Witness

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John 20:21 Peace And Go

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” John 20:21

Any time things go wrong or have a major turn of direction, most people become afraid. They do not know what is next or always what to do.

Often when this occurs, people hunker down and hole up by themselves in fear. They do not want others to know of their fear as they are working on what to do next and handle the situation. They try to deal with it on their own.

Jesus had just been crucified and the disciples were living in fear of the Jewish leaders that they may also be killed. Suddenly Jesus appeared before them and told them to not be afraid. He also sent them out to be His witness.

It is common for many believers to act just like the disciples. They are walking down a path in life, when suddenly there is a turn of events. Everything and anything that could go wrong, does go wrong.

The world and even some believers begin to attack the person’s character and beliefs. Questions are asked if what is believed is real. There is no peace.

Despite the problems, Jesus is alive and is right there. As He said to the disciples, He is still telling believers to this day, to have peace and go out. God does not want the believer cowering in a corner in fear, but to have His supernatural peace that Jesus is alive and in control of everything.

When the believer has God’s peace, he will be willing to stand up and go out. He will no longer fear the world or the bad circumstances in his life, but will be a witness for Jesus. He will do what God asks of Him.

There will be times when life will look like it is going from bad to worse in your life. It will feel as if you have lost all hope and everyone is against you and your life is on the line.

During these times do not allow yourself to forget that on the third day Jesus rose from the dead. He is still alive and with you today. Jesus is still bringing you His supernatural peace.

Hold on to that peace and do what God commands you to do. Use the situation to go out and be His witness today with boldness.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that you will know God’s peace in your life; that God will help you overcome all fear of the enemy; and that you will go and be His witness to all the world.

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John 15:19 Are You Loved Or Hated?

If you belong to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. John 15:19

People love to be loved. No one likes someone to hate them. In order for people to get that love, most people will do whatever it takes to please others.

When a person is hated, he often feels left out or separated from others. He will often look at himself and try to figure out what he is doing wrong to be hated and change.

Jesus pointed out to His followers that the world hates them because He had chosen them out of the world.

Although the world appeared to love Jesus for a short time, they quickly began to hate Him. The world hates Jesus because He sets a high standard of holy living. This standard goes against the world’s way of living.

Every believer, who is truly living for God, will be hated by the world as a whole. Those who are living mediocre lives for God, will be loved by the world. They live in sinful ways and accept others to live in sinful ways. They are not separate, set a part from the world.

Followers of Jesus will call sin for what it is…sin and will not compromise their standards. The world does not like that type of talk or living, it makes them feel uncomfortable.

As soon as the world begins to love a believer, one must begin to question his walk with God. How is it that the world loves him, when the world hates Jesus? This can be a test strip for how much a person is loving and serving God or serving self and the world.

Take not as to how much the world, those who refuse to believe in Jesus, loves you. Ask yourself how much you are being a witness to them of who Jesus is.

If you are living for God and speaking His words, the world is going to hate you. The only ones who will not hate you are those who choose to follow Jesus.

Your primary job is to be a witness to the world, not to be loved by the world. Do not turn away from being that witness, just because some, or many, do not love you.

Are you loved or hated by the world?

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that God will strengthen you to be separate from the world; that you will know God’s love; that you will live a holy life before God and the world; and that you will be a witness for Jesus.

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John 6:27 What Are You Working For?

Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father as placed his seal of approval. John 6:27

Every day millions of people go to work around the world. Their goal in working is to provide the need or desired money. This money is desired to have in order to get the food they eat, clothes they wear and toys they want.

Some have very simple tastes in what they want, so don’t work that much. Others are willing to put in extreme hours to get high-dollar items.

Shortly after feeding about 5,000 people, the people found Jesus again. He tells them not to work for food that spoils, but for food that will last for eternity.

While every person needs food, clothing and shelter, these things are not the most important things in life. All of these things are very temporary. Shortly after eating food, a person needs more. Clothes wear out after a short time. Housing will eventually fall apart. None of them last for eternity.

The only thing that lasts for eternity is the souls of men. Although Jesus fed and healed thousands of people, when He walked on the earth, that was not His primary focus. His focus of work was to do God’s will to save the souls of people.

Over the centuries God has not changed that focus of work. Every believer has a commission to preach the gospel message and make disciples. They are to be working for God at reaching the lost, focusing on what is eternal.

God gave His seal of approval upon Jesus because He was doing His will. God will also put His seal of approval on every believer who is doing His will.

As you go through your days, ask yourself what is your focus or goal. It is easy to get caught up in the day-to-day living for temporary things.

Ask God what work you can do that will have an eternal impact. Then be willing to do what God places before you. Don’t allow yourself to be focused on the temporal dead things of this earth.

Aim for the things that will last for eternity–the souls of men and women. Put all your efforts in being His witness and making disciples as you work for the needed food, clothing and shelter.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that you will know the work God has for you to do; that you will be His witness; that you will make disciples for Jesus; and that your work will see eternal results for God.

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Luke 9:26 Are You Ashamed?

Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Luke 9:26

It is common for people to be embarrassed by other people that they know. A family member does something crazy in public or completely wrong and the rest of the family members are ashamed of him.

The actions can be done in fun or by accident, but are seen as not good. Others cannot believe that it was done and don’t want to be seen with that person.

Jesus stated that if anyone would be ashamed of Him or His words, He would be ashamed of them when He returns.

While many people will quietly claim to believe in Jesus, many will not openly talk about it. Their belief is often seen as something private, only for behind closed doors. The reason for this is that believing in Jesus goes against the norm of society. The things Jesus teaches goes against the world’s philosophy.

Every person who truly follows Jesus will be very different from the world. They will stand out in a crowd of people, because they do not act and talk like the world. Most people do not like to stand out, so they will hide in shame of what Jesus teaches. They will be ashamed of God’s word.

Despite what the world thinks, God’s word is true and Jesus is the only way to the Father. Jesus and His followers will be different and set apart from this world.

Any one who is ashamed of Him and His word, does not truly trust Him and is not following Him. Believers must be willing to be open about their faith and let the world know about Jesus.

As a believer you must know what you really believe and stand upon it. Do not allow the world’s ways of thinking to cause you to back down and be ashamed for what you believe. Do not be ashamed of the truth that the world is quickly rejecting.

When you choose to hide your belief in Jesus, you are being ashamed of Him. You are not being like Jesus, being bold in your witness. If you are ashamed of Him now, you are really saying that you are not really following Him. Then He will be ashamed of you later.

Don’t be ashamed of Jesus. Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that you will live your life for Jesus everyday; that you will be bold in your witness of Jesus; and that you will not be ashamed to be known as His follower.

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Luke 4:43 Get The Message Out More

But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” Luke 4:43

During a major storm, such as a hurricane, there is often a message that has to be delivered to the people. Often that message is one of telling the people to get out or evacuate the area for their protection.

In order to get the message out, they will use every means possible. Radio, television, internet and phone calls will be used to proclaim the message. Often they will send in police officers to go to homes and neighborhoods to pass the message on. This is done because of its great importance.

Jesus said He had to go to other towns to preach the good news. It was His full purpose to pass on the good news.

The proclamation that Jesus had is still important to this day. There are still billions of people who have not heard the emergency warning. The warning message is that they are dying in sin and headed for eternal judgement and death.

No one has to live like this, but most do not know it. People have not heard that they can have eternal life. This is where the church and believers come in.

Every believer has to pick up the mission that Jesus had started. Each believer is to proclaim the good news to every one that they can reach. They need to go out to the new areas around them to let people know who have never heard the message.

People need to hear the message of life, but if no one is willing to go, they will not be able to hear it. Jesus started and ended His life on this earth with this mission.

At some point someone had brought you the message of the good news of the kingdom of God. You were given the opportunity to accept or reject it. Now that you have chosen to accept it, you need to pass it on to others.

Seek God to find new areas to pass that message on. Ask God to show you new people to talk with that need to hear about what God has for them.

Do not allow any one to live without a chance to hear about Jesus and what He has for them. Get the message out.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that you will proclaim the message of Jesus; that God will open doors for you to be His witness; and that God will build His kingdom through you around the world.