TMG
I’m looking forward to worship this Sunday, and to our sermon time as we take a look at the second point in the Evangelical Free Church Statement of Faith, a point that attempts to answer the question, “What do we believe about the Bible?”
What do you believe about the Bible? I would think just about everyone at Crossroads Church would say they believe the Bible. But,…
- Do you know why you believe it?
- Do you believe all of it?
- Would you be able to tell a friend why you believe the Bible, and why they can too?
Let’s hear what God has to say about those things! He wants to help us have a sure foundation for our lives, now and in the future!
See you at the Y this Sunday morning at 10:00!
Here are some quick reminders of other things going on at Crossroads:
Youth Group Pool Party — Wednesday, July 28, 6:30 pm, at the Vestals, *contact us for location*. Be sure to invite a friend!
“You Asked for It” sermon series. I’ll preach my yearly “You Asked for It” sermon series in October. If you have a topic or a passage from the Bible you’ve especially been wanting to hear, please let me know so I can start preparing those messages! Thank you.
Prayers
Pray for Jessica and Kelsi as they finish up today at Kamp Keirsey! Pray that what high school students have heard and experienced this week will stay with them and will produce fruit in their lives!
I had a little grand-nephew born this week, weighing 2#, 1 oz. Please pray for Jackson and for his parents Cody and Megan.
Be in prayer for Andrew and Olivia, their upcoming wedding, and new work needs in the Kansas City area.
Several from our church are traveling this week. Thank you for remembering them in your prayers.
Moving, Meeting Places, Etc.
Our elders are working hard at finding the right place for Crossroads Sunday worship this fall. While we all recognize the need for a more permanent home for the church, it seems that while we plan for that our immediate need is a reliable temporary location. We’re still communicating about the three options I mentioned to you last Sunday — Community Center; 4-H Building; Nevada Assembly. With people coming and going, it has seemed a little hard to gain traction this summer, but we feel certain the Lord has a place for us where we will enjoy worship and fellowship on Sundays. Thank you for your prayers, input, support, patience, and flexibility! God has worked in unusual ways in the life of Crossroads Church, and it seems He intends to do that some more!
As I’ve thought more about vision, plans, and goals for a local church, two or three simple questions and answers have come to mind. What do the following people, or groups of people, do in a church?
- What does Jesus do? Jesus said at least twice, “I only do what I see the Father doing” (John 5:19; 8:29). What, then, is it that we as a church see the Father doing? Whatever we can determine that to be, that’s the thing we should join Him in.
- What do church members do? Two things come to mind:
- Make disciples both near and far. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations …” (Matthew 28:19).
- Manage (for lack of a better word) the church. Conduct the ministry of the church. That’s the theme of one of Paul’s letters we don’t often emphasize — 1 Timothy. “I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15).
- What do church elders do? They are to do the two following things at least:
- Shepherd the flock. The elders are to pastor, or shepherd, the flock. “Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and as a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you” (1 Peter 5:1-2). Included in that shepherding is a requirement to teach the flock: “An overseer, then, must be … able to teach” (1 Timothy 3:2).
- Equip the flock. “Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Ephesians 4:11-12). Equipping includes teaching, praying, leading by example, encouraging, and providing resources and accountability.
A Prayer
Draw your Church together, O God, into one great company of disciples, together following our Lord Jesus Christ into every walk of life; together serving him in his mission to the world, and together witnessing to his love on every continent and island.
Set our hearts on fire with love for you, O Christ, that in its flame we may love you with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, and with all our strength, and our neighbors as ourselves, so that, keeping your commandments, we may glorify you, the giver of all good gifts.
Gather us, Lord, or scatter us; do as you deem right, building us all into one Church: a Church with open doors and large windows, a Church that takes the world seriously, ready to work and to suffer, and even to bleed for it.
I look forward to seeing you Sunday morning at the Y! The sermon will be posted Saturday evening on the Crossroads FB page and on the Tom Rea Channel on YouTube.
— Tom
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