Order in the Church Biblical notes from the radio program: Radio Airing: 08/09/2015 Point of Truth: Let all things be done decently and in order 1 Corinthians 14:40 1 Corinthians 14:40 1 Corinthians 14:33 1 Corinthians 14:1 19 1 Corinthians 14:20 Isaiah 10:15 John 6:35 Philippians 1:21-23 Matthew 20:28 1 Corinthians 14:23-26 INTRODUCTION: "Let all things be done decently and in order." 1 Corinthians 14:40 Halleluiah! I am Jake Ervin, pastor of Weaver Creek Baptist Church in Metropolis, IL, and this is Truth For Today! This subject is about Order and Decency, specifically, by God s people in the Church. Turn up your radio, so you can hear it while you shower and get dressed, because you are going to church today! In order to get a leg up on today s message, go online to www.myweavercreek.com, click on the Truth For Today icon which will take you to the page where you can get today s study notes. Our Praise and Message service begins at 11 AM, our Sunday evening service will delve deeper into this subject and begins at 6PM. You need to hear God s Word today. Just listen up as we begin. As of last Sunday, August 2nd 2015, Weaver Creek is now having regular services at our NEW site! Still in Metropolis, still on North Avenue, only 2 ½ miles further up the road, at the corner of North Avenue and Upper Salem Road. If you were not at our Home Coming then you missed a tremendous blessing! We are still working on different aspects of the building, like carpet and a warm, loving
décor, but you can come out and join us, be a part of this grand new endeavor that God is laying out for us! PROGRAM LESSON START: Order in the Church For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints. 1 Corinthians 14:33 "Let all things be done decently and in order." 1 Corinthians 14:40 When the church gathers corporately, the focus, above all, is how those corporate gatherings might edify or build up one another in the body of Christ, NOT be a distraction to those who are unbelievers! (1 Corinthians 14:1 19). So the apostle Paul calls them to a stark change in the way that they conducted church. He continues that theme by first showing how childishness had taken control of their gatherings. That s a painful revelation but necessary one. Little children tend to operate by the way they feel and by how much attention they receive, rather than from clearly thinking through on whatever setting they find themselves. Their level of thinking may lead to irritability and selfishness, rather than concern for others around them. So Paul exhorted, 20 Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men. 1 Corinthians 14:20 IOW: Dear brothers and sisters, don t be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind. {NLT} Paul had not tossed them away but spoke to them as Brothers. He offered two commands. The first, do not be children in your thinking, indicates that they were, in fact, acting like children in their thinking so they needed to stop acting that way. He will explain what he means as he continues, but for the moment, that command must have cut like a sharp knife. Here were adults gathered to worship in the name of Jesus Christ but they acted like selfish children. A child comes to the corporate gathering and says, Amuse me. The mature person says, Use me as an instrument in Christ s hands. Isaiah 10:15 A child comes and says, Entertain me. The mature person says, Feed my soul with the living bread. John 6:35 A child comes and says, Give me what I want! The mature person says, Give me Christ and I m satisfied. Philippians 1:21-23 A child comes and says, Serve me and me only! The mature person says, Let me serve you even as Christ came to serve. Matthew 20:28 BTW: If you would like us to keep coming to you every Sunday, please contact WMOK and tell them. We would like to hear from you. Or, call us at Weaver Creek, 618-309-5760 and leave us a Hallelujah!
1 Corinthians 14:23-26, 23 If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad? 24 But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all: 25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth. 26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying. NLT: 23 Even so, if unbelievers or people who don t understand these things come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in an unknown language, they will think you are crazy. 24 But if all of you are prophesying, and unbelievers or people who don t understand these things come into your meeting, they will be convicted of sin and judged by what you say. 25 As they listen, their secret thoughts will be exposed, and they will fall to their knees and worship God, declaring, God is truly here among you. {A Call to Orderly Worship} 26 Well, my brothers and sisters, let s summarize. When you meet together, one will sing, another will teach, another will tell some special revelation God has given, one will speak in tongues, and another will interpret what is said. But everything that is done must strengthen (build up, edify) all of you. HOW ABOUT US? The House of God is not a pick-up bar! Ladies, you know when you are showing too much of yourself to men. The attention is supposed to be upon God, not your body! This is a distraction that is easily remedied or resolved: dress appropriately. Parents, when your children become agitated or cranky; when they holler and scream or when they roam about the sanctuary of God, you are distracted and everyone in the entire church is distracted! What if this were the last chance someone in the church was going to hear God s Word before they died? You will be held accountable before Almighty God, because you did not simply remove the child from the sanctuary until the misbehavior could be resolved! Churches have nurseries, cry rooms, lobbies, children s church, all to allow you to learn and worship as well as your children. But, church is not a baby-sitter either: if you use those resources, then you need to volunteer to help or be part of a rotation, so that others can also benefit from being fed the Word! Let us remember just where we are, and why we are here in God s House. Behave decently, do not let Satan use you or your child as a distraction that could cost someone their very SOUL! CONCLUSION: Christian, it is time for God s people to rediscover & establish Order & Decency in the House of God! Even our Founders, the Framers of the Constitution understood the indisputable truth that the people of a nation absolutely had to have a rock-solid moral foundation in order for the nation to flourish. Come out today, and see why President John Adams said, Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. I cannot answer your questions here on the radio, but you need to get up and go to an actual, Biblebelieving, Scripture-quoting church today! I invite you to come out to Weaver Creek today. We are going to search out what God says about this subject, and what we must do in light Scripture.
I want to encourage you to come out to Weaver Creek for a visit, to join our Bible-believing church, to praise and worship God, to learn His Word, His precepts, to learn to live a Godly life. Remember: we are now at the NEW site, just 2.5 miles up North Avenue, on the corner with Upper Salem Road. Our small group studies begin at 10AM, our Praise and Preaching begins at 11AM, our Sunday evening service is at 6PM. Wednesday Studies and Youth challenge is at 6PM. Our Lord s Pantry is open every Thursday from 9AM until 3PM. Tonight s Evening Service is our Fellowship Night, where we sing, share testimonies, praise Jesus and we eat! Don t forget: to get today s study guide or any of our Truth For Today study information, go to our website, My Weaver Creek dot com, click on the Truth 4 Today logo and there they are. We believe that God Almighty has provided us at Weaver Creek with this new building at this time for a purpose. This is a time of RE-newal. It is time for you to RE-visit what you think you know about church, about God. If you have not been to church in a while, start fresh here today, with us at the New Weaver Creek. Today is the day that the LORD has made; today is the first day of the rest of your life, start it out with your Creator! Folks, step out in faith today, come to Weaver Creek and become a part of what Almighty God is preparing for us to do for Him! Whether teaching children about the love of God through Jesus Christ, or fixing a widow s porch, feeding the hungry, providing warmth, clothing and shelter in time of a disaster, or singing God s praises to thank Him for His Grace come. PRAYER: Lord God, please, forgive us. Please bring a new Great Awakening to our nation. Let us meet in your house and behave orderly and dress decently. Let it start right here, in Metropolis, right here in each of our hearts. Teach us to trust You, to obey You, to rediscover Your will, to be a Godfearing people once more. To put You first in all that we do. In Jesus precious name we ask, Amen. That is our Truth For Today, I pray that it has challenged you, stirred you, help to refocus your sight upon your Saviour, Jesus Christ, to treat Him with the awe and respect that He deserves. Until next time: Can I get an AMEN!? Dr. Jake Ervin Pastor of Weaver Creek Baptist Church Truth For Today 2748 North Avenue, Metropolis, IL 62960 Classic Weaver Creek Church 2997 North Avenue, Metropolis, IL 62960 Weaver Creek Two 1-618-309-5760
Who is good? ~Romans 3:10~ As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one. Who has sinned? ~Romans 3:23~ For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Where sin came from? ~Romans 5:12~ Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. God's price for Sin. ~Romans 6:23~ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Who paid The price? ~Romans 5:8~ God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Who Can Get Saved? ~Romans 10:13~ For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. What Must I Do to Get Saved? ~Romans 10:9-10~ That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. How Long is Forever? ~1 John 5:13~ These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life It is FREE! Just ask God. Something like this below: LORD God, I believe that Jesus is your Son, that You sent Him to be born of a virgin. He lived a sinless life and He died for me on the cross, to pay the penalty for my sin, and He rose alive from the grave! Please, forgive me for my sins against You and take me to Heaven when I die. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.