2017 in Review

Sunday 12/31/17

Series: Doers of the Word

Message – 2017 in Review

2017 in Review…

We began 2017 with a word from God regarding ‘Being Doers’ of the word. We have learned so much here over the past few years…just looking back to 2015

I’ve taught you on…

Faith
Abiding in the Vine
Godliness
Kingdom living
Glorifying God
The Power of the Gospel
Being Living witnesses
God’s power towards godliness
Union with God
Being Yoked with Christ
A whole series on ‘by My Spirit’
The difference between being judged and chastened
Tithing and giving under the new covenant

…just to name a few.

…but as the scriptures say,“knowledge puffs up but love edifies”, 1Cor. 8:1.

So, in 2017 we set out eyes and ears upon learning how to be Doers of the Word beginning in James with a message entitled “Not Hearer’s Only”. Which is where we got our profession we said at the beginning of service…

Blessed am I

For I have eyes to see

and ears to hear

I anticipate

God’s Power in my life

to not just will

but do

His good pleasure

in my life

From January 2017 to May 2017 we were kinda in prep for the REST of the year of 2017.

These lessons included:

Deep and Honest Reverence towards God…

The Tongue (what we say with our mouth and how it steers our life)

Being Friendly with the World…it compromises your walk

What is Your Mind Focused on…

My Heart God’s Throne – glorify God in heart & body = His

You want a Pillow or a Key…to seek comfort in the known or press on into the unknown.

The Hungry Soul…it requires hunger… passion

Drawing Near…its birth a call and an invitation

Inciting Desire… using temptation as a template

Beyond the Veil…holding on to hope

Milk or Meat…growing by doing

Brother’s Keeper…expand your interests
Is Your Heart a House or a Home?…

To learn these lessons we worked through the first 4 chapters of James which addresses the importance of HOW YOU LIVE your life – are you simply a hearer or are you are doer of what you hear?

One of the first takeaways we learned was that it is not the hearers but the doers of the word who are blessed.

Working out you liberty from sin, your freedom to know and adore your creator… Your freedom from the shackles of sin to become like Him in all things. Like the dutiful son who stayed home in the prodigal parable… your obedience is also an investment in your own inheritance!

In James we learned that:

We need to be quick to listen, and have ears tuned to His frequency.
We need to be slow to speak (this is a REAL and genuine problem which is why we addressed the tongue) and even slower to get angry.
The goal of this leg of the race (life) is right-standing with God – not just positional and “legally” but in our actions.
We need to be living lives FILLED with good WORKS produced from our union with Him. Like branch & vine.
- Rom 9:23, “and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory,”
- Eph 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
When we hear and hear, but do not DO – we deceive our own hearts

James compared this to – looking into a mirror. Our consummate problem is forgetting what manner of people we are. The phrase was

“22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, they are like one observing there natural face in a mirror;

24 for they observe themselves, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of person they were.”

This had 3 primary meanings:

The solution was remembering and continuing.

This service had no notes since it was an open discussion…Blessings!

I hope this teaching will challenge you and encourage you to place your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

You have a special place in God’s family & kingdom. If you do not know Him, please use our ‘Contact Us‘ page and reach out so we may have the privilege of introducing you to the Lord. Neither money nor attendance at our church will be mentioned.

If you have been spiritually fed by this ministry and wish to give, we truly appreciate that and you may do so here, but all outreaches of this ministry are FREE for you and anyone to enjoy at no cost.

Blessings!

Pastor Mark

View posts by Pastor Mark

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!