Grace and peace to you! What a blessed Christmas Season we had! It was so nice to see so many people celebrating the joy of the season with us!
Charles Lamb once said, “No one ever regarded the first of January with indifference.” That is very true. The start of a new year is very important to people. People make New Year’s resolutions, hope for a better year than the last, and make promises that they will not do the same things or make the same mistakes as they did in the last year. It is great having that feeling of getting a new start, and churches can do the same.
I have been with Christ the Servant 4 months now and have learned many things about the congregation. Some things have stood out to me and I can see there have been some wonderful celebrations and some deep disappointments and heartache. These past years through COVID have been a gut punch to many churches in our nation. I saw that those churches who were able to keep their eyes on Christ, the mission of the Gospel, and ministering to each other, were able to muster enough spiritual resilience to push through and move forward. That is an admirable strength and I have been honored to see this strength in the faces of the members of this congregation.
Now in this New Year, with a new pastor and a renewed focus on mission and ministry, we have the opportunity to do even more in our mission and ministry together. In the spirit of this New Year, I am excited for what’s still ahead of us. The future of Christ the Servant for next year is looking up, and for all those who tirelessly help to further the ministry here either by your prayers, your financial support, or by your helping hands and participation, I say “Thank You!”
Here are some blessings for the New Year that I wish to share with you:
May the Lord’s presence be with you this coming year:
ABOVE — to guard you. (Deuteronomy 4:39).
UNDERNEATH — to support you. (Deuteronomy 33:27).
BEHIND — as a reward to you. (Isaiah 32:12).
AT YOUR RIGHT HAND — to protect you. (Psalm 16:8).
BEFORE YOU — to lead you. (Isaiah 45:2).
ROUND ABOUT — to shield you from storms. (Psalm 125:2).
WITHIN — as companion and comforter. (Ezekiel 36:27, Galatians 2:20).
(Mrs Jonathan Goforth in The Sunday School times)
Grace and peace to you! What a blessed Christmas Season we had! It was so nice to see so many people celebrating the joy of the season with us!
Charles Lamb once said, “No one ever regarded the first of January with indifference.” That is very true. The start of a new year is very important to people. People make New Year’s resolutions, hope for a better year than the last, and make promises that they will not do the same things or make the same mistakes as they did in the last year. It is great having that feeling of getting a new start, and churches can do the same.
I have been with Christ the Servant 4 months now and have learned many things about the congregation. Some things have stood out to me and I can see there have been some wonderful celebrations and some deep disappointments and heartache. These past years through COVID have been a gut punch to many churches in our nation. I saw that those churches who were able to keep their eyes on Christ, the mission of the Gospel, and ministering to each other, were able to muster enough spiritual resilience to push through and move forward. That is an admirable strength and I have been honored to see this strength in the faces of the members of this congregation.
Now in this New Year, with a new pastor and a renewed focus on mission and ministry, we have the opportunity to do even more in our mission and ministry together. In the spirit of this New Year, I am excited for what’s still ahead of us. The future of Christ the Servant for next year is looking up, and for all those who tirelessly help to further the ministry here either by your prayers, your financial support, or by your helping hands and participation, I say “Thank You!”
Here are some blessings for the New Year that I wish to share with you:
May the Lord’s presence be with you this coming year:
ABOVE — to guard you. (Deuteronomy 4:39).
UNDERNEATH — to support you. (Deuteronomy 33:27).
BEHIND — as a reward to you. (Isaiah 32:12).
Servant Lines January 2023
AT YOUR RIGHT HAND — to protect you. (Psalm 16:8).
BEFORE YOU — to lead you. (Isaiah 45:2).
ROUND ABOUT — to shield you from storms. (Psalm 125:2).
WITHIN — as companion and comforter. (Ezekiel 36:27, Galatians 2:20).
(Mrs Jonathan Goforth in The Sunday School times)
God bless you in the New Year!
Pr. Rob Taylor
Ever Wonder Why Lutherans Baptize
Infants and Babies?
Consider the following points:
· The Bible states we are all born with a Sinful Nature- Psalm 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. That means it is in our very nature to sin. Every baby is born innocent and pure, but born with a sinful nature inherited from our first parents: Adam and Eve. That sinful nature will eventually lead every single person born into willful sin, as the Bible declares in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
· Can infants believe? Trust is as basic to our human nature as anger. Consider this: When Mary heard the words of the Angel Gabriel that she would conceive and bear a son by the power of the Holy Spirit, she believed the Angel. Mary then went to visit her cousin Elisabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist. We read about the encounter in Luke 1:41, “And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb; And Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.” What does this show? Well, Psalm 22:9-10 states, “Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.” It shows that infants can believe and have faith.
· Jesus commanded his disciples to Baptize children — Luke 18:15-17, “And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.” For the word “infants” Luke used the Greek word (ta Bsephey), which clearly means infants/small babies. Jesus showed that infants are able to receive spiritual blessings and are actual members of His Kingdom, (read also Matthew 18:6 and 1John 2:13). If Jesus is holding an infant, who cannot repent, believe or have faith, as some would argue, then how is it he tells his disciples to have faith like they do? Jesus stated we must receive (believe)
Pr. Rob Taylor
