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Jack Van Impe Ministries
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each day on our A MESSAGE OF HOPE FROM DR. JACK VAN IMPE In the preceding newsletters, we have endeavored to prove that there are myriad's of good things people do to become saved, but in reality they only produce eternal loss. This is so because they are substituted for the blood of Christ. We find the same situation in this study. In the sixteenth chapter of the Book of Acts, we discover a most interesting incident. Paul was cast into prison because of his uncompromising stand for the Word of God. Oh, how the world needs preachers of this stature in the twentieth century. Wherever Paul went he either experienced revival or a riot. Both were signs of blessing to this powerful proclaimer of Christ. He realized that the thunderous warnings against sin brought madness and gladness. The rebellious sinner got madder; the forgiven sinner, gladder. Knowing what this preaching would do, this itinerate evangelist startled his welcoming committees with such statements as, "Take me to your local jail." "I beg your pardon, Paul?" "'Take me to your local jail." "Why Paul?" "Why? I plan to preach God's judgment against sin so vitriolically that men and demons will become incensed." Sure enough, it happened in this text. A woman had followed these preachers crying, These men are servants of the most high God. Instead of helping the ministry, it was a curse because the woman was demon possessed. A demonic spirit was actually using her vocal chords. One often wonders if all the noise and shouting in meetings is actually necessary. Oftentimes those who are the loudest, live the vilest. Paul, discerning the situation, immediately cast the demon out of the woman. The soothsayers were exceedingly angry. They would now experience financial loss without their demon-possessed maiden. Immediately they dragged Paul before the authorities who investigated, castigated, and incarcerated him. He was again in jail for preaching positive thinking. His soothing sermons of love got him penalized one more time. Was he discouraged, defeated, or demoralized? Not for a minute! Instead, he and Silas sang praises at the midnight hour. Never had the Philippian jailer witnessed such fanaticism. Accompanying the singing was an earthquake. Its effects were twofold: It shook up the area as well as the jailer-so much so that he began thinking about spiritual things. In his startled condition he cried, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? They replied, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house (Acts 16:30,31). The know-it-alls and the intellectuals call this "simplistic theology- In other words, it is too simple. Call it as they may, it is the Holy Spirit's statement to a lost world-forever. There are two final points I would like to consider in this lesson. Man's Efforts The jailer's cry was, What must I DO? (emphasis mine). This was the same utterance that proceeded from the lips of the lost in Christ's day. They said, What shall WE DO that we might work the works of God?Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye BELIEVE ON HIM whom he hath sent (John 6:28.29, emphasis mine). God's answer, through Paul, had not changed a number of years later. It was still, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. God's answer must always be the same: Believe, BELIEVE, BELIEVE! Study God's Word and see: For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). Jesus said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life (John 6:47). Again, If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins (John 8:24). And again, l am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead. yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die (John 11:25,26). And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name (John 20:30,31). To [Jesus] give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins (Acts 10:43). Quit torturing yourself through penance when God says, "Believe, BELIEVE, BELIEVE!" Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses [Ten Commandments] (Acts 13:38.39). Paul said, For l am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth (Romans 1:16). Therefore, if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved (Romans 10:9). When one does this he can assuredly shout, I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day (I Timothy 1:12). This assurance makes 1 Peter 2:7 super abundantly true. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious. God's Plan It is evident that God's plan differs from man's. Man wants to work rather than believe. This is so diametrically opposed to the program of God that salvation is forfeited when man's bullheaded pursuits prevail. A number of years ago, the great evangelist, D. L. Moody, was travelling on a train. His seat was next to a cultist who proclaimed the theory of works for salvation. After telling the evangelist the many things one must do to inherit eternal life, the great preacher looked at him and said, "There is only one great difference between your religion and mine. Yours has two letters-D-O or do, while mine has four-D-O-N-E or done! You must continually work to make it and I simply trust in the merits of Christ's work upon Calvary." Dear friend, why don't you believe God for a change. Quit being deceived by Bible manhandlers and manipulators. Titus 3:5 states, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us. Ephesians 2:8,9 declare For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. Could words be any more meaningful and understandable than those given by the Holy Spirit in Romans 4:1-5: What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh hath found? [In other words, what has Abraham discovered? He found that] if [he] Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory: but NOT BEFORE GOD. For what saith the scripture:' Abraham BELIEVED GOD and it was counted unto him [or reckoned to his account] for righteousness .... to him that WORKETH NOT. BUT BELIEVETH ON HIM that justifieth the ungodly, HIS FAITH is counted for righteousness (emphasis mine). Because God's program is one of faith rather than works, one can do absolutely nothing to merit salvation. Therefore, salvation must be offered as a gift under God's "no works" plan. Have you believed? FROM THE HEART OF DR. REXELLA VAN IMPE When the Power Goes Out - pt 2 If our power comes through the Holy Spirit having His will in our lives, how can we stay in His will? How can we know what the Spirit of God wants for us and from us? How can we stay plugged into the power source? We will cover this in next weekĘs newsletter. Read the words He wrote When we open the Bible, I believe we open the mouth of God to speak to us. The Word tells us that the men God used to bring us the Scriptures were instruments of the Holy Spirit - holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost (2 Peter 1:21). That means that when we read the Bible, we're discovering what the Holy Spirit wants us to know. We're hearing from the very heart of God. "Holy Spirit, how can I know and do Your will to receive power?" "My child, just read what I've written!" Isn't that tremendous? That really moves me. Discover God's will for your life. Make yourself available to the presence and ministry of the Holy Spirit. When He comes, so does the power. There's no magic formula to follow. Power comes through His presence - through your relationship with the Spirit of the living God. In Matthew 19, Jesus dealt with a young man who wanted to do good things to attain eternal life. Jesus said, "Keep the commandments." "Which one?" the youth asked. "Go back to the basics," said the Master. "Don't murder or commit adultery. Don't steal or lie. Honor your parents, and love your neighbor as yourself." "I've kept all these commandments since I was little," he said. "What else can I do?" Finally Jesus told him to sell his possessions and give them to the poor. Then He said, Come and follow me (verse 21). Verse 22 says the young man went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. Was it not God's will for the young man to be rich? That wasn't it at all. God's will was for the young man to be in relationship with the Spirit of God. That was really the purpose of the commandments. But the rich young ruler just didn't get it! His problem was not wealth but self-centeredness. And as a result, he went away from Christ sorrowfully. So many modern believers are running around looking for something else to do or be in order to please God and receive power. They run off to meetings, practice some new approach, look for some new phenomenon or manifestation - anything but going to the basics of the faith - to the will of God expressed in His Word. Read the Word. It is the voice of God speaking to you. It will strengthen, inspire, instruct, and direct you. It will reveal the will of the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit wants to come upon you and build a divine relationship within you. That relationship is what plugs you in to the source of power you need in your life. What the Word will do for you The Word of God contains His plan for man, and the answers for virtually all the questions we will ever confront are found in the Bible. No wonder the psalmist urged us to meditate and think about the Word in many of his songs, especially Psalm 119. There he exults, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path (verse 105). Jesus declared that the Word has cleansing power! He said, Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you (John 15:3). Do you want to stay pure and clean, spotless before the Lord? Read the Word. In His prayer to the Father for His disciples and followers, Jesus said, Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth (John 17:17). So here is yet another benefit! The Word is truth - truth that sanctifies and makes us holy. And the Apostle Paul declared that we have faith by the Word. So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). Do you need to be cleansed - or made holy? Do you need faith? Go back to the Word, written by holy men of God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. As you spend time reading God's Word, the Holy Bible, you will discover how to identify and do the will of the Spirit. In so doing, you will plug in to the unfailing source of power. Doers of the Word While we can't over-emphasize the importance of reading and hearing the Word, that alone is not enough. The Apostle James said, Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear... (James 1:19). Three verses later, he hastens to warn, But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves (verse 22). Are you "doing" the Word of God? Are you following "in His steps," making your decisions and choosing your path by asking, "What would Jesus do?" Are you sensitive to the voice of the Spirit of God behind you, whispering, This is the way, walk ye in it (Isaiah 30:21)? I believe we as Christians often think that the only way we can fulfill the many instructions of the Word of God is by witnessing, preaching, or overtly giving out the gospel. But there are many other good things the Bible tells us to do - acts of friendship and kindness that can open a heart to the light of God's love. Sometimes "doing" the Word might be as simple as expressing love by taking a small gift to a neighbor. Perhaps you can take a pie to the lady next door who is sick, or help an overburdened mother by watching her child while she runs an errand. Your act of obedience might be sharing a book you've laid aside with someone who needs encouragement or direction. So don't just read the Word, live it - do it. That's the effective way to be in God's perfect will. As a wise man once said, "What you do speaks so loudly that I can't hear a word you say." How can you "hear" the Word? Read, meditate and then wait upon God. Spend time in it. Regard it as spiritual food that you should devour and consume! The more you read the Bible, the more of it you hide in your heart...the better prepared you are to face the problems and trials of this present world. Someone might say, "My problem is that I can't remember what I read." That's where the Holy Spirit comes to your aid. Jesus said, But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance (John 14:26). One of the invaluable benefits of regularly reading the Bible and exposing your heart and mind to the Word of God is storing away these truths for the day when you may need them. Don't worry about being able to memorize and recall scriptures at will. If you have at least read the Word, I believe that when the events and circumstances of your life call for a particular truth from the Word, the Holy Spirit will bring it to your remembrance! Equally as important, the Spirit will give you power to be victorious in every situation. What a blessed assurance is ours! Don't grieve the Spirit If our source of Christian power is derived from the Holy Spirit coming to abide and do His perfect will in our lives, we certainly never want to offend or risk losing His power. Ephesians 4:30 warns, Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. How do we grieve the Spirit? By not listening to His voice. By not being a doer of the Word. By disobeying through willful sin. By allowing other things in our lives to have priority over His voice. Hebrews 3 speaks of the Spirit of God being grieved by the sin of unbelief. Paul also warned the Thessalonians to quench not the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19). We must not refuse to hearken to the counsel of the Holy Spirit. How tragic to grieve and quench the Spirit until He withdraws His power and gracious influence from us. Will He do that? Oh, yes - make no mistake about it! Acts 5:32 states: He gives the Holy Spirit [and the accompanying power] to them that obey Him. What a wonderful verse and promise. So I recommend this promise to you today if you're feeling alienated from the presence of the Holy Spirit - "unplugged" from the power of God in your life. How faithful God is to keep doing His work within us, re-connecting us with His power. So get into the Word. Read your Bible daily. Hear what the Spirit of God is saying. Let Him have His way and will in your life. Secondly, become a doer of the Word, not just a hearer. Say to God, "Here am I, Lord, send me!" Be ready, quick to respond. And thirdly, don't grieve or quench the Holy Spirit. Learn to live in close relationship to Him. These three simple steps will work to help keep you plugged in to an unlimited, never-failing source of power. CHANGED LIVES-one at a time Dear Dr Jack and Rexella I want to thank you so much for your God given info that you bring to us, not only to inform us but also to teach us. You are a real blessing to us and I can not thank God enough for people like you who not only know the truth but also teach the truth. I canĘt wait to read your next letter or to watch the next program. May God bless you indeed and may many more come to know the truth through your teaching. You will surely receive a great reward from our Lord and King, Jesus Christ. Thank You again!!!!!! Your Sister in Christ Lenê (South Africa) HIGHLIGHTED PRODUCT OFFERS Imagine! A God-Blessed America Imagine! Imagine an America where more Christians are radical change agents, where churches reflect Christ not culture, where people are liberated from the cult of self and instead committed to the common good. Dr. Richard Land, named one of "The 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America" by Time magazine in 2005, was recognized for casting the vision during the most recent United States presidential election and rallying decisive "value voters" everywhere. Imagine! A God Blessed America continues the development of Dr. Land's hope-inspiring vision, boldly declaring that real change is possible if revival among Christians reaches a "divine tipping point" of blessing.
Promised Land: The Future of Israel Revealed in Prophecy It is no accident that Israel, a nation no bigger than the state of New Jersey, continuously dominates the headlines around the globe. Why has this tiny, struggling land become the fulcrum of all human history? What is the main destructive force - profoundly at work in the Middle East - that is threatening international peace and security? Who is controlling the events that will draw all nations on earth into a final decision that will determine their survival? The answers to these questions are already decided. The only question remaining is When? Derek Prince, internationally known Bible teacher and scholar, examines the body, soul, and spirit of God's chosen land, Israel, through her long, astonishing history, in the warnings and blessings of her own prophets and in the mounting tension as Israel maintains her lace at the water shed of world events. With the clarity of today's headlines, Prince brings un face to face with the God who guards His promises and His Word with awesome love and faithfulness. We catch a glimpse of His plan, unfolding through human history and culminating with the advent of His glorious Kingdom on earth. WE ACCEPT PRAYER REQUESTS HERE We receive prayer requests from far and wide via the mail, fax, phone, email and now through the prayer section of our website. FEEDBACK: Please help us with your valuable input. Let us know if you enjoyed this electronic newsletter. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!! CONTACT INFORMATION: E-MAIL: jvimi@jvim.com PHONE: (248) 852-5225 (8am-4:30pm Eastern Time) FAX: (248) 852-2692 MAIL: In the U.S.: In Canada: Privacy Notice: Jack Van Impe Ministries is a non-profit, religious corporation registered in the state of Michigan in the U.S.A. and a registered charity in the province of Ontario in Canada. Our policy has been and will always be to never sell, rent, or barter the names and/or information about those who contact our international ministries. Stewardship: Independent CPA reporting confirms that only 5% of JVIM income is used for fundraising and only 7% is used for administrative costs, including all salaries. A full 88% or more of JVIM income is used directly to fulfill its non-profit mission to share the Good News of salvation and Christ's soon return with the world. You can view past issues of the JVIM Weekly Newsletter by going HERE. |