Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Bring the Book

The beginning of the Summer Exodus has begun as many people were missing from church on Sunday but we had a great time with the members and visitors who were in the house. Sundays have become a little more hectic for me than usual but it has sharpened my vision in the pulpit. Teaching the New Members class at 8:30 and the Prayer Class at 9 has made me right ready when I hit in the pulpit and I can tell during the preaching moment.

I have had the same experience two Sundays in a row. I prepared a sermon that I thought would be used for a section of the church addressing one thing and God has made me use it for the entire body. I am walking into a series of sermons from Psalms 1. To prepare the soil, I have been concentrating in sermons on making The Word of God our emphasis in our lives, in our church and in all that we do.

We used Nehemiah 8 as our platform to plant this idea in the collective spirit of the membership. We need more Ezra's in the Pulpit who can:


Vs 1 "Bring the Book"

Vs 5 "Opened the Book"

Vs 8 "Explained the Book"


It amazes me how many "Books " are brought to the church, the pulpit, the business meetings, our Sunday Schools, Our Vacation Bible Schools and our Christian Education Departments that are not or have no relation to THE BOOK which is GOD'S HOLY WORD.

Let me quickly say, I appreciate, thank God for and want to be the best rounded preacher I can be by reading all that I can in supplemental reading; however, we cannot allow this to take the place or remove from our diet the fundamental reading which is God's Holy Word.

We need some more Ezra's who will BRING THE BOOK. Not Robert's Rules of Order! Not Parliamentary Procedures! Not Someone who has studied the Constitution and the By-laws of the Church more than they have the Word of God. Not Politicians but a Preacher.

Again, thank God for politicians! They have a place and a purpose but they are not the pastor/teacher. We do not need a Day of Prayer from a politician, we need a preacher to teach us the Bible wants us to PRAY WITHOUT CEASING. We do not need a resolution from the State House or a Bill signed from the White House ordering a day of observance for religion, we need a Preacher, an Ezra to bring, open and explain the Word so we will know it must be a daily lifestyle, not a one-time event.

Thank God for all that Nehemiah did in leadership, organization, strategic planning, vision casting and implementation but it takes a preacher to teach the people what thus says the Lord and thereby restoring them to where they should be.

In presentation, God allowed it to go better than preperation. I had fun explaining why we stand upon the reading of the Word of God and what that really meant back then and what it should mean now; the building of the pulpit and what it was built from (WOOD) and why it was elevated and the people's reception, reactions and results to the Word of God.

The people:

Said Amen, Amen, We don't say amen for the preacher, we say Amen, truly truly, verily, so be it in response to the word of God.

They lifted their hands, bowed their heads, laid prostrate and cried out to God as they responded to the bringing, opening and explaining of the Word of God.

They learned a lesson that we all should remember: Through the Word of God, The Joy of the Lord is our Strength.

We had a great time on Sunday, spiritually and financially.

Our 90th State convention for the Original General Missionary Baptist State Convention of Indiana Incorporated is going on in Ft Wayne Indiana this week. Please pray for us.

Owens

No comments: