by Bill Rudge
Three part series on the biblical principles of fasting. Bill Rudge has challenged thousands of believers and Christian leaders to fast, pray, study Scripture and eat nutritiously.
To download this podcast please click here.
Jesus
Fasting – Amazing Benefits Part 2
by Bill Rudge
Three part series on the biblical principles of fasting. Bill Rudge has challenged thousands of believers and Christian leaders to fast, pray, study Scripture and eat nutritiously.
To download this podcast please click here.
Fasting – Amazing Benefits Part 1
by Bill Rudge
Three part series on the biblical principles of fasting. Bill Rudge has challenged thousands of believers and Christian leaders to fast, pray, study Scripture and eat nutritiously.
To Download this podcast please click here.
How Could Jesus Speak to Large Audiences?
by Bill Rudge
Scripture indicates that Jesus spoke to large audiences (thousands of people) by the Sea of Galilee. Skeptics said it would be impossible for Him to speak to thousands of people without amplification equipment.
However, I was in Israel at the site of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. The hill forms a natural amphitheater that slopes to the Sea of Galilee and amplifies the speaker’s voice. The air above the Sea of Galilee is very static so that sound waves travel easily. It’s possible Jesus stood at the bottom of the hill and spoke to the crowd who sat above Him.
Matthew 4:25-5:2 gives the following account:
Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed Him. Now when He saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them ….
While standing on the site of the Sermon on the Mount, I was talking in my normal voice to one of the pastors in our group who was almost 100 yards away, and he could hear me plainly. Then, while standing on the shore, we became very quiet and, although several hundred yards away, we could hear two fishermen talking to each other on a small boat.
Once again the Bible is authenticated and skeptics are silenced.
It’s Your Move, Daughter … Son
I gave you life
but I cannot live it for you.
I can teach you things
but I cannot make you learn.
I can give you directions
but I cannot always be there to lead you.
I can take you to church
but I cannot make you believe.
I can teach you right from wrong
but I can’t always decide for you.
I can advise you about friends
but I cannot choose them for you.
I can teach you about sex
but I cannot keep you pure.
I can tell you about alcohol
but I can’t say NO for you.
I can warn you about drugs
but I can’t prevent you from using them.
I can pray for you.
but I cannot make you walk with God.
I can teach you about Jesus
but I cannot make HIM your Savior.
I can teach you to OBEY
but I cannot make Jesus Your Lord.
I can tell you how to live
but I cannot give you Eternal Life.
Author Unknown
Have You Asked The Question?
by Jim Weikal
Three different groups of people — citizens, religious leaders, and the twelve disciples — asked “Who is this?” about Jesus. The first group were the citizens of Jerusalem at Jesus’ triumphal entry. “When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’” (Matthew 21:10). They were told “the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee” (v. 11).
The next group were the religious leaders who watched Jesus heal a paralytic. This paralyzed man was lowered from the housetop by his friends in hopes that Jesus would heal him. Jesus said, “Your sins are forgiven” (Luke 5:20). The Pharisees and teachers of the law “began thinking to themselves, ‘Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?’” (Luke 5:21).
The third group were the disciples. They watched Jesus calm a raging storm on the Sea of Galilee and “They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him’” (Mark 4:41).
The common people asked “Who is this” because of His popularity. The religious leaders asked because of a theological question — only God can do what Jesus did, forgive sins. The disciples asked the question because of His power over the forces of nature.
How you answer this question of Who He is will determine your eternal destiny. Bill Rudge has written an excellent book, Who Is This Jesus?, which we will be happy to send you free of charge. Request a copy for yourself or a friend. E-mail brm7@me.com or write to P.O. Box 108, Sharon, PA to request Who Is This Jesus? You can also visit the store at our web site, billrudgeministries.org, and download the free e-book.
Salvation: Easy as A-B-C and D
A – Admit you are a sinner in need of God’s forgiveness. There is nothing you can do to pay the penalty of sin or earn your salvation (Romans 3:23). The penalty for sin is death, and only God’s righteous and sinless Son could pay that penalty. So, there is no other solution to your dilemma other than coming to Jesus Christ in repentance, receiving His free gift of salvation, and accepting Him as your Savior and Lord. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12).
B – Believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins and rose from the dead. Just believing in something doesn’t make it true, no matter how sincere you are. Nor is it the intensity of belief that makes something true. It is who and what you believe in that really matters. Jesus said, “…unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). To “believe in” is more than merely acknowledging the reality of Jesus Christ; it means “to trust in and rely on” –– a belief that results in committing your life to Him.
C – Confess with your mouth that Jesus died and rose again. Tell others that you have accepted Him as your Savior and Lord. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation” (Romans 10:9, 10).
When you sincerely act on A, B, and C, something amazing happens. God’s Spirit indwells you and begins to mold you into a new creation. Your name is written in the Book of Life! And when you depart this life, you will be welcomed into God’s eternal kingdom and receive all He has prepared for those who love Him.
D – Demonstrate your faith by growing in your personal relationship with Jesus Christ through regular Bible study and prayer, fellowshipping with other believers, and being a witness to those who do not yet know Him. Demonstrate a changed life as His Spirit and Word transform you and mold you into the person you were created to be.
Knowing and living for Jesus Christ is a wonderful spiritual journey with life-changing experiences and eternal blessings. Your acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord will prove to be the wisest, most courageous, and most eternally significant decision you will ever make.
