To God's Beloved At Cloverdale Baptist Church:
Christmas is a time for hope and celebration. It is a time where family comes to visit, and a time to focus on hope, and joy, and peace. It is an opportunity to share Jesus with others around us. In my Advent Devotional this morning, I read, "Jesus is troubling to people who do not want to worship Him, and He brings out opposition for those who do." We should be aware of this as we seek to glorify God this Christmas. It should not seem strange to us that those who do not accept the reality of who Jesus is fight against Him, for not only does His love demand delight, His person demands obedience. This Christmas our goal is to display the love of God to the world around us, and as we shout in joy our allegiance to Him, in love, let's respond to those who do not believe with grace and perseverance. God's love is on display at Christmas, and as we are avenues of that display, let's rejoice as others see Him in us.
Our deacon of Evangelism is once again delivering an invitation to our Christmas Eve Service, and needs some help. If you are willing to help Rick with a few hours on Saturday, December 19 that would be fantastic. We only need about 20 of you, and this is a great opportunity for a little exercise, a lot of prayer, and a chance to offer the love of Jesus to our closest neighbours. Please let Rick know by email if you can join him (rjcromptonbc@gmail.com) or on Sunday, where he will be waiting for you at the back of the foyer after the service. I think it would be wonderful if we had way to many and Rick had to say no to some of you, but so far we only have 3...SO WE NEED YOU!
As we seek to honour Jesus with our lives, it has a direct impact on our morality. We are called to be in the world, but not of the world. HTML, who we want to be as a church as an overflow of our first love devotion to Jesus, begins with H, HOLINESS. We want to be holy as God is holy, and this may be one of the most difficult realities that God calls us to follow Him in. Holiness means to be separate, and to be morally pure, and as Christians we are called to both. To be those who understand that God has set us apart for Himself, and that we are to be morally pure. This includes what we watch, how we talk, think, act, it includes all of our lives. At Cloverdale Baptist Church we long to be Holy as God is Holy, knowing that in Him we are pure, and that He has called us to practical purity. If there is any known sin in your life right now, take the time, as a part of our family to root it out! God wants us completely and totally pure in every area of our lives! Pray that we would be a people that are in the world but not of the world and that our morality would be from the WORD, not the WORLD.
We are planning a week of prayer in early January, please mark this on your calendars, as we seek to depend on God for 2016. There will be numerous activities throughout the week as we dedicate ourselves to God again for the year. Apart from Him we can do nothing, but with Him, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE.
Sunday is Coming:
Title: What Child Is This? Jesus Is The Saviour
Text: Matthew 1:21
What is the significance of the name that the Angels told Joseph to name this precious child?
Why is understanding that we are sinners so significant to us knowing Jesus as Saviour?
What is the danger of a culture that no longer believes in sin? Of Christians who think like the culture about sin?
What did Jesus do to save us from our sins?
Why is knowing Jesus name, and its significance so important to experiencing the reality of the victorious Christian life?
How can we live our lives in such a way that we display the beauty of God's love, and this precious gift of salvation?
How does BAPTISM display this reality effectively, both for those being baptized, as well as for us who are there to witness this amazing celebration?
Worshipping Jesus with you this Christmas,
Pastor Rob