Turning on the Lights! – Tuesday, February 11, 2025. It is another day in 1 Peter.
Good Morning, Good Morning my brothers and my sisters.
It is another day in 1 Peter – but before we get started, we talk a bit about the nature of congregation and keeping families together during church.
And then we get back into 1 Peter 4 and 5 to talk about what it means to suffer for Christ and how to use that to grow together in unity and purpose.
I pray that this conversation challenges you and strengthens you.
I also pray that if you are not, you will choose to become a child of God. 🙂
This is a video recorded copy of the FaceBook Live event of Turning on the Lights! – Tuesday, February 11, 2025. Watch here via the YouTube link!
This is an audio recorded copy of the FaceBook Live event of Turning on the Lights! – Tuesday, February 11, 2025. Listen here or through your favorite podcast app!
This is a transcript from the audio of this episode of Turning on the Lights! – Tuesday, February 11, 2025
Hey, good morning. Good morning, my brothers and my sisters. Welcome to the Church Town Church of God. Turning on the lights. Turning on the vacuum cleaner. Let’s follow. Let’s see what’s going on here. Here it is. Oh, this is exciting. Oh, oh, oh. There you go. There’s the vacuum cleaner. I started vacuuming the sanctuary yesterday because I’ll show you why here in a minute. I hope you’re all doing well. I’m doing well. There’s the sanctuary. We’re coming to work here at Church Town. The guitar’s still out from Sunday. Gotta put it away. Did all the cleaning yesterday but there’s still a lot to do on the floor and I’ll show you why. We had a big old display of flowers here and at the end people took the flowers in memory of Miss Mary Sowers and some of the children after the people got theirs, the children wanted some flowers and of course the children started sword fighting with them and running around the sanctuary with them and doing all kinds of things with them. So, we’ve got to vacuum. My fault. Totally my fault but so I’ll vacuum him. People have been coming up to me. We have so many children in here. Parents and so forth saying, you know, do you really not mind? Like the kids here. They gather in the back. They color. They’ll do something on their iPad. They sing the songs. Sometimes they’re on the parents’ shoulders and you can hear them. You can hear them when we’re doing the service, when I’m preaching. There’s movement cuz they gotta go to the bathroom. There’s noise a little bit but the parents do a great job and I talk to the kids every morning like, hey, here’s what we’re gonna… How about you participate? You know, make sure you get up and sing and even if you can’t read the words or whatever, just, you know, enjoy it and they do and no, I don’t mind. I know it’s when you look at the post World War II church, right? And you know, before, you know, it’s I know it’s different than that. I know it is not compartmentalized and believe me, we’ve experienced years ago, you know, people who live that older church folks, shall I say, who would just absolutely give the stink eye to young parents who are in church? They’re in church. Like, shut that baby up. What are you doing? So, when we started talking about this and you know, I wrote, we started changing our ideology or not ideology, I guess. Well, I guess so. The way we think about children in church, the way we think about church and we think about the kids as a whole. The kids as a whole and so we adopted this mentality a couple of years ago. We’re in the pews. You will see how we feel about families in church. All of those different things. No, I love the background track of children’s good morning of children talking, laughing, of movement, of parents tending to their children and we have infants and when all the infants are here, it’s amazing to see the young mothers and fathers doing what they do and then the toddlers and the older children and we have teens now coming that just want to come. They just want to come. What how amazing is that? You know, I don’t believe that it’s anything that we’re doing other than being faithful. Other than being faithful, right? When you come into church, you should not be separated from your family, but age appropriate stuff. We address age appropriate stuff. We have a fantastic team that addresses age appropriate things. They’ll sing a song here. They’re singing a song this weekend or they’ll have a reading and or every once a month they do they enjoy part of the service, usually the music and then they go and they do as a collective group. They build their unity as a collective group and they’re taught then about being in church as well. So there is. But I just you know like we all got started on this because of the flowers and the kids are like, can I have a flower? Can I have a flower and I’m like let’s let everyone of Mary’s friends who wants a flower have a flower and then of course they just tore the thing apart and what you know and it was and they’re running around and my grandson. He’s sword fighting with some lilac or something like that and I’m like oh lordy lordy. So anyway, that’s why the vacuum sitting in the middle of the sanctuary. I’ll do a little bit each day. I can’t write and that’s happened to me and I said this is it like this is this was before we adopted the way that we think about and we just had baby a baby. And I couldn’t believe that you would discourage a young family who’s trying to do things the right way. Get that baby out of here. Get to the cry room. Get the kids out of here. They make noise. Yeah, they do. But how are they ever going when you look at our older children or teenagers and even those in their early 20s or pushing 20? How did they learn to be in church? They were in church. That’s how. Why do you think we lose so many people because they’re separated from the church from the time they really are infants? You got your nursery and then you got your toddlers and then you got your elementary and then you got your middle and then you got your high school and they just go into all of these different compartments and then when they’re kicked out of that after they graduate high school, they go into the main sanctuary and they’re like, yeah, no, what I don’t not just like it’s boring or whatever they don’t. It’s awkward. They don’t feel like they belong. So that got me started on children in church now that you know youth ministers and those sorts of things absolutely, but there’s a balance between age appropriateness and and and building unity. We have several ministries here that build unity. Good morning Mama Dee. Good morning everybody. Thank you for watching Tuesday morning. We’re gonna be talking about second Peter four the end of second Peter chapter four and the very beginning of five, but we got off on a tangent on children in church and like I said when I look at scripture, I just I don’t see the way human beings have created modern church. It’s not there. It’s not there you know when we talk about you know the man is is that he believes in his baptized and his entire family when it’s it is the unity of the body and part of that body might be four years old. What do you do now is the question part of that body might be 93 years old and need need cared for part of that body might be three years old and need care for what’s the body going to do just ignore. Well, you’re too young and you’re too old. No no good morning. Rosie. As you can tell it’s still there. I think a lot of people. They’re like it’s still there. It’ll be there till spring time like this week’s weather is not gonna help. It’s gonna it’s gonna be rainy and then snowy and snowy and rainy and rainy and snowy but it’ll be. So there you go if you come to church town, you’re welcome. I don’t we don’t we we don’t care if you are a young couple with triplets triplet infants bring them. We’ll help you take care of them. We have so many amazing people in here and the kids know them and they go from person to person and different people. They’ll bring in packs of M&M’s for the kids and different things. There’s like this whole underground M&M. Network going on in there and they and the kids they all think they’re getting away with something cuz they’re like you know they’re they’re not gonna tell Pastor Brian that that Nancy brought them M&M’s today and and this is it’s just amazing. Josh is one of those amazing dads taking care of baby and I know it’s and he said it’s it’s such a tough season and that’s why sometimes we don’t see cuz you’re gonna keep your infant inside. Let me look at me. I mean you gotta you gotta be careful. So if you come to church town and you wanna learn more, there are little and and I can send this to anybody who wants to read it because I have it written up and save our little laminated paper on how we feel and the scriptures behind it about families and church. Let’s care for each other. So like I said, we’ve got kids for our king and there’s a sense of unity there and there’s age appropriate instruction. There is a room over there if you know meltdown or just the kids just not doing well today right so go over and play like you’re not gonna. He’s not going to you know go to hell because he didn’t hear part of the lesson that day as a five-year-old. He’s not having a great emotional day. There’s a room over like be an adult like acting like we’ve. You know what I mean? It’s it’s awesome, but so all of that to say no, I don’t mind people come up and say I you know I heard so you know it was my daughter and she was she was talking pretty loud and stuff and I know how else is she going to learn to do church and be in church and be a part of church and talk to you about what parts she likes good morning and what parts she doesn’t like or doesn’t understand is what I hear not just doesn’t like all of that. Father, we pray your word will be heard today. Your church will grow today. Hearts minds will be penetrated repentance will occur. The love of God will transform the sinful natures of so many today and grow them to be the disciples that you know them to be in Jesus name. Excuse me. Amen. All glory and power to him forever and ever. Amen. God supplies all that you need. In order to carry out your life in every aspect from being a man being a woman being a slave, it talks about being a parent being a husband being a wife and God will supply all you need and remember first Peter in round knob. I hope that we’re still going strong. I mean we’ve got maybe a week, maybe two in first Peter. We’ve been here a long time. The Lord has drawn us into first Peter and I believe it’s for a reason and we’re gonna be faithful. I wish I had an answer. It’s dry air. It’s wet air. It’s cold. It’s whatever. But everything that God remember for it’s all about the spirit. It is all about your spiritual foundation when he says God will supply all that you need for every facet of your life, regardless of who you are or what your station in life is. He’s talking about the spiritual need. He’s talking about your salvation being valid. If you will through all circumstances. The two are mutually exclusive. You’re going to experience the circumstances that some are gonna be great and some are going to be horrible. But your spiritual foundation God will supply your faithfulness. Patience, loving kindness, all the fruit of the spirit, which I’ve never been able to do without that song. But he will move you through your circumstances. Your life on Earth may last another year. Your life on Earth may last another 60 years. Who knows? I mean he does, but who knows? But regardless, you are his child and Peter is trying to impress that upon the young church in the Roman Empire just as this marginalization and persecution is beginning. That your endurance really equates to your faithfulness, your spiritual foundation and all of your circumstances that are negative pressing in are not trying just not just trying to make you harm you mentally or emotionally like you don’t feel wanted. You feel emotionally abused. You feel as if nobody likes you or physically through persecution. All of those negative things are designed to break your spirit designed by Satan to have you condemn God himself and walk away and join the minions right of Satan and Peter is saying you’re different. We talked so much about that last week. You’re different. You’re different. You’re different and the words are so simple. The words are so pure. The words are so powerful. There’s no other way to say it, but the very spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives in you and you need how much more? Right? Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you’re going through as if something strange were happening to you. It’s not strange. Good and evil can’t coexist at the same time. Evil will always try to pound in on good. Good will always be the light in the darkness is going to be a natural at the very minimum tension. And at the maximum, it’s going to be literal warfare at times as is evil manifests itself through a person’s behavior who seeks them to go and destroy the image bearers of God. Instead, be very glad for these trials make you members with Christ in his suffering so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. And we talked about this a little bit before Peter talked about it a little bit before. If you go in on the suffering part, if you go in on the I’m not wanted by the world part, if you put a little skin in the game as it were, just like you know, if you as Jesus did, obviously, then you’re kind of at the place where you are all in, because you’re not going to suffer, you’re not going to endure. You’re not going to if you’re not in that loving, solid relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Why would a person do that? If it’s not real, if it’s not powerful, if it’s not guiding life. So be glad, be glad. And we always say that here as well. It’s kind of a backhanded compliment when when we are faithful you as an individual, you guys as a family, we as a congregation, when you are faithful, it’s always kind of a backhanded compliment when things try to go sideways. Because Satan has no interest in a spiritually dead person. He already has that person. Satan has no interest in a spiritually dead church. He’s already got that church. So when you are faithful and you’re walking in the way, right, and you’re seeking and she’s seeking to discern the will of God, when you’re seeking with the right motives, what do you want for us and what do you want for this church? You don’t think Satan wants to try to stop that? Maybe try to find a weakness in one of the congregational members and maybe hurt their ego so that that individual will try to cause dissension, whatever the case may be. There’s a million different ways. And it’s always sort of like I said, a backhanded compliment when you’re attacked. Because Satan has no interest in a dead soul. You are not only an image bearer of God, you are a child of God. Boy, how much more if Satan could get that child, that professed child of God to condemn God himself. How much more of a victory for Satan would that be? So he comes after hard. He comes after you hard. So be happy when you are insulted for being Christian. We’re supposed to experience joy. We’re supposed to be glad. We’re supposed to be happy. For then the glorious spirit of God rests upon you. That’s what we just talked about. If you suffer, however, it must be for not be for murder, Portland salad, but it is no shame to suffer for being Christian. So that’s you don’t get a hall pass. I’m a Christian and there is this natural tension, so I’m going to go out and do all of these things like I’m going to preemptively strike Satan by murdering No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, that’s not the way it works. Not the way it works, right? You’re not going to go out and destroy God’s image bearers. Your job is to be the Bible for them, to share the good news for them and seek to save them through God’s will, like to be that example, to be that disciple. It’s different. So Peter said, now you don’t get a hall pass and there’s going to be no great joy or redemption in you proactively outside of the will of God, trying to forcefully expand the kingdom of God or anything like that. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name. Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name. Christian for the time has come for judgment and it must begin with God’s household. Ouch. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s good news? And also, if the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to the godless sinners? Okay. And his writing now, he, I Paul, our I Peter, with the help of Silas, I believe I will get to the end here. Yes, Silas, wrote this letter, but it’s Peter’s language. It’s very, very direct. It’s very, very direct. And he is speaking in the will of God saying, “Judgment will begin in God’s house.” Judgment will begin in God’s house. Judgment will begin in those faithful congregations. The sheep and the goats of which we spoke of last week, I spoke of them of that passage at the funeral and so forth, will, it will begin in God’s household. Who is bearing the name of Christ, Christian? Well, who is bearing that title, right? Who is wearing that nomenclature, whatever you want to say, who is calling themselves a Christian, who is actually a Christian, who actually seeks the will of God, who actually seeks first the kingdom of God, who actually is deep in the word and obeys the word, who actually understand that God’s love means that he’s seeking to save people from their sin, not to affirm them in their sin. And like we said last week, as a Christian, just as a Christian, I’m not going to put a job title on you or any other age or any other, just as a Christian. If somebody asked you, “What is the gospel? What is the good news?” Can you answer them? What would you say? I mean, that’s the very basic premise, right? The basic foundation of discipleship. Okay, okay, okay. Tell me about Jesus Christ. Tell me about this good news. What would you say? It’s a fantastic thought exercise, and it’s not so bad to even practice on each other. What would you say? And God may challenge you in that area, and you may go, you may freeze, like, “I know, but you just sort of have to feel it,” and then you walk away going, “Oh, my goodness. What did I even say? I don’t know. I’ve been there. I think we’ve all been there.” But as the judgment begins in God’s household, don’t you think that we ought to be grounded in that good news? Don’t you think the spiritual cornerstone should be Jesus Christ of this household? Right? Don’t you think that the spiritual foundation should be God’s Holy Spirit within us? Our immersion in the Word and seeking His will and obeying His Word and understanding what He means when He says, “I am love,” when God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, “That whosoever shall believe in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” How does that work? How does that work? If I’m confused and I’ve gone down the path of homosexuality or drug addiction or transsexuality, whatever the case may be, how can I be brought back into God’s household? How does that work? Tell me. It’s important because, like I said, it’s a difficult task, which is why you see a lot of the Christian church today basically just throw up their theological hands and say, “It doesn’t really matter. Come on in. And love is love and God is love and He loves you.” Yes, He does. He loves you with the kind of love that seeks to shape you into the son or daughter that He wants you to be, not that you are right now. So if you’re suffering in a manner that pleases God, well, what terminology is that? Suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right and trust your lives to the God who created you for He will never fail you. There’s the message. And we’ll stop there. I think we’ll get into five. It says about leadership in the church, not just leadership, but mentorship. “And now a word for you who are elders in the churches. I too am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ and I too will share in His glory when He is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you, care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly, not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the great shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor. In the same way, you younger men must accept the authority of the elders and all of you serve each other in humility. For God opposes the proud, but favors the humble.” And we talk about now He’s taken from the top of the funnel, right? In chapter one, the top of the funnel, generalities. And then He’s gone through the different individual groups of people, age groups of people stationed in life. And then He ends sort of with a generality like, “Okay, if you’re there and you have remained faithful, now you’re all together, now stay faithful. Stay faithful because judgment begins within God’s household.” And now we’re at the very bottom of the funnel where we say, “Okay, how can we ensure, if you will, how can we remain unified? How can we remain tight together, unified by God’s Holy Spirit? How can we recognize that we’re something, we’re part of something that’s way bigger than ourselves?” And He talks about the eldership of the church. Now, there’s no sex given here. We’re talking about faithful followers of Jesus Christ, those who have been walking the path. Are you an example for others who aren’t walking the path or have just begun to walk the path? Right? And we got to remember that the gendered language, the default pronouns are always male. So you’re just not going to get a lot of, “Okay, so you men and you younger men and women, you must accept the authority of the older men and women.” It didn’t work that way. The language didn’t work that way. You say, “Well, okay. Well, it sounds like a cop-out.” Not really. If you’re even as old as me, I’m 59, you remember that the default pronoun in English was “he.” You always just said “he,” “him.” No, if it was a general generality, a general statement, you always use that. That was the default pronoun. And now we have used more and you hear this inclusive language. And I am absolutely not opposed to that. When it comes to reminding everybody that the word of God is speaking to men and women alike, there’s where we’re going to use more inclusive language. Right? So we see that order, structure, obedience at the top of the funnel. Order, structure, obedience. The middle of the funnel. When you’re talking about husbands, wives, men, women, slave, free, order, structure, obedience, you’ve done that. You are together as a congregation. What does that look like? Well, it better look good in the eyes of the Lord. And as a congregation, you should be ordered, structured, and in obedience to God through His Word. So we’ll probably, you know, if you have, if you have a topic that you would like to talk about on Thursdays, right? This is what we’ve been doing. I’ve been exploring the word on Tuesdays and we’ve been doing a very focused on 1 Peter on Tuesdays. And I hope that that has helped our friends over at Round Knob. And I hope you’ve got a lot to talk about, a lot to read. I hope that it’s been thought provoking. And then on Thursdays, we’ve been doing either a parallel scripture or something different. So I want to be there for you. Maybe you have a parallel scripture or something different. And we can talk about that on Thursday. Don’t don’t be afraid to, what do the kids say? PM me or DM me. Slide into my DMs with your theological idea. Question, comment, concern. Father God, we pray, we pray, pray, pray to you, Lord Jesus. That you would not only pour your love into your church. But your wisdom, your purpose, your power. Lord, your will, may it be done here on Earth as you as it is in heaven. In Jesus name, we pray your word will go out. Because we know that it will never fail in its intended purpose. We know that it is like a caged lion that has been set free. Lord, set it free. May your church grow and become the bride. That you seek it to be in Jesus name, Amen. Oh, well, I did that because I was preaching that at a funeral. We can do that again. Actually, I mean, it was a not too long ago when we were talking. We did a whole series in Turning on the Lights about the Kingdom of God. And when we talked about the Kingdom of God, we went right to Jesus’s teachings. When he said the Kingdom of God is like the Kingdom of God is like the Kingdom of God is like. And part of those teachings was in Matthew 25 being prepared. Being prepared for the coming Lord, right? And part of being prepared for the coming of the Lord is exercising your gifts here on Earth. Now that you are given by his Holy Spirit. And why is that important? It’s important because the third part of Matthew 25. Jesus is coming and he will separate the sheep from the goats. Right, those who are faithful and believe and or orthodox, we would say in modern language. And those who have are not. And so, yeah, we can look at that again. And maybe I can come up with a more other parallels, parallel parables to say that three times fast parallel parables about the Kingdom of God on Thursday, if you would like. Good Lord willing in the river don’t rise in who knows these days with the weather the way it is. We’ll see you Thursday for turning on lights.
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