Join us for our Mother's day service as we unleash Marion Johnson as our special speaker for today!

Moses took the Israelites out of Egypt, Joshua would lead them into the promised land. The Jordan served as a boundary between what the Israelites presently had and what God had promised them on the other side. Symbolically in Scripture, the Jordan represents decision. They are ashamed of their past and afraid of their future. This is a NOW moment. Will they seize the opportunity their parents missed?

“Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1: 6-9

In their struggle against the Philistines, Jonathan was operating from a covenant inspired conviction. Victory over the Philistines was a promise simply waiting to be received and acted upon. God would give them the victory, but He would not fight the battle for them. The land was theirs if they had the courage to take it. Often we are waiting for a detailed map when God hands us a compass. We must be willing to MOVE with God, and He is always moving FORWARD! "One day Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on, let’s go over to where the Philistines have their outpost.” But Jonathan did not tell his father what he was doing." - 1 Sam 14:1

Have you ever pondered just how much blessing God desires to release into this world, but gets blocked by our lack of passion and desire? You’ll be hard pressed to find any story in the Scriptures in which God becomes angry because someone had too much faith! Imagine standing before the Lord one day. Do you want Him to ask you why you tried to do too much, or why you settled for so little? Instead of pressing the limits of what God could do in and through our lives, we assume that his intention for us is less and so we settle for what we can do rather than what God intended to do through us!

"Then he said, “Now pick up the other arrows and strike them against the ground.” So the king picked them up and struck the ground three times. 19 But the man of God was angry with him. “You should have struck the ground five or six times!” he exclaimed. “Then you would have beaten Aram until it was entirely destroyed. Now you will be victorious only three times.” - 2 Kings 13:18-19

Life is the sum total of what we did with the moments given to us. The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized within the lifetime of the opportunity. Urgency gives our passions deadlines. Passion is the fuel that brings urgency. Leadership is about bringing urgency to the things that matter most.

"Now there were four men with leprosy sitting at the entrance of the city gates. “Why should we sit here waiting to die?” they asked each other. “We will starve if we stay here, but with the famine in the city, we will starve if we go back there. So we might as well go out and surrender to the Aramean army. If they let us live, so much the better. But if they kill us, we would have died anyway.” - 2 Kings 7:3-4

Today, as we celebrate Easter, the Resurrection of our Lord, we will remember the Sins of our Treason, God's transfer of our iniquities to the spotless Lamb, the Tragedy of the Cross, and finally - the fulfillment of God's sovereign plan and purpose through the Triumph of the Cross! In today's message, Pastor Ron addresses the 3 results of the Triumph of the Cross - 1) the inheritance of spiritual offspring, 2) the resurrection and eternal life, and 3) the fulfillment of God's plan from the beginning! “When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.” - Isaiah 53:11 NLT

“Crucifixion is probably the most cruel method of execution ever practiced, for it deliberately delayed death until maximum torture had been inflicted. The victim could suffer for days before dying.” - John Stott, The Cross of Christ

Cicero in one of his speeches condemned it as ‘a most cruel and disgusting punishment.’ Roman citizens were exempt from crucifixion, except in extreme cases of treason. How ironic that Jesus, the rightful King of the world, is condemned to die while being identified as a rebellious traitor!

“When He was hung on the cross, He took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” - Galatians 3:13, NLT

Today we discuss the very heart of the Gospel message: the innocent suffering Servant taking our place and giving His life as the sacrifice for sin. He could have brought justice by giving us what we all deserve – hell. But that’s not the response God chose. Jesus is our “scapegoat”, the one who bears/carries our grief, sorrow, and weakness upon Himself.

Text: Isaiah 53:5 — "But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed."

The fundamental issue for the cross is this: What does sin do to God, and how is this set right? The most important answer is that sin dishonors God. Here’s the greatest problem in the universe: God’s creatures have gone on record as devaluing the glory of God. This is the ultimate reason for the death of Jesus — he came to repair the injury we had done to the glory of God. The cross is the highest expression of justice that ever was and the greatest act of mercy. Romans 3:23 — “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Episode Notes

On our Vision Sunday, we are excited to present to our church family the direction God is leading Living Stones. Embeded in our vision is the message of NOW! Like Martha in John 11:17-26, we often put our focus on the past or in the future, not realizing that God wants us to have faith for the present! In the NOW is where Heaven touches Earth! We are not promised tomorrow. When is the right time to forgive? NOW! When is the right time to obey? NOW! When is the right time to believe God? NOW! When is the best time to get your marriage healed? NOW! When is the right time to break an addiction? NOW! When is the right time for a spiritual breakthrough? NOW! When is the best time to surrender your life to Christ? The Bible tells us: Indeed, the “right time” is NOW. Today is the day of salvation. (2 Corinthians 6:2) When Jesus arrived at Bethany, he was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days. Bethany was only a few miles down the road from Jerusalem, and many of the people had come to console Martha and Mary in their loss. When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.” Jesus told her, “Your brother will rise again.” “Yes,” Martha said, “he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day.”Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” John 11:17-26 NLT