News from Shawneetown First Baptist

   Several years ago, a church member (former church member now) tried to convince me that only certain people have the “gift” of intercessory prayer.  Intercessory prayer is the prayer that one believer offers to God in behalf of another person.  I rejected that idea then and I still do.  The Bible clearly teaches that any believer can pray for another or others.  In the New Testament, it is recognized as the doctrine of the Priesthood of Believers.

   However, I do believe that intercessory prayer is a wonderful “gift” that God has given to the New Testament Church that is available to every true believer who has made Jesus Christ the Lord of his or her life!  And, I must admit that as I read some of the intercessory prayers offered by some of God’s elect, it is obvious that there are some who pray more boldly and pray more effectively as they intercede for others before God.  Don’t misunderstand me!  I still believe that every true believer can exercise the gift of intercessory prayer.  But, I also believe that there are some prerequisites that enable the pray-er to pray more boldly and make his prayer effective.

   Take Moses for instance.  He had spent 40 days on Mt. Sinai with the Lord to receive the Ten Commandments from Him.  But while he was gone, the Israelites became restless in their camp as they waited for Moses.  They convinced Aaron, Moses’ brother, to make a golden calf so that they would have something visible to worship.  This aroused God’s anger and He said to Moses: “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people.  Now leave Me alone, so that My anger can burn against them and I can destroy them.  Then I will make you into a great nation” (Exodus 32:9-10).

   Now listen to Moses’ response.  “But Moses interceded with the Lord his God: ‘Lord, why does Your anger burn against Your people You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a strong hand?  Why should the Egyptians say ‘He brought them out with an evil intent to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth?’”  (Ex. 32:11-12).  Moses continued by asking God to “turn” from His anger and “relent.”  Moses reminded God of His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—that He would make their “offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky” and give them “all this land” that He had promised. (Ex. 32:13).

   Exodus 32:14 says:  “So the Lord relented concerning the disaster He said He would bring on His people!”  This is bold and effective intercession on the part of Moses.  There are other examples of bold and effective intercession in God’s Word.  Such as the intercession of Abraham’s pleas for Sodom in Genesis 18 when he asked God to spare Sodom if there were just 50 righteous people in the city.  Abraham kept pleading with the Lord until he got the number of righteous people down to 10.  But there were not even 10 righteous people in the city.  The point is that God listened to Abraham and agreed with his bold intercession

   Prayers of intercession are found throughout God’s Word coming from the prophets, from David, and from Paul in the New Testament as he prayed concerning his own people, the Israelites.  We should be thankful for the intercessory prayer of our Lord Jesus because He prayed for us.  In John 17, Jesus prayed for His disciples who were about to watch Him be crucified.  Then, He prayed for all believers, including those of us who are alive today:  “May they all be one, as You, Father, are in Me and I am in You.  May they also be one in Us, so the world may believe you sent me.”

   Why were the prayers of Moses, Abraham, the prophets, Paul, and Jesus so effective?  There are two reasons that I see as I read the Bible.  First, there is the intimacy these individuals had with God.  Each one knew Him and had a personal relationship with Him, spent time with Him, and was obedient to Him.  This intimacy gave them boldness to speak with Him in the way they did.  Second, there was the intensity of their prayer life.  They prayed consistently.  They prayed specifically.  And, they prayed according to God’s will and His promises.  Consequently, they could pray bold prayers!

   Does that mean only people in the Bible like Moses, Abraham, and Jesus can pray bold intercessory prayers?  Absolutely not!  By the grace of God through Jesus Christ, we too can have that intimate personal relationship with Him and we too can pray with intensity according to the gracious promises of our Lord.  God’s “gift” of bold intercession is available to every believer who is willing to spend time with Him on a consistent basis.  Surely God’s people need to begin praying bold intercessory prayers for their loved ones, for the lost, and for our nation today!  Spend some time with Him right now!

   “Reach Up!” Basketball & Cheering continues for the third week this Saturday.  Our numbers were down a little last week.  However, the children and parents present seemed to have a great time!  I hope those who missed will be back this Saturday. 

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Bro Jack
I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

News from Shawneetown First Baptist

   “Reach Up!” Basketball & Cheering starts this Saturday.  Last week we placed players on teams.  To date we have nearly 60 kids making up 6 teams.  There are two Kindergarten teams, two teams of first and second graders, and two teams made up of kids in grades 3 through 6.  I’m not sure this is the final result because we have more children who want to play.  I realize that I wrote that last week was our last sign-up day, but we will not turn away any child away that wants to play.  So, here is the schedule for this week: 

   10:00 a.m. – Kindergarten.  10:45 a.m. – Grades 1 & 2.  11:30 a.m. – Grades 3 thru 6.  This schedule is tentative.  It may change after this week.  The program will continue for 8 weeks and will end on Saturday, March 24^th. 

   “COURAGEOUS” Weekend was a story of bad news/good news!  The bad news was Saturday night!  We changed our Friday night showing because of the GEC tournament thinking the Hawks may be in the championship game; then, when the tournament extended to Saturday, it was the same time as our movie causing our crowd to be very small.  However, Saturday was not all bad news.  Congratulations to the Hawks for their exciting victory over the Crab Orchard Trojans!

   Our good news is that Sunday night we had the second showing of “Courageous.”  We had a great crowd on Sunday night!  If you have not seen the movie, “Courageous,” you need to make the opportunity to see it!  It is a movie that will change your thinking about the home and family!  In fact, we are planning to have a 4-session “Courageous Living” Bible Study beginning Sunday during the Sunday School hour at 9:30 a.m.  I would love to have any of you who are interested join us for these Bible Studies.

   “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!” was the overall theme of the movie.  It stressed the importance of having homes where Jesus Christ is at the very center.  All we need to do is take a look at what is happening in our country and we can see how true this is.  The home and the family are being ripped apart by many who want to demean the family.  There is a major push to destroy marriage as God intends it—one man and one woman united together for life.  Even one well known congressman recently announced that he was going to marry his male partner.  There are many who want to make it legal and an accepted practice for two men or two women to raise children.

   “Courageous” stresses the need for children to be raised in a home where there is a father.  Not just any father, but a father who knows Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Savior.  Unfortunately, many parents today leave all the spiritual training of children—if any at all— to the church.  God did not intend it that way.  The first spiritual institution created by God is the home.  God spoke to His people through Moses and said, “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.  Repeat them to your children.  Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead.  Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deut. 6:4-9). 

   We who are parents need to see the tremendous treasure that God has given us when we have children.  And, at the same time, we need to see the great responsibility that is ours to train them and mold them into the persons that God wants them to be.  We are to teach them—not only by mouth—but also by example what it means to love God and to live by His Word.  The movie pointed out that 50% of all youth crimes could be erased if we did!

   We who are fathers need to “be strong and courageous” as God challenged Joshua. (Joshua 1:6).  We need to be the spiritual leaders in our homes!  We need to be the ones who lead our children to know God and not leave that wonderful privilege to someone else.  In order to do that, we must first know God and love Him ourselves!  And then, we must spend quality time with our children.  We must be willing to make the commit Joshua did, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15).  What about you, parent?

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Bro Jack
I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

News from Shawneetown First Baptist

BROJACK’S BLOGS – 01/23/12 

     “COURAGEOUS” Weekend is coming up!  It will be this weekend!  We will be showing the movie, “Courageous,” on Saturday, January 28^th, at 7:00 p.m.  Then, on Sunday, January 29^th, the movie will begin at 6:00 p.m.  Both showings will be free of charge. 

   We are also planning to have a 4-session “Courageous Living” Bible Study beginning Sunday, February 5^th during the Sunday School hour at 9:30 a.m.  I would love to have any of you who are interested join us for these Bible Studies.

   The last sign-up day for “Reach Up!” Basketball & Cheering is this Saturday, January 28^th.  We will also try to put teams together.  We will start with Kindergarten through 2^nd grade at 10:00 a.m.  At 10:30, we will organize 3^rd & 4^th grade.  Finally, 5^th & 6^th grade will organize at 11:00 a.m.  All the kids should have brought sign-up sheets home with them from school.  However, if they did not get home with it, we will have extra registration sheets at the church on Saturday.  You may also call the church, 269-3664, and sign up by phone.  If the answering machine picks up, please leave a number at which we can reach you or you may leave your information on the machine.  We need the child’s name, grade in school, the name of the parent or guardian, and a phone number.

   The starting date for “Reach Up!” Basketball & Cheering is Saturday, February 4^th. 
The program will continue for 8 weeks and will end on Saturday, March 24^th. 

   As you read this article, I will be with a group from Saline Baptist Association at the North Central States Rally in Indianapolis, Indiana.  I will be receiving some evangelism training.  Since I will be gone for three days and in training sessions all day long, I have asked Bro. Mike Rushing, our Associate Pastor, to preach the message in our Morning Worship this Sunday.  Come and join us this Sunday at 10:40 a.m. hear and Bro. Mike preach!

   Lewi Pethrus said, “There is no human power that can replace the power of the Spirit.”  And in reference to the coming of the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, “It is good that I am going away.” (John 16:7).  I would like to share with you what one of my devotion writers said about this verse.

   “These words must have sounded absurd to the disciples.  They sound absurd to us, too.  Good that Jesus isn’t with us?  No one who has ever cried out ‘Where are You, God?’ can fathom such a statement.  An absent Savior?  Our only refuge and help—missing in action?  The One with the words of eternal life—working silently behind the scenes?  It seems ludicrous to us that there would be any benefit in the absence of the One on whom we have pinned all our hopes.

   “Jesus tells us why, of course.  The next verse explains that the coming of the Holy Spirit is contingent on Jesus’ departure.  We know the benefit of His absence intellectually, and that the Holy Spirit is alive and present in our lives.  But do we know this by experience?  Do our minds tell us that the Holy Spirit is in us by faith while our hearts act as if the Spirit of Jesus is far away in a refuge called heaven?  Many Christians lapse into knowing the Holy Spirit’s help as a psychological advantage but not as a supernatural blessing.  He’s beneficial as a theological belief but difficult to know in experience.

   “But it need not be so.  Jesus promised His disciples that the Holy Spirit is a gift for those persistent enough to ask for Him (Luke 11:13). So ask.

   “Next time you’re trying to understand God’s Word or pray according to His will, next time you’re trying to overcome sin, next time you’re trying to make sense of your circumstances or relieve your pain, stop and remember the assistance available to you.  He’s the greatest power in the universe, and He makes Himself known through faith and persistent asking.  Don’t settle for a faint awareness that He is there somewhere, though you’re not sure where.  Pound on the doors of heaven—read Luke 11:5-13 if that concept bothers you—until He’s a reality experienced in your heart.  Remember that Jesus would not have left us in body unless He’d planned to come back to us in Spirit, deeper and fuller than we could have ever known Him otherwise.” (From “Indeed—Exploring the Heart of God.) 

See you in Sunday School              Bro Jack

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Bro Jack
I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

Shawneetown First Baptist to Show Movie

"Courageous" Movie at First Baptist

     First Baptist Church of Shawneetown will be having a “Courageous” Weekend on the last weekend of January.  With the hope that the Gallatin County Hawks make it to the championship of the GEC Tournament, they are making a change in one of the previously announced dates.  They will be showing the movie, “Courageous,” on Saturday, January 28th, at 7:00 p.m.  Then, on Sunday, January 29th, the movie will begin at 6:00 p.m.  Both showings will be free of charge. 
   They are also planning to have a 4-session “Courageous” Bible Study beginning Sunday, February 5th during the Sunday School hour.  Anyone interested in participating in the Bible Study is cordially invited.  You may call the church office, 269-3664.