Tonight at 5 p.m. we will be watching the video “The Nativity Story” at Living Oaks Baptist Church. You are invited to enjoy this story of eternal significance, so please come and enjoy the movie.
"And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken..." (Acts 4.31a) ESV
In Acts 3:1-4.22, we see the story of Peter and John healing a man who had been crippled from birth. Leaping with joy and praising God, this man stood with the disciples as they proclaimed the truth of how Jesus had healed him. As the crowd gathered around, the Temple Police stepped in and arrested Peter and John. The next morning they were brought before the Sanhedrin. After hearing the disciples story, the rulers threatened them to never speak in the name of Jesus again or risk severe punishment.
After being let go, the disciples and their new convert went back and told the church everything that had happened. How God had used them to heal a man who had been crippled for forty years, preached to the crowd which led to 5,000 men being saved, were arrested, proclaimed Jesus to the Sanhedrin, were threatened by the religious leaders, and then set free.
This Sunday, we will look at the conclusion of this narrative in Acts 4:23-31 and examine the believers’ Seismic Prayer which shook the house in which they were meeting. I hope to see you at Living Oaks this Sunday at 10:45 a.m. as we worship God together.
On Tuesday of this week I posted an article “Benefits To Not Changing Churches.” It was written by Dr. Dean Shriver, Pastor of Intermountain Baptist Church in Salt Lake City, Utah. He gave us six benefits for staying in our current church.
Today, I want to post an article I found at Sermoncentral.com by Gregg Surratt entitled “When People Leave: 4 Lessons in Rejection from Jesus.” It is great advice for pastors, as well as church members, to keep in mind when your friends and family move on to another church.
I was reading John 6 the other day and the headline above verse 60 screamed out at me: “Many disciples desert Jesus.” I wondered how that made him feel. Seriously. Go with me there.
I know he was God. And I know he knew in advance who would be staying and who would be leaving. But I also know he was human like me, capable of human emotions even when he knew the outcome. Like when his friend Lazarus died. He knew that he was going to raise him from the dead, but the shortest verse in the Bible says that “Jesus wept” anyway. He cried. Like I cried when my best friend died in a car wreck. It makes me feel better to know that he was capable of feeling what I feel.
So how did he feel when disciples started bailing?
You get the feeling that these weren’t just faces in the crowd. By this time, the crowds had grown extremely large. He has just finished a miracle of feeding at least 4,000 people. That’s the second time he’d done that one. People were so desperate to see him that they literally chased him across a lake. When some of them misunderstood something he taught, they started grumbling about it. Some of the crowd decided that he was getting a little too full of himself, and they started to leave. The murmuring grew until many of those close to him, his disciples, decided to quit following. They weren’t just faces, and you get the feeling that they didn’t go quietly.
How did he feel? How did he process it?
At that point, he turned to the ones that he is closest to, the Twelve, and he asked, “Are you going to leave, too?” Hit the pause button. What are the emotions of those words? Words are never spoken in a vacuum. There is always texture and feeling and context. What were his? What was he thinking?
Honestly, we don’t know. He’s God, and we are not. But I think we can learn some things from Jesus about a healthy process when people leave.
There was never any doubt in Jesus’ mind about whether or not the Father loved him. I’ve got to believe that he knew his worth had nothing to do with how many were at the synagogue this Sabbath as compared to a year ago. The echo of the words of his baptism,“This is my son, and I am really pleased with him,” can’t be underestimated. A friend told me recently that our first thoughts every morning should focus on how much our Father loves us. Everyone else may think you are a jerk, but hey, what difference does it really make if God loves you?
Jesus says in verse 38, “I have come to do the will of God who sent me, not what I want.” There’s a lot of pressure in trying to please everyone. As the crowd grows, there will be more voices clamoring for your attention and potentially becoming offended if you don’t play their hand. One is a much less stressful number.
Even Jesus didn’t go at it alone. In response to his question, Peter says, “Where are we going to go? You have the words of life.” You need people like that. “I’ve got your back” type of people. Sure, you need some who will tell you when you’ve got spinach in your teeth, but you also need a few “I’m not going anywhere, boss” types for situations like these. Do you have people like that in your inner circle? Do you have an inner circle?
Jesus knew ahead of time who would leave and who would stay. You and I don’t. It would be a great gift to have. It would certainly save time and a lot of grief. You may not know, but God does. And according to Romans 8:28, he’ll weave it into the plan in a way that serves both his and your best interest.
The bottom line: When people leave for whatever reason, God’s got your back. What else do you really need?
Question for pastors: How does Jesus’ example help?
Question for church members: Does your pastor know you’ve got his/her back?
To read the article from the original site follow this link: “When People Leave”
This article by Dr. Dean Shriver, Pastor of Intermountain Baptist Church in Salt Lake City, Utah, was writing with pastors in mind; however, I think it is something for every church member to keep in mind. Each one of his points can be applied to each individual church member.
To read this article click here “6 Benefits to Not Changing Churches.”
I have been a Southern Baptist since my first day in church when I was enrolled in “Cradle Roll.” I have had many opportunities to attend churches of other denominations. I have spent a great deal of my life searching the Scriptures to ensure what I was being taught is truth. So you will understand if I tell you I have a special place in my heart for the Southern Baptist Convention.
This week I read an article about “America’s View of Southern Baptist” that was especially surprising. It talks about how people are turned off from attending a church when they see it is affiliated with the SBC. Most of those who felt this way were those who are not currently attending a church anywhere. How does this happen? How can a group of individuals who pool their time, money, and lives together have such an effect on those for whom they are trying to reach? If the church is to continue to fulfill it commission given by Jesus we must resolve this issue immediately!
In my personal opinion, this has happened because individual churches are seen as a denominational church and not a community church. I love being a part of the SBC; however, as a pastor my aim is to constantly keep the spiritual needs of our community in front of the church members. We are to be salt and light to the world. Our world just so happens to be in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is easy for the people in the community to see us as just another Southern Baptist Church if we have the mentality of opening the doors and waiting for people to come in and see how special we are. This was never what Jesus intended. Christians are to go out and engage the community one individual at a time. We are to share that they are so special to God that He sent Jesus to die for them that they might spend eternity with Him.
Please understand, this has nothing to do with whether you need the word “Baptist” or “SBC” on your church sign. What I am saying is this, our communities need to know that we are reaching out to them with the love of Christ. We are not a denomination. We are the bride of Christ. We are the body of Christ. We are to be the heart, hands, and voice of Christ to those who are hurting. As Christians, we are to leave our homes every day knowing that God is going to use us to reach out to others that they might have an opportunity to believe in Jesus Christ.
Come on, Christians—let’s demonstrate to the world that we are not just a denomination or a church building. Let’s show them we are people so filled with gratitude for what Jesus has done for us we want to share it with everyone! Let’s change the opinion of those who don’t know us by getting to know them!
If you would like to read “America’s View of Southern Baptist” please click here.
Bob Pittenger 