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Bulletin cover

September 3, 2017

WELCOME!
WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE HERE

We 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 and 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

We have a lot going on. Please mark these events on your calendar and plan to be a part of them.

Today  — Potluck followed by Timbers Service 2:30. Plan to stay and enjoy
....fellowship and then help us sing and worship with the Timbers staff
....and residents.
Tuesday September 5  — Seniors luncheon at the Golden Corral, 11:00 AM
Saturday September 9  — Blood Bank here 10:00 – 2:45. We need donors and workers. See
....Tracey Brewer.
Sunday September 17  — Guest Speaker John Cooper — A missionary to Russia and Guam
....and a co-worker with the Does God Exist? ministry. He will also
....teach our Bible class at 10:00.
Saturday September 23  — Highway Cleanup at 10:00 AM
Tuesday September 26  — Devotional at the Claytons' at 7:00 PM

Our thanks to Lana Fox and those who worked with her to prepare the backpacks and school supplies which were given to the Northside school in Niles and Berrien Springs.


TODAY'S LESSON

PLACES FOR THE WORSHIP OF GOD

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John Clayton
INTRODUCTION
A. Every religion has structures that promote worship.
B. Problems with all of these — money, isolation
C. What has God desired in the past, and what today?
I. FIRST THERE WERE ALTARS
A. Raised structures for sacrifices and incense
B. Noah — Genesis 8:20; Abraham — Genesis 12:7 – 8; 13:4
C. Jacob — Genesis 33:20; 35:7 — God appears to him
D. Moses, Joshua, David — gave thanks, begged
II. TABERNACLE GIVEN TO MOSES AFTER EGYPT
A. Hebrews 8:5 — sacred tent with furnishings, had two parts, one was 20 x 10 cubits
....(30 by 15 feet) (cubit is the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger,
....roughly 18 inches)
1. Contained table of showbread Exodus 25:30; Numbers 4:7
2. Golden candlesticks — Exodus 25:31;26:35; 27:20; Numbers 8:2; and the altar
....of incense.
B. Second part was Holy of Holies — 10x10 cubits
1. Ark of Covenant — symbol of divine presence
2. Once a year the high priest entered on the Day of Atonement for the sins of the people.
III. THE TEMPLE — BUILT THREE TIMES
A. 2 Samuel 7:1 – 7 — Solomon after David got materials (1 Kings 5:5; 6:1)
B. Ezra 6:3 – 4 — Cyrus after Israel was destroyed
C. Herod — begun in 19 BC for 10 years. Finished in AD 64 — Romans destroyed it in AD 70
....(Matthew 24:1; Mark 11:15; Luke 2:27; John 2:20; Acts 3:9)
IV. SYNAGOGUE
A. Rectangular building — no altars, miniature of temple
1. Used for readings — no sacrifice
2. Used for prayer, teaching, expository address
B. Center of Jewish community — social and religious
V. CHRISTIAN PLACE OF WORSHIP
A. Acts 2:16 – 21 — quoting Joel 2:28 – 32
B. John 4:20 – 14 — Jesus and the Samaritan woman
C. 1 Corinthians 3:16 – 17; 6:19
D. Galatians 4:4 – 6; Ephesians 3:17; Acts 2:46; 3:1


THE BACK PAGE

BUSY BUSY BUSY

You may have looked at the bulletin today and especially when you look at the “Family News” section and wondered how a small congregation like ours can have so much going on. The answer to that is that God is blessing us with more opportunities as he sees us active. We have some workers who have been willing to spend time and energy to open the door to new ways to serve. That is what Christianity is about, and if you are not a part of it, realize that you need to make some changes. In Matthew 25:31 – 46 Jesus talks about what things will look like at judgment. The picture he gives of those who are lost is a picture of not being involved. In verse 44 the lost respond to Jesus by trying to justify why they did not address problems of hunger or thirst or sickness or imprisonment. Jesus does not tell them that they are condemned because they did not do the right things on Sunday morning or because they misunderstood some doctrinal issue. Their condemnation is because they did not get involved in meeting the needs of those they had access to.

Ritual and the wearing of titles is not the basis of Christianity. Obedience to God is, and God calls us strongly to address the needs of the world around us. Our food bank is having to meet new rules from the state, and those rules have to do with having the food bank open at times that are not connected to our worship times. Our Coats for Kids program is going to require more shopping and more people making contact with schools. The recent storm damage in Houston and Louisiana is going to require us to get involved in some way.

All of this is going to take more man hours. If you are in the habit of just coming on Sunday morning, can we say something that will motivate you to make an effort to come at other times? We do a lot of sharing and discussing at our Bible class times. We list the names of people who are leading in specific works in this bulletin so you can connect with them and volunteer. We beg you not because we have an interest in numbers, but because your eternal salvation will depend on your response to God.

— John Clayton

Our sign by the street!

Our sign on the street says, THIS IS THE WEEK! RED CROSS BLOOD DRIVE, SEPT. 9, 10 TO 2:45