Made Alive! Our hope in Christ!
1 Corinthians 15:20-23 (NIV) 20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. As we begin the month of March we will begin to see signs of spring. Signs that the bitter cold and snowy winter is beginning to fade away. First we begin to see the birds come out or come back in larger numbers. Then we eventually see the grass greening and the flowers poking their little green heads out of the soil. It’s a time of reawakening and great anticipation of warmer weather and once again enjoying the great outdoors. This is the beauty of the seasons. Each one has its own features that we long to see develop and enjoy. So it is with our celebration of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus. The long cold winter of sin and death gives way to the newness of spring. That is the point of the resurrection, that death has been defeated. That is what we celebrate on Resurrection Sunday. We joyfully and filled with hope celebrate Jesus’ victory over sin and death. That Jesus who bore the sins of the world, who died in our place, rose to new life from the dead. Sin and death came to humanity through Adam but forgiveness of sins and new resurrection life come through Jesus the risen Lord. He is the first to come back from death and has opened the way for those who belong to Him to also rise to new life. Our immediate future may yet be one of sorrow at times, but our ultimate future is to rise to new and eternal life when Christ returns. Come quickly Lord Jesus! Join us for Good Friday Service on Friday, March 25th at 7pm and Resurrection Sunday Celebration Services Sunday, March 27th at 6:30am, Sunday School from 9am – 9:30am and Morning Worship at 10am. Invite family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers to join us as remember and celebrate victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ our Lord. Pastor Andrew Dear
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Happy New Year! Welcome to 2016!
Where did the time go? It seems just like yesterday my family and I were moving in and beginning our ministry here at North Freedom Baptist. I guess it’s true that “time flies when you’re having fun!” It has been a great six months in North Freedom and we are truly blessed to be ministering to a wonderful church family and in a great community. We look forward to many wonderful times together throughout 2016! With the New Year many of us tend to reflect on our lives over the last year and plan to make a few changes in this new year. This is a great time to try and break old habits and start or restart some new ones. This time of year is also a great opportunity to continue, or get back into the habit of some key spiritual disciplines. Perseverance is the key to successful change. If we want to see lasting change we must also make a plan with a beginning and end date with several checkpoints in between. I would like to challenge myself and our congregation to starting, to continue, or to build on past spiritual habits. Maybe you have been a bit lax in Bible Reading or Prayer or Church attendance. What can you do this year to begin to make these a way of life for you and your family? If you already practice these habits on a regular basis, how can you strengthen or deepen them? These are a few of several challenges that I would like to present to the church for 2016. Let’s take a look at why these habits are good for us and how we can make them a part of our daily and weekly routines. First of all, I want to challenge us to be reading and studying our Bibles. John 5:39 (NIV) says “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me,” Here Jesus is telling us that if we want to get to know Him we must know His Word. Jesus is the ultimate and through the Old and New Testaments we learn who He is and come to love Him and serve Him more. In Romans 15:4 (NIV) we read “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” The Bible is given to us that we might learn from it and receive endurance and encouragement and hope. Life is tough and we are not promised “easy” days. We need to know the Lord Jesus and His Word if we are to live in ways that honor Him and show the world that He is worthy of our lives. For these reasons and many more we need to be a church committed to reading The Bible each day. If you need help in this area there are resources available to you at church and a daily reading plan for you in the newsletter, on Facebook, and on our website http://nfreedombaptist.org. Secondly, I want to challenge us to be a church of prayer. Faith lives in folded hands and for our faith and endurance to be strong we need to be a church of fervent prayer. Paul instructed his churches to be people of prayer. Colossians 4:2 (NIV) “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Romans 12:12 (NIV) “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Prayer was also a significant part of the early church. We read in Acts 2:42 (NIV) “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Let these verses remind us and spur us on to daily personal prayer and to gathering together for prayer each week. There are many prayer resources available to you. Our weekly prayer sheets, our weekly bulletins, prayer alerts for the persecuted church, and prayer guides for our missionaries. These will all be available on our website by February for you as well. As we journey together to be a healthier church in 2016 let us encourage one another weekly as we gather together for worship, Bible teaching, and personal growth through Bible reading and person prayer. 2016 can and will be a spectacular year when we commit ourselves to growing closer to the Lord together. |
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