Running Right to Jesus

Mark 10:17-27 (English Standard Version)

17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” 20And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” 21And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

23And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”

Because all things are possible with Jesus, we must run to Him!

1. We must listen to the Word (Jesus is the Word of God).
2. We must understand the law (Jesus is the end of the law).
3. We must trust in Christ (Jesus is greater than all things).

Click below for sermon audio:
Mark 10:17-27

Announcements for 11 July, 2010

Join one of our new adult Sunday School Classes that start on August 8.  Option #1: God is the Gospel, led by Rod McKay.  This class will involve videos by Dr. John Piper, class discussion, and a great new book and workbook. Option #2: Discipleship Class, led by Jack and Jan Harkless. This class will use the Growing in Christ Series and includes class discussion and a handy workbook.  This will be a friendly class especially for those who are new to the faith or who have not attended many Bible Studies before.

Friday Youth Fellowship. There will be a JIBC Youth Group Meeting, on Friday July 23 at 6: 00 pm at the JIBC Function Room

Mission Moment we will have a Mission Moment presentation from Indonesia from Jaringan Anugerah Maluku on July 25, 2010

The Substance of True Religion

Dear friends,

“These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ” (Col 2:17).

The substance of true religion is found in Christ Jesus the Lord! He is the ultimate end of the Old Testament prophecy, law, and promises. He is the foundation of the New Covenant established by the grace of God and sealed in His own blood. He is the substance of truth, grace, and love itself. Without Him, there is no Christianity.

The verse above begins by addressing the ceremonial laws of the Old Testament. They were a shadowy representation of the great work Christ would accomplish. Today all our spiritual endeavors (worship, prayer, scripture studies, offerings, ministry, etc.) are centered on our love for Christ. The substance of all our activity belongs to Him. It is all for Him, it is all about Him, it is all His!
Your servant,

Stephen

Announcements for 4 July, 2010

New Options for Adult Sunday School Are Coming Soon! Ready to grow alongside other Christians! Join one of our two options for Adult Bible Study on Sunday mornings at 9:15 AM.

The NEW ADULT CLASS, God is the Gospel, led by Deacon Rod McKay starts on July 25. This class will involve videos by Dr. John Piper, class discussion, and a great new book and workbook. It will meet in the JIBC Function Room.

Another NEW ADULT CLASS, The Discipleship Class, led by Jack and Jan Harkless starts on August 8. This class will use the Growing in Christ Series and includes class discussion and a handy workbook. This will be a friendly class especially for those who are new to the faith or who have not attended many Bible Studies before.

Let Man Not Separate

Deuteronomy 24:1-4 (English Standard Version):

1″When a man takes a wife and marries her, if then she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, and she departs out of his house, 2and if she goes and becomes another man’s wife, 3and the latter man hates her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter man dies, who took her to be his wife, 4then her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after she has been defiled, for that is an abomination before the LORD. And you shall not bring sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.

Matthew 19:1-9 (English Standard Version)

1Now when Jesus had finished these sayings, he went away from Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2And large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?” 4He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, 5and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” 7They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?” 8He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”

Because the Lord is the creator of marriage, we must listen to his teaching about marriage and divorce.

1. We must obey the Lord’s command.
2. We must understand the Lord’s compassion.

Click the link below to listen to sermon audio:
Matthew 19:1-9

The Bad Samaritan

Dear friends,

Have you heard the Old Testament story about the “bad Samaritan”? It is less familiar, of course, than it’s New Testament counterpart, “the good Samaritan.”

In 2 Kings 17, we read about the king of Assyria resettling Samaria with people from other nations. These new inhabitants of Israel’s former territory soon took up worshiping the Lord! This would have been great, but there was one big problem:

“They feared the Lord, but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away” (2 Kings 17:33).

This is the lesson of the “bad Samaritan.” It is not uncommon for people to become excited about God, Jesus, the Bible, church, and the idea of eternal salvation. However, these same people are often unwilling to let go of their past. They want the benefits of a relationship with God, plus the sin of which they have grown so fond. They hope to serve the Lord AND their “own gods.” This simply does not work. God does not want to share space with anything else in your life. Thus, the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods besides me” (Ex. 20:3) and the words of Jesus, “You cannot serve two masters” (Mt. 6:24).

Friends, let’s ask God to help us clear out those things of the world that clutter up our relationship with Him so that He alone sits enthroned in our hearts!

Your servant,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder

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