FRIDAY

APRIL 5, 2024

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We pray that this newsletter and its contents that we share will help you on your daily journey with Christ, causing you to grow in the ways of the Lord.



Russell and Helen Sanders

THE FIVEFOLD MINISTRY

The giftings of the fivefold ministry (Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher) should have one purpose, and that is the teaching and equipping of the saints until we come into unity.

RUSSELL SANDERS

4-5-2024

GOOD GROUND

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The parable of the sower of the seed is found in the three synoptic gospels [Matthew, Mark, and Luke]. Only the seed that was sown upon good ground yielded its fruit. Although the seed sown on good ground produced fruit, not all the seeds were equally productive. They varied from just a little fruit to a bountiful harvest. [thirty-fold, sixty-fold, a hundred-fold.]

The sower is the word of God, Jesus. You and I are the seeds he sowed into the earth. We are the good ground based on his word as his followers.

The question here is this: how fruitful are you? Thirty-fold, sixty-fold, a hundred-fold? Maybe you are only ten-fold, twenty-fold, or forty-fold or ninety-fold producer. What exactly is the fruit that we should produce? What are the works that we should be doing?

One aspect of being fruitful is the fruit of the spirit, which is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, etc. Another aspect of fruit is the works we perform because of the love we have for God from our salvation.

Works? Yes! Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not [or by] works, lest any man should boast.” But people usually stop at verse nine. The very next verse gives a very important key to the context of verses 8 and 9.

Verse 10 says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto GOOD WORKS, WHICH [Father]God hath before ordained that we should walk in them [good works].” 

James 2:17 and 18b says, “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone… I will show thee my faith BY my works.”

The works Jesus advocated were to give help or assistance to the poor, the needy, orphans, widows [elderly], and so forth. He even told the “rich young ruler” to sell everything he had and give it to the poor and then [you can] come follow me.

These works show love and compassion for people. Jesus demonstrated this compassion as a model for us.

Yes, we are to spread the gospel to the lost. However, when we show our love through good works, it opens the hearts of the poor, the needy, and the lost to actually receive the gospel. They respond to our demonstration of love. How fruitful am I being? How fruitful are you, my friend? Let us examine our works and pledge to do better. We are on good ground. Let us bear much fruit through our works.

HELEN SANDERS

4-5-2024

SEVENTY TIMES SEVEN

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The apostle Peter came to Jesus and made an inquiry in Matthew 18:21, “…Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?” That seemed like a fair question; after all, if the person that did the sinning did it over and over, isn’t seven times enough before you say, “enough is enough?” Yet the answer Jesus came back with was 70 x 7. That is 490 times. Some scholars have said it is to be done that many times a day. Seeing that there are 1,440 minutes in a day, that amounts to forgiving nearly every three minutes. There would have to have been a lot of sinning to account for that many times. 

Jesus goes on to tell Peter the story about a King that took account of the “books” and found a servant that owed a considerable amount of money. He was going to sell the man, his wife, and all that he had to pay the debt. Still, it would not have been enough. The man begged for mercy, and the King had compassion on him and forgave him the entire debt. That is supernatural debt cancellation. This man that was forgiven goes out and sees a man that owed him a few dollars and demanded that this man pay the debt. The second debtor asked for mercy but there was none given. He threw him into prison. He would have to stay there until the debt was paid. 

Some of the second debtor’s friends went to the King and told him what happened. When the King found out what the man did, he was angry. He took the man that had been forgiven and put him into prison where he would be tormented and would have to stay there until the debt was paid. Unfortunately, there was no way to pay the debt being bound in prison.   Jesus goes on to say to Peter that this would happen to everyone that doesn’t forgive others.

Forgiveness not only releases the one that sinned, but it also releases the one that gives forgiveness. When we don’t forgive, we put ourselves into an extremely dangerous position.  We become bound and there is no way out. We become tormented and may not understand why, but it is because of the lack of forgiveness.

God forgives us our sin when we repent. It releases us from a future in hell. Without forgiveness we would all be lost. We must show God’s love by forgiving others, no matter how big or small the sin is. We must forgive.

Are there those that you haven’t forgiven? Do not take the chance of missing heaven because of it. Make things right now. Ask the Lord to forgive you for holding on to unforgiveness. By doing this you are set free. Giving this gift to someone that does not deserve it is showing grace and mercy. How often must you do this? 70 x 7.

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