National Day of Prayer, 2013

Once again we're meeting at differing sites across the United States to pray for

our nation. Please find a site near you and then join with others to pray. If you

can't get to one, then we ask that you devote some time on Thursday, May 2, to do

as 2 Chronicles 7:14 says:

"...if My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Blood in the Streets

Blood in the Streets

by R.C. Sproul Jr.

"How prone we are to miss the drama. The tyranny of the urgent, the plainness of our patterns, and our propensity to look inward rather than outward all push us to regard our callings, our surroundings, and our souls as rather dull affairs. We read of the great upheavals of history, then find ourselves scraping the burnt remains of casseroles off dishes. We watch Hollywood make believe about terrifying invaders from outer space, then go home to balance our checkbooks. We, according to Jesus, construct foolish drama by worrying about what we will eat or what we will wear while missing the battle of eternity that is going on right before our eyes.

When Jesus calls us to cease worrying about those things the heathen worry about, He isn’t inviting us to heave a sigh of relief and flop down on our hammock with a glass of lemonade. No, we put down our petty concerns that we might take up the one vital concern, the kingdom of God.

Our Lord reigns. His kingdom knows no bounds, for all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him. But there remains in His realm rebellion. There is work to do. In this country, we have once again denied the humanity of an entire class of people—the unborn. In so doing, we have shown forth our inhumanity. What may be worse is that this great evil demonstrates our lack of humanity. How twisted, how distorted, is a state that God ordained to punish evildoers, but that instead uses the sword God gave it to guard the grisly practitioners of this crime? How twisted, how distorted, are men who were made to protect and defend women and children, but who now drag their girlfriends, wives, or daughters to killing centers? How twisted, how distorted, are women who were made to nurture their babies, but who now hire assassins to kill them?

This, beloved, is the battle. Here is the drama. Souls of men and women are being twisted and slowly dragged into the very pit of hell. Babies are being burned alive, on purpose. And we, even though we have been made alive, even though we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, worry more about stock markets and football teams.

Right now, in our own neighborhoods, people’s lives are at stake. Every one of our neighbors, young or old, male or female, believer or not, will die. And when they die, they will become fully, finally, and forever one thing or another.

C.S. Lewis, in his classic work The Weight of Glory, reminds us what is at stake. He reminds us what is wood, hay, and stubble, and which jewels will shine evermore. In turn, he helps us see what this means for our todays—that forever counts right now.

It is a serious thing … to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no “ordinary” people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilisations— these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendours.

We don’t seek the kingdom merely when we read our Bibles or sing our hymns. We seek the kingdom when we love our wives and cherish our children. We seek it when we weep and mourn for the murder of our neighbors, and when we weep and mourn for our neighbors’ murderers. We seek the kingdom when we call on men to be men and women to be women. We seek the kingdom when we welcome the least of these into our lives, into our homes, and into our families.

The righteousness we seek for our justification is ours by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness—the sole ground of our right standing before God. Yet righteousness is also becoming ours in our experience through sanctification. We in Christ, despite all for which we have to repent, are being made into everlasting splendors. Despite all for which we must repent, despite all over which we mourn, despite all the horror of what we as a nation have become, we rejoice to know that we are citizens of another kingdom. We are a royal priesthood, a holy nation. We once were not a people, but now we are the people of God. We are those who have tasted and seen that the Lord is good. May we then keep our conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against us as evildoers, they may see our good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation."

R.C. Sproul Jr. is a Teaching Fellowship at Ligonier Ministries
and teaches at Reformation Bible College in Sanford, Florida

Faith

I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small

as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain

move from here to there and it will move.

Nothing will be impossible for you.

Matthew 17:20

Bulletins, Sunday, April 28, 2013

Bulletins, Sunday, April 21, 2013

Fellowship In The Gospel, 2013 Men's Conference

Friday, May 3 and

Saturday, May 4

Michigan Men's Conference

Held at:

Berean Baptist Church

38303 Eight Mile Road

Livonia, Michigan 48152

 

Standing & Striving:

A Faith that Transforms

"For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy." -- Leviticus 11:44

This is an impossible command! Or is it? The gospel not only provides hope for holiness, but calls the church to actively pursue it. Come and fellowship around this incredible truth: God requires his people to be sanctified and then enables them to be so by his grace.

Come and Fellowship in the Gospel. The gospel that saves and sanctifies. The only power and hope for transforming men in holiness.

3 Keynote Addresses:

Standing & Striving:

A Faith that Transforms, Dr. Bryan Chapell
Chancellor, Professor of Practical Theology
Covenant Theological Seminary (St. Louis, MO)
Author of Christ-Centered Preaching, Christ-Centered Worship and Holiness by Grace.

Dr. Chapell is a renown expository preacher who carefully handles the Scriptures, deftly connects the fallen problem of the biblical characters with his listeners, and gracefully shepherds them to hope in the Savior.

Come and hear three keynote addresses on your call to stand & strive in a faith that actually transforms men in holiness.



2 Pre-Conference Workshop Sessions:

Abraham's Sanctification by Faith, Dr. Brian J. Vickers
Associate Professor of New Testament Interpretation
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY)

Editor of The Southern Baptist Journal of Theology and author of Jesus' Blood and Righteousness: Paul's Theology of Imputation.

Dr. Brian Vickers is a respected professor and writer, known for his fluency with biblical theology and Christ-centered approach to the Scriptures. His pre-conference workshop will bring this gifting to bear on the age-old question of how faith and obedience work together in the life of a believer.

Come and participate in two workshop sessions on the life of Abraham, examining how he both struggled to obey (advancing in holiness) while living by faith.

Find more about Dr. Vicker's new book, Justification Through Faith by Grace, at Amazon.com

To register online, go to:
http://www.fg13.org

1-248-477-6365


contactus@bereanlife.org



Lessons....

"God wants to use our lives as blackboards upon which

He chalks marvelous lessons about Himself."

~Joni Eareckson Tada~

Suppose...

"Our lives are full of supposes. Suppose this should happen, or suppose that should happen; what could we do; how could we bear it?


But, if we are living in the high tower of the dwelling place of God, all these supposes will drop out of our lives. We shall be quiet from the fear of evil, for no threatenings of evil can penetrate into the high tower of God.

Even when walking through the valley of the shadow of death, the psalmist could say,I will fear no evil; and, if we are dwelling in God, we can say so too."

~ Hannah Whitall Smith~

Salvation...

Bulletins, Sunday, April 14, 2013

Joel Ashby's Surprise Semi-Retirement Party

One of the long-time members of Grace Bible Church is Joel Ashby. He serves as head of our Missions Board and in most cases, he's the photographer behind the pictures you see of activities at Grace. His wife Marianne wanted to surprise him by having a party in his honor. And that she did!

Below are some pictures of the party and those who attended. Thanks to you all for coming and a Special Thank You to Marianne. In Joel's words: "She was so wonderful to think of having this party for me."

Augie Piccoli and Joel's wife, Marianne

(Doesn't she have a wonderful smile?)

Joel receiving a "Ham" Radio from guest Everett Sollars.

Joel was overheard in church the following Sunday

telling Everett that he had picked up "Hamtramck" on it!

Don Bolton & his wife Lynn were there, as well

as Nancy Connell, our Pastor's wife.

RoseAnn McLeod, Wayne Sourbeck and Sue Cooper

Melvinda Verabel, Kurt Verabel and Clifford LaLiberte

Tony Royals, Wayne Sourbeck and

Craig McGlassion

Larry Cooper and host,

Tom Sadler

Warren McLeod, Joel Ashby and

Huston James

Tom & Wanda Gabbert

Stephen Sadler and Larry Cooper

Lana Golden and Joan Piccoli

and....The Cake!

The party was hosted by Tom & Gina Sadler,

long-time friends of Joel & Marianne, and Joel & Marianne want to take this

opportunity to say Thank You! for making Joel's Semi-Retirement Party

a surprise. It was enjoyed by everyone.

All the photos were taken by Gina Sadler,

again, Thank You!

The Challenge of Same-Sex Unions

by Albert Mohler

 

 

In the world but not of the world? From the very beginning, the church has faced the challenge of responding to external events, trends, ideologies, and controversies. By definition, the church does not get to choose these challenges, but they have been thrust upon Christians by the world. The question always comes down to this: What now?

 

That question seems especially urgent in light of the emergence of same-sex unions and marriage in the United States and the world over. How must the church answer this challenge?

 

To answer that question, we need to think about the speed of the moral revolution that has pushed this question to the forefront of our culture. In less than a generation, homosexuality has gone from being almost universally condemned to being almost fully normalized in the larger society.

 

We are facing a true moral inversion — a system of moral understandings turned upside down. Where homosexuality was even recently condemned by the society, now it is considered a sin to believe that homosexuality is wrong in any way. A new sexual morality has replaced the old, and those who hold to the old morality are considered morally deficient. The new moral authorities have one central demand for the church: get with the new program.

 

This puts the true church, committed to the authority of God’s Word, in a very difficult cultural position. Put simply, we cannot join the larger culture in normalizing homosexuality and restructuring society to match this new morality. Recognizing same-sex unions and legalizing same-sex marriage is central to this project.

 

Liberal churches and denominations are joining the project, some more quickly and eagerly than others. The cultural pressure is formidable, and only churches that are truly committed to Scripture will withstand the pressure to accommodate themselves and their message to the new morality.

What, then, is the true church to do? First, we must stand without compromise on the authority of the Bible and the principles of sexual conduct and morality that God has revealed so clearly in His Word. The Bible’s sexual morality is grounded in the creation of humanity in God’s image; we are created as male and female and given the gift of sex within the marriage covenant — and only within the marriage covenant between one man and one woman for as long they both shall live.

 

The easiest way to summarize the Bible’s teaching on sexuality is to begin with God’s blessing of sex only within the marriage covenant between a man and a woman. Then, just remember that sex outside of that covenant relationship, whatever its form or expression, is explicitly forbidden. Christians know that these prohibitions are for our good and that rejecting them is tantamount to a moral rebellion against God Himself. We also know that the Bible forbids all same-sex sexual acts and behaviors. Thus, we know that homosexuality is a sin, that blessing it in any way is also sin, and that normalizing sin cannot lead to human happiness.

 

Second, we must realize what is at stake. Marriage is first and foremost a public institution. It has always been so. Throughout history, societies have granted special recognition and privileges to marriage because it is the central organizing institution of human culture. Marriage regulates relationships, sexuality, human reproduction, lineage, kinship, and family structure. But marriage has also performed another crucial function — it has regulated morality.

 

This is why the challenge of samesex unions is so urgent and important. Redefining marriage is never simply about marriage. It leads to the redefinition of reproduction and parenthood, produces a legal revolution with vast consequences, replaces an old social order with something completely new, and forces the adoption of a new morality. This last point is especially important. Marriage teaches morality by its very centrality to the culture. With a new concept of marriage comes a new morality, enforced by incredible social pressure and, eventually, legal threats.

Third, we must act quickly to teach Christians the truth about marriage and God’s plan for sexuality in all its fullness and beauty. We must develop pastoral approaches that are faithful to Scripture and arm this generation of believers to withstand the cultural pressure and respond in ways that are truly Christian.

 

Last, and most important, this challenge must drive us to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Christians must be the first to understand this challenge in light of the gospel. After all, we know spiritual rebellion when we see it, for we ourselves were rebels before God’s grace conquered us. We know what moral confusion means because without the light of God’s Word, we are just as confused.

 

There is no rescue from the self-deception of sin except for the salvation that is ours in Jesus Christ. While doing everything else required of us in this challenge, the faithful church must center its energies on the one thing that we know we must do above all else — preach, teach, and live the gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

Taken from Ligonier Ministries, Tabletalk devotional, April 2012

Bulletins, Sunday, April 7, 2013

Easter Sunday Is Over, Now What?

Easter Sunday Is Over, Now What?

by David Murray

"Perhaps you are asking that this week as you return to your day-to-day responsibilities.


If there’s one thing that the past few days’ focus on Christ’s cross did, it’s remind most of us how unfocused we’ve been on the death and resurrection of Christ. We look back with grief over the way we yet again allowed the blood of Christ to slip to the periphery of our lives and let many other lesser things in to replace it. Why did we let it happen again?

More importantly, how can I stop it happening again? Here are eight directions to help you live a cross-centered life:

1. Have Easter every week

As far as we know, the New Testament church did not celebrate Easter once a year. They celebrated it every week; on the first day of the week to be exact. Every Sunday, they gathered to commemorate Christ’s resurrection; so much so that they even renamed it, “the Lord’s Day.”

2. Value the Lord’s Supper

Jesus knew that we would be so inclined to forget His death, that He instituted the sacrament of bread and wine to be physical reminders of this great historical reality. The exact frequency of observation has always been debated, but regular participation is certainly required if we are to “remember the Lord’s death until he come.”

3. Confess your sins

No need, no blood. Unless we sense our need of Christ’s suffering and dying in our place, we won’t think about it much. However, the more we are convicted by the Holy Spirit of our desperate sinful state, the more highly we will value God’s provision of His bruised and bloodied Son at Calvary.

4. Study the Old Testament

That seems a bit odd doesn't it? The cross of Christ isn’t in the Old Testament, is it? No, but thousands of pictures of it are, especially in Israel’s sacrificial system. The multiplicity and variety of Old Testament sacrifices will remind you of both the centrality and diversity of blood sacrifices. God ordained so many different sacrifices to picture His multi-dimensional future provision of the one sacrifice to end all sacrifices. Without an understanding of the Old Testament sacrifices, we’ll never do anything but scratch the surface of understanding the atonement.

5. Read books about the cross

There are many good books about Christ’s atoning work. For beginners, I’d recommend Anthony Carter’s new book, Blood Work. I’d then consider reading one of Frederick Leahy’s short books, The Cross He Bore, or Is It Nothing to You?

If you want to take the next step up, R.C. Sproul considers the cross from different angles in The Cross of Christ and Leon Morris’s The Atonement is another classic.

If you really want to stretch your mind and soul then try George Smeaton’s double volume set on the atonement (Vol. 1, Vol. 2). These books revolutionized my own life and ministry.

6. Connect every doctrine to the blood


One of the benefits of Anthony Carter’s book Blood Work, is the way he connects the biggest Bible doctrines with the blood of Christ. Many start with justification, election, regeneration, adoption, sanctification, etc., but don’t link them to Christ and His cross. Carter starts with the cross and then expertly demonstrates the scriptural connections to not only the great doctrines of the Bible, but to holy living too.

7. Sing songs about the blood

As I read Blood Work, I grew more and more astounded at the number of Christian songs which reference the blood of Christ. Carter begins and ends almost every chapter with blood-soaked lyrics. I’ve gone looking for some of these songs online and I frequently just run through one or two on my iPod for a refreshing and reinvigorating remembrance. There are also many Messianic Psalms, like Psalm 22 and 69, which give us prophetic insight into the coming Messiah’s sufferings.

8. Embrace suffering as the best teacher

I’m not advocating that we go out looking for suffering. There’s no need to do that; it will come into our lives soon enough. The question is what do we do with it when it comes? What do we do with physical, mental, familial, or social trouble and pain?

We shouldn’t run from it and neither should we run from Christ because of it. Rather we should use it to draw us nearer to Christ and deeper into our understanding of His suffering. Every pang of bodily pain, every shadow of mental distress, every betrayal, every rejection, every persecution, etc., is a course on the sufferings of Christ, and should give us a better and longer understanding and love of His cross and empty tomb."



David Murray is Professor of Old Testament and Practical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. He blogs at HeadHeartHandand you can follow him on Twitter @DavidPMurray.

April 2013

Welcome April

 

"And I will make them and the places all around my hill a blessing,

and I will send down the showers in their season;

they shall be showers of blessing."

Ezekiel 34:26