Mark your calendars

We here at the Fellowship understand that we are basically no body's. Everything that we know and enjoy is because of who Christ is and what He has done for us. We also know that even those whom God has gifted in an amazing way to communicate His truth are no body's apart from Christ.

That being said, if you are looking for a conference to go to where your faith will be challenged and encouraged and where your mind will be sharpened, then Together 4 The Gospel '08 is your conference. There is a video on their website of the four men who started this (Ligon Duncan, Al Moehler, C.J. Mahaney, Mark Dever) and they are talking about the conference. It is pretty cool and I would encourage you to take a listen if you have some time.

The link to their site is located on the sidebar to your right. Anyway, if you have the opportunity to attend, then do it. If not, then listen to it online. That is what I might have to do, but it will be worth it. So check it out. It is important for us to have a clear and right understanding and belief in the Gospel. We as followers of Christ should be united with other believers on the actual truth of the Gospel. It is conferences like this that give opportunities to get together and corporately worship and honor Christ and ignite a passion for His great name. So mark you calendars for April of 2008. It should be a great time.

The glory of Christ

This week we have discussed missions and what it is to be about. Each one of us as followers of Christ should in essence, be missionaries where we are at. You don't have to go to a foreign country to be a missionary. Wherever you are currently at you are a missionary whether you are a accountant, mother, father, janitor, etc. We should be praying and looking for opportunities to share the good news of Jesus with others and our main purpose should be for His glory. Revelation 5 is one of our favorite chapters in the Scriptures because it describes for us what it will be like at the end. It tells us how great Christ is for what He has done for us. Our sin needed to be paid for and we could not pay for it ourselves, but Christ with His blood purchased us for Himself. This is the message that we should be sharing with others and the message that we should be praying will change the lives of unbelievers all around the world because it is only Christ who is able and worthy to do this.

Revelation 5
The Scroll and the Lamb
1Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals. 2And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?" 3And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5And one of the elders said to me, "Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals."


6And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 8And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9And they sang a new song, saying,

"Worthy are you to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
10and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on the earth."



11Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" 13And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!" 14And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Recommended Reading on Missions

“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t”

This is a direct quote from the book, Let the Nations be Glad by John Piper. This is the best book written on missions that I have ever read. It is sound theologically and it points out some truths that God used to change my life concerning missions. With that being our theme this week, I would highly recommend that you read this book. It will get you excited about what God is doing. Read this description of the book. It is very well written and a must read.

Description:Since its publication a decade ago, Let the Nations Be Glad! has provided thousands of seminary students, missionaries, and pastors with a sound theological foundation for missions. Piper now offers a revised and expanded edition of this theological and biblical defense of God's supremacy in all things. Drawing on texts from the Old and New Testaments, Piper demonstrates that worship is the ultimate goal of the church and that proper worship drives missionary outreach. He describes prayer as the fuel of missions work because of its focus on a relationship with God rather than the needs of the world. He goes on to illustrate that while suffering is the price of missions, God is worthy of any sacrifice. He examines whether Jesus is the only way to salvation and discusses the extent of the missionary enterprise, seeking to define the scope of the task and the means to reaching "all nations."

The Great Commisson

Matthew 28:18-20
18And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Do you know what the word commission means? It means an authoritative order, charge, or direction. The reason why this portion of Scripture is recorded for us is because Christ Himself has given those who know Him as their Savior an order and command. We are to make disciples, meaning we are to share the Gospel with others and teach them the truths of the Bible. There are several really cool things about this passage that we must note.

First, we can be comforted by the truth that the authority lies with Christ. Christ said that He would build His church and the authority do so has been granted to Him from the Father. We don't have to be afraid to be bold in sharing His message because He is the one who saves the soul. It is truly amazing that Christ has allowed and commanded us to be a part of what He is doing. We share Christ with them and He draws them to Himself and saves them. This should comfort us in knowing that we don't have to have elegant speech or anything special because we have the message of the Gospel. That message is the only message that can save.

Secondly, we must understand that the command here is not to go. There may be some of you who feel called to go and be missionaries to another part of the world and that is totally awesome. Our world need to hear the truth of Christ in order to be saved and we should daily be praying that God will continue to send workers into the harvest(Matt. 9:36-38). Some of you might not be feeling the call to be a missionary to a foreign country or somewhere in the U.S. and that is alright because again, the command is not go. The command is to make disciples. The way it is written in Greek is really go.

It is the idea of as you go, make disciples. This means that wherever you are at, whether that be at the park or the store or in your neighborhood, you and I are commanded to make disciples of Christ. It means that as you live doing whatever role that God has given you, make disciples. If you are an computer person, make disciples. If you are a Storekeeper, make disciples. If you are someone who stays at home, make disciples. If you work in retail, make disciples. We have been placed on this earth to glorify God in all things. It is hard to think of something that brings greater glory to Him then one a sinner repents of his sin and places his hope and trust in Christ alone to save him.

If we are all honest with ourselves, this is probably something that we struggle with. It can be difficult to have this mindset, but we can take comfort that Christ has the authority and that wherever he has placed, we have the opportunity to share Christ with others. Let's pray and ask God to give us boldness in sharing Christ with others. Let's pray that He will provide us opportunities at work, home, or in our neighborhoods to share the Gospel with others. Christ is the only way to salvation and we have been commanded to share that message with others.

Romans 10:13-15
13For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
14But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?[a] And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"

Missions & Evangelism

We hope that you enjoyed your Resurrection Sunday yesterday as you remembered the risen Savior. What a comfort it is to know that Christ has defeated death and that His resurrection proved who He was and proved that His sacrifice for our sin was made.

Continue to pray for Jeremy and the Jr High and High School students who are on a mission trip in Utah. Also, remember to pray for the High School students who are in Mexico. We figured with this attitude in mind, it would be good to discuss missions and evangelism this week. So look for some posts this week regarding this topic.

Let me quickly say that missions and evangelism is a command for every believer. In Matthew 28:18-20 we read Jesus' admonition to His followers which also applies to us,

18And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

We will discuss this idea a little more throughout the week, but be encouraged that Christ has promised and is building His church and we get to be a part of it by sharing the message of the Gospel with others.

Good Friday

As most, if not all of you know, today is Good Friday. Most people think everyday is a good friday. This is a day that is set aside to remember the death of the Savior. Of course, this is something that we should focus on everyday because were it not for Christ's death and resurrection, we would not be saved. It is difficult to imagine that something so horrible like the death of Christ could be good, but it was good because of what it accomplished. Christ's death purchased our salvation in Him. His death paid for our sin. I trust that as you go throughout your day, you will be reminded of just how good the death of Christ was and how good He is keeping in mind how bad we really are. We now leave you with Luke's account of the crucifixion.

The Crucifixion
26And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. 27And there followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for him. 28But turning to them Jesus said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29For behold, the days are coming when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!' 30Then they will begin to say to the mountains, 'Fall on us,' and to the hills, 'Cover us.' 31For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

32Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. 33And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."[a] And they cast lots to divide his garments. 35And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, "He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!" 36The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine 37and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!" 38There was also an inscription over him,[b] "This is the King of the Jews."

39One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him,[c] saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." 42And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." 43And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

The Death of Jesus
44It was now about the sixth hour,[d] and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour,[e] 45while the sun's light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!" And having said this he breathed his last. 47Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, "Certainly this man was innocent!" 48And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts. 49And all his acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things.

Our Substitute

Let us start out by saying that we apologize for the lack of posts this week. One fellow is preparing to take some Jr High and College students to Utah for a missions trip and both fellows have started the 3rd quarter of school. This is the final quarter of Greek Exegesis for us and we are quite stoked. Now on to the topic.

All of you understand what a substitute is. A substitute is someone or something that takes the place for another. For instance, a substitute teacher is acting or replacing the teacher. A substitute in sports is someone who takes the position of the other player. If you substitute mashed potatoes for broccoli, than those potatoes are taking the place of the broccoli.

This is all to say that the death of our Savior, Jesus is important and amazing because He did that for us. He was our substitute. We according to several passages, most notably Romans 1-3 and Ephesians 2:1-4 are absolutely lost and dead in our sin. We are bent to sin and our desires are to sin by our very nature. There is no possible way that we can get to heaven because our sin has separated us from a holy and righteous God who cannot tolerate sin. As a result of this, the only way that sin could be paid for was by a sacrifice. Someone or something had to shed its blood to make payment for sin. In the OT, there were animal sacrifices for sin and these were done on a constant basis. These sacrifices were all leading up to the ultimate sacrifice for sin. That sacrifice was of course made by Christ.

Probably my most favorite passage in all of Scripture is Isaiah 53. This is a prophecy that was made by Isaiah over 600 years before Christ would come. It talks about the sinfulness of man and the sacrifice of Christ. Verses 4-6 clearly show what Christ did on behalf of us. He became our substitute.

Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

Notice all the times is says He and our. Christ bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. Grief and sorrow are caused by sin and they are the result of the fall of man. The remarkable thing is that the Jews and we ourselves thought that Christ was being punished by God for His sins. Instead though, Christ died a horrible death physically while experiencing separation from God the Father because He bore human sin. He took our place. He bore our judgment. His being punished for our sins brought us peace with God through faith in Christ. Because of Christ's sacrifice we have been healed.

This is the reason why we focus on Christ's sacrifice so much because without it, we would still be lost in our sin and headed for hell. We are not because of Christ's death on the cross whereby He took our sin upon Himself and paid for it with His life. We are not becaue Christ rose from the dead defeating sin and showing that He was God and that the sacrifice for our sin had been paid. This is why we praise Him and this is why we adore Him. This is why we should constantly be reminding ourselves of what He did for His glory and for our good. This is not something that should just be done on Good Friday or around Easter time.

The Sacrifice of Christ

The chairman of the Fellowship had a glorious and timeless theme for this week. With this being the passion week, our theme will be the sacrifice of Christ. Jesus is who it is all about and were it not for His death for sinners, we would be headed to a lost eternity in Hell.

There are many Scriptures that we go to for this and look for the fellows to discuss these with you this week. The verse that sums it all up for us though is 2 Corinthians 5:21 which says, He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Christ being God who did not know sin and did not ever sin became sin for us. He died on a wooden cross and not only went through excruciating physical pain, but also bearing sin, our sin. He died in our place. We deserved to die and be judged for our sin, but Christ took our sin upon Himself and defeated it. As a result of this and His resurrection, we if we have been saved by Christ are not considered righteous because God sees Christ's righteousness on our behalf and not our righteousness. This truh is truly something that is mind boggling and it should propel us to glorify the Son in all we say and do.