Sermon Preview
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
As we have traveled through the first two chapters of Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians, we have discovered that the Apostle is most concerned that the believers there in the little Church should not be taken “captive” by the false teaching—an anti-Gospel, if you will—that was circulating among them (2:8). You can easily imagine how such an un-Biblical and defective theology would wreak havoc on the believers in Colossae. Such teaching threatened to rob them of their assurance of salvation and their joy in Christ. Furthermore, it threated to put them back in the ‘performance trap’ of believing they must earn their status and place before God. It also threatened to foster spiritual pride and elitism as it separated believers into at least two classes, the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots,’ the spiritually elite who knew and practiced the ‘secrets,’ and everyone else. And, of course, this would all but destroy any semblance of unity in the body of Christ.
Paul’s response to all of this was to set forth the wonderful things that Christ has already accomplished for all those who have believed upon Him for their salvation. We find these listed for us in 2:11-15:
In Christ, we have already been “circumcised,” and thus “buried” and “raised” with Him (2:11-12).
We have already been “made alive together with Him” (2:13).
We have already been “forgiven” of all of our sins, and our debts have been fully cancelled (2:13-14).
We now share in our Lord’s victory over all “rulers and authorities” whom our Lord has totally “disarmed” (2:15).
In these verses we have nothing short of a magnificent announcement of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us! And to state the point of this passage most succinctly, Paul makes it clear that if we have the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, then we have all we will ever need, forever! Christ is enough!
What a joy it will be to explore this rich portion of God’s Word with you on Sunday!
I love you all so very much!
Mike
Upcoming Events:
August 26, 4:30 PM – Youth Group at Church
August 28, 10:00 AM – Senior Fellows visit the North Alabama Railroad Museum
August 29, 11:30 AM – Women’s Ministry Fall Bible Studies Kickoff Lunch at home of Christina Bagdazian
September 4, 9 AM – Mother’s Morning Bible Study at Church
September 4, 6 PM – Women’s Evening Bible Study at Church
September 5, 10 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study at Church
September 6, 11:30 AM – Women’s Ministry Potluck Lunch and Timbers Edge Clubhouse
September 12, 6:30 PM – Parenting Small Groups
September 16, 12:00 PM – Second Sunday Fellowship Lunch
September 16, 5 PM – Nursery Families Fellowship at Church House
September 19, 6 PM – Diaconate Meeting
September 21, 6 PM – Women’s Ministry Fall Conference Day One
September 22, 9 AM – Women’s Ministry Fall Conference Day Two
Order of Worship:
You can access this week’s Order of Worship by clicking here
If you’d like to sing the songs with your family beforehand, the songs for this week are:
His Mercy is More
Sovereign
Great Is Thy Faithfulness – Hymn 32, all 3 verses
Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing – Hymn 457, all 3 verses
Announcements:
Summer Schedule: Christ Presbyterian is on Summer Schedule. There will be no Sunday School, and regularly scheduled bible studies for men, women, and youth are on hiatus. Fellowship will be each Sunday at 10 AM, with worship beginning at 10:30 AM. Regular weekly activities will resume the first full week of September, with Sunday School resuming on September 9.
Children’s Ministry: Please finalize registration for all of our young people for Sunday School which begins September 9th. If you have an infant to 12th grader, please fill out the form for each of your children so that I can begin working on class breakouts, room assignments and materials.
Helpful Links:
Infant to 12th Grade Registration Form
Parenting Small Groups Registration Form
Fall Programs 2018 Dates & Contact Info
Alleluia Choir: Music activities for Second through Sixth graders begins on September 9, meeting Sundays from 4:00 – 4:45 pm in the Music Room of the Church House. Please register by sending names with this year’s grade levels to acbarts@hotmail.com by August 31 so that music materials will be ready on time.
Youth Group: We will start meeting up again on Sunday, August 26th at the Church Fellowship Hall. The times will be from 4:30-6:30 pm and this will be for students ages 13-18 years of age. We ask that those who attend be at least 13 years of age due to the content of some of the discussions and the wide age range in the group.
Women’s Ministry: There are several upcoming Women’s Ministry events:
– On August 29th from 11:30 – 1:00 pm there will be a kick off luncheon for the Fall Bibles Studies at the home of Christine Bagdazian. 2614 Legacy Preserve Dr. Brownsboro AL 35741
– The next Women’s Monthly Lunch is September 6 at 11:30 AM at the Timbers Edge clubhouse. Contact Pat Galecki (countrypat055@gmail.com) for more information.
– The Tuesday Morning Mom’s Bible Study will begin on September 4 from 9-11:30 AM at the church. Childcare will be provided. Contact Amy Schnorrenberg (amyschnorrenberg@icloud.com) for more information.
– The Tuesday Night Women’s Bible Study will begin on September 4 from 6-7:30 PM at the church. The topic is Jen Wilkin’s God of Creation, book and video series (books can be ordered through Lifeway.com website for $12.99). Contact Denise Scrip (denise.scrip@gmail.com) for more information.
– The Wednesday Morning Women’s Bible Study will begin on September 5 from 10-11:30 AM at the church. The topic is Jen Wilkin’s God of Creation, book and video series (books can be ordered through Lifeway.com website for $12.99). Contact Denise Scrip (denise.scrip@gmail.com) for more information.
– There will be a two-day Women’s Conference entitled “Open Heart and Open Home: The Art of Generous Living” on Friday September 21 from 6 PM-8:30 PM and Saturday September 22 from 9 AM-3 PM. Cost is $30 which includes two meals and all materials. A special flyer is available to use to invite others from outside the church at the registration table. Please sign up in the Narthex. Final date to register is September 2. Please see Christina Bagdazian if you have any questions.
Senior Fellows: On Tuesday, August 28 at 10:00 AM the Senior Fellows will visit the North Alabama Railroad Museum at 694 Chase Rd. N.E, Huntsville. To carpool, meet at the Church at 9:30 AM. The Fellows will go to lunch afterwards.
Parenting Small Groups: 14 Gospel Principles
What?
Be sure to mark your calendars for this Fall’s parenting small group! We will use Paul Tripp’s 14 Gospel Principles of Parenting and cover an array of topics related to Gospel-centered parenting. The study and group discussion will center around how to be an ambassador for Christ to your children as you seek to faithful in your calling as a parent. Book purchases are not required, but are encouraged. As we will not cover all the book chapters during the Fall gatherings, owning the book will provide you an opportunity afterwards to continue your reading and thoughtful consideration of your calling as a parent. Hard copies can be purchased online for roughly $20, $12 for those who prefer Kindle reading. Please feel the latitude to contact Matthew Elliott in the event book purchases are out of your current family budgeting.
Who?
The small group is for anyone interested in issues related to raising children. Though the topic is on parenting, all of the church covenant community is encouraged to consider participating: nesters, empty nesters, single adults, and hopeful nesters, each have a role to play in nurturing our covenant children.
When?
Small groups will begin on Wednesday, September 12th! Concluding on Wednesday, October 24th, the groups will be each Wednesday night – the exception being October 10th, which is Fall break. The six meetings will begin around 6:30 and wrap up about 8pm.
Where?
The group(s) will be in CPC member’s homes. The locale, number of groups and group size will be determined upon the conclusion of sign-ups!
How?
To sign up, please follow the link: https://goo.gl/forms/
Other Info?
Childcare will be as needed, provided at the locate of each small group. In the event there are too many children for a particular location, CPC can financially assist those who might need to have childcare in their home during the time of the small group. Please discuss with your small group leader to arrange childcare.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Matthew Elliott: matthew@christpreshamptoncove.
Thank you!
Care Center Needs Volunteers to Tutor and Mentor Students: The Care Center in New Hope is seeking volunteers to tutor and mentor children at Madison County Elementary, New Hope Elementary, New Hope High School, and Owens Cross Roads Elementary schools. Volunteer tutors are asked to serve at least 30 minutes one time each week. Volunteer mentors are asked to meet with a student during lunch time one time each week. If you would like to volunteer to help one of these students, contact Andrea Bridges (abridges@thecare-center.org) at the Care Center or for more information contact Norman Dean or Joe Sims.
Second Sunday Fellowship Lunch:
Starting Sept. 16th: Christ Pres. Second Sunday Fellowship Lunches
**because of the new member class on Sept. 9, meals begin on Sept. 16 (subsequent dates are the second Sunday of the month unless noted otherwise)
When: Immediately after worship ends, please join us for lunch!
Where: In and around the fellowship hall
Who: Everyone is invited to attend! A suggested donation of $5.00 per person/$20 max per family to help offset cost of food. Children under 5 and visitors eat free.
What: September menu: Loaded Baked Potato Bar/Drinks/Dessert
Please make plans to join us September 16th!
If interested in helping please contact: Denise & Jeff Brown niniandjb@gmail.com or 256-698-0475 call or text
Nursery Families Fellowship: There will be a fellowship event for families with children in the nursery on September 16 from 5 to 7 PM. For more information contact Norman Dean.
Prayer Requests:
Healing: Please pray for the health of the following individuals: Andy Trent, Debbie Hill, Suzanne Nimon, Robin Holloway, Chris Smotherman, Elizabeth Holton, Janet Chou, Ramona Edwards, and Nolan Osmer.
Bereavement: Please pray for Megan Brown, whose mother died this week.
Expecting: Please pray for the Elliott family, expecting in September, and the Ely family, expecting in November.
Ministries: Please pray for the following missionaries and ministries: Seth and Jessica Lewis (Ireland); Steve and Rita Williams (New Zealand); Vinnie and Molly Athey (RUF at UAH); RUF at Alabama A&M; Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky Garcia (seminary student).
Emails:
general inquiries: admin@
benevolence needs and prayer: deacons@
men’s ministry: men@
women’s ministry: women@
children’s ministry: children@
youth ministry: youth@
senior fellows: seniorfellows@
Address:
288 Old Highway 431
Owens Cross Roads, AL 35763