Announcements from May 27

Message from May 27, 2012

This is a message of encouragement, reminding us that we judge ourselves in ways that Jesus does not. In fact, Hebrews goes so far as to tell us that He is not ashamed to call us His family!

Message for May 20, 2012

This is the first message in a new series called Hebrews: The Better Way. This message speaks about who Jesus is, and what our response to Him should be. And it's not as complicated as it might sound.

Message for Mother's Day, May 13, 2012

This is a Mother's Day message of encourgement for parents who are worried about their children's spiritual state.

Sunday school discussions

Lately we've been having an interesting discussion about the day of the week on which Jesus died. I thought I would chime in with my two cents.

A person can make a decent case for the traditional Friday death: http://www.angelfire.com/nt/theology/date-crucified.html

Another person can back it up one day with proof of a Thursday death: http://www.tedmontgomery.com/bblovrvw/goodthursday/index.html

And the view stated in class was for a Wednesday death: http://focusonjerusalem.com/thedayJesusdied.html

For good measure, I will add this website: http://www.biblicalperspectives.com/books/crucifixion/4.html. We have tended to believe that Jews reckon days from sunset to sunset, which they do. However, at certain instances they reckon days from sunrise to sunrise, even midnight to midnight as we do. John MacArthur's book The Murder of Jesus affirms this view.

One could spend hours reading up on the different points of view, and come to very different conclusions. I think that's fine. This is what I believe about this issue. I believe the words of Romans 14:5, which says, "One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind."

If you believe it was Friday, fine. If you believe it was Wednesday, fine. I really don't think it matters the day on which Jesus died, just that you believe He did.

Frankly, I believe every single day is sacred. Every day is a chance for me to worship. We've been going through Romans 6 in the morning worship messages, and there we read that believers have died with Jesus. Believers have been buried with him, and have been raised with Him. I celebrate His death and resurrection with every breath I breathe. I don't HAVE to worship Him on such-and-such a day. I remember his death on more than Good Friday, and I remember his resurrection on more than just Easter.

Galatians 2:20 (NLT) tells me, "My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

Romans 6:4 says, "And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives." Faith in Jesus and what He did leads us into new life in the here and now. Although I believe God cares about details, I don't think I need to get all the details right in order to walk in new life.

So I don't worry about it. I think of the words of the song "The Deepest Part of Me" by the group Allies... "I leave the arguments to scholars, as long as God believes in me. The only thing I know for certain - He lives inside the deepest part of me."

Feel free to respond to this post with your comments and questions.

Announcements for May 6 2012

Message from May 6, 2012

This wraps up our series on Romans 6. What is the role of obedience in the life of a believer under grace? What does disobedience do for a Christian?

Message from April 29, 2012

This message carries on the theme of Romans 6 about who we are as believers. Today's little-bit-longer-than-usual message is about how Christians are not under law. What does that mean, and what does for us?