“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:”
(Ecclesiastes 3:1)
What an outstanding and awesome week of consecration! We were blessed through the daily prayer time, the exceptional presentation of “The Last Seven Words of Jesus,” blessed fellowship in humility with one another through feet washing, and the inspirational service presentation on “The Power of a Lifted Jesus!” With certainty God’s presence was with us!
And then on Friday, We were ‘called into fellowship’ with the Lord. God’s love sent Him to the cross for us! And that love He had for us gave us a new relationship. Jesus declared, “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you…” (St. John 15:15,16a) Yes, through His death on the cross and the shedding of His blood, Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price for all of us who were condemned to death through Adam. When we partook of the body as well as the blood of Christ through Holy Communion, know that we were privileged to be ‘called into fellowship’ not as a servant, but as a friend!
However on today, ‘Resurrection Sunday’, the culmination of all we’ve experienced has come with understanding that Jesus did not remain in the grave, but rose triumphantly as he proclaimed! As the song declares, ‘Up from the Grave He Arose!’ As the Lamb, Jesus became the eternal sacrifice for all our sins & transgression; but on this day… we celebrate the Lord rising from the dead of His own volition… as Judah’s Lion! The King of Kings, who is our Savior and Lord!
But I also sense that today is the beginning of a ‘spiritual shifting’ for New Bethel. It’s as if the Lord is saying, Let the Performance Begin! I want to challenge you to move your faith for greater expectations of God’s miraculous hand. We’ve been prepared to perform and now is the time! The Word of God declares, “The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouses of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands…” (Deut. 28:12 NIV) The Lord also declared, “….Prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Malachi 3:10) But remember, the blessings of God will only occur with your obedience to the direction of God for your life!
The Lord has declared this is “The Year of Performance!” Move by faith and call your future into your NOW! I, along with Lady Angela, Amaris & Alexis, extend to you a blessed & holy Resurrection Sunday!
Pastor A. Glenn Brady