The Power of Faith

And now, a word to you elders of the church. I, too, am an elder; with my own eyes I saw Christ dying on the cross; and I, too, will share his glory and his honour when he returns. Fellow elders, this is my plea to you: Feed the flock of God; care for it willingly, not grudgingly; not for what you will get out of it but because you are eager to serve the Lord.

Be happy if you are cursed and insulted for being a Christian, for when that happens the Spirit of God will come upon you with great glory. Don’t let me hear of your suffering for murdering or stealing or making trouble or being a busybody and prying into other people’s affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being in Christ’s family and being called by his wonderful name!

You must have the same attitude Christ did... The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore be earnest, thoughtful men of prayer. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love makes up for many of your faults. Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay for the night. God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God’s many kinds of blessings. Amen

Christ, sometimes referred to as the Spirit of God, is the Spirit we receive at conversion. Receiving the Holy Spirit is a totally separate baptism. You can only receive the Holy Spirit after you have received Christ.

John’s First Letter starts: “That which was from the Beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have touched, the Word of Life – this Life has appeared, and we have seen it and testify to it…” He’s talking about Jesus!

We’re going through very difficult times worldwide; it needs much prayer. It’s even hard for us to look at the news. Why is there so much senseless violence and war? Satan is still in control, he’s still prince of this world – and that’s why God had to send His Son to die for us, to break the curse that’s on us. Thankfully, those of us who have come to Christ know that Peace which the world so desperately needs. Our world needs Jesus!

Those days are going to culminate with the sound like a trumpet, and that sound is going to echo from every building, and that trumpet will herald the return of Christ and suddenly in a blaze of Glory sweeping across the sky from the East to the West Christ is going to come back to the earth and He's going to take control, bind Satan, cast Him into a prison for one thousand years...

If from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him...

This describes much of the world right now! So many nations simultaneously are facing violence, stress, civil unrest, war…Even in Britain this August, violence on the streets… The same in Europe. As I write in Summer 2024, the Russian terror war against Ukraine continues. The Bangladeshi Prime Minister, a woman, had to flee by helicopter to escape the violence in her country.

I see the power of the Gospel in action I want you to understand the effectiveness of true conversion! Our faith is in God through Jesus Christ, and in the authority of His Word.