Life was hectic. I was regularly traveling more than three hundred miles between my home in Connecticut and my new office outside Washington. At the same time my daughter was planning to be married soon, and to top all that, my wife was continuing to fight unidentified health problems. There were just lots of things to worry about.
Late one Sunday afternoon, my wife and I stopped at a supermarket to pick up a couple of items. Returning to our locked car, we couldn’t find the key! A quick look through the car window showed us where it unfortunately was. Man. I didn’t need that, as I planned to drive to Washington as soon as we got back to the house. I telephoned for help, and eventually my daughter and her fiancé came to the rescue with another key.
Returning home, we strangely encountered another key problem. The downstairs bathroom door was locked. Looking around I could easily see that everyone was in view, so why was it locked? How did that happen? I was getting a bit unraveled. We kept a key above the doorframe for just such an instance, but now it too was missing. An intensive search began by all, but we just could not find that key. I was becoming really anxious from the time spent on these lost key incidents because I had to leave soon. What could have happened? I’m sure by my behavior I was making everyone around anxious as well.
After several minutes of searching and while everyone else continued to look, I walked upstairs and into the master bedroom, dark at the time and only lighted by the hall light coming in the door. Through that dim light I could see lying on the bed a church program, and sticking from the pages of the program was unmistakably the key to the downstairs locked bathroom! I was stunned. The air in the bedroom was electric, and the hair on my arms seemed to be standing on end. I sat down on the bed and picked up the program. Slowly opening it, I realized it was not from the current Sunday but from a Memorial Day service weeks before. In the program was a paragraph stating that flowers were given the church that Memorial Day from my wife and me in honor of our deceased fathers. I sat in the dark for several moments, trying to think. I was in shock.
Finally, I stood up and left the room, going downstairs to report my find. Everyone was surprised and said they had not placed the key there on the bed. It was obvious they were telling the truth. But unmistakably someone had put the program and the key there, and had locked the downstairs bathroom. That someone was an angel, of course. This was a sign that could not be ignored. Gradually I realized the message: You are not alone. Don’t worry so much.
In a small but unforgettable incident, God had stepped in to remind me he was there, to put things in perspective. Still later I thought about Christ’s admonition in the Sermon on the Mount not to worry about my life. I was back in focus.
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
Friday, April 6, 2018
Thursday, March 29, 2018
* JESUS, THE CROSS, and RESURRECTION
We are at the time of the year
when Christians boldly celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus
Christ. This is the single greatest
moment in human history, the redemption of humanity, the reestablishment of a
relationship between people and God – for all those who want that
relationship.
It is at this very time almost
2000 years ago that Jesus took upon himself all our sins – all our iniquities –
as well as all our sicknesses and diseases and pain and overcame it all. Imagine the burden he bore. He overcame death. He overcame the world. Yes, he was the son of God and indeed that is
why his death on the cross, his sacrifice, could accomplish what it did. He was the only sinless person ever to
live. He alone could atone for the sins
and corruption of humanity.
Most of us know the general
account of Jesus and the cross. But I
thought perhaps for a moment it might be interesting and worthwhile to note a
few less quoted aspects of the account.
All are from the Bible but most are generally overlooked or not reported
accurately. Consider:
(1) It is horrible to contemplate,
but in going to and through the cross Jesus’ appearance eventually became
disfigured beyond recognition as a human being, as a man. Are you aware
of that? So the movie a few years ago
called THE PASSION did not begin to show how horribly he was beaten. Part of the disfiguring no doubt also had to
do with the incredible burden of corrupt humanity that he was bearing, the sins
and sicknesses of all people forever.
Just as there were many who were appalled at him. His appearance was so disfigured beyond
that of any human being and his form marred beyond
human likeness (Isaiah 52:14)
(2)
Jesus died at three in the afternoon. When that happened tombs broke open and
people who had died in the past rose from the dead and walked about
encountering people in Jerusalem. And
not just any dead people – no, holy people!
Imagine what that might have been like!
The dead rising and walking about.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two
from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had
died were raised to life. They
came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy
city and appeared to many people. (Matthew 27:51-53)
(3)
The centurion and those guarding Jesus at the
cross exclaimed at seeing all that happened after his death that surely he was
the Son of God.
When
the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the
earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed,
“Surely he was the Son of God! (Matthew
27:54)
(4) When
Jesus was arrested in the garden, the soldiers and officials who came for him said
they were looking for “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus responded “I am he” and the
power of that response and his presence knocked them to the ground! They all knew they were dealing with
something and someone beyond anything they had ever known. Obviously, Jesus could only be arrested by
his allowing it to happen. (In the original Greek of the New Testament, what
Jesus actually said was “ego eimi,” or “I am,” the same words identifying himself that
God said to Moses in identifying himself.)
When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the
ground. (John 18:6)
(5)
Pilate’s wife warned him to have nothing to do
with the innocent Jesus:
While
Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message:
“Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a
great deal today in a dream because of him.” (Matthew 27:19)
(6)
After his arrest, Jesus responded to the high
priest’s questioning him by affirming that indeed he was the Christ, the Son of
God.
The high priest
said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you
are the Messiah, the Son of God.”
“You have said
so,” Jesus replied. “But
I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the
right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven. (Matthew 26:63-64)
Jesus is quoted on the same moment in Mark 14: 61-62 this way:
Again
the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”
“I am,” said
Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at
the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Jesus did not hide who he was, and was specific in dealing with
these blind religious leaders.
(7) In Mark,
Matthew, and Luke Pilate asked Jesus if he was the king of the Jews, and Jesus
is quoted in each book as answering: “Yes, it is as you say.”
In John, Jesus was more specific –
Jesus said, “My
kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to
prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from
another place.”
“You
are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus
answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the
reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the
truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” (John 18:36-37)
May God bless each of you as you again celebrate the
monumental accomplishment of the Son of God and the Son of Man. And may you have an ever greater revelation
of who he was and is and who you are in him.
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
(MARCH 2018)
Copyright © 2018 by John
Newlin
(All scriptures are from the
NIV.)
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
* BEING THE WEATHERMAN
…“When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.”… – (Jesus speaking, Matthew 16:2-4 NIV)
In our modern America people watch weathermen all the time. On local news programs, the weatherman occupies a huge proportion of the broadcasts. Even if it is just to hear the temperatures and the forecast that the weather will be mild or may rain a bit, people are fixated on the weather. These weathermen are not precisely accurate as we all know, but they generally are in the ballpark. They do give a decent picture of what is coming the next day or two. Of course, many normal people not weathermen can do that too, usually just by looking outside, or by looking at a map of isobars and isotherms. They know the signs to look for.
So it was in Jesus’ day. People could discern the immediate weather and what might happen the next day or so. People had the ability to comment on the future as far as weather was concerned.
But notice – Jesus chastised the people for their inability to discern the times, to understand what of great significance was happening around them. What was that? God was in their midst as a human being. They were getting teaching straight from God. Miracles were happening. And this Son of God was about to reconcile humanity to God. But the bulk of the people could not see. A few could a bit – Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea, the disciples eventually, a few others.
Notice Jesus’ phrasing: a wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none other than the sign of Jonah will be given to it. The mass of the people just could not see and understand.
And here we are today. The time of the return of the Lord. The bulk of humanity does not know nor recognize nor understand this. The signs given are numerous – the fulfilled Biblical prophecies. True believers whose spiritual eyes and minds are open see and realize and understand. But today’s wicked and adulterous generation cannot see. They can’t recognize the signs. At all.
In past healing services and ministry programs I used to be amazed at how the Holy Spirit would come with such great power, touching so many so dramatically, and there would be wonderful healings. People would sometimes even return to stand up and testify to the healings. And I always wondered why didn’t everyone present run home and get all their neighbors and relatives and especially the sick and bring them back to the next program to receive and be healed. But they didn’t. Few indeed took that approach. Only one time in an inner city area did we see this really - while leading a healing service we discovered a woman in the back calling everyone she knew and telling them to get down to the church right now. She knew and saw what was happening.
But a wicked and adulterous generation does not. Another way of saying that is that most people today - even those people who attend churches but are not serious spirit-led believers who know the Word and have the gift of discernment - do not understand and see. They can’t grasp what is happening right before their eyes.
And now we are in the season of the Lord’s return. It is imminent indeed. Our coming new book WAKE UP AMERICA! is all about that. The remarks of Anne Graham Lotz at her father’s funeral were all about that.
We started this talking about weathermen. I am a real weatherman of this generation. There are others, but not many I have discovered these past many years. And I give you the forecast that truly matters. Rather than temperature and pressure and rain forecasts, I give you Biblical prophecies fulfilled and interpretation of events and the assessment of just where we are and what is coming. It’s a bit more important that the physical weather. In Ezekiel God had another term for this weatherman role I have: he called it a watchman.
Many people do not want to hear my weather forecast. A wicked and adulterous generation does not want to hear. Ah, but the Nicodemuses and Joseph of Arimatheas and Peters and Pauls and others do and will.
It really is a remnant that is going with the Lord when he returns so very soon. Narrow is the road that leads to life and few are they who find it. Jesus said that (Matthew 7:14). Not a lot of traffic on that road even today. Hopefully there will be more.
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
(March 2018)
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
[NOTE: This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with appropriate attributions included (including the copyright and the ministry contact information). It may also be quoted in part as long as appropriate attributions are given. We in fact encourage you to do all this and to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]
All contributions to John Newlin Ministries, Inc. – whether money or material goods or stocks or bonds – are tax deductible. John Newlin Ministries, Inc. is a 501 © 3 nonprofit corporation.
Friday, February 23, 2018
* WHAT DID WE JUST WITNESS?
Jesus made the point
that, excluding himself, no greater person had lived than John the
Baptist. No one.
Along that same line
of thinking, yesterday I asked this question on Twitter:
Did we just see the
death of the greatest person to live in our lifetimes?
And the answer:
Don’t know. Only God knows that. But it certainly appears possible.
Makes us feel empty,
doesn’t it.
Makes us feel even
more alone and out there.
Makes us feel less
secure.
I really hate it
when persons I care so much about die.
Close family members of course.
But I am talking here about those persons who so influence our life
positively but whom we may not really know personally. Once they are gone, they are gone. They are no longer with us here. And we believers must soldier on.
Billy Graham would
of course make the point that we are where we always were, in the hands of a
loving and all powerful God. His leaving
hasn’t changed that.
Nope. We still have God. We still have Jesus. We still have the Holy Spirit.
Most on the earth
don’t have or know that. So they are
really out there alone. You aren’t.
I am a bit
surprised, I admit. He had said some
time ago that he was surprised to find himself alive with all his
contemporaries gone. And he had remarked
that he thought, or wondered, if God were leaving him to be here when the Lord
comes in the rapture.
Well, he almost made
it. I wonder why God took him home
now. Interesting. So close to the return. Maybe to have a big celebration for Billy
alone, not mixed up with all the other saints when they come home at that
time. Maybe.
I saw yesterday
Franklin quoting some of his father’s remarks: “You’re not saved by joining a
church. You’re not saved by living a
good moral life. You’re saved only
because of the grace of God in Christ.” Sounds familiar, much like what I am
always writing, like what any true believer knows. It is all about a one on one relationship
with God. It is you and God, not you and
anyone else and God. You know that. So many of those around you don’t know that.
I always liked the
fact that Billy was from North Carolina, where I was born, and that he liked
baseball. I do too.
Another quote from
Billy: “Someday you will read or hear that Billy Graham is dead. Don’t believe a word of it. I shall be more alive that I am now. I will just have changed my address. I will have gone into the presence of God.”
Really, really
special.
Well, enough
said. He is home now. We aren’t.
We are still here, aliens in a difficult environment, living and working
as ambassadors for God. Still work to
do.
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
(FEBRUARY 2018)
Copyright © 2018 by John
Newlin
[NOTE: This article may and should be copied,
printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or
forwarded in its entirety with appropriate attributions included (including the
copyright and the ministry contact information). It may also be quoted in part as long as
appropriate attributions are given. We
in fact encourage you to do all this and to give printed copies to those who
you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]
[All contributions to John Newlin Ministries, Inc. –
whether money or material goods or stocks or bonds – are tax deductible. John
Newlin Ministries, Inc. is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit corporation.]
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
* NO EXCUSES FOR TRUE BELIEVERS
Despite all the signs about, the fulfillment of biblical prophecy, the extraordinary behavior of leaders and countries and more, some people who say they are Christians just cannot come to grips with where we are in time. In the February newsletter I sought to highlight some of the things happening right now that demonstrate how confused and lost society is in general. Well, now in this Sign of the Times, I give four extraordinary examples. If you cannot recognize the last days in the events below, you need to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit and for clarity of thought, especially for the gift of discernment.
- The Pope called a reporter for an Italian newspaper and said that the US has a “distorted vision of the world” and Americans must be ruled by a world government, as soon as possible, “for their own good.” The Pope also prayed toward Mecca, stated that Islam is a religion of peace, and that Europe should open borders to Muslims.
- Just a few days ago on the popular daytime television program THE VIEW, one of the hosts referred to Vice President Mike Pence’s faith as a mental illness.
- Recently three pastors and a rabbi gathered in Bethesda Maryland to bless an abortion clinic.
- Two Sundays ago a Lutheran church in New Jersey celebrated the move of a pastor from being a woman to being a “man.” A Lutheran bishop was there to join in the celebration and called Pastor Rose Beeson “Peter.”
Watch that you are not deceived. And endeavor to be clear-minded and self-controlled so you can pray.
Don’t sit still like a rock on a wall; if you are a true believer in the Lord then you have assignments, even if you don’t think you do. At the very least you should be praying for God to draw nonbelievers to Jesus and praying for the Holy Spirit to arrange whatever encounters he would have you have with those who do not believe so that he might share the gospel truth through you.
Beyond this ask God what specific role he has for you in these last days. Remember, you can call out to him and he will answer you and show you great and hidden things you do not know.
May our God bless each and every one of you.
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
(Note: Scripture references to study – Luke 21:8, 1 Peter 4:7, 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, Jeremiah 33:3)
(FEBRUARY 2018)
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
[NOTE: This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with appropriate attributions included (including the copyright and the ministry contact information). It may also be quoted in part as long as appropriate attributions are given. We in fact encourage you to do all this and to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]
[All contributions to John Newlin Ministries, Inc. – whether money or material goods or stocks or bonds – are tax deductible. John Newlin Ministries, Inc. is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit corporation.]
JOHN NEWLIN MINISTRIES
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email: john@johnnewlinministries.org
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tel 910 395 1465
Friday, February 9, 2018
GOD'S GREAT FORGIVENESS OF YOU
Yesterday
for a moment I thought about my mother.
I don’t know why, but I was just thinking about her and about various
things over the years, especially the last several of her life which were hard
for her. And I thought about things I
did, decisions I made regarding her care and her life and really all sorts of
other decisions and actions over the years.
Some of them I debated at the time.
Some of them perhaps should have been handled otherwise.
And
as I was thinking about things she might not have liked, I said I hope she
forgives me.
Almost
immediately a smile broke out on my face.
Well, how ridiculous, I thought!
Of course she forgives me! How
silly! My mother? Of course she forgives me. There is no question of that. Of course she would and does.
It
was not even an issue. I know deep
inside how much my mother loved me. And
I know that of course she would forgive me for anything.
Aha! Now then the next thought. If I can have such absolute certainly about
my mother’s forgiveness that it is not even a question, what about God? What
about his forgiveness?
It
is the same absolute. It is there and real and absolute. No question.
Jesus paid the price for that.
Realize it. Take it. Think about someone who truly loved you, like
maybe your mother or father or some other family member or friend, and think
about how of course they would forgive you for anything. Then magnify that forgiveness an infinity of
times to get to God’s level of forgiveness of you.
Forgiven. That’s what you are. You as a believer in the Lord. Forgiven.
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
[NOTE: This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with appropriate attributions included (including the copyright and the ministry contact information). It may also be quoted in part as long as appropriate attributions are given.]
(All
contributions to John Newlin Ministries, Inc. – whether money or material goods
or stocks or bonds – are tax deductible.
John Newlin Ministries, Inc. is a 501 © 3 nonprofit corporation.)
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
Tuesday, January 30, 2018
* LAST DAYS BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF AMERICA
In the last couple years many people who inhabit New York City, Washington DC, Hollywood, and the government, entertainment, and media world have been shocked to encounter this truth: There is a real country out there in the rest of the United States. In fact, that is where the real country lives. And that country has had it with the government of the nation, with the extreme liberal elites, with the career politicians in both parties that forgot why they are elected in the first place, with the government bureaucrats who earn high salaries in safe jobs in an ever increasing number, and with the entertainment and media world that in no way represent their views.
These people from primarily New York City, Washington DC, Hollywood, and the government, entertainment, and media world have been unable to conceive that they do not represent the people of the United States, that their interests are not that of the country, and that the people of the United States do not agree with their views,. They persist in pressing on. Many national media on television and in elite newspapers such as the NY Times and the Washington Post tirelessly present their stories and editorials as if they represent the country. But they do not.
The people of the United States - the mainstream Americans who built the country and keep it running and defend it in wars and are shocked to see their culture and faith and beliefs so attacked - have now finally realized the power they have. They have once again discovered the wisdom of the founding fathers. They can throw the rascals out, and they have. Every day more of the rascals and their views are gone. Frequently another of the torturous, really illegal and inappropriate executive actions of the past is erased. Every day past actions to take America down, to reduce it to the level of the world’s countries, to bring in European socialism, are removed. Every day efforts are taken to return the nation to a land of law and order rather than a land where all sorts of unsatisfactory behavior and beliefs are not only tolerated but even promoted.
We are truly living in the last of the last days, the time so very close to the return of the Lord. In this time we know from Scripture how things get tougher, how things get more and more confused and difficult. Jesus himself gave as his first warning of this time in Mark 13, Matthew 24, and Luke 21 to “watch that you are not deceived.” He also talked about false prophets. Paul points out in 2 Thessalonians 2 how in these times God sends delusion to all these lost people who do not believe the truth but have delighted in wickedness. It is obvious today that large numbers of politically correct lost people are deluded. It is obvious. Listen to their comments on almost any subject. Irrational. Make no sense. But virulent, vicious, angry. They are angry because they just don’t know and don’t understand and are gradually, let’s hope, realizing their views have been and are being rejected.
The Lord is coming back soon. Let’s hope and pray this turnaround for America continues and more importantly spills over into the realm of a true Christian awakening. Let’s pray for a real revival, one that will sweep the country and bring countless new people into God’s Kingdom! Wouldn’t it be grand that when Jesus gets here he finds a nation working tirelessly to get his Word out to the world, a nation standing on his Word and his truths?
About two hundred and fifty years ago a small collection of people in the American colonies stood up and rebelled against what they viewed as wrong. They rebelled and stood firm and eventually took forward a new form of government that has done nothing but shock and amaze and become the envy of the world. Now today mainstream Americans have once again been called to stand up for what is right, to rebel against the tyranny of an elite that has controlled the government and the media and the entertainment world and has put forward a set of views that do not tie to that of the American culture or history or beliefs. It is clearly a tough fight. Pray for the health and safety of all those out there standing up for right and truth in this important battle.
May God bless you all.
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!
(January 2018)
Copyright © 2018 by John Newlin
[NOTE: This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with appropriate attributions included (including the copyright and the ministry contact information). It may also be quoted in part as long as appropriate attributions are given. We in fact encourage you to do all this and to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]
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