Sunday August 23, 2015

Notes on Sunday's service.  (Thanks Jean)

Dr. Barclay

Something to Think About

In the first five books of the bible God tells the Hebrews what they should do. However history tells us they did not follow with what God told them and they did not always obey.

In the book of Esther, chapter one, King Ahasuerus wanted to display his wife in an unseemly way.  Vashti, his wife refused and so the King searched for a new wife and Esther a Jew was chosen, in a Persian court.

 In Chapter 3 of Esther we read that Haman had people bow to him in the Kings gate. But Mordecai, Esther's uncle and a very good Jew, would not bow to any human especially Haman. Haman was upset and mad when Mordecai would not bow to him. Haman was so full of anger and pride that Mordecai would not bow to him, that he sought to then destroy all the Jews, because Mordecai was a Jew. However we read in Chapter 9 that it was Haman and his ten sons that were hung at the gallows and not one Jew was killed.  Haman was hung and not Mordecai her uncle. Due to a series of banquets that Esther had devised with the Kings Court she was successful in saving the lives of her uncle and all the Jewish people.

There is a great lesson here that pride is a terrible thing and always has bad consequences.

The King was so proud of his wife and his belongings, he was full of pride, which resulted in the loss of his wife. Haman was full of pride, he thought he would destroy all the Jews. However this resulted in the loss of Haman's own life and sons. We should never become prideful because it will always result in a downfall.

In 1 Peter chapter 2 -We are told to fear God and honor the King.

We always need to respect our Nation's leaders and recognize God placed them in power for a reason. We must remember how Mordecai and Esther acted in true faith.

Mordecai and Esther respected and honored the King and did nothing in any way that would embarrass him.

God's true purposes were accomplished through them and the Hebrews were saved.

 Even when we disagree with our Nation's leaders we need to pray for them and respect them.

1 Peter 2 King James Version (KJV)

2 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,

² As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby:

³ If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

⁴ To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,

⁵ Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

⁶ Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

⁷ Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,

⁸ And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

⁹ But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;

¹⁰ Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

¹¹ Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

¹² Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.

¹³ Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;

¹⁴ Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.

¹⁵ For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:

¹⁶ As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.

¹⁷ Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

¹⁸ Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the forward.

¹⁹ For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.

²⁰ For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

²¹ For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

²² Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:

²³ Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:

²⁴ Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

²⁵ For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

King James Version (KJV)

And the outline of Pastor Caroline's message:

A - Accept Jesus as Son of God

B - Believe Jesus died on the cross for forgiveness of all sin

C - and confess our sins.

D - Declare to the world to Jesus is Lord! And has purchased our

E - Eternity on the cross as a gift from the

F - Father, who

G - Gave

H - HIS Son, to come to earth to die on the cross so that we could have an

I - Intimate relationship with

J - Jesus; who

K - Keeps us in

L - Love with the 

M - Master (who is God) who

N - Never

O - Opens up our

P - Past (in His death there is no

Q - Question as to how to

R - Receive OUR

S - Salvation for He gives us a "Plan".) (See below)

T - The truth of the word and the

U - Understanding of the word give us great

V - Victory in

W - Whatever this world brings us.

X - X in Greek 'X' is the first letter in Christos, meaning "Christ", and receiving Christ in

Y - Your life, you will become

Z - Zealous; living and loving God with great zeal. You can't go wrong, be zealous for God, serving and loving others as He serves and loves you everyday.

Plan - John 3:16, 17: For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in His shall not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.

I want to be sold out for Jesus, loving Him, loving each other, and having Jesus as Lord of my life. How about you?

Now... I'm sure you will look at the ABC's in a different way... Accept, Believe, Confess

Sunday August 16, 2015

Sunday Night Service Notes  (Thank-you, Jean)

Dr. Barclay. - Something to Think About

Theme: We need to guard our lives against sin; that we may prosper in his world and spend eternity with Christ in Heaven.

Romans 15:4New King James Version (NKJV)

⁴ For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

Some people today, see the scriptures as outdated myths and meaningless. Yet when we, Christians read the New and Old Testament with true sincerity we are filled with the assurance and veracity of scripture. Christ called himself the Alpha and Omega in the book of revelation-meaning the beginning and the end. The bible clearly tells us that sin leads to utter destruction.

When we search the scriptures we will find many instances and scenarios that are similar. We find that many people, who came to Christ and were born again as teenagers, often walk away from serving Christ and to not come back till about 40 years later.  This is similar to the children of Israel who wandered in the desert for 40 years. Due to their unfaithfulness and disobedience their way to the Promised Land took a lot longer than it could have. Our lives become utterly destroyed when idolatry and false religions take over. Much like the temple of Israel was destroyed when the worship of Jehovah was taken out.

The Ten Commandments

20 And God spoke all these words, saying:

²“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

We need to build up walls around our lives, thus to keep out ungodly influences and pagan practices.  We need to control our spirit man; therefore we need to build up spiritual walls. The walls need to be high and strong. This is Similar to Nehemiah building the walls around the temple. An unguarded city without a wall is broken down city. Our temples can be rebuilt much like the temple in Israel. However his requires a total change of heart on our part. This means repentance and a change of direction in our lives toward God. We must leave all sin and unrighteous, ungodly ways of living behind.

Rev. Bill Annis

Theme: The death of Jesus on the Cross is the only answer to Sin; no worldly or material sacrifice could ever be enough.

Reverend Annis has been pasturing for over 40 years. He talked of how God works in our everyday life experiences. He explained that acceptance of people, does not mean approval of a person’s lifestyle. Before we can work on a person’s life and help transform them into a follower of Christ, we must accept them first.

Reverend Annis was in Delhi recently this year and he spoke of the hunger for Christ by Hindus in India. He was also tremendously encouraged by the dedication and faithfulness of India’s Christians. The Indian’s commitment to Christ and excellent Church attendance should serve as an example for all of us to follow.

If we search the scriptures correctly we will always find that Jesus is the answer to sin problem of the whole world.

In psalm 40 verses 6-10 the psalmist is speaking direct about Christ

Psalm 40:6-8New King James Version (NKJV)

⁶ Sacrifice and offering You did not desire;
My ears You have opened.
Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.⁷ Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.⁸ I delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is within my heart.”

Sacrifices were always given because of the consciousness of sin. Hebrews 10:1-10 mirrors, repeats psalm 40

Hebrews 10:1-10New King James Version (NKJV)

Animal Sacrifices Insufficient

10 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. ² For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. ³ But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. ⁴ For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.

Christ’s Death Fulfills God’s Will

⁵ Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:

“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.⁶ In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.⁷ Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—
In the volume of the book it is written of Me—
To do Your will, O God.’”

⁸ Previously saying, “Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the law), ⁹ then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. ¹⁰ By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

The wages of sin is death; we are free from the wages if we accept the one who settled it – who is Jesus. There is no longer a need for a priest to offer sacrifices, Jesus is the final sacrifice.

We cannot be continuously focused on the unfinished work of others. God is still working on them. We need to always focus on the finished work of Christ, and not be distracted by the failings of others.

Sunday August 9, 2015

Here a few notes on Sunday's service.  (Thanks, Heather)

Hi all :)

Here's a snap-shot of what Sunday's service.

Something to Think About

- Spenser spoke of how history has a way of repeating itself

- As in the Bible times, 'our' temples are being destroyed! (church buildings, us)

- BUT, as we sang this night... God loves people more than anything!

- First step is ours...

The Message ~ 

- 'There and back again...'

- These two gave an update what they've been up to in Australia

- They were involved in a movement 'Power to Change' whose mission is dedicated to helping students discover Jesus and change the world... ie: to fullfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20)

- They went into 3 Universities, found Christians and trained them to sharing the Gospel

- Why share the good news?

    1. God commands us to

    2. We are to love others

    3. He who is wise wins souls (Proverbs 11:30)

    4. Hell is the alternative

    5. God is glorified through this

- It all starts with a conversation!!

    - friendly opening

    - What's your experience with Christianity?

    - Positive/negative experience?

    - EMPATHIZE (as Nader said, 'We're not jerks! We can't change people's experiences, but we can apologize for it)

    - What do you mean by that?

    - How did you come to that conclusion?

    - Have you ever considered...

- These are some easy ways to just converse and get to know people, and where they stand with 'God stuff'... again, while being empathetic.

- The Gospel - The Good News

    - God loves you! (John 3:16)

    - Sin separates us from God, and can ultimately kill us. (Romans 3:23, 6:23)

    - Jesus is the ONLY Saviour (John 4:16, Romans 5:8)

    - You need to repent and believe to be saved (Mark 1:15, Ephesians 2:8)

- In closing they asked for prayer...

    - the movement in Melbourne (where they've been ministering)

    - Windsor and Toronto

    - Shane and Nader

    - You and I to do God's will.

Pastor Caroline closed with prayer and anointing  the speakers and spoke 1 Peter 3

1 Peter 3:15-18The Message (MSG)

^13-18 If with heart and soul you’re doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you’re still better off. Don’t give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. It’s better to suffer for doing good, if that’s what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That’s what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God.

Cheers

Heather

Something to think about... Jesus tended to thousands... but mentored 12.

Sunday August 3, 2015

Some notes from Sunday's service. (Thanks, Jean)

 

 

 

 

Dr. Barclay -Something to Think About.

 

The example of the temple in Israel versus the benefits of Godly clean living.

 

God has shown unfailing love to the nation of Israel. We as human -people have been known not to learn from history. We humans are not quick to learn and need to have things repeated over and over again. 

Solomon succeeds his Father David and is tasked with building the temple- the house of God. The temple was the center of Jewish worship. However as we learn from scripture he did follow through as he was told, he allowed pagan practices and idol worship into the land of Israel.

1 Kings chapter 6 to 9

1 Chronicles chapter 28 to 2 chronicles -end of chapter 7

1 Kings 11:4-8King James Version (KJV)

4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father.
7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

 

King James Version (KJV)

Solomon's duty was to build the temple for God, after Solomon's death the nation of Israel was divided and went down hill.The temple fell into disrepair and pagan, idol worship was widespread in Israel. 
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 [Full Chapter]

What? know ye not that your body is  the  temple  of  the  Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have  of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price:  therefore glorify God in your body, and in your  spirit, which are God's.

 

This scripture tells us we ourselves as people, are now the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are the temple of the living God. We need to keep our lives pure and holy that all may go well with us. When we worship God we will be blessed. When we do not worship God and fall into sin , we will see disastrous results.Our lives are a mirror of the temple in Israel. We need to learn from the example in ancient Israel. When we follow idols, pagan worship and falsehoods we will not prosper and will suffer terrible consequences. 

 

 

Rev. James Weller- Missionary to Russia and Eastern Europe

 

2 Timothy 3:15King James Version (KJV)

15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
 
Reverend Weller has been involved in ministry in Eastern Europe for over 20 years. He spoke on how it is such a tremendous joy to give a Bible to someone who has never had one before in their own language. A very significant and important part of the Roma/ Gypsy history is the printed New Testament Bible in their own Roma/Gypsy language. Bibles are so rare in eastern Europe people truly value and treasure them. Reverned Weller shared with us the exciting news that people in Russia and Eastern Europe, countries such as Bulgaria and Macedonia are coming to Christ in great numbers. Here in North America Bibles are so plentiful, we take it for granted how easily the word of God can be obtained. Yet for many people in various parts of the world accessing and reading the word of God, may be of great difficulty.
The missionary zeal and passion of Rev. James and his wife Olive Weller should inspire us all to continually give and pray for our Christian brethren in Russia and Eastern Europe.