Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:
7:00 pm - Erkelens Home and Cunningham Home
10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom
Many of us come from very different church backgrounds where physical expression in corporate worship was either overemphasized and an end in itself or, on the other end of the spectrum, looked down upon and discouraged. The Bible teaches, however, that physical expression is appropriate as an expression of the theologically-informed emotions that right worship of God produces. If you’d like to learn more, have found yourself uncomfortable with physical expression or simply have questions, take the time to read this outstanding series of articles written by Director of Sovereign Grace Music, Bob Kauflin.
How do we grow in physical expressiveness in worship, Part 1
How do we grow in physical expressiveness in worship, Part 2
How do we grow in physical expressiveness in worship, Part 3
How do we grow in physical expressiveness in worship, Part 4
This Sunday, we had the joy of being led in our corporate worship by a rebuilt and revamped worship team, prompting us to ask an important question: what’s the most important instrument in our corporate worship? Psalm 100 answers that question: it’s us, the collective voices of the congregation. Psalm 100 also gives us the distinctions of how to worship God in a way that’s glorifying to Him. This is an important message and one that we hope the Lord will use to create a permanent culture of grateful, joyful and loud singing in our little church.
Join the men of the church for a night of discussion and fellowship. They meet at the Fourth Street Market at 7 pm. Any guy is welcome to join, whether you attend the church or not, age 16 and over. We hope to see you there.
Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:
7:00 pm - Fourth Street Market Patio
10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom
12:00 pm - Houlton Home
Below is a listing of the timeless traits of the Church we’ve encountered in the book of Acts as a Church. This past Sunday, we were challenged to not only hear and see but to turn (understand and respond). To help you in this, we’ve summarized the timeless trait from every sermon preached over the past 10 months. Review these. Pray over the ones the Lord revealed room to repent and grow in.
Further, we’ve included the summary list of the 5 traits we believe we should most focus on as a church as we move on from the book of Acts:
The Gospel - The timeless message of the Church
Prayer, Bible Intake, Fellowship, Giving - The timeless habits of the Church
Gospel proclamation - The timeless mission of the Church
Dependence on the Holy Spirit - The timeless power of the Church
Joy - The timeless expression of the Church
1:1-2 - Acts gives us the timeless traits of the church
1:1-11 - The timeless mission of the church is the Spirit-empowered announcement of the atonement
1:12-26 - The church itself is timeless; being a Christian is a big deal
2:1-40 - The Holy Spirit is the timeless Guide and Guardian of truth. He leads us into Gospel truth and preserves it from age to age.
2:42-47 - The timeless rhythms of the church are set by the gospel
3:1-26 - The Gospel is the timeless gift of the church to the world
4:1-22 - "You can arrest me, but you can't arrest my Gospel" - The timeless authority of the church in the face of opposition.
4:23-31 - When the world is raging, we need a vision of God reigning. God is timelessly reigning over all the world’s raging.
4:32-5:16 - Hypocrisy is the timeless vandal of the church
5:17-42 - God's sovereignty is the church's timeless confidence
6:1-7 - Deacons are the timeless shock absorbers of the church
6:8-7:60 - When everything stands against you, Jesus stands for you. Jesus is our timeless Advocate.
8:1-40 - God is the timeless pursuer of the lost
9:1-31 - Jesus' death on the cross alone is His timeless means of salvation
9:32-43 - Jesus' resurrection timelessly reverses the effects of sin
10:1-48 - Jesus is the Common Lord of our uncommon lives. The Gospel brings timeless unity and equality amidst our diversity.
11:1-30 - God's presence is the timeless rock in times of adjustment
12:1-25 - Prayer is the timeless power of the powerless
13:1-14:28 - Courage is the timeless necessity of the church on mission
15:1-41 - The truth of God's Word is our timeless foundation when we disagree
15:36-18:22 - The Spirit of God is the timeless Establisher of our steps
16:16-40 - The joy of Jesus is the only joy that endures. Don't let anyone tell you a Christian can be robbed of their joy.
17:16-34 - The God of the Bible is the timeless God of the church ... and of all mankind.
18:23-21:14 - The only way to follow Jesus is to leave yourself behind. The timeless call of Christ to take up our cross in order to find life.
19:11-12 - Miracles are the timeless extension of Jesus' resurrection life into the church
19:1-7, 20:7 - The Sacraments are the timeless representations of our redemption. Timeless symbols of the Gospel that deepen the reality of our redemption.
20:13-38 - The life God gives you is the timeless best life possible for you
21:15-22:22 - Jesus' rejection is your timeless acceptance
22:23-23:11 - Only a Living Jesus can call us to live and die for him. Only a Living Jesus can make a timeless call upon our lives.
23:12-35 - Providence
24:1-27 - The Gospel is the only timeless offense of the church
25:1-27 - The fear of man is the timeless temptation of the church
26:1-32 - Right convictions are timelessly rooted in God's Word (revelation)
27:1-28:15 - The timeless hope of the church is not the absence of trouble. Our hope is that Jesus will strengthen us to endure the storm, not eliminate it.
28:16-31 - Series finale
Cost - $150 per person - cost includes all expenses except for transportation to and from the retreat
Scholarships available
Sunday gathering will be conducted onsite together in Idyllwild
Children 3 and under are free
3 days of:
God-glorifying, soul-edifying teaching
Fun and activities
Fellowship with the people you love and people you will come to love
Separating from the routine to draw near to God, your church and your family
October 8-10, 2021
Idyllwild, CA
At the end of the book of Acts, we’re left with a challenge; one that’s reiterated throughout the pages of Scripture. It’s the challenge of taking action based on what has been seen and heard. Paul’s Jewish audience in Rome heard the preaching of the Gospel from Paul’s own lips, yet they only bickered among themselves about his message, refusing to turn to Christ in faith. In similar fashion, we have heard the message of the Gospel and the timeless traits of the Church over the course of the last 10 months in Acts. While we have experienced the fruit of the Holy Spirit among us in many ways, there are still plenty of ways that we as a church body and as individuals have opportunities to respond.
In Sunday's sermon on Acts 27:1-28:15, we learned that while Jesus doesn’t remove the presence of the storms of life, he’s never absent in their midst. Though he has the power to stop the storm with a word (see Lk 8:22-25), sometimes he doesn’t. In those cases, his power toward us is not experienced in his eliminating of our storms but in his empowering us to endure them. Power that often comes to us as sustaining and preserving mercy amidst the troubled waters of our lives.
Go back and reread Acts 27:1-28:15. Do so with your eyes open and on the look out for all of the many and varied mercies that the Apostle Paul is met with in the midst of his voyage to Rome. There are many we can see, but one of the most notable ways Jesus is mercifully present with Paul is through other people:
Paul is accompanied on his voyage by his faithful friends, Luke and Aristarchus (27:2). These men enter into the storm with Paul and walk with him through it to the other side. Now, having others at our side doesn’t make the waves any less violent, but it sure does help us to endure
Paul’s voyage is bookended by his gathering with the local church (27:3, 28:14-15). Paul, after 2 churchless years imprisoned in Caesarea is able to go and “be cared for” by saints in Sidon thanks to the kindness of Julius the Centurion (27:3). He is filled up their fellowship before entering the storm. Afterward, as he has emerged from the storm, he is welcomed by the believers in Puteoli, “invited to stay with them for seven days,” and is subsequently met on the road to Rome by Christians from the city at both 44 and 33 miles out and accompanied on his way into the city (28:13-15). Jesus used these believers to encourage Paul on either end of his treacherous journey to Rome. What’s more, is that these people were perfect strangers to Paul! Yet, from them he received care and encouragement that Luke makes sure to mention in his account. How much more encouraging for us, who walk with one another from week to week, to be able to gather together as a church to be instruments of Jesus’ mercy to one another. Even when difficult seasons in life may tempt us to pull away from the church, Paul’s story teaches us that those are exactly the times in which we should press in. As we do, Jesus will use his people (our brothers and sisters in Christ) as instruments of his mercy to us.
Paul is encouraged by a common meal (27:33-38). While this is not a Communion meal itself, this common meal shared by Paul, his 2 Christian brothers, and even the 273 remaining unbelievers on board serves to encourage the whole ship. Paul leads the ship in this simple act of eating together and thanks God for his provision even in the midst of the storm. This food nourishes the bodies of the crew and strengthens all aboard to endure the impending beaching of the vessel and the shipwreck that would follow.
Paul is refreshed by the hospitality of the Maltese (28:1-2, 7-10). After the shipwreck, Paul and co. are met with “unusual kindness” as they are welcomed onto the island. Malta means “refuge” and truly, during the 3 months spent wintering on the island, Paul and the rest experienced a refuge and refreshing thanks to the welcome of these people. What’s worth noting is that these people, “the native people” are called “barbarians” in the Greek! That is, they don’t speak Greek or Latin (earning them the label of “barbarians”) and therefore stand at both a linguistic and cultural distance from Paul and the others. However, even though they did not fully understand Paul, they knew he’d just been through a significant storm and so they welcomed him in. They could not change what had happened or what was happening, nor could they fully empathize with Paul, but they could welcome him in and they did just that.
The upshot of all this for us is that, when we’re in the storm, we need to have open eyes and hands to see and receive the mercy of Christ that he extends to us through others. And when we’re not in the storm, we can for one another by making big impacts through small mercies. We can’t banish someone’s storm, fix their situations, or take their troubles away, but we can be with them and extend the mercies of Christ to them in order to help them persevere. Here’s a short-list of small mercies that we can extend to each other as we’re weathering storms together:
Offering or bringing a meal. Press into someone who is struggling by sharing a meal with them. This won’t take away the difficulty, but a meal with a brother or sister will strengthen their body as well as their spirit to carry on as they feel like they’re treading water.
Practicing hospitality and welcoming others into your home. Just as the Maltese welcome Paul and co. onto the island, welcome others into your home as well. Malta means' “refuge” and as Paul and co. spent 3 months wintering on the island, they were provided a temporary refuge from the storm and shipwreck that led them there. What’s more is that the Maltese, the “native people” of the island were, “barbarians” (the Greek word underlying the translation of “native people” in 28:2). This means that they did not speak Greek or Latin. Because of this, they stood at both a linguistic and cultural difference from Paul and the others. They hadn’t gone through the shipwreck with them and even now, they still couldn’t fully understand or empathize with them, but they welcomed them anyway. For us, we don’t need to be able to empathize perfectly with someone else in order to draw near to them and encourage them in their storm. We don’t need to have all the right words to say. We don’t need to have a shared experience. We don’t need to have a solution. We can provide a small refuge to a friend in them storm as we simply welcome and care for them.
Drawing near to a brother or sister and pressing in to encourage them even if you don’t know what to say or necessarily what you can do to “fix” their situation. Weather the storm with them and don’t worry if you can’t banish the storm away. Be an extension of Jesus’ presence with his people by your presence with a friend who is in the storm.
Telling someone when you’re praying for them when you’re praying for them. It’s not that it increases the effectiveness of your prayer, but it lets the person you’re praying for know that God is mindful of them and that they are cared for.
Serve them practically by bearing a burden or helping with a task.
Gently point out evidences of grace to help a friend fixated on the storm clouds that God is still at work in many ways. How is God at work? How is he using them fruitfully even in this season? Like Paul, they may be in the midst of a storm for the purpose of being an instrument of mercy to others. Paul was placed in the storm so that God could save the lives of the crew. He had to go through what he did, but in the midst of all his suffering, God was using him to care for, encourage, and minister to others.
Point them back to God’s promises again and again. Just as the angel came to Paul and assured him of Jesus’ promise to him, we should do the same. Jesus told Paul he’d certainly get to Rome and the angel told him that no storm would stop this. What promises of God can we share with others who are tempted to worry or fear that whatever stormy season they’re in could mean that God’s is not working to pursue his good purposes in their lives? What promises of God can we cast ourselves upon as we face the storms of life? (see Deut 31:8; Mt 28:20; James 4:6; Lam 3:22-23; Ps 34:18-19; Heb 4:14-16).
Let’s pursue the mercy that’s available in our life together.
If you’ve been visiting for any length of time and would like to learn more about what we believe as a church and how those beliefs take shape in the life of the church, this class is for you. The aim is to help you discern whether or not this is the church family the Lord is calling you to. If we discover together that this isn’t the church for you, we want to help you find another church. If by the end of the class you believe this is where the Lord is leading you, then we’d love to take steps toward welcoming you as a member and assisting you to plug into the life of the church.
