Cross

Appointment With a Thief

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. Matthew 27:38 KJV

The day Jesus was crucified was the most horrible day of our Savior’s life. He had prayed and released Himself to the Father’s will, now, soldiers, guards and corrupt leaders seemingly were in control. Yet before He was led away, Jesus wanted to make one thing clear to His disciples:

For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. John 10:17‭-‬18a ESV

Jesus knew exactly what He was doing and He knew who He would meet that day. He was keeping an appointment with a thief. Neither nails nor a crown of thorns stopped the thief from seeing who Jesus was. Where soldiers saw a victim and the other thief pitiful person worthy of mockery, he saw a merciful King. Because of his faith and his humble appeal to be remembered, the thief received a guarantee of heaven better that anyone else in the Bible “Today you will be with Me. In paradise!”

Are you feeling defeated and forgotten by God? Has tragedy or failure unexpectedly struck your life leaving you helpless to respond? Do not give up or give in to despair. Nothing happens to us by accident and we are never beyond the reach of the hands of Jesus. If He willingly took the nails, and the cross to reach one thief He will not abandon you today. He is near and willing to receive you if you are ready to keep your appointment with the Savior today!

Are You Washed?

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But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:7 ESV

Recently we enjoyed watching the old film, “Annie” She reminds me a lot of my early life, when I was living on the streets. Of course you do not need to be homeless to want someone to rescue you, love you and be willing to include you in their family. The story of Annie could be the story of every person looking for God. When I first became a Christian, the song, “Are You washed in the Blood?” was popular in our church. I loved it because it was lively and easy to sing, and it expressed the joy I had in my new found life. It is strange to think of blood washing something, because as anyone who does laundry can tell you, blood stains are some of the hardest to remove. Even when bleach or other cleaners are used, they still show up under ultraviolet light. But God doesn’t do things according to our way of thinking. In His plan, the blood of Jesus Christ is the perfect cleansing solution for the sin stains on our hearts. But how does it work? How can the blood of Jesus wash away my sin?

Today’s verse explains that we have to begin by walking in the light. In other words we must be honest with God. We need to come to God without pretending and confess our sins to Him. He knows the truth anyway and sent Jesus to die so that we could be forgiven. Secondly we learn that when we are honest with God, we can begin to walk with Him. Since God always tells us the truth, if we will tell Him the truth, we begin our new journey with Him. Last of all the Bible tells us that walking with God means more than just trying to keep up with him like a toddler rushing after His parent. It means having fellowship with Jesus Christ. He is the one whose blood washed away our sin because He wanted us as His children and friends forever. Since we have His promise that He wants to have a relationship with Him, what are we waiting for? As we drove home recently through rural South Carolina we noticed a sign on a small church with a great question:

Photo by Jimmy Chan on Pexels.com

“Mosquitoes know there is power in the blood. Do you?”

Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing pow’r?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Are you fully trusting in His grace this hour?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?


Are you washed in the blood,
In the soul-cleansing blood of the Lamb?
Are your garments spotless? Are they white as snow?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

Are You Washed in the Blood? by Elisha Hoffman 1878

I hope you like this throw back video of Earl Scruggs playing it the way I learned it back in the day. Be blessed, tap your feet and sing along!!

Friendship With Jesus

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments

If I had to choose one book out of the entire Bible as my favorite it would be the book of John. Of course every book in the Bible is unique. For example, most of the Old Testament tells us about God’s covenant and holiness; while in the New the other Gospels tell us what Jesus did. When we get to Acts we learn how the church came to be and later the Apostle Paul shows us what it means to live as a Christian. But John, from its very first verses tells us about Jesus. 

In Chapter One He is the Word of God
In Chapter Six the Bread of life
Chapter Eight He tells us He is the Light of the world
And In Chapter Ten He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life
By Chapter Eleven He tells Martha He is the Resurrection and the Life
Chapter Thirteen reveals Jesus as Lord and Master
Chapter Fourteen the Way the Truth and Life
Chapter Fifteen He is the Vine and we are His branches
And finally to Thomas in Twenty He reveals He is Lord and God

But of all these amazing titles, I find the most amazing is Friend. 

No longer do I call you servants,[a] for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. John 15:15

When our oldest son was just a baby we lived in a tiny third floor apartment. The two features we loved most about it were that it was cheap and that it was furnished. But it was so small that you could walk through its three rooms in less than ten steps. Three for the kitchen, three more for the living room and a bit less for the bedroom which over looked the street. One hot summer afternoon our one year old son Chris woke from his nap while my wife was working in the kitchen. The window was open just a crack to let in whatever breeze might be stirring to let in some air. For some reason Chris decided that it was much more interesting watching the cars below on the street than in going to see his mom. As he climbed out, Nancy heard the sound and turned and saw our son out on the roof toddling back and forth unafraid and unaware of the danger. Being the cool headed woman that she is Nancy, looked out and smiled at Chris, then spread her arms wide and called gently. “Hi honey! Come give mommy a hug!’ Chris lit up when he heard his mother’s voice and walked back to the window and embraced his mother. As our friend, God is exactly like that. He clearly sees the danger we are in teetering on the edge of eternity because of our sin. We have all climbed out the window of His will to try and get a better look at the world. But our almighty Creator does not panic. He does not shout orders or demand instant obedience. He knows we cannot obey in fear and that in fact we will be even more likely to fall off our tiny ledge of safety. Instead the Master of the universe spread His arms open wide to us on the cross and called. “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Now that’s some amazing kind of friend! Won’t you rush to Heaven’s window and reach out for His everlasting arms! 

Oh what a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer

I hope you like our good friend Matt Maher’s version of What a Friend. It is one of my favorites!