To God's Beloved At Cloverdale Baptist Church:
Today is February 14...a very important day for those who make money on romantic love :) Also a great reminder to us of what love really is, and an opportunity for us to express that love to one another in a way that shows we treasure God above everything else. On this day in 278 A.D., Valentine, a priest in Rome was executed by the Emperor Claudius II. Under this Emperor, all marriages had been banned to strengthen the army, and Valentine secretly continued to perform marriages as an overflow of his love for God! The problem with this was he was caught, and then killed, forever to be celebrated as the Saint of Love. I suppose we don't have all of the facts, but it is good to celebrate love, and realize that there is more to it than the culture grasps as we follow God's Word.
Love is a major theme in the Bible. The love of God for us provides the opportunity for forgiveness and life in Jesus, and the call of God to love Him and love one another sums up the entire Old Testament according to Jesus. Love in a marriage to show the love of Jesus (Lori I Love You!), and our love for one another to image God's love for us (Ephesians 5:1-2). This Valentines day, as you celebrate your love, also celebrate God's love and seek to live it out in a way that glorifies Him! LOVE ONE ANOTHER!
This weekend your elders and deacons are gathering to prayerfully seek God's preferred future for us as a church family. Please pray for us! This team is sacrificially giving of time and energy to help the body of Jesus at Cloverdale Baptist Church be beautiful. Their time and effort is very appreciated, and with your prayers, we can become all that God wants us to be! So...PLEASE PRAY!
We have been reviewing HTML, and I suppose L is the best fit for today, so we will skip M for a week. H: Holiness, to be set apart, and live in the world in a pure way that shows that Christ is formed in us, T: To be loyal to God's Word, and have it as our final authority...and L, to be known for our love as a church. This should be easy, in that we have been so loved by Jesus, and yet perhaps this is under attack the most from the flesh (our selfishness) and the demonic realm (their hatred of God). To love, means we seek the best of others in a self sacrificial manner! To love means we actively live our lives looking to help others pursue God's best. If we don't experience the love of Jesus, loving like Jesus will quickly become overwhelming, and filled with a selfishness that leads to bitterness. So, experience the richness of Gospel love and then overflow it (Ephesians 3:14-21)! Ephesians 5:1-2...as we do this, others will notice. So this week, make an effort to love someone in our congregation with Jesus love.
Read 1 Corinthians 13 this week, every day if you have to, and help us become the church that Jesus wants us to become by actively receiving His love in a way that produces love for others!
Sunday Is Coming:
Title: In Christ Or In Chaos:
Text: Galatians 3:15-29 Part 2
What does it mean to be in Christ?
Why is this so important to Paul in terms of how he describes us?
What is the purpose of the law?
How can we live free in Christ, in a way that shows we are His children?
Looking forward to another great Sunday as we seek to rejoice together in the greatness of God, and our salvation, and live LIVES OF LOVE!
Happy Valentines Day!
Pastor Rob