The Churchtown Weekly Thursday, September 5, 2024
Learn-Grow-Become-GO!
Shout it in the assembly.
Shout it to the world. (Psalm 40)
Sovereign Then – Sovereign Now!
1The LORD took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the LORD to a valley filled with bones. 2He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. 3Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?”
“O Sovereign LORD,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.”
4Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the LORD! 5This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! 6I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
7So I spoke this message, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as complete skeletons. 8Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.
9Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’”
10So I spoke the message as he commanded me, and breath came into their bodies. They all came to life and stood up on their feet—a great army.
11Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel. They are saying, ‘We have become old, dry bones—all hope is gone. Our nation is finished.’ 12Therefore, prophesy to them and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again. Then I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13When this happens, O my people, you will know that I am the LORD. 14I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live again and return home to your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done what I said. Yes, the LORD has spoken!’”
Ezekiel 37:1-14 (NLT)
The Valley of Dry Bones. Is there a better pericope in all of scripture? It is a vivid picture of God’s power and a man who submits himself to that power not knowing where God is leading or what God intends to do or say.
Why is Ezekiel not afraid? Because God said this, “I will put my Spirit in you!”
To our modern Christian ears this sounds very familiar – we live beyond the work of the cross and as believers we live with what God Himself promised – that He would send His Holy Spirit to dwell within us and lead us in all Truth. As we move through scripture, however, we see that his Spirit did not always operate this way. Or did He?
When we examine how God’s Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, we see two general “categories” in which He operates. The first is as we read above – God’s Spirit is placed, or given, or shared – sometimes it is said that Yahweh ‘places His name’ upon a person. All of these are individual giftings in any number of ways, for example, in the passage above we learn that David had faith – there is no doubt about that; but when it came to killing a giant in single combat, “the Spirit of the Lord” came upon him and was with him. David had total faith that this was, indeed, the case and walked boldly into the unknown.
We hear the same sentiment when we listen to the words of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they say to King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter 3, verses 16-18, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17If the God whom we serve exists, then He is able to deliver us from the blazing fiery furnace and from your hand, O king. 18But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
As we know, God was with them in a mighty way and actually put Himself on display in the furnace. I love that. I also love the fact that the three Hebrews had such unwavering faith that He would be! Oh, I pray that I have such faith and would behave the same way! In fact, We New Testament Christians would call that the spiritual gift of faith – and we pray for that gift regularly so that we may be grounded in the Truth of Who God is.
The second way in which Holy Spirit works in the context of the Old covenant is to invest Himself in the Hebrew people as a group. He does this in order to draw them together, empower them to collectively complete His will, and to remind them that they, in fact, are God’s chosen people. We see this clearly in the prophecy of Zechariah, chapter 12, verse 10 as the Lord seeks to remind them, once again, Who their God is, when he says, “10“Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died. 11The sorrow and mourning in Jerusalem on that day will be like the great mourning for Hadad-Rimmon in the valley of Megiddo.”
The prophecy of Isaiah in chapter 44, verses 1-5 promises the blessings of God’s spirit upon the land and upon the people – if only they will avoid idol worship and remain faithful. The word of God comes through Isaiah and says, “1“But now, listen to me, Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. 2The LORD who made you and helps you says: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, O dear Israel, my chosen one. 3For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children. 4They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank. 5Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the LORD.’ Others will say, ‘I am a descendant of Jacob.’ Some will write the LORD’s name on their hands and will take the name of Israel as their own.”
Under the Old Covenant, God’s Holy Spirit inhabits individuals in order to gift them with unwavering faith and/or particular abilities. God’s Holy Spirit also inhabits His people collectively in order to demonstrate Who He is and, by contrast, who they are as His chosen people.
In the Old Testament, Yahweh commands nature – as we have seen He does in the New.
In the Old Testament, Yahweh commands the spirit realm – as He does in the New.
In the Old Testament, Yahweh places His Spirit in the people collectively and individually – as He does in the New.
In the Old Testament, Yahweh is the righteous judge of humanity – as He is in the New.
And in the Old Testament, Yahweh commands the very power of life in the world – as He does in the New.
From cover to cover, the Bible reveals Who God is and what this means to us, His creation and His adopted children.
From cover to cover, Yahweh is SOVEREIGN over all.
AND YES, ALL MEANS ALL!
Stay faithful and keep your eyes up.
Soli Deo Gloria! (alone, God receives Glory!)
May God bless you and keep you and
WE WILL SEE YOU IN CHURCH!
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!
You can now subscribe and listen to the
“Churchtown Podcast Network!”
Available on both Apple Podcasts and Spotify, just search “Turning on the Lights!” and “Churchtown Church of God Sermons” – subscribe and then leave a rating and a review! More folks will see it!
*Audio and video are always posted on our YouTube channel @churchtownchurch (there are 1,100 videos there)
Spread the word about the community NARTHEX! It is really taking shape, and folks are making many donations. We must get the word out!
Church Calendar
God’s Not Dead Two Friday September 6th 7pm
Kids for Our King Sunday September 8th
Council prayer Tuesday September 10 6:30pm
NSS Thursday September 12 6:30pm
Picnic Sunday September 15 (NSS leading)
Congregational Prayer Wednesday September 18 7pm
Tacos and Bible talk Thursday September 19 6-8pm
NSS Thursday September 26 6:30pm
NSS leading song Sunday September 29 (fifth Sunday celebration)
Brian, Kelly, and the dogs on vacation October 4 through October 8th
First Friday Movie October 4. 7pm
Council Prayer Tuesday October 8. 6:30pm
Service of the ordinances Sunday, October 13
Congregational prayer Wednesday October 16. 7pm
Randy Simpson inside THURSDAY October 17. 6pm
SERVE Saturday October 26
Trunk or Treat Thursday October 31 6-8pm
SERVE Saturday November 2.
Hayride – Sunday November 3. 4pm
SERVICE OF THE ORDINANCE DATES:
October 13th
November 27th – Thanksgiving Eve.
Remember, the single biggest reason given for why someone attends church for the first time is that a friend asked them!
As always, we continue in prayer for Churchtown, for our community, for the church universal, and for the lost everywhere.
God is good. God provides. Keep your eyes up and on the cross people.
Be well and do good, my friends. And, as always, Keep Looking Up! The lord comes!
REMEMBER THAT!
Opportunities!
We are always seeking individuals to be trained in technology. We would like to develop TEAMS that could rotate weekends.
There is always the opportunity to provide music – join up with the New Song Singers and / or talk to me about a special prelude or piece.
Gather-Grow-Become-Go
Churchtown Church of God
Sunday, September 8, 2024
Welcome to Churchtown!
We are glad you are here!
In remembrance of 9/11 and in honor of those who perished in the attack, would you please rise for the national anthem and remain standing for, “The Soul Has Risen.”
Opening Word
Matthew 9:18-26 (NLT)
#571, “My Country ‘Tis of Thee”
#569, “Battle Hymn of the Republic”
Back In The Word
Luke 7:9-17 (NLT)
573, “God of Our Fathers”
Our Time In the Word
John 11:23-44 (NLT)
247, “Spirit of the Living God” a cappella
Our Time of Corporate Prayer
“The Lord’s Prayer”
As a “little” church, we are always asking the question, “What CAN we do?” Well, we can start by caring for the spiritual, emotional, and physical needs of each other.We CAN serve the next person God places before us.
We CAN invite that person to church!
We CAN be intentional about going to church and strengthening ourselves and the body.
We CAN serve our community and show who Christ is to those who do not know Him.
We CAN PRAY, PRAY, PRAY – and we can REMAIN FATIHFUL!
I Love Being Your Pastor and Your Friend,
Brian
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