Bible Verses for Sunday Service December 03, 2023
Micah 5:2
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.
Colossians 4:2
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
Announcements:
We appreciate the decorations that the ladies put up for the Christmas season. Thank you Ladies Bible study for taking the time to do this last week. If anyone would like to donate Poinsettia plants, the church would welcome them to decorate the sanctuary.
New devotionals, the Daily Bread and Days of Praise are on the foyer table. We always order more than the number of the congregation. Feel free to take extra to give away to those who might benefit.
You may leave your prayer requests on the foyer table in the tray made by Cory Main. We thank her for her work and gift.
Our parking lot is better lit now with some new lights. This will make AWANA safer as it is dark when the children get out at 8PM. Thank you to Phil Witschi for helping arrange for the work.
Our missionary Melissa Mattingly who serves with Ethnos 360 in Florida sent a card and letter. They are posted on the bulletin board. You can also pick up a copy of her letter on the foyer table.
We will have a representative of Heart Cry Mission Society with us on Sunday, January 7. Hunter Gately, a coordinator with Heart Cry for Eastern Europe will be here to give us a report and to challenge us regarding the Heart Cry’s work there.
Sermon:
Starting in Hebrews to begin a series which will run through Christmas, Pastor Jim spoke on Hebrews 1:1-3. He titled this sermon “The God Who Speaks.” To introduce his ideas, Pastor asked us to think about how communication has changed for us, mobile phones and emails versus corded phones and postal mail. That is in only 50 years, yet God has been speaking for a very long time. His word is the cornerstone of our faith. A reminder to the Hebrews that God has been speaking for long time introduces that book. Pastor covered how God speaks to us in his sermon.
First, Pastor reminded us that God speaks accurately. He never lies, and always provides truth. This stands in stark contrast to the rest of what we hear in the world. God spoke to us through human messengers over 2000 years, starting in the old testament. Job is believed to be the oldest book. We can rely on what we have written as scripture reminds us that the men who wrote the Bible did not just write what they wanted, but only what God provided. God also spoke in the New Testament through His Son, a Divine Messiah. God continues speaking literally. John records how Jesus explains that if you have seen Him and the work He does, you have seen the God, the Father in Heaven. Hebrews makes this point. That Jesus the Messiah is the exact representation of God.
Besides speaking, God speaks authoritatively. Pastor asked us to consider two aspects of that authority. First, God has spoken through His work of creation, bringing it into existence and sustaining it. Hebrews spends time covering Jesus’s work and role in creation. Also, God speaks authoritatively His work of redemption, the work carried out by the only perfect sacrifice to atone for our sins, His Son. Hebrews remarks that after dying and being raised again, Jesus sat down at the right hand of God. Jesus was the perfect, once and for all sacrifice He doesn’t continually stand making countless sacrifices like a Jewish high priest.
Pastor concluded with an anecdote about how a Czar sentenced someone to Siberia without pardon, but his wife by moving a comma, change the sentence to the pardon. The pardon was possible, not impossible. We are sentenced to Hell like that prisoner, but Jesus moved the comma for us, making our pardon possible. Let’s live in the light of that love and sacrifice.
Accessing the Service, Bulletin and Sermon Outline:
Here are the pages from the bulletin, click on the images below to see them full size:
If you would like to have the sermon outline, you can download it here, a pdf file.
If you would like a link to this service you can find it here. Perhaps you would like to share it with your friends. You could also share that link on social media, if you use any of the providers. We use Rumble, a safe alternative to Google’s YouTube.