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December
25, 2011We are a group of believers who simply try to follow the Bible as a guide for all we do. Everything done in our worship service is something for which we have a Bible basis. You are welcome to participate as much or as little as you wish. We will sing hymns together and we will observe the Lord's Supper or Communion together. We will also have an opportunity to give to the work of God in this area. This collection is for the members here, and if you are visiting you should not feel any pressure to give. Our lesson time will be divided into two groups. The young children will go to our classroom area in the basement where they will be taught the Bible at a level they can understand. The adults will stay in the auditorium for a lesson at an adult level. We do try to serve the community, and if you have some needs that we can help you with, mention it to one of the members. Thank you for worshipping with us.
FAMILY NEWS
NO SERVICES TONIGHT. Please remember that tonight and January 1 we will not have an evening service or class. We have a large number of people out of town, and most of us who are here have family we need to spend time with, so we are handling this unusual situation of having special celebrations on Sunday by making it easier for all our families to have quality time together at home.
POTLUCK DELAYED TO JANUARY 8. We are also delaying our usual "first Sunday of the month potluck" to the second Sunday. Please plan to be with us January 8 and bring a dish to share. These are wonderful times of being together, so do not miss it.
THANKS TO NILES. About ten of us attended the Niles holiday party last Sunday after services, which was followed by singing seasonal songs together. We appreciate the time and effort our brethren put into this program. We had good food, good singing, and a wonderful meal together. Do not miss these fellowship opportunities with brothers and sisters in the area.
TODAY'S
LESSON
PEACE
ON EARTH IN 2012
Luke
2:14--"Glory
to God in the highest, and on earth peace,
good will toward men."
SONG--"It Came upon the Midnight Clear"
REAL PEACE COMES FROM JESUS CHRIST.
SONG--"Oft We Come Together"
SONG--"Peace, Perfect Peace"
PEACE COMES FROM FOLLOWING GOD'S COUNSEL.
SONG--"Master, the Tempest Is Raging!"
CHRISTIANS ARE TO BE PEACE MAKERS
SONG--"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
DID YOU BRING PEACE WITH YOU THIS MORNING?
CHRISTMAS AND REALITY
It is always interesting to me to see how people react to the Christmas holiday season. Some people seem to have their greed erupt at this time of year. They resent having to get and give presents, get upset if they do not get what they want, and fuss about the inconvenience the season brings. Other people make the holiday a time to fan fear and distrust. We hear material by religious speakers trying to associate Christmas with the bad things that have happened in the past due to religious beliefs. Suggestions about pagan or Catholic origins to the holidays, and concerns about the origins of Christmas trees or Santa Claus are used to perpetuate feelings of guilt and unrest in believers. Now we are seeing governmental pressure to remove all religious symbols associated with Christmas. There have been a number of cities in which Christmas decorations were torn down by government leaders because they "promoted religion" on a tax supported building or cemetery, and in many places certain Christmas songs cannot be sung because they promote Jesus Christ rather than other religious figures.
I recently have been told that the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was written to convey Christian values during a time when Christians (Catholics, in sixteenth century England) were being persecuted if they spoke of their faith. I had always thought that song was at best a fun song playing on ancient times, but the story goes that the partridge in the pear tree stood for Jesus Christ. The two turtle doves are supposed to be the New and Old Testaments. Three French hens stood for faith, hope, and love. The four calling (colly--black birds) birds were the four gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The five golden rings are the books of the Torah--the first five books of the Old Testament. The seven swans swimming were the gifts of the Holy Spirit spelled out in Galatians 5:22-23.
I think you get the point, and whether the story is true or not is not relevant to my point in this article. Religious freedom is a precious thing, and more and more in our country you cannot say anything positive about your faith without taking the risk of being imprisoned because of the fear that you may have denigrated someone else's religion.
You cannot really understand the book of Revelation unless you know that it was written with symbols that the religious people knew and would properly understand, but the Roman military would not understand. The reality is we are blessed not to have to use symbols now, but that may change.
SONG--"It Came upon the Midnight Clear"
Do
you see peace as we end 2011?
REAL PEACE COMES FROM JESUS CHRIST.
Real
peace--John 14:27
John 16:33--"If it isn't of eternal significance . . . ."
Romans 5:1--Justification brings peace.
Ephesians 2:12-18
Colossians 1:20-22
Communion is a celebration of peace--renewed weekly.
John 16:33--"If it isn't of eternal significance . . . ."
Romans 5:1--Justification brings peace.
Ephesians 2:12-18
Colossians 1:20-22
Communion is a celebration of peace--renewed weekly.
SONG--"Oft We Come Together"
COMMUNION
SERVICE
SONG--"Peace, Perfect Peace"
PEACE COMES FROM FOLLOWING GOD'S COUNSEL.
Philippians
4:6-9--Talk to God about
choices.
God's
way works.
Romans
12:18--Christians are
commanded to get along with
all men.
Romans
12:18; 14:19; Hebrews 12:14; 2
Corinthians 13:11; Colossians
3:15; 1 Thessalonians 5:13;
Mark 9:50; 2 Timothy 3:16-17
SONG--"Master, the Tempest Is Raging!"
CHRISTIANS ARE TO BE PEACE MAKERS
Matthew
5:9; James 3:18; 2 Timothy
2:24
SONG--"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
DID YOU BRING PEACE WITH YOU THIS MORNING?
Prayer
together can bring peace.
Obedience brings peace.
Obedience brings peace.
A
second birth--start anew
Be an man or woman of peace.
Be an man or woman of peace.
CHRISTMAS AND REALITY
It is always interesting to me to see how people react to the Christmas holiday season. Some people seem to have their greed erupt at this time of year. They resent having to get and give presents, get upset if they do not get what they want, and fuss about the inconvenience the season brings. Other people make the holiday a time to fan fear and distrust. We hear material by religious speakers trying to associate Christmas with the bad things that have happened in the past due to religious beliefs. Suggestions about pagan or Catholic origins to the holidays, and concerns about the origins of Christmas trees or Santa Claus are used to perpetuate feelings of guilt and unrest in believers. Now we are seeing governmental pressure to remove all religious symbols associated with Christmas. There have been a number of cities in which Christmas decorations were torn down by government leaders because they "promoted religion" on a tax supported building or cemetery, and in many places certain Christmas songs cannot be sung because they promote Jesus Christ rather than other religious figures.
I recently have been told that the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was written to convey Christian values during a time when Christians (Catholics, in sixteenth century England) were being persecuted if they spoke of their faith. I had always thought that song was at best a fun song playing on ancient times, but the story goes that the partridge in the pear tree stood for Jesus Christ. The two turtle doves are supposed to be the New and Old Testaments. Three French hens stood for faith, hope, and love. The four calling (colly--black birds) birds were the four gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The five golden rings are the books of the Torah--the first five books of the Old Testament. The seven swans swimming were the gifts of the Holy Spirit spelled out in Galatians 5:22-23.
I think you get the point, and whether the story is true or not is not relevant to my point in this article. Religious freedom is a precious thing, and more and more in our country you cannot say anything positive about your faith without taking the risk of being imprisoned because of the fear that you may have denigrated someone else's religion.
You cannot really understand the book of Revelation unless you know that it was written with symbols that the religious people knew and would properly understand, but the Roman military would not understand. The reality is we are blessed not to have to use symbols now, but that may change.