Special Messages Inspired by God: God's Inspirational Messages

By Martha Jean Wilson

This book contains inspirational sermons based on the Word of God under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This book will speak to the heart of all believers and will inspire them to continue to live a life that is pleasing to God. This book is to lift up the name of Jesus, the Christ, allowing Him to draw all men, women, boys, and girls to Him according to the Scriptures as stated in the gospel of John 12:32 when Jesus said, And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

To God Be the Glory!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 9, 2016
• ISBN: 9781512750430

Martha Jean Wilson

Martha Jean Wilson, whose Savior and Lord is Jesus, the Christ, is the third-oldest child born to Samp Wilson, Sr., and Lillie Mae Wilson in the small town of Crawford, Mississippi. She realizes without God she can do nothing, and through Jesus Christ, she can do all things. She graduated with a bachelor of science degree in educational psychology from Mississippi State University in May 2010. She is also enrolled at the Ministerial Institute and College of West Point, Mississippi, a school of theology and ministry, where she received her degree of Certificate of Biblical Studies in May 2016. Wilson is a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ and was licensed on July 9, 2006, by her former pastor, Rev. Riley Forrest, Sr., of the Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Crawford, Mississippi. She is a member of the Millers Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Macon, Mississippi, under the pastoral leadership of Rev. Nathaniel D. Houston, Sr. She teaches, preaches, and shares the gospel of Jesus Christ by lifting up His name as the Holy Spirit gives her the utterance and power to do so.

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Copyright © 2016 Martha Jean Wilson.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-5044-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-5045-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-5043-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016911758

WestBow Press rev. date: 8/9/2016

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament. Copyright © 1965, 1987, by the Zondervan Corporation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Amplified Bible, New Testament. Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1987, by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

BibleStudyTools.com; Copyright Statement, These files are public domain. Bibliography Information, Orr, James, M.A., D.D. General Editor. Entry for ‘PROVERB’. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. 1915. http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/proverb/

Life Application Study Bible. King James Version. Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois. 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996, 2004.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.verses marked KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible. Bindale, Wayne A., Diemer, Carl J., Dodson, Edwards, G… . The King James Study Bible. Holy Bible. 1975, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1988. Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publisher since 1798. Nashville, Dallas, Mexico City, and Rio De Janeiro. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to all apostles, prophets, evangelists, ministers, pastors, and teachers of the Gospels of Jesus, the Christ, who is carrying out the Great Commission according to Matthew 28:19-20: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

My prayer is that this book will empower each of you to continue to lift up the name of Jesus in such a powerful way that men and women will ask what they must do to inherit eternal life.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

—Matthew 6:33

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Section 1—Inspirational Messages

1 Build Your House on the Solid Foundation, Jesus, the Christ

2 A Godly Woman Honors Her Vow

3 Can Anything Good Come Out of Nazareth?

4 Characteristics of a Virtuous Woman

5 David Seeks God for Forgiveness

6 Deborah, a Mighty Woman of God

7 Pass the Baton

8 Rejoice in the Lord, Always

9 Prerequisites for Answered Prayers

10 A Priceless Treasure in an Earthen Vessel

11 Prince Charming

12 The Power of Prayer

13 Saul’s Encounter with Jesus, the Christ

14 You Are God’s Masterpiece

15 Funeral of Moses

Section 2—Special Occasion Messages

16 Resurrection Sunday: The Greatest Betrayal of a Friend

17 Thanksgiving: In Everything Give Thanks

18 Christmas: The Greatest Announcement Ever Made to Humankind

Foreword

As president and professor of Ministerial Institute and College and a teacher of homiletics at the Biblical Institute, it gives me honor to say that as you read Martha J. Wilson’s book of inspired messages, you will truly be blessed. I came to realize how well written and outlined her sermons were when she presented them to me during class as part of her homework assignments.

Having the privilege of being a homiletics teacher for many years and the opportunity to have read many messages (sermons) from past and present pastors and ministers, I soon came to realize the excellent and well-written inspired messages she composes. One can see she was guided and aided by the Holy Spirit as her messages are quite outstanding, inspiring, and remarkable. I encouraged Martha to compile a book of messages to share with others, and I am honored to endorse her book of inspired messages.

As you read these messages, I pray you will be blessed just as I was when I read them. My prayers and thoughts are with her as she embarks upon such an endeavor as this, and I pray God’s blessings upon her now and always.

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Dr. Rev. James Alvin Boyd Jr.

Acknowledgments

First of all, I want to thank my heavenly Father who made this possible. I am grateful He has allowed me to write inspired messages about Him, God the Father, and His Son, Jesus, the Christ. The Holy Spirit gave me the wisdom, knowledge, and guidance as He directed my steps.

I wish to thank my wonderful parents, Samp Wilson Sr. and Lillie M. Wilson, who nurtured me in such a respectful way. I am grateful to them for sharing the good news about Jesus, the Christ, God’s only begotten Son, who is my personal Savior and Lord over my life and in whom I will trust throughout eternity. I am appreciative to my parents for their prayers and support in every way. Again, thanks Dad and Mom for everything and for being the parents God knew I would need in order to serve Him with a humble, meek, and loving heart. I love you now and always.

My deepest thanks to my little sister, Linda K. Wilson, and her son, Minister Pierre A. Wilson, for their prayers and support. A warm thanks to my other siblings: Elder Samp Wilson Jr., Dorothy M. Gandy, Queen W. Malone, Sammie L. Wilson, Bernice Wilson, and Terry E. Wilson. Also to my nieces, nephews, and other relatives. A heartfelt thanks to my beloved pastor, Rev. Nathaniel D. Houston Sr., mentors, and friends for their prayers and support.

SECTION 1

Inspirational Messages

1

Build Your House on the Solid Foundation, Jesus, the Christ

A s Jesus nears the conclusion of His Sermon on the Mount, He wants to make sure His disciples grasp what he has taught them over the last three and a half years. He wants to make sure before He returns to His heavenly Father that His disciples, the ones He’s going to leave in charge of His earthly ministry, understand what He has been teaching them about the ministry of the gospel. Therefore, He closes the sermon with a comparison of two kinds of house builders. In this parable, Jesus says,

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. (Matthew 7:24–27)

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 11th ed., sand is a loose granular material that results from the disintegration of rocks, consists of particles smaller than gravel but coarser than silt." In this parable, we see how Jesus uses to the two kinds of house builders to communicate an important truth to His disciples and all believers. The foolish builders choose to build their houses on the sand. They refuse to accept Jesus as their personal Savior and reject all His teachings. Therefore, they are choosing to build their entire life/house on a foolish foundation, which is sand. To the believers, this seems foolish, but to the nonbelievers it does not because they are not seeing spiritually.

One can perhaps say they may have been in a hurry, and by building on sand, they will save time and avoid the hard work of preparing to lay the proper solid foundation upon which to build their lives, which is Jesus, the Christ. Perhaps they don’t have the time to accept Jesus as their personal Savior since they need to dig deep into the soils of His teachings through reading and studying the Word of God. They feel that building their house on the solid foundation of Jesus and His teachings will perhaps take up too much precious time they could spend seeking to gain the whole world. They fail to realize they are losing their souls. Mark 8:36 states, for what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

Why would anyone want to build attractive beachfront houses on sand just for the sake of obtaining a higher social status? For the life of me I cannot understand why anyone would spend that kind of money to build such a house. Maybe they want to be like their friends, or maybe they haven’t heard or do not care about the violent storms, wind, and rain that will come and beat upon their houses, bringing chaos to their lives. Perhaps they disregarded the Word of God (Jesus’s teachings) and think disaster cannot or will not occur in their walks of life.

The foolish builder does not take into consideration that the sand will not sustain the house when the rain of brokenness and heartaches begins to fall. Floods of anxiety; feeling unloved, undesired, unwanted, and unappreciated; hatred; and unforgiveness occur because the foolish builder built a foundation that won’t stand. Not only that, but when the wind and cares of this life begin to take a toll on them through tribulations, trials, troubles, evilness, job loss, no money, no food on the table, and they have nothing to stand on and no one to turn to for comfort, their foundations will crumble and fall. Perhaps the doctor has given the builder a diagnosis of a terminal illness, and the only cure is a miracle from Jesus. Perhaps their spouses, fathers, mothers, children, grandchildren, coworkers, or even dear friends become addicted to drugs and alcohol, and they have no solid foundations on which to stand because they built foolishly. They have nothing within themselves to sustain them because they need the truth of the Word of God.

The wise builder, unlike the foolish one, considers the future of his or her eternal house and the type of foundation on which to build upon. Everybody is a house builder. It doesn’t matter how small or tall, big or large, saved or unsaved, poor or rich, religious or nonreligious, we are house builders.

Building a house on the Word of God, which is Jesus and His teachings, allows the wise builder’s house to stand when the storms of life occur because of the foundation it is built upon; Jesus is the only One who is able to keep us from falling (Jude 1:24). His Word sustains, guides, and directs us through every storm, trial, and tribulation. And it encourages us along the way.

Many times when a hurricane or tornado goes through a particular neighborhood, we see how the power of God moves everything that was built upon the brick home’s solid foundation (concrete), and the home is destroyed. However, the foundation itself is still intact. Many times the homeowners will rebuild on that same foundation. Why? Because their homes were built on a solid foundation that was embedded, entrenched, and rooted in the deep soil of the earth to withstand the raging storms, winds, hurricanes, and tornadoes. This is what the Word of God does for us as believers.

Wise builders take into consideration rain will fall, floods will come, the winds of life will blow, and their foundations will be tried and tested in this walk of life. Therefore, they thought carefully about their futures and knew if they built the right foundations, their eternal houses will sustain them even when they are tested by the trials of this life.

The ones who build on the Rock know they’re required to dig deep within the earth until they reach solid rock, so when the rain, flood, and wind blows, their foundations will stand the test of time. It is not really complicated to build our houses on the Word of God because when we hear, read, and study the Word, we truly understand anything else is just sinking sand because on Christ, the solid Rock, we stand.

As the wise builder studies the Word of God, he or she is digging deeper into the heart of God, so when the rain, trials, and tribulations come, this builder will be able to stand on God’s Word. Those who build on the Rock can rest assured, according to Matthew 24:35: heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away. My spiritual insight from God regarding this particular Scripture is that if God’s Word ceased to exist, that means God will cease to exist, and we know that will never happen.

When Satan begins to attack our faith and foundation through sickness, disappointments, heartaches, and tears of discontentment, we will not be like the ship with no sail in the middle of the ocean when it is storming because we will be sailing on the wings of Jesus’s foundation of faith. In essence, the wise builder’s foundation is unshakable, unbreakable, unmovable, and nonperishable because of the One they chose to build upon, which is Jesus Christ, the solid foundation, and His spoken and written Word.

The foolish builder wants to build his or her house on sand, which means he or she hears the Word of God being preached and taught but don’t accept Jesus or His teachings. Why would anyone want to build a house on sand when you can build it on a more solid foundation which is the solid Rock, Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son. Apostle Paul states it as clear as water when he penned in 1 Corinthians 3:11, for other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

The decision is totally left up to the builder of the house. The builder has to decide, based on the Word of God and Jesus’s teachings, if he or she is going to be a foolish or wise builder. Jesus’s parable warns foolish builders if they choose to build on sand, it is as though they’re building on the ground with no foundation.

The foolish builder says within their hearts and minds, Yes, Jesus, I heard Your word preached by God’s messengers (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors/teachers) but the decision of how I choose to build my house is in my hands. He or she thinks, I am still choosing to be unwise, meaning he or she doesn’t consider or worry about the future and where eternity will be spent because the foolish builder thinks that there is no life after death. Therefore, foolish builders have chosen to reject God’s perfect gift, Jesus Christ, and His Word, for they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God (Romans 10:3) for the simple fact they are foolish builders.

The wise builder meditates carefully about the house’s foundation because he or she is wise enough to realize the future of the house depends totally on the type of foundation laid. Wise builders are wise enough to know that for other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:11).

Wise builders hear the Word of God being preached or taught. They read the Word of God daily and are wise enough to know they need to accept Jesus and all His teachings in their heart and apply His Word to their daily lives. Therefore, they do not reject John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son and that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Wise builders accept and acknowledge Jesus Christ as their personal Savior because they want to inherit and lay hold of eternal life, and accepting Jesus and all of His teachings is the most important decision they can make on this side of heaven as a wise builder.

Wise builders are intelligent enough to know they’re included in the whosoever, and by believing in Jesus, they build on the solid foundation. A wise builder realizes when the rain pours, the floods come, and the storms of life blow through various trials they will need the Word of God to sustain them through it all.

Foolish builders have chosen to build their houses on sand because while they hear the Word of God, they do not accept it or Jesus’s teachings. Their rejection of the Word causes their houses to fall. It is not a regular fall; it’s a great fall because their unbelief in God’s Son causes them to spend eternity in the lake of fire. Only a foolish person rejects God’s Son, His Word, and teachings. John 1:14 speaks to the heart of even the foolish builder. John states that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. Foolish builder doesn’t consider the great consequences of