We will continue to hope because our trust is in the LORD! Beloved, He is risen! He is risen indeed! May you have a very blessed Resurrection Sunday! Even as Jesus received the crowd’s worship His heart was breaking in half. Luke 19:41 says, “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it.” Why would Jesus weep during such a triumphal entry? Because there were many who would not receive Him but who would ultimately reject Him as their Messiah. Luke 19:44b says, “And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
Dear friends today is the day of salvation! DON’T MISS THE KING! Blessings, Pastor Joe Beloved, there once was a gate in the Temple area in Jerusalem called “Beautiful.” The Jewish historian Josephus described this gate as made of fine Corinthian brass at the temple, seventy-five feet high with huge double doors, so beautiful that it “greatly excelled those that were only covered over with silver and gold.”
It was at this gate that Peter and John were able to restore a life through the power of Jesus Christ. It was a beautiful act accomplished at a gate called beautiful. But there is another gate found in scripture that is even more beautiful than the gate called “beautiful.” It is found in the Gospel of John 10:9-10 and described as such- “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” Everyone who is in Christ has entered God’s Kingdom through this gate; there is no other entrance. If you have not done so, won’t you consider entering through this gate? You will never be the same! Beloved, there was an explosion of growth in the early church as three thousand souls were added to the Kingdom of God. It is exciting to see new believers. They had enthusiasm and hope. But it is also exciting to see spiritual growth. So how did these newbies grow? They were devoted.
Acts 2:42 says, “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” It was their devotion to doctrine, fellowship, communion, and prayer that allowed these new believers to grow. That same truth is for us also. Are we devoted to, “the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers?” If not, we need to get with it. A Christian should continually be growing and that comes through devotion! Beloved, the same Peter who had denied he knew Jesus Christ a few days earlier is now preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Why the sudden change? Jesus had restored Peter and the Holy Spirit had filled him with boldness.
Peter’s preaching of the Gospel provides us with some well- needed guidelines on how we are to preach the Gospel. First of all, Peter’s sermon contains two main points, (1) The proclamation of the Gospel (life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Christ and (2) The exhortation to repent. Peter also emphasizes four other facets of Christianity, (1) The Last Days, (2) the story of the life of Christ (3) the fact that the Scriptures prove that Jesus Christ is the Messiah and (4) the veracity that we must repent of our sins to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Thus, Peter’s sermon gives us an outline on how we are to witness to a lost and dying world in need of a Savior. We must learn to keep the main thing the main thing and Jesus Christ is always the main thing! In fact, later on in his ministry, Peter goes on to say as recorded in Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” Beloved, this week we are blessed to have with us another of our missionaries, Pastor Oscar Gallegos from Calvary Chapel Irapuato, MX. Pastor Oscar and his wife Liz have served in Mexico for a few years and the Lord continues to bless their ministry. Please give them a warm welcome and an open ear for the Word! Let us continue to pray that their time here in the States will be a time of refreshment in both body and spirit!
Please remember to pray for Wendy Kvachenko who is here in the States until things open up for her return to Abkhazia. Please note our upcoming outreach planned for April 3, 2022. Please keep it in prayer. Let us also remember to pray for the Ukraine. Look up Beloved! Our redemption draws near! Blessings- PJ |
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