Missionary Munition from Oswald Chambers

Because I am out of the office this week, I am sending this “guest edition” of the Weekly Words. Enjoy this classic devotional from Oswald Chamber’s My Utmost for His Highest. Your servant, Pastor Stephen

“When thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.” John 1:48

We imagine we would be all right if a big crisis arose; but the big crisis will only reveal the stuff we are made of, it will not put anything into us. “If God gives the call, of course I will rise to the occasion.” You will not unless you have risen to the occasion in the workshop, unless you have been the real thing before God there. If you are not doing the thing that lies nearest, because God has engineered it; when the crisis comes instead of being revealed as fit, you will be revealed as unfit. Crises always reveal character.

The private relationship of worshipping God is the great essential of fitness. The time comes when there is no more “fig-tree” life possible, when it is out into the open, out into the glare and into the work, and you will find yourself of no value there if you have not been worshipping as occasion serves you in your home. Worship aright in your private relationships, then when God sets you free you will be ready, because in the unseen life which no one saw but God you have become perfectly fit, and when the strain comes you can be relied upon by God.

“I can’t be expected to live the sanctified life in the circumstances I am in; I have no time for praying just now, no time for Bible reading, my opportunity hasn’t come yet; when it does, of course I shall be all right.” No, you will not. If you have not been worshipping as occasion serves, when you get into work you will not only be useless yourself, but a tremendous hindrance to those who are associated with you.

The workshop of missionary munitions is the hidden, personal, worshipping life of the saint.

- Rev. Oswald Chambers

Expect More

Because of the God we serve, we must expect more of Christian young people.

Why? Because they are so great and have so much to offer to the world!

1. Adults must expect more of Christian young people.
2. Christian young people must expect more of themselves.

Scripture reading from 1 Timothy 4:12

12Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

Sermon audio here: Expect More

Contemptible in the World’s Eyes

Dear friends,

Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

“As the ark of the covenant of the Lord came to the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David dancing and rejoicing, and she despised him in her heart” (1 Chr. 15:29).

There are two striking things in the sentence of scripture. One has to do with David’s behavior and the other with Michal’s.

First, we notice King David’s pleasure and happiness in worship before his God. The reason David wanted the ark to come into the city of Jerusalem was so he could seek after the Lord, honor Him, obey Him, and worship Him. When the great day arrived and the golden box (which contained God’s written Word) entered the city, David was there celebrating with all his might! With this in mind, you might ask yourself, when was the last time you were that excited about a worship service at church? When was the last time you sat down with your Bible full of joy because it contained the words of God’s covenant?

Second, in contrast to the joy of David we see the disgust his wife Michal has for the worship of God. We do not know exactly what she thinks when she sees her husband, but perhaps it goes something like this: “How embarrassing for the king to to look so undignified!” “What will everyone think?” “What a waste of time!” Of course plenty of Christian people experience this kind of scorn from their friends, co-workers, and even family members. King David, however, was more concerned about what God thought than any other opinion. “I will make myself even more contemptible than this,” he said to Michal (2 Sam. 6:22a).

Friend, when it comes to a relationship with God, when it comes to the Word of God, when it comes time to worship - which one are you? David or Michal?

Your servant,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder

JIBC Staff Changes/Additions!

Our long time church secretary, Ibu Lisbeth, will be retiring at the end of November. We thank the Lord for her many years of ministry in our midst! Meanwhile, a new Administrative Assistant, Ibu Ina, has already begun work in the office, taking over some of Lisbeth’s duties. Ibu Ina will be serving along with our Ministry Assistant, Ibu Dina and our Helper/Driver, Pak Herry. Starting in the middle of December, Miss Jill Sharp will be joining our staff as a Ministry Intern serving in our youth and children’s ministries. Jill will also have an administrative role in the church office. Please pray for our JIBC staff in their busy ministry!

Give Thanks Every Day

Because God is our great King, we must give thanks to him every day!

1. We must thank our God for His great power.
2. We must thank our God for His great mercy.
3. We must thank our God with our praise.

Scripture reading from Psalm 147:

1 Praise the Lord!
For it is good to sing praises to our God;
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars;
he gives to all of them their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The Lord lifts up the humble;
he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on the lyre!
8 He covers the heavens with clouds;
he prepares rain for the earth;
he makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives to the beasts their food,
and to the young ravens that cry.
10 His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
11 but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates;
he blesses your children within you.
14 He makes peace in your borders;
he fills you with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool;
he scatters hoarfrost like ashes.
17 He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs;
who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them;
he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob,
his statutes and rules to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his rules.
Praise the Lord!

Let Man Not Separate

Dear friends,

Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

“What therefore God has joined together, let man not separate!” (Matthew 19:6b)

The pastor who conducted our wedding sent Jennifer and I out into the world as a married couple with these words. You have probably heard the same proclamation made at other Christian weddings. In fact, I will use this verse at the wedding of some dear Christian friends this weekend. However, the sentence is subtly misunderstood. It is often thought to be addressing the wedding guests as if one or more of them would try to interfere and destroy the marriage. While that is perhaps something to be concerned about, it is not what Jesus was speaking of when he uttered this in the presence of his disciples. They are best understood as words for the married couple! Husband, God has joined you to your wife. Wife, God has joined you to your husband. Don’t tear your God ordained union apart!

And yet it happens all the time in this world. How can we be sure to avoid it? Watch out married brothers for cold indifference toward the thoughts and feelings of your wife. Watch out married sisters for continuous criticism of your husbands words and actions. Watch out married Christians, lest something or someone other than your spouse become your first priority after God. Hear the words of Jesus echoing throughout the centuries:

“They are no longer two, but one flesh” (Matthew 19:6a).

Therefore, selfless love will not only make your spouse happy, it will bring both partners into a joyful state of marital bliss!

May the Creator of marriage bless and protect those wonderful domestic unions which He brings about!

Your servant,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder

C.H. Spurgeon on God’s Cleansing Grace

Because I am out of the office this week, I am sending this “guest edition” of the Weekly Words. Enjoy this classic devotional from Charles H. Spurgeon’s Daily Checkbook. Your servant, Pastor Stephen

Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you (Ezekiel 36:25).

What an exceeding joy is this! He who has purified us with the blood of Jesus will also cleanse us by the water of the Holy Spirit. God hath said it, and so it must be, “Ye shall be clean.” Lord, we feel and mourn our uncleanness, and it is cheering to be assured by Thine own mouth that we shall be clean. Oh, that Thou wouldst make a speedy work of it!

He will deliver us from our worst sins. The uprisings of unbelief and the deceitful lusts which war against the soul, the vile thoughts of pride, and the suggestions of Satan to blaspheme the sacred name-all these shall be so purged away as never to return.

He will also cleanse us from all our idols, whether of gold or of clay: our impure loves and our excessive love of that which in itself is pure. That which we have idolized shall either be broken from us or we shall be broken off from it.

It is God who speaks of what He Himself will do. Therefore is this word established and sure, and we may boldly look for that which it guarantees to us. Cleansing is a covenant blessing, and the covenant is ordered in all things and sure.

- Rev. C.H. Spurgeon

Next Page »