For His Glory
#1 Easter Changes Brokenness to SERVICE John 20:1-2
#2 Easter Changes Questions to FAITH John 20:5-8
#3 Easter Changes Grief to GLADNESS John 20:10-18
#4 Easter Changes Fear to PEACE John 20:19-20
#5 Easter Changes Fate to PURPOSE John 20:21
#6 Easter Changes Doubt to BELIEF John 20:24-28
#7 Easter Change EVERYTHING! John 20:30-31
Joshua 6 records the Victory that the Nation of Israel had when God gave them victory at Jericho. From this chapter and other scriptures there are 7 ways to overcome the obstacles that keep you or your church from being where God wants you to be.
What is the Lord’s Supper?The Lords Supper was started by Jesus when He was in the Upper Room with His disciples celebrating the Passover. Matthew 26:17-30. Jesus used bread and the cup to represent His body and blood. It is a symbolic act of obedience where believers remember the death of their Savior, Jesus.
Most protestant churches offer Open Communion. This means that anyone in attendance that has trusted Christ as their Savior and Lord may participate in the Lord’s Supper.
Each church determines the frequency of offering the Lord’s Supper. Quarterly seems too infrequent while weekly too often. Participating in the Lord’s Supper on a monthly basis works well for many churches.
Yes. Participating in the Lord’s Supper outside a church setting is very meaningful for families, shut-ins, and those incarcerated.
The power of a symbol is based on what that symbol represents. Since the Lord’s Supper represents the Body and Blood of Christ, it is a powerful symbol of the faith that strengthens the church, encourages believers and honors our Savior.
1 Corinthians 11:23-32
December 15, 2013 was my first Sunday at First Baptist Church Dalhart, Texas as their new Pastor. This moment was the result of God’s leading and the culmination of years of prayer.
We are excited about this new season of ministry and look forward to making Dalhart, Texas our new home.
Power outages are tough, but spiritual power outages can be costly. Jesus’ disciples experienced a spiritual power outage. Jesus helped them understand why they came up short and the key ingredients for living with spiritual power.
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Small Group Ideas for Summer Time
As Summer vacations start and kids are out of school, small group ministry can be challenging. Look for ways to stay connected to every member and reach out to those you have not seen in a while. Please don’t take the Summer “off” as you minister to your group. This can be a great time of ministry and connection with your class. Consider these ideas for Summer time ministry:
1. Pray for your group, calling each member by name before the Father.
2. Plan a summer fellowship for the group. Include kids and make it a fun time. Fellowship is a very important part of a small group ministry.
3. Spend some time every week talking about your member’s Summer plans. Let them know you will miss them while they are on vacation and you intend to see them when they come back.
4. Develop a weekly plan to contact absentees to check on them. Including other group members in the process is a great way to share your leadership responsibility with other members.
5. Plan a Summer mission project for the group and encourage each member to participate in the ministry opportunity.
Make a goal to contact every members on your list during the Summer. Summer is a great time to reconnect.
The Changing of the Guard Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery honors those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom whose bodies are not identified. The video below is a clip from the Stepping Up Bible Study – A Call to Courageous Manhood. It interviews some of the soldiers who bravely guard the tomb and the sacrifice they make. I highly recommend the Stepping Up Bible Study from Family Life. See samples of the Bible study at the link below.
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Recently I went through The 33 Series with a group of men. This was a challenging study that calls men to Authentic Manhood. During our small group discussion time, Dr. Rob Jackson mentioned the “Holy Club” that was begun by brothers John and Charles Wesley. Here are the questions:
In 1729, while John Wesley was a student at Oxford, he started a club with his brother Charles, which was mockingly dubbed “The Holy Club” by some of his fellow collegians. The club members rigorously self-examined themselves everyday by asking the following 22 questions:
1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?
3. Do I confidentially pass on to others what has been said to me in confidence?
4. Can I be trusted?
5. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work or habits?
6. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
7. Did the Bible live in me today?
8. Do I give the Bible time to speak to me every day?
9. Am I enjoying prayer?
10. When did I last speak to someone else of my faith?
11. Do I pray about the money I spend?
12. Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?
13. Do I disobey God in anything?
14. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
15. Am I defeated in any part of my life?
16. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy or distrustful?
17. How do I spend my spare time?
18. Am I proud?
19. Do I thank God that I am not as other people, especially as the Pharisees who despised the publican?
20. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward or disregard? If so, what am I doing about it?
21. Do I grumble or complain constantly?
22. Is Christ real to me?
These men were on to something powerful. They knew that the choices they make every day determine who they are and who they are becoming. This self-examination helped them “keep their heart-flames burning red hot for the King of Glory!”
Do you regularly evaluate your life and the condition of your heart?
Do you have someone in your life that you have given permission to ask you the hard questions of life?
2 Timothy 3:1-17
The Textbook of Sunday School (Small Group Bible Study) is the Bible, the Word of God. 2 Timothy 3:1-17 focuses on the importance of the Bible. What would our Small Groups be without the Bible as our focus? Would it be a support group, a civic club, a gathering of friends, or a prayer group? Even though a good Small Group will have some of these elements, the Bible is central to what a Small Group Bible Study is all about.
The Bible is not only our Textbook, It is the Test for the quality of our Christian walk. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
These powerful aspects of the Bible lead to completeness and competence in the life of a believer.
If you are not committed to a small group of believers that meet weekly around the Word of God, let me encourage you to find a group and dig in. Your Christian walk will be greatly affected when you connect with other believers and connect with God, through His Word.
Living with Assurance
2 Peter 3:1-18
Assurance is hard to come by. We hope the economy will get better, but there is no guarantee. We hope for good health, but sickness comes. We hope our relationships will be strong, but many time we struggle and hurt those we care about. Some of the things we hope for either don’t happen or don’t happen on our time schedule. When Jesus was talking to His disciples about the hard times they would experience when He would be betrayed, falsely convicted, and killed on a cross He said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16: 33) Jesus is our source of peace and hope. Peter was there when Jesus said those words. Now at the end of 2 Peter, he is writing as “reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking” and to remind them what the Word of God says (2 Peter 3:1-2). By searching and studying the Word of God, we can live with assurance that God is in control and hold the future in His hand.
Peter warns the reader that there will be “scoffers” in the last days. Scoffers are individuals who show contempt for the Word of God and the people of God. During the time of the writing of 2 Peter, these scoffers challenged the second coming of Jesus saying, “Where is this coming he promised?” (2 Peter 3:4) Peter is continuing to defend the faith and the Word of God and offers the answer to this question. He reminds the reader that God created the Heavens and Earth. He is in control of creation and sets the timeline of history by His pleasure and plan. Peter describes how this creation is being reserved for a day of judgment and will see the destruction of ungodly men.
These scoffers question God’s timing and the validity of the claim that Christ will come again. The way we experience time is different than the way God experiences time. Peter writes, “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” (2 Peter 3:8) This verse is sometimes used to interpret the length of days of the creation account in Genesis. In the context of this passage, Peter is not explaining the length of creation, but how God is above time. We live in the confinement of time, but God does not.
Peter then writes, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) Once Jesus comes again, the opportunity for people to repent of their sins and place their faith in Him will be over. For this reason, Peter writes about God’s patience with those who don’t know Him. Believers in Christ live to share the Gospel with a lost and dying world while looking forward to His coming.
Peter describes the “Day of the Lord.” New Testament writers used the term “Day of the Lord” to point to Christ’s final victory and the final judgment of sinners. (Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary) Pastor Hank will be describing this day during his series through the book of Revelation.
Since this day of judgment is coming, Peter describes the kind of people we should be when he asks the question, “Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?” (2 Peter 3:11)
Peter answers this question:
Believers ought:
Peter’s love for the church is evident as he writes to “stimulate” the church to wholesome thinking and action. Relying on the Word of God leads to assurance that God is in control. His is neither early nor late. He is perfectly on time and His purposes and His people will endure whatever future holds.
