"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb....They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads....Then he said to me, 'These words are faithful and true....Behold, I am coming quickly!...I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last....And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.' He Who testifies to these things says, 'Surely I am coming quickly.' Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus." (Revelation 22)
I have heard good news and bad news during the past year, but I have never heard any better words than the words of our text. If any person on the planet reads and hears these Words of Jesus, receives these words, trusts these Words, that person will overcome in the coming year, indeed, the remainder of his/her life on what someone once described as, "this tortured planet." All I can do at the end of this quarter's reading is to pass on to you the hope, strength, empowerment, sustaining power which has kept me all my life, but especially over these last 45 years.
It was the day after Christmas, 1969, that we noticed something was wrong with Stephen. Six months later he was no longer with us. Pain, agony do not describe me, and the battle still continues. But I have a continual choice, as do you; believe The Word of God, Jesus, or believe our helpless, powerless, inability-to-cure feelings and circumstances. I keep choosing The Word of God, Jesus. Your choice will determine your defeat or victory. Choose wisely.
So here we are; the "last" Words of the "God-Breathed" Words of the Scriptures. Regardless of the events of 2014, regardless of what 2015 holds, and regardless of the past years of our lives, these "final" Words of the Godhead can be nothing but comfort to the hungry soul. One can choose the words of humanism. I choose, "the Words of God," incarnate in the Babe of Bethlehem, Jesus, the Christ.
Here is a prayer, confession, and declaration for you and me. It is a claim and promise of our Lord Jesus Christ, and surely came to pass in The Baby, Jesus, on that first Christmas night:
"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, For the Lord has anointed Me to...comfort the brokenhearted....He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord's favor has come....To all who mourn...He will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteous, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for His own glory." (Isaiah 61, NLT)
I have heard good news and bad news during the past year, but I have never heard any better words than the words of our text. If any person on the planet reads and hears these Words of Jesus, receives these words, trusts these Words, that person will overcome in the coming year, indeed, the remainder of his/her life on what someone once described as, "this tortured planet." All I can do at the end of this quarter's reading is to pass on to you the hope, strength, empowerment, sustaining power which has kept me all my life, but especially over these last 45 years.
It was the day after Christmas, 1969, that we noticed something was wrong with Stephen. Six months later he was no longer with us. Pain, agony do not describe me, and the battle still continues. But I have a continual choice, as do you; believe The Word of God, Jesus, or believe our helpless, powerless, inability-to-cure feelings and circumstances. I keep choosing The Word of God, Jesus. Your choice will determine your defeat or victory. Choose wisely.
So here we are; the "last" Words of the "God-Breathed" Words of the Scriptures. Regardless of the events of 2014, regardless of what 2015 holds, and regardless of the past years of our lives, these "final" Words of the Godhead can be nothing but comfort to the hungry soul. One can choose the words of humanism. I choose, "the Words of God," incarnate in the Babe of Bethlehem, Jesus, the Christ.
Here is a prayer, confession, and declaration for you and me. It is a claim and promise of our Lord Jesus Christ, and surely came to pass in The Baby, Jesus, on that first Christmas night:
"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, For the Lord has anointed Me to...comfort the brokenhearted....He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord's favor has come....To all who mourn...He will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteous, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for His own glory." (Isaiah 61, NLT)
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Blog: jhs58.blogspot.com
Blog: jhs58.blogspot.com
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
