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FAMILY NEWSHIGHWAY CLEAN UP RESUMES APRIL 23 – 30. Please plan to be a part of this service to the community. We will have more on this later. POTLUCK RESUMES IN APRIL. We have all missed the joy of eating together on the first Sunday of each month as COVID has made it unsafe to be close to one another for two years now. The risk has reduced to the point where we plan to be able to enjoy a monthly fellowship meal again. April 3 will be our first 2022 potluck. Bring a dish and plan to eat with us. We will also be going to Timbers after the potluck. THE ANGELS REJOICED THIS PAST SUNDAY as Denise Cook was baptized into Christ and began her new walk with Christ. We have grown to love Denise and are keenly aware of her enthusiasm, her positive attitude, and good heart. She has some long-range goals that the church here will want to be part of, and as our sermon for today points out, her coming to us and her searching of God's Word to serve her Lord is not an accident. The Bible not only tells us that the angels rejoice (Luke 15:10); but, promise that if we earnestly seek God we will find him (read Jeremiah 29:13 and Hebrews 11:6). Denise is a living example of that. See THE BACK PAGE below. TODAY'S LESSON
INTRODUCTION — Have you ever asked “WHY!”
A. Bad things in life do not make sense.
I. THE STORY OF JOSEPH IS A PICTURE OF GOD'S ACTION IN THE AFFAIRS OF HUMANS.
B. Bad things never come from God — James 1:13. Blaming God is not an answer.
C. God knows about this struggle — Jeremiah 29:10-11.D. Some biblical admonitions are hard. 1. 1 Peter 5:7 2. Philippians 4:6-7 3. Matthew 10:29-30 A. Genesis 37 — Human bad judgment sets up the story.
II. THE STORY OF THE LIFE OF CHRIST IS PROVIDENCE.
1. Jacob shows favoritism — creates strife.
B. Joseph is sold to Ishmaelites going to Egypt — Genesis 37:25.
2. Joseph tells destructive dreams. 3. Jacob sends Joseph alone to his brothers. 4. Brothers decide to kill Joseph — Genesis 37:19-20. Reuben prevents evil objective — Genesis 37:21-22
1. Joseph goes through a number of experiences.
2. Joseph saves his family from starvation. 3. Joseph explains how God used his experiences. Genesis 45:4 — God does not zap food to Jacob. A. God could have used force — Matthew 26:52.
III. HOW IS GOD WORKING IN OUR LIVES?
B. Not by miracles — Matthew 16:4 C. By a group of 12 misfits — fishermen, tax collectors A. Romans 8:28 — God knows what our talents are.
IV. GOD'S HAND IS WORKING AMONG US.
Acts 9:15 — You are also a chosen instrument.
B. God uses people according to possessions.
1 Corinthians 16:19, see 1 Corinthians 16:3-5
C. God selects people based on their experience.
Philemon 1:10-16 — Onesimus A. Pitcher Lake Campground with Bill and Patty B. The food bank and Richard and Tina's roles C. Karl and Zoom, Julie and the prayer sheet D. Denise and Cindy and the future THE BACK PAGEMAKING SUREThis past Sunday we were blessed to be witnesses of the baptism of Denise Cook. Since Denise and her husband Jon moved in next door to us (John and Cindy), we have been blessed to get to know her and to have a great deal of time to talk with her and to study with her. Denise had been baptized as a teen, but did not understand the significance of baptism and the meaning of Romans 6 which portrays baptism as a burial with Christ — death to old self and the beginning of a new life in Christ with all her sins forgiven and the help of the Holy Spirit in her. As Denise studied that chapter and others she realized that her knowledge of what repentance and baptism is about had been very poor and she needed to act on what she now understood by her own study and prayer. Many times I have had people tell me that they have not seen anything different in their life after they were baptized than they did before. My question for them was, “Did you receive the promise of Acts 2:38 ‘and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’ ”? A part of that is what you were looking for. God never intended for us to be baptized and then sit around and wait for something material to happen. In the first century church people found spiritual strength they never knew they had. Their prayer life changed and they got a better understanding of God's Word (Acts 2:42). They were motivated to share with others (Acts 2:45) and they grew in their relationship to others and to God (Acts 2:47). In Acts 18:24–19:5 we read about people who knew “the way of the Lord,” but only knew the baptism of John (Acts 18:25) and had not received the Holy Spirit. They were “re-baptized” and received the promised indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Today we see God's Spirit is alive and seen in what we can do and what our life and conduct are all about. If we have any doubt about our baptism and why we were baptized, it would be foolish not to be “baptized again.” Our sign by the street! Sign saying from www.sayingsforchurchsigns.com. Scripture links/references are from BibleGateway.com. Unhighlighted scriptures can be looked up at their website. www.dowagiaccoc.org |
