Five Year Plan. 1. Five year Sunday morning preaching plan

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1 Five Year Plan For the purpose of increasing our joy in the knowledge of God, and taking on the likeness of Jesus Christ, we are launching a five year equipping plan for scripture study, scripture memory and theological training that we hope will assist in the equipping the saints for the work of the ministry. Imagine that during the next five years, your ten year old will have memorized five complete books of the Bible; can quote scripture to explain important theological principles on the sovereignty of God, Scripture, sin, etc; has read five important biographies of Christian leaders, pastors and missionaries; and has understood some of the major books written on critical areas of the Christian life. 1. Five year Sunday morning preaching plan The following preaching plan takes us through the major sections of scripture in a five year period: 2007 Acts, Romans 2008 Pentateuch, Philippians, 1-2 Peter 2009 Prophets, Matthew 2010 Galatians, Ezra, Nehemiah 2011 Genesis, Revelation 2. Scripture Memory A. Memorize Books of the Bible and Key passages: We will be encouraging scripture memory on these as a congregation Jan Psalm 19 Feb Deut 6:1-9 March Malachi 4:4-6 April James 1 May James 2 June James 3 July James 4 August James 5 September Romans 1 October Romans 8 November Romans 12 December Psalm

2 Jan. Psalm 1 Feb. Philippians 2:5-11 Mar. Ephesians 1 April Ephesians 2 May Ephesians 3 June Ephesians 4 July Ephesians 5 August Ephesians 6 Sept Philippians 4:1-8 Oct Ex 12 Nov Ex 20: 1-26 Dec Psalm Jan. Psalm 119:1-16 Feb. Matt 5 Mar. Matt 6 April Matt 7 May Isaiah 53 June Jeremiah 1:4-8 July Isaiah 6:1-10 Aug Daniel 4:34 Sept Psalm 112:1 Oct Psalm 27 Nov Ecclesiastes 7:21-22 Dec Proverbs Jan Proverbs 4 Feb Galatians 5 Mar 1 Timothy 1 April 1 Timothy 2 May 1 Timothy 3 June 1 Timothy 4

3 July 1 Timothy 5 Aug 1 Timothy 6 Sept Psalm 63:6-8 Oct Psalm 23 Nov Proverbs 31:10-31 Dec Hebrews Jan Daniel 4:34 Feb Gen 1 Mar Gen 2 April Gen 3 May Gen 12:1-4 June Gen 50:14-21 July John 1 Aug 2 Tim 1 Sept 2 Tim 2 Oct 2 Tim 3 Nov 2 Tim 4 Dec Revelation 22: Theological studies Catechism questions from the Second London Baptist Confession. 4. Reading for sanctification and growth A. Read one practical theology book per year 2007 Mortification of Sin, John Owen B. Read one biography per year 2007 John G Paton 5. General Bible Knowledge: know the books of the Bible, the theme and a key verse. Choose one month per year to emphasize this March Annual Retreats: Marriage Weekend

4 Father/Son Retreat Father/Daughter Retreat 7. Walk Thru the Bible Course Each Year for Five Years 8. Implementation Regimen: A. Keep the objectives before the congregation and encourage heads of households to keep current with the schedule. We will include these things in our weekly and in sermons, counseling, conversation and prayer. B. We will make some people available each Sunday for recitation of scripture memory verses, weekly after the fellowship meal. C. The key points of the scripture memory, theological and biographical reading will be incorporated into the sermon material. 9. Sunday morning topics included in preaching schedule: -Sanctity of Life Sunday -Family messages -Work -Money -Membership -Missions -Other hot topics that need to be addressed real time 10. Pitfalls to avoid like the plague: A. Do this faithfully and regularly with a mechanical, heartless joyless discipline. In contrast, John G Paton, (missionary to the New Hebrides Islands in the 19th century) speaks glowingly of his experience of family instruction and worship in his childhood, which carried on every day of his youth. He writes, "It has been an amazing thing to me, occasionally to meet with men who blamed this catechizing for giving them a distaste to religion; every one in all our circle thinks and feels exactly the opposite. It laid the sold rock-foundations of our religious life. After-years have given to these questions and their answers a deeper or a modified meaning, but none of us have ever once even dreamed of wishing that we had been otherwise trained. Of course, if the parents are not devout, sincere, and affectionate, - if the whole affair on both sides is task work, or worse, hypocritical and false, - results must be very different indeed!" B. Use accomplishment as a badge of honor to build pride. C. Use it to make an inappropriate linking of head knowledge with obedience and relationship with God. D. Use it to Judge a brother making one angry toward a brother for: Anger toward the brother who is doing more Anger toward the brother who is doing less

5 E. Think that scripture memory and knowledge of scripture is an end, when it is only a means for loving God and loving neighbors. F. Take unfounded pride in children for their abilities in memorization or discipline. G. Make it a spiritual ranking system. H. Refuse to attempt it for various reasons. Resource Appendix: 1. Books of the Bible, Theme, Scripture Reference Genesis Beginnings Gen 1:1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth Exodus Deliverance Ex 14:14, The Lord will fight for you Leviticus Holiness to the Lord, Numbers Wilderness wanderings, Num 11:4 They yielded to intense craving The following are suggestions for categories of scripture that we encourage families to consider for teaching and memorization. Prayers/Benedictions Hebrews 13:20 Jude 24 Ephesians 1:16-23 Ephesians 3:14-21 Numbers 6:24-26 Life Application Verses Work Proverbs 6:6-8 I Cor 3:13 I Cor 15:58 I Thess 4:11 2 Thess 3:10 2 Thess 3:12 Child raising Proverbs 13:24 Proverbs 23:13-14 Proverbs 29:15 Ephesians 6:1-4

6 Hebrews 12:9-11 Sovereignty of God Job: Job 42:1-2 David: Psalm 135:6 Solomon: Proverbs 16:4 Daniel: Daniel 4:34 Paul: Ephesians 1:11 Nehemiah 9:6 Colossians 1:17 Hebrews 1:3 Psalm 103:19 Matthew 10: Biblical womanhood definition Mother, Genesis 1:28 Helpmeet, Genesis 2:18 Keeper at home, Titus 2:4 Teacher, Ephesians 6:1-4 Demonstration of unfading beauty, I Peter 3:4 6 Domestic entrepreneur, Proverbs 31:10-31 The tongue Proverbs 6:16-19 Proverbs11:13 Proverbs 15:1 Proverbs 15:28 Proverbs 16:28 Proverbs 27:2 Proverbs 10:19