Wellington Church of Christ

In 1 John 2:12-14, John writes,

¹² I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. ¹³ I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. ¹⁴ I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

How do you plan this summer to bring glory to Christ? 

Here are some suggestions:

Do you know someone who used to worship at this church?  Do you know someone who used to visit?  Was it in the recent past or the distant past?

Are you willing to invite that person or persons to come back?

To me, some of the most important words in the Bible are the first four, Genesis 1:1,

In the beginning God…

What would you do if you only had one week left to live?  This week we begin a new series in Matthew that I’ve entitled, “The Last Week.”

In this new series, as we progress through the Book of Matthew, we will examine through the eyes of Matthew (and borrowing some details from Mark, Luke and John) what Jesus did in his last week on earth in human form.

At the end of Matthew chapter twenty, there are a couple of blind men who Matthew tells us in vs 30,

…cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!”

I think it’s too easy to quickly pass over a story like this.  We reason that, yes, they cried out for Jesus to help them, but wouldn’t anybody who was blind do the same?

Within the hearts of the disciples of Jesus was the desire to be great, but not great in the way that God defines greatness.  They wanted to be great in the way that the world defines greatness.  They wanted to be in charge.  To run the show.  To have the authority.  To be the boss.  They often fought about who was the greatest among them.

In Matthew 20:26, Jesus responded to them in their wrong way of thinking by saying,

²⁶…whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant;

Jesus was explaining to them that they were completely wrong in their thinking.  Not a little bit wrong.  Completely wrong.

Over the years I’ve learned through a lot of trial and error what helps me to speak with the most confidence. 

There are many factors that come into play when it comes to speaking with confidence, but there is only one that I highly esteem: knowledge.

Think about it.  What questions do you love to answer?  In my experience, I’ve found that most people love to answer questions regarding subjects in which they are very knowledgeable.  Even people who are presumed to be quiet or shy typically enjoy speaking out when they are knowledgeable.

There are some things that are crucial for Christians to understand.  One of those things is our understanding of fairness.

Oxford Dictionary defines fairness as, impartial and just treatment or behavior without favoritism or discrimination.

If we don’t have a good understanding of fairness, our thinking can get really messed up.  So what do we need to know, exactly?  Here are a couple things that help:

Some of the saddest words recorded in the Bible are in Matthew 19:22 –

²² But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

No matter how many times I read it, the story of the “Rich Young Ruler” always causes me heartache.  How could he walk away?  On bended knee before the Lord Jesus, he’s invited by the Lord Himself to

²² …come, follow Me.