February 08th, 2023

GREETINGS, FBC FAMILY AND FRIENDS,
On this Saturday, take some time to pause, read Scripture, appreciate God's beautiful creation, and prepare you heart for the Lord's Day tomorrow. As we gather with the people of God, we pray that He will bless the moments we have together as we worship Him, come under the Spirit-empowered teaching of Scripture, and then are sent out to love and serve our neighbor with the love of Christ. 

CHRISTIAN SYMPATHY EXTENDED

• To the family of past member Pauline Kolb whose services were held last week. Pauline led the youth choir many years ago at First Baptist. We received a note from Gary and Gae Kolb and family which appears on the main bulletin board for you to read.
• To the family of member Cora Fisher, who passed away on Tuesday. Some have asked about details for her service which is not as yet planned. The family will have a memorial service for Cora when the weather is a bit warmer to allow older family members to attend. We will share those details as we know about them. 

We received word of another member's passing into eternity just last evening, and more information will be shared tomorrow morning. It is our policy to wait at least 24 hours before giving notice of a church member's death through e-mail, texts, or social media messaging. This allows family members and others close to the deceased to be contacted and reduces the likelihood that someone close to the person will first learn of it through some public source rather than through a personal communication.

THE LORD'S DAY (2/5): 

• Bible Study for All Ages, 9:30 am. Nursery through Senior Adult, we have a group for you!
• Worship Together at 10:40 in the Sanctuary. The sermon will focus on Luke 18:31-43, "The Seeing Are Blind, and the Blind See". On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus foretold his death for a third time to his disciples. But they did not understand; in effect, they were blind to the truth. Then at Jericho, Jesus grants sight to a blind beggar who cries out to Him for mercy. The irony of these two events occurring back-to-back is part of the lesson: Jesus opens the eyes of whom He will, when He will, and how He will. The other part of the lesson is that Jesus brought healing to the blind man as an act of pure grace, but it was in response to the man's desire to be made well and His faith in Christ's ability to do it. This was the occasion for much rejoicing and praise, just as Isaiah 35:5 prophesied: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped..."

Scriptures for Sunday.  Here are the Scriptures we will be reading that will shape our corporate worship. Take a few moments to read and meditate on them as you prepare for worship tomorrow. Click anywhere on the link to see a printable version of these passages on biblegateway.com

• Call to Worship: Psalm 112:1-10
  
• Assurance of Pardon: Psalm 85:1-3 
  
• Scripture Reading: Exodus 14:5-20
  
• Sermon Text: Luke 18:31-43
  
• Benediction: Numbers 6:24-26
  

• Baptist Catechism Questions are Questions 85-87 "On the Tenth Commandment." For the entire catechism, follow this link.
  • Question 85: What is the tenth commandment?
    Answer: The tenth commandment is, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s."
    Scripture: Exodus 20:17.
    
    Question 86: What is required in the tenth commandment?
    Answer: The tenth commandment requires contentment with our own condition, with a right and charitable frame of spirit towards our neighbor, and all that is his.
    Scripture: Hebrews 13:5; 1 Timothy 6:6; Romans 12:15; 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Leviticus 19:18.
    
    Question 87: What is forbidden in the tenth commandment?
    Answer: The tenth commandment forbids all murmuring over our own condition and all envying or grieving at the good of our neighbor, and all inordinate affections for anything that is his.
    Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:10; James 5:9; Galatians 5:26; Colossians 3:5.

MONDAY (2/6)

• Seeds & Pizza, 6:30 pm in the Fellowship Hall. For those interested in exchanging seeds and all things gardening. See Ron McElwain for more information.  The public is welcome. Visit this facebook page for more information: https://www.facebook.com/groups/749218362818352
• Monday "Sunday School" online via ZOOM at 7 pm. See Pastor Kyle to join this virtual Bible study group.  To join Zoom Meeting, follow this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87573789453?pwd=Zjg5ZWZ2N1h5WklxOEFjM3IrVUt1QT09      Meeting ID: 875 7378 9453       Passcode: 478672 

WEDNESDAY (2/8)

• Women's ZOOM Bible Study is on break until March

• Men's Discipleship Group, 10 am in the library/conference room. Walking with Ephesians with Russ Wright, group leader. Study guides are available on the literature rack in the narthex, $13.
• Kids' Club, 3:30 - 5:15 pm. This after-school ministry is for children, K-6.
• Men's Discipleship Group, 6 pm (Robert Kendall, group leader, 816-724-4155). This group is just resuming and will be using the Walking with Ephesians devotional study guide, available on the literature rack in the narthex for $13. 
• Bible Study and Prayer, 6:30 pm in the Great Room, live and via ZOOM.  Join us for a time of prayer and time in God's Word as we study the book of Exodus. We will be in Ex. 11:1-10 this week. The ZOOM invite is sent out in the late afternoon on Wednesday, so watch for it in your inbox.

THURSDAY (2/9)

• Worship Team rehearsal at 6:30 pm
• Men's Discipleship Group in conference room at 7 pm. We will be discussing weeks two and three of Walking With Ephesians by Fred Parry. The study guide is available on the literature rack in the narthex (cost: $13).

SATURDAY (2/11)

• MACH 4 Men's Ministry will meet at Oak Christian Church at 6 pm. Since this is close to Valentine's Day, our wives are also invited to this dinner and meeting. Please RSVP to me if you are planning on attending and the number so that we can let Oak know how many to prepare for. The earlier the better!

COMING UP

• Sunday, February 12, is Super Bowl Sunday. We will have our annual chili cook-off and watch party that evening, Lord willing. Specific times are pending, but those bringing chili for the competition usually need to have them there around 4:00 to allow plenty of time for judging. I would also encourage you to bring items for the Living Hope Food Pantry. During the month of February, they would appreciate:
  • Deodorant
  • Canned Tomatoes
  • Tomato Sauce/Pasta Sauce
  • Macaroni & Cheese
  • Peanut Butter
  • Shampoo

• Gideon Speaker will be sharing a 10-minute presentation during the morning service on February 19. If you would like to know more about the Gideons and their ministry of Bible publishing and distribution, visit gideons.org
• Carry-in Dinner and Member Meeting will be Sunday, February 19, immediately after morning worship.

• Justin Peters' Conference has been postponed to March 3 & 4 at Journey Baptist Church, 5708 King Hill Ave., St. Joseph, with the same schedule as previously advertised. The event is FREE, and if you are interested in attending, let me know so we can coordinate transportation to and from the location.

ICYMI: Last Sunday's sermon audio on Luke 18:18-30 "What Must I Do to Inherit Eternal Life?"

Other previous messages are archived here.   Please visit our YouTube Channel to see the edited service video. 

FIGHTER VERSE: Our Fighter Verse this week is 1 Corinthians 1:18:For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.



READ THROUGH THE BIBLE The Five-Day Bible Reading Plan is attached to this e-mail for your convenience. You may want to access additional resources to support your reading available at this website. Whether or not you read the Bible through in a year, I encourage you to pick a book of the Bible and commit to reading it straight through, regardless of how long it takes you. Then when you are finished, pick another and do the same thing.
I encourage you to read the Bible every day, no matter how much or how little you read. A pastor friend of mine challenged his church to read at least seven verses a day. That takes less than one minute to do. You may not have one hour to read the Bible, but you do have one minute (and you likely have five minutes!).

LISTEN THROUGH THE BIBLE One of the miracles of modern technology is that, if you have a computer, a tablet, or a smartphone, you can listen to someone else read the Bible to you. If you would like to hear the King James Bible dramatized, you can. If you would like to hear Max McLean read the ESV, you can. If you would like to hear David Suchet read the NIV in Oxford accent, you can. The point is, there is literally more opportunity now than ever before to listen to the Bible. Many people find this easier or more convenient for any number of reasons. We have this truth about the value of hearing God's Word, that "faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ" (Rom. 10:17). While this is primarily concerned with the preaching of Scripture, it secondarily may be applied to simply hearing the Bible read. However you do it, take the Bible into your life.

See you in church!

Grace and peace,

Pastor Greg