The Bible teaches us to have joy in the Lord. “Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Philippians 4:4″ Some of us have been taught that when we laugh or have joy it is wordily, however joy is a great thing and something God desires for us to have. We should have joy in God about the offer of eternal life through Jesus Christ (see Romans 6:23). Jesus had great joy about His death on the cross for our sins (see Hebrews 12:2”). God has mercy upon us and considers all those that believe to be His beloved children. Brought “with great joy into [the Father’s] glorious presence without a single fault” (Jude 1:24 NLT). May we all trust and rejoice in the Lord. Amen

God is the Creator and guardian of our physical lives and spiritual lives. Jesus keeps all of it, loves us and has great plans for us. To those that believe God has provided an amazing afterlife in Heaven, “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 1 Corinthians 2:9”. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16”. It is great news that Jesus Christ came 2,000 years ago to earth as God in the Flesh and died for our sins. Through Jesus the road to Heaven has been made possible. On this Good Friday and Easter Sunday may we all rejoice that Jesus did not stay in the grace forever but rose on the third day. That Easter morning the women came to the grave and it was empty! Praise God that He has power over death and helped prove that Jesus is God by rising from the dead. Amen

We should focus on the things of God and not on the things of this world. Colossians 3:2 says, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.” In Matthew 5:16 we are instructed to do good before people as a testimony that they would see our good works and give glory to God in Heaven. It’s easy to lose focus in our daily walk with Jesus. You might begin to wonder why even try to be a good Christian? We should because the Holy Spirit as our guide helps bring peace and justifies us before God. If we are grateful for what God has done we should try not to be distracted from what God wants us to do. May we all desire to walk daily with Him. Amen

We are blessed that Jesus rose from the dead defeating the death of the cross. “This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Acts 2:32”. Acts 1:22 teaches us that 40 days after He rose from the dead He was taken up into Heaven so that He did not have to die a second time. It was proof that He is God. We are buried with Christ when we are baptized meaning that we are given a new nature and help to overcome our sinful self. “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. Romains 6:4”. Ephesians 4:5 says, “One Lord, one faith, one baptism,”. Thank God for the ability to fight sins and the strength we have through Jesus Christ. Amen

“One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. Ephesians 4:5-6” Baptism is a public declaration of obedience to Christ. There is only one Lord God Jesus Christ. True faith is in Jesus who is the only way to God the Father and to Heaven. “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6”. The Bible teaches us that we should desire the things of Heaven and not the things of this world. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Colossians 3:2”. We are blessed to know that a loving God has given us the chance to accept His Gospel and go to Heaven when we die. Amen.

Jesus told us that He is the only way to Heaven that He is truth and life. …You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I told 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 8:23b-24 CSB). It is great to know that a loving God has opened the gates of Heaven through His Son Jesus Christ. When Jesus was in the garden praying he said, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. John 17:3”. Jesus knew that eternal life is through Him and also that He would soon die. The Good News is that when Jesus died 3 days later He rose from the dead. May we all know the only true God & His Son Jesus Christ. Amen

Paul the Apostle tells us that he suffered the loss of many things yet because of that was able to have salvation in Christ. “…I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ and be found in him…” (Philippians 3:8b-9a CSB). We learn in Philippians 1:29 that on Christ’s behalf we should expect to have hardship because that is simply part of life. We can rest assured that Christ is with us because Christ said, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20”. That is great news and the joy of the Gospel that Christ will be with all those that believe bringing comfort and knowing that He loves us. Christ suffered, died and rose again so that we may have eternal life. Amen

The Bible teaches us that through Jesus we are forgiven of our sins. “…Through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38”.  “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23”. None of us are free from temptation but we can all be freed from the consequences of sin through Jesus Christ. Without Jesus sin brings forth punishment as the Bible tells us, “the wages of sin is death”. However we learn that, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23”. The devil is running wild in our world right now. We need to be mindful of that and know that the power of God is strong and will help us overcome the devil. We all make mistakes, but we can experience peace, strength and the ability to overcome challenges through Jesus. Amen

Jesus had 12 disciples. He knew Judas would betray Him Matthew 26:24 says, “The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.”. “And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you who eateth with me shall betray me. Mark 14:18″. Even though Jesus knew He would be betrayed He put His life in the hands of God The Father. In Luke 22:42, Jesus said, ” remove this cup from me”. He was praying to God that if possible He would not have to die but He prayed if it is your will Father let it be made manifest. Jesus was 100% man and 100% God. Christ felt pain and worry. He knew God was with Him and he also loved His people so much that He was willing to die for them. The Gospel of Salvation is a wonderful message that God came in the flesh, lived among us, and died for us. He did all this so that we could someday God to Heaven. Praise God for His plan of redemption for everyone that accepts His message. Amen

We learn in Hebrews that faith is believing in the unseen (GOD), and faith is the evidence God is real. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1)”. We are considered right before God by faith (see Romans 4:5). We are not saved by obeying the law or we could say we earned it. However, faith is the unmerited favor of God and not something we earn. Ever since the fall of man/women in the garden of Eden men & women have faced a sin problem. We simply can’t obey God 100% of the time because we all sin. I am thankful that though we are sinful and evil (at least sometimes), God forgives our sins and daily sanctifies us. Amen