Zion Hill Church Family Newsletter April 2018

Transcription

1 Making Our World A Better Place. April 2018 * Volume 24 Issue 4 Zion Hill Church Family Newsletter April 2018

2 MESSAGE FROM THE PASTOR Greetings to you in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. I want to take this moment, on behalf of our Church family, to wish you and your family a memorable and happy resurrection Sunday. May God bless you abundantly this weekend and always. Again, I am very pleased to inform you that God s favor remains very heavy upon the lives of our church and its members. We are getting all kinds of praise reports about the goodness of God upon people s life, their family and their children. I am humbly grateful to God for all these blessings. I am pleased to report that our Church computer systems and the internet has been upgraded. We now have a corporate quality WIFI that can handle more than 750 people sign on at the same time without dropping. This is a major improvement on our connectivity. We can use any equipment that is connected to the internet without any hindrance. For your information, our WIFI identity is zionhillsanctuary and our password is zionhill. We thank God for another step in the right direction. Also, I am pleased to report that we have now received a bona-fide offer to buy a piece of property for our Church cemetery. The property is well located immediately outside the city of Alexandria right by Highway I-49. It is a prime commercial land with an impressive site to behold. The amount of land is 246 acres and the asking price is $1.8 million. Our church deacons are now negotiating the price and hopefully God will bless us with the property very soon. There are many other things that God is doing at Zion Hill but I will like to devote the rest of this message to the matter of resurrection. Why because it is very important to me that you know the truth and the truth will set you free. Some people out of ignorance question whether or not the resurrection did happen. There are others who argued that the followers of Jesus Christ must be hallucinating about the idea of resurrection and that the body of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ must have been stolen from the tomb. The good news is that each of these arguments have took their turns and made their round to no avail. The blunt truth is that there too many evidence presented in and outside the Bible that clearly confirmed that Jesus died, buried and rose again on the third day. Below, please find some of the proof of resurrection for your understanding located on the next page:

3 1. Jesus had earlier declared His Resurrection when he said if you destroyed this temple, I shall raise it up in three days. He was talking about his death, burial and resurrection; 2. There were more than 500 witnesses or people who actually saw Jesus in person after His resurrection. That many people could not have been lying about the same thing in the same manner; 3. The transformation of the Disciples from fear into martyrdom or willingness to give their lives. All twelve disciples except one died individually for the sake of Christ. If the story was a lie, why would that many people wanted to be martyrs for Christ; 4. The empty tomb is another proof that Jesus is risen. I remember traveling to Israel with a bunch of our church members. We all visited the tomb and we all looked inside. Jesus is no longer in the grave; 5. The birth of the New testament church and the change of the Sabbath day from Saturday to Sunday is proof that resurrection did in fact occurred early Sunday morning; 6. Another proof is the conversation of James and Thomas. They saw, felt and touch the Savior and their lives has never been the same. No wonder why Thomas cried out by saying my Lord and my Savior. Finally, the conversation of Saul on the road to Damascus was another clear proof that Jesus is risen. When he was knocked down from his mule, he specifically asked the question of who he was dealing with? Jesus answered him and let him know that he was dealing with Jesus who is risen from the dead and alive forever more. My message to you is not to be ignorant like many people in the world. You are serving a risen Savior who loves you and gave His life for your redemption. Accept Him as your Savior and Lord. He will come into your heart and lead you and guide you for the rest of your life. It is the best decision I ever made. Again, I say to you and your family Happy Resurrection Sunday! Yours in Christ, Dr. Joshua joy Dara, Pastor

4 Volunteering at the Manor House Seniors Having Fun Ministry!! Zion Hill Ushers Ministry The Zion Hill Seniors Ministry celebrated pastor Joshua Dara Sr. s birthday today with a luncheon. We enjoyed a delicious meal and fellowship. Happy birthday, Pastor! May God bless you with many more!

5 CUTTIN IT STRAIGHT Greetings, my brothers and sisters. This month we, as part of the body of Christ, will join all of the Church of God in the celebration of Resurrection Sunday. It is the Christian s sine qua non. Simply put, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the indispensable essential element of Christianity. It is God s seal of our eternal life. Jesus said, I am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). In all that constitute the account of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, this month I want to expound upon the phrase or words of Jesus, It is finished. You will quickly identify these words as one of the last sayings of Jesus Christ. They are found in the Gospel of John, chapter nineteen, and verse thirty (John 19:30). Fittingly, it is regarded as the last words of Jesus before giving up the ghost. It is commonly acknowledged that a person s last words are of extreme importance to those who hear them or read them. In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul use the word, finally, to depict something so extremely important that it was placed at the very end of his letter. He wanted the readers and hearers of his letter to remember his last words if they couldn t remember nothing else in his letter (Ephesians 6:10-20). And Paul said a lot of things to the Ephesians in his letter. So is it with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He spoke many words while on earth, but His last words were it is finished in the English and one word in the Greek, tetelestai. The Greek meaning may encourage you as you celebrate Resurrection Sunday. The meaning of tetelestai in the Greek is, it is completed, I have done it. To coin some familiar words Did you know that there are many unfinished works around you? For instance there may be construction projects unfinished; books half read, letters half-written, promises not kept, places never seen, the list is exhaustive. Did you know that the historic monument of American history, Mount Rushmore, is an unfinished work? Its sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, had planned to extend the figures of each president down to the waist area. Time and funding prevented him from doing what he intended to do. The sculpture stopped at the necks of the four presidents. Now that is an example of an unfinished work carved in stone. S-E-L-A-H But Jesus Christ said with no fear of incompletion, It is finished. And He did so with a loud voice/cry according to Matthew 27:50 and Mark 13:37. The phrase/word(s), it is finished was prophetic in the Levitical sacrificial system. During the Passover, when the priest finished the last sacrifice of the lamb, he would declare, it is finished. The Jewish observers who stood around would have recognized the familiarity of those words, as they were participating in the celebration of this feast day. What Jesus meant by these words are of extreme importance to you as a believer. Knowing what He meant will avoid you from being tossed about by sleight of doctrine and unsure of your eternal security in the finished work of Jesus. Jesus meant He had done it all. He had left no prophecy unfulfilled; no work unfinished; no love unshared; no suffering unaccomplished. Hallelujah! He meant there is no need for animal sacrifices, rituals to be performed, or human effort to complete one s salvation. He did it. He finished it. And, He did finish it all. Commercially, the phrase was the word merchants wrote on bills when they were paid in full. Legally, the phrase was written over a certificate of debt when a judge had pronounced a person guilty of a crime to prove that the full demands of the law had been met. Rejoice, as you celebrate Resurrection Sunday and meditate upon the words, it is finished. The words in Greek are in the perfect tense which is significant to you. In the perfect tense, it speaks of an action that has been completed in the past with permanent results continuing into the present and the future. The past tense says, this happened. But, the perfect tense says, this happened and is still in effect today and will be tomorrow. Can I say, Amen? Or better yet, let the Church say, Amen. Jesus mission, for which He left heaven, was finished. The mission was impossible for man, but possible for God. His mission to reveal the Father and redeem fallen man (Luke 19:10), to offer His life as a sacrifice on the Cross for our sins (1 Peter 2:24), to give us assurance of life after death (John 11:25), to assure us that heaven is our home (John 14:1-2), and more was accomplished/finished in just three years. He left no incomplete, unfinished works. Remember, it is finished. The sacrifice has been made. The sting of death has been removed. The wrath of God is satisfied by the suffering and beating of Jesus. The price of forgiveness is totally paid. No matter how many ways you want to translate it it is made an end of ; it is paid ; it is performed ; it is accomplished. Your sins and the guilt that accompanied them have been made an end of. The price of redemption is paid. The righteous requirements of the Law have been performed. The work the Father had given Jesus to do was accomplished (John 17:4). Be of good comfort, it is finished. Encourage each other with these words. You be blessed with the knowledge, it is finished. Happy Resurrection Day! And, whatever you do with the Word, be sure you cut it straight. This is my last article to appear in the monthly newsletter. It has been my pleasure to share God s Word with you. Minister Millicent Rubin

6 I'm Cynthia Phillips a new Zion Hill member I ve been there for about I year now and I'm also apart of the Usher Ministry at Zion Hill. My son Eugene Miller ll and his best friend Quintin Hill formally worked at Winnfield of Alexandria. God has blessed them with their own Funeral Business, called Miller & Hill Funeral Directors.

7 The Transportation Ministry is still in need of additional volunteer van drivers to assist with bringing as many as possible to worship and study the Word of God. We are also in need of coach bus drivers. Please contact the church office if you are interested in joining the Transportation Ministry. Thanks, Shelia Williams The Zion Hill Motorcycle Ministry will meet & fellowship every 5th Sunday during Church services. Joy Dara Singers will begin holding auditions. Please contact Sis. Dianna or the church

8 Family & Friends 2018

9 Family & Friends 2018

10 Family & Friends 2018

11 2018 Business & Professionals Expo We are planning our next Business Expo for this coming November!!!! Details will follow later. We want ZH members who are professionals and business owners that did not have an opportunity to get involve, get an early start this time. We will have our Sign-Up Sheets in the lobby before and after services on each Sunday. Please contact the following people for additional information or if they just have questions. Toma Epps Geneva Hayes

12 Office House: 9am-4:30pm Administrative Assistants: Diana Mitchell and Patricia Wilson Dr. Joshua Joy Dara, Pastor 312 Hunter Street Pineville, Louisiana Minister Irene K. Isaac, Editor Printed at Zion Hill monthly Newsletter Staff: Krystal Johnson-Wimbley, Graphics Rose Vanburen, Photographer LaQuanda Burise, Photographer Millicent Rubin, Writer Mailing Address: P O Box 3914, Pineville, LA Phone: Fax: