CUT TO THE CHASE! - Deity of Jesus Christ

This is a new segment that will hopefully help you to "cut to the chase" in conversations with people on the street.

One of the questions you can ask to cut to the chase... "Do you believe that Jesus is God?"

If people can't answer a definitive YES to that question, you are not dealing with a Christian.

Here is a verse I've used to point that out to people, "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am [He], you will die in your sins." John 8:24

John MacArthur writes - "He is not part of the original statement. Jesus' words were not constructed normally but were influenced by OT Hebrew usage. It is an absolute meaning "I AM" and has immense theological significance. The reference may be to both Ex. 3:14 where the Lord declared His name as "I AM" and to Is. 40-55 where the phrase "I am" occurs repeatedly. In this Jesus referred to Himself as the God (Yahweh- THE LORD) of the OT, and directly claimed full deity for Himself.

No matter how "intelligent" or persuasive peoples arguments may seem, if the person you are speaking to does not believe in the deity of Jesus Christ they are "dead in their sins" and need to hear the gospel!

Noho 9-26-09 Follow Up

Sharons prayer requests: Please pray for Hugo, Martin, Mario, Valentine, and Frank.

Mikes and Joanne's: Please pray for Mia who Joanne shared the Gospel with in detail and she prayed with her. Time will tell if her heart was given to the Savior. Pray also for William and his wife Vergie who claim to be Catholic and listen to some Gospel but had to leave. Pray for Art who said you get to heaven from being good. I started sharing the Gospel with him that none are good no not one and that we are all sinners and that only through Jesus Christ and his shed blood on the cross can anyone go to heaven. Then John 14:6 , Jesus is the only way, then all of a sudden he had to go. Also pray for Valentine a Ukrainian who needs to submit to Christ. All in all it was a glorious night of preaching, teaching, and sharing the Gospel with a lost and dying world.To God be the glory.

Davids: John who took a bible. Shane the homeless guy. The guy who rejects the deity of Christ and Evelyn the girl who cursed me out.

Yom Kippur Sept 27th &28th

Today is the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur or "The Day of Atonement." You can read about it in Leviticus 16:1-34. This part in particular stood out to me:

v. 20-22 "And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, (Is. 53:6-All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.)

putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man.The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness." (Psalm 103:12 -As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.)

2 Cor. 5:19 - God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

PRAISE THE LORD everyday that He has made us right before Him through the blood of the Lamb... Jesus Christ! If you know someone Jewish TODAY you have the perfect segue to share the glorious Gospel... be bold for the sake of His glory and their soul!!

UFO's & Yolanda

Aaron and I went up to Burbank Media Center on Labor Day to hand out some tracts which lead to an interesting conversation with a lady who was sitting and reading.

PRAY FOR JOSE!

Sharon took him to Hope again today... and he was accepted into the program!! Praise the Lord! Please pray for his salvation and that the Lord then uses him to reach others for Christ because he likes to talk!

Jesus Died!

Skimming the Surface

"Let us not forget as we live in this world that Christ is in us and with us. And let us not forget that some day in heaven, we will see Jesus face to face. We will look into the face of Jesus, and behold the face of God. For all eternity, we will see the omnipresent God in the person of Jesus Christ. The love of Christ in its sweetness, its fulness, its greatness, its faithfulness, passeth all human comprehension. Where shall language be found which shall describe his matchless, his unparalleled love towards the children of men? It is so vast and boundless that, as the swallow but skimmeth the water, and diveth not into its depths, so all descriptive words but touch the surface, while depths immeasurable lie beneath. Well might the poet say, “O love, thou fathomless abyss!” For this love of Christ is indeed measureless and fathomless; none can attain unto it. Before we can have any right idea of the love of Jesus, we must understand his previous glory in its height of majesty, and his incarnation upon the earth in all its depths of shame. But who can tell us the majesty of Christ? When he was enthroned in the highest heavens he was very God of very God; by him were the heavens made, and all the hosts thereof. His own almighty arm upheld the spheres; the praises of cherubim and seraphim perpetually surrounded him; the full chorus of the hallelujahs of the universe unceasingly flowed to the foot of his throne: he reigned supreme above all his creatures, God over all, blessed for ever. Who can tell his height of glory then? And who, on the other hand, can tell how low he descended? To be a man was something, to be a man of sorrows was far more; to bleed, and die, and suffer, these were much for him who was the Son of God; but to suffer such unparalleled agony—to endure a death of shame and desertion by his Father, this is a depth of condescending love which the most inspired mind must utterly fail to fathom. Herein is love! and truly it is love that “passeth knowledge.” O let this love fill our hearts with adoring gratitude, and lead us to practical manifestations of its power."

C.H. Spurgeon

Noho 9-19-09 Follow Up

We are truly a family!

Sharon's prayer request:

Pray for Jose and Fabian and Sergei (Russian). Jose would like us to come out and speak to the other homeless people near where he lives. He says he is coming back next week.

Jose is a guy who Sharon was blessed to witness to last night at Noho. HE CAME TO CHURCH TODAY!!! What an encouragement! Please pray for him and that we get to share the good news with his community.

Spurgeon quote for the day! 9/13 "Thoughts on the Last Battle"

"Sirs, if I saw you lying in your bed, and your house was on fire, the fire might be at the bottom of the house, and you might slumber safely for the next five minutes; but with all my might I would pull you from your bed, or I would shout, "Awake! awake! the flame is under thee." So with some of you who are sleeping over hell's mouth, slumbering over the pit of perdition, may I not awake you? may I not depart a little from clerical rules, and speak to you as one speaketh to his fellow whom he loves? Ah! if I loved you not, I need not be here. It is because I wish to win your souls, and, if it be possible, to win for my Master some honor, that I would thus pour out my heart before you. As the Lord liveth, sinner, thou standest on a single plank over the mouth of hell, and that plank is rotten. Thou hangest over the pit by a solitary rope, and the strands of that rope are breaking. Thou art like that man of old, whom Dionysius placed at the head of the table; before him was a dainty feast, but the man ate not, for directly over his head was a sword suspended by a hair. So art thou, sinner. Let thy cup be full, let thy pleasures be high, let thy soul be elevated, seest thou that sword? The next time thou sittest in the theatre, look up and see that sword: when next in thy business thou scornest the rules of God's gospel, look at that sword. Though thou seest it not, it is there. Even now, ye may hear God saying to Gabriel, "Gabriel, that man is sitting in his seat in the hall; he is hearing, but is as though he heard not; unsheathe thy blade; let the glittering sword cut through that hair; let the weapon fall upon him and divide his soul and body." Stop, thou Gabriel, stop! Save the man a little while. Give him yet an hour, that he may repent. Oh, let him not die. True, he has been here these ten or dozen nights, and he has listened without a tear; but stop, and peradventure he may repent yet. Jesus backs up my entreaty, and he cries, "Spare him yet another year, till I dig about him and dung him, and though he now cumbers the ground, he may yet bring forth fruit, that he may not be hewn down and cast into the fire." I thank thee, O god; thou wilt not cut him down to-night; but to-morrow may be his last day. Ye may never see the sun rise, though you have seen it set. Take heed. Hear the word of God's gospel, and depart with God's blessing. "Whosoever believeth on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved." "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." "He is able to save to the uttermost, all that come unto him." "Whosoever cometh unto him, he will in no wise cast out." Let every one that heareth say, "Come; whosoever is athirst, let him come and take of the water of life, freely."

C.H.Spurgeon - "Thoughts on the Last Battle"

Fire & Hammer

This sermon preached by Pastor Jack was such a blessing me and to all who share the Gospel... KEEP USING THE WORD!!! It is all we got and all we need. Spurgeon said it is the only weapon the Spirit uses ... because He wrote it and is IN IT!