The following is our menu for the Wednesday evening fellowship meal on March 04.
Pepper steak
Rice
String beans
Squash
Dessert
Roll
The meal will begin at 5:30 in the fellowship hall. Those unable to attend can still come at 6:15 for the prayer time and Bible study.
Cost for meals is $5.00 per adult or $3.00 per child.
Our next monthly meeting will be March 10th, 2009. Dick and Reba Lovejoy will be doing the program. They will tell about their recent trip to Mexico. Bob will be here for our Bible Study. Bring your Bible and a covered dish for lunch. See you then!
Be involved in our upcoming activities as spring approaches us real soon.
Martha
What power guides your life? What abilities give you the victory? In the story of Gideon we find Israel suffering under the oppressive raids of the Midianites. An angel of the Lord approaches Gideon and in Judges 6:12 says to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” Gideon’s response is to ask where God had been throughout their period of oppression. The angel replies, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” If not for the last part of that phrase we might be tempted to think of Gideon as a great warrior with strength and leadership capable of winning the day. Had not the angel called him a mighty man of valor? Did he not tell Gideon to go in his might?
The might of Gideon was the might of God. Gideon could trust that the victory would be his not because he had strength but because it was God who sent him. In case it is not clear, he is told by the Lord in verse 16: “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” Gideon would win because God would be with him.
You remember the rest of the story. Gideon goes on to recruit an army and he initially has some 22,000 men. God has Gideon trim the ranks and in the end he is left with 300 warriors. This was done so that everyone would know it was God who gave the victory to the people.
So I ask again: What power guides your life? What gives you the victory? It is not your strength or ability or charm or clever wit. It is God who will win the day. Satan has many attacks to throw at us. The world is full of opposition against us. At times we might almost seem to fail. But God fights for us and he will win the day. If you are following our Bible reading plan you might have read the following words recently, Psalm 46:1-2: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
On Wednesday, February 25th, we will restart our Wednesday evening fellowship meals. Please make plans to attend. Reservations must be made with the church office by Tuesday morning. We could use some volunteers to help with setting up and cleaning up. See Joyce Mauldin or Roy Conrad if you will be able to help.
The meal will begin at 5:30 in the fellowship hall. Those unable to attend can still come at 6:15 for the prayer time and Bible study.
Cost for meals is $5.00 per adult or $3.00 per child.
The menu for our first meal together is:
Pork Chops
Mashed Potatoes
Black-Eye Peas
Baked Apple
Desert
Roll
This sermon was preached by Rev. Chris Roberts during the evening service on February 22, 2009. We begin a new Sunday Evening series through the Old Testament called Covenant: The Old Testament Story.
Ephesians 1:15-16
This sermon was preached by Rev. Chris Roberts during the morning service on February 22, 2009. Continuing in Ephesians, Pastor Chris calls on believers to pray for the saints.
This morning we continue in Ephesians with Ephesians 1:15-16. Before we get into the text I want to update you on our other services. This week we start something new in our Sunday evening and Wednesday evening services. Tonight we will begin going through the Old Testament in a series called Covenant: The Old Testament Story. The idea will be to help you put together the pieces of the Old Testament and see how the whole thing tells the story of God’s redemption by preparing the people for Jesus Christ. On Wednesday evening we will begin a series on church history called The Cloud of Witnesses: The History of the Christian Church. Many people have gone before us in the church, many of them you may have never heard of before. I want to introduce them to you. So come back tonight at 6:00 and Wednesday night at 6:15, 5:30 if you want to eat, and join us for these times.
This morning’s passage follows Paul’s great expression of praise that went from verses 3 to 14. In that praise we saw Paul rejoicing and praising God for his great gift of salvation and how he has given that gift to us. So we have just completed a praise, today we move into a prayer. In verses 15-23 Paul tells the Ephesian believers something about how he prays for them. Today we are only looking at verses 15-16 but I’d like us to start off in this section by going ahead and reading the whole thing, Ephesians 1:15-23.
In these verses Paul is describing his prayer for believers. This is not a general prayer one might pray for anyone, this is a prayer for Christians. We pray for the lost that they might be saved, that they would come to Jesus Christ in faith and trust, repenting of their sins and turning to righteousness. Here Paul’s prayer points believers to deeper things. He asks God to give them things that will help believers grow in the faith. Notice that he is being a little specific. He is not content to tell them, “I am praying for you, that you might know more about God.” He tells us what it is about God that he wants us to know: the hope God has called them to; the riches of his inheritance to us; and the greatness of his power for us which he displayed in Jesus Christ. And Jesus Christ, by the way, has been given great authority over the church and all the world. We will look at each of these points in more detail as we get to them.
Paul begins this passage by giving the Ephesians three reasons why he is offering this prayer. The first phrase in verse 15, for this reason, points back to verses 3-14 and gives us the first reason Paul offers this prayer. The gift of God in salvation stirs Paul to pray for believers. Prayer is meaningless if God has not called a people to himself. If God cares nothing for us, he will not hear us. If God were not willing to redeem us why would we presume that he would care anything for our prayers?
Similarly, prayer for the gentiles would be meaningless if salvation were not offered to them as well. In the Old Testament the Jews were exclusively the people of God. If you wanted to be in the community of God’s people you had to become a Jew. With Jesus we learn that God has always had the gentiles in his plan and they are now included through Jesus Christ. If you want to be in the community of God’s people, you turn to Jesus in faith. It does not matter if you are Jew or gentile, American or Russian or German or any other race or nationality. Salvation is available to people on every part of the earth. In his praise, particularly in verses 13-14, Paul showed that the gentiles were included as God’s people. Since the gentiles can be saved Paul has reason to pray for all those who turn to Jesus in faith.
The second reason Paul prays for the Ephesians is because their faith has been demonstrated. He has heard a report of their faith in Jesus Christ. They have made the good confession and have shown their trust in Jesus. We said earlier that Paul’s prayer here is not for unbelievers, it is for believers. From his praise in 3-14 we know that even the gentile Ephesians could be numbered among the believers, the people of God. Here we see that they have given evidence by their faith that they are God’s children.
The third reason for Paul’s prayer is because they love the saints. Paul probably gets his cue to see this as evidence of their salvation from John 13:35 where Jesus says: By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. If you do not love your brothers and sisters in Christ how will people know your faith is genuine? Paul saw evidence of their claim by their faith and by their love for one another.
From here Paul goes on to describe to them some of what he prays for them. For the rest of our time this morning I want to talk about the example Paul gives us of praying for the saints.
Let me first briefly define saint. A saint is not a particularly holy person that achieves special notoriety among believers. All Christians are saints. Saints are holy ones, made holy by the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. In other words, saints are all those who have been covered with the blood of Christ and clothed with his righteousness. This describes everyone who has been saved. If you are a believer in Christ, if you have faith in him, if you have been born again by God the Holy Spirit then you are a saint.
Why should we pray for the saints? Why should we pray for one another? Because the Bible tells us to. Here are two examples. First is Jesus in John 17 who delivers a great prayer for believers. He says in John 17:9: I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. This does not mean he never prayed for unbelievers, he does pray for them. But in John 17 he is praying specifically for the saints, those who would be a part of his body. We are to follow the example set by Jesus. A second example is later in Ephesians, Ephesians 6:18 where Paul says …make supplication for all the saints… Pray for the saints. Be diligent in this.
How then ought you pray? Diligently, with the authority of Christ, and with your mind set on the will of God. As for diligent prayers, Paul would not have been satisfied with short prayers for the people. He probably prayed short sentence prayers when that was all that time allowed but he also made time for deeper prayers. Remember the kinds of things he said he prayed for the saints. All he gives us in 15-23 is the framework of his prayer. When he prayed this prayer for them he didn’t get through it in 30 seconds. Listen to the kind of things he says about his prayer and the way he calls us to pray:
If your prayer life consists of little more than what you do in your car, you are not praying the way the Bible demonstrates. Jesus did not pray short prayers. Earlier we mentioned John 17. The whole chapter is all one prayer. It is a safe bet that he prayed other prayers, some much longer (as when in the Garden of Gethsemane), but they are not recorded. James in James 5 tells us to pray, combining prayer for spiritual and for physical needs. Some fail to pray because they feel as though God does not listen to them, but Peter tells us in, 1 Peter 3:12 that …the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. God hears your prayer, God calls you to pray. Diligent, focused, specific, constant prayer. We are called to be a people of prayer. 1 Peter 2:5 says we are called to be a holy priesthood. Priests lift their voices to God, and you are a priest if you are a believer. So pray diligently and regularly.
Pray with the knowledge that you are a child of God and he will hear you. Be humble about this. You are not God but you are his adopted child. You do not have his authority but you can speak with the knowledge that you are his child and he will hear you and the authority of Christ is at work in your prayers.
Pray with an eye to his will. Do not pray for things that you know go against his will. Strive to know his will and pray according to his will.
Pray in the name of Jesus Christ. In John 14:13 Jesus tells us: And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the son may bring glory to the father. This is what our previous two points describe. We sometimes misunderstand what it means to pray in Jesus name. It is not the words at the end of your prayer. I usually end my prayer by saying, “in Jesus name I pray”… but this is not exactly what Jesus meant. It is not wrong to do, so long as we don’t let it confuse us. Search the New Testament and see if you find any example of people including these words in their prayer. What it means to pray in Jesus’ name is to pray with the authority given to a child of God in a way that upholds and follows the will of God.
When are you to pray these things? Or, how often should you pray for the saints? My answer will not surprise you. Pray all the time. Paul tells us in verse 16 that he does not cease to give thanks for them, remembering them in my prayers. The point of the not ceasing is that Paul never lets up in his prayers. A month, a year, a decade could go by and yet Paul would continue to pray for the Ephesians. Paul also tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 pray without ceasing. He meant what he said. Do it. Pray without ceasing. This does not mean go sit in your chair all the time and pray. Do that sometimes, but then go about the rest of your work. What it means to pray without ceasing is to have your mind so transformed by Christ that everything you do, every thought you think, is focused on God. When was the last time you prayed? Do you pray throughout your day? Is prayer a natural habit of your mind? Make it one. Pray without ceasing.
In addition to your unceasing prayer have specific times and places for focused prayer. Jesus gives us numerous examples of this. Frequently in the gospels we see him going off to pray. Follow his example. In Matthew 6:6 he tells us to pray in our closets. Push aside the broom and the mop, stomp all the spiders, and get in there in pray. Okay, it doesn’t have to be a closet but have a place for regular prayer. Make it a habit to devote time each day to pray. And not just ten minutes, though if you did that you would be doing more than most.
Make prayer serious business. Why will you devote chunks of your day to filling your mind with the world’s entertainment, saying that will give you rest and relaxation, and never once turn to God who in Romans 8:32 tells us, He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Make time for prayer and get rid of that which distracts. It might call for hard purgings. I was convicted about this last night while working on my notes. The end result was I literally threw away dozens of movies and tv shows and computer games, burdened with this thought that I will waste chunks of my day with things offered by the world when God is the one who gives me what I needs. Why will I not turn to him? Why will you go home this afternoon and enjoy the world’s pleasures, never once giving thought to your Father in Heaven who has promised to supply all your needs? Not all your wants, all your needs. Many of your wants are sinful anyway. Push them aside. The Bible tells us to do this in Hebrews 12:1: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us… The NIV says to throw off everything that hinders. What hinders your walk with Christ? Don’t grasp it and hold it tightly as though it were your very life! Throw it into the flames so that you will not be thrown into the flames. Cling to Christ, for he is your life. Cling by prayer and by studying his Word.
Finally, what things are we to pray for the saints? First we are to offer thanks for them, then we are to make intercession. We thank God for the gift of having brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. Some people live in places where they are the only believer for miles and miles. And yet they are part of the body of Christ and can praise God for this gift. They, and we, can also praise God that he is still saving people, that people are still being born again.
Make intercession for the saints because the battle is hard, the enemy is cunning, and to fail means to perish eternally. Those who are truly God’s will never fall away. Pray for the saints that their faith might be genuine and never fail. I want to mention two general areas to make intercession.
First, pray for the saints that God might strengthen and equip them as they spread the gospel: Ephesians 6:18-19: praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel… We cannot do the work of the kingdom under our own power. We must have his power at work in us. Pray for your brothers and sisters in Christ, that they would be filled with his words, his power.
Second, pray for the saints that they might resist the snares of the evil one. Jesus gives us an example of this in Luke 22:31-32: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”… In this case, Jesus knew Simon Peter would fall and would betray him. We learn from Jesus’ prayer that we need to pray for the saints that they might not fall into sin. Jesus knew Simon Peter would fall. You do not know who will fall. Pray that your brothers would remain strong. You know how you struggle with sin – your brother, your sister struggles as well! Pray for them, that they would not fall into the snare. We also learn from Jesus’ prayer that we need to pray for the saints that have already fallen into sin. I know a man who was a pastor until committing adultery. He continues to live in sin, refusing to repent. I pray for this man, that his faith might not fail. His salvation is at stake! I cannot rest comfortable that he once made a profession of faith and seemed to follow God. Those who fall away and never return to the Lord show the emptiness of the faith they once professed. Pray for them. Not just casual words, labor in prayer for them!
We close with a question. How serious is this issue of praying for the saints? Serious enough that it is a sin not to thank God for and pray for the saints. This sermon does not contain advice. It contains words for your sanctification and holiness. If you are not a person of prayer, you are living in sin.
Last Friday night we had a very nice Valentine Dinner. There were 95 present to enjoy the dinner and entertainment. We have some very talented church members. Ted Spangenberg, Jr. was our Master of Ceremonies. He introduced Jean Bartlett who read a children’s Valentine story enjoyed by children and adults alike. Connie and Scott sang “When Love Finds You”. We enjoyed a medley of western ballads by Tommy. C.W. and Joyce performed a very funny skit – entitled “Poisoned Potato Salad” and Bro. Chris closed us out with a skit – “My love is like a bed of roses”, then on a more serious note gave a spiritual thought and prayer.
I want to thank all the ladies who decorated our tables. Each one was very unique and very beautiful. It made for just a fun night!
Our next monthly meeting will be March 10th, 2009. Make plans to be there.
Martha
Greetings to the Community of Believers,
Our Wednesday evening fellowship meals are about to resume! On Wednesday, February 25th we will meet at 5:30 in the fellowship hall to share a meal together. Meals will be provided by Beck Ave. Cafe, located at the old Gardner’s Drug Store.
The cost per plate is $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children. Reservations must be called in to the church office by Tuesday morning. We have a standing reservation list for those who plan to eat every week. Call the church office if you want to be on the standing list. If you make a reservation you will be expected to pay whether or not you attend. The food will be bought and paid for based on the number of reservations we receive. Be sure to let the church know if you need to cancel a reservation one week!
We will be discouraging people from carrying out food. The Wednesday evening meal is not a food service, it is a fellowship time. If you make a reservation and someone gets sick please feel free to carry food back to them, also feel free to carry food to a shut-in. Any other carry outs will be discouraged.
Please make plans to attend and fellowship during this time. If you cannot make it for the meal we will continue to have our prayer meeting and Bible study starting at 6:15.
Exodus 11:4-6
This sermon was preached by Rev. Chris Roberts during the evening service on February 15, 2009. Here we look at evidence in archaeology and history that support biblical claims. This is the last message in our series on apologetics.
John 15:12-13
This sermon was preached by Rev. Chris Roberts during the morning service on February 15, 2009. The day after Valentine’s Day, Pastor Chris talks about true love.
