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Lilies of the Field

3/20/2023

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One of my former Bible school classmates (Abigail Leavitt) is pursuing a PhD in biblical archaeology in Israel. Currently, she is heavily involved as an assistant director of excavations going on at Shiloh, one of the resting places for the tabernacle.[1] This past week, she posted photos of the wildflowers and almond tree blossoms over in Israel right now (see graphic above). After seeing these photos, I couldn’t help but think of Jesus’ words in Matthew 6, and, I couldn’t ​help but think that these might be some of the wildflowers Jesus was talking about when He spoke of “the lilies of the field.” Jesus said these wildflowers aren’t spinning and laboring to be dressed like they are, yet God provides for them and they are beautiful (more so than even Solomon!).
 
But Jesus also spoke of the birds. When I look out my office this week, I’ve seen several birds (back for spring) feeding on the trees even though it’s the last week of winter and there’s not much left on them as far as I can tell. They haven’t stored anything up. They haven’t sown any seeds. Yet, they aren’t worried at all about God’s provision for them! They are trusting God to provide each day as needed. Jesus’ point is not that we should disregard working and earning a living any more than the birds should stop searching for food. His point is that we don’t have to worry! We don’t have to get all worked up about having enough to meet our needs. God, the Creator and Sustainer over everything, is going to provide. So relax! Don’t waste all of your energy living for material things. Godless pagans do that (v. 32). If He provides for the birds and the wildflowers—which have relatively little value compared to man and only last a short time—how much more will He provide for you, oh you of little faith?
 
This isn’t a new truth. Most of us have read Matthew 6 many times with precious thoughts of God's care for us. But sometimes we need the reminder. And sometimes a truth doesn’t hit us like it should because we are so self-sufficient. This text is easy to read when you’re sitting well on a stockpile of cash and a full freezer. But it’s a serious test of faith for those who don’t have much or those who’ve lost everything due to reasons or circumstances outside their control, or maybe those whose eyes are glued to the stock market right now.
 
Just before this teaching (“For this reason,” v. 25), Jesus said just we can only serve one master—money or God. One master is undependable. It can sprout wings and fly away (Prov. 23:5), leaving you anxious. Anxiety can disable you and your testimony, leaving you unfruitful for the kingdom of God. Warren Wiersbe said,
“Worry about tomorrow does not help either tomorrow or today.
If anything it robs us of our effectiveness today--
​which means we will be less effective tomorrow.” [2]
Anxiety not only makes us unfruitful, it can also be harmful to our physical well-being.

However, the other Master (Yahweh-, the sovereign, personal, covenant-keeping, always-present, all-sufficient one as we've been talking about in Exodus), is completely dependable. He is a loving heavenly Father who cares for us and provides for us. 

Nature itself teaches us that God provides for His creatures’ needs.[3] How much more His children’s needs! Rather than living for the things of the world and getting all worked up about what we have or don’t have, Jesus commands us to trust and obey God while being busy about His will and His righteousness. While we serve our Master with singlemindedness, He will see to it that we are taken care of.

In Christ with you,
 
Pastor Justin

[1] Photos: Courtesy Abigail Leavitt, https://abigailsarchaeologicaladventures.wordpress.com. See blog post, “A New Adventure”
[2] Warren Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible Commentary (Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007), 24.
[3] Thomas L. Constable, Notes on Matthew, 211. 

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"Show Me the Evidence."

3/17/2023

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"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasonings, and their senseless hearts were darkened.” (Rom. 1:18-23)
Christians are constantly being challenged to defend their faith (1 Pet. 3:15) and give evidence for God. We often hear the rebuffs of non-believers saying, “If God is real, why doesn’t He make Himself known?” When they say this, what they mean is that they want more proof. I don’t say that like it’s all bad. I relate well to the doubting Thomas’ out there (John. 20:24-29). I want some evidence, too. So, is there any evidence for what we believe? Of course. As Christians, our faith is the evidence of things not yet seen (Heb. 11:1, NASB), but that doesn’t mean that our faith is not based on solid evidence that is or has been seen.
 
The truth is, God has revealed Himself many times in many ways (Heb. 1:1). A revelation could be defined as "God making known to man what man otherwise could not know." And two of those major ways that God has revealed Himself to us is through what Bible students call general and special revelation. General revelation is referring primarily to that which is known generally, or universally, to all. And there are 2 main channels of general revelation: 1) creation. 2) conscience. Paul mentions both in Romans 1. That which is known about God is evident within us (conscience; intuitive; inescapable) because it was made evident to us (creation; creative order; sustaining all things; intelligent design). Creation is said to reveal evidence for God 24/7/365. Around the clock, the heavens (the skies above) are silently "preaching" the glory of God and the work of His hands (Psalm 19:1-2). The complexity and beauty of all of creation—from the microscopic cell to the telescopic solar system—reveal an intelligent, creative Designer behind everything that exists. Everyone can look at the created order and think, "Someone put this together and sustains it." This revelation alone is so evident to us and within us that it’s enough to leave every man without excuse on judgment day (Rom. 1:18-23). It serves as the basis for man's just condemnation. 

God has also provided the special revelation of His written Word we call the Bible. God has communicated to us through language we speak! In fact, so much so that people are intimidated by the size of the book He wrote! There is no other book like it, and it contains the most trusted historical documents in all of ancient history—written by eyewitnesses I might add (Luke 1:1-4; 2 Thess. 2:13; Heb. 4:12; 2 Tim. 3:16).
 
As we saw in the sermon this week, God has revealed Himself powerfully through miraculous signs and wonders at different times to varying degrees. He shows up and acts in real time, in real historical events. But in these last days, the Bible says, He has spoken to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, who is the incarnation of God. He actually came into this world to reveal the truth. He died for our sins and left the evidence of an empty tomb for proof (Heb. 1:1-4)!
 
Miraculous signs though, even that of the resurrection, is no guarantee that people will believe. Jesus said if people won’t listen to the Old Testament alone—just Moses and the Prophets—they won’t be convinced even if someone rises from the dead (Luke 16:31). In fact, I would say that a major way John’s gospel encourages belief is by unmasking the true nature of unbelief. Many saw the evidence. They just didn’t want to believe. Like the religious people in Jesus' day, they rejected Jesus despite undeniable, indisputable evidence (Matt. 16:4). So again, the problem is not always evidence. There’s a lot of evidence! And I hope that evidence encourages you to believe. But as we saw with Pharaoh in Exodus last Sunday, our biggest problem is not the lack of evidence, but what we do with the evidence. The problem isn’t always so much intellectual as it is spiritual. We need a new heart. One that willingly submits to the authority of divine Creator. One born again by the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus Christ (John 3:3; Eph. 2:1-10).
 
If you are seeking God and wondering if this Christianity thing is the real deal, I encourage you to continue to investigate the claims of Christianity and the reliability of the Bible, but eventually the time comes when you have to make a decision. You can learn a lot about God and have all the evidence in the world without ever coming to Him for salvation. The evidence is there. Will you come to Him for salvation?
 
Trusting in Christ with you,
 
Pastor Justin
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New Birth, New Beginnings, and Resurrection

3/11/2023

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​Yesterday, as I was on my way out the door, I noticed some little, green Daffodil sprouts coming up through the rocks on the sunny side of our house. It was a pleasant and hopeful reminder that despite what the forecast says, Spring is on the way! The Farmer’s Almanac website writes, 
​“Because it is one of the first flowers to bloom in spring, daffodils are seen as a representation of rebirth and new beginnings. They are also thought to represent inspiration, forgiveness, and creativity.”
​I like this first flower even more after reading that! Each year, the dawning of spring is a vivid reminder of Christian truths about new birth, new beginnings, and resurrection.
​Jesus said,
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God”
​(John 3:3). If you don’t mind me being personal for a moment, I am so incredibly thankful for the new birth in Christ. I can’t imagine what my life would be like without the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in my life, restoring an empty, broken and confused man such as myself. When we come to faith in Jesus, the Spirit of God comes to live in us, sealing us as God’s own adopted children, guaranteeing us a future inheritance (Rom. 8:16; Gal. 4:4-7; Eph. 1:13-14; Titus 3:4-7). He also gives us the power to walk with Jesus and serve Him (Gal. 5:16-25). Have you experienced that new birth in Christ? Have you been born again by placing your faith in Christ alone? Do you love God? Have His peace in your heart? Love His people? Hunger and thirst for righteousness? Desire to serve Him and share the life-changing news of the gospel with others? These are just a few signs that you may have been born twice! One physically, one spiritually.
​
While we are thankful for the new, secure birth in Christ, we should also be thankful for the new beginnings available for us in Christ. Even though we are children of God, we still sin, and when we do, we do not need to get saved all over again. Remember, we are His children forever. However, because of our sins, our relationship isn’t where it should be and we need to be reconciled to Him, having our sins forgiven so that our sweet fellowship—that oneness—can be restored. Our relationship with Him is restored when, in prayer, we confess our sins to Him. 1 John 1:9 says, 
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just
​to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
What a wonderful promise from our Heavenly Father! It’s worth memorizing, that verse.
 
One time I was having a spiritual conversation with one of my children at bedtime. We were just discussing matters of the gospel when they said, “Dad, I’m not going to sin tomorrow.” While I was genuinely pleased to hear that, I replied, “That’s a good attitude to have. It’s a good desire. But we sin every day in word, thought, or deed. We need His forgiveness daily, moment by moment.” How wonderful to know that God considers even sinners like us as His children (Rom. 4:5). He always loves us and when we do wrong, He is waiting for us to come and sit on His lap and fess up to what we already know He knows. He is waiting to extend forgiveness daily as needed. We can confess our sins, thank Him for His forgiveness, and continue to walk with Him in a new beginning.
 
Finally, spring reminds us of the hope of the resurrection--life springing up from the dead. Jesus rose from the grave and the Bible says we will too (Rom. 8:12-25; 1 Cor. 15). When we see Him, we will be like Him (1 John 3:1-2). What a breath of fresh air it will be when that special day dawns and the morning star arises in our hearts, and we receive resurrected, glorified bodies like our Savior (2 Pet. 1:19)! Let's give our attention to His Word until that day comes.
 
 
In Christ with you,
 
 
Pastor Justin
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Determinate or Indeterminate?

8/23/2022

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We are in thick of gardening season, and I love it! Being out in the garden refreshes my soul and teaches me many spiritual lessons. One of the lessons I’ve been learning this year is the difference between determinate and indeterminate tomatoes.
 
Determinate tomatoes grow like a bush. Their growth is determined. They will only reach a certain height and maturity, then bear nearly all of their fruit at once.
 
Indeterminate tomatoes grow like a vine. Their growth is undetermined, meaning that they will keep growing and setting fruit as long as there is a growing season. If you prune them properly, they may grow over 10 feet tall in one season. However, if you don’t prune them properly, they will look like any other determined tomato plant.
 
These two main types of tomatoes have me thinking about individual Christians and the church body. Are we more like an uncontrolled, determinate tomato whose growth reaches a certain maturity and then stops? Or are we more like an indeterminate tomato plant, who with intentional pruning from the Master Gardener—Jesus—keep growing and maturing and setting fruit as long as we live? Do we continue to excel more and more?
 
If we are going to be a church that fulfills our vision of deep roots and ​bearing fruit, we have to grow both as individuals and as a church body.
​
2 Peter 3:18 says, 
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Paul praised the Thessalonians for their growing love of the brethren but told them to (1 Thess. 4:9-10),
“excel still more” 
To the church at Ephesus, Paul wrote, 
“But speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love” (Eph. 4:15-16).
Through the growth of the individual Christian (member/joint), the whole body is built up. That means it's critical for us to decide to grow as individuals and that's not always easy. But in the Christian life, we never reach a level of maturity and stop there. Our growth is indeterminate. God’s will is for us as individuals and as a church is to continually grow in Christlikeness as we study His Word and apply it to our heads, hearts, and hands. That’s one of the reasons why I’m excited about this Care Ministry and the fall ministries starting back up. They challenge us to keep growing as we worship, make disciples, mature in faith, and reach out to our community!

Pray that God would grow our church body and mature it (Col. 2:19; 1 Cor. 3:5-9)!
Pray about how God would have you serve this fall! 
 
 
Living for Christ with you,
 
 
Pastor Justin
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10 Ways to Prioritize Your Marriage

8/17/2022

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Here are 10 ways to prioritize your marriage:
 
  1. Pray together every day.
  2. Be intentional about growing together spiritually.
  3. Have meaningful conversation with each other every day.
  4. Find practical ways to serve each other.
  5. Give thanks for each other often.
  6. Develop some common interests.
  7. Fan the flames of romance.
  8. Have regular date nights.
  9. Take overnight or weekend trips together – without the kids.
  10. Tune up your marriage regularly [by attending marriage retreats, conferences, or small groups].


List from The Art of Parenting Small-Group Series Workbook (Little Rock: Family Life Publishing, 2018), 14-15.
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25 Ways For Husbands to Lead Their Family

8/17/2022

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​Husbands, here are 25 ways to spiritually lead your family:
 
  1. Pray daily with your wife.
  2. Write a love letter that she'd like to receive.
  3. Discover her top three needs and over the next twelve months go all out to meet them.
  4. Buy her a rose. Take her in your arms. Hold her face gently. Look into her eyes and say, "Id marry you all over again!"
  5. Take her on a weekend getaway.
  6. Read the scriptures to her.
  7. Replace the "D" word with the "C" word! (D = divorce; C= commitment)
  8. Court her.
  9. Remain faithful to her.
  10. Fulfill your marriage covenant.
  11. Have a family time at least one night a week.
  12. Use circumstances to teach your children to trust God.
  13. Protect your family from evil.
  14. Restrain your teenager's passion.
  15. Set spiritual goals for your children
  16. Take your children on mission trips.
  17. Catch your kids doing something right.
  18. Date your daughters.
  19. Inspect what you expect.
  20. Do a Proverbs breakfast Bible study with your teens (fifteen and older).
  21. Hug and kiss your sons and daughters.
  22. Ask your children for forgiveness when you fail them.
  23. Pray with them.
  24. Call them to a spiritual mission to do what God wants to do with their lives.
  25. Persevere and don't quit.

List from The Art of Marriage Small-Group Series Workbook (Little Rock: Family Life Publishing, 2012), 40.
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Two More Pests We Deal With

7/26/2022

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​In this Sunday’s sermon on marriage, I talked much about my squash bug problem in my garden. However, I’ve also had other pests this year trying to keep my garden from flourishing – slugs (that’s a first!), grasshoppers, corn earworm, corn rootworm, and earwigs – all going after the good fruits in my garden. Gardens can be full of pests, but so can marriages. We’ve already looked at the pests of selfishness and unforgiveness, but there’s 2 more pests that I want to chat with you about.
 
The first pest is the too-busy termite.1 The too-busy termite is a pest that day after day and week after week, gnaws away at the framework of our marriages. While we are busy with the daily grind from 8 to 5, microwaving Hot Pockets, and running kids around to every sort of event or practice, these little bugs are going to town on our homes. While we are too busy to do a proper inspection, little by little the too-busy termite erodes our oneness and we don’t know each other anymore. Ephesians 5:15-16 says,
“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise,
but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil."
​In the days of overstimulation we’re living in, I would recommend exterminating this termite by putting the cell phones down and frequently going on a relaxing walk or date night with just the two of you. If you go to a restaurant, try to find a corner booth where there is the least distraction – you know, one where there isn’t a TV right behind your spouse’s head! I find that my wife and I tend to have the most meaningful and necessary conversations about the direction of our marriage and our family in these moments. I never want to be too busy for them! We also intentionally put the kids to bed early so we can spend the last hour of the night talking and praying. Chuck Swindoll writes, 
“No amount of fanatical zeal or noble calling will ever justify the destruction of a home…
I don’t care how religious the reason or how spiritual the squirrel cage! Hear the testimony of a former workaholic – ​get rid of that too-busy termite, or else."
​The second pest is the forget-me-not flea. This pest doesn’t want you to forget previously forgiven offenses. Even though you’ve forgiven your offender, that pesky flea keeps bringing the offense to mind, saying, “They don’t deserve your love. They don’t deserve your trust. No more Mr. Nice Guy! Get revenge already!” The flea refuses to let you forget.
 
Now we may very well forget a forgiven offense (and praise the Lord when that happens!), but there is certainly no way to purge the memory of an offense, even if we really want too. Some are impossible to forget. You may have heard that God forgives and forgets, but this is impossible for Him too. He is an omniscient God which means He knows all things. He can’t forget. However, He can refuse to bring up past offenses or call us out on them or act on them. That’s what verses like Hebrews 8:12 and 10:17 mean when they say that He doesn’t remember our sins. Hebrews 10:17 says, 
“Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
​Micah 7:19 says, 
“You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot
​and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” ​
​When God forgives our sins, He throws them into the depths of the ocean and puts up a “No Fishing” sign.  We are completely released from them.
 
Whenever the forget-me-not flea brings a past offense to mind, let him know that you have tread the offense underfoot and thrown it into the depths of the sea. Just like we shouldn’t dwell on thoughts of lust or hatred, so we mustn’t dwell on past offenses, leading to spiritual sin.2 Take those thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). Refuse to use past grievances for leverage. Refuse to bring them up or dwell on them. Bury the flea as many times as you have too (and soak it in pesticide). Luke 6:38 says, 
“Pardon and you will be pardoned. Give, and it will be given to you.
A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.
For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” ​
Dealing with the pests to bear good fruits,
 
Pastor Justin


​
1 Charles Swindoll, Strike the Original Match (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1980), 107.
2 John MacArthur, The Freedom and Power of Forgiveness (Wheaton: Crossway, 1998), 189-190.
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The Freedom Pillars of Christianity & Morality

7/7/2022

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In light of Independence Day, I thought I would share some quotes from the founding fathers of our nation and early institutions in our nation’s history that expose their worldview for us and explain the tremendous freedom & privilege we have of living in the United States under our constitution. They also show us how important Judeo-Christian truth & morals are to our freedom! --- Pastor Justin

Harvard’s Rules & Precepts, 1636:
“Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore lay Christ at the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.”

Harvard’s original motto:
“Veritas Cristo et Ecclesiae” = Truth for Christ and the Church (now, it’s simply “Veritas”)

Princeton Founding Statement, 1746:
“Cursed is all learning that is contrary to the Cross of Christ.”

National Education Association (NEA) in as late as 1892:
“If the study of the Bible is to be excluded from all state schools; if the inculcation of the principles of Christianity is to have no place in the daily program; if the worship of God is to have no part of the general exercises of these public elementary schools; then the good of the state would be better served by restoring all schools to church control.”

Benjamin Rush, “A Defense of the Use of the Bible as a School Book”, 1798:
“In contemplating the political institutions of the United States, I lament that we waste so much time and money in punishing crimes, and take so little pains to prevent them. We profess to be republicans and yet we neglect the only means of establishing and perpetuating our republican forms of government. That is, the universal education of our youth in the principles of Christianity by the means of the Bible.”

Noah Webster, Reply to David McClure, Oct. 25th 1836:
“In my view, the Christian Religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government, ought to be instructed… no truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian Religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people.”

George Washington, Farewell Address, Sept. 17, 1796:
“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports… In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens.”

John Adams, Letter of June 21, 1776, quoted in the Wall Builder Report, Summer 1993:
“Statesmen, my dear Sir, may plan and speculate for liberty, but it is Religion and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles upon which Freedom can securely stand.”

Benjamin Rush, Essays, Literary, Moral and Philosophical, 1798:
“The only foundation for… a republic is to be laid in Religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and liberty is the object and life of all republican governments.”

Charles Carroll, signer of the Declaration of Independence, letter to James McHenry, 1800:
“Without morals, a republic cannot subsist for any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion… are undermining the solid foundation of morals, the best security for the duration of free governments.”

Patrick Henry, Letter to Archibald Blair, January 8, 1799:
“The great pillars of all government and of social life [are] virtue, morality, and religion. This is the armor… and this alone, that renders us invincible.”

Benjamin Franklin, Letter to Messrs, April 17, 1787:
“…only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.”

Daniel Webster, 4th of July, 1800:
“To preserve the government we must also preserve morals. Morality rests on religion; if you destroy the foundation, the superstructure must fall. When the public mind becomes vitiated and corrupt, laws are a nullity and constitutions becomes waste paper.”

Noah Webster, 1833:
“…the moral principles and precepts contained in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all our civil constitutions and laws… all the miseries which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery, and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible.”

Noah Webster, 1834:
“It is alleged by men of loose principles, or defective views of the subject, that religion and morality are not necessary or important qualifications for political stations. But the Scriptures teach a different doctrine. They direct that rulers should be men who rule in the fear of God, able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness…”

Webster definition of government in 1828:
“The science of government; that part of ethics which consists in the regulation and government of a nation or state, for the preservation of its safety, peace and prosperity; comprehending the defense of its existence and rights against foreign control or conquest… and the protection of its citizens in their rights, with the preservation and improvement of their morals.”

The U.S. Constitution:
“When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Calvin Coolidge, 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929:
“To live under the American Constitution is the greatest political privilege that was ever accorded to the human race.”
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WHY SMALL GROUPS?

6/18/2022

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Last week we started three new small groups (praise the Lord!), making for a total of 4 groups available for you to join. We have one on marriage, one on biblical citizenship, one on biblical manhood, and another on prayer. We are calling these Connect Groups because we want these groups to help us stay connected over summer. I couldn’t be more excited about them!
 
When my wife and I lived in Alliance, for years we were part of a 20 to 30 year olds small group that will forever be a special time in our lives. In fact, it’s where my wife and I met! At this group we all brought a food dish to share, played some board games or yard games, studied God’s Word and prayed. What started out as just a handful of people, soon grew to the point where it was getting awkward to meet in a home! The church ended up buying, renovating, and utilizing an old building downtown for groups like this and to use as an outreach center. I think this group grew because people longed for the genuine Christian fellowship we were experiencing!
 
As we seek to start up some more of our own small groups this summer, I want to remind us of the WHY. Why do small groups? Why join a small group? We don’t want to do small groups because everyone else is doing them or because we think we need something going every night of the week. We don’t want to just be busy doing Christian things. The book that our church board is planning to go through is literally called “Why Small Groups?” by C. J. Mahaney. In the very first chapter, the author answers the WHY question with 4 purposes for small groups – purposes that I can personally affirm from experience! 
​

Purpose #1 - Sanctification

Sanctification is the progressive work of God to make us more and more free from sin and into the likeness of Christ. This is the goal of the Christian life. Although I cannot emphasize enough the need to personally respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and the personal Christian disciplines necessary for our sanctification (such as prayer and Bible study), small groups provide an excellent context for sanctification. When the saints get together, they tend to rub off on one another and shape each other, resulting in sanctification. As Proverbs states, 
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
​So much of our sanctification takes place through the local church gathering and doing life together and not in isolation and not just during a Sunday morning service. As Mahaney writes, “Small groups provide the encouragement, correction, and accountability that keep us from drifting. As important as it is to cultivate a personal relationship with God by practicing spiritual disciplines, we need others to help us in our pursuit of sanctification.”
 
I can’t tell you how much that being a part of a small group has helped me in my own spiritual walk because I’ve seen others go through things I hadn’t been through that became my examples later, or, because I was connected to others, had someone else to walk through something with me. Small groups provide accountability. Solomon wrote, 
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:
If one falls down, his friend can help him up.
​But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up”
​(Ecclesiastes 4:9-10). That leads us to the next purpose.
​

Purpose #2 - Mutual Care

​Paul teaches that the church body is a lot like a human body where all the different parts give care to other members and receive care from other members. 
“God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that part which lacked, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same care for one another. And if one part of the body suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if a part is honored, all the parts rejoice with it.”
Through small groups (beyond the limitations of Sunday mornings) relationships begin to develop and many care needs will naturally surface through the conversations had and the times of prayer. I’ve noticed that when you are in a small group and doing life together, not only will we be praying about those needs together, there is a greater chance that we will check in our brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the week or be more intentional to help meet that need when and where we can. We tend to spend more time together because we have grown in our love for another through the sharing of burdens and blessings. The oneness of Christ’s body is strengthened.
​

Purpose #3 - Fellowship

Fellowship, you need to know, is more than just eating or walking or playing frisbee golf together. It is more than just hanging out or some other social activity. Genuine fellowship revolves around the Word of God and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our lives as we walk the faith journey together. Fellowship, as we discovered in Acts 2, comes from the Greek word “koinonia” and means to “participate together”.

When you get involved in a small group, your main desire should be fellowship – centered around the things of God. As each member learns and shares about their relationship with God and how God is revealing Himself to them, there is mutual encouragement and refreshed passion to follow Christ together! This creates momentum in our spiritual lives and the life of the Church.


Purpose #4 - Ministry of the Holy Spirit

Small groups also create more opportunities for members to exercise their spiritual gifts. Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift and we are all called to prayerfully discover and cultivate those gifts. We are not made to be consumers, but producers! And where’s the best place to discover and use your gift? The place it was designed to operate – within the church body, doing life in connection with other members of Christ. You may not know what your spiritual gift is but as you interact with the church body, they will likely recognize it in you! Mahaney writes, “God has given spiritual gifts to every Christian (1 Cor. 12:1-7). He expects us to use them. But in a church of any size at all, it’s simply not feasible for every member to use these gifts on Sunday morning. They can in a small group, though. In this smaller and more personal context, each one can serve according to the gifting of the Holy Spirit.”
 
As we exercise our gifts, an environment for true Christian fellowship is fostered. When you meet with your connect group this week, expect the Spirit of God to be powerfully present and to participate in it. Expect God to work!
 
 
Staying connected this summer,
 
 
Pastor Justin
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The Country Dog vs. The City Dog

5/30/2022

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In this Sunday’s sermon we talked about the great debate between Law and Grace. If you would like a short and helpful little scholarly book on this subject, get your hands on Alva J. McClain’s book Law and Grace is an excellent read! One of the temptations for us as Christians is to think that God saves us by grace through faith in Christ, but then think we are going to now live the Christian life by our own effort or our own works. We’re afraid grace will lead to license, so we’d better err on the side of legalism, right? Not so fast. In the letter to the Galatians, Paul makes it clear that we are saved by grace though faith in Christ and will live by grace through faith in Christ too because apart from Him we can do nothing. One of my favorite illustrations (and most of you know this already but I remind us anyway) that demonstrates why grace will outperform Law every time is that of the country dog vs. the city dog.
 
A city dog lives under Law. It lives under restrictions. It has boundaries. A leash, a collar, a chain, and a fence to keep it from getting loose and running free. His obedience is forced upon him. “No, no, no,” he is told. So what’s the first thing that the city dog when you let him off his leash and open the gate? He wants to book it! To run free! He’s tired of it! – same with the Law. Law produces rebellion. The power of sin is the law. It’s a supercharger for sin (2 Cor. 3:6-12; Romans 7). By the way, the problem is not in the Law but in us. We have a law of sin at work in the member of our body called the sin nature that is triggered by the Law (Rom. 7).
 
The country dog, on the other hand, lives under grace. It doesn’t have the restrictions a city dog has. When I lived in the country at our family farm, our dog never had a leash or chain or fence. It didn’t even have a collar for that matter! A country dog has all the freedom in the world to run around and explore and have a good ole time! But where do you find the country dog most of the time? Right at home, sitting peacefully on the porch, waiting eagerly for his master to come home. Grace has a similar effect on us. It produces this overflowing obedience that the master desires. This is why we want to be actuated by grace. We live and serve Christ from our position in Him – knowing we have been accepted – and we are not living or serving for acceptance. No true Christian work for the Lord is ever done in our own efforts. It is accomplished not by man’s might, nor by man’s power, but by God’s Spirit (Zech. 4:6). Since Eden, Satan has been trying to get us to operate independently of God, but we weren’t designed to operate apart from Him! We were made to operate from grace, not for grace. Grace isn’t earned.

In the following chart below, I recommend that you compare and contrast what the Bible says about the difference between Law and Grace. I think by the end of it you will see that there is no reason why anyone should ever even want to tip toe over into Law. It has a deadly effect on us spiritually. Grace, however, brings life and peace and true spiritual fruit for God!
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In His grace with you,
 
Pastor Justin
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