The one question that I have and have been thinking about lately is how to properly listen to a sermon. when we gather for worship the the foremost thing we try to do is bring glory to God, offering praise, prayers, tithes and fellowship but the sermon is for us. We need to hold our pastors to a high standard of truth and expect an excitement and passion for proclaiming the Gospel but we should receive it in a way that brings glory to God. In this day and age there are thousands of great sermons at the click of a button and I can pick one that suits me , if we are discerning this can be a wonderful tool in our spiritual growth. There is a big difference though, between watching a sermon on my computer and hearing one in a worship service gathered with other believers. I still sometimes complain that I didn't get anything out of the sermon, and would love to hear some insights in how to listen to a sermon in a way that brings glory to God.
In the passages from 1 Tim. it begins with the assumption or requirement that there be a desire to serve in these offices, it seems this is lacking in many cases. Currently in our church we are struggling to come up with enough nominees to fill the slots, what does this say about a congregation?
In our church we are typically served in our seats and occasionally go up front to recieve it. I think when we try to find different ways of doing communion people are concentrating more on the procedure rather than the celebration.
I would like to ask these men their thoughts on nuclear power, which if done with modern technology could safely reduce emissions and maintain our needs. ?
I think the author is right about these trends and they all seem to focus on the convenience of the worshipers. Sometimes we lose sight of the first priority of worship which is to bring glory to God, our comfort and convenience should be way down the list.
When the church advocates for our government to mandate caps on emissions we must be prepared for the effects. These types of mandates will most certainly make our energy prices to sky rocket, as President Obama said. Families struggling to make ends meet will find their electric bills higher,heating bills higher ,fuel and food prices all higher. These mandates restrict freedom as well which is the engine of a growing economy and good jobs. As our Church discusses social justice and climate change I think we have to look at both sides of the issue.
It is good to take time to think about the "bigness" of God, this past Christmas season I thought about it often as well. The verse that stood out for me was Ephesians 4:10 ( He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens in order to fill the whole universe.)
Q&A 81 which is used in this artical is very similar to the things we ask someone making public proffession of faith. Our profession of faith is an examination of ourselves and people of very different intellectual abilities are able to do this basic step, it should remain a requirement bfor partaking. We are not excluding children when they are not allowed to take communion, I think we are preparing them , our children should be right next to us watching and asking questions.
In the Heidelberg catchism L.D. 35 , images of God or Jesus are not permitted . I would be interested to see if anyone else thinks that movies like this would be applied to this.
We have been doing something similar to this on Sunday mornings while the kids are in sunday school, we call it sermon reflection . I think it is very helpfull in concentrating on the sermon and the scripture passage, and also I would think it would be helpfull for new believers to be able to mix with more mature believers and discuss things that might not be clear to them. I would like to hear more ideas on this as it seems the interest at our church is waning.
Posted in: Not Enough Time?
The one question that I have and have been thinking about lately is how to properly listen to a sermon. when we gather for worship the the foremost thing we try to do is bring glory to God, offering praise, prayers, tithes and fellowship but the sermon is for us. We need to hold our pastors to a high standard of truth and expect an excitement and passion for proclaiming the Gospel but we should receive it in a way that brings glory to God. In this day and age there are thousands of great sermons at the click of a button and I can pick one that suits me , if we are discerning this can be a wonderful tool in our spiritual growth. There is a big difference though, between watching a sermon on my computer and hearing one in a worship service gathered with other believers. I still sometimes complain that I didn't get anything out of the sermon, and would love to hear some insights in how to listen to a sermon in a way that brings glory to God.
Posted in: Elder Deacon Mandates
In the passages from 1 Tim. it begins with the assumption or requirement that there be a desire to serve in these offices, it seems this is lacking in many cases. Currently in our church we are struggling to come up with enough nominees to fill the slots, what does this say about a congregation?
Posted in: The Lord's Supper — A Joyful Occasion?
In our church we are typically served in our seats and occasionally go up front to recieve it. I think when we try to find different ways of doing communion people are concentrating more on the procedure rather than the celebration.
Posted in: 5 Big Questions About the COP26 Climate Change Conference
I would like to ask these men their thoughts on nuclear power, which if done with modern technology could safely reduce emissions and maintain our needs. ?
Posted in: What Disruptive Church Trends Did You See in 2016?
I think the author is right about these trends and they all seem to focus on the convenience of the worshipers. Sometimes we lose sight of the first priority of worship which is to bring glory to God, our comfort and convenience should be way down the list.
Posted in: COP 21: A Crash Course
When the church advocates for our government to mandate caps on emissions we must be prepared for the effects. These types of mandates will most certainly make our energy prices to sky rocket, as President Obama said. Families struggling to make ends meet will find their electric bills higher,heating bills higher ,fuel and food prices all higher. These mandates restrict freedom as well which is the engine of a growing economy and good jobs. As our Church discusses social justice and climate change I think we have to look at both sides of the issue.
Posted in: Theology in Song: The Rapture
I may be wrong but I believe in a rapture and that it will be public and final as opposed to one that is secret, which we hear taught more often.
Posted in: God, He's Huge!
It is good to take time to think about the "bigness" of God, this past Christmas season I thought about it often as well. The verse that stood out for me was Ephesians 4:10 ( He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens in order to fill the whole universe.)
Posted in: Invited (part 2)
Q&A 81 which is used in this artical is very similar to the things we ask someone making public proffession of faith. Our profession of faith is an examination of ourselves and people of very different intellectual abilities are able to do this basic step, it should remain a requirement bfor partaking. We are not excluding children when they are not allowed to take communion, I think we are preparing them , our children should be right next to us watching and asking questions.
Posted in: The BIBLE on the History Channel
In the Heidelberg catchism L.D. 35 , images of God or Jesus are not permitted . I would be interested to see if anyone else thinks that movies like this would be applied to this.
Posted in: Sermon Based Small Group Experiment
We have been doing something similar to this on Sunday mornings while the kids are in sunday school, we call it sermon reflection . I think it is very helpfull in concentrating on the sermon and the scripture passage, and also I would think it would be helpfull for new believers to be able to mix with more mature believers and discuss things that might not be clear to them. I would like to hear more ideas on this as it seems the interest at our church is waning.
Posted in: Invited
there has to be some level of understanding to participate, I am not sure how a young child examines himself carefully.