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Sun. 9:30am – 10:30am
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Wed. 6:30pm – 7:30pm
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 54:49 — 50.2MB) Subscribe: Luke 18:9-14
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian at iTunes. Today we are focusing on another of those often discussed topics that tends to be taken for granted. In verses 6, 7 of Chapter 1, Nehemiah confesses both personal and national sin. It’s okay to talk about national sin, because we can blame others for the problems. It’s even okay to talk about family sin for the same reason. But when we get to personal sin we get real uncomfortable real fast, don’t we! One of the most egregious sins of The Universal Church is her denial of personal/individual sin. Even after our salvation it is still true that “all have sinned!” Because we no longer fear God we have become arrogant in His face using atonement and the blood of Christ as an excuse to sin. Scripture has some very clear warnings concerning confession of our sin!
- THE BIBLICAL PRESCRIPTION FOR CONFESSION! From Gen. 3 throughout Scripture confession and repentance is always expected. Confession is the only means to forgiveness and cleansing that brings harmony and peace with God. Many today believe we don’t have to confess sin because of our salvation. Confession is for our benefit, to keep us very much aware of the hurt sin brings to God. Read Lev. 5:5; 16:21; Numbers 5:6,7; Ps. 32:1-5; Prov. 28:13; and 1 John 1:9; and Matt. 5-7. All those passages teach confession is necessary.
- THE BIBLICAL PROCESS FOR CONFESSION! There were many details connected with confession in the Law. Today the same details are necessary for confession, without the ritual! First, we must confess, admit, identify with the specific in. The idea “I might have/sort have sinned isn’t going to get it! The excuse “I did such and so because someone else did such and so first” is also wrong. Second, we must bring an offering. In the OT sinners were required to bring an animal for sacrifice. Today when we sin, we take from God what is His and desecrate it with our selfishness (sin). We must confess what we did, then offer back to God what we took which is part of us. Read 1Cor. 6:19, 20 then Rom. 12:1-2. This is not legalism, it is facing the truth of our sin and sinfulness in such a way that should keep us from all ungodliness. Third, we must make atonement or follow through. The priest killed the animal and its death was part of the confession process. We must see ourselves as belonging to God permanently. We must not think we can sin, reoccupying the Temple with “self and selfishness” at our own discretion! We belong to God permanently and we are never allowed to desecrate the temple of The Holy Spirit with “self.” Our salvation gives us personal access to Christ as our Intercessor and High Priest. We can go privately and personally to Him asking for His strength and help in time of weakness. ALL our sin is covered under the blood and ALL has been forgiven. Confession is a grim reminder that we are at war with an enemy that seeks only to destroy us and God’s great salvation freely given to all who ask.
If we can help you in this or any other area of spiritual concern call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 55:22 — 50.7MB) Subscribe: Phil. 2:1-11
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian at iTunes. We learned that effective prayer begins by adoring/praising God as God. Careful Bible study reveals that when a person correctly recognizes God as God they also learn to see themselves as “broken” before God. Nehemiah displays that characteristic in 1:6 of his book. Everywhere in ancient, secular language and literature “servant” had a negative connotation. The reason is that servitude was always a forced issue. So as a Christian, do you see servitude as forced on you? How does God see it? Let’s consider
- THE BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE ON SERVITUDE! To be broken before God is one of the most profound aspects of a Christian’s life. The key is in the word “servant.” In Scripture a servant was a person who had absolutely no rights with one exception – to obey all their master commanded. A servant had nothing the master didn’t provide. Disobedience on the servant’s part meant immediate death. No matter who a person was or what their status or rank in life, if they became a POW they immediately became a servant! For the Christian broken means “total surrender as a result of a submissive spirit before God.” A Christian can’t live the life God has prepared unless they are willing to live it with a broken/submissive spirit before God! With that very broad perspective on “broken” before God, let’s see
- CHRIST’S PRACTICE AND PERSPECTIVE ON SERVITUDE! In Mark. 10:35-45; John 5:16-30; and 15:1-8 Jesus explains His position. Our attitude is determined by whoever ultimately rules our life! When we control our attitudes they are influenced by worldly things around us. When Christ governs them, our attitudes are the same as His! With that in mind let’s think about
- THE CHRISTIAN’S PERSPECTIVE OF SERVITUDE! Reality for most Christians is that God controls most of their life. A true spiritual Christian will live the truth that they want God to control ALL areas of their life. Our post modernist secular society today tells us we have rights and we should remind God of those rights to what’s ours as His children. Can you find such a doctrine in Scripture that allows us to tell God how to respond to our rights? There are at least five truths Jesus teaches us about servitude. 1 = Jesus didn’t let Who He is stop Him from submitting to God! If God’s Son was willing to lay aside Who he is to care more about you than Himself, are we willing to lay aside who we are to care for others? 2 = Jesus didn’t let Who He is stop Him from becoming a servant, so all could be saved. Are you willing to become a servant to others to lead them to salvation? 3 = Jesus didn’t let Who He is keep Him from humbling Himself – even to death! At what point do you draw the line where humility is concerned? If washing your neighbor’s feet would bring them to Christ, would you do it? How broken are you willing to be before God so He can work through you?
If we can help you with this or any other spiritual matter, call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:28 — 49.0MB) Subscribe: Nehemiah 1:8-9
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian on iTunes. The original Law God gave Israel is still the only right and proper standard for true Christian living in this 21st Century. Our wide-spread lack of obedience and respect for God and His moral Law is the reason Christians and The Church are so weak and ineffective in the mission effort to the lost living next door to us. If we truly turned our heart to God we would live in verse 4 and the result of that would be verse 8. What would happen if true Christians would turn their heart to God and refocus our entire lives on His Law? Nehemiah tells us in these verses.
- GOD’S PEOPLE HAVE BEEN UNFAITHFUL. Mr. Webster and Scripture define “unfaithful(ness)” differently, but both have the same end result! From a truly Christian perspective the Scripture presents unfaithfulness as much more heinous. To Christians Scripture is also the most important. If we go back to Ex. 20 we discover after reading the first four commandments our attitude toward God is twisted. Then we read the second six and discover that our attitude toward others is also twisted! How surprised are you that both are true? Numbers 5:5-7 and 6:1-7 also tell us that acting wickedly toward another person is acting wickedly toward God. Someone might say, “Well Pastor, you are focusing on Law, we live in the age of grace!” Read the Sermon on the Mount and the rest of the NT, and you will discover throughout The Law is still the foundation for living. The difference is “grace” teaches us obedience to the Law comes from the heart, not the head! That’s just the first half of unfaithfulness. In Josh. 7 in the account of Achan we learn that one man’s sin caused the entire nation to be declared unfaithful. Someone will say “that’s not fair.” The word “fair” isn’t in God’s vocabulary, but, righteous, holy, just, merciful and others are! Ever count how many times Adam and Eve sinned before they were expelled from Eden? Jesus said “just a little yeast spreads through the whole loaf.” While all that’s true, there is still hope because
- GOD’S PEOPLE CAN RETURN AND OBEY! God always gives us hope no matter how bad things may be. Putting a life, or nation, back together is at least a two-fold process. The first step is always repentance, because that is exactly what return means. In order to return one must stop and turn in the opposite direction. When we discover we have missed our turn when driving, we immediately begin to look for a place to turn around and go back, don’t we. Don’t you find it shameful that when God tells us we are going in the wrong direction, many times we ignore Him and continue down the wrong path! Rom. 1:4 tells us that God’s patience with us is so we will repent. All this means that even you aren’t beyond God’s help. You can still turn around and head toward Him. One pastor said, “The problem is never what God could have done, but what God’s people have NOT done!” Let’s stop being unfaithful as individuals (and therefore as The Church), and return to God before He sends us into captivity!
If we can help you with answers to your spiritual questions call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 52:13 — 47.8MB) Subscribe: Neh. 1:5-7
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian on iTunes. This week we return to Nehemiah and begin to take a careful look at why his prayer life was so successful. Our life is all about choices and all the choices affect someone. On the day a person chooses to receive God’s gracious gift of salvation they choose an entirely new way of life that not only affects them individually; it affects others and most of all it affects God! In this first prayer we learn some vital characteristics that made Nehemiah a real man of prayer. First notice he was:
- A MAN OF ANGUISH! One way to learn about a person is to watch what causes their heart to grieve. Nehemiah was grieved over the physical state of Jerusalem, but more importantly- over the spiritual ruin of the people that caused the destruction of Jerusalem. Prov. 27:17 tells us we can’t really hide our sadness. Men don’t often let it be known they are in anguish because we have been taught it is a sign of weakness. Male anguish most often shows when a sporting event goes bad, or a tool breaks, or when they lose something very dear to them- like nap time, play time, or anytime they don’t get what they want! Don’t believe me, ask your wife or children! We don’t often see men today in deep anguish over their own spiritual life or the spiritual life of the Church! Men don’t get shook up over the fact they, their families, their church are living more in the world than in the Word! Read Matt. 26:37, 48; Mark 14:33, 34; and Luke 22:39-44 to see what part anguish played in the prayer life of Jesus! One of the first steps in getting down to business in prayer is to be anguished in heart over personal spiritual apathy; national abandonment of what is Godly; and apostasy within the Body of Christ! Nehemiah was also
- A MAN OF ASSOCIATION! There are many levels of associations, but for a man to get down to business in prayer, he must have a deep, personal association with Christ as Sovereign Lord and Savior. Nehemiah knew God by several names, He knew the content of the Word, and The Law. A man of action will do all he can to be called a friend of God. Nehemiah was also associated with other men. That fact is a sermon in itself! We will see how Nehemiah’s friendships with other men helped him accomplish one of the greatest feats in Biblical history! Prov. 27:19 tell us we need close friends to help us through the tough times. Nehemiah was also
- A MAN OF ACTION! Procrastination is one of Satan’s most effective tools, especially for men! Our excuses for procrastinating in our spiritual responsibilities are dangerous because (1) they are all a violation of the 1st Commandment, because we set ourselves above God; (2) Satan also makes sure we never find a reason to stop “putting it off;” and (3) because we have come to believe the status quo is acceptable and the extraordinary is not necessary! Men find it hard to take action because (1) we have to submit to God; (2) we have to change what has become a comfortable way of life; (3) we must become vulnerable; (4) we would have to deal with failure/weakness/ or even a wrong self image. None of those things appeal to men. The truth is spiritual mediocrity and complacency can’t be good enough for men who call themselves Christians. Men, we must stop saying “someday” and start NOW!
If we can help you with answers to your spiritual questions call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:35 — 49.0MB) Subscribe: The Testimony That Measured His Life – Matt. 1:18-25
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian at iTunes. Our focus is on fathers this month through a study in the life of Joseph at the birth of Christ. We’ve seen how God sometimes allows tragedies that mar our life so He can change them into tasks that mark our lives. Today we finish the series by watching how God develops testimonies that measure our lives. The question is often asked, “How will people remember you? What will be your legacy?” The more important question is how will God measure you when you stand before Him at the BEMA? Let’s see how Joseph’s testimony was one of
- UNCONDITIONAL COMPLIANCE! Someone has said, the true measure of a man is not what he faces in life or what he is called to do. The true measure of a man and his character is how he handles what he is handed. It’s one thing to be called by God to do something, but it’s another all together to do it without question! Many men in Joseph’s situation would have walked away from both Mary and The Lord! They would instantly grow a chip on their shoulder, nurture a root of bitterness, and begin to focus on their lot in life and blame God for cheating them! Not Joseph, he did exactly what God told him to do! Joseph was more concerned about what God thought than what people thought. Many men have reversed that toady! When Joseph discovered the enormous task God had for him, he simply bowed in unconditional compliance. What a testimony! What will yours be? Joseph’s testimony was also one of
- UNWAVERING COMMITMENT! Even after Joseph and Mary were wed, he restrained himself from intimacy until after Jesus was born. Why? Joseph was so committed to God, that he was willing to let God fulfill Scripture through him. Are you? If you consider the public ridicule and private restraint, Joseph probably ever had any escape from torment and temptation. Yet he never wavered! What does it take to get you to waver or back off in your personal commitment to God? Remember, your daily life reveals your true commitment! Finally Joseph’s testimony was one of
- UNFAILING COMPLETION! Since God is a God of completion we must always remember that He has an unwavering commitment to complete His work in us so we are completely ready to be with Him throughout all eternity. Phil. 1:6 tells us exactly that! The question becomes “will you finish your work for Him?” You will never be asked to do anything you can’t be developed by God to do! Therefore, since He already knows all about you, why not get on your knees and confess your fears, disappointments, bitterness and whatever else; then ask His forgiveness for doubting Him and allow Him to fill you with His grace and mercy so you can complete your task. Are you willing to let God do whatever He wants to transform the tragedies that mar your life into tasks that will mark your life? IF you are you will have a testimony that measures your life as one of God’s great servants.
If we can help you with answers to your spiritual questions call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 47:38 — 43.6MB) Subscribe: The Task That Marked His Life – Matt. 1:20-23
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian at iTunes. Last week we looked at what appeared to Joseph as a tragedy. It’s hard for us when the plans/activities we so carefully lay out and follow are suddenly shattered. We often forget God is behind the scenes working His perfect will in our lives. He will develop and use us according to HIS plan, even if we have to suffer some hurt along the way. Now let’s see how God changed apparent tragedy into an awarding task!
- DIVINE REVELATION! Revelation is the disclosure of something previously unknown. Have you ever been studying a passage of Scripture when all of a sudden you have a deeper/richer meaning of that passage? That’s divine revelation! Notice that God came to Joseph in the midst of a major crisis. Often a major crisis means a major change in our life! In a major crisis God is always available to us; the question is-are we available to Him? Notice that Joseph didn’t fly off the handle when forsaking God because things weren’t going exactly Joseph’s way! God, in our language, said to Joseph, “if you think finding out Mary was pregnant shook you up, wait until you find out Who the baby is! Sit down Joseph, because the Baby is The Son of God!” Put yourself in Joseph’s place! Often, not always, but often when we get so focused on our life and plans we forget to focus on God, He allows our dreams to be shattered so He can achieve through us more than we ever thought we could achieve on our own! It doesn’t mean we are in total rebellion, it just means God wants to get our attention! Divine Revelation always comes with
- DEFINITE REQUIREMENTS (Vs. 20-21) We don’t know how long it was between verse 20 and 21. Joseph probably fell asleep from exhaustion! An angel came to Joseph in a dream and gave him very clear and very specific instructions. God assured Joseph that his plan to marry Mary was the right one. God gave him two requirements –the marriage, and the name! Now both Joseph and Mary know what’s going on! However, there is the matter of their families. Do you think someone somewhere did the math? How difficult would it be for them to explain this to their family? Would youbelieve it? Remember, God never tells us to do anything without giving us exact instructions and guidance to where He wants us! With all this, God also gave Joseph:
- DELIGHTFUL REALIZATIONS! It’s not likely Joseph woke up with full understanding and complete peace in his heart. He probably had many more questions than answers. However, he did exactly as the Lord directed. Remember, total surrender and obedience to God brings about the realization that God’s plan for your life is infinitely richer and deeper than anything you can devise. God has a plan that is designed to mark your life for Christ. He will tell you exactly what it is and how to do it, and pour out blessings more than you can imagine; but it comes at a high price! Are you willing to pay the price?
If we can help you with your spiritual questions call us at (574) 643-9419.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 44:17 — 40.5MB) Subscribe: Matthew 1:18-25
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can also download our service at Baptist-Christian on iTunes. We are going to focus on fathers this month using Joseph as our example. This series of messages shows us the process God often uses to develop men into great men of God. Each message is a “step” in the process. We don’t know much about Joseph’s life other than what Matthew and Luke tell us. He was a righteous man who knew and followed God’s Law. I found this outline from another pastor and liked the way it is put together to teach us. Let’s consider first:
- THE TRAGEDY OF A SHOCKING DISCOVERY! (V. 18). In those days when a couple was “betrothed” or engaged, it was the same as being married. The only difference was the couple didn’t live together until after the ceremony, which could be several months in the future. How different is that today when couples commonly live together as husband and wife before they are married! During the engagement, both the bride and groom were excited as any couple could be preparing for the wedding. Joseph was probably busy finishing their house, and even the furniture. He most likely sought God’s guidance in finding a wife and was led to Mary. We don’t know if the parents arranged this marriage, but we can be sure God arranged it! Then all of a sudden without warning, when life is as good as it can get, Joseph gets hit with this shocking discovery that his beloved bride is already pregnant! We might say, “he got the wind knocked out of him!” In just a few months down the road that news would have been cause for celebration, now they are just catastrophe! It still happens today, doesn’t it! Simple words in short sentences “I have cancer,” “I’ve been let go,” “I’m divorcing you,” “a loved one passed,” “I use drugs/I’m hooked on porn/I’m gay.” What’s yours? Somewhere in your life is there a shocking discovery that seems God has jerked the rug out from under your entire life? Here’s the question: Has whatever shocking discovery drawn you closer to God, or has it driven you away?
- THE TRAGEDY OF SHATTERED DREAMS! (Vs 18-19). Shocking discoveries often shatter dreams. Imagine Joseph returning from that date with Mary! Do you think he could tell something was up? Mary had been visited by Gabriel and knew. I don’t think she started whistling “Count Your Many Blessings” even then! Joseph was still in the dark. He had every right according to the Law to have Mary stoned! But notice the grace, mercy, forgiveness, and kindness he extends to the mother of the Savior. It is interesting that in just a few short years Jesus would extend all those same things to the whole world! Imagine how Jesus feels when we reject His kind offer to us. Do you think we shatter His dreams? Finally,
- THE TRAGEDY OF SORROWFUL DECISIONS! (V. 19) It’s hard to imagine how we would react in this same situation. Joseph could have ended Mary’s life. God could have chosen to send the entire race to hell in Eden, but He didn’t! How sorrowful would that have been! God often uses shocking discoveries, shattered dreams and sorrowful decisions to get our attention. Even though we don’t understand what’s happening at the outset, we must trust God’s infinite wisdom to bring it all to fruition!
If we can help you with your spiritual questions call us at (574) 643-9419.
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