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For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:36 I was a tomboy growing up. I didn't like wearing dresses. When I was little I wished I was a boy. But I never told anyone that because even as a child I knew that was wrong. God made me to be a girl! And now because of Jesus, I love the woman I've become through faith in Him. I am thankful to be a girl and created in His image. Most of all, I am thankful my Mom, my Dad, and my brother Matthew believe in Jesus. That's what gives me a light heart. That's what brings me the most peace and joy in my life. Jesus loves my family. And He loves me too. Heaven is our Home. I’m thankful for... Jesus. my faith in Jesus. my family and their faith in Jesus. the life He’s given us now, and the gift of eternal life He’s promised us. I’m thankful for the forgiveness of my sins. being saved by His grace.   I’m thankful for... the Lord’s sovereignty. His perfect will. His timing and seasons. His goodness and faithfulness. His mercy and grace. His patience and gentleness with me. I’m thankful for... God’s written Word. His wisdom, discernment, and understanding He grants me through the gift of The Holy Spirit.   I’m thankful for... being able to come to my Heavenly Father at any time. the privilege of prayer and communion with Him. knowing Jesus is with me throughout my whole day, every day, and every night. I'm thankful for... the Lord's beauty, creativity, and sense of humor shown through my joyful dog, Monkee and everything He has made.   I’m thankful for... my dog, Monkee and every good and perfect gift from Above, as well as every trial that God works together for my good to make me more like Jesus and prepare me for eternity.   I’m thankful... that I can share all my joys with Him as well as my sorrows. Jesus hears. Jesus cares.   I’m thankful... because Jesus knows me, chose me, died for me, rose again, saved me by grace through faith, and loves me forever. I'm thankful to... Jesus for Him and for everything. for it is all from Him, through Him and to Him. To Him be glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:36 "It's all about Jesus." - Charlie Kirk But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, 5  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved— 6  and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7  so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9  not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:4-10

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  John 8:31-32 Truly His Jesus' true disciples know the Truth. We know that Jesus is God (John 1:1). We know that Jesus is who He claims to be as The Messiah (John 4:25-26). We know that Jesus is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25). Therefore, we believe everything that Jesus says, and we continue in His Word by His grace. We are truly His. He Keeps You Even true disciples though will have far from perfect faith and obedience. So, do not be discouraged, Christian. It's not about your pefection or performance in your walk with Jesus. It's about your secured position in Him and your direction toward Heaven. Even though true disciples may stumble at times, Jesus keeps you from ever falling away (Jude 1:24). Jesus is the One who keeps you in the palm of His hand (John 10:28). Jesus is the One who guides you on paths of righteousness (Psalm 23:3). Jesus is the One who upholds you with His righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:11). Scripture says that He even broadens the path so your feet don't slip (Psalm 18:36). Yes, true disciples will often battle against sin and temptation and struggle to obey at times. But, true disciples will look to Jesus through every trial and make a practice of righteousness rather than sin (Rom 6:16-18). Jesus will always teach you the right way to go and forever keep you as truly His, Christian. From The Heart It's not about the strength of your faith or how well or big you perform in the Christian life. What matters is the Object of your faith and that you believe Jesus from the heart. And when you truly believe in Jesus, you will desire to obey Him from the heart! What you believe in your heart will be evident in what you produce in your life. Jesus tells His disciples that "you will know someone by their fruit" (Matthew 7:15-20). You won’t just profess "Jesus is Lord" and sing "Christ is King" and then continue in unrepentant sin as if He wasn't Lord and King (Titus 1:16). As truly His, you will show the evidence of God’s grace working in your heart and the sovereign, transforming power of the Holy Spirit in your life. Furthermore, you will will not only know the Truth, but your eyes will be opened to a greater understanding of it (1 John 5:20), as you continue in His Word, growing in His grace and knowledge.  Freedom From Sin True disciples not only know the Truth but find freedom in the Truth because Jesus says,  “And the truth will set you free”  (v 32). During Jesus' time, the Jews were living under the oppression of the Roman government, but Jesus was not talking about earthly or political freedom. In verse 34, Jesus clarifies by saying,  “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.” Being a slave to sin represents the ultimate form of slavery. Jesus was talking about the bondage deep in the human heart; the will of a person. Through the new birth, you've been set free from the bondage of sin and welcomed as a member into God's own family. Because you've been given a new heart through saving faith, you now live under God's grace where you want to obey Jesus . You are now willing and free to obey Jesus from the heart! You can only do this by His power through the faith that He gives to you by His grace. The grace that has the power to save you from your sins is the same grace that has the power to help you walk in His ways. Before you came into a saving relationship with Jesus, whether you knew it or not, you were unwilling to obey Him because you were willing to obey another master: sin/self. And Jesus says that no one can serve two masters (Matthew 6:24). As a believer, now your only Master you want to serve is Jesus. Christian, you don't have to obey sin anymore and be ruled by it. You owe Satan nothing. Yes, believers may struggle with sin, but what true believers really want to do is obey Jesus from the heart. And God gives them the grace to be able to. What freedom! (For understanding on the battle against sin for the believer, read Romans 7) Scripture says that as believers, they are now obedient from the heart and wholeheartedly committed to the teachings of Jesus. Believers have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God and righteousness instead (Rom 6:17-18). This is true freedom, which only the Christian knows. To want to obey Jesus and be able to is a gift. The Great Commission Jesus died for your sins on the cross and rose again, so that by grace through faith alone in Him, you may have eternal life. Believing in Jesus brings ultimate freedom — freedom from sin, the tyranny of the Law, and working for your salvation through your own efforts. It's freedom from God’s righteous judgment and wrath against sin, condemnation, and ultimately from death itself (Romans 6:22, 8:1-2). Jesus did all the work for you through his perfect life, death, and resurrection. Eternal life is a gift . Through the new birth, you are a new creation in Christ (John 3:3-7, 2 Corinth 5:17). Now you have become a member of God’s family, a child of God, and Jesus' true disciple. You know the Truth, and the Truth has set you free by His grace. And it's also by His grace you continue in His Word, learning and growing in Christ. As truly His, we love to learn from Jesus and obey Him. Jesus gives all His true disciples The Great Commission: telling others about Jesus and making more disciples! Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them all that I commanded you (Matthew 28:19-20a). Today, let's tell someone about the Good News and the freedom we have in Jesus so they may become truly His too, by His grace. All glory belongs to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. “So if the Son sets you free you'll be free indeed.”   John 8:36

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 The Truth is Simple But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’ The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’ But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’'  Luke 16:29-31 In Luke 16:19–31, Jesus tells the story of the rich man and Lazarus to the Pharisees. A poor beggar named Lazarus dies and is taken away to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet, while a rich man dies and ends up in a place of torment (v 22,23). The rich man pleads with Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and cool his tongue, for he is "in anguish in these flames" (v 24). The rich man then begs Abraham to send Lazarus back to warn his five brothers so they could repent. Abraham first assures the rich man that there is a "great chasm fixed" so that neither Lazarus nor the rich man can cross over to the other side. He then assures him that his brothers have already received enough warning since they have Moses and the Prophets, meaning Scripture. In this story, Jesus gives us a few lessons: 1.  Our attitude toward money and what we do with it often reflects our attitude and devotion toward Jesus. There's nothing wrong with money itself, as it's a blessing from the Lord. There's nothing wrong with being rich either. But Scripture tells us that the love money is the root of many kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10). To love money doesn't mean to have a happy, fuzzy feeling toward it. The love of money is evidenced through our behavior, actions, and how it dictates our lives. To love money means to serve it and allow it to rule our lives. To love money means to follow it, be controlled by it, be devoted to it. Rather, as Christians we are to follow Jesus, be controlled by the Holy Spirit, and be devoted to God and His will, as we trust in Him to rule our lives and provide everything we need. 2.       Once a person dies, his or her destiny is fixed for all eternity. There's no trading places. That's a hopeless and terrifying place for the one in torment and a secure and joyful place for the one in Heaven. 3.      If the Pharisees can't recognize Jesus in the Mosaic law and the Prophets, they won't recognize Him as their Promised Messiah through any miraculous signs either. Even if someone were to rise from the dead, they still wouldn't recognize and believe in Jesus! Unwilling All the miracles, signs, and proof in the world will not make the slightest difference to someone committed to their unbelief. The Truth is simple. When someone doesn't believe the Truth, it's not because they're intellectually challenged by it or don't understand it. It's because they do, and it's offensive. They don't believe it simply because they won't. And since they won't believe it, they can't believe it! They can't believe because they're unwilling. They don't want to. All the evidence is there, but those who are unwilling to believe cannot ever grasp the Truth. Jesus will not waste His time giving more evidence to those who have no interest in the Truth, nor should we. If someone is unwilling to believe Scripture, they won't be convinced of the Truth even if someone rises from the dead! Jesus rose Lazarus (a different Lazarus than this story) from the dead. Many still didn't believe Jesus to be God then either! Then Jesus Christ rose Himself from the dead, and still , most people in the history of all mankind won't believe in Jesus. Even with all the insurmountable signs and miracles of Jesus and all the historical evidence and first-hand witnesses of His ressurrection, people still won't believe in Jesus! As a believer, sometimes it's so hard to understand why people don't believe! (I won't go into it here, but John 8.42-47 explains why). The Pharisees needed to choose to believe what their Scriptures said about their coming Messiah and the fact that He was right under their noses. Today, we need to believe what Scripture tells us about Jesus too, which is also right under our noses. The Truth is simple. God doesn't make it hard to find or understand. What He's revealed in His Word, He wants us to know. All the way from Genesis to Revelation, the only way of salvation through Christ, is plainly written for us to know and understand. On the other side of eternity, we will have no excuse to say we weren't warned or that we didn't understand the message. The Truth is simple, and Scripture is sufficient. The Pharisees needed to believe what their Scriptures revealed about the Messiah. Today, we all must do the same, but still, most won't believe what the Lord has graciously revealed to us in His Word, namely that God so loved the world that He sent us His one and only Son to die on the cross for our sins and rise again. So now, whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). And for those who do believe, may we find ourselves one day sitting at the heavenly banquet with Lazarus, Abraham, and Jesus. If someone doesn't believe in God's written Word, it's highly unlikely they'll believe if they were given even more miracles or signs (Matthew 12:38–39). Unless we choose to believe the truth about Jesus that's clearly and repetitively written to us throughout Scripture, we'll find ourselves like the rich man in torment, our consciences fully informed of how we ended up there. And we'd only have ourselves to blame. Willing As believers we know the Truth is so simple that a child can understand it, and Scripture is all we need. Therefore, we believe the saving message of the Gospel. We believe what we read in the Scriptures, which all point to Jesus Christ alone for our salvation. We understand that eternal life is a free gift. We didn't do any good works to earn it or keep it, and we can't pride ourselves that we were wise enough to choose salvation on our own. As believers, we give all the glory to God for our salvation because we know that salvation belongs to the Lord (Psalm 3:8). All glory to God for choosing us before the foundation of world and gifting us with our repentance and faith in Jesus. It's only by the grace of God that we are willing to believe in Jesus, therefore we do! Amen!

Jenna's recommendations of Christian ministries that hold to biblically sound doctrine and reformed theology with faithful ministers of the Word who provide trustworthy teaching and exegetical preaching on Scripture through selected sermons, podcasts, and biblical lessons. < Back Tim Conway I'll Be Honest Ministries illbehonest.com I'll Be Honest | Christian Videos | illbehonest.com I'll be honest about what the Bible teaches, will you? Christian Video Sermons of Tim Conway, Paul Washer, and other Biblical preachers. My Favorite Sermons & Biblical Teaching • Repent and Believe the Gospel or Perish • On What Basis Will We Judged on Judgment Day? • The Truth Sets You Free From Sexual Lust • The Necessity of Daily Prayer & Bible Reading • How Do I Repent? • Live Pure: Free From Porn and Lustful Thoughts • A Warning Against Lazy Praying • Beware of False Prophets • What Hebrews 10:26 Does Not Mean Part 1 • What Hebrews 10:26 Does Mean Part 2 • Only a Few Find It - Matthew 7:13-14 • Afraid I Committed the Unpardonable Sin • Enslaved by the Desires of the Flesh • Is Your House Built on Christ's Words? • Ugly Pride - Wanting to Be Recognized by People • Covetousness • What is the Object of Your Faith? • Am I Saved? 10 Tests of Assurance • Voice of Christ • I am Repenting, but it's Not Working • There Will Be Many Surprises on Judgment Day • Sermon on the Mount • Seek First the Kingdom of God • Is God Enough for You? • Let Go of Your Sin or Perish • The Sins You Won't Give Up • Can I Lose My Faith? • The Futility of the Mind • I Tried to Be Saved but Didn't Work • The Presence of God or Mysticism?

Jenna's recommendations of Christian ministries that hold to biblically sound doctrine and reformed theology with faithful ministers of the Word who provide trustworthy teaching and exegetical preaching on Scripture through selected sermons, podcasts, and biblical lessons. < Back RC Sproul Ligonier Ministries www.ligonier.org Ligonier Ministries – Renew your mind. Ligonier Ministries, founded by R.C. Sproul, exists to proclaim, teach, and defend the holiness of God in all its fullness to as many people as possible. My Favorite Sermons & Biblical Teaching • What is the Gospel? - 3 minute version • What is the Gospel? • The Way, The Truth, and the Life • What is Truth? • Who is Truth? • Can We Know Truth? • How Does the Truth Relate to Me? • How Does the Truth Command Me? • How Do We Know What We Know? • The Practice of Love • The Degrees of Sin • If God is Good, Why Do I Suffer? • Knowing the Will of God for Your Life • All Christians Believe in Predestination • A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing - Theological Liberalism • If God is Sovereign, Why Pray? • What is Free Will? • Why Did Christ Die? • Must I Be Born Again? • Does God Create Unbelief? • How to Deal With Anxiety • The Christian's Assurance of Salvation •The Battle with the Flesh: Pleasing God • The Resurrection of Christ • Four Kinds of People - Assurance of Salvation • True Assurance Vs False Assurance of Salvation • Salvation Guaranteed • Guilt and Forgiveness • What is Theology? • What is Reformed Theology? -Introduction • What is Christian Marriage? • Nothing Left to Chance

Jenna's recommendations of Christian ministries that hold to biblically sound doctrine and reformed theology with faithful ministers of the Word who provide trustworthy teaching and exegetical preaching on Scripture through selected sermons, podcasts, and biblical lessons. < Back Alistair Begg Truth for Life Ministries www.truthforlife.org Truth For Life - The Bible-Teaching Ministry of Alistair Begg My Favorite Sermons & Biblical Teaching • What is the Gospel? - 6 Minute Version • What is the Gospel? • Ecclesiastes - A Word to the Wise Part 1 • Ecclesiastes - The Search for Satisfaction Part 2 • Ecclesiastes - Eternity on My Mind Part 3 • Ecclesiastes - All Those Lovely People Part 4 • Ecclesiastes - Concerning Worship Part 5 • Ecclesiastes - Search For Meaning Part 6 • Ecclesiastes - All Case Against Self-Sufficiency Part 7 • Ecclesiastes - Dead Flies and Little Birds Part 8 • Ecclesiastes - Celebrate Life Part 9 • Ecclesiastes - Remember Your Creator Part 10 • Ecclesiastes - A Surprising Punchline Part 11 • Why Worry? God's In Charge! • Love • Joy • Peace • Patience • Kindness and Goodness • Faithfulness • Gentleness • Self-Control • Knowing Versus Feeling • Warning Against Adultery • Jealousy • Laziness • Anxiety • Dealing With Stress • One Thing You Lack • Will Only a Few Be Saved?