“THE CROSS ROAD”
Acts 2:36-41 (KJV)
“Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, who ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the Apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousands souls.”
On the day of Pentecost, when thousands had assembled to witness the wonders of the outpouring of the Holy Ghost and began speculating, “What meaning is this?” (Acts 2:12), Peter filled with the Holy Ghost, seized upon the moment to preach Christ with boldness. Peter, the Apostles, and many others had several private experiences with Jesus that allowed them to speak under the anointing which caused the hearts of over 3,000 souls to be saved. The Apostles, didn’t just begin the journey on the Day of Pentecost, but it started when they left their fishing net. It started when Christ met them at their “CROSS ROAD!”
When Jesus began His ministry, the Journey to the Cross began. On His journey, He called out to fishermen, in the act of throwing their fishing nets into the water (Mark 1:16, KJV). Jesus said, “…. the time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel (Mark 1:15).” He further goes on to say, “Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men (Mark 1:17).” Literally, Jesus was asking them to cast the Gospel message out to people and catch the souls of men. These ordinary young men, “straightway they forsook their nets, and followed Him,” as stated in Mark 1:18. There Journey with Jesus, led them to believing on what many believe today, the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Death, Burial, & Resurrection).
Just like the Apostles who had a personal experience with Christ, the Lord desires for us to experience the same. The Apostles witnessed Jesus perform miracles and they too also performed many miracles by the power of Jesus name. Have you ever been a living witness of something miraculous in your life? A miracle that if you told anyone, they might not believe, unless they saw it for themselves. I can recall such an incident, one day my sister in Christ, shared a personal testimony with me. She excitedly messaged and said, “Jesus healed me a few nights ago, it was a miracle. It happened in front of my eyes. A sharp object dug into my skin and there was a hole in my thumb.” With enthusiasm she wrote in all caps, “THERE WAS!!” She said her finger was bleeding and that she had prayed and commanded the vessels and tissues in her finger to respond to the name of Jesus and be healed. She wrote that within 10 minutes the skin that was cut and open was closed and now only a tiny dot could be seen. The skin went back into place as though it was never opened. She continued to say she thought she was losing her mind because her skin had responded to the name of Jesus and was healed. This was a modern-day miracle that was not a story she had heard. Instead she was a living witness of something that had happened to her through the power that can only be found in the name of Jesus!
Due to her encounter with Jesus, she was able to speak boldly about her testimony! She is able to “SPEAK THE NAME OF JESUS” everywhere the soles of her feet tread upon. Thank you, JESUS! The Bible says, in Romans 10:15 (NKJV), “And how shall they preach unless they are sent?” As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” When she speaks, she speaks with Apostolic authority, knowing the GOD she serves, is not dead but ALIVE. Only “THE CROSS ROAD” can begin this process of winning souls for the Kingdom of God!
The Apostles were being prepared the day they left their fishing nets immediately. There was no DELAY! They never stopped to say, “I am not ready to go, let me think about it” or “Let me go home to tell my parents and I’ll come along tomorrow.” Immediately, their “CROSS ROAD” in Christ Jesus began. A beautiful scriptural example of the importance of not delaying, is in Luke 9:57-62 (please take the time to read). A certain man wanted to follow Jesus, but he also needed to fulfill the duty of burying his father (to follow the Jewish custom). However, Jesus made it clear that putting traditions or ones own desires ahead of serving Jesus was not the way to the Kingdom of God.
I want to encourage you today, if you haven’t stepped out on faith, to meet Jesus on “THE CROSS ROAD”, the time is now! There’s no DELAY!! There are no actions or works we can do to earn or merit salvation, only the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the cross can save us. However, this redemptive work requires action on our part; that action is our faith-response to the salvation plan- ACT 2:38 will make it clear, in Jesus name!
HE IS RISEN!!!
HAPPY RESURRECTION!!!
God Bless you!!
JD&L Mission is praying for you!!
The Coming of the Lord is near!!
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NLT) “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from Heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the Earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So, encourage each other with these words.”
Please take time to read the scripture throughout.
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