Making Jesus Known

This is an outline by Adrian Rogers.


What Jesus called the Apostles to do, he calls us as Christians to do as well. That is to make Jesus known to the world. Acts 1: 8 "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." The Apostles with their unique abilities possessed only by them, laid the foundation for the work of the church today. How are we to make Jesus known to the world today?
1. We Need To Recognize His Presence In Us (Acts 1:1-3)
2. We Need To Rely On His Promise To Us (Acts 1:4-7)
3. We Need To Respond To His Program Through Us (Acts 1:8)
I remember the motel chain Motel 6 had a series of radio commercials that ended with the reassuring words: "We'll leave the light on for you" I remember growing up, and coming home from work, or from a social event, and after topping the hill, I could see the kitchen light of our farm house shining brightly. It's light seemed to say, "This is where you belong" "Someone loves you here" "You are home" Jesus said that we who know Him as Savior and Lord are lights in this sin-darkened world. (Matthew 5:14-16) We are reflections of Christ who is "the true light" (John 1:9) We are the light for people to see their way home to Him. That's our program! That's the work of the church.
Making Jesus Known.(GP)

How Can We Kill?

Jonathan Strickland in his article entitled "What Makes A Killer?" introduces it by asking these questions: "What is it that pushes a person to end the life of another person? Does it take a special sort of human to kill, or is there potential in all of us? Does it depend upon situations and scenarios? Are we all born killers who repress our urges, or must we break down social and psychological barriers before we take a life? These are questions people have been trying to answer for centuries. (Read all of his article on http://people.howstuffworks.com/what-makes-a-killer.htm)
To see reports on television of executions of mass amounts of people, and the beheading of people, just makes me sick in my heart. I cannot believe that the goal of those defending the Islamic state will go to such brutality, to strike fear in the people of Iraq, and the western world. Not only in the world, but in our country, killing seems to be such a common event. How precious is a human life to God? We are so precious to Him, that He sent His Son to be killed, for the salvation of the world. As a precious lamb was killed to be the sacrifice for the sins, of the nation of Israel, our precious Jesus was killed, to be the sacrifice for us. It was a necessary action for God to do, in order to redeem the world. Jesus was killed, so that we could live eternally. If God was willing to do this for man-kind, what does this say concerning our relationship towards others? But how do we get across to the world, that love is to be the dominating virtue, instead of selfishness and hate? As Christians, the only way to affect change, is to show the love of Christ, in all that we say, and do. "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three, but the greatest of these in love" (1 Corinthians 13:13) GP

How To Live This Life, In This World

In this time of terrorism, economic challenge, and consistent immorality, how do we as Christians, live the life, God wants us to live? How do we stay focused, and faithful to living the truth that is found in God's Word? To say that we cannot be influenced by our environment is a delusion. There is so much, negative information to see and to hear. There is a great deal of temptation to go along with what the rest of the world is doing. To not fall into what the rest of the world is preoccupied with these days, is just too demanding. But yet, little by little the world hooks us like fish waiting for that delicious, but destructive worm. The Apostle John writes: "For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:16-17) Our enemy Satan is hoping that we take advantage of these worldly pursuits, that will corrupt our minds, and ultimately our souls. To stay faithful to our Christian life commitment, we need to always remember, the comparison of what Jesus Christ provides, and what the world provides. To know Jesus personally, and to fellowship with Him daily, is the best experience one can have. If we really put effort into it, and take it as far as we can, it will definitely cause us to say as the hymn says: "I'd Rather Have Jesus" than anything in the whole world. And that experience will not stop with this life, but will continue for eternity. To always keep this in mind, will help us to stay true to this life, that the Lord has called us to. GP

Giving Jesus A Chance

Mark 5:21-43
This ruler of the Synagogue named Jairus, came to a point in his life, when he needed help outside of his Jewish community. His daughter was dying, and there was no one who could help, except this man named Jesus, who had healed people before. Should he put aside his prejudices, and pride, to allow such a one to touch his daughter. Well that is exactly what he did: "And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet and begged Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.” (vv.22-23)  Can we place ourselves in the shoes of this ruler of the synagogue, who was surrounded by people who had doubts concerning Jesus of Nazareth? Have we not had our doubts about Jesus? Especially when we go through trials. Will He see me through this difficult experience? Is He all that He said He would be? Can I trust Him with my life? My soul? We today are still surrounded by doubt and speculation. The scoffers and the mockers are still around shouting their views. When I look in the rear-view-mirror of my life, I have seen the faithfulness of the Lord. I have seen Him lift me up, and say "arise, and face a new day!" "Arise and embrace peace and hope!" My deliverance has not always been in the way that I thought, nor in the time that I thought. But God has always been faithful. It is time for our society to give our Lord Jesus a chance to show His ability to change lives. To be the deliverer that He promises to be.
If we are to ever find the blessings that God wants us to have, we must put aside our prejudices, our pride, and doubt, and place ourselves in the wonderful care of our Lord Jesus. To say: "It doesn't matter how, or when, we are "being still, and recognizing that He is God." (Psalm 46:10) GP

I Have Found The Book!

2 Kings 22
In the eighteenth year of King Josiah's rule of Judah, he ordered the High Priest Hilkiah to use the tax money which had been collected over the years to renovate the temple. It was during this time that Hilkiah discovered the Book of the Law. While Hilkiah was cleaning the treasure room of the temple, he claimed to have found a scroll described as "the book of the law" (2 Kings 22:8) Hilkiah brought this scroll to Josiah's attention, and the king was greatly alarmed lest the calamities threatened in the book of non-observance of its commands, should come upon him and his people. He sent to consult the prophetess Huldah, who assured him that the evil foretold would indeed come, but not in his day; "because" she said, "Thine heart was tender and thou didst humble thyself before the Lord."(v.19) (Wikipedia) What a change there would be if those in leadership today would recognize the value of submitting to the authority of God's Word. Yes, leadership in government, school, community, church, and last but not least, the family. Today we treat God's Word as a book of suggestions, instead of God's rule for our lives. Because of this discovery, it was not just the temple that was renovated, there was an entire housecleaning in the nation of Israel. Isn't that what we need today? God's Word will help us to have clean hearts, and clean lives, and as a result, a pure and righteous nation. His Word will help us to have the right answers to all the questions, and challenges we are dealing with in our lives, as well as society. It's time to humble ourselves, and allow the Word of God to have the final say in the workings of our lives! (GP)

In Line With The Word

Have you ever heard these words before? "That he or she" is in line with the Word.?" These words speak of those who are living their lives in accordance with the Word Of God. If the Bible was treated as the final authority in many situations, what a different world this would be. But the Bible is treated more as a book of suggestion, instead of a manual for life. Yes, the Bible is God telling us how to live. And who should know more, than the one who created us. The Psalmist says in Psalm 119:10 "With my whole heart I have sought you; Oh let me not wander from your commandments." The principles in God's Word, are not suggestions, they are commandments. In the building of any house or building, everything must line up with the measuring rule. If anything is off, there will be a weakness in the structure. God's Word is designed for life maintenance. The question in every situation, is not "what I want to do", or "what I think I should do", but it should always be, "is this what God tells me to do, from His Word!" God's Word will always be "a lamp to our feet, and a light to our path." (Psalm 119:105) When you look at the mess our society is in, because we have looked to ourselves for the answers, and have come up empty; this should motivate us to look to God, and to line every situation in our lives with the truth that is found in His Word. Again, in so doing, what a different world this would be. (GP)

God's Word Given To Us!

"We also have the prophetic word made more sure, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter 1:19-21)
As I write this post, I want to say how thankful I am for the Word Of God. The Old Testament prophesied concerning the coming of Jesus into this world. And  the New Testament Gospel revealed right down to the nail, how Jesus fulfilled those prophecies. And His second coming is as sure as can be, because of the faithfulness of the Old and New Testaments linking together to reveal the truth concerning it. The Holy Spirit is the one who brought this all together. As Peter writes, it has never been, that prophecy was given by private interpretation. It was given by God, through His Holy Spirit. I believe that today, we have God's final revealed truth in our hands today. Jesus said in Revelation 22:18-19 "For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book; If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." God has spoken. Not only in the book of Revelation, but from the whole written Word. And if you take the Bible to explain the Bible, it will be far better than trying to have the Bible explained through the wisdom of man. We are never to try to change, twist, or shape the truth to fit our desires. We are to take the finished revealed truth of Scripture, and line our lives up to it. And that is what we will try to do through The Christian Journeyman. May God help us to do just that! GP

For Our Eternal Well-Being

Daniel 9:24-27
Have you ever received a message that carried vital information? That's what happened to Daniel. The angel Gabriel brought Daniel information concerning the future of his people, and the world. It is information that will affect the future for us as well. A period of time divided up by "seventy sevens" totaling a period of 490 years. And through this time, these are the goals to be accomplished  according to Daniel 9:24:
1. To finish transgression. To break the power of it, and set up a kingdom of holiness and love.
2. To put an end to sin. To abolish it, and abolish all sin offerings.
3. To atone for wickedness. Through Jesus' sacrifice to make peace, and bring God and man together.
4. To bring in everlasting righteousness. The goal of Christ's sacrifice, is to bring about our righteousness.
5. To seal up vision and prophecy. Jesus will have fulfill all the Old Testament prophecies concerning Himself as the Messiah.
6. To anoint the most holy. To consecrate the Lord Jesus Christ as prophet, Priest, and King of mankind.
The question that we need to deal with concerning future events is: What is our relationship with Jesus Christ? As we see in the outline of goals to be accomplished through the 490 years, the Lord Jesus Christ will accomplish these goals when this time is up. And the place we need to be is in right standing with Him. To allow Him to be our Savior, and deliver us from our sins. To also allow Him to be our Shepherd, to take care of us for all eternity.
The Lord has not left one stone unturned concerning our eternal well-being. What about us? Have we failed to make the most important decision concerning our eternal well-being? For time and eternity, let's not make that mistake. GP 

Does Jesus Care?

"Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me; Lord, be my helper!" "Does Jesus care, when my heart is pained, too deeply for mirth or song?" As the burdens press, and the cares distress, and the way grows weary and long." "Oh yes, He cares, I know He cares, His heart is touched with my grief. "When the days are weary, the long nights dreary, I know my Savior cares." Can you say yes to the words of this hymn? Are you confident that Jesus cares? Are the trials that you are going through right now, causing you to wonder? Causing you to ask, Where is the Lord Jesus in all of this?
There are three things that the Lord Jesus provides that shows that He cares deeply for us:
1) We have his Word (Psalm 119:105)
2) We Have His People (1 Corinthians 12:26, Ephesians 4:15-16)
3) We have His Presence (Matthew 18:20, 28:20)
His Word gives us direction and encouragement, His people give us love and support, and His presence is a comfort to our hearts. With these three provisions, how does one wonder about Jesus' concern? It must begin as always, as a matter of faith. No matter how Satan tries to sow the seeds of doubt in our minds, we must believe that the Lord can, and will provide these things,every time. If we talk faith, we had better walk faith. We may not get what we want, but we can count on the fact, that we will get what we need.
(Read Matthew 7:7-11, Philippians 4:19)
What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry,
Everything to God is Prayer!
Oh yes, My Jesus cares! GP

Power To Be

One Sunday morning, not long ago, three men crawled into the cockpit of a strange looking spaceship, which was strapped to a giant rocket at Cape Kennedy Florida. As the entire world watched in fascination, the countdown for the spaceship Columbia began. Never before had a spaceship taken off from earth, orbited the globe, and returned. It took an awful lot of power to make this happen. David said in Psalm 62:11 "God has spoken once, twice I have heard this, "that power belongs to the Lord." God's power is available to help us in many ways.
I want to list three areas of need.
1. THE NEED FOR SALVATION (Romans 1:16)
2. THE NEED FOR STRENGTH (Isaiah 40:31)
3. THE NEED FOR STEADFASTNESS (Jude 24)
Ask the Savior to help you, comfort, strengthen, and keep you.
He is willing to aide you, He will carry you through.
There is power to be what God wants us to be.
Today, let's plug into the POWER! (GP)

Cast Your Burden On The Lord!

"Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you, He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." (Psalm 55:22) We have a lot of people where I live you are carrying a lot of burdens due to the severe weather we have had. A loss of life, of property, and of joy. The secret to David obtaining strength to stand in the midst of adversity is found in our text: CAST YOUR BURDEN ON THE LORD We are called to "cast" like a fisherman casts his line out on the water. We are to cast our problems out to the massive presence and power of God. Just let God have them, and let Him work in bringing about resolution and positive results. as Psalm 46:10 says: "Be still and know that I am God.." AND HE WILL SUSTAIN YOU Through the years bread has been a sustaining source of nutrition and strength. Jesus said that He was the bread of Life (John 6:48) We need to eat His Words, and keep them in our hearts as we go through the storms of life, as we journey through this life. HE SHALL NEVER PERMIT THE RIGHTEOUS TO BE MOVED
It is interesting in comparing three translations on God's promise here. NKJV - "Moved" NASB - "Shaken" NIV - "To Fall" We have a firm foundation to stand on, especially when we go through trouble and trials. Our faith is based on the faithfulness of the one/or thing, we place our trust in. It is a fact that God is faithful. He always has been, and always will. Let's cast our burdens on Him, and live with confidence, that God will see us through the storms of life. GP

Your Speck, Or My Plank?

I may not be able to fix you, but I can work on me. Jesus said: "And why do look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:3) We are all unfinished products. Spiritual buildings under construction. Wouldn't it be nice if we could just push a "fix button" and fix the problems that other people have, so we could deal with them easily, smoothly, without all the drama, and conflict. There is no way that we can fix other people; only the Lord can do that. But we can look at the plank of problems in our own lives, because we know ourselves better that we know anyone, and that includes the Lord. But it's wonderful to know, that the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves, and can, and will, help us to fix the problems in our own lives. Because we know ourselves very well, we can take the truth of God's Word, and begin to internalize, and adjust the right buttons, and get things lined up with God's will for us. When conflict comes in our relationships, let's not jump to conclusions, and think that we have to have everything fixed right at that moment. Both parties should stop, and pray, and take time to internalize, with the guidance and application of God's Word, so that when we do come back together, we can have the right attitudes, and the right perspective on the matter that we are having a conflict about.