08.29.08
Posted in Uncategorized at 5:43 pm by awest
Summer is over! Can you believe it?! The first Wednesday night meal of the new church year will be September 10th and we look forward to pulling the church body together for a meal and time of worship. Take advantage of this extremely important time of building relationships with each other and with our Savior. As the new church year begins, the prices of meals have increased to $4.00 for adults and $3.00 for children under 10. This ministry has always been self supporting and last year because of the rising costs of food, gas and everday necessities, the Wednesday night dinner ministry ran behind around $2000.00. Of course the bills were paid, but they had to come out of the general fund. If the prices of meals prevent you from attending dinner and you need assistance, please talk with one of your Pastors and we will make sure that your family can be a part of this vital ministry. By the way, it’s not too late to come on board! We would love to have your help! If you are interested please speak to me! Pastor Aaron
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Posted in Church Health Team, Transition Planning at 10:29 am by Tom Gilson
One of the first tasks of the Church Health Team is to evaluate how our church is doing. We’re preparing a church-wide survey questionnaire for that purpose. You can help us with it by letting us know of questions that you think should be included. Is there some aspect of the church’s current condition you think we should look into? Then we want to hear from you. Here’s how:
- You may respond by posting a comment here or by emailing it to Tom Gilson, at tom DOT gilson AT cox DOT net (I’ve obscured that address to keep it from being picked up by spammers).
- You don’t need to phrase it as a survey question. Just let us know the area of interest, and we’ll take care of the wording.
Here are some ground rules before you answer:
- If you post it here on the blog, please make sure it’s a question and not an opinion, because this is not the right forum for dealing with potentially controversial opinions.
- That also means to please avoid posting opinions disguised as questions (e.g., “Why does so-and-so do things in such a nonsensical way?”).
- Note also that this is about the church’s general condition, not things like (for example), “What happened at the business meeting?”
- If you have an opinion to express (rather than a question), you may email it to the address already given. It will be shared with the entire Church Health Team, but otherwise held in confidence.
- The team will make the final decision as to which questions are included in the questionnaire.
Thank you!
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08.28.08
Posted in Gene Cornett at 4:51 am by Gene Cornett
It seems to me that we could preach on the subject of relationships between the opposite sex every week and never lack for an audience that needs to hear the subject. Such relationships touch everyone, whether you are a young person, single, married, divorced, remarried or widowed. We’re planning to talk about dating relationships for both teens and singles, marriage relationships, finances in marriage, and blocks to intimacy in marriage, and of course, we’ll do this all from God’s word. This series will begin on Sunday September 7th. Will you commit to being here this fall as we pray and strive together to encourage and develop healthy relationships?
Beginning a new church year is a good time to remind ourselves that God calls us to be generous people. It doesn’t make sense to not follow God in this area and yet it is such a struggle for so many of us. Many have gotten their personal finances into such a mess that though they would like to give more generously they feel trapped. Others have questions about how the church’s funds are spent and wonder if those making financial decisions are doing so effectively. Some have said for so long that we are not doing well financially that that many have begun to believe that to an extent not warranted by the facts. I believe that as we are faithful to follow God, he will be faithful to provide the funds to do what he calls us to do. With my personal finances, I confess that sometimes I wish God would miraculously make my bills go away. Obviously, God does not always answer prayer the way we wish he would. Perhaps the struggle to trust God with everything related to our finances, both for our families and our church, is important.
Seaford is a diverse church. People look at giving in so many different ways. Some in the body give faithfully and sacrificially no matter what else happens. Some want to give like that but are so strapped in debt that can’t see how it is possible. Perhaps some think the church is not being wise with expenditures or staff and so are not giving, and I am sure there are some that are just stubbornly disobedient. Regardless of where you stand, will you pray with me about these matters? I believe with all my heart that individuals, families and the whole church will be healthier and more full of joy as more of us get into that first category of joyful givers. God says, test me and see (Malachi 3:10). Perhaps it is time for you to take God up on that challenge.
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08.26.08
Posted in Church Health Team at 3:26 pm by Tom Gilson
Last night the new Church Health Team held its first meeting. The Church Health Team (CHT) has been formed to aid the church in its transition to new leadership, by providing a careful assessment of who we are as a church and where we believe God is leading us. Many other churches have learned through experience how important this can be, to help in working through a church’s current opportunities and struggles, and to help the Pastor Search Committee in its crucial work of selecting the right person for the church.
The CHT’s purpose and plans are outlined in the graphic you see below (click here or on the image for a larger version). We will come to you, the members of the church, for your input on the Church Heritage and the Church Assessment. You can expect to see this beginning within just a couple weeks from now. We’re confident you’ll be encouraged by the process as well as by the results. We do not have an expected date of final completion yet, but you can be assured we all feel a strong sense of urgency about it.
Current team members are Tom Gilson, Terry Roberts, Lisa Elburn, Mike Hall, David Jones, Scott Beasley, and Scott Morelen. More members may be joining us in the next month. If you have questions, concerns, or ideas, please contact any one of us. We’re eager to hear from you, and we’ll keep you posted on our activities through this blog and through the Trumpet.
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08.24.08
Posted in Bible Study, Bryan Dunn at 8:11 pm by Bryan Dunn
Recognition of Christ’s Authority in Nain (Luke 7:11-17)
We next meet Christ about 25 miles southwest of Capernaum (where he healed the centurion’s servant). This journey was (of course) not a mistake, but presented another opportunity for Christ to authenticate the authority of His person. Upon arriving at the town gate, the crowd comes upon a funeral procession. This widow must have been well known and highly respected in the town because a large crowd was with her.
Wow – here we see The One who was the Man of sorrow, well acquainted with grief, touched by the bereavement of the widowed mother. What do you say in a situation like this? I know how you feel? That’s questionable at best. I certainly don’t have the magic words for this situation (and that’s not unusual for me). How do you console such a person? Jesus didn’t just speak, He demonstrated that He was the resurrection and the life.
Shepard says: “Do not go on weeping,” He said tenderly. Then going forward a little He touched the open wicker-coffin. The pall-bearers stopped immediately. It was ceremonial pollution of the worst type to touch the dead, and by Rabbinism fraught with the most terrible consequences. Jesus dreaded not the imagined defilement and brushed away all such useless traditions. A superstitious awe fell upon the great crowd of people.
Here – we need to break. This son, who was dead and had no capacity to hear – he heard. This son, who was lifeless sat up, got out of the coffin, and walked. Jesus had spoken a command for this dead man to get up, and he did. He came to life! Back to Shepard…
A reverent fear seized upon all present, and they began and went on glorifying God by repeated expressions. The conclusion, which they reached unanimously and the cause they assigned for their glorying, was that a great prophet had risen in their midst. The remembered the incidents in the ministries of Elijah and Elisha nine hundred years before, and jumped to the conclusion that ‘God had visited his people’ once again with a prophet. This kind of report went out into all of Judea and all the surrounding country concerning Him.
More testimony for the Person of Christ. Which leads me to my questions. These folks remembered. I mean, they just witnessed a miracle of enormous proportions – a person who was dead was raised back to life! And they drew some conclusions. This was supernatural. This was the work of God or of His agent – one of the prophets. They knew what was foretold, and they leapt to conclusions.
What about you and I? We have heard the stories of Jesus, the prophets, and have been taught the Word since…longer than many of us care to recall. But would we remember? If we saw something just fantastic, mind blowing, absolutely out there – would we remember? What would it take for us to recall? Would we need to remember that it took God to die for me when I commit some sin? Would we need to recall that we caused the God of the universe pain because of our choices? Or is that just something that we forget too often…
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08.22.08
Posted in Spiritual Growth, Tom Gilson at 7:45 am by Tom Gilson
Not long ago I heard J.P. Moreland discussing whether we can know Christianity is true. Moreland is an apologist and the author of what I consider to be one of the most important books written by a Christian in recent years, Kingdom Triangle. I don’t have his exact words, but it went something like this:
“There seems to be among average churchgoers a nagging suspicion, a fear, that the scholars—those who are really in the know—have proved the faith is all wrong. In the universities, the laboratories, and even the seminaries they’ve found out the Bible is mostly false and the message of Christ is a big hoax; but the rest of the world just hasn’t quite caught on yet.”
Moreland was actually drawing from Dallas Willard, in another on that short list of most important books, The Divine Conspiracy. Willard is professor of philosophy at the University of Southern California, and stands in a good position to comment on this topic. On page 92 he wrote,
The powerful though vague and unsubstantiated presumption is that something has been found out that renders a spiritual understanding of reality in the manner of Jesus simply foolish to those who are “in the know.”
This presumption is “powerful,” he says. What kind of effect might it have? Does it really make a difference? It must. A believer, after all, is someone who believes; and if that belief is colored by concerned that the really smart people, the ones who understand, have found out it’s all foolish, that belief may be little more than a confused mind game: “I guess it’s all wrong, or at least I think it is, but I’m going to believe it anyway.” This is irrational. It makes us double minded, even unstable, to use James’s words (James 1:6-8).
I wrote in a post on Thinking Christian that quite often, it really is good to do what others say is good for us; but too many churchgoers “believe” not because they think it’s true, but because they think it’s good for them to believe. That kind of belief isn’t good for you, though; it’s just confused.
This presumption that it’s foolish to believe is wrong, at any rate. Willard goes on:
But when it comes to say exactly what it is that has been found out, nothing of substance is forthcoming.
Thus Rudolf Bultmann, long regarded as one of the great leaders of twentieth-century thought, had this to say: “It is impossible to use electric light and to avail ourselves of modern medical and surgical discoveries, and at the same time believe in the New Testament world of spirits and miracles.”
To anyone who has worked through the relevant arguments, this statement is simply laughable. It only shows that great people are capable of great silliness. Yet this kind of “thinking” dominates much of our intellectual and professional life at present, and in particular has governed by far the greater part of the field of biblical studies for more than a century.
But the baseless presumption in question must be seen for the empty prejudice it is if we are to enroll with serious intent in Jesus’ school of life. Though this is not the place to discuss it, you can be very sure that nothing fundamental has changed in our knowledge of ultimate reality and the human self since the time of Jesus.
Here on this blog entry is not the place to discuss it either, for it would go far too long. I will leave you with questions and some advice instead, directed especially toward followers of Christ. Do you really believe what you “believe?” Does believe, for you, mean to consider the Gospel to be true and reliable information, or does it mean something less than that? Do you sense that nagging suspicion that it might be all wrong after all? Are you believing because you’re confident it’s true, or because you think it’s probably good for you?
If you identify any of those haunting doubts in you, here’s what not to do: Don’t try to squash or squelch it, don’t feel condemned about it, and don’t feel shame over it. It’s a signal, a good and helpful one for you to pay attention to. It may be a sign that what you “believe,” you don’t really believe, and that you’re trying to manage some kind of impossible schizophrenic doublethink. Bring that vague unsettledness out into the open. Turn it into genuine questions. Then you can look for genuine answers, in Scripture, at your church, and among good books and blogs (of which I hope this is one).
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08.21.08
Posted in Uncategorized at 7:29 pm by Bryan Dunn
First order of business is a ‘thank you’ for your trust as you have chosen to elect a moderator. I thought it may be useful to offer you a way to voice your questions or concerns using this forum. Perhaps we can discuss how to best deal with business! But, I digress, I did have some information I wanted to share so you could be aware of how I’m attempting to (or will attempt to) moderate at our business meetings.
First, I need you to know that I’m no ‘expert’ at Robert’s Rules of Order (any edition). That doesn’t mean I have not attempted to understand how to deal with certain situations and how to best handle the various questions and situations a business meeting provides. I hope that doesn’t disappoint you or discourage you, in fact, I hope it inspires you. This is certainly not something I aspired to do at most anytime in my life, and I don’t plan on making it the crowning achievement at Seaford - so you too may have the opportunity to serve in this capacity. I pray that I leave the position as a respectable one whenever that time comes.
I would like to explain the title of this post, of Robert’s Rules and Traffic Cops. As I chair our meetings, please understand that I am trying to be a good steward of your time and efforts. In that way, I view this role very similar to a traffic cop. And I think it is a concept that all of us can understand, so please journey with me into this area.
Traffic Cops Enforce the Laws
Notices how I stated this. The traffic cop does not make the law, they are the enforcement arm, the ‘feet on the street’ if you will. Please understand that as moderator, I have great leeway in getting things to transpire in various business meetings. It is not my role to make up the laws, however, it is my role to enforce them. The traffic cop does not know every law on the books, so there are times that they are - in the routine of their duties - making judgment calls ‘on the fly.’ I don’t want you to have any reservations that there will be times that I, in my role as moderator, will also be presented with situations that I need to make a judgment call on. It is my hope that you see this as using my role as one that is doing the best one can do with the circumstances that are present during that time. I don’t know every nuance of our rule book and don’t feel compelled to learn them all just so we can run the tightest ship in the business meeting fleet! I will do my best to keep the ship on an even keel during our meetings, but those attempts to outsmart the traffic cop may not be the best thing to do - on the road for sure, but in meetings as well. I will respect you and your input to the body, all I ask is that you respect the things I try to impart in this role as well.
Traffic Cops Assist in Controlling the Flow of Traffic
One of the things that a traffic cop does is to assist in ensuring the highway is safe for all travelers. In doing so, they see folks that are going too slow and sometimes pull them over for impeding traffic. Other times people want to go too fast, and they get pulled over for speeding. It’s a lot like that in business meetings! There are times that our brothers and sisters get up and want to have their say. That is one of the beauties of a business meeting - we get to discuss items we have a stake in. But if we try to use this as an opportunity for a ‘bully pulpit’, I will pull you over and ask you to relinquish the floor. Likewise, everyone who attempts to speed - by trying to obtain the floor or get your thoughts in during someone else’s time on the floor - will get ticketed by me and ruled out of order (you can’t make a motion or speak in debate until you have risen and been recognized by the chair and thus have obtained the floor).
Traffic Cops Direct the Traffic
Also, in assisting with traffic flow, there are times when the traffic cop gets out in traffic…say, when a traffic light is out or a big event has traffic streaming in or out. They are there to direct traffic so that it flows. And the moderator does that as well! There may be times where I need to wade into traffic and start to move things along, especially when something comes up in debate where there are differences in opinion. Don’t be surprised if I limit the speakers to someone speaking in favor of the item put before the body, and then someone speaking against the item put before the body. It really is pointless to have 25 people all in favor of the item before the body speak - we should be moving traffic ahead and put that matter to a vote if there is no opposition!
Traffic Cops Ticket Violators
Of course, this is the part that no one wants to be a part of. And - be honest - when you get pulled over, your anger is normally directed at the cop that pulled you! He didn’t violate the law, he is enforcing it. I hope you afford me the same leeway here. There are times when we get passionate about an issue or item being debated on the floor. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be people! Part of my role is to ensure we are civil with each other at all times. Here are some guidelines I want to moderate under.
- All members have equal rights, privileges, and obligations; rules must be administered impartially.
- The minority has rights which must be protected.
- Full and free discussion of all motions, reports, and other items of business is a right of all members.
To best do this, I guess we need to also understand this portion of business meetings. We must not attack or question the motives of other members. To help facilitate that, all remarks are addressed to the presiding officer.
One of the areas this also applies to are our demonstrations. In traffic, if you honk your horn, it could mean different things to different folks. Some may be thankful you alerted them to a situation and avoided an accident, while others will take that same honking of the horn as the start of an incident of road rage! That is how it is with our applause and demonstrations in our business meetings. Some folks see it as a polite way to acknowledge agreement with a speaker, while others see it as an affront to their disagreement. For that reason the moderator asks everyone to refrain from this type of display.
If you have me call you on this issue, please know that it’s not about me, and it’s not really about you. It’s all about US as a body. It’s the part of moderation that I hope to never get to use, because our meetings should be tempered with love, bathed in prayerful consideration, and operated under the principle that our own ‘rights’ are secondary to those of our brothers and sisters.
John 13:34-35 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (NIV)
If you are interested in learning more about Robert’s Rules of Order, in (hopefully) simpler terms, here are some links for you to visit (and note, I’m not responsilbe for any of the content on these pages!):
Finally, if you have questions, comments, concerns - feel free to contact me. Or, if it is general in nature, post a comment on this thread, maybe someone will answer it here! Take care & God bless!
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08.11.08
Posted in Bible Study, Bryan Dunn at 7:34 am by Bryan Dunn
Well, Jesus had gone and done it now. With the latest teaching of - again - repudiating Pharisaic tradition and practice, there was now a rift that would not be repaired between Himself and the religious authorities. Once Jesus returned to Capernaum after talking to the latest crowd, he is met by a centurion needing help.
Now you may have heard some teaching here that this was some sort of proselyte of righteousness. I don’t see that in these passages at all. The language used seems to be just standard language of any Gentile in addressing someone they had respect for. Perhaps even a love for in this land that had been under captivity for so long. Of note is the centurion did not bite at Jesus’ move to come to his house. To do so, for the Gentile, was no inconvenience but for the Jew it would have risked defilement (the thought, going into a Gentile’s house!). Even while addressing Jesus as ‘Lord’ (showing a high regard for His person) didn’t belay the faith this man had based on what he had heard from others. And as a military man, he was not forgetful of his mission - to get attention to a valued servant.
Edersheim notes: …the question with the Centurion would be: not, Could Jesus heal his servant, but Would He do so? And again, this other specifically: Since, so far as he knew, no application from any in Israel, be it even publican or sinner, had been doomed to disappointment, would he, as a Gentile, be barred from sharing in this blessing? Was he ‘unworthy’, or rather, ‘unfit’ for it? Thus this history presents a crucial question, not only as regarded the character of Christ’s work, but the relation to it of the Gentile world.
When Jesus showed a willingness to go and heal the servant, the reply of the centurion shows his recognition of Christ’s authority. Again, Edersheim notes:
He was a soldier and his thought was cast in a military mould. ‘I’, he argued, ‘am a man ranked under authority with soldiers under myself; and I say to this one ‘Go’ and he goeth; and to another ‘Come’ and he cometh; and to my slave ‘Do this’ and he doeth it.’ He pictures a spiritual hierarchy after the model of the military organization which he knew so well. Though only a subordinate officer subject to his superiors, he had authority over his soldiers; and, if he had only to issue his commands and they were executed, might not Jesus, whom he recognized as the Lord of all principalities and powers, do the lake and much more? There was no need for Him to approach the sufferer; let Him but speak the word, and ministering angels would hasten to fulfill it.
This centurion, because of his military experience and practice, understood that Christ didn’t need to be personally present to execute a command. The one in authority only needed to issue the command to have something done. What remarkable faith in the person and authority of Christ!
Christ is excited about this man’s faith (see vs. 10). Then in verse 11 Jesus refers to the duplication of this faith many times over as other Gentiles who would come from all parts of the earth to take their place in the kingdom. Then in verse 12 He makes certain that those that were physical decedents of the promise understood that those that rejected the King, even though there were servants (by birth), would exclude themselves from the kingdom and be consigned to darkness forever.
In response to the faith of the centurion, Christ gave him the assurance that his servant would be healed. This passage of scripture is a remarkable foreshadowing of the setting aside of the nation Israel because of unbelief. It also shows that the message Christ brought was for the Gentiles as well who would believe and take their place with the faithful of Israel in the kingdom. What a wonderful insight into God and His work for His children!
The centurion’s faith astonished Jesus, who then used it as an opportunity to reaffirm the inclusion of many foreigners in the kingdom of God. Although both Matthew and Luke recorded this event, only Matthew added Jesus’ comment about the diverse crowds that would flock to the final banquet, while those who assume they are guests of honor would be turned away at the gate. Matthew directed his Jewish readers to two truths:
- Jesus fulfilled all the foretold descriptions of the Messiah, and
- Jesus was the Savior of the entire world, not just the Jews.
The first truth defines Jesus’ identity as Messiah; the second truth defines his relationship to us. The first states a fact; the second offers a personal invitation to us. Will we be among the varied multitudes celebrating with Abraham the triumph of Jesus? Your RSVP is required.
(from The Life Application Commentary Series copyright (C) 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 by the Livingstone Corporation. Produced with permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.)
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08.05.08
Posted in Gene Cornett at 8:57 pm by Gene Cornett
Here is the link to the 3 position descriptions recommended by the personnel committee which the church will vote on in the August 20th business sessions.
Click Here (PDF) - Interim Worship Director Position Description
Click Here (PDF) - Associate Pastor - Minister of Education and Outreach Position Description
Click Here (PDF) - Facility Maintenance Coordinator Position Description
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08.04.08
Posted in Gene Cornett at 10:16 am by Gene Cornett
The Jerusalem church came under severe fire after a very public execution of one of its own members. See Acts 8:1-4. The persecution scattered the believers except for the apostles themselves. We are given no reason as to why the disciples stayed. What is important to note is that at least one member of this church, Stephen, so irritated the local authorities that he was stoned, executed. This would be the local Jewish authorities. It’s hard not to think that there is a challenge here for our church. Is there no one so provocative in our church to excite at least some ire, some persecution from outside? Some experienced a bit of this on the Lackey mission trip. Perhaps they would want to share something of their experience here.
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