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As the Lord allows, this coming Lord’s Day and on Sunday, January 20^th, we will cover our January Bible Study for 2013. I will bring an introductory sermon on each of these two Lord’s Day mornings; and, we will have two forty-five minute study sessions beginning at 6:00pm on these two Sundays!

I hope you will set aside these dates and times to be part of this study. It is great that the study this year is about the Passion Week. Just two weeks ago, we celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ with an annual Christmas Sermon; and, now we move immediately to His death, burial, and resurrection.

The sermon for this coming Sunday morning is entitled, “Contemporary Applications.” It is the “So What?” message of the series. I usually do the applications at the end of a message or series of messages, but, I wanted to introduce these lessons by pointing out clearly why we should be concerned about the events that have been called, “The Most Important Week in Human History.”

First, we will consider what is means to us today that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. 1980 years after these events what do they mean to us and how should they impact our lives today?

Second, we will consider how these events reveal what is truly our greatest need. All humans share this greatest need and that need, and how God meets that need, can be clearly seen in these events!

Third, we will consider what these events teach us about the nature of God. He reveals Himself more clearly in this one week of human history than at any other time. We need to know Who God is and what He is like… and we will see that clearly!

Fourth, we will consider what these events teach us about the motive for and nature of God’s relationship with humans. Last night at our Theology Reading Group we discussed the question, “Why would God even bother with rebellious people such as we are?” This will also become clear during this study!

Fifth, what does the radical nature of God’s way of salvation teach us about the existence of any other way to be saved?

Sixth, we will consider the implications of this reality and what it teaches us about the kind of people who reject God’s offer of free and full salvation!

Seventh, and finally, we will consider what these eleven key events teach us about what our response must be to what God has done for us and how we ought to respond to those around us and around the world who do not know Jesus and what He has done for them!

In my humble, but accurate opinion, this is going to be a very helpful study. I know all of us are busy… too busy… but, I hope you will invest the time to be part of this and that you will invite family and friends to attend with you.

I hope to see you Sunday with your Bible in your hand, a smile on your face, and family and friends by your side!

As I was driving in to work, I was listening to a local radio talk show host opining about how the real problem in American politics is the “Christian Right” in the Republican Party. His thesis was simple; if Christians would stop advocating and agitating for “Christian Values” more people would vote for Republicans (especially fiscally conservative ones) and we could get out of this financial mess in which we find our State and our Nation.

I hear this position lots lately and I am not at all surprised that the host would hold and espouse such nonsense. And, yes, it is utter nonsense. Here is why…

I believe that people who do not have a living personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and therefore do not believe His Holy Word, the Christian Bible, live in what I describe as an “alternative universe.” In this make-believe universe they think that either there is no god, or, if there is a god, that god is certainly not the God revealed in the Christian Bible.

They apparently feel comfortable leaving God and His will out of the equation when they formulate their political and ethical views. They fabricate this alternative universe and make judgments based on their views and desires. Sadly, they also strive to impose their views and desires upon everyone else; including those who do not inhabit their “make-believe” universe.

Since they begin with such foolish presuppositions, it is impossible for them to build a “Real-world” ethic by which to live. In their universe their own views, ethics, and will become the standard by which everyone and everything is judged.

They have a real problem. This godless and amoral alternative universe only exists in their mind. The “Real World” is the world as it is revealed in the Christian Bible!

The God of the Christian Bible is the One, True, and Living God. The Christian Bible is His holy inspired and inerrant Word. He is the only real God there is, His Word is the only divine Word there is, and what He says is true is true.

Since the above paragraph is absolutely true, what does that mean in the context of our present situation in America?

“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” Proverbs 14:34 (English Standard Version)

That which God desires and decrees is righteous and that which He forbids is sin! When a people obey His Word, His will, and His way, He blesses and exalts that people. But, when a people disobey His Word, His will, and His way, He leaves them to reap the fruit of their own sins.

I believe that this is exactly where we are today as a Nation. Many have asked if the problems we face in our Nation are the judgment of God. They may well be, but, all God has to do to bring “judgment” on us is to leave us to our own devices! I believe that many of our problems are simply self-inflected. When we disregard and disobey God’s Word, we are set on a path that ultimately leads to struggles and sorrow.

What the God of the Christian Bible says to be sin is sin; and, “sin is a reproach to any people.” We may reclassify sin, tolerate sin, and even celebrate sin. But, it is still sin and it will always bring reproach on us and our Nation.

So, regardless of personal positions, party preference, or political persuasion, the God of the Christian Bible is the “Real God” of the “Real World” and what He says in His Word is really true. Righteousness really does exalt a Nation and sin really is a reproach to any people!

The answer to our present dilemma is not complicated. We must continually repent of our sins against God; and we must study and submit to His holy Word.

If and when we do, God may choose to relent and bless us!

The dawning of a New Year practically demands that we think about our life, set priorities, and make resolutions. I’ll stick with the same five I make every year and hope that finally I will keep at least one of them…

With all of this thinking going on, let me ask you to think about our beloved Church. We have been blessed of the Lord to be part of a wonderful group of Christians, and if we are not careful it will be easy to hope for more of the same!

Every Church, (including ours) can improve and I believe that the Lord not only wants us to be continually repenting and becoming more and more sanctified; but, HE wants all of us together as a Local Church to be continually repenting and becoming more and more sanctified as well.

First, our dreams for our Church must be biblical dreams. Our dreams should not be for our glory, but for God’s glory! I have often thought – and said – that I wish we were ten times larger than we are and that we were the smallest church in town… In the weeks ahead, I will spend some time giving more and more details about my dreams for our Church.

Again, our dreams for our Church should be big dreams. I have been blessed dozens and dozens of times by Pat Pajak’s preaching; and, one outline that has stayed with me is, “Dream Big, Work Hard, and Don’t Quit!” I remember him saying that it doesn’t cost anything to dream, so dream big!

As I thought about getting all of us to think about and dream about what God could do through us in the coming year, my thoughts turned again and again to my favorite passage of Scripture, Acts 2:42-47. As the Lord allows, I will preach from this passage this coming Lord’s Day as it gives clear images of what a Church ought to be and do.

In this passage, I see six specific things about the Church in Jerusalem that form the parameters of my dream. This was a Church of deep devotion, wonder-filled worship, unity, sacrificial sharing, rich relationships, and effective evangelism!

Churches do not get any better than that!

ALSO, please start reading and praying through Luke 19:28 through 24:49. These chapters are the focus of our 2013 January Bible Study on “The Last Week of Jesus’ Life.” We will take two Sundays in January (the 6^th and 20^th) and use both the AM and PM Services for this study.

There are sign-up sheets at the Welcome Center and I hope you will take a few minutes to sign-up so I can prepare the right number of syllabi for the study.

It is the joy of my life to serve Jesus by serving you! I hope to see you Sunday Morning with your Bible in your hand, a smile on your face, and your family and friends by your side…

The Facts:

1: Christmas Sunday and Easter Sunday are the most highly attended church services of the year in America.

2: More people who do not normally attend church will attend a church service on these two Sundays than any other service of the year.

3: A much higher percentage of people whom you invite to church with you will actually attend one of these services than on any other Sunday in the year.

4: THEREFORE, It is vitally important that you invite as many of your family members and friends as possible to our services this coming Sunday!

Luke 2:6-11 (ESV)

(6) “And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. (7) And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. (8) And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. (9) And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. (10) And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. (11) For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Of course I realize that if you ask 100 people out in a public place what is the meaning of Christmas, you will get many different answers. Even among Christians, some opinions will vary.

But, the right answer to that question is a simple one: God loves sinners, so HE sent us a Savior!

That is the bottom line! We are sinners, so God sent us a Savior. Jesus of Nazareth, God’s One and Only Son, came to this earth to be a Savior for sinners.

Jesus, the God-Man; God in human flesh!

This Sunday, as the Lord allows, this will be the subject of my 2012 Christmas Sermon. I am praying that the Lord will bless our people who are able to be here and that HE will draw lots of our family and friends to be here with us. I hope that you will ask your family and friends to come this week and sit with you.

I hope to see you Sunday with your Bible in your hand, a smile on your face, and your family and friends by your side!

As the Lord allows, we are expecting another day of blessing on this coming Lord’s Day! Following “Happy Hour” (also known as Sunday School) we will enjoy our time of worship and fellowship together.

We will have the joy of hearing our Director of Missions, Mike McCoy, as he brings our sermon for the morning! Mike and his wife, Cheryl, have visited with us before, but this will be the first time he will preach for us here at our Church!

Also, this is the Sunday that we begin receiving our 2012 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions! I hope that you will join Lin and me in giving a truly sacrificial offering. As you know, 100% of the funds received in this offering goes directly to our missionaries and their work. We will receive this offering on each of the five Sundays in December.

Our denominational goal this year is $150,000,000.00! It would be impossible for us to give too much to this effort. I pray that we will give the largest Missions offering in the history of our Church this year.

At 6pm, we will have our ANNUAL MEMBERS’ MEETING when we will discuss and vote on our 2013 Budget, our Officers for 2013, a new church policy, and the recommendation of our Elders that we create a new part-time position of “Associate Pastor of Discipleship and Missions” and, that we call Rev. Pete Hopkins to serve us in that capacity.

I hope to see you at both services with a smile on your face, your Bible in your hand, and your family by your side!

One of the best things about this wonderful Church is your generosity! I have worked with this dear Church since 1999, and have had the joy of serving as your Pastor since 2007. In that time, we have again and again given far above the average for churches of our size.

Whether it is to Missions, our members, people in our Community, or to the Staff; you are a generous and loving people and I thank God for being part of this Church! Last year we gave $30,269.00 to mission causes, which was about 11% of our total income for the year!

Every Sunday in December (as we do each year) we will receive our annual Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions!  These funds go directly to support of our nearly 5,000 International Missionaries with none of the funds used for administrative costs. The funds make up a large percentage of the total received by our Missionaries each year.

I want to challenge you to join Lin and I in giving a truly sacrificial offering again this year. As the Lord allows, this coming Lord’s Day morning I will preach on the subject, “Why do we give to Missions?” I know that seems like a simple question, but, there are lots of biblical reasons for so doing.

As you prepare to hear God’s Word this Sunday, read and think over John 4:35-38 and think about the following questions:

What does it mean to us that God, Himself, has commanded His people to live sacrificial lives and give sacrificially so the work of His Kingdom may be accomplished?

How does giving to missions result from our love for the Lord and for lost people?

Paris Reidhead famously said that he went to the foreign mission field, “So Jesus would receive that for which He paid.” What does that mean to you, and how should that impact our giving?

God only saves people through hearing the Word of God. How does knowing that impact our passion for giving to missions?

Finally, how does knowing that people are lost impact your desire to give to missions?

I think it is fair to say that in the part of Central Illinois that makes up Central Baptist Association, there are over 307,000 lost people. In Illinois there are over 10,000,000 million lost people. In North America there are over 279,000,000 lost people. And, in the rest of the world, there are another 5,300,000,000 (5.3 billion) people who are lost!

The genius of Southern Baptist missions is that we are able to impact lostness at every level. One of the largest missions offerings ever in history is the annual Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. The goal this year is $150,000,000.00

I hope you will give generously and pray passionately so this goal will be exceeded.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I hope to see you Sunday with your Bible in your hand, a smile on your face, and family and friends by your side!

As you are well aware, this coming Sunday is Thanksgiving Sunday. This is a happy time of year that sees many getting together with family and friends to celebrate the goodness and blessings of God over the past year. For many, this has been a very difficult year, but even in that God sustains and blesses His people and we still have much for which to be thankful.

Of the many “Thanksgiving” Psalms, our text for this week, Psalm 136, is among the most popular. It is often read both privately and publicly at times of thanksgiving and praise. We know it was very popular among the people of Israel as it was sung at the Dedication of Solomon’s Temple (2^nd Chronicles 7:3) and at the Dedication of the restored foundation of the Temple during the time of Ezra. (Ezra 3:10-11)

This Psalm, like many praise passages of Scripture, are given to be read (or sung) antiphonally, that is responsively. We will do this in our service on this coming Lord’s Day.

While it appears that preachers love to break messages down to three parts… this Psalm naturally breaks that way. It is clear that the anonymous writer of Psalm 136 had three great works of God in mind: Creation, the Exodus, and the Wilderness Wandering.

Rather than following that exact pattern, I will go through this Psalm by highlighting Who God is, What He is like, and What He does.

The God of the Christian Bible is the ONE TRUE and LIVING GOD! He is a good God and His love endures forever! He has done and still does wonderful things for those people who are “The apple of His eye.”

I hope that you will take some time to read through, think through, and pray through Psalm 136 as you prepare your mind and heart for the sermon this Sunday. I hope to see you Sunday with a smile on your face, your Bible in your hand, and family and friends by your side!

I certainly realize how very busy everyone is and how many demands there already are on your time. So here is what I am praying that the Lord will allows us to accomplish:

1) Involve more of our members and guests in Bible study. It is my hope that having studies two Sunday evenings per month will encourage those who are not currently attending to set aside these times to facilitate their personal discipleship process. These classes will be spiritual formation type of classes which will deepen your walk with the Lord and equip you to enhance your personal worship of Christ and your service for Him.

As the Lord provides, we hope to offer more than one Bible Study at these times so that more people may be attracted by multiple opportunities and multiple topics as they are offered.

Also, as the Lord leads us to start Off-Campus Bible Study Fellowships most of them will likely choose to meet on these two Sunday evenings each month.

2) By having Team Meetings on the Second Sunday evening of each month, I hope to make it easier and more convenient to serve on these Teams as well as making it easier for Teams to meet regularly.

3) By having Ministry Training on the fourth Sunday of each month, I want to get back to regular and systematic ministry training and make it more convenient for Ministry Team members to attend.

4) We will continue to take 5th Sunday and “Holiday” Sunday evenings off to spend with our family.

Remember the New Schedule:

1^st and 3^rd Sundays at 6:00pm – Discipleship Bible Study

2^nd Sundays at 6:00pm – Ministry Teams (Elders, Deacons, etc. who need to meet may meet at this time.) Of course, these Teams may meet whenever they choose, but I believe that setting aside a Sunday evening each month will protect our weeknights from more and more meetings.

4^th Sundays at 6:00pm – Ministry Training such as, “Understanding the Bible” “Teaching the Bible” “How to Share Your Faith” “Praying Effectively” etc.

5th Sundays and “Holidays” – There will normally be no events scheduled at Church. 

FYI: Our Bible Studies on the 1^st and 3^rd Sunday evenings in both January and February will be The 2013 Southern Baptist January Bible Study “The Last Week in Jesus’ Life from The Gospel of Luke”.

It is my sincere prayer and hope that you will take full advantage of these times to enrich your personal walk with the Lord and your service for Him!

This coming Lord’s day will mark the 94^th Anniversary of the end of WW1 which was ended by an armistice that went into effect on the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month in 1918.

Since June 1^st, 1954, the day has been called “Veterans’ Day” to honor all veterans of US Military Service.

As Citizens of God’s Kingdom, we must understand that military service is an honorable thing in the service of a Nation that is striving to uphold Biblical Principles. No Christian should serve a Nation that is attempting to destroy another Nation or Nations who are attempting to uphold Biblical principles!

One of the clearest illustrations of this principle is seen in our passage for today where we see that the people of God are being attacked by the Philistines.

As you think through these verses, please take time to think over the following questions…

Why do you think ungodly people so often attack godly people?

When such attacks occur, how should godly people respond? Is it ever right to make war on other people?

Many times – such as our present text – we see that God’s enemies often have military advantage over God’s people. Is that a cause for despair?

What are the greatest resources that godly people have when they are under attack from their enemies?

Is it always wise to do nothing and wait on God to act? Are God’s people ever His means for victory over evil?

Why do you think that leaders often face criticism from the very people they lead when they take a stand for God and His people?

David looked back to many smaller victories as he faced this great trial of his faith. What victories has the Lord given you that you can look back upon as you face your own fears and foes?

I am thankful every day for the joy of being your Pastor and friend. I am thankful for being provided the time and tools to study God’s Word to share with you. I hope to see you Sunday as we will take time to honor our veterans and their families!

As we worship together this coming Lord’s Day, we will be two days away from the next National election. I am thankful to God that I was born in and that I live in a Nation where the people still have the right to vote for our leaders. I am sick of all of the electioneering – as are most of you; but, I am still thankful for being an American and for the right to participate in our elections.

It is not my intention to try to tell you for whom you should vote. I do not want anyone telling me for whom I ought to vote, so I do not want to tell anyone else. If the American people would allow me to pick our leaders, I would be happy to do so, but – so far at least – they have not offered me that privilege.

I want to go much deeper into the Scriptures and talk about being a Citizen of two Kingdoms: first of all, a heavenly Kingdom; and, secondly, an earthly Nation. The reason we turn to Scripture is simple. With all that is said and said and said about politics and our role as Citizens of our Nation, Jesus always has the final word! No passage could be more clear on this subject than our passage for Sunday morning:

In these verses, we hear people saying nice things to and about Jesus, but the truth that is revealed here tells another story! Their true purpose is to trap Jesus into saying or doing something against the Scripture so they can use that as a reason to deny Him!

Jesus, knowing their real purpose, cuts to the chase… He goes directly to the relationship of His people as Citizens both of heaven and of Rome. And – as He always does – Jesus gives them (and us) the perfect answer:

We are to, “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” and “Render unto God the things that are God’s!”

Simple? Yes and no. (I always love that answer… it is the least helpful ever given.)

While I will have lots to say about this on Sunday, there are three key principles here:

1. We are to be good Citizens of our Nation!

2. We are to be good Citizens of our King and His Kingdom!

3. If and when being a good Citizen of our Nation conflicts with being a good Citizen of our King and His Kingdom, our King and His Kingdom must always take precedence over any and all other allegiances!

As Citizens or our Nation, we have certain rights and responsibilities. As Citizens of our King and His Kingdom, we have certain rights and responsibilities. We can never, never, never allow our responsibilities to our Nation cause us to neglect our responsibilities to our King and His Kingdom!

Since there are no perfect humans, we will never have the opportunity to vote for a perfect candidate in any election; local, State, or National. But, as Citizens of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, we can and must always vote for the candidate who more closely follows the teachings of Jesus!

Sadly, many times there is no follower of Christ for whom to vote in an election. Therefore, there is no really good choice. When we are faced with that situation, the best thing to do is to vote for the candidate who most closely follows the teachings of Jesus.

Next Tuesday is Election Day. The best thing that could happen to our Nation is to be led by people who closely follow the teachings of Jesus, or, at least by people who follow the teachings of Jesus more closely than those who oppose them.

As we go forth to “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s”, we ought to make our choices on the basis of being Citizens of our King and His Kingdom! Thereby, we can be good Citizens of our Nation and our King and His Kingdom.

God bless you! I hope to see you Sunday with your Bible in your hand, a smile on your face, and your family and friends by your side!

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33 (ESV)