As Jesus prepared to begin his public ministry on earth, he gazed across the horizon and saw many opportunities begging for his time, his talent and his treasure. He saw multiple paths laid out before him, each one worthy of his pursuit. He could have been a political revolutionary or a national leader. He could have been content to be a teacher, educating the minds of those interested in pursuing temple work. He could have been a physician and healed bodies. But in the end he chose to be a Savior and save souls. Anyone near Jesus for any length of time heard him say, "The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them" (Luke 19:10). "The Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people" (Mark 10:45). The heart of Christ was relentlessly focused on one task...providing a way of salvation for mankind.
As his followers, we are to continue what Jesus started. Jesus calls us not only to come to him, but to go for him. Our mission is so significant that Jesus repeated it five times, in five different ways, in five different books of the Bible. Take time this week to study Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15, Luke 24:47, John 20:21 and Acts 1:8, and learn the details of our mission on earth--the when, where, why, and how. Consider joining us this Sunday at 9:30am as we conclude our DNA series: Who we are. What we do. This week we will look at our last core value: Go, show, and tell the gospel boldly. This final core value is a culmination of passionately worshiping God together as we grow in our relationship with him. I believe our only response to a life lived with Jesus at the center is to share in his earthly mission. Our vision to make Jesus non-ignorable in Beaverton and to the ends of the earth must be what drives our daily activities. You won't want to miss this Sunday, as we look at Romans 10:14-17, which contains the apostle Paul's closing argument for the importance of the gospel as the only hope for mankind. Following the service, our adult Sunday school class will continue its study in the book of Acts. Make plans to stick around after the service and experience Christian fellowship as we explore the life of the early church. Note: Learn to connect with one another authentically as we collect beanies and scarfs for Tonya Erhardt. If you would like more information about this opportunity, you can email the church at [email protected], or speak with Jo Leiby on Sunday. Thank you for being a praying church. See you Sunday. Doug James 4:8 reads, "Come near to God and he will come near to you." You are as close to God as you choose to be. Like any relationship, developing a deeper relationship with God takes desire, time and energy. Growing to know God more deeply must become a passion above all others. The Psalms are filled with examples of one's desire to know God deeply. David, in speaking of his passion to know God, used words like longing, yearning, thirsting and hungering. He craved God. Jacob's passion for God's blessing on His life was so intense that he wrestled with God all night. God isn't hurt or offended when we wrestle with him, because wrestling requires personal contact. It is a passionate activity, and God loves it when we are passionate with him.
So, how exactly do we "Grow to know God deeply"? Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we explore this third core value. Larry Annes will help us to explore what the Bible says about nurturing our faith and how we can be more intentional in growing up in our faith. Each of the four values we are looking at are related to one another. As we grow to know God more deeply it will cause us grow up in our worship of God, our connections to one another, and how share the Good News of the Gospel with others. As you prepare your minds and hearts for Sunday, pray this prayer: "Dear God, more than anything else, I want to get to know you more intimately." Join us this Sunday at 9:30am. Take time to draw close to God and watch as He fulfills His promise to draw near to you. Following the service, our adult Sunday school class will continue its study in the book of Acts. Make plans to stick around after the service and experience Christian fellowship as we explore the life of the early church. Note: Learn to connect with one another authentically as we collect beanies and scarfs for Tonya Erhardt. If you would like more information about this opportunity, you can email the church at [email protected], or speak with Jo Leiby on Sunday. Thank you for being a praying church. See you Sunday. Doug One of the surest barometers of the quality of your Christian life is the quality of the Christian relationships in your life. When that deteriorates, you're going backwards spiritually. Acts 2:42 confirms that connecting with one another authentically was a high priority in the early church. When you read the verse, you might be thinking, "And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and..." What will be next? Surely, it must be some type of Bible Study or Sunday School class; or, maybe they devoted themselves to missions. I believe today's church views Christian relationships as a nice add-on, maybe the the whipping cream on the dessert of the Christian life--but surely not the main thing, or even the second, third or fourth thing. But fellowship, connecting with one another authentically, is the second thing Luke mentions.
As we continue to be reminded of the core values on which this church was founded, Christian relationships is also our second core value. Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we focus on the value of connecting with one another authentically. Authentic fellowship is not superficial, surface-level conversations. It is genuine, heart-to-heart, conversations, some of which you can't have with anybody else. It happens when people get honest about who they are and what is happening in their lives. They share their hurts, confess their failures, reveal their doubts and acknowledge their need for help and prayer. Why would anyone seek out this type of relationship? Because it helps us grow spiritually and because the Bible tells us too. James 5:16 reads, "Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed." Consider joining us on Sunday and learn the spiritual value of Christian community. In preparation, take time to read Hebrews 10:19-25 and ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart to the importance of fellowship in the life of the believer. Following the service, our adult Sunday school class will continue its study in the book of Acts. Make plans to stick around after the service and experience Christian fellowship. Before I close-out this edition of TAB, I want to share with you an opportunity to practice our core commitment to connect with one another authentically. As many of you are aware, Tonya Erhardt, the daughter of Tom and Teresa, and the grandaughter of Dennis and Mary Stevens, has been battling a rare form of bone and cartilage cancer. This has required extensive chemo and radiation treatment. We are thankful that during her last visit, her labs showed that the lesions on her eye socket and lungs have reduced in size...PRAISE GOD! Please continue to pray for complete healing. One side-affect of her treatment is the loss of her hair, which in this weather, can make for a cold head! We would like to show our love, support and encouragement for Tonya by presenting her with a collection of beanies and scarves that she can use to keep her head warm. We will be sharing more about this opportunity on Sunday, but wanted to get the word out to those who may not be able to attend church this Sunday. If you would like more information about this opportunity, you can email the church at [email protected], or speak with Jo Leiby on Sunday. Thank you for being a praying church. See you Sunday. Doug This past November, Parkside Fellowship celebrated 67 years of ministry in Beaverton. If you look around, a lot has changed over the last 67 years, and with changes comes "Mission" or "Purpose" drift. The reality is, over time, it is easy for a church to forget who they are, why they exist and what they are supposed to be about.
This is exactly what happened to the temple in Jerusalem. As Jesus began his final week here on earth, he decided to visit the temple, and when he did, he quickly discovered that the priests and religious leaders had lost sight of God's original vision for the temple. According to the prophet Isaiah, and Jesus himself, the temple was to be a place of worship and prayer. A place for God to be exalted. Instead, it had become a place to buy and sell goods, while stealing from the poor. In short, it had become a place for one's own personal pleasure. Join us this Sunday at 9:30am as we embark on a four week journey focusing on who we are and what we do. As we look to the future and embrace where God is taking us as Calvary Parkside, we will take time to look back at the core values on which this church was founded. Core values (core commitments) designed to grow us and shape us into the likeness of Jesus. This Sunday, we will focus on the first core value of worship God passionately. The church exists for God, to glorify God, to worship God. When God's people gather to worship Him passionately, God things start occurring. God blesses those who gather to magnify and exalt His name. It's why we exist as individuals and as a church. Join us this Sunday at 9:30am as we worship God passionately...together! NOTE: This Sunday, following the service, our adult Sunday School class will resume its study in the book of Acts. This is a great study as we enter a new year and recommit ourselves to going, showing and telling the gospel boldly (one of our core values)! Praying for one another helps us to connect with one another authentically (a core value). See you Sunday. Doug |
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