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Remembering 9-1-1

 
Exactly 17 years ago today, America suffered one of the worst terrorist attacks in our nation’s history.
 
Tuesday, September 11, 2001 is a day that will forever live in infamy in our national conscience.
 
On that day, Islamic terrorists hijacked 4 commercial jetliners.

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True Worshippers

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John 4:23-24 (NKJV)
But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
 

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The Life of God

 
The purpose for which John the Apostle wrote his gospel was so that people could have eternal life—a purpose he clearly states at the end of his gospel when he said—
 
John 20:31 (NKJV)
…these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
 
Fifty-four times in his gospel John talks about the life that Jesus gives. The Greek word he uses for life is Zoë, a word that means spiritual life, or in other words—the life of God.  The Bible defines Zoë life as a dynamic life, a fruitful life, a joyful and fulfilled life.
 
It’s a life that Jesus Himself said was abundant and David in Psalm 23 described as overflowing. But here’s the problem—if I were to go around asking people to define the concept of ‘life ‘—for many it would be a little hard to nail down.Most people today would probably try to define life in terms of a quality of living.  
 
They would say that life is about achieving a certain level of happiness based on success in their chosen career field which brings them affluence, material possessions and possibly even fame.  But this abundant life that Jesus spoke of isn’t external as many believe and teach.

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He Is Risen

 
Here we are less than two weeks away from the greatest holiday this world has ever celebrated—the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the single greatest event in the history of the world and the cornerstone of the Christian faith.
It was the central message of all Apostolic preaching in the book of Acts and is the very bedrock upon which the gospel is built. It is so foundational to Christianity that anyone who denies the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ cannot be a genuine Christian.
 
Without the resurrection there is no Christian faith, no salvation—and no hope for man.
 
As Paul the Apostle said, “If Christ is not risen, then our preaching is useless, your faith is meaningless, we are still in our sins, those who have died believing in Christ are lost and we are of all men the most pathetic. We might as well eat, drink, and be merry for there is nothing more to life than this.”
 
However, Paul went on to say, “But now Christ is risen from the dead and is the first fruits from the grave of those who have died believing in Jesus.”
 
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the greatest source of joy and celebration known to man—but understand, what ended with great joy and celebration didn’t start out that way.
 

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The Two ‘Musts’ of Salvation

 
I believe that John 3 is one of the greatest chapters in the Bible with regard to the salvation of the sinner. The chapter is built around two great ‘must’ statements—both of which are essential for salvation.
 
The chapter begins with a man who wanted to speak with Jesus privately, so he comes to Him by night—the man’s name was Nicodemus. This gentleman was a ruler in Israel, which meant that he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Council—it also tells us that he was a Pharisee.
 
The Pharisees were ultra-conservatives and lived by the strictest possible religious rules, and even though the term ‘Pharisee’ has become synonymous with hypocrisy—not all of the Pharisees were hypocrites.
 
Many Pharisees, like Nicodemus and Saul of Tarsus, were very sincere in their desire to obey God and live a life of separation from the pollution of the world—in fact the word ‘Pharisee’ means ‘to separate.’
 
John 3:2 (NKJV)
This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”

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When Life Takes A Turn For The Worse

 
What do you do when you’re going along in life and things are going fine, you’re being blessed, your family is healthy and your company is prospering—when all of a sudden the bottom drops out?
 
(Your spouse tells you they want a divorce; or you find out one of your children is very sick; or maybe that your company is laying you off)
 
What do you do when the road you’re on suddenly takes an unexpected turn and you find yourself in a place you never thought you’d be in, facing a situation you’re not prepared to deal with?
 

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