“You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” -excerpt from John 18:33-37 (NIV)

Is anything more satisfying than a good mystery? My obsession with finding clues and searching for the truth began as young as Pre-K as I sat in front of the TV every day to watch Blue’s Clues. I loved yelling at Steve from my living room to turn around and find a bright blue paw print on an item that led us one step closer to figuring out what Blue’s favorite story is. And I declared that the recliner in my great-grandmother’s living room was my own “thinking chair,” where I could contemplate my own mysteries of life.

As I grew, my attention turned away from Steve and the gang, but the love of mysteries remained. Playing “Clue,” checking out Nancy Drew from the library, and watching shows like X-Files or CSI became a norm not just for me, but also for my friends. There was something very satisfying about putting our heads together to figure it out. Anyone who’s been to a murder mystery party knows how fun seeking the truth with others can be.

I wonder what would happen if Christ’s Church sought truth together more often.

Read more at fbcmuncie.org/blog.

“Jesus looked toward heaven and prayed, ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.’" -excerpt from John 17:1-5; 20-24

Authority is one of those things we have a love-hate relationship with. We love the idea of having all the authority ourselves, but we hate the responsibility that comes with it. We love the order an authority figure brings to our lives, but we hate following rules that we don’t get a say in. We love the security we feel under a good authority figure, but we hate the risk that corruption can strike at any time.

If there’s ever a time when the concept of “authority” is on our mind, then it’s definitely election week during a presidential cycle. We can’t help but wonder, or worry, what life will look like under the plans, policies, and authority of the new executive branch.

Would it help take the edge off of this week if I told you that the scriptures tell us exactly what life will look like under the authority of the soon-to-be elected president?

The answer may not be what you’d expect.

Read more at fbcmuncie.org/blog.

"Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.”

As anyone attending First Baptist Church Muncie during this series has noticed, we've made faux-political signs for the fruit of the Spirit. The one which is most amusing to me is, "Self-Control 2024."

I've tried to figure out what makes that particular sign so amusing to me. Perhaps it seems antithetical to so much of our public life, which is animated by excess or problems exterior to us. Problems and solutions are offered by parties and candidates who promise, "I have a plan" or "I alone can fix it." It would seem odd if a candidate stood up in front of their potential voters and said, "You know some of your problems are your fault and could be fixed by self-control." Even when we speak of "personal responsibility," we often mean other people taking such responsibility.

Read more at fbcmuncie.org/blog.

"The angel of the Lord came back a second time, and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” - 1 Kings 19:7

“Looking inside ourselves, we can anticipate only harshness from heaven. Looking out to Christ, we can anticipate only gentleness.”

You believe in God, well and good. But even the demons believe and shudder (to paraphrase James 2:19). Many of us believe in God. In fact, most in our country believe in God, according to surveys. And I do not mention this to cast doubt on anyone's sincerity.

But it makes a difference what God we believe in. Is the God you believe in the true God? Is he gentle? Is his burden easy and light like the God revealed to us in Jesus? Or is this God merely an incessant voice of accusation?

While on vacation, I attended my friend Sara Jane's church in suburban Cincinnati. She is a Presbyterian. One of the gifts of good Presbyterian preaching is its strict attention to the holy scriptures. She cautioned us not to assume that the voice in our heads was not necessarily of God. "If you are being told never to rest, never to give up, that might be the voice of your old boss posing at Jesus, but that is not the real Jesus. Jesus told his disciples then to rest. He tells us who are his disciples now to rest."

Read more at fbcmuncie.org/blog.

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This week James Heimlich shared a message on faithfulness as we continue our series on electing spiritual fruit!

First Baptist Church, Muncie, Indiana is a Spirit-led Community gathered to join Christ’s presence in our community.

Our current scriptural watchword for this season is “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45).

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“Acclaim the Lord, for He is good, for His kindness endures forever.” – from Psalm 136 (Translated by Robert Alter) You may also read Psalm 136 (NIV).

There's a viral Facebook post that says, "It costs nothing to be kind." In the most technical sense, it's true. Kindness doesn’t have to involve a charge coming out of your bank account. But kindness is costly.

I like how Christopher J.H. Wright put it in his book Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit. "Kindness goes beyond duty. It means doing something you don't have to do, but just choose to do. Kindness goes beyond reward--it means doing something you won't get paid to do." In other words, kindness demands that we trade in our preferences, conveniences, and expectations for the sake of loving someone else. In this way, a life that is producing “kindness fruit” sounds a lot like FBCM’s 2024 watchword: not to be served, but to serve (Mark 10:45).

This begs the question: How do we see this costly kindness in God’s character?

Read More at https://www.fbcmuncie.org/blog

Special Note about Audio: Due to a glitch in our system, the sermon audio is missing about two minutes in the middle. We apologize for the inconvenience, but assure that you will still get the main essence of the sermon instruction.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. Psalm 103:6-14 (NIV)

Are you the tortoise or the hare?

In this classic Aesop fable, a tortoise and a hare embark on a race. You likely remember reading this tale in elementary school. The hare is obviously faster than the tortoise. The tortoise doesn’t even refute this fact, so the idea of a race is absurdly comical. Yet–spoiler alert–the tortoise wins the race!

What’s fascinating about this story is not necessarily who wins, though that is a surprise for a room of first graders. But the real point of the story is how: slow and steady wins the race.

The image of the slow and steady tortoise is the essence of what patience looks like to me. Admittedly, my natural disposition is much closer to the hare. I like to zoom, zoom, zoom from here to there. If a project takes too long, there’s a high chance I’ll “take a break” and never finish it. There’s a stack of close to 10 books on my nightstand with bookmarks ⅔ ways through because I couldn’t make it to the end fast enough. The patience isn’t there–not with myself, and at times, not with others either. But slow and steady wins the race.

Read More at https://www.fbcmuncie.org/blog

“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility,” – from Ephesians 2:11-22 (NIV)

There is a pendant hanging in my office that I got as a gift when I began serving as a Resident Chaplain at Baylor University. In beautiful cursive letters, the pendant reads an opening line of a prayer commonly attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.”

As a former band woodwind player, I love the imagery of this prayer. I like to imagine what delightful music peace would sound like. I wonder what kind of life someone would have to lead to be an instrument in the condition to sing peace through each action. I wonder if it’s possible for an instrument of peace to appear as effortless as professionals playing in the symphony.

In this scenario, I might need to pray alongside St. Francis more often. If I’m an instrument of peace, my instrument probably sounds more like a tornado siren–loud, chaotic, and a bit off-key. What would your life’s instrument sound like? Would your life’s song resemble peace?

Read More at https://www.fbcmuncie.org/blog

“For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest, and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.” –Selection from Deuteronomy 16:9-17

I’ve got that joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart. WHERE?

I know you just sang that in your head with me. Maybe even out loud. Don’t even deny it. That classic kids’ church song is infectious, much like the true joy of the Lord is.

But there’s a big catch here, isn’t there: How are we supposed to elect the spiritual fruit of joy when we’re not going through a particularly joyous season in our lives right now?

Let me just be honest, I feel that struggle deep within my bones.

Read More at https://www.fbcmuncie.org/blog

"Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord." from Leviticus 19:1-18 NIV

Love is not simply a feeling of affection. It is actively seeking the good of others.

The Old Testament shows how the separateness, the holiness, and the love the people of God are told to demonstrate are all connected to the Lord's Holiness.

So, if it is true Love isn't a vague feeling that we like someone or something, what is it?

Love looks like living honoring God and honoring others.

As we begin a series on the fruit of the Spirit in a world where such fruit seems so rare, we are reminded that the sort of life we are given to live in Christ, and the fruit we are to seek as we become more like him, are truly good things.

And in a contentious election season, Christians must display the fruit of the Spirit more than political vices.

Join us as guest preacher Dr. Craig Long brings us the first message in our series on the Fruit of the Spirit on Love.

Read More at https://www.fbcmuncie.org/blog