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Last Update - October 15, 2024 Gathering Items for 2024 Christmas Baskets Please submit names for recipients of the baskets with the age and gender of any child, so that age appropriate gifts can be chosen for the kids.
Children's Church On the remaining Sundays the children will be dismissed to Children's Church at "Hug & Howdy" time, which is right after prayer. Children's Church is for grades K-7.
Studying the Gospel of John on Sunday Mornings John's gospel is written intimatley from the perspective of one who considered himself to be Jesus' best friend as you could argue no one knew Him better. He lived a long life following Jesus from perhaps his teens into his 90s. It was a long life, but sometime difficult one often being persecuted for his faith. He was exiled to the island of Patmos later in his life where he was given wonderful visions of heaven and future events which he wrote about in the Book of Revelations. He is the only apostle to die of natural causes. His Gospel differs from the other three in that rather than telling a story in order, he hand picks events to prove a certain point. The point he emphasizes is that Jesus is the Son of God. His close relationship with Jesus empowers his words to have extra special meaning as an insider rather than one observing from the outside. He actually states the purpose for writing this account near the end in chapter 20. "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."
Studying II Corinthians on Sunday Evenings
Studying the Book of Acts on Wednesday Evenings
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Guidelines for Church Service Cancellations In addition, we will attempt to get them posted to this web page and the Bride of Christ Ladies Facebook page.
Church Offerings Bride of Christ Fellowship For security reasons, PLEASE do NOT send cash. |
October 13, 2024 I AM the Good Shepherd "Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young. Isaiah paints a picture of the coming Messiah and how He will come to Israel as a Shepherd, to gather His people, love them, and gently lead them. This again takes something we physically know and understand and applies it to the spiritual world. This helps us understand the type of Leader Jesus is, not a dictator or authoritarian, but a loving caring Leader who is concerned mostly with His sheep's wellbeing and their safety. This leads us into our study today as John shares two more of Jesus' "I AM" statements in His teaching here in chapter 10. "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus here expounds even deeper upon Isaiah's prophecy of the Messiah being "like a shepherd." The sheepfold is an enclosure in which the sheep are sheltered in the night. It was a fenced in area with a single gate in which the sheep entered and it was controlled by the shepherd. It is only He who opens the gate and when He calls them, they know His voice and they follow Him. We are His sheep. "Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." Jesus is very clear here in that entry into His sheepfold (salvation) comes only through Him. (Read verse 9) The world proclaims that there are many ways, religions that lead to God and salvation, but Jesus shows us here the truth. In chapter 14:6, He states this even more clearly; "I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." Heavenly Father, thank You for Your wonderful plan of salvation. Thank You for Jesus who is the Door to it and our beloved Good Shepherd. Open our eyes to see the true meaning behind this teaching today and take comfort knowing You are leading us.
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." Our Heavenly Dwelling "For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." The Ministry of Reconciliation "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."
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