A HEART TO HEART TALK ABOUT MINISTRY Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, September 8, 2013

Size: px
Start display at page:

Download "A HEART TO HEART TALK ABOUT MINISTRY Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, September 8, 2013"

Transcription

1 A HEART TO HEART TALK ABOUT MINISTRY Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, September 8, 2013 Two Sundays ago I had a heart to heart talk with you about money, and last Sunday a heart to heart about membership. Today, the subject is ministry, in part about the profession but especially about the ministry of the church. As I mentioned, last Sunday marked the fiftieth anniversary of my ordination and I told you just a bit about the first two or three churches I served in pastoral roles. When it became obvious to me that the pastorate to which I had been called was just not resulting in places of service as a pastor, I had to reconsider just what it was I was called to do. About two years after completing a seminary divinity degree, I felt a better way to fulfill my calling was in church music. Some of my family and fellow church members treated me as if I were leaving the ministry; in other words, denying my call. It never seemed like that to me and in fact I felt just as called into music ministry as into the pastorate. So, I headed back to seminary for yet another three-year program. It was a good time to be there, but after about a year and a half of study twice as intensive and difficult as theology had been, I needed to drop out and replenish funds to continue my studies. The story is far too long to tell here, but after suffering a terrible experience in the church I was serving as Minister of Music & Youth, I swore never to set foot in a Baptist church again for as long as I lived. So, I headed back home and worked for a while in my old job as a case worker for the welfare department. I even considered going into social work, but God was not through with me. Several months later, I simply told God that if he wanted me to continue in ministry he would have to find me a place of service. I sent out a few letters of inquiry to state conventions and within two weeks had received invitations to two fine churches, one a young growing church in South Carolina, and the other to an old-line established church in Virginia. I had an interview the first weekend in South Carolina and the next in Virginia. It was not an easy choice to make both wanted me and I could have been happy in either. But when I walked into the beautiful sanctuary at First Baptist Lynchburg, somehow I knew God had sent me where I belonged... and the rest, as they say, is history. Not coincidentally, their worship made me think so much of ours here at St. Charles Avenue and it was only later that I learned that two of their former pastors had been called here to serve our church. At that time and until just two years ago, I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams that I would someday serve as the acting/associate/interim pastor here. Perhaps you won t believe this, but the thirty plus years of service in music and youth ministries was just the experience I needed for such a time as this. Just as an aside, I m perfectly content to be called just by my name, but among some of the younger generation there has been a tendency to call me Pastor Paul, often with a sense of 1

2 respect and affection I ve never experienced before. Two years ago there was a student work group from Florida staying in our buildings for a week and it was a pure joy to walk into the fellowship hall every morning and see a bunch of students sitting around the breakfast table studying their Bibles and praying for God s blessing on the day ahead. They nearly always greeted me as Pastor Paul and it was a very special greeting. It s been kinda fun looking around the internet for sermon materials and illustrations, and you never know just what you might find. I always assume that if I m looking for something to say on just about any topic that someone else has probably already said it and very likely better. So, this week as I looked around for what others had to say about the church s ministry and its ministers, I came across a sermon by a Baptist, no less, which spoke to my interest. Somewhere along the way, Baptists got the idea that every sermon should start with a joke or funny story. So Pastor Brian Bill of Edgewood Baptist Church in Rock Island, Illinois, began a sermon on mobilizing for ministry with some actual excerpts from the classified sections of city newspapers: Are you illiterate? Write today for help. Alterations Shop: We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand. Auto Repair Service: Try us once; you ll never go anywhere else again. Man wanted to work in dynamite factory, must be willing to travel. Stock up and save! Limit one per customer. Girl wanted to assist magician in cutting-off-head illusion. Good salary and Blue Cross Insurance. We will oil your sewing machine and adjust tension in your home for 1 dollar. Used cars: Why go anywhere else to be cheated. Come here first. I thank Pastor Bill for these illustrations, but I won t blame him for much if any of the remainder of what I have to say. I hope you picked up on my sermons these past two years that I don t always interpret Scriptures as you might expect; or, maybe it s that I do interpret Scriptures the way you would expect but just don t want to hear it anyway! When Jesus says that we cannot serve two masters, that is, God and the world, I take that quite literally. It matters not whether you are talking about money, membership or ministry, if God does not take first place in your heart and mind and life, then the world is your master and you are 2

3 left struggling to make sense of it all. When we are saved, it is a matter of being saved as much to something as from something. We have been redeemed for a reason, converted to a cause, saved to serve, and that is as true for those in the pew as those behind the pulpit. In Galatians 6:1-10, the apostle Paul describes two important ways Christians minister to one another. One way is by bearing burdens. The other way is by sharing blessings. Once at the church I was serving in Indianapolis, I sat down on the church steps beside one of our youth to wait with her for her parents to pick her up. She seemed a little down and I asked her if there was something troubling her. She didn t hesitate to tell me she didn t think she believed in God anymore. I wasn t the least bit shocked I had been there more than once myself. But as we talked I suggested that maybe she should just tell God she didn t believe anymore and ask him to reveal himself. Her parents came, we hugged, and she kept on coming to church. Ministry occurred because I was willing to share her burden and just be beside her in her doubt and her continuing journey toward faith. In the popular comic strip Peanuts, Lucy asks Charlie Brown, Why are we here on earth? Charlie Brown replies, To make others happy. Lucy ponders his reply for a moment and then asks, Then why are the others here? One another is a key phrase in the New Testament. Love one another is found at least a dozen times in the New Testament, along with pray for one another (James 5:16), encourage one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11), be devoted to one another (Romans 12:10), offer hospitality to one another (1 Peter 4:9), and many other similar admonitions. Paul says in Galatians 6:2: Carry each other s burdens. The Christian who is led by the Spirit and not by his human nature thinks of others and how he can minister to them. Just as I mentioned in the heart to heart talk on money that we have because we give, so today I say to you that the Bible, particularly the New Testament gospels and letters are very clear that the church must minister to others in order to be ministered to. We are always closest to God when we are closest to God s children reaching out to church members and non-members alike to demonstrate God s love for them. James puts it most plainly when he says, Whoever says he loves God and hates his brother is a liar and the truth is not in him. How, indeed can we say we love God and yet refuse to share God s love and blessings with those in need, whether their need be food for today or bright hope for tomorrow. 3

4 I have quoted this old gospel song more than once, but it says exactly what I am trying to say to you today: Lord, help me live from day to day in such a self-forgetful way, that even when I kneel to pray, my prayer shall be for others. Others, Lord, yes others, let this my motto be, Help me to live for others, that I may live for thee. We often talk of ministry as if it is something that only those who are called and ordained to be ministers do, but the Bible never limits ministry to priests or preachers or prophets, but places the responsibility for ministering squarely on the shoulders of all believers. What a difference it would make in the lives of believers and unbelievers if those who claim salvation would take the words of Jesus literally when he says, not just to the eleven disciples in ancient Israel, but to all believers in every age: Go to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And what he has commanded us to do is to LOVE GOD AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER. To love is to minister and to minister is to love. We cannot get away from this most basic principle of the Christian faith. We so often look for new members who look, and act, and think like us when in fact we ought to simply accept people just as they are and love them into being all that God has intended them to be, and what God has intended them to be may be markedly different from what we would like them to be. But if we obey God and love whom he has created, we just might become better persons and better Christians in the process. We grow in faith when we help others to grow in faith, and nothing will help others grow in faith better than to simply love them in the same unreserved and unlimited way that God loves us. Amy Butler, our former Associate Pastor and now Senior Pastor of Calvary Baptist in D.C. frequently writes a column for Associated Baptist Press and this week she had some comments about church budgets and ministry that are right on target. Amy quotes and disagrees with a writer who claims that churches are closing all over the country because our financial priorities are wrong. Compared to other nonprofits who work to keep overhead low, he explains, churches spend an average of 82 percent on personnel, buildings and administration things that are not mission and ministry. That s excessive, he believes, and with the institutional church losing credibility all over the place anyway, this state of affairs isn t going to help us draw people in. He further claims that congregations will need to re-prioritize their budgets to emphasize direct forms of ministry that givers will agree directly respond to Jesus two Great Commandments. Amy claims that the reason the author is dead wrong is that he s approaching a new situation the decline of the institutional church in America with an old solution. In other words, long budget committee meetings where we labor 4

5 over how to free up money by cutting this, that and the other, are missing the point. She believes that there is a larger, more fundamental ideological and societal shift that must be addressed in new ways. With our role in society shifting, we are no longer bastions of benevolent and overflowing food pantries that we graciously bestow on the less fortunate and then return to our churches filled with other scrubbed and spiritual dogooders to plan new ways to do ministry. What we are now are mission outposts. We are islands in a world full of increasingly adrift people. We are places of solace and hope, community and hospitality for people who are too smart to believe in God and pretty convinced they don t need the church until they do. Amy goes on to talk about how those who don t think they need the church often find themselves needing just what the church has to offer. Sometimes people who didn t grow up in church stumble into worship looking for solace and discover to their shock and amazement liturgy, music and preaching that help them begin to connect with the tradition of the church and the message of Jesus, things they find they desperately need in their lives. Or they are looking for a nice staging area for their wedding, feeling they might vaguely enjoy some kind of traditional twist on things only to discover from premarital counselling that maybe spiritual grounding of relationships has some merit they d never considered. Or maybe political leaders ask for a spiritual perspective on justice issues in the city, or in Syria. There are plenty of people around who can offer opinions about what s most politically expedient, but it turns out that sometimes our leaders want to talk about what it would look like to do the right thing instead of just the easy thing. So they come to the church and to its ministers. Or, you get called to do a funeral, visit a hospital or intervene in a crisis for people you don t know and they call because they don t know who else to call. The church-free lives they ve constructed don t offer the kind of resources they need to navigate the death of a child, the loss of a job or the break-up of a marriage. So they come to church, and when they do they encounter, or should encounter, grace-filled community that changes their lives. All these things require substantial investment of resources that we have labelled as administrative pastors, musicians, church staff, bulletins, air conditioning, janitorial services, capital repairs, instrument tuning but all of these things are ministry. In fact, they re frontline, on the ground, where-the-rubber-meets-the-road kind of ministry. It was my privilege to know a number of students and faculty at Westminster Choir College when I lived in Princeton. On occasion I would chide faculty members that it was no wonder they turned out such phenomenal musicians because they only admitted students who were pretty phenomenal musicians when they got there! Why don t you take in mediocre students and turn them into phenomenal musicians, I asked, only to be told that s not how we do it here. Our church has had a long history of phenomenal ministers and members over the years, but the real test of our effectiveness 5

6 as a church is not whom we have had as ministers and members in the past or whom we shall have in the future, but what are we doing to bear the burdens of one another and of the world around us and to share the blessings of God with all. If we can do that, then not only will we survive but we will thrive. In the name of Christ, may it always be so. AMEN. 6

2012 UMC Vital Congregations Planning Guide

2012 UMC Vital Congregations Planning Guide 2012 UMC Vital Congregations Planning Guide A Strategic Plan for United Methodist Congregations To Fulfill the Mission of The United Methodist Church -- New York Annual Conference Introduction The United

More information

Dana: 63 years. Wow. So what made you decide to become a member of Vineville?

Dana: 63 years. Wow. So what made you decide to become a member of Vineville? Interview with Mrs. Cris Williamson April 23, 2010 Interviewers: Dacia Collins, Drew Haynes, and Dana Ziglar Dana: So how long have you been in Vineville Baptist Church? Mrs. Williamson: 63 years. Dana:

More information

Be Still and Know (Luke 1:5-25) by Rev. Dan McDowell November 25, 2018

Be Still and Know (Luke 1:5-25) by Rev. Dan McDowell November 25, 2018 1 Be Still and Know (Luke 1:5-25) by Rev. Dan McDowell November 25, 2018 5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife

More information

So once again Jesus the master story teller tells another story, warning about how things are really going to be.

So once again Jesus the master story teller tells another story, warning about how things are really going to be. THE PARABLE OF THE COINS. First Christian Reformed Church June 9, 2013, 10:30AM Scripture Texts: Luke 19:11-26 Introduction. What a glorious week this past week has been. No doubt a bunch of you attended

More information

The United Methodist Church A Call to Action Disciple making and world transformation occurs through vital congregations A vital congregation has

The United Methodist Church A Call to Action Disciple making and world transformation occurs through vital congregations A vital congregation has The United Methodist Church Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world Matthew 28:18-20 The Great Commission and Matthew 22:36-40 The Great Commandment A Call to Action The United

More information

THE CHURCH part 1 First Things First Part 5 Dr. George O. Wood

THE CHURCH part 1 First Things First Part 5 Dr. George O. Wood First Things First Part 5 Dr. George O. Wood We ve been in a series Things That are New, steps we take as we come to the Lord. The last couple Sunday especially we ve looked at the theme of the church

More information

Summer Discipleship: #1 Praying for 5 people. Jesus prayer - John 17:1-26 Todd 7/16/17

Summer Discipleship: #1 Praying for 5 people. Jesus prayer - John 17:1-26 Todd 7/16/17 Summer Discipleship: 5-4-3-2-1 #1 Praying for 5 people. Jesus prayer - John 17:1-26 Todd 7/16/17 Last week Tim spoke on the Lord s Prayer. An example Jesus gave us of how to pray. Here we have a prayer

More information

Cindy Worthington-Berry UCC Boxborough October 18, 2015 Trust In the Promise. Let us pray

Cindy Worthington-Berry UCC Boxborough October 18, 2015 Trust In the Promise. Let us pray Cindy Worthington-Berry UCC Boxborough October 18, 2015 Trust In the Promise Let us pray I almost quit seminary. I was halfway through the four year program. Maybe part of the problem was I d just been

More information

Luke 16: /19/10 Luke 16:1 13 CAN YOU BE TRUSTED? Brenda Etheridge Page 1

Luke 16: /19/10 Luke 16:1 13 CAN YOU BE TRUSTED? Brenda Etheridge Page 1 Luke 16:1-13 1 The Wall Street Journal quoted an anonymous wit who defined money as an article which may be used as a universal passport to everywhere except heaven, and as a universal provider for everything

More information

GIVING OURSELVES TO GOD IN WORSHIP! ROMANS 12:1 SERMON

GIVING OURSELVES TO GOD IN WORSHIP! ROMANS 12:1 SERMON 1 GIVING OURSELVES TO GOD IN WORSHIP! ROMANS 12:1 SERMON Some years ago, my younger sister attended a seeker-sensitive church close to our home town in California. Leslie invited us to attend the church

More information

Calvary United Methodist Church July 3, DO YOU NEED A NEW BEGINNING? THE STORY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST Rev. R. Jeffrey Fisher

Calvary United Methodist Church July 3, DO YOU NEED A NEW BEGINNING? THE STORY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST Rev. R. Jeffrey Fisher Calvary United Methodist Church July 3, 2016 DO YOU NEED A NEW BEGINNING? THE STORY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST Rev. R. Jeffrey Fisher Children s Sermon: Ezekiel 36:25-26 I m so glad. I thought earlier there might

More information

The Charism of Healing in the Health Care Profession

The Charism of Healing in the Health Care Profession The Linacre Quarterly Volume 50 Number 2 Article 6 May 1983 The Charism of Healing in the Health Care Profession Barbara Shlemon Follow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq

More information

Proposal for Pastoral Sabbatical

Proposal for Pastoral Sabbatical Proposal for Pastoral Sabbatical Submitted by the Rev. Stephanie E. Anthony to the Session of First Presbyterian Church of Hudson, WI September 16, 2014 From the Sabbatical Leave policy adopted by the

More information

In 1 Peter 3:16 it is written, But sanctify

In 1 Peter 3:16 it is written, But sanctify WHY I CHANGED CHURCHES (BAPTIST) Paul Murphy (deceased) I left the Baptist Church to become a Christian only and a member of the Lord s church. The more I studied and learned, the more I became dissatisfied

More information

Scriptures and Sermon for May 10, 2015 Acts 10: 44-48

Scriptures and Sermon for May 10, 2015 Acts 10: 44-48 Scriptures and Sermon for May 10, 2015 Acts 10: 44-48 While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded

More information

Session 1 A Deacon Ministry That Works Is Biblically Based

Session 1 A Deacon Ministry That Works Is Biblically Based Session 1 A Deacon Ministry That Works Is Biblically Based Objective: At the end of this session you will be able to answer two basic questions: 1. What do deacons do from a biblical perspective? 2. How

More information

EXALTING CHRIST PUB LISHING

EXALTING CHRIST PUB LISHING Basic Discipleship EXALTING CHRIST PUB LISHING 710 BROADWAY STREET VALLEJO, CA 94590 707-553-8780 www.cbcvallejo.org Ordering email: publications@cbcvallejo.org 2001 COMMUNITY BIBLE CHURCH Revised 2003

More information

11 - The Assurance of Salvation By David Servant

11 - The Assurance of Salvation By David Servant 11 - The Assurance of Salvation By David Servant Is it possible to have assurance of salvation? Can a person know for certain that, if he died at this moment, he would be saved? Absolutely yes. The apostle

More information

has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.

has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. 1 John 4:7-21 7 Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 God s love was

More information

Miracle of Life, Love and Light

Miracle of Life, Love and Light Miracle of Life, Love and Light Mother was raised Methodist and my father was raised Catholic but neither were religious when they were married. They were married by the Justice of the Peace and by God

More information

The Gospel Story: Not by Works A Study of Romans Romans 3:1-20 Pastor Bryan Clark

The Gospel Story: Not by Works A Study of Romans Romans 3:1-20 Pastor Bryan Clark October 6/7, 2012 The Gospel Story: Not by Works A Study of Romans Romans 3:1-20 Pastor Bryan Clark I would suggest to you this morning that there are two ways to avoid Jesus and His salvation. One is

More information

Rooted and Grounded in Love

Rooted and Grounded in Love Rooted and Grounded in Love A Sermon by Randy Harris Highland Presbyterian Church July 26, 2009 Psalm 145:10-18; Ephesians 3:14-21 Both at church and with our families, Carol Ann and I are privileged to

More information

Valley Bible Church Sermon Transcript

Valley Bible Church Sermon Transcript Putting on Righteousness Colossians 3:12-17 So we will read Colossians 3:12-17 this morning, the section we are in, And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion,

More information

BEGINNING A NEW ADVENTURE. A Story About Following God In Our Eighties

BEGINNING A NEW ADVENTURE. A Story About Following God In Our Eighties BEGINNING A NEW ADVENTURE A Story About Following God In Our Eighties Copyright 2012 Marvin J. Martin If you find the information beneficial, and you want to pass it on to others, permission is given to

More information

I N T R O D U C T I O N. You walk into Church. (It can be Sunday morning or Sunday night)

I N T R O D U C T I O N. You walk into Church. (It can be Sunday morning or Sunday night) Message for THE LORD S DAY EVENING, August 4, 2013 Christian Hope Church of Christ, Plymouth, North Carolina by Reggie A. Braziel, Minister Though We Be Few In Number Matthew 18:20 (NKJV) Please turn with

More information

1. The setting is often ripe for false conversions. A. The desire for security.

1. The setting is often ripe for false conversions. A. The desire for security. Title: Don t Stop Believin pt.2 Text: 2 Timothy 2.19-21 Theme: Perseverance is an evidence of gospel fruit Series: 2 Timothy Prop Stmnt: The assurance of our salvation is experienced as we live in faith-driven

More information

How Important Is It For Pastors to Observe A Sabbath?

How Important Is It For Pastors to Observe A Sabbath? How Important Is It For Pastors to Observe A Sabbath? What does a Sabbath look like for a church leader? We re kind of a strange bunch when it comes to taking a day off. First off, we face a common misperception

More information

First Baptist Church of Paris Constitution 2018 revision

First Baptist Church of Paris Constitution 2018 revision , Illinois final draft believes the New Testament is an all-sufficient basis for doctrine and practice. As a summary of Biblical principles guiding growing Christians, the following Church Covenant has

More information

KINGDOM STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATIONS. An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors CONVERSATION GUIDE. KingdomAdvisors.org

KINGDOM STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATIONS. An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors CONVERSATION GUIDE. KingdomAdvisors.org K I N G D O M A D V I S O R S KINGDOM CONVERSATIONS STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATION GUIDE An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors KingdomAdvisors.org Question: Who owns my resources? Advisor Objectives

More information

Faith vs. Opinion R O M A N S 14:1-15:7. Baxter T. Exum (#1168) Four Lakes Church of Christ Madison, Wisconsin June 3, 2012

Faith vs. Opinion R O M A N S 14:1-15:7. Baxter T. Exum (#1168) Four Lakes Church of Christ Madison, Wisconsin June 3, 2012 Faith vs. Opinion R O M A N S 14:1-15:7 Baxter T. Exum (#1168) Four Lakes Church of Christ Madison, Wisconsin June 3, 2012 This morning I would like for us to look together at a comment that was turned

More information

Jesus says, Make Disciples (Pt. 5 The Disciple-Maker) John 15:1-11; Luke 10:1-2;17-21 Temple Baptist Church July 16, 2017

Jesus says, Make Disciples (Pt. 5 The Disciple-Maker) John 15:1-11; Luke 10:1-2;17-21 Temple Baptist Church July 16, 2017 1 Jesus says, Make Disciples (Pt. 5 The Disciple-Maker) John 15:1-11; Luke 10:1-2;17-21 Temple Baptist Church July 16, 2017 Introduction: September 1 st of this year will mark the two-year anniversary

More information

The Start of a New Vision

The Start of a New Vision The Start of a New Vision This is what the Lord says Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the

More information

Church Hopping The Reverend James D. Dennis, Jr. Sunday, July 9, Sermon Text: Mark 6:1-13

Church Hopping The Reverend James D. Dennis, Jr. Sunday, July 9, Sermon Text: Mark 6:1-13 1 Sermon Text: Mark 6:1-13 I was talking to Graham Rogers about a week ago, and he said that he tried, on his little TV, to follow the Atlanta Braves. Tried to pull for them, but it was hard because they

More information

THE RECOVERY OF FAMILY John 10: May 13, 2001 Dr. J. Howard Olds

THE RECOVERY OF FAMILY John 10: May 13, 2001 Dr. J. Howard Olds THE RECOVERY OF FAMILY John 10:31-35 May 13, 2001 Dr. J. Howard Olds When God made you and God made me, He made us a part of a family. He gave us grandmas, grandpas, sisters, brothers, aunts and uncles

More information

1. Are You the King of the Jews? John 18:28-34

1. Are You the King of the Jews? John 18:28-34 Pilate s Questions 1. Are You the King of the Jews? John 18:28-34 Today is the first Sunday in Lent the season of sacrifice. The sacrifice of our Lord Jesus. Our own sacrifices as we serve Him. But it

More information

A Call to Generosity for the Sake of Freedom

A Call to Generosity for the Sake of Freedom George A. Mason Fourth Sunday of Easter/ Mother s Day Wilshire Baptist Church 11 May 2014 Second in the series Three Calls for the Sake of One Vision Dallas, Texas A Call to Generosity for the Sake of

More information

How to Bid a Healthy Farewell

How to Bid a Healthy Farewell How to Bid a Healthy Farewell by Donald L. Bubna Bob had all the marks of a hurting pastor. I sat across the coffee shop table and hurt with him. He had recently finished his first year in Judson Church

More information

A Hungry Crowd: Hungry for What?

A Hungry Crowd: Hungry for What? November 13, 2011 The National Presbyterian Church A Hungry Crowd: Hungry for What? John 6:1-29 Dr. David Renwick Let us pray: Holy God, we ve come before you like that great crowd of 5,000 on the shore

More information

KINGDOM STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATIONS. An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors. KingdomAdvisors.org

KINGDOM STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATIONS. An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors. KingdomAdvisors.org K I N G D O M A D V I S O R S KINGDOM CONVERSATIONS STEWARDSHIP An exclusive member benefit of Kingdom Advisors KingdomAdvisors.org K I N G D O M A D V I S O R S KINGDOM CONVERSATIONS STEWARDSHIP CONVERSATION

More information

Go Tell It On The Mountain Luke ,16-18 December 1, 2013 Rev. D2

Go Tell It On The Mountain Luke ,16-18 December 1, 2013 Rev. D2 Go Tell It On The Mountain Luke 2.8-11,16-18 December 1, 2013 Rev. D2 I love this time of the year. When I was young, it was fun when my parents would take us shopping and there d be those mechanical toys

More information

Give Attention to Reading, to Exhortation, and to Doctrine

Give Attention to Reading, to Exhortation, and to Doctrine Give Attention to Reading, to Exhortation, and to Doctrine I. Introduction. A. Reference to series of lessons from 1 Timothy 4:12-14. 1. Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers

More information

Friends of Jesus Sermon by Rev. Peter Shidemantle 6 th Sunday of Easter May 6, John 5:1-6; John 15:9-17

Friends of Jesus Sermon by Rev. Peter Shidemantle 6 th Sunday of Easter May 6, John 5:1-6; John 15:9-17 Friends of Jesus Sermon by Rev. Peter Shidemantle 6 th Sunday of Easter May 6, 2018 1 John 5:1-6; John 15:9-17 Dr. Manor was my pastor as I was growing up. The kids in our church liked him, as everybody

More information

Funding Lutheran Elementary Schools by LeDell Plath

Funding Lutheran Elementary Schools by LeDell Plath Funding Lutheran Elementary Schools by LeDell Plath Enrollment plunged from 116,000 students in 1962 to 44,216 students last year, reported The Milwaukee Journal on September 18, 1988. The enrollment of

More information

2019 Proposed Ministry Budget

2019 Proposed Ministry Budget 2019 Proposed Ministry Budget Dear Friends, Inside this pamphlet, you will find the 2019 Proposed Ministry Budget for our church family. I would like to thank Monica Garcia, our Financial Coordinator,

More information

Prospective Member Information Form Rev. 3/1/10

Prospective Member Information Form Rev. 3/1/10 Prospective Member Information Form Rev. 3/1/10 Thank you for your interest in joining Corydon Baptist Church (CBC)! God adds people to His church (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:47), and He desires His church

More information

Teaching as a Path to Servant Leadership, Part One

Teaching as a Path to Servant Leadership, Part One Teaching as a Path to Servant Leadership, Part One The writings of Robert Greenleaf, who coined the phrase servant-leader, have held my attention and molded my leadership philosophy during the last four

More information

The Four Core Process & Staffing For the Small Church. Excerpt from Effective Staffing for Vital Churches. Bill Easum & Bill Tenny-Brittian

The Four Core Process & Staffing For the Small Church. Excerpt from Effective Staffing for Vital Churches. Bill Easum & Bill Tenny-Brittian The Four Core Process & Staffing For the Small Church Excerpt from Effective Staffing for Vital Churches By Bill Easum & Bill Tenny-Brittian Introducing Four Core Processes for the Small Church (From Effective

More information

STRANGERS IN A FAMILIAR LAND Sermon by Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, April 22, 2012

STRANGERS IN A FAMILIAR LAND Sermon by Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, April 22, 2012 STRANGERS IN A FAMILIAR LAND Sermon by Paul R. Powell St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans Sunday, April 22, 2012 Sometimes in conversations I say to people that I wish they could have known

More information

Those of you who have had to listen to me more than once know that I am fascinated by what draws people to church.

Those of you who have had to listen to me more than once know that I am fascinated by what draws people to church. LUKE 14:25 Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, 26 "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even

More information

Sermons from a church with a conscience

Sermons from a church with a conscience May 18, 2014 Sermons from a church with a conscience Church with a Conscience Redux by The Reverend Dr. Robert J. Campbell The Church of the Covenant Presbyterian Church (USA) 11205 Euclid Avenue Cleveland,

More information

So, a horse walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender brings the beer, looks at the horse and says, Why the long face?

So, a horse walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender brings the beer, looks at the horse and says, Why the long face? November 11, 2018 Polite Conversations: Money Rev. Dr. John Ross Scripture: Matthew 25:14-30 So, a horse walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender brings the beer, looks at the horse and says,

More information

Rooted in the Truth Year In Review

Rooted in the Truth Year In Review Rooted in the Truth 2011 Year In Review And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually

More information

1 JOHN Series, Message #5 Barry L. Cameron Pastor. HOW TO KNOW YOU RE A CHRISTIAN (Text: 1 John 2:3-11)

1 JOHN Series, Message #5 Barry L. Cameron Pastor. HOW TO KNOW YOU RE A CHRISTIAN (Text: 1 John 2:3-11) 1 JOHN Series, Message #5 Barry L. Cameron Pastor HOW TO KNOW YOU RE A CHRISTIAN (Text: 1 John 2:3-11) ILL. ANNE HATHAWAY who starred in the movie, The Devil Wears Prada, is currently starring in the movie

More information

we re only at chapter 3. Here is His first step and He says, Now, I m going to fulfill the Law as the Messiah. The Messiah means anointed one.

we re only at chapter 3. Here is His first step and He says, Now, I m going to fulfill the Law as the Messiah. The Messiah means anointed one. Matthew in Biblical Perspective A Biography of Jesus of Nazareth the Christ Seeing Jesus: The Ordination, Affirmation, And Inauguration Of Jesus The Messiah Matthew 3:13-17 By: Dr. Harry Reeder February

More information

Shortly before my father died in June of 2005 the age of ninety-one, he accepted

Shortly before my father died in June of 2005 the age of ninety-one, he accepted 1 In Spirit and In Truth Elder Harry L. Jackson John 4:24- God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. Shortly before my father died in June of 2005 the age of ninety-one,

More information

EVERY CONTRIBUTION COUNTS!

EVERY CONTRIBUTION COUNTS! EVERY CONTRIBUTION COUNTS! Luke 21:1-4 Disciples are building the Kingdom of God. A sermon preached by Rev. Dr. William O. (Bud) Reeves First United Methodist Church Fort Smith, Arkansas November 13, 2016

More information

Question: What are we going to do today, this season, this year, that at the end of 2019, we will be so glad we did?

Question: What are we going to do today, this season, this year, that at the end of 2019, we will be so glad we did? 1 Title: Memories and Dreams What Type of Church Will We Be? Text: Philippians 1:1-11 Date: January 20, 2019 It s nostalgic, really. I ve already lived long enough to process many of the things I dreamed

More information

Visa, its everywhere you want to be. Don t leave home without it is a slogan of the popular

Visa, its everywhere you want to be. Don t leave home without it is a slogan of the popular Sermon: WHY SPEAK IN TONGUES? A study in I Corinthians 14 Visa, its everywhere you want to be. Don t leave home without it is a slogan of the popular credit card. It reminds me of the words of Jesus in

More information

Family Discipleship Plan. 5 Principles for a Victorious Eternity

Family Discipleship Plan. 5 Principles for a Victorious Eternity Family Discipleship Plan 5 Principles for a Victorious Eternity So, you want to lead your family members to be fully devoted disciples of Jesus Christ. What s your plan? Here are some principles to consider:

More information

YOUTH SPIRITUAL GIFTS TEST

YOUTH SPIRITUAL GIFTS TEST YOUTH SPIRITUAL GIFTS TEST Discover Your Gifts A spiritual gift is a supernatural ability given by the Holy Spirit to a person when they are saved. This test does not guarantee what gifts you have, but

More information

Do not steal Exodus 20:15

Do not steal Exodus 20:15 Do not steal Exodus 20:15 Introduction We are taking a few months to go through the 10 Commandments found in Exodus Chapter 20 o Now why in the world in New Testament age of Grace Times would we want to

More information

2015 SURVEY of NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST CHURCHES

2015 SURVEY of NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST CHURCHES Worship 2015 SURVEY of NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST CHURCHES Please estimate the average attendance at all total regular weekend worship services (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) for the last several years. If

More information

their moral character but the quality of their music. It was good music. It was music they could be proud of and the name stuck. 1

their moral character but the quality of their music. It was good music. It was music they could be proud of and the name stuck. 1 George A. Mason 500-year Anniversary of the Reformation Wilshire Baptist Church 15 October 2017 Third in a series, The Legacy of Luther Dallas, Texas Just Faith Romans 1:16-17, 5:1-3; Ephesians 2:8-9 If

More information

G OSPEL C HURCH LOVE DEEPLY. REACH BROADLY.

G OSPEL C HURCH LOVE DEEPLY. REACH BROADLY. G OSPEL C HURCH LOVE DEEPLY. REACH BROADLY. Over the past several decades the population of cities across the United States has exploded. Now approximately 80% of our nation s residents live in metropolitan

More information

It is a great opportunity and a great privilege

It is a great opportunity and a great privilege The Widow s Mite GORDON B. HINCKLEY It is a great opportunity and a great privilege to be with you this beautiful morning. I appreciate the effort you have made to gather here. It has been the custom,

More information

The Means of Grace. Bible Study by Ken Puls Taught at Grace Baptist Church, Cape Coral, Florida December 27, 2006

The Means of Grace. Bible Study by Ken Puls Taught at Grace Baptist Church, Cape Coral, Florida December 27, 2006 The Means of Grace Bible Study by Ken Puls Taught at Grace Baptist Church, Cape Coral, Florida December 27, 2006 This evening, as we prepare to pray together, I want to speak briefly on what we often call

More information

Constitution & Bylaws First Baptist Church of Brandon Brandon, Florida

Constitution & Bylaws First Baptist Church of Brandon Brandon, Florida Constitution & Bylaws First Baptist Church of Brandon Brandon, Florida ARTICLE I - NAME AND PURPOSE This Church shall be known as THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF BRANDON. This Church is a congregation of baptized

More information

Message Not a Fan 04/30/2017

Message Not a Fan 04/30/2017 1 Message Not a Fan 04/30/2017 Is Jesus enough! Good Morning Church! God is Good! and All The Time! So I didn t want to Miss the opportunity to bring you the Last sermon/message of the Not a Fan preaching

More information

Campbell Chapel. Bob Bradley, Pastor

Campbell Chapel. Bob Bradley, Pastor Campbell Chapel Bob Bradley, Pastor Obeying the Laws of the Land Wednesday, February 22, 2012 Bob Bradley TITUS 3 1 Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to

More information

Thoughts on Death and Suffering

Thoughts on Death and Suffering Thoughts on Death and Suffering Prayer/Introduction A Promise! Through the years I have experienced my share of troubled time all of us have. It is one of the liabilities of living in this world. During

More information

1. Test His Doctrinal Position

1. Test His Doctrinal Position Test Your Teacher I came across a story this week that I want to share with you this morning. It s about a church that was searching for a new pastor. In fact, they d been searching for months and months

More information

WE ARE IN GOOD COMPANY

WE ARE IN GOOD COMPANY Title subtitle 1 Peter 2:4 10 WITH FELLOW BELIEVERS, WE ARE GOD S TEMPLE 1 PETER 2:5A 25 WE ARE A HOLY PRIESTHOOD 1 PETER 2:5B 25 WE WILL SHARE IN CHRIST S GLORY 1 PETER 2:6 8 26 WE ARE SPECIAL PEOPLE

More information

2016 Proposed Ministry. Budget. Opening the. to our World

2016 Proposed Ministry. Budget. Opening the. to our World 2016 Proposed Opening the Opening the Word to our World to our World 655 W Thompson Lane, Murfreesboro, TN 37129 www.nbconline.net Budget So those who received his work were baptized, and there were added

More information

How Important is Baptism, the Supper, and Church Membership?

How Important is Baptism, the Supper, and Church Membership? How Important is Baptism, the Supper, and Church Membership? July 17, 2016 Steve DeWitt As you can see from the sermon title, our topics today are baptism, the Lord s Supper, and church membership. Why

More information

Why Are We Alive? Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O Neill

Why Are We Alive? Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O Neill Why Are We Alive? Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O Neill At the beginning of every academic year we try to deal with the basic questions of life, particularly the most basic one of all why are we here?

More information

As you read or listen to God s Word and spend more time talking to Him in prayer, your spirit will eventually become stronger than your flesh.

As you read or listen to God s Word and spend more time talking to Him in prayer, your spirit will eventually become stronger than your flesh. As you read or listen to God s Word and spend more time talking to Him in prayer, your spirit will eventually become stronger than your flesh. Prayer is as natural an expression of faith as breathing is

More information

Is Your Faith Weak? Romans 14:1e. Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O'Neill

Is Your Faith Weak? Romans 14:1e. Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O'Neill Is Your Faith Weak? Romans 14:1e Sermon Transcript by Rev. Ernest O'Neill Did you notice that Andropov s son Igor, when the Politburo, Chernenko and the other members of the Politburo, were passing Andropov

More information

Calvary Chapel South Bay Women s Ministry. A Woman of Virtue. Part 3. This Homework Belongs To: Phone Number. My Group Leader is: Group Number

Calvary Chapel South Bay Women s Ministry. A Woman of Virtue. Part 3. This Homework Belongs To: Phone Number. My Group Leader is: Group Number Calvary Chapel South Bay Women s Ministry A Woman of Virtue Part 3 This Homework Belongs To: Phone Number My Group Leader is: Group Number Calvary Chapel South Bay Women s Bible Study A Woman of Virtue

More information

Your Church Participation

Your Church Participation Your Church Participation * 1. How long have you been a member of Windham Presbyterian Church? (how long you have attended, as a member or friend, is next) Not a member 2-4 years 10-19 years One year or

More information

Lesson 9: Fellowship

Lesson 9: Fellowship Introduction Lesson 9: Fellowship Bobby lived with his family in Holland. He was still a child when his parents became Adventists. But he wasn t happy about it. Bobby hated going to church. He would much

More information

The Mission of the Church Matthew 28:16-20 Part three

The Mission of the Church Matthew 28:16-20 Part three Sermon Transcript The Mission of the Church Matthew 28:16-20 Part three From time to time in the course of our lives there are what I call teachable moments. I believe we are in the midst of one of those

More information

Love For God & Your Neighbor

Love For God & Your Neighbor Program Transcript # 1364 Love For God & Your Neighbor The Truth In Love P.O. Box 865 Hurst, TX 76053 www.thetruthinlove.com www.ttil.tv requests@thetruthinlove.com Love For God & Your Neighbor Program

More information

CONSTITUTION OF THE FBC CHARLOTTE DEAF MISSION

CONSTITUTION OF THE FBC CHARLOTTE DEAF MISSION CONSTITUTION OF THE FBC CHARLOTTE DEAF MISSION Adopted by the membership on: August 20, 2008; Updated March 6, 2013 Updated September 4, 2014 Updated September 21, 2015 Preamble We, the members of FBC

More information

February 19, 2017 Philippians 4:8-13 Pastor Rosanna McFadden Creekside COB. The Secret

February 19, 2017 Philippians 4:8-13 Pastor Rosanna McFadden Creekside COB. The Secret February 19, 2017 Philippians 4:8-13 Pastor Rosanna McFadden Creekside COB The Secret Good morning! It is a nice bonus to have a sunny 60 degree day in the middle of February when the theme of this Sunday

More information

Tell Me A Story: About Dreams Genesis July 20, 2014 Elizabeth Mangham Lott St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church!

Tell Me A Story: About Dreams Genesis July 20, 2014 Elizabeth Mangham Lott St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church! ! Tell Me A Story: About Dreams Genesis 28.10-22 July 20, 2014 Elizabeth Mangham Lott St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church! Many weeks ago, maybe months ago, I took our best floor plan map of this great building,

More information

Keys to. Opening the. Doors to Revival

Keys to. Opening the. Doors to Revival Keys to Opening the Doors to Revival A Practical Manual to Revival Preparation Written by Dr. Don Whitt Keys to Opening the Doors to Revival (The following are suggestions, not requirements, for scheduling

More information

2: The Command to Make Disciples

2: The Command to Make Disciples Part I: Living as a Disciple Maker 2: The Command to Make Disciples Imagine your reaction if someone came back from the dead to speak to you. Seriously, try to imagine that right now. What would you feel?

More information

The Integration of Preaching & Transformational Leadership

The Integration of Preaching & Transformational Leadership The Integration of Preaching & Transformational Leadership by Mariann Edgar Budde St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church, Minneapolis, MN In the fall of 2002, I received a Sabbatical Grant for Pastoral

More information

CONTINUING TO GIVE AND TO BLESS OTHERS

CONTINUING TO GIVE AND TO BLESS OTHERS 12 CONTINUING TO GIVE AND TO BLESS OTHERS MY FOUNDATION PRINCIPLE Receive Temple Ordinances FINANCIAL PRINCIPLES AND SKILLS 1. Share the Principle of Self-Reliance with Your Family and Friends 2. Press

More information

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada Congregational Mission Profile

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada Congregational Mission Profile Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada Congregational Mission Profile Part I Congregation Information 1. Congregation Congregation ID Number: Date Submitted: Congregation Name: Address: City: Postal Code:

More information

Christians in the World

Christians in the World Christians in the World Introduction Have you ever heard a sermon that tried to convince you that our earthly possessions should be looked at more like a hotel room rather than a permanent home? The point

More information

Advice for a Young Church Planter Earl Brubaker

Advice for a Young Church Planter Earl Brubaker Advice for a Young Church Planter Earl Brubaker I remember it as if it were yesterday, though it happened over forty years ago. We had recently relocated to Portland, Oregon, where I had accepted the call

More information

Catholic Strong Campaign Frequently-Asked-Questions

Catholic Strong Campaign Frequently-Asked-Questions 1. What is the Catholic Strong Campaign? Answer: Catholic Strong, the Campaign for the Catholic Community of South Jersey, is a Diocesan-lead effort to raise a minimum of $50 million in total gifts and

More information

Galatians and 1 & 2 Thessalonians BUILDING THE CHURCH ON THE GOOD NEWS. Study Guide. Adult Bible Study in Simplified English.

Galatians and 1 & 2 Thessalonians BUILDING THE CHURCH ON THE GOOD NEWS. Study Guide. Adult Bible Study in Simplified English. BAPTISTWAY PRESS Dallas, Texas baptistwaypress.org Adult Bible Study in Simplified English Study Guide Galatians and 1 & 2 Thessalonians BUILDING THE CHURCH ON THE GOOD NEWS Janet Roberts ADULT BIBLE STUDY

More information

Four Disciples: What s In a Name?

Four Disciples: What s In a Name? September 25, 2011 The National Presbyterian Church Four Disciples: What s In a Name? John 1:29-51 Dr. David Renwick In our sermons through the coming year we are looking together at the story of Jesus

More information

Since the early 90s, the

Since the early 90s, the JUNE 2017 IN THIS ISSUE 2 Giving During the Summer Season 3 Time Is Limitless Or Is It? 4 Keep the Faith Larry and Laura Zabloudil Reflect on Blessings Received 6 Financial Seminar Offers Chance for Peace

More information

Jeremiah 1:1-8 Go Just Go! R.P.C. Acts 9:10-19 September 15, 2013 Daniel D. Robinson, Pastor

Jeremiah 1:1-8 Go Just Go! R.P.C. Acts 9:10-19 September 15, 2013 Daniel D. Robinson, Pastor 1 Jeremiah 1:1-8 Go Just Go! R.P.C. Acts 9:10-19 September 15, 2013 Daniel D. Robinson, Pastor About a year after he graduated from college, he left an excited message on his parent s answering machine:

More information

AND MAKE DISCIPLES. Personal Disciple-Making Plan

AND MAKE DISCIPLES. Personal Disciple-Making Plan GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES Personal Disciple-Making Plan THE 3-6-5 CHALLENGE The 3-6-5 Challenge is a churchwide initiative designed to encourage the members of Southside to set three simple, measurable goals

More information

Bylaws & Constitution of Mt. Sinai Baptist Church of Mt. Holly, NC- Inc.

Bylaws & Constitution of Mt. Sinai Baptist Church of Mt. Holly, NC- Inc. Bylaws & Constitution of Mt. Sinai Baptist Church of Mt. Holly, NC- Inc. ARTICLE I: NAME This Church shall be known as Mt. Sinai Baptist Church of Mt. Holly, North Carolina, Inc. ARTICLE II: MISSION AND

More information

bible, they d probably go through a lot of verses before they got to interesting lines in the bible. Galatians 6:11. It reads, See what large

bible, they d probably go through a lot of verses before they got to interesting lines in the bible. Galatians 6:11. It reads, See what large 1 If you asked most people to name the most interesting verses in the bible, they d probably go through a lot of verses before they got to Galatians 6:11. It s not one of the ones that people usually talk

More information