November 28, 2015

“So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. 20 God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake. Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory. You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters.* Love each other deeply with all your heart.*
For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. As the Scriptures say,
“People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.”*. And that word is the Good News that was preached to you. So get rid of all evil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech.” 1 Peter 1:10 – 2:1

“I don’t know about you, but when I’m sitting in church, I occasionally catch myself thinking how great the message is for someone else. Instead, it’s vital that I choose to apply each sermon or Bible reading to my own life. The apostle Peter calls on every believer to think clearly, exercise self-control, and “live as God’s obedient children” (1 Peter 1:13-14). He reminds us not to slip back into our old, selfish ways of living and to “be holy in everything [we] do, just as God who chose [us] is holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16). It’s important that we take personal responsibility for the way we live because one day we’ll be rewarded or judged for everything we do (1 Peter 1:17). God paid a great price to save us from our empty lives—and not with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of Jesus who was raised from the dead (1 Peter 1:18-21). Through Christ we can trust God as we place our faith and hope in Him because He has cleansed us from our sin. As God helps us to grow in obedience, we’re able to love sincerely and steer clear of evil behavior (1 Peter 1:22–2:1). Let’s hear God’s wake-up call and follow Him and His ways today!” (Our Daily Bread website, Our Daily Journey, My Wake-up Call, October 23, 2015)

“And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites.” Don’t you sometimes feel as if the church is filled with people who believe that our Heavenly Father does play favorites? I have run across a few people in the church who, I assume, believe that G*d has directly empowered them to do or say whatever they want to do or say – and that G*d always agrees with them because they are one of G*d’s favorites. They may not realize this is how they are perceived, but it is clear they believe they have a special “In” with G*d. Paul says we are to live as G*d’s “obedient” children, not as spoiled, rotten children.

Recently there was a young man who had put himself behind the wheel of his luxury car after he had too many drinks, and he caused an accident that killed another human being. His defense at his trial was that his parents had spoiled him too much so that he did not know the difference between right and wrong. We hear about such stories and scoff at the ridiculousness of it all – how can people not take responsibility for their own actions. And then on Sunday morning we hear a good sermon about sin, and we think to ourselves “Geez, I wish so and so was here to hear that message.” Nathan said to David “You are the man” when explaining the sin of a fictional story character. My friends, “You and I are the so and so’s who desperately need to see the sin within our own thoughts and actions.”

Pastor Dave

     October 21, 2015

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts. He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here. My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.) Jesus, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. These are the only Jews among my co-workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me. Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.” Colossians 4:2-15

“A friend told me about a group of people who share a strong bond of faith in Christ. One of them, a 93-year-old woman, said, “I feel like I can call any of you at 2 a.m., and I don’t even have to apologize if I feel the need for any type of assistance.” Whether the need is prayer, practical help, or someone to be there during a time of need, these friends are unconditionally committed to each other. The same sense of commitment shines through Paul’s letter to the followers of Jesus in Colossae. Writing from prison in Rome, Paul says he is sending Tychicus and Onesimus to encourage them (Col. 4:7-9). Aristarchus, Mark, and Justus send their greetings (vv.10-11). And Epaphras is “always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured” (v. 12). These are bold assurances of practical help and deep-seated love.

Are you part of a “2 a.m. group”? If so, give thanks for the faithfulness of friends. If not, ask the Lord to connect you with another person with whom you can share a commitment to pray and care. I suspect it will soon grow to include others. Share the love of Christ with one another.” (Our Daily Bread, 2 A.M. Friends, September 18, 2015)

My wife and I met at church — a large church that has only grown larger over the last 27 years since we were married. While we were members there, the church started a program of small group ministry — where people of like interests and ages and stages in their lives were grouped together to engage in conversation, bible study and fellowship one time a month. Some of our oldest friends came from that group of seven couples. The small group ministry was so necessary in the life of this church because of the size of the church. It would be impossible for anyone to get to know even five percent of the members without this ministry.

We all need a small group within the church who help us feel that we belong, who help us feel connected, and who will be our “2 a.m. Group”. We don’t have to call them in the middle of the night, but we need to know that we have people who will be there no matter what. And isn’t that what the church should be about – people who love each other with the love of Christ as our sure guide? The larger the church, the more effort we need to put into making people feel connected – not only to Christ, but to each other as well.

Pastor Dave