The Church Of Jesus Christ Headquarters: 2797 Bryant St. Portage, IN 46368 Phone: 219-763-1049 www.JESUSCHRISTISGOD.ORG Message of Hope Official Organ, owned by: The Church of Jesus Christ Editor of the Message of Hope: Sis. Wendy Leslie Please send all articles to: MESSAGE OF HOPE 236 Southwind Dr. Valparaiso, IN 46385 Bugsy2004@msn.com Articles and Pictures due: May
1st, 09
What Does The Church of Jesus Christ Believe? We believe that the Bible is the infallible Word of God and is the SOLE authority on every subject. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Almighty God. Rev. 1:8, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” God put on a robe of flesh and walked here on earth for 33 years to fulfill prophecy for the New Testament Church, which is The Church of Jesus Christ. According to the Word, John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us….” The Church of Jesus Christ believes that everyone must take His word seriously, John 8:24, “I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I Am He, ye shall die in your sins.” We follow God’s plan of salvation. Acts 2:38, “…Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Baptism is by immersion in water only. The evidence of the infilling of the Holy Ghost is according to Acts 2:4, “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” John 3:5 states, “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” We must then live a clean, holy, and dedicated life to Jesus Christ thereafter taking diligent heed to the Word. The Church of Jesus Christ must be found faithful to His Word. We must be partakers of Communion service. This service consists of the Lord’s Supper and Foot Washing. 1 Cor. 11:24, 25, “And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. (25) After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, “This cup is the New Testament in my blood: this do ye oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.” John 13:14, 15, “If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. (15) For I have given you an example that ye should do as I have done to you.” Watch, pray, forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, give your tithes and offerings, so that YOU can be counted among the faithful when our one and only Savior, Jesus Christ, comes back in a “cloud with power and great glory”!
Executive Board of Bishops Bishop Jarret R. Spence, Presiding Bishop 2298 Fern Street Portage, Indiana 46368 Phone 219-762-7492 Bishop Tommy Johnson, Asst. Presiding Bishop P.O. Box 505 Dyersburg, Tennessee 38024 Phone 731-285-9200 Bishop Paul Rose, Secretary/Treasurer P.O. Box 344 Cabin Creek, West Virginia 25035 Phone 304-595-5640
National Youth Leaders Bro. Jarret & Sis. Caryn Spence 804 Pennsylvania Avenue LaPorte, IN 46350 Phone 219-325-3904 Bro. Travis & Sis. Nora Hensley, Assistants 437 Tecumseh Street Warsaw, IN 46582 Phone 574-551-4487
Bishop of Jamaica Bishop Orville Rodney 199 Catherene Mount Albion P. A. Montego Bay, St. James, Jamaica, W. I. Phone 876-952-6676
Bishop of Canada Bishop Mathias Gooden 75 Dunlop St., Apt. 406 Richmond Hills, ON L4C 2M7 CANADA Phone 905-883-8543
State Bishops Bishop Charles Hays, Sr. 409 Fitch Street Albion, Michigan 49224 Phone 517-629-7053
Bishop Danny Walls P.O. Box 216 Ingalls, Indiana 46048 Phone 317-485-4105
United We Stand
Divided We Fall
www.jesuschristisgod.org www.thechurchofjesuschrist.net
THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST P.O. Box 344, Cabin Creek, West Virginia 25035 (304) 595-5640 Host Pastor: Bishop Paul Rose Is Announcing:
Held in Sharon, W.V. On Cabin Creek Road, Exit # 75 I - 77 South of Charleston, W.V. Tent Revival Service Times: Thursday and Friday at 7:00 P.M. Saturday at 6:00 P.M. And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: Acts 2:17 _______________________________________________________________________________________________
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The Church The church is a spiritual body that God is bringing into perfection. I Cor. 15:49, And as we have borne the image of the earthly, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. I can see a growth in the body of Christ, as it is shedding the old and is adorning herself in preparation of the return of the lamb. Rev. 21:9, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the lamb's wife; (that’s--The Church of Jesus Christ.) Eph. 1:22-23, And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the churchwhich is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. If the head is holy, then the body must be holy. Through carnality, people discern the signs of the times, but they cannot discern Christ and His body. I can see a new determination in the church, but as always, there are some who have turned aside. The road of retreat is well-traveled, but it is all downhill. Apostle Paul was well acquainted with those who retreated. II Tim. 4:10, For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world and is departed. Some departed Apostle Paul, and some departed Jesus Christ when He was on earth. John 6:66, from that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Jesus said to the twelve, "Will you also go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life." Heb. 12:16 ...Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. He was rejected, for he found no place of repentance, though he sought for it carefully with tears. Some try to bring persecution upon the church to justify their love for the world, but as in Job...Why persecute we him (the church) seeing the root of the matter is found in me? Gideon started with 32,000 men, but as he would obey God and do as God instructed him, he had only 300 men who stood the test. God will have a church; a people who will not be moved; who will stand for holiness, righteousness, and godliness; who are separated from the world, whose lights are shining in this last day. Bis. Tommy Johnson Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
God loves everyone, but probably prefers 'fruits of the spirit' over 'religious nuts!'
News from Dyersburg, TN Praise the Lord! God has been so good to all of us in Dyersburg! We certainly want to give Him the praise that He is truly due. He has been doing great things this year and our cup is overflowing! At the beginning of this year, Bro. Matt McGehee came back to the Lord and what a blessing he has been to our youth and church. Many of the youth have taken on different roles in the church and have inspired us all. Sis. Crystal Williams wanted to work with a choir and she has become the Adult Choir Leader. She is doing an awesome job! Sis. Jessi McCaig has started a Petite Praise Team and a Teen Praise Team. She works really hard with them using sign language to music. It is amazing just to watch their white gloves (against the black light) speak to us. Bro. Eric Gilbert put on a skit to music about “our chains are gone”. It was a very moving skit. We want to thank all of the youth for their desire to do a great work in the church. The weekend of February 20th, Bro. Travis and his family came and blessed us with a revival. He did a wonderful job ministering “It is time to draw water from the well”. All of the saints were very uplifted and blessed. We finally was able to see their precious new addition to their family, little “Elijah”. The weekend after Bro. Travis, Bro. Randy Westmoreland and his family came to hold us a “youth” revival. The youth were ready for revival and the theme for it was “Ignite 2009, Dyersburg”! The fire certainly fell and the youth were caught up in it! We heard many great songs and saw some very moving skits and performances from the youth. The first night of revival, Bro. John Dodd received the Holy Ghost. What a testimony he left us! Bro. Timothy Brewer received it the last night. We are so happy for these two brothers in the Lord. It was so wonderful to see all the youth in one mind and one accord, worshipping the Lord and helping all of those that were seeking. We were so blessed to have so many churches to join us in praise. We are expecting many more great things from the Lord! Continue to pray for us as we pray for you. Church Reporter: Sis. Amanda Rose Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Praise the Lord! I praise the Lord for all He has done for me, I can’t ever say enough about the Lord. When I am happy, sad, or whatever the situation maybe, I pray and ask Jesus Christ to help me. I can’t make it without His help. I don’t know what I would do without the Lord. I am blessed and thankful for The Church of Jesus Christ and our Pastor, Bishop Paul Rose and his wife Sis. Brenda. We have had good services, and the Lord has blessed us this year. I am thankful for a new year, and for all the Lord has done for me. If you are someone who has not turned to Jesus Christ you are missing so much joy and happiness! If things aren’t going okay, just ask Him, pray and obey His word and it will be better for you in your life. Remember us in prayer and may God bless you. Sis. Janet Weddington Pastor, Bishop Paul Rose The Church of Jesus Christ Ohley, WV
Controlled by God Greetings to all in the body of Jesus Christ. May God richly bless you. Judges 6 tells us the story of Gideon. When Gideon was first called by God he had to deal with self doubt and unbelief. He didn’t have the courage and he needed assurance that God will be with him. Gideon in himself was hopeless and helpless. When we lack faith it causes our hands to be tied, our eyes to get dark and we become fearful. We are often times frustrated in a way that God cannot work in and through us. Gideon who was chosen by God to lead the people; the children of Israel out of the hands of the Midianites, as a man of valor. God promised to be with him. After asking for a sign and through an encounter with God, Gideon’s life is transformed as the spirit of God took control and he built an altar unto the Lord and called in Jehovah-Shalom. Judges 6:24. His life was shaped through faith for services. Gideon was successful when he carefully followed the instructions of God. He had a few failures and yet despite these failures Gideon was commended as a hero of faith in Hebrews 11:32. God has given to us the same assurance He gave to Gideon. He will be with you, for He has promised never to leave or to forsake us. All we have to do is to constantly act on our faith in God. Believing and trusting in His word. Sis. Benjamin Hamelton, Ontario Canada
Be ye fishers of men. You catch them He'll clean them.
IGNITE 2009 The services were awesome. It felt like camp to some of us. We thank the Lord for Bro. Randy Westmoreland and his family coming down and preaching for us. He did an outstanding job encouraging the youth to stay strong. Sunday night he preached a great message. His topic was “What’s all the noise about?” But he wasn’t talking about shouting and praising the Lord. He was talking about hell. The young people that didn’t have the Holy Ghost, he had them sit on one side and the ones that did he had them sit on the other side. The ones that have the Holy Ghost was the cheering section and we had to show the Holy Ghost seekers that we were behind them all the way and encourage them. It touched a lot of people’s hearts. The youth have been very busy with getting ready for this. Bro. Michael McGehee put together a skit set to a song. The beginning was God creating her and then on into it a guy comes along and steals her away from God. From there more people start coming into her life and pushing her further and further away from him. At the end she is about to kill herself and she see’s God and tries getting back to Him but all the people try holding her back. She finally just falls down and prays and God’s holding back all the people as they try to get to her. It touched many people as we acted it out. Over the past few months we have seen our young people become closer and more united. We care so much about each other. We strongly believe that God is getting His people ready and we all just want to be doing what we should to make it to Heaven. We thank the Lord for Bro. John Dodd and Bro. Timothy Brewer receiving the Holy Ghost. We also thank the Lord that Bro. Michael Quillen from Portage was baptized in The Name of Jesus Christ. We enjoyed having everyone from out of town there. The youth in Dyersburg have never been better and we are all excited to see what God has planned for us in the future. Just continue to pray for us. Youth Reporter: Sis. Laura Beth Dodd Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Devoted To God & United Together
Praise the Lord!
This year started much like it ended. We have been hearing instruction from God through His Word. Our first message of the year told us to be devoted to God. Being devoted means to be consistent in serving Him and not to use God and His church like a band-aid. Some people only turn to God when things are going wrong or a tragedy happens. Then when things clear up, they rip off the band-aid and go back to how they were before the bad time. Or as our Bro. Steven White put it, “they go on a long vacation.” When you are devoted to God you are devoted to His church and His people. God can truly work when we all come together in unity. Psalms 133:1 holds true because our services have become very good and pleasant when we dwell together in unity. In Bishop Spence’s message we were reminded how the church, even though many members, is one body (Rom. 12:5) and how if one member hurts, the whole body should mourn for it. We as the body of Christ can be victorious when we work together. If we can’t strengthen our brothers and sisters we will not get the victory. Just like when Moses’ arms grew heavy and his brethren made sure his arms were held up during the battle. This thought was brought out in a message from Bro. Larry Pogue during a recent youth service. He used the lesson of Jonathan and his armor bearer that were victorious over the Philistines only because they worked together with faith in God (1 Sam. 14:6-7.) Nehemiah and all the men couldn’t have rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem without a mind to work together (Neh. 4:6). Being a musician, I can relate to working together. If the whole band practices together they sound great. But if one member is not playing with the rest the whole band sounds bad. In all these cases, the devil does all he can to divide us (1 Cor. 1:10) so we become unjoined from each other. That is when we all need to use the Holy Ghost and stand strong until we are victorious. In Bishop Spence’s message on unity, he brought forth that if we help our neighbors; we have done the same to God (Mt. 25:40). But the point that struck home was the opposite of that. If we shun someone, we have shunned God. Even though God’s word cuts us deep, I still appreciate how it is leading us onto perfection (Eph. 4:12-13) by coming into the unity of faith. I have to say I sure saw a lot of unity among the youth at the services in Dyersburg Tennessee. I praise the Lord for those services and His blessings He poured out. It also had a happy ending when Bro. Michael Quillen was baptized.
It was so good to see everyone in Dyersburg at the Youth Revival. The services were amazing, and it was so good to feel the unity among the young people. I am so thankful to have been filled with the Holy Ghost Friday night also! It was and still is an amazing feeling. It is a great thing to be back in here serving Jesus Christ. This is by far the best life to live, and I am so thankful for the mercy of God. There have been so many great things happening lately and it is great to be a part of it all. It is amazing and uplifting to see how on fire for God everybody is, and how the youth have been really pulling together and building each other up. I can't wait to see everyone soon!
Sis. Deanna Johnson Pastor, Bishop Randell Spence The Church of Jesus Christ Portage, IN
The best mathematical equation I have ever seen:
1 cross + 3 nails = 4 given!!
Bro. John Dodd Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Praise the Lord Everyone! If you haven't heard by now, John Michael Dodd received the Holy Ghost. He was baptized in Oct. 1999 and has been seeking for a long time - but on Feb. 27, 2009 he was filled. The Lord really poured His spirit upon him and we thank the Lord for that. Some time ago John did grow cold toward God, and several months ago he quit seeking the Lord altogether. But up in Kingsport at the Dedication Service the Lord touched his heart. He had always told us if he ever felt the Lord again that he would let the Lord move on him. Well, he did and he received a good blessing up there. Since then he has really been on fire for the Lord and we were praying that it would not be long until he received the Holy Ghost. We had an awesome Youth Revival here in Dyersburg. We are so proud of all the youth from all the churches and we would like to thank all of those that were able to come and be in the revival with us. The Lord moved in every service and the youth were encouraged to stay strong in the Lord. I just want to thank the Lord for filling John Michael and for the Lord filling Laura Beth last November. Now I can say my whole family has the Holy Ghost. Thanks for everyone that ever said a pray or helped pray with them in the altar. Sis. Terri Dodd Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Let Your Light So Shine Thanks to the Lord, Jesus Christ, who is doing great things in the church. In the last few months we have seen young people baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost, we have seen backsliders return to the Lord, and we have seen the body of Jesus Christ coming together in unity. In the month of February alone, the Dyersburg church has had three revivals, and we were privileged to attend the dedication of The Church of Jesus Christ in Kingsport, TN where Bro. Bo Westmoreland is pastor. The youth revival in Dyersburg just concluded with two people claiming the Holy Ghost, and one person getting baptized. The theme of the youth revival was "Ignite 2009" and I believe the Lord has ignited a fire within the church and the young people in particular. I sense in all our churches a renewal of hunger, a strong desire for the Spirit of the Lord at work in our lives and it is wonderful. The Lord said in Isaiah 4:2-6 that he would "create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night". Surely the Lord is moving among His people and His presence is clear. Psalms 18:28 says, "For thou will light my candle ..." Truly His peoples' candles are burning brightly. I pray we can hold them high and carry them outside the four walls of the church into the world in which we live and give light to those who still sit in darkness. I pray we can reach out to those bound by sin and help them see there is a wonderful life in Jesus Christ with His Spirit living inside you. He tells us in Matt. 5:14-16, "Ye are the light of the world. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light to all them that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Let every one of us purpose in our hearts that we will carry the joy of the Lord we feel in the midst of the congregation out the doors with us when we go on our jobs, and into our schools, and all around town as we go about our daily lives. Lord help us to reach out to people in need and shine forth the same love God has shone in our hearts to those who feel unloved, unforgiven, unwanted, and helpless to change their lives. God is still in the business of changing lives, and we are His ambassadors for that change. He said in John 7:37-29 in speaking of the Holy Ghost that out of our belly would flow rivers of living water. When He fills us with the Holy Ghost He intends for His living water to flow out of us to others. How? Through loving others with the love of God ... unconditionally, just as they are. The Lord will use that love to draw them to Himself through us. Lord help us to lighten someone's load just a little, give them a smile if they don't have one, offer them a hand up in addition to a hand out. The Lord tells us in Isaiah 58:6-12 that His desire and the thing He finds more acceptable than just a
fasting where we deny ourselves food for a time, is a fast where we deny ourselves to help others, especially those who are lost. He says that if we help them break free of sin, if we ease their burdens, if we feed the hungry, if we give lodging to the poor, if we give clothing to the destitute ... basically, if we love others as we love ourselves ...; then our light will break forth as the morning and the glory of the Lord will be our rereward (that's not a misspelling, it is actually rereward ... blessing on top of blessing), our light will rise in obscurity, and our darkness will be as the noon day. Let's pray for one another that each of us can see and seize every opportunity to help someone else know the salvation of Jesus Christ. I believe the apostle Paul put it very well in I Corinthians 9:22 when he said, "To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some." God Bless! I just want to give a special thanks to the Lord for bringing Bro. John Michael, Sis. Terri's and my son back and for filling him with His unspeakable gift, the Holy Ghost. Also, thank you so much to everyone who said a prayer or an encouraging word to him or us. Glory to God! Pastor Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Praise the Lord I want to thank the Lord for being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and being filled with the Holy Ghost. I thank the Lord for Bro. Matt and Bro. John coming back to church and Bro. John receiving the Holy Ghost. I also want to thank the Lord for the way God has been moving in my life. The Lord has done so much for me. God has always been right there with me even when I turned away from Him. For awhile the devil had me chained to some things that I knew was wrong but one night at church the Lord poured out a blessing on me and broke those chains. I thank the Lord for this past weekend the youth revival was AMAZING seeing all the young people coming together praising God. I thank the Lord for filling two with the Holy Ghost and one getting baptized. I am also thankful for the others that were in the altar, just hang in there you WILL get it. As it says in the Bible, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye SHALL receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the PROMISE is unto YOU and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.� (Acts 2:38-39) I have so much to be thankful for but I guess the most thing that I am thankful for is the desire God has placed in my heart to live for Him. Just pray for me that I will always do God's will. Sis. Jessi McCaig Pastor, Elder Mickey Dodd The Church of Jesus Christ Dyersburg, TN
Pierceton Report Praise the Lord everyone! God is GREAT and greatly to be praised! He is worthy of all praise so let us lift our voices and raise our hands to give Jesus Christ the King of all Kings all the glory and honor that is due unto His name. We thank the Lord for all He has done and for bringing us through these winter months safely. God has really been blessing in our services and the preaching has been great. Bro. Jason Traxler and Bro. Andy Baldridge our young and upcoming ministers, have been bringing forth some great encouraging, and uplifting messages of hope. In their ministries there has been definitely been great growth and God has blessed. We are so thankful they are willing to allow God to use them for His work. We are also thankful for our Pastor, Bishop Robert O’Dell and all the teaching he has been bringing forth about taking heed of the signs of the times. This is definitely the end times. All the signs Jesus Christ speaks about in Matthew 24 are coming to pass and the prophecies are being fulfilled everyday. We need to be
prepared not only physically and mentally, but most importantly spiritually. If there has ever been a time to get closer to God it is now. There is no time to waste. We need to read His word more, fast more, and pray more than we ever have before. God is coming back for His people. The ones who have repented of their sins, been baptized in the name of Jesus Christ (there is no other name! Acts 4:12), and have received the Holy Ghost with the evidence in speaking in other tongues (Acts 2) and who are living a pure and holy life according to the word of God. These are the only ones going with Jesus Christ when He returns. Prepare yourselves and you can call heaven home. I pray we all strive to make heaven our home. Church Reporter: Sis. Nora Hensley Pastor, Bishop Robert O’Dell The Church of Jesus Christ Pierceton, IN
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