JESUS, the OVERCOMER #52

{Instead of allowing this to publish on Christmas Eve, I moved it back one day.}

This blog post features

Jesus,

the Overcomer

 for December

<><><>

Section 8 is Jesus, the Overcomer(weeks 49-52)

December - Section Eight: Jesus, the Overcomer 49. The Passion of the Christ—the Rest of the Story 50. His Grace, My Place 51. The Warrior Rises 52. Dead Man Walking

<>

SCRIPTURE READINGS 
for 

WEEK 52

52. Matthew 27:57-28:10; John 11:1-44; Ecclesiastes 8:8; Psalm 89:46-48; Revelation 20:4-6

These are the subtitles/segments of #52 

52. Dead Man Walking: "Hope for the Hopeless"; "The Secret to Security"; "We Must Expect the Fact of Death"; "We Will Experience the Force of Death"; "We Can Escape the Fear of Death"

Expect
Experience
Escape
Death & Live
With
JESUS
...because of Jesus' death
We Live
this is our Hope


PRAYERS:

52. Lord, I thank You that in Your dying and rising, You have become hope for the hopeless. I praise You for being - for me & for the world - the Resurrection and the Life!

This isn't really the best
CHRISTmas
message

or
maybe it is
if you believe
tell others what Jesus has done in your life!
That's the reason for this season
Jesus was born, lived, died & was buried
and then
He was raised from the dead
as those in
Christ
will
be

JESUS
the Overcomer
[Interview with James Merritt]
"52 Weeks with Jesus"

<><><>
a more current series (May 2023) with James MerrittTouching Lives
"This is Your Captain Speaking"(series on the 7 Letters found in the book of Revelation)
Sardis: The Walking Dead
{this was the reason I chose to list this & then the series}

"The church at Sardis was not a weak church that needed restoration. It was not a sick church that need rejuvenation. It was a dead church that needed resurrection. It was in a sense the church of the walking dead. I can tell you as a pastor my greatest fear is both pastoring a dead church and being a dead Christian. I want all of us today to perform our own self-examination and let’s see what steps we must take first of all to determine just how alive our Christian faith is and what we must do to be resurrected. Death may be fatal, but it is never final if we turn back to Jesus. As we examine ourselves, notice the fourfold prescription Jesus gives to get a church (or your faith) off the machine and alive again."

But because I am always interesting in series on these letters to the Churches, I've listed them all:
[not in order]
Smyrna: Grace Under Pressure
Laodicea: Spiritually Bankrupt
Ephesus: You've Lost that Loving Feeling
Thyatira: Failing the Tolerance Test
Pergamum: Dealing with the Devil
Philadelphia: Forever Faithful<>[Full Playlist of them all]for this Sermon Guide

Another interesting one this past year:
"From Here to Eternity" 6 videosdeal with death as this lastWeek 52seems to do
"All Things New"

Current series: "Unsung Heroes"
<>
This certainly is enough to keep us busy into the New Year of 2024,
yet I hope to still post a couple more posts as summary to
2023
WITH JESUS

JESUS, the OVERCOMER #51

This blog post features

Jesus,

the Overcomer

 for December

<><><>

Section 8 is Jesus, the Overcomer(weeks 49-52)

December -  Section Eight: Jesus, the Overcomer: 49. The Passion of the Christ—the Rest of the Story 50. His Grace, My Place 51. The Warrior Rises 52. Dead Man Walking

<>

SCRIPTURE READINGS
 for 

WEEK 51

51. Matthew 27:32-54; Genesis 3:14-15; Romans 3:21-26; Luke 24:13-27; John 20:1-10

These are the subtitles/segments of each devotional in Chapters 49-52 (listed after the title of that devotional)

51.The Warrior Rises: "Waiting for the Bruiser"; "An Unexpected Hero"; "Jesus Sacrificed His Life for Me"; "Jesus Substituted His Death for Me"; "Jesus Satisfied God's Justice for Me"

JESUS
Sacrificed
Substituted
&
Satisfied
All for Me&You
PRAYERS:

51. "God, thank You for sending the Warrior who dies and rises to free the ones You love {that love You} from the grip of sin and death."

"A Promise to Those Who are Overcoming"
by Rick Renner
[a portion below]

"...Today I want us to look at what it means to “overcome.” The word “overcometh” comes from the Greek word nikao. It refers to a victor, a champion, or one who possesses some type of superiority, and it can be translated to conquer, to defeat, to master, to overcome, to overwhelm, to surpass, or to be victorious. This word was often used in Greek literature to portray athletes who had mastered their sport and ultimately reigned supreme as champions in the games. It could also describe a military victory of one foe against the other. The word nikao denotes a complete victory over the opposition that Christians were facing on all fronts. By using this word, Jesus was calling upon those early believers to rise up like a mighty spiritual army to defeat the enemies that threatened them on every side."... Rick Renner

So 
Warriors, Rise Up
now is the time
that God is calling us 
to be in tune with Him
to know our Father's Heart & Will
to rise up above the enemy

"The Eternal is a warrior; the Eternal is His name." Exodus 15:3 (The Voice)

to Rise up, we must Rest in Him

W.A.R.R.I.O.R – (acronym) Wear Armor of God, Resist the devil, be Righteous, and In all Occasions pray and Read the Word of God.~from a WordPress "Jesus is the Answer" site

We, too, are Overcomers in Christ Jesus!(1 John 5:4-5; Romans 8:37; John 16:33)
Hebrews 12 Endurance
<>
Next week's post & the last one from
"52 Weeks With Jesus"
will post a day ahead on Dec. 23rd
rather than on
CHRISTmas Eve or CHRISTmas Day