Acts 1:8 – ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

One of our biggest weaknesses in our churches is a glaring deficiency in local missions.  Why is that?  Could it be because foreign mission trips are seen as more exciting?  Perhaps.  Could it be that we think that those in foreign lands are more receptive to the gospel?  Perhaps, although God’s word is clear that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” so I don’t think that any people group is any more “lost” than any other. 

Could it be that with foreign mission trips, we don’t have deal with those that profess Christ for longer than a few days?  Perhaps.  It’s pretty easy to go into a far away land and sow seeds of the gospel, pat ourselves on the back for going, only to never have to spend more than a couple of days walking with them, “making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”  And, more than that, what is going to happen when our churches continue to die because we have not maintained adequate  missions to our “Jerusalem?”  Let’s do something about it!  PARENTS, HELP US ENCOURAGE OUR STUDENTS TO GET INVOLVED IN THIS OPP!!

We have a great opportunity to reach our local population with Mission V.B.S. located at Anderson Grove Community Center, Monday through Thursday, July 2-5th, 8am – 1pm. 

This will be a joint venture with the YOUTH and congregation from Woodland Baptist and New Salem Baptist Church; children can come if parents are with them to oversee their involvement.

CLICK FOR PICTURES/DESCRIPTION OF NEW BUILDING!!  https://woodlandonline.org/2012/06/location-information-for-anderson-grove-community-center/

After Thessalonica erupts under the weight of the preaching of Christ and Jason is arrested and forced to post bond money, Paul and Silas are immediately sent on their way to Berea, 45 miles West.  As soon as they arrive in Berea, they go directly to the synagogue and begin to minister.  Talk about faithfulness!!

Luke describes these Jews as “noble” as they “examine daily” the Scriptures to determine whether or not Paul is teaching the truth.  After many days of examining the Scriptures, many of the Jews are convinced that Christ is truly the promised Messiah sent from their God.  Many Gentile men and woman also recieve the gospel, professing Christ.  But…as usual, the unbelieving Jews from Thessalonia [most likely Judaizers or related to them] hear that Paul has escaped to Berea, probably through knowing people in the community, and they immediately go to work to try to derail the missionaries’ preaching and teaching ministry.  These persecuting Jews are successful as they “agitate and stir up” the Bereans and Paul is forced to leave again and head to Athens while the majority of his travel companions stay behind.

Probably the most notable fact in this passage is how Paul describes the Jews that “examine daily” the Scriptures.  He describes them as “noble.”  Why?  Because they were discerning, not rushing to judgment, but listened intently and deeply searched out the Scriptures to try to understand what Paul was saying.

It is interesting that through the thousands of years of history past, many churches will describe themselves as “Bereans,” meaning that they too, are as the Bereans were, always examining the Scriptures, making every effort to preserve and understand its fullest meaning.

So, how are you doing with “examining the Scriptures daily?”  You will NOT grow as a Christian and you will NOT multiply yourself if you are not digging into and absorbing the life changing word of God on a daily basis.  Click the link and study the Word!  June 20, 2012 – Acts 17, 10-15 – Berea Notes final

Do Jews Have a Divine Right to Israel’s Land?

Photo by Gali Tibbon / AFP / Getty

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David Brickner

Do Jews have a divine right to the Promised Land? Are American pastors dismissive of Arab Christians in Israel? Should Christians treat the Israeli-Palestinian dispute differently than other conflicts? As pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, John Piper has been addressing these contentious questions for years. After he began informally discussing them with David Brickner, executive director of Jews for Jesus, we invited them to share some of their discussion with our readers. We begin today with Brickner’s response to some of Piper’s recent writings and sermons, and will continue tomorrow with Piper’s response.

Dear John,

It is an honor to dialogue with you on the important and timely subject of Israel/Palestine, the land and the people. I am deeply aware of your uncompromising commitment to the cause of Christ among all peoples, including the Jewish people. The opportunities you have consistently extended to Jews for Jesus to share our ministry with the family at Bethlehem Baptist Church—and the way you have stood your ground in supporting Jewish evangelism, even after receiving considerable pressure from Jewish community leaders—speak volumes. There can be no doubt that what we share in common is far greater than the areas where we may disagree.

Yet, if I understand your views regarding the modern state of Israel and its current conflict with its neighbors correctly, I do have some real concerns—particularly in light of the current political climate (the U.N. vote on Palestinian statehood) as well as a growing trend among certain Christian polemicists against Israel (see Gary Burge and Stephen Sizer). I believe our exchange will demonstrate to readers that, despite the heated arguments that occur at the poles of the Christian positions on these issues, there is a broad middle ground where the majority of us can stand and exchange our views in an irenic and thought-provoking way.

I have recently reread your article for World Magazine (May 11, 2002), along with sermons you preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church in November 2002 and March 2004, and more recently a blog from March 2011. I’ll begin this exchange on the basis of those writings.

I appreciate your clear statement of belief in God’s continuing purposes for ethnic Israel. I also note that you affirm, “God promised to Israel the presently disputed land from the time of Abraham onward.” And yet there seems to be a “disconnect” between those statements and your comments regarding the present-day situation as well as the future. As I see it, this disconnect occurs at two important points.

First, you say that because the majority of Jews do not believe in Jesus they have broken covenant with God and have no divine claim at this time to the land God promised them.

Second, you say that the future of the land promised to Israel becomes subsumed under the promise of God that all believers will “inherit the land … because the entire new heavens and new earth will be ours.”

I believe that these views can potentially undermine Christian confidence in the ongoing election of Israel based upon the Abrahamic covenant and give encouragement to those who have adopted a supersessionist position toward Israel today. (Editors’ note: supersessionism teaches that the church has replaced Israel in God’s covenants and plans.)

I agree with you that Israel does not currently enjoy a divine right to the Land. But I would argue that it has never been by divine right but rather by divine mercy that Israel has dwelt in the Land. God blessed Abraham in the land he had promised him though Abraham at times acted in unbelief, at times had to fight for his land, and at one point even paid for his land (and in the end never even possessed all the land that was promised him). Similarly, for much of the biblical record, Israel lived in the Land while rebellious and breaking the Mosaic covenant. Yet God was merciful and allowed Israel to remain in the Land despite her unbelief. He did this because of his gracious promise to Abraham and his descendants. Why could God not act the same in our present-day situation?

While God declared that his judgment upon Israel for her unbelief would include removal from the Land, he also promised he would re-gather his people to that land, not based on divine right but again as a result of his mercy. Could God in his mercy allow Israel to be re-gathered to the Land although in unbelief? I believe he could. In fact, it would appear the Scripture implies that Israel will indeed be back in the Land in unbelief prior to the return of Christ (see Ezekiel 37; Zechariah 12; Romans 11).

Could present-day Israel be uprooted once again from the Land because of her unbelief? I would have to say yes, though I hope not. There is a growing remnant of believers in Jesus in the land of Israel, and God has consistently extended mercy on behalf of the remnant of his people. Paul makes much of the theology of the remnant in asserting that God has not forsaken his people. The church can rejoice in that ever-increasing remnant, with all the ramifications it holds for the modern and future state of Israel. As you have noted, “these privileges belong fully and savingly to an elect remnant of Israel now.”

The future of ethnic Israel is indeed bright; just as God has promised, “all Israel will be saved. As it is written: the deliverer will come from Zion. …” But surely that bright future must also include the fulfillment of the specific land promises God has made to Abraham and his descendants as well. To imagine that God’s very specific promises are subsumed in his wider promise that all believers will inherit the new heavens and earth makes it seem as though God is reinterpreting his original promise so as to effectively make its original meaning null.

Imagine if I had offered your grandfather a beautiful home in Minneapolis and told him very specifically that it was not only for him, but for his descendants. After you move in, I inform you that some time in the future I will be renovating the entire city and you will have a much bigger and better house. Of course, you will share the city with many others as well. And in the meanwhile, several neighbors are moving into the original house I promised your grandfather. Probably you would find either my ability to remember my promises, or my intention of keeping them, somewhat lacking. It seems to me that subsuming God’s past and precise promises into his wider, future promises reflects similarly on God’s memory or intentions of promise-keeping.

As to the issue of how Christians should understand the current conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, I agree with you that Israel “should seek a peaceful settlement not based on present divine right, but on principles of justice, mercy, and practical feasibility.” Israel’s government is secular and should be evaluated by the same standards as any other secular government. There has been injustice and suffering on both sides of the conflict, and we are called to care for all those who are suffering. At the same time we must avoid the common practice today of drawing a moral equivalence between acts of terrorism against citizens and the efforts of a government to defend its people and territory.

Most importantly, I absolutely agree with you that “the Christian plea in the Middle East to Palestinians and Jews is: ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.'” The only hope for peace was born in the Middle East, our wonderful Messiah Y’shua. God loves Israelis and Palestinians equally. Indeed, when Arabs and Jews can say to one another, “I love you in Jesus’ name,” the world will truly see the reconciling power of the gospel. Through the proclamation of the gospel there today we are beginning to see this happening, to the praise of his grace.

Your Jewish brother in him,

David Brickner

A Lasting Vision

The Gideons International, founded in 1899, serves as an extended missionary arm of the church and is the oldest association of Christian businessmen and professional men in the United States of America. Here are some highlights from our long history of service:

The Idea—In the autumn of 1898, John H. Nicholson of Janesville, Wisconsin, came to the Central Hotel at Boscobel, Wisconsin, for the night. The hotel being crowded, it was suggested that he take a bed in a double room with Samuel E. Hill of Beloit, Wisconsin. The two men soon discovered that both were Christians. They had their evening devotions together, and on their knees before God the thoughts were given which later developed into an association.

First Meeting Called —On May 31, 1899, the two men met again at Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, where they concluded to band Christian commercial travelers together for mutual recognition, personal evangelism, and united service for the Lord. They decided to call a meeting in Janesville, Wisconsin on July 1, 1899, in the Y.M.C.A.

Mr. Samuel E. Hill (1867—1936)

Mr. John H. Nicholson (1859—1946)

Mr. William J. Knights (1853—1940)

“We shall be called Gideons.”—Only three men were present at that meeting: John H. Nicholson, Samuel E. Hill, and Will J. Knights. They organized with Hill as president, Knights as vice president, and Nicholson as secretary and treasurer. Much thought was given to what the name of the association should be, and after special prayer that God might lead them to select the proper name, Mr. Knights arose from his knees and said, “We shall be called Gideons.” He read the sixth and seventh chapters of Judges and showed the reason for adopting that name.

Effective Witnesses in Hotels—In view of the fact that almost all of the Gideons in the early years of the association were traveling men, the question quite naturally arose regarding how they might be more effective witnesses in the hotels where they spent so much of their time. One trustee went so far as to suggest that The Gideons furnish a Bible for each bedroom of the hotels in the United States. He commented, “In my opinion, this would not only stimulate the activities of the rank and file of the membership, but would be a gracious act, wholly in keeping with the divine mission of the Gideon Association.” This plan, which they called “The Bible Project” was adopted at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1908.

Church Support—It is interesting to note that the practice of the churches contributing to the support of the Gideon Scripture program originated with a pastor. Just two months after the 1908 Louisville Convention, a state convention convened in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. National Secretary Frank Garlick and Mr. A. B. T. Moore attended a meeting of the Ministerial Union, and after their program they asked if Brother Garlick could address the ministers on the work of the Gideon Association. He spoke of the needed Bible distribution, and at the close of his 10-minute address, Mr. Moore’s own pastor, Dr. E. R. Burkhalter, First Presbyterian Church, arose and moved, “…that Gideon Bibles be placed in all local hotels and that the Union be responsible for the funds.” The motion was unanimously carried and a committee appointed to apportion the cost to the churches, according to their strength.

A Worldwide Effort—It’s been just over 100 years since The Gideons International placed the first Bible in a hotel room in Montana. Today, The Gideons are organized in more than 190 countries around the globe. Bibles and New Testaments are printed for distribution by The Gideons in more than 90 languages. Through God’s grace and to His Glory, more than 1.6 billion Bibles and New Testaments have been placed by The Gideons, and the work continues. . .

“The sower soweth the word.”—Mark 4:14

10 Proofs of a Healthy Church Member:

A Healthy Church Member will be…

1. Expositional Listener
2. Biblical Theologian
3. Gospel Saturated
4. Genuinely Converted
5. Biblical Evangelist
6. Committed Member
7. Seeks Discipline
8. Growing Disciple
9. Humble Follower
10. Prayer Warrior