Why Church? For Belonging (Acts 2:41)
God created man with a need to belong. We were not designed to exist in isolation but in community with God and each other. At creation, God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). We need a relationship with God to be fulfilled, but we also need relationships with other people where we enjoy mutual love and acceptance.
Adam’s need for belonging was met perfectly by God and Eve before the fall, but sin corrupted mankind’s relationship to God and each other. Through faith in Christ, we are restored to a right relationship with God so that when we are saved, we are restored to the right communion with God. We belong to Him.
But the gospel does not only restore our relationship with God. Christians belong to a unique group of people who belong to Jesus. This is why the Bible uses such language as is found in Acts two. “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” (Acts 2:41, 47) They had a place where they belonged in the body of Christ. And God continued to add to the church so that more and more people found a place where they belonged.
Each of us needs to belong. God wants to meet that need first through salvation so that you belong to Him and then through the church, a community of people that belong to Christ. The church belongs to Christ, and if you belong to Christ, then church is where you belong.
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- Jun 23, 2024Why Church? For Belonging (Acts 2:41)
Why Church? For Belonging (Acts 2:41)God created man with a need to belong. We were not designed to exist in isolation but in community with God and each other. At creation, God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). We need a relationship with God to be fulfilled, but we also need relationships with other people where we enjoy mutual love and acceptance.Adam’s need for belonging was met perfectly by God and Eve before the fall, but sin corrupted mankind’s relationship to God and each other. Through faith in Christ, we are restored to a right relationship with God so that when we are saved, we are restored to the right communion with God. We belong to Him.But the gospel does not only restore our relationship with God. Christians belong to a unique group of people who belong to Jesus. This is why the Bible uses such language as is found in Acts two. “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” (Acts 2:41, 47) They had a place where they belonged in the body of Christ. And God continued to add to the church so that more and more people found a place where they belonged.Each of us needs to belong. God wants to meet that need first through salvation so that you belong to Him and then through the church, a community of people that belong to Christ. The church belongs to Christ, and if you belong to Christ, then church is where you belong.
- Jun 16, 2024Why Church? For Accountability (Matthew 18:15-21)
Why Church? For Accountability (Matthew 18:15-21)Why would people want to avoid commitment? People do not want to make commitments because there consequences for breaking them. They want to be able to do what they please and not be held accountable.God created us to exist in committed relationships. Even before the fall, God said, “It is not good that man should be alone.” So God made Eve, brought her to Adam, and they entered into a committed relationship. God soon instituted human government as another form of committed relationship that provides accountability. We are bound to obey the laws of the land or face the consequences.Accountability was also one of the reasons that Jesus instituted the church. Church is more than a place to gather, fellowship, be taught the Bible, and worship God corporately. The church exists to hold us accountable for what we believe and how we behave. Many people today miss out on this vital purpose of the church.In Matthew 18:15-20, Jesus taught His disciples about this necessary role of the church in providing accountability. The local church has a role in holding individual Christian’s accountable when they err in belief or behavior. Accountability takes place on a smaller scale as we regularly participate in the life of the church.You need accountability to help you live how God wants you to live. The church, when operating according to God’s Word, provides that accountability. Therefore, you should want to be an active member of the church and benefit from the accountability that it provides.
- Jun 9, 2024Why Church? (Matthew 16)
Why Church? (Matthew 16)Why Church?There are some things that we do without thinking about it very much. Breathing is a good example. Most likely, you did not have to consciously make yourself breathe when you woke up this morning. You do it because it comes naturally, and you don’t think much about it. But if you were forced to stop and think about it, you would remember just how important breathing is.Maybe coming to church is like that for you. Perhaps you didn’t give much thought to why you came to church or how important it really is. Maybe you came simply out of habit, or duty, or for good luck, or just out of curiosity. Or it could be that you are here today because you understand the importance of the church and want to serve God and honor Him by participating in this Divine institution ordained by the Lord Jesus Christ.Beginning today and for the next few weeks, I want to ask and answer questions like, What is the church? Why does it exist? Why should we get involved in all the things that a church does? Why should we go faithfully? Why should we join? Why should we give money to the church? Why should we pray for the church?In short, I want to answer the question, “Why church?” We begin with the big answer to that big question: the church exists because Jesus wants it to. The church is so important to Jesus that He began the church, He bought the church, and He is still building the church. If Jesus is important to you, then the church should be important to you, because the church is important to Jesus.
- May 26, 2024Godly Counsel (Proverbs 12:2)
Godly Counsel (Proverbs 12:2)We have a universal need for godly counsel, Ironically, we also have a nearly universal tendency to spurn godly counsel. In our pride, we think that we have all the answers, or at least that we can figure them out on our own. Proverbs 12:15 says, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.” It is rare for someone to admit their ignorance and consistently seek wise counsel as a matter of course. Those who do seek counsel often shop around until they find someone who tells them what they want to hear or agrees with what they have already decided.We need counsel because we do not know everything. We have gaps in our knowledge that we may not even be aware of. We need instruction and advice from outside sources to make up for this lack.Where we go for counsel is just as important as if we seek counsel. In fact, bad advice can sometimes be worse than no advice at all. It is crucial that we go to the right sources when seeking counsel. Getting good counsel is not always easy. It requires a lot of work, but the reward is worth it.Once we have received good counsel, it is up to us to use it properly. Knowing what to do and not doing it benefits no one. Having admitted our need and properly sought godly counsel, we must then act on it. When we do, we find that we make wiser choices. That is good for us, and it glorifies God the most.
- May 19, 2024What Will It Take? (Exodus 6)
What Will It Take? (Exodus 6)If we had to make a list of the most stubborn characters in the Bible, Pharaoh would certainly be close to the top of that list. When Moses told him that God said, “Let me people go,” he immediately responded by saying, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go?”What followed were the most famous series of catastrophes in history known as the ten plagues. After each plagues, Pharaoh had the chance to yield to God but stubbornly refused to do so. He thought that he could defy God, but God would get the last word. The Lord told Moses, “Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land.” (Exodus 6:1)Pharaoh repeatedly hardened his heart against the Lord until the last plague, when God finally broke Pharaoh’s will. The tenth plague was the plague of the death angel. That night, every firstborn son in Egypt died, including Pharaoh’s son. But God knew what it would take to make Pharaoh listen.Pharaoh probably never considered that his stubbornness would cost him his son. His pride and selfishness had blinded him to the consequences of his stubbornness, just as our pride and selfishness blinds us. If you are stubbornly refusing to yield to God, you need to know that it is not worth it to resist God. What will it take to get your attention?
- May 12, 2024The Generational Impact of Motherhood
The Generational Impact of MotherhoodHow much is a mother worth? The question seems almost disrespectful to ask, because they are priceless. Salary.com completed a survey in 2021 “tracking real-time market prices of all the jobs that moms perform. The result? The median annual salary for stay-at-home moms [was] $184,820.”But in a strange twist of irony, many mothers doubt whether the hard work, long hours, and sometimes frustrating monotony of motherhood is worth it. The modern ideal of a career woman who climbs corporate ladders, earns large salaries, and live free to do as she pleases tempts women to think that making motherhood a priority is somehow inferior.A godly mother will have a positive impact that will last for generations. A mother has influence on her children, her grandchildren, and everyone that is touched by their lives. The ripple effect of a mother’s faith will encircle more and more people as time goes on.We see proof of this in the testimony of two women in the Bible particularly. Both had such an impact one young man’s life that the Holy Spirit commended them in the pages of scripture. The young man’s name was Timothy, and the women were Lois and Eunice, his grandmother and mother. Their godly testimony became a blessing on countless souls through the life of Timothy. On this mother’s day, each mother must recognize that she if having an impact on generations to come and use her influence by God’s grace to lead others to follow the Lord.
- Apr 21, 2024The Filling Of The Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-21)
The Filling Of The Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-21)The city of Ephesus in ancient times was known for a festival in which they would worship a false god called Bacchus. Bacchus was the god of wine, and their worship involved rampant drunkenness. The first century Ephesian believers that Paul wrote to knew all too well the effects of being “drunk with wine,” yet the Holy Spirit chose to use that imagery to explain an important truth about how He works in our lives.When you are sober, your God-given ability to reason stops you from blindly following the impulsive desires of your flesh. When you are drunk, you don’t think things through properly. You don’t think about the consequences of your actions, but instead you do what you feel like doing at any given moment. People who are drunk are more likely to do things that will hurt themselves and hurt others. The more drunk one becomes, the worse it gets. That is why the Bible is crystal clear about avoiding intoxicating substances. (Proverbs 20:1)The Holy Spirit has the exact opposite effect in our lives. When we are under His influence, we are controlled by God’s desires and the desires of our flesh are inhibited. This is the concept known as the filling of the Spirit. Just like the unbelievers in Ephesus would fill themselves with their “god” and then behave horribly as they were “under the influence,” believers are to be filled with the Spirit and behave according to His influence. As Christians, we should be "filled with the Spirit,” (Ephesians 5:18) allowing Him to influence every part of our life.
- Apr 7, 2024Surrender to the Lord (Luke 6:46)
Surrender to the Lord (Luke 6:46)As Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. Jesus is not a god. He is the Lord God, coequal with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. But what exactly does it mean to call Jesus your “Lord”? The term “lord” is not as familiar to those of us who live under a representative form of government. In other times and places, a “lord” was someone who had total rule over others. The Biblical term means much the same thing. To call Jesus “Lord” is to acknowledge His right to rule. If you call Jesus your Lord, then He should have total rule over your life. He is the Lord Jesus Christ, but the question that remains to be answered is, is He truly your Lord?In Luke 6:46, Jesus said, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” It is possible to call Jesus your “Lord” and yet not be in obedience to Him. He could be your Lord in name only if you are not surrendered to his Lordship in your life.There is a direct connection between victorious Christian living and the Lordship of Christ. As long as we are following the desires of our flesh, we will continue to live in defeat to sin. As long as you are living for yourself, you will be frustrated and dissatisfied. To enjoy the victory over sin that Jesus has won for us and find peace and fulfillment in Christ, we must live surrendered to His rule in our lives.
- Mar 31, 2024“O Grave, Where Is Thy Victory?” (I Corinthians 15)
“O Grave, Where Is Thy Victory?” (I Corinthians 15)For all of human history, people have been obsessed with cheating death. There is something in our consciences put there by God that lets us know that death is not a good thing. Death came to creation as a result of man’s sin. Sin causes all our problems, and the greatest problem it causes is death. Is there a solution to our sin problem and, therefore, a solution to the problem of death? Despite all of our scientific advancements and attempts to avoid death, the fact remains that each of us will die.What, then, is to be done? Is there no hope? There is hope, but it is not found in us. Hope is found in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.Jesus Christ solved our sin problem when he “became sin for us” and “died for us.” He paid the penalty for our sin so that we could be delivered from death. But the gospel message also includes the fact that Jesus rose again. The resurrection proves that Jesus is the conqueror of sin and death. Death has been “swallowed up in victory,” and now God offers to give victory over sin to all who will place their faith in Jesus Christ.God does not want us to live in defeat to sin. He wants us to live in victory, and He freely “giveth us the victory through Lord Jesus Christ.” Through faith in Jesus, you can be saved from your sins and receive eternal life. And as a Christian, you can live in victory over sin and death “through our Lord Jesus Christ.” On this Resurrection Sunday, let us praise the Lord who gives us victory in Jesus!
- Mar 24, 2024Sin Is The Problem (Romans 3:23)
Sin Is The Problem (Romans 3:23)It has been said that the first step in solving any problem is acknowledging that there is one. You must then properly define the problem to be able to correctly solve it. There is no shortage of problems in our lives, but all of them can be traced back to one big problem. That big problem is sin.What is sin? Sin is any failure to live up to God’s standard. Who is a sinner? Everyone is a sinner. That means that everyone has a big problem because sin ruins everything.When God created the world, He declared that it was good, but then sin happened and all of creation was affected. We have sickness, pain, despair, death, and all other forms of unpleasant and undesirable suffering because of sin.Until we see that our problems in life are ultimately sin problems in one way or another, we will never be able to solve them. But when we accept that sin is the root cause of all our problems, then we can solve it properly.How do we solve our sin problem? The answer is, “With the gospel.” The gospel is the solution that God gave to the problem of sin. By grace through faith in Jesus’ death on the cross for our sin and resurrection, we are saved from sin. That means we are rescued from the punishment of sin which is eternal death in hell. It also means that after we are saved, we are released from the power of sin. Because of what Jesus did for us, we can live holy and righteous lives. Sin is the problem. The gospel is the solution.
- Mar 17, 2024What You Really Need (Revelation 3:18)
What You Really Need (Revelation 3:18)We live in one of the wealthiest countries in the most affluent times in history. Even the poorest American Christians live better off than most of the world. The material things we enjoy are undoubtedly a blessing from God. But just because we enjoy material blessings does not necessarily mean that God is pleased with our spiritual condition.The church at Laodicea made the mistake of thinking that because they were wealthy, then they had everything they needed. They were materialistic because they made money, or the lack of it, the standard by which they judged the rightness or wrongness of anything. They thought their wealth was proof of their spiritual health. They did not know that they were in a miserable state. They had plenty of money, but they were spiritually destitute. They had the nicest clothes, but they were spiritually exposed. Their physical vision might have been 20/20, but they were spiritually blind.God’s counsel in Revelation 3:18 is to make God the source of your satisfaction and find everything that you need in Him. You need faith in God, Christ’s righteousness, and the Holy Spirit to correct your spiritual vision. You do not need more money, better clothes, or better health. What you really need is God.
- Mar 3, 2024The Joy of Abiding (John 15:9-14)
The Joy of Abiding (John 15:9-14)Abiding in Christ means having continual, close fellowship with Him because we recognize that He is our only source of spiritual life. Without Him, we can do nothing. When we abide in Christ, He works in and through us to produce godly fruit. God the Father purges and prunes us so that we become more and more fruitful. The result of that fruitfulness is a life that glorifies God as we live as disciples of Christ ought to live.If the branches never enjoyed any benefit from abiding fruitfulness, then it would still be best for us to abide in Christ. But God, in His mercy and grace, gives a wonderful promise to the branches that abide. He promises that those who follow these instructions would have lives that are filled with joy.Galatians 5:22 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace…” The first fruit of the Spirit is love, followed by joy. The same pattern is found in John 15:9-14. When we walk closely with Christ, we abide in His love. As we learn to love Him more, we obey His commandments more, including His command to love on another. The result of loving God as we should and loving others as we should is a life filled with joy.Everyone craves joy, whether they realize it or not. The search for pleasure, happiness and fulfillment is really a search for joy, and that is only found in an abiding relationship with Christ. It is vain to look for joy anywhere else, because Jesus, the Vine, is the only source. God produces in us the fruit of the Sprit that is, among other things, love and joy.
- Feb 25, 2024The Glory Of Abiding (John 15:8)
The Glory Of Abiding (John 15:8)Have you ever tasted a delicious grape or some other piece of fruit that was especially tasty? Chances are that if you have, you didn’t burst out in praise for a branch that the fruit grew on. You might have declared how much you like the variety of fruit, complimented the person who selected it, or commended the farm that it came from, but you probably gave very little thought to the last component in the process that produced the fruit, the branch. The branches get little praise because they have done little to deserve any praise.This raises an important question: one that our entire life hinges on. Who should get the praise for any good thing that comes from our lives? In the illustration of the vine and the branches, Jesus has made it clear that when we abide in Him through close, consistent fellowship, we will bear spiritual fruit because His life will be flowing through us and working in us to produce godly actions and attitudes. In John 15:8, Jesus states, “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.” Jesus is the vine, and the Father is the Husbandman. The Father is the one who prunes and purges to make the branches best able to bear good fruit. So logically, the one who should get the final credit for the quality and quantity of the fruit should be the Father.God should get all the praise for any good in our lives. We have nothing good to offer apart from God. We will accomplish nothing good without God. Only when our lives are filled with good fruit and giving God the glory He deserves are we living as faithful disciples of Jesus.
- Feb 18, 2024Abiding Through Prayer And Bible Reading (John 15:7)
Abiding Through Prayer And Bible Reading (John 15:7)We have learned that abiding in Christ means remaining in close, consistent fellowship with Him. It is living in complete dependence on Him for all things at all times because you realize that apart from Him, you can do nothing, and you are a branch that will wither and come to a wasted end.But what does abiding look like in practice? What actions and behaviors demonstrate an attitude of dependence on Christ? John 15:7 is Jesus’ answer to such a question. “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” Abiding in Christ looks like a healthy intake of God’s word and continual prayerfulness.Could reading your Bible and praying be that important, or is emphasizing those spiritual disciplines a form of legalism? While it is possible to read your Bible and pray legalistically, it is not legalistic to acknowledge that Jesus said a person who is abiding in him will have His words abiding in them, and they will be praying.Abiding in Christ is expressed and maintained by a constant intake of the word of God and continual prayerfulness. If you believe you are dependent on Christ, then you will go to His word, the source of spiritual nourishment, regularly. If you believe that you can do nothing without Him, you will often go to Him in prayer “to find grace to help in time of need. If you are not reading your Bible and praying, you are wandering from the Vine, and you will wither.
- Feb 11, 2024The Barren Branches (John 15:6)
The Barren Branches (John 15:6)In John 15:2, Jesus said the Father would remove the unfruitful branches from the Vine. The unfruitful branch is the Christian who does not live as a dependent on Jesus and who is not walking in consistent, close fellowship. That Christian is still saved, but there is a loss of fellowship and fruitfulness. They are a barren branch.John 15:6 gives us more insight into the fate of barren branches. First, there is a wandering. This separation results from our choice to break fellowship with Christ and live independently. We are not “walk[ing] in the light, as he is in the light,” and we do not “have fellowship one with another.” (1 John 1:7)Withering is the natural result when the branch is separated from the Vine. The life-giving sap of the Vine no longer flows into the branch, so it loses its moisture and becomes dry and fragile, like “the chaff which the wind driveth away.” (Psalm 1:4)The final result will be a branch that is wasted. It will be gathered with all the other debris and burnt with the rest of the rubbish. Jesus is not warning of death in hell. He is warning of a worthless end. As Paul said, “If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:15)This verse is a warning to every Christian. You must choose to abide in Christ. If you do not, your life will be unfruitful, dry, and fragile. The longer you refuse to abide in Christ, the more of your life you are wasting. Don’t be a barren branch. Abide in Christ, and His life will flow through you into fruitfulness.
