Apr 12, 20204 min read

A Living Hope

Heavenly Father strengthen us as we pour out so that You can pour in and lead us as we pour forth in Your name.

April 13, 2020

Good Morning Princesses!

This week we will start our Spring 2020 Bible Study session, "What Love Is" by Kelly Minter. There is still time to sign up, so please feel free to do so using the link below.

How will this virtual online study work? Here's the set-up...

1. Virtual (a link will be sent the day of the study);

2. Log into the link either via laptop, tablet or iPad, desktop or phone;

3. We will pray, fellowship and spend time in God's word (specifically the letters of 1, 2 and 3 John);

4. Timeframe- 6:00 - 7:00 pm; and

5. Dates-Tuesday's - April 14- May 19.

1. A Living Hope for Us All

As we close out Holy Week, there is one parable I would like to share with you. It's a parable that Jesus told in response to the Pharisees and scribes grumbling against Him for spending time with sinners. In the Parable of the Lost Sheep Jesus was expressing grace and love. He came not just for some, but for all. The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23-26 that we are all are sinners, yet, God in His grace, makes us right.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, 26 for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

The meaning of the Parable of the Lost Sheep links to the verses in Romans because we were the sheep that Christ has come to rescue. (See, Matthew 18:11 and Luke 19:10)

Oh, what a love, to leave the 99 to save the one. If you're not familiar with the story of the lost sheep, take a look at Matthew 18 and Luke 15.

Matthew 18:12-14

12 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away!14 In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.

Luke 15:3-7

3 So Jesus told them this story:4 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders.6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’7 In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!

Jesus was a living sacrifice whose birth, life, ministry, and death was designed to save us from eternal death. (See, John 10:10-11 ; Romans 5:6-11)

As Christians and believers, Christ is also our Good Shepherd and continues to lead, guide and protect us each day as we follow Him. Thank you Lord for your amazing love. Because of your love, you are our living hope and worthy to be praised. We will praise you all the days of our lives. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

2. GO! 2020 Spring Bible Study Update- STARTS THIS WEEK

If you have not registered, there is still time. Please share and invite a friend to join us for our online sessions.

Beginning April 14th we will be starting our new study "What Love Is". See the Bible Study link to register=> HERE

Oh, princesses of faith...remember

Prayer “empowers and ‘charges up’ every other piece so they can be used effectively against the enemy. Without prayer… your armor, cannot, will not, be infused with the power that only God’s-Spirit can give."

Closing Thoughts