Preview of the Coming Weeks

I want to make you aware of exciting things happening over the next several weeks. Please begin planning now to be present and praying that all will glorify the Lord:

 SUNDAY, AUGUST 23

Jesus has promised that the church he builds is invincible. Despite this promise, in some hearts, the pandemic may have dampened enthusiasm for making disciples. At a minimum, COVID has upended familiar schedules, locations, and programs for evangelism and discipleship. This Sunday, I hope to bring a reassuring message from Matthew 16:13-20 reminding us that Jesus is always faithful to build his church. You will have the opportunity to witness the reality of this promise as Amanda Barnes publicly professes her faith through believer’s baptism. After the service, there will be a brief information and training meeting for all who serve on our Hospitality Team.  This team oversees greeting, set-up, and clean-up each time our church gathers. Any members interested in helping should attend.

 SUNDAY, AUGUST 30

Jason Lee will be with us preaching and updating us about our mission partnership serving the refugee community in Clarkston, Georgia. He is an elder with Clarkston International Bible Church and the director of The Acts 17 Initiative.   

 SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6

Annually, toward the end of summer, I preach a biographical sermon applying Hebrews 13:7, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.” Past messages have featured Adoniram Judson, Lottie Moon, George Liele, John Newton, and others (listen to past messages here). This year I have chosen to focus upon the 18th-century missionary to the American Indians, David Brainerd. He was only active in mission work a handful of years before dying at the relatively young age of 29. Though his life was brief, his influence upon word missions was not. If you are finding it hard to make disciples amid hard times, you will discover Brainerd to be an inspiration.  

 SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13

With the arrival of autumn, and hopefully some cooler weather, we will begin a new expositional sermon series, “Behave as God’s Household.” We will study verse-by-verse through the New Testament book of 1 Timothy. We will see how the gospel leads to practical, visible changes in the lives of those who believe it.

For His Glory,
Pastor Thomas

 

Those Who Mourn

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4

DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF BELIEVERS

This is the second in a new series of articles reflecting on the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-12. What kind of people are we to be? What attitudes should mark those who have been truly born again? Jesus calls each of the beatitudes “blessed.”  To be blessed like this is to be in a state of well-being with God.

THOSE WHO MOURN

We do not gravitate to mourning. Our world places a high value on laughter, comedy, entertainment, and above all – fun. Mourning is not fun. The mourning Jesus has in mind is possessing grief over our personal sins and that of the world around us. As individual believers we recognize that our sins are wicked and shameful. Like Isaiah, when we appreciate the glory and holiness of the Lord, we confess our uncleanness (Isa. 6:1-5). We mourn now as we anticipate being fully and finally conformed to the image of God the Son (Rom. 8:29). Beyond our personal sins, we are also grieved by the sins of our church, our community, and all humanity. When we hear reports, or experience firsthand, sins like cruelty, murder, theft, prejudice, unbelief, injustice, immorality, blasphemy, or pride - we mourn.

SHALL BE COMFORTED

Those in Christ who carry this burden of grief for sin have this hope – they shall be comforted! One day the weeping will come to an end. This comfort begins with the certain promise that Jesus’s death fully satisfies God’s wrath toward the sins of all who receive him by faith. This truth germinates our comfort and joy as we hope in God.  In Christ we are given the power to wage war against the very sins over which we grieve. Without mourning our sin and believing that Christ has paid for it, we will never resist any sin. We are comforted as we see the fruit of the Spirit growing in us as we make progress in the pursuit of holiness. Then the day will come when all mourning will end in the new heaven and earth: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" (Rev. 21:4).

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Is mourning a characteristic element of your life?  In the last few hours or days, what sin, in your life or in the world around you, has caused you to grieve? A regular part of our weekly worship gathering is a time of recognizing sin in our own lives and in the world around us. This steady regimen of lament should not be limited to Sundays but should infiltrate our days. Mourning weans us from the titillation of the world and cultivates a hunger for the true comfort promised by our Lord.

For His Glory,

Pastor Thomas

Poor in Spirit

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3  

DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF BELIEVERS
This is the first in a new series of articles reflecting on the Beatitudes found in Matthew 5:3-12. The Lord opens his most famous sermon, The Sermon on the Mount, with a listing of characteristics that are to distinguish his disciples. All of us will do well to carefully reflect on this list and give attention to our own lives.  What kind of people are we to be? What attitudes should mark those who have been truly born again? In stark contrast to worldly reasoning, Jesus calls each of these marks “blessed.”  To be blessed like this is to be in a state of well-being with God that belongs to those who respond in faith to Jesus.   

POOR IN SPIRIT
Being poor in spirit is the first of these characteristics. Just as the fuel gauge in a car helps the driver to recognize a deficiency in fuel, so God’s word helps us to see our need of God. The phrase means to have personal knowledge of spiritual emptiness. To be poor in spirit is to be humble and acutely aware the need for God. This attitude is displayed through repentance of sin.  Truly knowing God by receiving his grace in the gospel produces a disciple who is poor in spirit. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven belongs to the poor in spirit. The citizens of God’s eternal heavenly kingdom will not be those who are arrogant, independent, and unrepentant. Those who lived this life with no real need for God will never see God’s kingdom. Heaven will be only populated with those who are poor in spirit.  

HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are you poor in spirit? Do you think you will enter heaven? On what basis? Jesus wants us to know that, in ourselves, no one has the spiritual resources nor expertise to live a life that is pleasing to God. One of the most insidious, dangerous qualities of human sinful nature is pride.  Personal pride is found at the core of an unbelieving mind and hardened heart. Only when God graciously and miraculously redeems a human soul is anyone able to walk with genuine poverty of spirit. This transformation produces the humble repentance that marks true believers. Only with this poverty of spirit can anyone truly anticipate entering the joy of heaven.

For His Glory,

Pastor Thomas

Do Not Be Quickly Shaken

We ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed… 2 Thessalonians 2:2
 
2020 ANXIETIES
Anytime people experience wars, recessions, famines, shifts in governmental power or natural disasters there are invariably anxieties about the end times. The current pandemic is no different. I want to remind you of two things the Lord announces in his Scripture related to these kinds of tribulations:
 
DO NOT BE SURPRISED
First, the Lord announces that his people will experience tribulations and persecutions in this world. Such will increase leading up to the second coming of Christ (Read Mt. 24; Mk. 13; Lk. 21; 1 Thes. 4-5; 2 Thes. 2; and Revelation). Christ return may be soon or it may be far away – only the Father knows. We pray it will be soon, yet we wait in faithful, enduring anticipation. This we know:  Jesus is coming back and there will be tribulations. No Bible-believing, Jesus follower should be surprised at this.

DO NOT BE QUICKLY SHAKEN
Second, when Lord announces these tribulations he also provides comforting instruction about the sovereignty of God, the sure victory of Jesus Christ, and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Consider these “quick takes” of comfort from the very passages that announce coming tribulations and persecutions:
 

  • Don’t be lead astray (Mt. 24:4)

  • Stay awake (Mt. 24:42)

  • Be ready (Mt. 24:44)  

  • Do not be alarmed (Mk. 13:7)

  • Do not be anxious (Mk. 13:11)

  • Do not be terrified (Lk 21:9)

  • Watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down (Lk 21:34)

  • Encourage one another and build one another up (1 Thes. 5:11)

  • Do not be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed (2 Thes. 2:2)

  • Let no one deceive you in any way (2 Thes. 2:3)

  • Stand firm (2 Thes. 2:15)

  • To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God (Rev 2:7)

  • Here is the call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus (Rev. 14:12)

  • The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son (Rev 21:7)


Brothers and sisters, do not allow all that is happening in 2020 cause your heart to fear. Do not be anxious about tomorrow. Be wise about what you feed your mind and feel in your heart.  Don’t be lead astray. Feast on the Lord. Study his Word and talk to him in prayer.  Continue to delight in the One who gave us this very promise: “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Mt. 28:20).
 
For His Glory,
Pastor Thomas