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The Sitting Dead

Posted by Dion Todd May 27th, 2024 2,402 Views 26 Comments

The Sitting Dead from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

Jesus Christ was baptized by John in the Jordan River when He was about thirty years old. The heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the physical form of a dove:

(Luke 3:21–22 NKJV)  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased."

The Spirit then led Jesus into the wilderness, where He fasted for forty days and was tested by the devil. He passed all the tests, and then Jesus returned "in the power of the Spirit" and began His ministry in the region of Galilee. The message Jesus preached was: "Repent, and believe in the gospel."

(Mark 1:14–15 NKJV)  Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."

Jesus came to Nazareth, His hometown, where He had been brought up, and on the Sabbath, He went to the synagogue, as was His custom. Now, the people of Nazareth knew Jesus well. He grew up there and probably did carpentry work for some of them. He had only recently moved to Capernaum, so it hadn't been long since He had lived in Nazareth, which made the following shocking to them. 

In the synagogue, because of His growing popularity in Galilee, Jesus was given the opportunity to read from the prophets. So He stood up, was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, and began to read:

(Luke 4:17–19 NKJV)  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."

(Luke 4:20–22 NKJV)  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"

They were all too familiar with little Jesus, the Son of Joseph and Mary, who used to run through the streets. They had watched Him grow up over the years. Now He was saying He was the Messiah that Isaiah prophesied about! "OMG. Someone go get Mary..." After Jesus' sermon, they decided not to wait on Mary to straighten Him out - They would just kill Him instead:

(Luke 4:28–30 NKJV)  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Familiarity with Jesus doesn't save you. Hearing about Jesus all your life, growing up in church, or being a member of a church doesn't save you. Having your name in the church directory won't make any more difference at the Pearly Gates than presenting your expired gym membership card. 

You have to believe. You have to repent. 

(Acts 2:37–38 NKJV)  Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

(Acts 20:20–21 NASB)  how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

To Believe: is to believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ, who gave His life for us and paid for our sins with His own blood on the cross. The Gospel, or "good news," centers on the life, death, resurrection, and lordship of Jesus Christ. "Lord" means:  "supernatural master over all." To call Him Lord merely gives Him a title. To make Him Your Lord means to do what He says.

(Luke 6:46 NASB)  "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?"

Believing the Gospel means recognizing one's sinfulness, accepting Jesus Christ's sacrifice and resurrection, placing faith in Him, repenting from sin, receiving the Holy Spirit, and living a transformed life that follows Jesus.

(Romans 10:9 NASB)  that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

Repentance: A change of mind that results in a change of life(style). Alongside turning away from sin, repentance includes turning to God, seeking His forgiveness, and striving to live a life that pleases Him. It is an active pursuit of a relationship with God. Your actions should reflect your faith:

(James 2:17 ESV)  So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

True repentance also brings "times of refreshing," what the church calls Revival. All major revivals began with a season of repentance, including in my own life.

(Acts 3:19 NASB)  "Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;

I have met many who knew about Jesus Christ and were familiar with Him, yet they were the coldest, most spiritually dead people I have ever known. They were also the hardest to reach, for when you talked about Jesus, there was no connection. They just stared back at you with a cold, blank stare. Many were highly religious and knew all the words, but they didn't know Him. I see them as the Walking Dead. They died a while back, but they are still here. It is time to revive and thrive. 

(Ephesians 5:14 NASB)  ... "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you."

(Matthew 7:21–23 NKJV)  "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'"

It is time to heat up the relationship. It is not enough to be familiar with Jesus Christ or to have heard about Him from someone else. It is time to know Him, and our actions should demonstrate our faith on Mondays as well as Sundays. It is time to believe and repent so that times of refreshing may come. 

You can pray this with me if you like: 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for giving Your Son to redeem us. I am Yours, Lord. I believe in Jesus Christ, that He died for our sins and rose from the dead to live again. By His blood, I am redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Please revive my spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!


Note: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God.” (Philippians 4:6-7) ~ If you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network

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Dion Todd posted a comment:

2 days ago

Site update #586: I completed a large update to the Audio Library on the left sidebar. There is now a live service archive of all past services, full-length in case you miss a service and want to catch up, as well as all of our original music. You can download the .mp3 files directly to your device now to listen when you don't have internet. I also added a pop-out player so you can listen without remaining on the page. Give it a try and let me know if you have any problems. 😀

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Tyler Velau

1 day ago

Thank you for your continuing work on the site and your efforts to bring the truth of the Gospels to people around the world via the internet. Your hard work and dilligence is appreciated.

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Liesel aka lisa Wardle

1 day ago

Thank you so much, Pastor Dion, for all that you do, it sounds to me like non-stop "24-7"! God bless you and Sylvia abundantly, above and beyond! 🙏🤗

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Nell Neathery

1 day ago

sounds great. I know that will be useful for me...need to write that down. Hope the Todd family have a blessed Saturday and Sunday. I do believe God gave us those 2 special days for His sake and our sake! Work hard or volunteer (myself) hard through the week. We get our rewards here on Earth and rewards in Heaven.

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Lynn Brown

2 days ago

That sounds amazing Pastor Dion, thank you!!!


Liesel aka lisa Wardle commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen and Amen, thank You my Lord and God for reaching out to me, for drawing me to You by the power of Your Holy Spirit, thank You for the gift of faith, for without faith there can be no remission of sins, no repentance and no acceptance!! - There is currently such a struggle going on with this elderly lady named Dorothy that I'm currently taking care of, ever increasing pain, now fighting another infection called cellulitis, sores on her right leg which are oozing infected fluids, her memory is fleeting, still having so much hurt and bitterness encapsuled in her heart, always crying out to die, and yet she isn't ready to go!!! She is mumbling a prayer with me but it isn't coming from her heart, even though she's thanking me for praying for her, trying to pray with her!! - so I'm asking everyone to please petition the Lord God most high and ask for the Gift of Faith to be bestowed upon her, to finally let go of all of the heavy weight of the hurt, pain and bitterness, and finally surrender to the Lord, before her time on earth is gone!! Thank you from the bottom of my heart! 🙏
Believe and repent

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Lynn Brown

1 year ago

Prayers for Dorothy's health and salvation!🙏❤️

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Dion Todd

1 year ago

Prayed for Dorothy! 🙏

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Liesel aka lisa Wardle

1 year ago

Please continue to pray for Dorothy, she is in the hospital right now with pneumonia! she needs the Lord most of all, thank you so much!! 🙏

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Michele Copley

1 year ago

Prayers for Dorothy, trusting that she have faith filled relationship with Jesus, seeing who He is for now and eternity. You're so loving a care giver for her, because, you care also for her very soul!

Reply
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Liesel aka lisa Wardle

1 year ago

May the Lord bless you, dear sister, thank you from the bottom of my heart!! 🙏❤️

Reply
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Lynn Brown

1 year ago

Amen, Michele!

Reply

Sherry Mccosh commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving Your Son to redeem us. I am Yours, Lord. I believe in Jesus Christ, that He died for our sins and rose from the dead to live again. By His blood, I am redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Please revive my spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!
Wonderful Devotion today!!!


Mari Kaufmann commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen dear God.

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Liesel aka lisa Wardle

1 year ago

Sending prayers and lifting up your son to the Lord!!! 🙏


Susan Petho commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen!


David Krull commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen . Thank you Jesus. Here I am Lord. I pray Your will be done in my life. In Jesus Name.


Laura Clark commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen! Such a good Word of reminder, Pastor! Those verses from Jesus' own mouth in Matt. 7 tell us that God knows our hearts. We may "play church people" roles but He sees and knows all.
May You quicken our spirits dear Jesus. Help us to believe, repent and obey Your voice daily. In Jesus' Holy Name I pray. Amen


Revs jerry and sonia Mashek commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Thanks Dion!!! You are "RIGHT ON" Brother! I've been Sharing this with every Pastor I have met since 2002. The HOLY SPIRIT is Still Reverberating this message today! Keep it up Brother... We ❤️ Love Y'all!✝️🕊🔥😘🤗🫂👪🙏😇🤙🤙🇺🇸🇮🇱


Wesley Paulus commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen hallelujah praise the lord!


Linda Clark commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Great devotion, very informative praise God are we all here to honor him in Jesus name

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Liesel aka lisa Wardle

1 year ago

AMEN, Linda!! We are all here to worship and honor our Lord & God, regardless where He places us, singing praises in the name of Jesus, Amen!! 🙏

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Debi Burton

1 year ago

Very informative indeed!


Debi Burton commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving Your Son to redeem us. I am Yours, Lord. I believe in Jesus Christ, that He died for our sins and rose from the dead to live again. By His blood, I am redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Please revive my spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen! ❤️ 🤟🏻


Donald Woodard commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Praise God! Such a wonderful word.


Yvette York commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen Good Morning Everyone Happy Memorial Day 😀


Theresa Bright commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Thank you for redeeming me Lord, in Jesus name.


Kathy Banfield commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Have a blessed Memorial Day everyone!


Lynn Brown commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Revive my spirit Father, Amen!


Sylvia Todd commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Happy Memorial Day, everyone, may you all have a most blessed day! 💛🤟

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Lynn Brown

1 year ago

You too Sylvia and Pastor Dion!❤️


Marisa Jackson commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Alleluia ♥️!! Alleluia!! ♥️ Amen!!🙏 Alleluia!!♥️


Wanda Pennington commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving Your Son to redeem us. I am Yours, Lord. I believe in Jesus Christ, that He died for our sins and rose from the dead to live again. By His blood, I am redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Please revive my spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen


Brenda F commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen!


Dana Rozell commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen!


Celeste Strenn commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen🌟


Dan Strilzuk commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen! Thank you for this timely message


Kay Collinsworth commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Amen and amen!


Candy Laventure commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Great message, Pastor.
Amen!


Schalk de Beer commented on Dion Todd's blog post: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

Yes, amen Lord, I pray this in Jesus's name.


Dion Todd added a new video devotional: The Sitting Dead

1 year ago

The Sitting Dead from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Jesus Christ was baptized by John in the Jordan River when He was about thirty years old. The heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the physical form of a dove:(Luke 3:21–22 NKJV)  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized;... Read the full post here: The Sitting Dead



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