The Echo of Belief
24 “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. 25 Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.John 5: 24 - 30
28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. 30 By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.
A Thought From the Pastor
We often talk about “The Journey to Jesus” and “The Journey with Jesus” in our church family. This journey is discussed by Jesus in John 5 with an introduction to belief and with good deeds as a conclusion. I love the analogy often used from Hearing to Harvest or Living the Echo of Belief. Our journey begins when we hear Christ’s message and place our trust in him. True belief immediately transforms us from a spiritual death to eternal life. The journey to Jesus has begun and we belief that this is shown through baptism as a way of proclaiming my belief in God and being born again as new creatures in Christ. Our Journey with Jesus begins and we begin to place our faith in him and make him the Master of our life. Good deeds are the natural evidence of this faith journey, not the earning mechanism. Putting our faith in action allows us to become Christ’s hands and feet in our community. The problem is this beauty also has it’s challenges.
The first challenge seems to always be self-will. We want to do good deeds for our glory. We want to do things our way. We want to have control of our lives.
The second challenge is burn out and exhaustion. We want to rely on our own strength and refuse to embrace the divine endurance that God provides. We think worldly when we should be thinking eternally.
The last challenge is surrender. We want to hold on to aspects of our lives instead of surrending all of our life to Jesus on this journey. We have to learn to say “not my will but thine be done”
How do conquer these challenges so we can have the journey with Jesus that we all truly desire.
First, let’s quit white knuckling our way through life. Let’s become open handed and offer our plans, desires and identity to God and allow him to direct them.
Second, let’s replace fear with faith. Let’s begin to truly trust that God is good, all-knowing and entirely capable of directing and handling our lives.
Finally, let’s allow the Holy Spirit to direct our human effort. We want to rely on our intelligence, our strength, our stamina, our gifts when we should be allowing the Holy Spirit and his grace and timing to direct our human effort.
Let’s take this Journey with Jesus seriously and allow the words of Jesus recorded in the Gospel of John to give us guidance and wisdom and watch our lives with have meaning, beauty and eternity.
Prayerful Planning
- Our food pantry is open today after church. Thank you for everyone who has purchased items for the pantry and we are excited that we will be able to offer dairy products now for our guests due to a grant we received which includes a commercial refrigerator as well.
- A big thanks for everyone that brought in winter gear for our drive for clients at Harbor Hall and Bear River. The items have been delivered and will be available to anyone who may need them during treatment and recovery.
Plans and Events at PCOC
- 11/01 - Food pantry is open today after service from 12:30 - 1:30 pm.
- 11/02 - Community Kitchen @ 11:30 am - 12:30 pm
- 11/04 - Women’s and Men’s Bible Studies @ 6:30 pm @ PCoC.
- 11/05 - Church Prayer Group @ 10:30 am @ PCoC.
- 11/06 - Bridge Street Church Baptismal Service @ PCoC at 6:00 - 7:00 pm.
What the Food Pantry Needs
- Granola Bars
- Chunky/Hearty Soups
- Crackers
Coming Up at PCOC
- PCOC Food PantrySunday, November 15 · 12:30 PM
Purpose For This Week
- Pray that we would submit to God's will in our lives.
- Pray that our church can be a “House of Grace and Mercy”
- Pray that we would be participants in God's work in our community.
- Pray that we would embrace our Journey with Jesus as we study the Gospel of John.
Praise Reports & Prayer Requests
- Please cover Pam Francken and her back and mobility. Please pray that she can walk normally again and she can return to her desired health.
- Please continue to cover Joe Soper and his health in your prayers.
- Please cover Chaning Kruskie and her health and pregnancy in your prayers.
- Please pray for Alta Roy and her recovery from a fall. Pray that her knee is healed.
- Please pray for the Eby family as the are seeking God's sovereign will with the transition of care for their family. Please pray for for God to give them direction, wisdom and guidance in this process.
- Please pray for Tyler and Ashleigh and Ashleigh's boys Ayden and Jax who are downstate. Pray that God would work his will to bring this family together and that He would provide patience and direction in their life during this transition.
- Please continue to pray for Eric and Shana Hopkins and their family. God has blessed them with so much in regards to family, their business, but it all can be overwhelming. Please specifically pray for their family priorities to be focused on God and connection and recovery.
Watch the Sermon
The Echo of Belief