Church Of The Lost Sheep

"Beloved, do not let this one thing escape your notice: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare." 2 Peter 3:8-10 Peter in writing* to the early believers was saying that people will be mocking them because Jesus was taking His sweet time in fulfilling His promise of coming back. But he took that opportunity to speak about Jesus, who He is and how this will all end. Jesus is a compassionate person and He is taking His time for good reason. But at the proper time, just as Jesus have already told them; Peter in quoting Jesus' own Words said that He would return like a thief breaking in

‘In the last days,’ God says,     ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy.     Your young men will see visions,     and your old men will dream dreams. In those days I will pour out my Spirit     even on my servants—men and women alike—     and they will prophesy. And I will cause wonders in the heavens above     and signs on the earth below—     blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will become dark,     and the moon will turn blood red     before that great and glorious day of the Lord arrives. But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord     will be saved.’ Acts 2:17-21 As we have been reading the Book of Acts, we have been seeing how it was like during the time of the first Church. The first time Peter preached, he spoke about the reality of Jesus Christ. Telling those who were there, things they already know about including some that they may have overlooked or have failed to totally understand. He spoke of th

Acts 2 Church The Fellowship of Believers "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. A sense of awe came over everyone, and the apostles performed many wonders and signs. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need. With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."  Acts 2:42-47 As we have read above, the Book of Acts written by an eye-witness, the Evangelist Luke is a record of what the first church was all about. He wrote this record and the Book of Luke for a person named Theophilus and these books have been preserved, translated to different languages and passed d

Peter Addresses the Crowd "Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, lifted up his voice, and addressed the crowd: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen carefully to my words. These men are not drunk as you suppose. It is only the third hour of the day! ... Men of Israel, listen to this message: Jesus of Nazareth was a man certified by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know. He was delivered up by God’s set plan and foreknowledge, and you, by the hands of the lawless, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross. But God raised Him from the dead, releasing Him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for Him to be held in its clutches. David says about Him: ‘I saw the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will dwell in hope, because You will not aban

To Everything There Is a Season "To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to break down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to count as lost, a time to keep and a time to discard, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace." Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 In God's Perfect Timing and Purpose I was browsing through Facebook and came across this article titled: It's Time to Make Jesus Known Then the caption read: We long to go back to normal, but maybe God is calling us to a new normal—wh

The Holy Spirit at Pentecost "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. And when this sound rang out, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking his own language." Acts 2:1-6 About 10 days after the Ascencion of Jesus when He was taken up to heaven, the promised Helper, Comforter, Advocate -- the Holy Spirit was finally given to the closest followers of Jesus on the day of Pentecost, as we read in the passage above. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Living God. When He came, there were physical manifestations. They hea

The Ascension "So when they came together, they asked Him, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Jesus replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After He had said this, they watched as He was taken up, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. They were looking intently into the sky as He was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:6-11 Following Jesus telling His closest followers not to leave Jerusalem because of the gift that was promised them will about to be given to them, Jesus then told them more

"In my first book, O Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach, until the day He was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen. After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a span of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. And while they were gathered together, He commanded them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift the Father promised, which you have heard Me discuss. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Acts 1:1-4 Gift of the Holy Spirit Before Jesus was taken up to heaven (the Ascension) on the 40th day after His resurrection He told His closest followers to stay in Jerusalem. And to wait for the gift that He already told them about prior to His death. He mentioned that it was a gift that the Father has promised. John wrote about this gi

"...for His mercies never fail. They are new every morning"  Lamentations 3 My wife had a fresh revelation today. We have been talking about the Lord and we know that the Lord is faithful. He comes when He is the topic of a conversation. He is not the pushy type, if you leave Him out, He stays out. But once you call upon Him, He would always be there -- a constant help in our time of need. Real Need And there is no other time that we need His help than now. The pandemic has given people sickness, death, grief, worry, stress and many other problems -- mental, physical, emotional, psychological and financial. But this time has also provided us with many other postitives, which of course as humans we fail to see, as we are focused and more inclined to look at the negatives than the positives. Real Opportunity Today as we are shut indoors, we can compare it during the days after Jesus was buried, His disciples have also shut themselves indoors, sheltering in place

The Resurrection of Christ "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, and in which you stand firm. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep." 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 Within the 40 days of Lent and the next 40 days following the resurrection was when the Christian faith belief system was made certain. And this is why it is important that old and new believers take a look at the events that took place within these days. In the passage above the Apostle Paul in h

Jesus and the Beloved Apostle "Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper to ask, “Lord, who is going to betray You?” When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!” Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. However, Jesus did not say that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?” This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who has written them down. And we know that his testimony is true. There are many more things that Jesus did. If all of them were written down, I suppose that not even the world itself would have space for the books that would be written." John 21:20-25 So we continue with our study of the 40 days following the resurrection. According to the eye witness

Jesus Reinstates Peter "When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.” Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.” Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.” John

Jesus Appears by the Sea of Tiberias "Later, by the Sea of Tiberias,a Jesus again revealed Himself to the disciples. He made Himself known in this way: Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. Simon Peter told them, “I am going fishing.” “We will go with you,” they said. So they went out and got into the boat, but caught nothing that night. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not recognize that it was Jesus. So He called out to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” “No,” they answered. He told them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it there, and they were unable to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it) and jumped into the

Jesus Appears to Thomas "Now Thomas called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, and put my finger where the nails have been, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe.” Eight days later, His disciples were once again inside with the doors locked, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:24-29 Continuing our reading from the Book of John. This passage was after the resurrected Jesus had already appeared to His disciples as they were sheltering in pl

Jesus Appears to the Disciples "It was the first day of the week, and that very evening, while the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you!” He said to them. After He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so also I am sending you.” When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.” John 20:19-23 Continuing where we left off, we again read a passage from the Book of John. The Resurrected Christ appeared to His disciples as they were sheltering in place because of fear and perhaps shame or unbelief and other things they might be feeling at that time. From the passage above, Jesus appeared and offered them peace in the mid

The Resurrection "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb,” she said, “and we do not know where they have put Him!” Then Peter and the other disciple set out for the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down and looked in at the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Simon Peter arrived just after him. He entered the tomb and saw the linen cloths lying there. The cloth that had been around Jesus’ head was rolled up, lying separate from the linen cloths. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in. And he saw and believed. For they still did not understand from the Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead." John 20:1-9 So

Jesus Opens the Scriptures "Then Jesus said to them, “O foolish ones, how slow are your hearts to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and then to enter His glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was written in all the Scriptures about Himself. As they approached the village where they were headed, He seemed to be going farther. But they pleaded with Him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” So He went in to stay with them. While He was reclining at the table with them, He took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus—and He disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us as He spoke with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven

The Road to Emmaus "That same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. And as they talked and deliberated, Jesus Himself came up and walked along with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. He asked them, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?” They stood still, with sadness on their faces. One of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, “Are You the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in recent days?” “What things?” He asked. “The events involving Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. “This man was a prophet, powerful in speech and action before God and all the people. Our chief priests and rulers delivered Him up to the sentence of death, and they crucified Him. But we were hoping He was the One who would redeem Israel. And besides all this, it is the third day since these things took place

"In my first book*, O Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach, until the day He was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen. After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a span of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God."  Acts 1:1-3 In our last series (40 Days of Lent) we ended it with Jesus resurrecting from a death on the cross. Lenten Series After that 40 day period, another 40 day period started as Jesus appeared alive, in the flesh to several hundreds of people multiple times. We will look into these events as we read through the first chapter of the Book of Acts and a few other verses from the concluding parts of the gospels of Matthew, John and Luke and another series. Now as we have already talked about from the Lent series, none of the early believers believed that Jesus rose from the dead.