Philip, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, had found a Ethiopian eunuch traveling the road between Jerusalem and Gaza. The eunuch was reading the book of Isaiah, but was perplexed, so Philip started with that scripture, (Isaiah 53:7-8) and explained to the eunuch the good news of Jesus. Later as they traveled together, they came upon some water and it’s here the eunuch asks, “Why shouldn’t I be baptized?” Now in some late manuscripts verse 37 is added which says, “Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ The eunuch answered, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ ” Baptism is the public demonstration of a personal decision…it symbolizes spiritual renewal, forgiveness of sins, adoption by God and eternal life. If you are a Believer but have never been baptized…ask yourself the same question the eunuch did, “Why shouldn’t I be baptized?”
Tag: believe in jesus
II Timothy 1:8 ” So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord…”
Do the people around you even know you’re a Christian? ” I’ll let my walk do the talking,” you might be saying to yourself right now. But do you know how many “good” people don’t know Jesus and are going to hell? To paraphrase Jesus in Mark 8:38, If you’re ashamed of Me, I’ll be ashamed of you. Why should we be embarrassed to tell others what Jesus has done in our lives? Our testimony…or our personal story of redemption needs to be something we’re so comfortable telling others about that it flows naturally like breathing. No one can take your testimony from you…it’s totally unique and the supernatural power it has can melt hardened hearts. Someone around you today needs to hear your testimony…it will change their life forever. Be brave and declare Jesus as your Lord and Savior.
Philippians 3:10 ” I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”
To know the Lord Jesus Christ…is to live for Him. And in knowing Him…we will become more and more like Him, for we conform ourselves to His image. Knowing the Lord though is a life long journey of dying daily to our old self and deliberately becoming more like Him. But in the end, when people look at us, they won’t see us…they’ll only see Jesus.
Luke 18:41 ” ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ ‘Lord, I want to see, he replied.’ “
The blind beggar was sitting by the side of the road near Jericho. As Jesus walked near, the crowd brought the blind man to Him. Jesus knew the beggar was blind, so why did He still ask him that question? “What do you want Me to do for you?” It says in Matthew 7:8, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” The Lord wants us to ask Him for the desires of our heart…even down to tiny things that only we care about. Asking the Lord for something to be given to us isn’t unspiritual or lacking faith…it’s quite the opposite. The Lord delights in us asking.
Proverbs 11:17 ” A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.”
Demonstrating kindness to others can only benefit ourselves…for it doesn’t cost a thing to be kind. Matthew 7:12 is considered “The Golden Rule”, its principle being, we need to treat others as we would wish to be treated. But instead, we human beings usually demand love, respect, and appreciation… whether we deserve it or not. The Golden Rule simply says…Do you want respect, love and appreciation?…then show respect, love and appreciation to others first. Jesus desires us to be proactive in our kindness…not waiting until someone is kind to us first, but rather reaching out with kindness first, regardless if it’s reciprocated or not.
Job 25:4 ” How then can a man be righteous before God? How can one born of woman be pure? “
The simple answer to these questions is…we can’t. In our immoral human state, we are not innocent before God and in right standing with Him, and no matter what we try to “do” to become righteous we will fail, for all of our good works are like filthy rags in His eyes, (Isaiah 64:6) The only way we can stand pure before God is to accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, (that’s us) and to bear on His body our guilt and shame that we may stand before our Heavenly Father sinless and perfect…washed in the blood of Jesus.
John 16: 33 ” In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Jesus is the Great Overcomer… He who has defeated death, triumphed over the grave, and conquered sin, tells us in this scripture that adversity will only strengthen our spiritual backbone if we won’t give up. Jesus, the Great Overcomer, has forged the way for us to become overcomers too…to be victors not victims…winners not wounded.
John 2: 24-25 ” Jesus did not commit Himself to them…for He knew what was in man.”
Bottom line…you can’t trust people. They’ll say one thing, but do the opposite. They’ll promise things they can never deliver on. They’ll declare their love and then turn around and break your heart. Mankind is just that…humans with lots of flaws that disappoint each other daily. And that’s difficult when we demand perfection from those who can’t achieve it….for it leads only to disillusionment. And we need to be careful that disillusionment doesn’t cause us to become cynical, critical, and bitter. Bottom line…you can’t trust people – but you can trust God. You can fully trust God with your life, your future, your everything.
John 13:18 ” I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scriptures: ‘He who shares My bread has lifted up his heel against Me.’ “
Jesus is predicting His betrayal by Judas in quoting Psalm 41:9. In the span of three short years, Jesus fulfilled each prophecy that had been written about the coming Messiah. From His selection of the apostles…to knowing full well the impending treachery of Judas…Jesus carried out His plan and purpose wholly .