Fill the Year with the Fruits of Righteousness

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Bulletin Digest

[207 words] In Philippians 1:11 Paul records that Christians are to be filled with the “fruits of righteousness.” Of course the fruit of the Spirit come to mind with a statement like that. The fruit of the Spirit are mentioned in two passages in the New Testament: Galatians 5:22-23, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” Ephesians 5:9-10, “(for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.” We can find 12 fruit of the Spirit from these two passages and,...

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You’re Going To Fake It After All

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Bulletin Digest

[239 words] In his youth, the grandson of John Philip Sousa made large sums of money as a guest bandleader. He knew it wasn’t because of his talent. Since he shared the same name as the great American composer and conductor, he knew that is what impressed the crowds. His invites were about his name not his abilities. He knew these because he could not read a single note of sheet music. He wasn’t the first of the last person to lean on their heritage rather than their abilities. Just because you carry a name, however, doesn’t mean you are...

Will You Withstand God’s Refining?

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Bulletin Digest

[205 words] “And the people of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until the evening. And they inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall we again draw near to fight against our brothers, the people of Benjamin?’ And the Lord said, ‘Go up against them’” (Judges 20:23). It had come to this. When God’s people had first entered the Promised Land with Joshua so many years before, they were God’s instrument for justice against the pagan nations about whom His longsuffering had run out. The Israelites shrank back from obeying God and eventually blended in with the cultures around them...

What Would You Be Remembered For?

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Bulletin Digest

[222 words] “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). God would be a terrible obituary writer. You know, no matter how the person lived his or her life, the blurb in the newspaper always says glowing things about the person … but God tells it how it is! They were a chosen race, but they had chosen sin. They were a royal priesthood, but they had bowed down to idols of their own making. They were a holy nation, but they had fashioned the Creator in their...

Perseverance and Hope for the Future

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Bulletin Digest

[234 words] “And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:2). In so many ways, the very end of the Bible is a mirror-image of its beginning. Because of sin, man in Genesis is separated from God’s presence and is kept from reaching out to eat of the Tree of Life; in Revelation, that access is restored and intimate fellowship with God along with it. The account of the church, then, is really about man walking with God. It took a perfect God taking...

Bible Blindness

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[283 words] Several videos have been published online depicting colorblind individuals seeing color for the first time, with the help of a pair of special glasses. Valspar Paint partnered with scientists and ophthalmologists from a company called Enchroma to make the seemingly impossible become a reality for the colorblind. “Oh, look at that!” one man said as he saw the contrast in colors for the first time. “There was this whole end of the spectrum that I was just completely not aware of. This is amazing!” Another man saw the various colors of a sunset for the first time and...

What Does Humility Look Like?

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[220 words] If you were to encounter a truly humble person (at work, school, on the street, etc.), what would they look like? C.S. Le wis wrote, “Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him” (Mere Christianity, p.128). So, according to Lewis, the humble person is identified most of all by (1) being happy and (2) being interested in other people. Saying the same thing in different words: “If you met a truly humble person, you wouldn’t think him/her humble, but happy...

The Christian’s Priorities

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[240 words] Perhaps certain ones of us need to get our priorities straight. It may seem somewhat naive to some to say that if more professed Christians would “seek first the Kingdom of God,” fewer problems would exist in the Lord’s Church, but the statement is nevertheless true! The reason that early Christians were so successful in proclaiming the gospel was that God occupied first place in their lives. Their religion was not a “once-a-week” affair for Sunday display. To them Christianity was a serious matter which they demonstrated every day! (Acts 2:46) The first-century disciples did not consider religion...

We Will Talk Face to Face

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[261 words] A line like this can make us curious: “I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face” (3 John 13-14). We can’t know for sure what else John needed to say, but we can glean some principles. Some matters are public. The situation with Diotrephes (3 John 9) needed to be written down and handled publicly because Diotrephes’ actions were affecting the church. He not only refused to welcome brothers himself but stopped those who tried, putting...

What Percentage is Enough?

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[293 words] The Communications Division of Syncrude Canada Ltd. once did research on the danger of completing only 99.9% of some task. Of the many things they studied, their findings on money and the medical world will resonate with us the most (these are but a sample). If only 99.9% of the job is done… • Two million documents would be lost by the IRS this year • 22,000 checks would be deducted from the wrong bank accounts in the next 60 minutes • 880,000 credit cards in circulation would turn out to have incorrect cardholder information on their magnetic...

Wickedness

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[245 words] There are over 200 verses in the Bible which contain the words “the wicked.” The wicked, of course, practice “wickedness” and there are 121 occurrences of this word. Synonyms for wickedness are also numerous in scripture: “evil” (533 times), “iniquity” (229), “sin” (1467), and “malice” (6). In addition to these words we read of the contrast between “what is good and what is bad.” Goodness is the opposite of wickedness. The Bible is a book about the wickedness of mankind and the consequences of such. In Deuteronomy 9:4-5 God told the Jews that the reason He would destroy...

The Twig

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[257 words] “Just as the twig is bent, the tree’s inclined.” — Alexander Pope, 1734. With all the education, all the psychoanalysis experts, and other so-called advancements in child raising, most of us parents still haven’t grasped what Alexander Pope was saying. If we want a straight growing tree, we make sure the tree is set upright at planting time. Then we check it in its early years to make sure nothing has caused it to lean or be damaged. William Pope was saying the same thing about bringing up children. If you want your son or daughter to have...

Use Me, Lord

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[235 words] Most of us will live on the earth between 70 to 90 years. Why are we here? To fear God and keep His commandments according to Ecclesiastes 12:13. Why should be care? Because He will bring every work into judgment along with every secret things (Eccl. 12:14). With this in mind, we should first desire to be in a proper relationship with God. We can only do this through obedience to the gospel of Christ (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:36-38). Second, after we have become one of His children, our motto should be: “Use me, Lord.” • Use my...

The Church is What You Are!

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[220 words] The church is built of men and women, not bricks and mortar. As such, it can never be any more faithful or effective than the individual members that comprise it. The Lord’s church in any community will reflect the sins and attitudes of its members. • If it is a growing church, it is because YOU attended regularly with your family and actively urged others to attend as well. • If it is an active church, it is because YOU give your time to the program of work. • If it is a friendly church, it is because...

Better Things

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[202 words] Hebrews is the book of “better things.” We find that phrase introduced in Hebrews 6:9, and throughout the rest of the book, the author reveals what those better things are: · Better hope (7:19) · Better covenant (7:22; 8:6) · Better promises (8:6) · Better sacrifices (9:23) · Better possession (10:34) · Better country (11:16) · Better life (11:35) · Better word (12:24) The idea boils down to this: what Jesus came to earth to provide is better than anything we had before! But again, we need to be careful. Using the word “better” might lead some to...

Love Those Long Sermons

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[290 words] The youth minister and I were discussing sermons, specifically how long they should be. We were both curious at how two different preachers could preach a lesson of the same quality for the same amount of time but one would be well received and the other criticized. As we talked, I remarked that I knew a preacher that was known for his bouts of long-windedness but that people didn’t complain rather they were cheerfully amused. I said it was because he was such a loving part of the lives of the congregation, a little bit of extra time...

Turn It Around

Posted on October 4, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[268 words] “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country!” This challenge, made famous during the Kennedy presidency, suggests a like principle which should guide every Christian’s attitude toward the church. We should be less concerned about what is being done for US and more attentive to what we are doing for others. Ask not, therefore… …whether this is a good congregation to be a member of, but ask whether I am a good member of the congregation. …how much I am loved, but how much love have I shown. …how...

Riches and Poverty in Proverbs

Posted on October 4, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[273 words] The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: The destruction of the poor is their poverty (Proverbs 10:15, ASV). Surely, as one can see, this proverb teaches that wealth is a strength and poverty is a weakness. As one makes use of his strength, he weathers battles much easier. On the other hand, as the poor man weathers battles he is overcome. Is this what we are to understand? The Greek translation (LXX or Septuagint) of the proverb reads this way: The wealth of rich men is a strong city; but poverty is the ruin of the ungodly...

Someone to Listen

Posted on September 4, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[245 words] How often do you pray? Do you ever let a day go by without talking to God? When you pray is it out of habit, or is it the fulfillment of a need? Ours is an age of loneliness where millions are starving for someone to talk to. Many feel tense because they keep all their thoughts and problems to themselves. After awhile these things put so much pressure on them that they almost explode for want of someone to listen to their story. There are Christians in this condition. But children of the Lord have someone to...

Some See Less as Better

Posted on September 4, 2019 by Bulletin Digest

[293 words] There are some times when less is better. Sometime the less words we speak the better. The less fat intake, the better. The less sin, the better. Sadly, some see less as better in their Christian lives: Less time for worship Less time for Bible study Less time for gospel meetings Fewer verses sung in worship Shorter sermons Fewer fellowship meals Less Bible knowledge Less visiting of the sick and shut-ins Less evangelism Fewer days for VBS Shorter prayers Fewer works of the church that require our time When a church makes a decision to do less, many...