The Power of Jesus

March 26, 2015

Dear City Calvary,

It was so great to see all of you on Sunday and share with you the wonderful miracle that God did in healing our neighbor Lydia.  For those of you who weren't there, Lydia has suffered for years with temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ) - a constant and painful jaw condition that makes eating and sleeping especially difficult.  Two surgeries have provided no relief. Melissa and I asked if we could pray for her.  Holding Lydia's her hand, we asked, in Jesus name, that she experience God's grace and His incredible power for healing.  The Lord heard our prayer and healed her that very day.  Her pain is gone and in her excitement, she is telling our neighborhood of this incredible miracle she has experienced as a result of actually praying to God.  Go figure!  So exciting!  (Listen online to hear the whole story)

In Ephesians 1:18-20, Paul prayed for the Ephesians that "... the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you.... and His incomparably great power for us who believe.  That power is the same as the mighty strength He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms.."   I think that is a good prayer for all of us, that we would know the power of God, that same power that raised Christ from the dead (and healed our friend Lydia). 

Jesus and the power of His resurrection will be our topic on Easter Sunday.  I am still looking for a few people who would be willing to share a brief testimony of how you have experienced God's power in your life.  This could be a story of healing, deliverance from sin, experiencing the peace of God in the midst of trial, or something else.  I know all of you have a story.  Who is brave enough to tell it at our Easter service?  I'll ask Lydia to see if she is willing.

I unfortunately will not be with you again this Sunday.  I am going in for more surgery tomorrow afternoon.  I do however leave you in good hands with my faithful friend, Russ Devos, who always does a great job, doesn't he!

Blessings in Jesus,

Pastor John

Put it to the Test

Dear City Calvary,

Boeing builds jets, lots of them.  Every so often, Boeing will come up with a new design.  I'm always amazed at the rigorous testing they put the new models through before deeming them airworthy, ready for passengers to climb aboard and fly away into the wild blue yonder.  Thanks to the FAA, Boeing takes the first few jets/prototypes and they bend 'em, bash 'em, beat 'em, heat 'em, screech 'em, slam 'em, cram 'em, fly 'em, & pry 'em.   They do everything short of crash 'em.  

Boeing's most recent creation, the 787 Dreamliner, has been a game-changer.  It is made of a new composite material (carbon fiber) which allows the jet to be much lighter, dramatically reducing fuel costs.  Plus, it's cool.  However, because it was new, the FAA made the 787 fly through more hoops and pass more tests than ever before.  Our government and Boeing want aviation to advance but they also want to make sure the 787 will safely deliver passengers to their desired destinations around the world.

When a pastor/author teaches us something new, we should be like Boeing and put it to the test.  This is what the Apostle John tells us to do in 1 John 4:1-6 "test the spirits (teachers) to see whether they are from God..."   How do we do that?  Compare the teaching to the Bible.  Ask what God's word says.  Does it line up with scripture?  What does it say about Jesus?  Learning is important for the growth of our relationship with God.   When we hear/read teachings that give us new understandings about Jesus, new ways we can grow in our relationship with Him, new insights into His word, ask: "Is this what the Bible teaches and what does God's word have to say about the matter?"  If it doesn't line up with scripture, toss it.  If it does, be thankful that you learned something new and live it.  After all, our theology should deliver us safely to the desired destination - a good, healthy, accurate, maturing faith.  

Have a great finish to your week.

Blessings in Jesus,

Pastor John

Sin is Lawlessness

February, 5th

 

Dear City Calvary,

On Tuesday of this week, I had something happen to me that hasn’t happened since 1986.  I was pulled over by officer friendly and given a ticket for speeding.  Big bummer and I have no one to blame but myself.  I want to fight it.  I want to get out of it.  I don’t want to pay it.  One option is to contest it but that won’t likely accomplish much because the cold hard facts are on record; the radar detector said 41 in a 30.  I could pay it but that is not appealing because the fine is $164 and the ticket goes on my record.  I could check the box for admission of guilt and throw myself at the mercy of the judge, hoping for a reduced or deferred sentence (no fine and no ding on my record as long as I don’t get another ticket for a year) and still pay $100 court filing fee.  My fourth option is to hire an attorney who would likely get the ticket dismissed for a nice one-time fee of $300.  Whatever option I choose, there will be pain.

This makes me think of our passage this past Sunday.  1 John 3:4-5 says “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.  But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins.”  When we sin, we break the law.  The cold hard facts are on record and the evidence for conviction is complete.  We have no defense (you are included in “Everyone”).  There will be no deferred or reduced sentence.  We cannot pay enough to get out of it.  We are guilty of breaking God’s law and justice must be served.  However, this verse reminds us that Jesus appeared so that He would take away our sin.  He was punished for our violations against God’s law so that we could be forgiven and all charges dropped.  Isn’t that good news!!!

One positive thing that getting a ticket does is make me more conscious of my speed, that I maintain it close to the posted limit.  The speed limit laws are there for a good reason, for the safety of all on the roads.  I don’t want another ticket and even more, I don’t want to cause an accident.  The same is true when we repent of our sin and put our faith in Jesus. We realize what we have been forgiven of and the great price it took for justice to be served on our behalf.  This should have an impact on the way we live.  1 John 3:9 “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning because he has been born of God.”  We don’t want to live recklessly or without regard for God and His word/law.  We are born again, made into new creations, ready to live to honor Him with our lives. 

This coming Sunday, we will be looking at 1 John 3:11-24 and learn about the importance of loving one another.  Read ahead and be ready to learn and grow.  Regarding the report about the Myanmar mission trip, the team will be giving that presentation on February 15^th and not this coming weekend.  There will be people out of the service, helping prepare for the pancake breakfast.  They asked if we could postpone it for one week and that is what we will do.  Come to church with big appetites as the youth group will feed us a great breakfast.  See you Sunday.

Blessings in Jesus,

Pastor John