March 27, 2022

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THE CHURCH OF CHRIST ON M 51 S

We welcome you to our worship services this morning. We hope that you will be encouraged and uplifted by our time together. We have no creed or set of rules to force on you. We simply rely on the Bible to tell us what to do and try to copy what we read the church in the first century did. We meet here every Sunday, but we also have Zoom available for those who are interested. Just ask and we will include you in our Zoom services. Call Karl Marcussen at 574-514-1400 for information.

FAMILY NEWS

GOODBYE FOR A WHILE: The mailing of this bulletin will be suspended for the month of April because the Claytons will be out of town on a family activity. Karl Marcussen may prepare an interim copy for those at worship, but for everyone else the bulletin may not be prepared. If you wish to receive it, contact Karl Marcussen at 574-514-1400 or marcusen@michiana.org. We will resume regular mailing the week of April 24.

HIGHWAY 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.

TODAY'S LESSON

THE THREE HARDEST WORDS TO SAY
John Clayton

INTRODUCTION — What are the three hardest words for you to say personally, and why is that true?

A. “I was wrong?” “I'm sorry?” “I love you?”
B. How about “I have sinned”?

I. HARD BECAUSE THEY ADMIT GUILT — No one likes that.

A. We tend to blame others.

1. Adam — Genesis 3:12 — “The woman gave it to me.”
2. Eve — Genesis 3:13 — “The snake deceived me … .”
3. Do I tend to do this?

B. We distance ourselves from the situation.

1. Genesis 4:9 — Cain — “Am I my brother's keeper?”
2. What is your reaction to people in need?

Food bank

3. “He made his bed, let him lie in it.”

C. Admitting guilt makes us as bad as everything else.

1 Corinthians 5:1-2 — Why do we laugh about sin?

D. We like to believe we are innocent.

Matthew 27:24 — Was Pilate innocent?

II. HARD BECAUSE WE HAVE TO FACE UP TO JUSTICE.

A. Sin NEVER goes unpunished.
B. Galatians 6:7-8
C. Genesis 4:13-15 — Why was Cain's punishment “more than I can bear?”
D. God's mercy moderates punishment.

1. David should have died — Proverbs 28:13.
2. 1 John 1:8-10 — The promise to Christians
3. James 5:14-16 — Dealing with spiritual sickness

III. HARD BECAUSE ADMITTING SIN ADMITS NEED.

A. Revelation 3:15-17 — Does this describe us today?
B. 2 Samuel 12:12-13 — Shatters the claim of independence

We need to admit our need for God.

C. Luke 18:9-14 — The Pharisee and the Publican

IV. CAN YOU BE “PRICKED IN YOUR HEART”? — Acts 2:37

A. Is it too hard for you to say “I have sinned”?

1. What does our culture push on us?
2. Romans 6:6 — is hard for us — can you do it?

THE BACK PAGE

THE NEED TO SAY THE HARDEST WORDS

One of the most important lessons for all of us to learn in life is how to say “the hardest words.” How important is it to say “I love you”? I cannot tell you how many times I have been a witness to a disturbed teenager who was in trouble with the school or the law and listen to them say with tears that their father or mother did not love them. When the parent denied that, the teen would say “you have never told me that you love me.”

How many marriages have floundered because one or both of the marriage partners never found the need to say “I love you”? There is a good country song that says “wear out, ‘I love you,’ ” and that is good advice.

How many congregations of the Lord's church have been brought to a standstill because people would not say “I was wrong”? I have seen splits in congregations because, even though a person knew deep down inside they were not right, they still tried to defend their actions or their words.

How many friendships, marriages, and families have been destroyed because no one could say “I'm sorry”? I think many times the burden of a broken relationship falls on the one who would not accept “I'm sorry” and be willing to start over in the relationship. This does not mean that you can just mouth the words and expect it to heal abuse. It means having a deep feeling of remorse for what we have done and a desire to change. Our body language and our attempt to repair what has been the result of our error have to accompany “I'm sorry.”

All of this is a part of our relationship to God. When we have sinned we cannot just minimize our actions. Saying “I was wrong” and continuing to engage in the error we committed invalidates our saying we were wrong. Admitting sin and continuing the sin does not erase our broken relationship with Jesus. This is why Romans 6 talks about newness of life and why God through his Spirit gives us the tools to really live the hardest words.

Our sign by the street!

God is the Creator of Spring!

Sign saying from www.sayingsforchurchsigns.com.

Scripture links/references are from BibleGateway.com. Unhighlighted scriptures can be looked up at their website.