First Baptist Church of Brownsville, Oregon

 

 (John 19:30)

 

Aren’t you glad our Savior completed the work the Father sent Him to do?  It is finished!  Aren’t you glad He didn’t say, “It is finished, except for…”  No, it is finished!  The work of redemption is done.  He gave His life for you.  He paid the price you deserved to pay.  Your sins have been atoned for, by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.  It is finished.

 

This Sunday I will continue with our look at David’s life by sharing from 2 Samuel 7.  We’ll be talking about “Building Plans.” What plans do you have regarding what you plan to build or do for God?  Think about what He has built and is building for you.  David’s response of praise and rejoicing is a great example to us.  Pray through 2 Samuel 7 in preparation for Sunday!

 

Lisl Ruckert will be here at FBC to share with the adult Sunday School about her coming ministry.  She will also share during the morning worship service.  Let’s be an encouragement to this young lady as she steps out in faith in service to the Lord!

 

I asked you last week about helping with the Saturday and Sunday breakfasts June 18-19 for Pioneer Picnic.  You can still contact Sharon McCoy if you’d like to serve there.

 

I also was asked this week about trying to get some people to help with the BBQ dinners they do at Pioneer Picnic.  It looks like they especially need help at the Saturday BBQ, and I will probably be helping with the cleanup after the BBQ on Sunday afternoon.  If you’d like to help with any of that you can let me know, or even better, contact Lovica Johnson who is coordinating it: 541-517-6473.

 

May the Lord bless and keep you!

 

Love From Your Pastor,

 

 (John 4:39-42)

 

“The gospel comes to us in order that it might run through us.  Having believed on Jesus, the Samaritan woman went back to her community to share the good news with her family and friends.  In doing so, she gives us the paradigm of a good testimony.  Jesus is the hero of her story.  She drew attention to the One who exposed her sin and gave her life; and in doing so, she invited her friends to do the same.  The gospel is personal, but it is not private.” (

)  I love that true story!  God demonstrates that He loves everyone and is willing to use anyone as His witness.  And I love that the friends and family who believed came to the point of believing because of Jesus’ words, not just the words of the woman.  What are you doing to share the beautiful good news of the gospel with the people in your town?  Have the people in your “

oikos

” (those 8-15 people God has placed in your life to be a witness to) heard your testimony of Jesus’ saving power in your life?

 

This Sunday we continue our study of David’s life with a message from 2 Samuel 6, “Dancing Before the Lord”.  So get your dancin’ shoes on and come to church!  (I’m kidding.)  Our Christain walk can sometimes be a roller coaster of highs and lows.  What are some of the things that make you the most excited about your faith?  Why is it that we are often so stoic that we fail to celebrate what God has done in our lives?  There is a lot to think about in this passage, so please read ahead and come prepared for the Lord to teach us what He wants.  And, it’s ok to rejoice a little bit (or a lot bit!) if God has done wonderful things for you!  So let’s rejoice together this Sunday!  Also, we will be celebrating the Lord’s Table together, so let’s come with a spirit of thankfulness as we consider how God’s holiness and His love met together perfectly at the cross of Christ.

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 (Ezekiel 37:27)

 

One of the great promises of God in Scripture is the promise of His presence!  As He was promising the people of Israel that He would return them from the surrounding nations where He had scattered them, He assured them that He would dwell with them.  He also assured them of the relationship they would have – they would be His people; He would be their God.  This must have certainly provided great hope and encouragement!  It should provide the same to us, especially, this side of the cross!  Jesus Christ came and dwelt among us, literally “tabernacled” with us, when He came to earth the first time.  And we have the sure promise of dwelling in the marvelous presence of our amazing God for eternity!

 

 (Revelation 21:3)

 

I want to invite you to participate in a special opportunity to serve our community during the Pioneer Picnic, June 18 & 19.  Our own Sharon McCoy is in charge of the pancake breakfasts that are served down at the Pavilion in the park on Saturday and Sunday morning.  I told her I would put this word out to all of you, with the hope that many would be willing to come and help cook and serve up the breakfast.  Let’s take this on as a church-wide community project!  What better way to meet some of the people in the area and let them know we’re here to serve?  Can you help?  Please call Sharon at 541-466-5566, so she can plan.  Thank you!

 

Please remember our Baby Bottles filled with $ for Options Pregnancy Center are due this Sunday!  Fill ’em up and bring ’em in!

 

Please also put on your calendar, the “Just moved in” shower for Pastor Justin & Lynsey & family, June 3 at 6pm.  There is more info in your bulletin this Sunday.

 

I will be preaching from 1 Samuel 30 this Sunday, a message called “Strengthen Yourself in the Lord.”  I hope you read the passage in advance and consider how David strengthened himself in God.  What are some things you can do to strengthen yourself in the Lord?  Will you commit to doing them?  A couple other passages to look at in this regard are Psalm 56:3-4, and 2 Corinthians 12:9-10.

 

I am looking forward to honoring those who were willing to give the utmost sacrifice for the freedom of our nation!  Memorial Day of course is this Monday, May 30.  Happy Memorial Day and thank you to all of our current and former military members!

 

May you dwell in Christ today, as He dwells in you…

 

Love From Your Pastor,

Michael

 

(Ezekiel 20:41-42)

 

Ezekiel’s prophecy is filled with numerous warnings of coming judgment.  But even in the midst of that, God continually displays His grace in His promise to save His people and restore them to their land.  He saves them not because they deserve it, but in spite of the fact that they don’t deserve it.  He saves them to display His holiness and His mercy.  The same is true for us today in Christ.  He saves to the uttermost, we who are the uttermost sinners!  He does it because of His holiness and grace, and in spite of our failings.  God displays His grace in the greatest way by saving those who deserve it the least.

 

Men – this Saturday is our monthly Men’s Breakfast at 7am.  We will as always enjoy some great food around the tables.  We will enjoy one another’s company.  And we will watch the 2nd part of the video “Clouds without Rain.”  Following the breakfast, there will be a Work Day at both the cemetery and the church.  There is plenty to do, so if you can stay and help that would be great!

 

Remember that Sunday night at 5pm is the Awana BBQ & Awards night!  We will celebrate the accomplishments of the kids and express our appreciation for the many faithful workers.  It is an opportunity to bless the children, and to meet and greet the parents, many of whom don’t attend FBC or any church.  So please be in prayer for this special time.

 

Sunday morning we will continue our series on the life of David, looking at 1 Samuel 25.  The message is entitled, “Dealing with a Foolish Man.”  Now ladies, no comments like “Well that’s what I deal with every day!”  We will look at Nabal, whose name means “fool” or “folly”.  We will see David’s temptation to get revenge.  We will discuss Nabal’s wise wife Abigail, and how the Lord used her to prevent David from taking revenge.  But I also want to consider what the Lord has done for us, even though “we ourselves were once foolish…” (see Titus 3:3-7).  So we look forward to seeing you Sunday and sharing in the study of the Word together!

 

May God grant you many blessings along with His grace and peace!

 

Love From Your Pastor,

Michael

(Numbers 35:34)

“The Levites received no land inheritance, as the Lord Himself was their inheritance.  Therefore, every tribe was to allot cities within their various territories for the Levites (35:1-8), some of which were also to be designated as cities of refuge for those guilty of unpremeditated murder (35:9-34).  Like salt, the Levites were thus sprinkled about the Promised Land as a reminder to the rest of God’s people of their high and holy calling, that the Lord was their refuge, and that, ultimately, all land belonged to the Lord who dwelled in their midst (35:34).

Knowing that, through Christ, God Himself is our inheritance, we, like the Levites of old, live

in this world without being of it.  We are looking rather for the city of God to come in the new creation (Hebrews 11).  There the Lord God Himself will dwell in our midst (Rev. 21:22 — 22:5).”  (Gospel Transformation Bible

, note on Numbers 35)

We are thanking the Lord for the safe arrival of Pastor Justin & Lynsey and family!  Thank you for praying for them, for the long drive for Justin and the flight with the kids for Lynsey.  And a big thank you to so many who came out on Tuesday to help with the unloading of the moving truck!  We had a great crew and had the truck unloaded very quickly.

This Sunday we want to encourage everyone to wear name tags, to help the Hostetters a bit as they try to put our names with our faces!  So as you come in Sunday morning, look for someone handing them out and write your name (and please make it readable!) on it.  Thank you also Ron Whitted for setting him up with a nice desk, chair, and bookshelves, and for Rosemary for getting him started with his supplies.  Let’s keep praying for a smooth transition for the Hostetter family and for His perfect plan and timing for a more permanent housing solution.

After the worship service we will be having a membership class.  Lunch will be provided.  We have a few signed up already, but if you are interested in finding out more about membership at FBC, please let me know today!

I plan again to preach on 1 Samuel 24 this Sunday, a message titled “My Hand Shall Not Be Against You.”  This time I hope to actually deliver the message and not take off for Salem!  But only the Lord knows what His plan is for each day!

Thank you for praying for my mother-in-law Judith.  She seems to be doing better than we thought.  She is home from the hospital.  She does have COPD and has to be on full-time oxygen.  Elizabeth and her siblings are working on a schedule for being there to help her out, along with some of Judith’s friends.  Please keep praying for the family.  We have nieces and a nephew from Texas going to stay with our family for a few days, so that should be fun!

So thankful for each of you… may the Lord continue to bless you and our church family… and hope you are able to enjoy the sunshine!

Love From Your Pastor,

Michael

And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. (Num 21:7 ESV)

On this National Day of Prayer, the above verse is a tremendous reminder to us of the power of prayer!  Notice that the man of God here prayed for the people in response to their confession of sin.  The answer to the prayer was the Lord telling Moses to put a serpent up on a pole, and all who looked at it would be healed.  In John 3 we see the beautiful parallel in the message of the cross.  Whoever looks to Jesus and His atoning work on the cross, will live!  Let’s be in prayer for our community and our nation, that there would be a genuine revival which leads to repentance and turning to Christ by faith!

I want to thank you for so many words of encouragement and prayers for our family this week, as we’ve dealt with the serious downturn of Elizabeth’s mother’s health.  She remains in Salem hospital, still struggling to breathe.  There has even been talk by one of the doctors of sending her home in a day or two and calling in hospice.  So please continue to pray for Judith, and for all the family.  This is certainly difficult for Elizabeth, so thank you again for your love and support of her.

This Sunday of course is Mother’s Day.  We are once again having our annual Brunch in honor of our ladies.  Thanks to the men who are heading up the cooking, etc.!  Please come and join us with the whole family, or by yourself!  This Sunday from 8:30 to 10:00 am.

I will be speaking on “Waiting on the Lord” from 1 Samuel 1:1 — 2:11.  Please read this wonderful true story of Hannah’s prayer for a son, of her dedication of that son to the Lord, and of her song of praise as a response to His gracious provision.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Love From Your Pastor,

Michael

 (Numbers 7:89)

Have you been entering into the Lord’s presence to speak with Him?  Are you hearing His voice speak to you through His Word?  I don’t think there’s a better way to mature in our faith than to meet with Him regularly!

I appreciated what one of my devotional Bibles had to say about Numbers 7:  “Then lengthy, repetitive description of the offerings of the 12 tribes throughout 12 days for the dedication of that altar serves to underscore two points.  1) The altar was the focus of worship, where God was encountered through the blood of sacrifice.  2) Every tribe of Israel had a vested interest in the worship of God and was responsible to support the ministry.  Even these gifts, however, were out of God’s gracious provision, as He enabled the Israelites to ‘plunder Egypt’ upon their deliverance.

The grace signified by the altar has been fulfilled by the cross as the heart of the church’s worship (Heb. 10:19-22), spread through the church’s proclamation (1 Cor. 1:18-25), and reiterated by the church’s sacraments (Rom. 6:3; 1 Cor. 11:26).  Out of God’s gracious provision in Christ, we all the more gladly support the ministry of the church (1 Cor. 9:13-14; 2 Cor. 9:1-15).”

This Sunday we will have opportunity to reflect again on the cross and what that has accomplished for us, as we partake together of the elements of communion.  Please be there for that important time of remembrance.

We’ll be continuing in our series on the life of David with a message from 1 Samuel 24, “My Hand Shall Not Be Against You.”  As you read the passage in preparation for Sunday morning, consider the differences we can see in the consciences of David and Saul.  How can we develop a conscience that is more sensitive to the ways of the Lord?  I hope you’ll join us for this message!

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 (Luke 20:25)

This passage in our reading in Luke today (20:19-26) is intriguing.  Notice what the Gospel Transformation Bible says about it:  “Despite the crafty intention of the religious leaders, the great wisdom of God incarnate in Jesus is on clear display here.  Jesus takes the politically charged question about paying taxes to Caesar and turns it into an opportunity to stump His opponents and to draw more people to marvel at God’s ways.  Jesus’ answer also raises the matter of the Christian’s experience of living as citizens of two very different kingdoms, the earthly and the heavenly (Phil. 3:20).  This reality of our dual citizenship is the source of great conflict internally and externally.  From within, we struggle to reorient our lives toward God’s radically different present and coming kingdom, even while living in this world.  From without, we encounter persecution and discomfort in this sinful and God-opposed world (2 Tim. 3:12).  Jesus does not eliminate this dilemma of our existence, but He does give us a vision of how to approach these matters.  All of the world is God’s, but in this overlapping age we must acknowledge that there is an authority and order to society that must be obeyed (Rom. 13:1-7), even while our ultimate allegiance is to God.”

We are certainly dual citizens!  While we live

in this world, we are not to be of

 this world.  Are you faithfully rendering to God all the things that are His?

This has been a rough time of sickness for a lot of people.  I myself have been hit with it pretty good this week.  I pray you are all doing well, or at least, are on the mend!

This Sunday I will continue our series on the life of David.  We will look at 1 Samuel 20 and the friendship between Jonathan and David.  I’d encourage you to read it ahead of Sunday.  What kind of qualities do you look for in a good friend?  What kind of a friend are you?  Do you have someone of whom you can say, you love them as your own soul?  Beyond that, what does it mean to you that Jesus calls His disciples “friends” (John 15:13-15)?  Are you His friend today?

Speaking of friends: in 1993 I was a new student (as a junior) at Western Baptist College (now Corban University).  I became good friends with a young lady.  It truly did start out as simply a friendship, and we referred to each other as “buddies”.  It wasn’t long though, until that young lady grabbed ahold of my heart.  I look back now 23 years later and thank God that this beautiful young lady is not only my best friend, but also my amazing wife!  As we celebrate her birthday today, I am amazed at the incredible person the Lord created when He made her, and how He has caused her to grow spiritually so much that she is more wonderful to me than ever.  Happy Birthday Elizabeth Beach!

Happy to be a friend of God and of all of you!

Love From Your Pastor,

Michae

Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. ³⁹ And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” ⁴¹ But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, ⁴² but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42 ESV)

These two women are a challenging reminder of priorities.  This is not a statement by the Lord telling us that serving is bad.  Obviously the Bible has a lot to say about serving the Lord, serving others, and so forth.  What is emphasized here is the attitude and mindset of the person who serves, as well as the incredible value of sitting with the Lord and listening to Him.  Martha was distracted.  Jesus says she was anxious and troubled about many things.  Do those words describe you today?  They often do describe me.  What was the good portion that Mary had chosen?  She sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to His teaching.  Are you busy, busy, busy – all with good things?  Are these good things that you are busy with distracting you from the most important thing?  I’ve seen a book title (though I haven’t read the book) that is, “Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World.”  That’s the challenge for us today, isn’t it?

A couple things I want to remind you of this week:

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 (Lamentations 5:1)

Some of us are using the same Bible reading plan this year, and we finished up Lamentations today.  I preached on Lamentations a couple years ago, but every time I go through it I’m again reminded of some of the great lessons for us today from this often-neglected prophetic book.  Once again I love what the Gospel Transformation Bible says here:

“As chapter 4 mirrors chapter 2, so chapter 5 returns to the desolation of chapter 1.  But there is a significant difference, for here hope is a constant theme.  This hope grows out of the realization of guilt, the confession of which leads to hope in God’s mercy (5:1-18).  The plea that God should remember (v. 1) becomes a plea for restoration (v. 21).  The author realizes that Israel’s sin is not momentary.  The reference to the sins of the fathers (v. 7) only demonstrates this people’s continuing lineage of sin and in no sense diminishes their guilt (v. 16-18)

Though Lamentations focuses on one particular horrifying event, it becomes relevant for all time.  Its darkness reveals the utter lostness of sinful humanity.  But through the storm clouds streams a bright beam of hope that stems from God’s mercy.  This hope in the covenant faithfulness of God finds its full realization in Christ as He takes the weight of our rebellion upon Himself on the cross of Calvary.

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