Let’s Be the Church!

Posted on January 3, 2020 by jesustrek

We have a theme for the new year at Vanceburg Christian Church—“God’s 2020 Vision for the Church”. This year we will focus on what the Bible says about the church.

In January, we have a 3-week series of sermons planned. The title of the series is “Let’s B the Church”. In the next few weeks we will talk about three words that describe the church; all three words begin with the letter “B”—Body, Building and Bride.

The Bible says that the church is the body of Christ. It functions much like the human body, with many different parts working together for the good of the body. We have different gifts and talents, and God uses the uniqueness of each church member to complement what other members add with their own contributions. With all the members working together, the church becomes all that God intends for it to be. Ephesians 4:15-16 says, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

The Bible also says that the church is like a building. According to Ephesians 2:20-22, the church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

So while the church is not the building where the members meet, it is like a building, built on the firm foundation of Jesus and his apostles and prophets. As people are added to the church, they become a part of this dwelling in which God lives.

Finally, the church is the bride of Christ. Many people try to say “Yes” to Jesus while saying “No” to the church, but the Scripture does not leave us with that option. The church is the beautiful bride of Christ! In spite of the imperfections of each congregation, the blood of Jesus washes the church clean and through his power Jesus is able to present us as his wonderful bride!

Because of this, marriage is intended to be a beautiful picture of the sacrificial love that Jesus has for his church. We read in Ephesians 5:25-27, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”

There you have it. The church is a body, a building and a bride. If you are a part of the church, let’s “B” the best church we can be! If not, I urge you to seek out a Bible believing church and find your place in God’s wonderful story of salvation in Jesus.

 

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Making Good Sense

Posted on January 2, 2020 by jesustrek

Jeremiah 10:21 contains a dire warning for anyone in a position of leadership in the church—“The shepherds are senseless and do not inquire of the Lord; so they do not prosper and all their flock is scattered.”

No one wants to be called “senseless”, but that’s exactly what the Bible says about a leader who does not ask for God’s guidance. The failure of a leader to pray shows that he does not have a proper understanding about how to succeed. Without the direction of the Lord and the power that he gives, no leader can expect to prosper.

A leader who fails to pray not only hurts himself, he causes harm to the people he is trying to lead. There are no winners when a church leader doesn’t have the good sense to inquire of the Lord.

It just makes good sense to pray!

 

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Beyond Reading

Posted on January 1, 2020 by jesustrek

I have quite a few books on my shelf about eating and exercising properly. I subscribe to a magazine that has all kinds of articles about diet and workouts. I enjoy reading and about fitness and saving some of the better ideas to review later. However, all of my reading and studying would be worthless if I didn’t actually put that knowledge to use. If I don’t eat properly and exercise regularly, all of my reading would be for nothing.

The same holds true for reading the Bible. If we don’t put into practice what we learn from Scripture, we might as well have not read it at all.

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”—James 1:22.

 

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No Looking Back!

Posted on December 31, 2019 by jesustrek

Luke 17:32 contains a short warning—“Remember Lot’s wife!” We all should remember what happened to Lot’s wife. Lot had been warned that he needed to flee the coming destruction of Sodom. He and his family were to leave without looking back. His wife, however, couldn’t resist the temptation. She looked behind her, perhaps longingly, at the worldly city that had incurred God’s wrath. And she lost her life because of her disobedience.

Once we decide to follow God, we need to continue on that forward path. Jesus says that those who put their hand to the plow and then look back are not worthy of the kingdom. We can’t set our sights on worldly things without becoming worldly ourselves. Once we have put our sinful past behind us, let us continue to move forward to bigger and better things.

 

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Sorry!

Posted on December 27, 2019 by jesustrek

I once found a drawing that someone had made on the white board in a room where I teach a Wednesday night class at church. The drawing appeared to have been made by a child in elementary school. The problem was that the artist had used a permanent marker. Not to worry. He or she left a note of apology…written on the white board with the permanent marker!

It wasn’t such a big deal to clean up. Just a few minutes of hard scrubbing with a cleaning solution took care of the problem.

If only it were so easy to remove the stain of our sins! That is a job that is impossible to do ourselves. We have to trust Jesus to do that for us.

“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’”—John 1:29.

 

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All I Want for Christmas

Posted on December 23, 2019 by jesustrek

I agree with Dennis the Menace, who said in a recent (12-14-19) cartoon, “All I want for Christmas is a lot of presents!”

It’s far too easy to get caught up in thinking about the gifts we will give others, or the gifts that we might receive. But let’s make sure that we spend a lot of time contemplating the greatest gift of all—Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world!

“Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”—2 Corinthians 9:15.

 

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The Christmas Story

Posted on December 20, 2019 by jesustrek

When I was in junior high my classmates and I all had to memorize the Christmas story from Luke 2 as part of our school work. In these days where the ACLU is vigilantly trying to protect us from all things Christian, it would be rare for any teacher in a public school to give such an assignment. My, how times have changed!

Luke 2 starts out by giving us the historical setting. The Bible doesn’t read like a fairy tale—“Once upon a time, in a land far, far away…” Luke gives us the place and time in history when Jesus was born.

Joseph was one of the major players in this story. He trusted God and believed the incredible truth that his wife-to-be, who was pregnant without his involvement, was carrying a child that was conceived miraculously; a child who was indeed the son of God. Through his faith and humble obedience, Joseph accepted his role in God’s unfolding story—the story of bringing salvation to all humanity through Jesus.

Of course Mary was there. She had declared herself to be the Lord’s servant, accepting her role in God’s plan. She would have the honor of giving birth to the son of God. After the birth of Jesus, Luke says, “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19).

The angels were there to announce the birth of Jesus. The arrival of the newborn king was worthy of a heavenly proclamation.

And who were the recipients of this proclamation and the invitation to come to the manger for a firsthand view of the wondrous arrival of the baby who was to be the Savior of all people? It wasn’t the rulers. It wasn’t the rich people. It was the lowly shepherds! The good news of the arrival of Jesus was given to common, ordinary people.

As we read this beautiful Scripture, it is important that we see our own place in God’s story. May we have a trusting faith like Joseph. May we show humble obedience like Mary. May we express a wondrous desire that the shepherds had to seek Jesus and to spread the good news of his arrival to other people.

 

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Finally!

Posted on December 19, 2019 by jesustrek

Mariah Carey

Mariah Carey’s original holiday classic, “All I Want for Christmas Is You”, has reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart—25 years after its release!

I don’t know how often hit songs attain such a level of success a quarter century after they were first released, but I can’t imagine it happens all that often. It adds some credence to that old saying—“Good things come to those who wait.”

“Ship your grain across the sea; after many days you may receive a return.”—Ecclesiastes 11:1

 

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Bury Him Where?

Posted on December 18, 2019 by jesustrek

Rick Majerus

The University of Kentucky men’s basketball team plays against Utah in Las Vegas tonight. Looking forward to the game, someone dug up a quote from former Utah coach Rick Majerus, who passed away seven years ago. Majerus, who was 0-6 in his career against Kentucky, once said, “When I die they might as well bury me at the finish line at Churchill Downs so they can run over me one more time.”

Sometimes life doesn’t go the way we planned. It’s good to be able to keep our sense of humor as we accept a difficult outcome and move on.

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”—1 Corinthians 15:58.

 

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Willing Sacrifice

Posted on December 13, 2019 by jesustrek

I heard a great quote about the participants in the annual Army/Navy football game. This statement was made by John Trainor, a police captain in New Jersey, and the father of Cadet running back John Trainor. He said, “It’s the only game that everyone who’s playing is willing to die for everyone who’s watching it.”

That’s an amazing thought!

Here’s another wonderful thought—“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”—Romans 5:6-8.

 

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