volume 116 march/april 2009 issue

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 StandUnited We StandUnited We StandUnited We Stand

Divided We FallDivided We FallDivided We FallDivided We Fall

www.jesuschristisgod.org

www.thechurchofjesuschrist.net

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

[email protected]

Articles and Pictures due: May 1st, 09

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

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Days Inn 6400 Maccorkle Ave S.E.

Charleston, WV 25304

1-800-304-3809 or (304) 925-1010

Red Roof Inn 6305 Maccorkle Ave Se


1-800-733-7663 or (304) 925-6953

Comfort Suites 107 Alex Lane


(304) 925-1171

Country Inn & Suites 105 Alex Lane

Charleston, W.V. 25304

1-800-456-4000 or (304) 925-4300

Motel 6 6311 Maccorkle Southeast


1-800-466-8356 or (304) 925-0471

Knights Inn 6401 Maccorkle Ave SE


1-800-843-5644 or (304) 925-0451

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 church-

which 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

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



Dyersburg, TN

God loves everyone, but probably prefers 'fruits of the spirit' over 'religious nuts!'

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


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

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



Dyersburg, TN

Be ye fishers of men.

You catch them -

He'll clean them.

Devoted To God & United Together

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.

Sis. Deanna Johnson

Pastor, Bishop Randell Spence


Portage, IN

Praise the Lord!

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!

Bro. John Dodd



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



Dyersburg, TN

The best mathematical equation I have ever seen:

1 cross + 3 nails = 4 given!!

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


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



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


Pierceton, IN

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

volume 116 march/april 2009 issue

Documents

church of jesus christ

presiding bishop

infallible word of god

feet ye

almighty god

bishop paul rose

bishop tommy johnson

holy ghost