First Belton

Logan is preaching in view of a call.

In Psalm 23, God shares the metaphor of how a good Shepherd leads his flock. We should expect our new pastor to lead us as God leads His people.

In Revelation 2, Jesus has words of encouragement for the church in Ephesus. He also has some cutting rebukes and severe warnings. Both the encouragements and the rebukes are for the church and designed to help them. We will focus on the love this church abandoned, why that was significant, and what it means for us as a church.

We will look at the early church and discuss the expressions they had as they were filled with the Spirit of God. The Spirit indwells and creates a new people with new expressions. The Spirit and the apostles’ teaching produce glad dependence on God, generosity and fellowship within the church, and great impact in the world.

Paul uses a metaphor in our text, saying the church, it’s people, are like a physical human body. We are a fellowship of one body: the body of Christ. We will discuss two key points from this parallel…Unity and Diversity.

God has provided deacons for the church. Deacons are called by God to serve the people of God. Deacons express the love and care of Christ in tangible ways.

God has provided leaders for the church. These leaders (elders/pastors/ministers) are called by God to shepherd the people of God. This is a privilege and responsibility that brings glory to God and joy to the church when done as He instructs.

Christians all around the world suffer from persecution. We want to consider God’s purposes in the persecution of his people. The central question that comes to people’s minds when they hear of persecution of other Christians is “Why?” Christian persecution happens according to God’s design for the gospel to advance through a suffering church. The gospel is always advancing!

Gospel for One

The fourth sermon in the series, Not Ashamed, will examine the gospel from God’s point of view. Ultimately, we will see how God’s salvation of His creation is really His story. The gospel begins and ends with God. It is His story from the start to finish and will not be ashamed of it.