This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #400 titled, “How to be Permanently Joyful Despite the Pain and Problems of Life.” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
Pharrell’s famous song “Happy” may give you a feeling of momentary happiness while you are listening to it, but it will not keep you happy. For most people happiness depends on the happenings.
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #391 titled, “It Is Time for You to Meet the Greatest Friend of All Time” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
Joseph Scriven wrote:
What a Friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry Everything to God in prayer. O, what peace we often forfeit O, what needless pain we bear— All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer.
The man who wrote this nineteenth-century hymn was familiar with grief and loneliness. Scriven was engaged twice, and both times his bride-to-be died before the wedding. He fought depression all his life. It was after one bout with depression that he wrote the words to this song.
He could write those words because he had discovered the reality of friendship with Jesus Christ. Jesus understands our feelings because He lived on earth as a man. Jesus knows what it is like to be lonely. He suffered the pain of rejection and cruelty, and he felt hunger and thirst. The Bible describes Him as “a Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief”.
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #385 titled, “How to Understand Salvation Through Jesus Christ.” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS ONLY ONE SAVIOUR My friend, are you saved? Saved is a Bible word, not a term thought up by man. I have been a Christian for almost twenty years, and I find that most people still do not have an understanding of God’s message of salvation.
First, you must believe there is one true God. Secondly, you must believe that God can do something for you, and He has recorded His plan of redemption in the Bible. The only God that can save souls is the God of the Bible. His Name is the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says in Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
A person is saved by putting their complete trust in Jesus Christ, not by doing something to earn Heaven. Trusting is believing. Believing must come from the heart, not the head. Do you love and trust your spouse with your head or with your heart?
Plato, Aristotle, or Einstein could only think as far as their finite minds were able. They could not even solve the problems of this life, such as sickness, disease, pain, hunger, and death, let alone know anything about eternity. God knew we needed something to go by, so He put everything there is to know in His Bible.Continue reading “How to Understand Salvation Through Jesus Christ (Gospel Light Minute X #385)”→
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #374 titled, “Jesus Knows All About Your Troubles and Problems, So Come to Him Today” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
LIFE IS HARD. Jesus knows that. He is God’s Son and He left heaven to rescue you. As a man He endured all the hardships common to humanity. Although He never sinned, He endured pain, loneliness, rejection and death. At the end of His ministry, He offered Himself as a sacrifice and died on the cross to atone, once and for all, for the sins of humanity. God raised Him from the grave and Jesus now reigns in Heaven. He is alive. And He cares for you.Continue reading “Jesus Knows All About Your Troubles and Problems, So Come to Him Today (Gospel Light Minute X #374)”→
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #368 titled, “How to Understand What the Purple Prince Referred to as ‘This Thing Called Life’.” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
We are all aware of problems in this world. Everyone knows what it is to be weary, to be disappointed, and to struggle. And we have a feeling that we were not meant for this. We are all searching for some solution to the problems of life.
The question is, why are you unhappy? Why do things go wrong? Why is there illness and sickness? Why should there be death? Those are the questions with which the Bible deals.
The Bible talks to you about your unhappiness. Some insist that the Bible, far from being practical, is really very remote from life. But nothing in the world is as practical as the teaching of the Bible.
In order to answer questions about you, the Bible starts in the most extraordinary way:
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #359 titled, “If No One Else Cares for You, God Does.” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
Some time ago someone placed this ad in a Kansas newspaper:
“I will listen to you talk for 30 minutes without comment for $5.00. “
Sounds like a joke, doesn’t it? But the person was serious. Did anybody call? You bet. It wasn’t long before this individual was receiving ten to twenty calls a day. The piercing pain of loneliness was so sharp that some were willing to try anything for a half hour of companionship. Continue reading “If No One Else Cares for You, God Does (Gospel Light Minute X #359)”→
This is the “chief of sinners,” Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International, with the Gospel Light Minute X Podcast #348 titled, “How to Know God is Always With You Even When You Are Hurting ” I’m here to remind you of what the Bible says, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” like you and me.
Those of us who have lost a loved one to disease or have loved ones who are fighting an illness, or who dread its possible return, may sometimes feel as though we’re about to be overwhelmed with fear, or that God has abandoned us or doesn’t care about our battles. But God’s love for us is not wishful thinking. It is not a mirage in the desert of life on earth. Continue reading “How to Know God is Always With You Even When You Are Hurting (Gospel Light Minute X #348)”→
A homily is “a short talk on a religious or moral topic; a usually short sermon; a lecture or discourse on or of a biblical theme.”
I am sharing a verse-by-verse series of short messages on Ephesians 5 & 6 (as well as other passages of Scripture) specifically targeted at reviving families and encouraging and exhorting husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, and children to do what God has commanded them to do, for if the church is to be revived and the country is to be awakened, the family must be revived first.
Ephesians 6:10-18:
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
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Polycarp said, “Let us, therefore, forsake the vanity of the crowd and their false teachings and turn back to the word delivered to us from the beginning, ‘watching unto prayer’ and continuing steadfast in fasting, beseeching fervently the all-seeing God “to lead us not into temptation, even as the Lord said, ‘The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.'”
Leonard Ravenhill said, “God wants to get us to the place where we’d rather fast than feast; where we’d rather be unknown than known.”
In their book, The Ten Greatest Revivals Ever, Elmer Towns and Douglas Porter share with us regarding the 1904 Revival: “A Japanese awakening began in 1900 as part of a decade-long intensive evangelistic campaign. Campaign organizers had called the evangelical church to prayer as preparation for the evangelistic effort. This prayer resulted in a revival in Japanese cities. The total membership of the churches almost doubled within the decade, despite the interruption of a war with Russia four years into the campaign.”
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Today, we are going to continue looking at the use of the word “watch” throughout Scripture in the Old Testament and the New Testament.
We are looking at Acts 20:31 which reads, “Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn everyone night and day with tears.”
This verse comes at the end of the book of Acts where Paul is giving his farewell message to the Elders of the Church at Ephesus. Paul is on his way back to Jerusalem where, apparently, he senses in his spirit that he will be arrested and taken to Rome. He knows that the time he has left as a free man in the Roman world is short. So, as part of his “farewell tour”, if you will, as he is sailing home from Macedonia, he stops at Miletus and calls for the Ephesian church elders to come to him.
In his speech, Paul reviews the evangelistic work that was done in their city. He recounts the persecution that he and others faced from the Jews. He said, “I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house.” He also speaks of his own immediate future, saying, “the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me.” But Paul tells these church leaders not to worry because they are ready to carry on the work on their own. Why?
They will be ready if they “watch” for the things which Paul “ceased not to warn” them of “night and day with tears.” What did Paul warn them of? In verses 29-30, we read, “After my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” This is what Paul wanted the Ephesian elders to watch for — false teachers from within and from without creeping into the church spreading false doctrine and drawing God’s people away from the truth.
Even today, we must watch for the same things that Paul told these believers to watch for. People, claiming to be preachers, have snuck into the church today and are drawing people away from unadulterated Scriptural truth. That is why we need watchmen — people who are aware of such threats and are on guard against them.
39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
40 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
41 Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.
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Today, I am continuing the daily Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign sermon series, which is aimed at sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with unbelievers and reminding Christians, in this important election year, to keep the main thing the main thing — and that is reaching unbelievers with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and praying for their salvation, for the problem in America is not only disobedient presidents, politicians, and people, but disobedient pastors, preachers, and parishioners who have refused to obey the Lord’s Great Commission which is to, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” and who have refused to obey God’s repeated commands to “pray without ceasing” for unbelievers, believers, and political leaders. Yes, you should pray for the right candidate to win; yes, you should vote for the candidate that the Lord gives you peace about voting for. But, don’t get caught up in it like the world does. Nothing much is going to change until people get saved and get their hearts right with the Lord.
This campaign is inspired by the following three verses: 1 Corinthians 2:2 which says, “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Acts 5:42 which says, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.” And 2 Timothy 2:4 which says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
This series is not for Christians necessarily. However, I do hope you are one of those saints who still loves to hear the “Old, old story of Jesus and His love” — As another hymn says, “For those who know it best Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.” This series is primarily for unbelievers, so they can hear and understand the Gospel and be saved from sin and the punishment of sin which is hell. This is message number 136.
F.F. Bruce said, “To be so self-deceived as to shut one’s eyes to the light is a desperate state to be in: the light is there, but if people refuse to avail themselves of it, but rather deliberately reject it, how can they be enlightened? As Jesus said, their sin remains.”
When the Pharisees heard the reason why Jesus had come into the world — “that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.” — they got a little nervous. They apparently picked up that Jesus was speaking on a spiritual level, and so they wondered, “Are we blind also?”
Jesus responds, “If ye were blind, ye should have no sin.” If the Jewish religious leaders were willing to admit that they were blind, then they could be cleansed of their sins and set free. That is the way it works for all of us. The first step to salvation is to admit to yourself and to God that you are a sinner. If you claim that you are not a sinner, like these Pharisees did, no one can help you. You will remain blind even though you say you can see.
Jesus continues, “But now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” The Pharisees would never admit to spiritual blindness. They would never say that they needed Jesus to open their eyes. Thus, they would never see themselves as sinners, and they would never be cleansed of their sins. Their sins would remain, and they would continue on the path that leads to the eternal punishment for sins. They would close their eyes in death and open their eyes in Hell. But, by then, it will be too late. There may even be people in Hell who will still refuse to admit their own wrongness in the face of God’s rightness.
If you want to be saved from your sins, you must admit to God and to yourself that you are a sinner. If you want your eyes to be opened to the truth of the spiritual realm, and the truth of who God is, you must admit that you are blind. That is the only way you can move from sin to salvation, and from death to eternal life. Will you make this admission today?
Here is how you can receive sight today by giving your life to Jesus Christ
1. 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 reads: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” In fact, I am the chief of sinners, so don’t think that you’re alone.
2. Accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
3. 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.” The Bible says 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.”
4. 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.”
5. Accept the fact that God loves you more than you love yourself, and that He wants to save you from hell. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16, “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.”
6. 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.”
Dear friend, if you are willing to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, please pray with me this simple prayer: Heavenly Father, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. 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. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound 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.”
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please e-mail me at dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
26 Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes?
27 He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples?
28 Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple; but we are Moses’ disciples.
29 We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is.
30 The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes.
31 Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
32 Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind.
33 If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.
34 They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.
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Today, I am continuing the daily Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign sermon series, which is aimed at sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with unbelievers and reminding Christians, in this important election year, to keep the main thing the main thing — and that is reaching unbelievers with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and praying for their salvation, for the problem in America is not only disobedient presidents, politicians, and people, but disobedient pastors, preachers, and parishioners who have refused to obey the Lord’s Great Commission which is to, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” and who have refused to obey God’s repeated commands to “pray without ceasing” for unbelievers, believers, and political leaders. Yes, you should pray for the right candidate to win; yes, you should vote for the candidate that the Lord gives you peace about voting for. But, don’t get caught up in it like the world does. Nothing much is going to change until people get saved and get their hearts right with the Lord.
This campaign is inspired by the following three verses: 1 Corinthians 2:2 which says, “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Acts 5:42 which says, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.” And 2 Timothy 2:4 which says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
This series is not for Christians necessarily. However, I do hope you are one of those saints who still loves to hear the “Old, old story of Jesus and His love” — As another hymn says, “For those who know it best Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.” This series is primarily for unbelievers, so they can hear and understand the Gospel and be saved from sin and the punishment of sin which is hell. This is message number 131.
St. Augustine said, “I never have any difficulty believing in miracles, since I experienced the miracle of a change in my own heart.”
When the blind man refuses to answer the questions of the religious leaders — and instead asks them questions of his own — the religious leaders are deeply offended. None of the common people of that day would have dared to cross blades with the religious establishment. But, as we saw yesterday, this man’s encounter with Jesus had set him free. He knew that he did not have to be afraid of the religious leaders.
The formerly blind man responds to their outrage with another statement that highlights the absurdity of their position. He says, “Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes.” The man points out that, for all their supposed religious knowledge, the religious leaders can’t even work out the simple matter of whether or not a man who healed blindness is of God or of the devil.
The blind man then turns into a theologian. He explains to the religious leaders, using the principles found in the Old Testament, how it is impossible for Jesus to be anything other than a man of God. Obviously, the miraculous healing of the blind man was an act of God. There was no medical explanation for it. The man says, “Now we know that God heareth not sinners.” In the mind of the formerly blind man, the person who had healed him had to have some kind of connection with God, so he could not be a “sinner.” The Jews believed that God would not hear the prayer of a sinner, ‘period’. So, this man knew that Jesus could not be such a person, as the religious leaders were trying to make him out to be.
John MacArthur said, “Scriptures teach us that it is only those who know and love Jesus Christ who have spiritual sight. There are a lot of people in the world who are religious and think they see. The Pharisees did. They were super religious and they thought they had everything pigeonholed. They thought they could see and comprehend every spiritual truth in existence. They thought they knew everything, when, in fact, they knew nothing. They were totally blind. It’s a strange thing, but blindness is bad enough; when you add to natural born blindness the blindness of a false system of religion, then you have a double blindness and a difficulty in penetrating that double blindness. So rather than people who are in religion finding the light, they veil themselves with a double darkness that is even more difficult to break through.” That is what we see happening to the Pharisees in this text.
Now the man points out the marvellous nature of what has happened to him. He says, “Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind.” Not even Moses, whom the religious leaders claimed to follow, had healed blindness. The man concludes, “If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.” This man knew nothing about Jesus beyond His name, but he knew enough to know that what Jesus had done for him was nothing short of the hand of God operating in his life.
Just as Jesus worked in the life of the blind man, He wants to work in your life as well. He wants to open your eyes to the truth of himself. He wants to give you new life just as He gave the blind man his sight.
Jesus wants to work the miracle of salvation in your life if you will let Him. If you want to experience this new life today, here is how.
First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in 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.”
Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “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.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “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.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your salvation today, please pray with me this simple 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 today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to 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 believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound 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.”
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please e-mail me at dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
The Gospel Light Minute X 