Bethel Church LJ Podcast

Their story reminds us that God continually calls His people back to His truth. Every genuine renewal begins when His people once again submit themselves to His Word. The greatest danger facing the modern Church is no longer a lack of access to Scripture but growing indifference toward it. We own more Bibles and possess more resources than any generation before us yet having access to God's Word is not the same as allowing God's Word to shape our lives.

Their testimony of these two witnesses has now become our responsibility. May we prove faithful in our generation, not merely by owning a bible, but by believing it, reading it, obeying it, proclaiming it, and passing it faithfully to those who come after us.

The good news of the gospel is that Jesus Christ came to remove what the enemy sought to steal. He restores our relationship with the Father, heals what sin has broken, and returns us to the purpose for which we were created. Then He sends us into the world to do the same for others.

May we never settle for merely talking about justice. May we become people through whom God's justice is seen. May we cultivate the field He has entrusted to us. May we help others discover the purpose for which they were created. And may our lives, through the grace of Jesus Christ, truly yield much food for the glory of God and the blessing of the world around us.

Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?” He is the One in YOUR boat. He is not worried. And He has never once lost anybody on the way to the other side.

Jesus wasn't just a good teacher, He wasn't just a moral man, He wasn't just a prophet, He is the Lord of all creation and He went to the cross for you and me, He died on the cross, He was buried and  He walked out of the grave.

 

That has always been God's way. He calls first, and then He sends. History has never been changed by people who merely heard heaven's call. It has always been changed by those who answered it. Today, the call from heaven still echoes, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" May our response be the same as Isaiah's: "Here am I. Send me."

Every generation must still answer the same two questions.

• The first is the question of authority.

That began in the Garden when the serpent asked, "Did God actually say...?" His strategy hasn’t changed. Every false religion, theological error, and moral compromise begins by questioning what God has said.

Our generation faces the same temptation. Culture tells us truth is personal. Feelings compete with Scripture. Public opinion constantly changes. Even the Church is tempted to reshape the Bible to fit the culture instead of allowing the Bible to shape the Church. The issue has never been a lack of voices. The issue is deciding which voice has the final word.

• The second is the question of salvation.

People are still searching for acceptance. Some seek it through religion. Others through success, morality, or personal achievement.

Yet every one of those efforts is another version of what Adam and Eve did in the Garden. After they sinned, they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. We have been sewing fig leaves ever since, trying to cover sin through our own efforts instead of receiving the covering God has provided through Christ.

 

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible tells one magnificent story. It is the story of God restoring what was lost. Through Christ, He restores our relationship with Himself and our purpose on earth.

Revival, reformation, and resources: That is God's pattern. He revives a people. He reforms the earth through people. He provides for people so that they can carry out what it is He wants them to do.

As we surrender ourselves to that pattern, we become participants in God's eternal purpose—the restoration of His creation through His redeemed people. May our prayer always be the prayer Jesus taught us to pray

Mt 6:10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

The same battle continues today. The enemy still attacks truth, morality, and identity because his strategy has never changed. Every false religion offers a different answer to what is true. Every sinful culture attempts to redefine what is right. Every rebellious heart seeks to establish its own identity apart from God.

Even within the Church, the temptation remains. We are pressured to reinterpret Scripture, accommodate culture, redefine sin, minimize holiness, and live independently of God's authority. Satan needs no new strategy because humanity continues to struggle with the same old temptation: trusting our answers more than God's.

The good news is that Jesus came to restore what was lost in Eden. Where Adam failed, Christ succeeded

John 14:6  Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

 

Before we focus on our needs for provision, security, success, or even our own fulfillment, we are encouraged to seek the King's rule first. The Kingdom isn't just one of many priorities; it’s the foundation that rightly arranges all other priorities. As we put His Kingdom first, our values, dreams, relationships, responsibilities, and mission all come under His authority. This means we are in a unique time, caught between the initial promise and its complete fulfillment. The Kingdom is already here, yet it’s not yet fully here. Instead of merely waiting for the King’s return, we are to faithfully seek it and work to expand His Kingdom until He comes. If the Kingdom was Jesus' message, it must become ours. The Church exists not only to prepare people for heaven but also to represent heaven on earth. We are citizens of another Kingdom, ambassadors of another King, and stewards of His authority. Every gospel act, whether an act of obedience, compassion, healing, deliverance, or a transformed life, shows that the Kingdom is not only here but also advancing. “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

The answer to abuse is not abandonment. The answer to imbalance is not rejection. The answer is maturity. We do not need less of God; we need the fullness of God.

Therefore, never forsake the power of God in your search for wisdom, nor compromise wisdom for power. Pursue the Holy Spirit, who grants power, wisdom, and understanding in fullness. The same God who created the earth through His power, founded the world with His wisdom, and expanded the heavens through His understanding continues to build His Church in the same manner today.

Jesus took our sin and shame so that we could be united back to our father. It’s not a matter of if God loves you, it’s whether you will respond to his open arms and his heart of love being poured out to you today. You see the father is eagerly waiting for you to come home. He’s calling out to you and is more than ready to welcome you home. He’s calling out to you and is more than ready to welcome you back. Today’s message is very simple it’s really a simple heartfelt invitation to all of God’s children to please come home.