Hurt by another? Wait on God.

Dear friends,

“Do not say, ‘I will repay evil’; wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you” (Pr. 20:22).

If you have been hurt by another person, then listen carefully to this scriptural wisdom.

The proverb above cautions against taking a wrong course of action. It does not suggest inaction! In fact, there is no better method for facing evil of all kinds than “waiting on the Lord.” We wait on Him when we open the Bible and look for words of comfort and counsel. We wait on Him when we offer up our prayer requests seeking His guidance in the face of difficulty. And we wait on Him when we hold our tongues and listen for the quiet voice of His Holy Spirit in our hearts.

If you are tempted to repay evil with evil, then wait! Not passively, but actively seek help from the Almighty. He gives it in the most amazing ways. He can bring about a great deliverance in your struggle that is beyond your imagination. You don’t think so? You think two enemies cannot make peace?

But they can, with the help of the Lord!

“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion, and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them” (Is. 11:6).

Wait on Him.

Your friend,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder

Announcements for September, 5 2010

The JIBC elders are pleased to recommend Pastor Dave Atkins for the position of Pastor for Worship and Family here at JIBC.  Since he will be a pastor/elder in our church it is the responsibility of the JIBC members to make the final decision.  This will be added as an item for voting at our planned September 26 business meeting.  Please be in prayer for Pastor Dave and Sharon and their potential ministry among us!  More information on Pastor Dave is available at www.theJIBC.org.

There will be a congregational meeting on Sunday September 26 after the Worship Service.  The purpose of this meeting is to elect new Ministry Directors, approve proposed changes to the Church Constitution, and vote on calling Pastor Dave Atkins.  Information about nominating Ministry Directors and the proposed constitutional changes is available at the Welcome Table.  You can also see this information and nominate Ministry Directors via the church website.   Just go to www.theJIBC.org, click NEWS and look for SPECIAL BUSINESS MEETING.  Nominations must be in by Monday, September 20.

Mission Sunday we will have a Mission Sunday on September 19^th all the supported mission and missionary are invited to attend.

Respecting the Son of God

Mark 12:1-12 (English Standard Version)

1 And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. 2 When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. 6He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. 9What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this Scripture: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; 11 this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” 12 And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.

Because we want to bear fruit for God, we must learn from Jesus’ teaching.

1. We must learn from the rebellion of God’s people.
2. We must behold the reality of God’s victory.
3. We must be filled with respect for God’s Son.

Click the link below for sermon audio:
Mark 12:1-12

Take Your Spiritual Vital Signs

Dear friends,

If you go in for a health check up, the doctor or nurse will be sure to check your primary vital signs, which include your temperature, blood pressure, pulse, and respiratory rate. This is the first method they employ to see how you are doing and these simple signs are a good indicator of what kind of shape you are in.

Did you know there were spiritual vital signs too? What are some of these vitals that ought to appear in the heathy born again Christian? The great preacher, C.H. Spurgeon lists six “signs to prove the soul.”* Here they are in italics, with my summary comments added:

1. The Christian must show a conviction of sin.

You must recognize you are lost and condemned by your many sins before you can fully understand the good news of salvation. You are spiritually unhealthy if you think you are good enough on your own.

2. The Christian must exhibit a simple faith in Jesus Christ.

The believer must trust that Jesus alone makes it possible to have salvation because he paid the price for sin on the cross. You are spiritually unhealthy if you are trusting in anything other than Jesus.

3. The Christian must have unfeigned repentance of sin.

If you really are saved by Jesus, then you will hate the sin for which Jesus died. You are spiritually unhealthy if you continue to cling to sins without concern.

4. The Christian must enjoy a real change of life.

Being a Christian is not just a change of mind or attitude, it means you have become a new creature completely. You are spiritually unhealthy if you live and think just like you did before claiming a relationship with Jesus.

5. The Christian must practice true prayer.

Imagine if you claimed to be in a relationship with another person and yet you never talked to him or her. You are spiritually unhealthy if you do not talk to God often about what is going on in your life.

6. The Christian must show a willingness to obey the Lord in all His commands.

If you know what God wants you to do and determine to ignore it or if you are totally uninterested in what God expects of you, then you cannot possibly call yourself a real believer. You are spiritually unhealthy if you ignore God’s rules for living in this world.

How is your spiritual health friend? Praise God if you see good spiritual vital signs. But if you detect an illness (or worse) there is no time like the present for getting in shape!

Your friend,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder

* Spurgeon, C.H., The Soul Winner: How to Lead Sinners to the Savior, Eerdmans. Grand Rapids, 1963

Special Business Meeting on September 26

There will be a brief special business meeting on September 26 in order to vote on three items:

First, we will be voting for new directors to lead some of our church ministries.  If you would like to nominate a member or associate member, please use the following form: Nomination Form For Ministry Directors (Word)

You can print it and give it to a nominations committee member on Sunday or fill it our on line and email it to JIBCmembership@gmail.com

Second, we will be voting for proposed changes to the JIBC Constitution, Article 7.  If you would like to see what those changes are, then please click on the following link: JIBC Constitution, Proposed Changes to Article 7

Third, the elders have recommended Pastor Dave Atkins for the position of Pastor for Worship and Family. This is a decision that must be affirmed by a vote of the congregation.  For more information on Pastor Dave, please click here.

Please pray for JIBC as we conduct this necessary business for the ministry.

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