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Dr. King and the KING of Kings

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1 Timothy 6:13-16: “I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.” Revelation 19:16: “And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.” This message is important to me because I came to faith in Jesus Christ through the efforts of a white, independent Baptist church in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, that for many years did not accept black members, but in the late ‘70s was led to start a black church while I was in the Air Force and stationed at Kessler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, at the age of nineteen. As I interacted with the leaders and members of that church, and even the pastor of the black church plant, I heard some negative things about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that I had never heard before. Some people tried to discredit him by suggesting that he was not a true minister of the Gospel, and even that he did not have a genuine relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. They viewed him as just a mere social worker, with some even claiming that he was a Communist. Even some of the blacks in that young church did not think too highly of Dr. King. I must admit that I did have concerns and questions about this matter because I was raised in the black Baptist church and the black Pentecostal Holiness church, with my dad being a Baptist preacher and my mother being a Pentecostal preacher, and yet I had never heard a clear presentation of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ on how to be saved until I was nineteen-years-old, and a young man named Michael Lewis, who had gotten saved through this church plant that an all-white independent Baptist church had started, came to my dorm room and showed me what was commonly called the Romans Road to salvation from the book of Romans in the Bible. Up until that point, no one had asked me the question, if I were to die today, where would I go, heaven or hell? Thankfully, the Lord allowed me to keep an independent mind about the matter through all of that, and I came to see Dr. King as God’s man for that particular time in this nation’s history to help deliver both blacks and whites in this country from the ignorance of racism and prejudice. I even learned later that Dr. King tried to get into a white conservative Christian seminary, but he was rejected because of his race. However, based on his words and his life, it seems as though Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did know the King of Kings — the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only that, but the faith, courage, and fortitude that he showed (and that he inspired others to have) as he led the very dangerous Civil Rights movement speaks of a man who knew Jesus Christ as his Savior and had an abiding faith in God.

According to the book, 

Parting the Waters: America in the King Years

, by historian Taylor Branch: In 1934, when a guest minister at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta made a strong pitch for the salvation of young souls, Martin Luther King Jr. watched his sister rise to make the first profession of faith in Christ. Impulsively, as he later confessed, “I decided that I would not let her get ahead of me, so I was the next.” Also in his book, Strength to Love, Dr. King wrote: “Bound by the chains of his own sin and finiteness, man needs a Saviour (Jesus Christ). Man cannot save himself, for man is not the measure of all things and humanity is not God.” We see here that, contrary to what some thought of King, he did not believe that man could get to Heaven by doing good works. He believed that he and everyone needed a Savior — Jesus Christ. He also said, “Only through an inner spiritual transformation do we gain the strength to fight victoriously the evils of the world in a humble and loving spirit.” That sounds like what Jesus Christ called being “born again” when He told Nicodemus in John 3:3 & 7, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” As a teenager, King wrote these words in a paper called “The Negro and the Constitution”: “We cannot be truly Christian people so long as we flaunt the central teachings of Jesus: brotherly love and the Golden Rule.” In a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church in 1967, King said, “I’ve learned that to be a follower of Jesus Christ means taking up the cross. And my Bible tells me that Good Friday comes before Easter. Before the crown we wear, there is the cross that we must bear.” And, in his famous sermon, “A Knock at Midnight”, Martin Luther King Jr. said, “The church today is challenged to proclaim God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to be the hope of men in all of their complex personal and social problems.” Dr. King certainly spoke as a man who knew Jesus Christ. His core philosophy of love and nonviolence was rooted in the teachings of the King of Kings, Jesus Christ. Dr. King is dead now, and based on his own words and testimony, we can only say that he is in Heaven with the Lord Jesus Christ having served his generation as a Moses in modern times. It is not enough to honor Dr. King alone because evidently it was the power of Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, in his life that caused Dr. King to lead and help both blacks and whites in this nation overcome the ignorance of racism and prejudice. If you truly want to honor Dr. King during this time of remembrance regarding his life, you need to make the decision to trust Jesus Christ as your personal Savior so that you can do great things in your generation as King did in his, for the Bible says, we ‘can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth us.’ If you want to know Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour, please listen closely, and take the following steps before it is eternally too late: First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 7:20: “For there is not a just man upon earth that doeth good, and sinneth not.” Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…” Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Fourth, accept the fact that you cannot do anything to save yourself! The Bible states in Ephesians 2:8,9: “For by grace are ye saved through faith: and that not of yourselves: it is a gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Fifth, accept the fact that God loves you more than you love yourself, and that He wants to save you from hell. “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.” (Jesus Christ, John 3:16). Sixth, with these facts in mind, please repent of your sins, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and pray and ask Him to come into your heart and save you this very moment. The Bible states in the book of Romans 10:9,13: “That 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.” “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Finally, if you are willing to trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour, please pray with me the following prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and I want to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I want to trust Jesus as my Savior and follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen. If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! I want to congratulate you on doing the most important thing in life and that is receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. For more information to help you grow in your new-found faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” Believe by faith. Share the faith. And keep the faith! God Bless You!

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 4 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 236)

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“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time. And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a true and faithful teacher of the Gentiles. Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.” ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭2:1-8‬ ‭NIV‬‬ http://bit.ly/2Xo5c3c

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How to Do Good Deeds, Part 3 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 349)

Matthew 6:1-4: "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."

From Jesus’ teaching in this passage, we have talked about how we ought not to do our good deeds — not before others to be seen of them and not to gain any kind of earthly applause or reward. Then, how are we to give to the poor and help those in need? Jesus says, “When thou doest alms (or works of charity), let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth.”

Of course, our hands do not have minds of their own. Jesus is making use of hyperbole to stress the confidentiality with which we ought to do good deeds. If it is possible for the right hand to give without the left hand knowing what is given, then that is how the Christian should give. Our giving ought to be an act of modesty, not ostentation, knowing that anything we give is by the grace of God who saw fit to supply it to us — probably so we would, in fact, give it to others. Another way of stating Jesus’ injunction is: when you give money, don’t hold it in your right hand while counting it with your left. Just give it freely, quickly, and without fanfare, and let God do with it as He will!

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How to Do Good Deeds, Part 2 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 342)

Matthew 6:1-4: "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."

A reward is a strong motivator. From the time we are children, the idea that doing good results in positive rewards is reinforced. However, we all know deep down that you cannot trust a person who only does good to receive a reward. An employee who works only for money will bail on his current job when a better offer comes along. A child who is obedient only for the reward will rebel when no reward is offered to him. Jesus Christ looks at the heart — He looks at the motive.

There were many super-religious Jews in ancient Israel. The Pharisees and Sadducees loved to perform in public. They would “sound a trumpet” whenever they did a good deed or helped the poor because they wanted praise and glory among their peers. What if there were no trumpet-sounding? What if no one was standing around to witness them giving $20 to a homeless man? What if no one observed them helping a widow carry her groceries into the house? What then? Would they still do it?

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How to Do Good Deeds, Part 1 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 335)

Matthew 6:1-4: "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."

We all would agree that it is good to do good deeds. But, did you know that there is also a bad way to do good deeds? That is what Jesus’ addresses as He continues His sermon on the mount. He shifts from the moral implications of the law to how people live out spiritual disciplines in everyday life. First, He deals with almsgiving or giving to the poor which was a very important expression of religious devotion in Judaism.

Jesus begins with a rebuke of the professional religious class (also known as hypocrites), saying, “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.” Regarding this passage, Warren Wiersbe writes, “The Pharisees used almsgiving to gain favor with God and attention from men, both of which were wrong motives. No amount of giving can purchase salvation, for salvation is the gift of God. And to live for the praise of men is a foolish thing because the glory of man does not last. It is the glory and praise of God that really counts! Our sinful nature is so subtle that it can defile even a good thing like sharing with the poor.”

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What is the Gospel? (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 332)

What is the Gospel? According to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Gospel is embodied in these words: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 50 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 331)

Matthew 5:43-48: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

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Christmas According to Linus (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 325)

Luke 2:8-14: "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

For years now, Christmas has been marred by a focus on shopping, gift giving, parties, decorating, feasting, and family gatherings. While all of these things are good in their place, none of them are what Christmas is about, and as these trends continue, young people and the growing non-religious segment in our country risk never knowing the true meaning of Christmas. Like Charlie Brown in the famous animated Christmas classic, many may soon be asking, "Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?"

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 49 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 324)

Matthew 5:43-45: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

Charles Spurgeon said, “God constantly does that which many people regard almost as a crime, namely, doing good to the undeserving. It is the very genius of Christianity to help those who are utterly unworthy — to be kind and generous even to those who are pretty certain to repay us with ingratitude and malice.”

We often approach our enemies from the idea of trying to get back at them “prove a point” — that we are right and they are wrong. But Jesus commands us to love our enemies in order to prove something different — that we are “the children of our Father in Heaven.” You see, it is one thing to say you are a child of God, but it is another thing to act like a child of God. People pay attention to our actions more than our words. And, most importantly, God is watching to see whether we will emulate His Son in our behavior. In fact, He often allows enemies into our lives in order to test us and see how we will respond. If we respond to hate with hate, we act as children of this world, or worse yet, children of Satan. But if we respond with love, we show ourselves to be the children of God and citizens of Heaven.

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 48 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 322)

Matthew 5:43-45: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

Amy Carmichael said, “You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.”

In this passage, Jesus lets us know that the only way we can truly love our enemies is by giving of ourselves — by our prayers, words, and deeds. He shares three ways that we can do this. First, He says, “Bless them that curse you.” We should invoke blessings over our enemies instead of wishing for bad things to happen to them. Then, He says, “Do good to them that hate you.” We ought to act in a manner that is positive in response to negativity from others.

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What is the Gospel? (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 321)

What is the Gospel? According to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Gospel is embodied in these words: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 47 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 319)

Matthew 5:43-45: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

G.K. Chesterton said, “The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people.”

After commanding us to love our enemies, Jesus gives us three ways that we can actually do that. First, He says, “Bless them that curse you.” We should invoke blessings over our enemies instead of wishing for bad things to happen to them.

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What is the Gospel? (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 318)

What is the Gospel? According to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Gospel is embodied in these words: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 46 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 317)

Matthew 5:43-45: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

Talking about loving our enemies is one thing; actually doing it is the hard part. Jesus does not leave the command to love our enemies in the abstract. In this passage, He tells us how we can and should be obedient to this command. You will probably never feel like you love your enemies, but Jesus does not tell us to feel anything; He tells us only to act. He gives us three specific ways we can love our enemies by our actions.

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Jesus Reveals God’s True Intent Behind the Law, Part 45 — The Law of Love (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 315)

Matthew 5:43-45: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

Since loving our neighbors is the standard, Jesus calls us to treat our enemies like our neighbors. But who is our neighbor? The word “neighbor” indicates one who is near or close in proximity. In the Old Testament, Jews lived only near other people who were just like them; so it was easy to love one’s neighbor. But, in the New Testament, Jews lived in close proximity with Romans, Greeks, Samaritans, and other Gentiles. Still they had defined neighbor as one who was a fellow pure descendant of the Hebrew patriarchs. However, this changed with Jesus. A.T. Robertson writes, “The Old Testament meaning of neighbor covers national or tribal fellowship. But the Christian sense of ‘neighbor’, expounded by Jesus in the parable of the Good Samaritan, includes the whole brotherhood of man. It is founded in love for man, as man, everywhere.”

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What is the Gospel? (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 314)

What is the Gospel? According to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Gospel is embodied in these words: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

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