Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

One Whale Of An Attitude [Sermon]

The Bible tells us that Jonah was swallowed by a great fish, not a whale as is popularly thought. Nonetheless we learn that Jonah had one whale of an attitude towards God and God’s purpose in his life. In this sermon we hear the story behind the story and along the way we learn six life lessons that can help us in our Christian journeys.

The sermon outline PDF with fill-in-the-blanks can be downloaded here.

One Whale Of An Attitude - Jonah 1-4 NIV

Turning to OT to study a few life lessons from major OT characters. Today Jonah. Jonah definitely has “One Whale Of An Attitude!”

Six Lessons Learned From Jonah

#1: When God gives us a purpose, there is _NO WHERE TO RUN__ .

“The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: ‘Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.’ But Jonah ran away from the LORD.” Jonah 1:1-3 NIV

God had given Jonah the gift of preaching. He was good with words. He knew what God expected and could communicate. When God provides a gift (and we know He does for every Christian), God also provides a purpose. Every Christian is needed to fulfill God’s purpose & calling. Sometimes we have different plans in mind for ourselves than God’s…

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” Proverbs 19:21 ESV

Jonah had a different plan for himself. “Sure, I can preach. But I DON’T want to preach to the Ninevites!” And so Jonah heads the opposite way. But there is no where to hide, no where to run from God’s purpose. Everywhere you go, there you are! And there is God!

#2: God ___PROVIDES FOR US___ even in our rebellion. Jonah gets on a boat and then a great storm threatens. Jonah knows & admits.

“Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.” Jonah 1:17 NIV

We often get this wrong. Great fish, not a whale. The whale could not physically do what a great fish could do. What could the “great fish” do? Whatever God created it to do! In this case swallowed Jonah whole. Most importantly allowed Jonah not to drown. And gave Jonah a space to think about his gifting, his purpose, his direction, and his obedience.

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” 2 Cor. 9:8 ESV

Before moving on, it’s important to take note that God provides for us - even in our rebellion. Who among us can not look back at our lives and see the hand of God protecting us, even & especially in those moments when we were least deserving of God’s protection and grace?

#3: One reason for trials is so we will  ___TURN TO GOD___ . So Jonah is in the belly of the fish. What does he do? Same thing we would.

“In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me.” Jonah 2:1 NIV

Two things to note in distressing times: (1) Call to the Lord! Don’t be stubborn. Don’t stand on your pride and independence and claim “at least I’m not a hypocrite - I didn’t rely on God before so I won’t claim to now.” Foolish! You may be in this spot exactly because God wants to wake you up so you will turn to Him. (2) God answers. The truth is that God has never left us. He’s always near to us. We just forget.

“Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8 NIV

God has never left us or forsaken us. But when we feel far away from God, it’s because we have left Him. When we “come near to God” we always find “He will come near to us.” That’s more a statement of our awareness than it is of God’s movement. James calls this the double minded attitude. Again, not so much just that we live a hypocritical lifestyle as much as we allow our minds to be in two places simultaneously - in the world’s philosophy and way of living AND God’s philosophy and way of living. Anyone who has ever had their mind distracted knows that doesn’t work well. Trials focus our attention!

#4: Our obedience to God’s calling allows us to see __GOD’S POWERFUL WORKS_ . So Jonah confesses and commits and goes to preach at Ninevah...

“When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.” Jonah 3:10 NIV

Before we talk about Jonah’s reaction, we need to stop and appreciate this mind-blowing statement: God relented! We serve a God that is all-powerful and all-knowing, Who lives outside of time and space - indeed He is the Creator of time and space. So He knows. It’s all laid out before Him. And yet, within this moment we call “NOW,” God says the Ninevites’ wickedness has “come up before Him.” He calls Jonah to preach. The Ninevites respond by turning from their wicked ways. We have a word for that: Repentance. They changed their mind and changed their direction! And then we read this remarkable statement: “God relented.” IOW God was going to bring destruction on them, but now has relented. That means He changed His mind! To get this completely, grasp hold of the fact that the Ninevites changed their mind, attitude and direction and this was the direct link to God’s “relenting!” Now we can argue that God knew all along what would come about, that God provided Jonah to cause God’s intended purpose - which is all true. But still, God relented. That is a powerful work! Amazing! What would have happened, didn’t!

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12 ESV

To fully appreciate the application of this lesson to our daily lives, Jesus tells His disciples (and us) that we too will do the same powerful works - even greater works! Think of it. This all is fueled by (1) our belief in Jesus and (2) Jesus going to God the Father and interceding on our behalf!

Back to Jonah’s response…

#5: God’s amazing grace can seem  ___OFFENSIVE TO US___ .

“But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry… I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.” Jonah 4:1-2 NIV

I’m glad this is part of the Bible, aren’t you? Here we have a prophet of God, who just preached for life change, and life change happened and God provided GRACE - God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense - and mercy - the Ninevites didn’t receive what they had coming. But was Jonah happy? NOOOO! He didn’t love the Ninevites! He wanted them to receive the full blow of God’s judgment. // Before we too harshly judge Jonah, let’s just admit that there are times when we can be the same way. Either out of prejudice or out of a demand for justice. We are always ready to accept God’s grace when applied to our own sins, but we can be offended when that same grace is applied to others. Be careful of how you play God in your judgment of others. Ask God for grace in your mind!

#6: Even God, with all His power, does not force us  __TO ENJOY LIFE_ .

So Jonah has this stinking attitude toward the whole situation. He is so angry at God’s relenting, he just wants to die. Humorous story of tree… 

“But God said to Jonah, ‘Is it right for you to be angry?’ … ‘It is. I’m so angry I wish I were dead.’” Jonah 4:9 NIV

And that’s it. That’s how the story of Jonah ends. God points out that He loves the Ninevites and that He is concerned for them - all 120,000 of them as well as even their animals! (For you pet owners - God loves even your animals!!!) But no where do we see Jonah change his attitude, or find joy at what God has accomplished through him. Important! Even God does not force Jonah to be joyful. That is Jonah’s choice. Joy always is a choice! God does not make that choice for Jonah or you or me:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” James 1:2-3 ESV

Application: You also cannot force joy upon someone else either.

Summer Event Planning!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

I know for most of us if feels as if winter just keeps hanging on. But the weather forecasters tell me we are looking at 80 degree temperatures next week! Yay!!! Summer is right around the corner! Brandi and I are starting to plan our summer event schedule - many events need to be reserved early.

This year we are trying something a little different. We have put together a summer event survey and are asking you to tell us what you'd like to do together as a church family. We included the survey in last week's program and will include it this week to to make sure everyone has a chance to respond.

Both Brandi and I were surprised to discover that your #1 choice so far was the bonfire! I suppose you remember the kind of fire that Don likes to set.  We also discovered that many of you would like to have an adult-only event this summer. I believe Nancy began a campaign amongst you all Sunday morning. So we will definitely plan on this too. You have one more Sunday to vote for your favorite events. We will announce the results within the next couple of weeks.

Jam Band Sunday Morning! We've been practicing a couple months now and are ready to give this a try! There are six of us altogether: Brandi, Brett, Dan, Dave, Don and Mark. (Sorry Dave that I chose a picture without you in it.) We sure have been having a good time at rehearsals. For several of us, including yours truly, the instruments are new since Christmas. All of us have a desire to use whatever talent we possess to praise our Lord. We pray that you will praise loudly Sunday morning so as not to hear us too closely! Ha!

Here is our worship set for Sunday morning. Two of the songs are brand new to us as a congregation... well actually just brand new - released this year: "Blessed Be Your Name" by Matt Redman, "Greater Things" by Mack Brock, "Hallelujah For The Cross" by Chris McClarney, and "Friend of God" by Israel Houghton.

If it goes well we hope to do this again real soon. We're already looking at a few new songs. One of the great benefits of live music is that we don't have to wait for a digital song track to come out in order to sing the song. We're also hoping that the live music gives us a little more flexibility in our worship time.

"One Whale Of An Attitude" is the title of our sermon this Sunday morning. I know many of you have been wondering what direction I might take with our sermons now that we have finished the Gospel of Luke series. I know you are wondering because so many of you have provided me suggestions. Thank you for that - it tells me you really feel invested and I love that!

So here's what we're going to do for at least a little while... drum roll please... we will be turning our attention to some of the characters from the Old Testament to find out what life lessons we might learn for ourselves.

And there are so many!!! Both characters and life lessons! These stories come to us from 3 to 4 millennia ago, but they are so relevant to our lives today. We share much of the same human condition! Each story was written down and recorded so that we might benefit. I'm so excited about this and I hope you are too. Brandi told me Tuesday she'll be excited just to see a new graphic design for our sermons! Ha!

For those who would like to get a head start, just open your Bible app, click on "Events" and then "Church Requel." Or you could see the sermon notes in your browser window by clicking here. 

Special Offering for Community Night Of Worship. Next Sunday we will collect a special offering for the Community Night Of Worship on June 19th at the Renaissance Theater. Church Requel will join 6 other churches along with their worship leaders and pastors to provide for an interdenominational night of praise to our Lord.

The cost for the rental of the Ren is $5,000. Crossroads very generously has agreed to pay half the cost, but is asking the other five churches to provide the other half. This has been an awesome event the past two years. It’s been so wonderful to see Brandi join the other worship musicians. Let’s join together to support this worship event both with our finances as well as with our attendance.

When you give at church, just mark your envelope for the amount you want to go to this special offering by writing "Community" on the outside of the envelope. If you only want part of the offering to go to this special project, specify the amount on the outside too. For those of you who give so generously online you'll find a special line item for Community on a drop-down box. Let's invest now so that we might see the harvest in a couple of months!

Dinner and Music - Saturday, May 5th. Paul Lintern will be offering another wonderful evening here at St. Luke’s Point of Grace. He has put together a historical evening, which he is calling “The Great War - 1918 A Century Later.”

There will be three special and individual hours. At 6pm we will enjoy a concert and program in our sanctuary. At 7pm we will go downstairs for dinner and a dance - 1918-style (the dance part is optional!) Then at 8pm we will go back upstairs to his Great Room for more music supplied by local musicians.

All this is offered on a donation basis, with all donations accepted to benefit the Saturday evening Neighborhood Meal program. You can make reservations by calling 419-756-1372.  Sounds like fun and a worthy cause too!

Thank you all for your prayers. Wasn't last Sunday's special prayer time just so... special? We took all the prayer requests that were marked for the congregation and shared them on our Facebook Prayer Chain Group. Many of you have responded so beautifully. Since Sunday several other prayer requests have posted there too. So make sure you check in regularly. We want to be a praying continually kind of church!

Blessings on each of you! Hope to see you Sunday morning at 11am. Love you all! - Pastor Mark

Pancake Breakfast Sunday Before Church!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

A beautiful Friday morning it is too! Still on the brisk side this morning, but the sun was shining bright as I arrived at Church Requel this morning! I pray you each have a wonderful and sunny day - both inside and out!

Pancake Breakfast Sunday at 9:30! I love it when we try new things. Sunday's pancake breakfast is the brainchild of Dave Repp and Sheri Nichols.  I have talked with them both multiple times this week and I can tell you they are both excited. Dave came up with the idea of making waffles "because the kids just love them" and Sheri then promised to bring extra waffle irons. Then Dave thought we should definitely have some of his homemade sausage gravy so then Sheri decided she would bake biscuits.

All I know is that the kitchen is going to be alive with breakfast aromas and activities and you won't want to miss it! There will be plenty of food from the sounds of it. Let's be sure to thank Dave and Sheri for their enthusiasm!

Final "WRAP UP" Luke Sermons. I have been crazy busy working on this special look back at the last 94 sermons from the Gospel of Luke. This week I have looked at some of each of the last 2 1/3 years of sermons. (Thank you YouTube for making the access so easy!) So many hours of sermons and my job for you this Sunday morning is to narrow it down to a few highlights to remember.

We've turned the Sunday worship plans upside down. We'll start with announcements from Nancy and then go right into the Highlight Reel. I am praying this will be super special for all of us! Then the worship team of Brandi, Missie and Trish will come up and lead us in a praise-singing response.

Altar Rail Prayer Time. We've also arranged a very special prayer time for you. This week, rather than turning your prayer cards into one person to pray for us, we are giving you the opportunity of personally bringing your prayer cards forward to a special altar rail, which we have reinstalled just for this Sunday. There you may kneel and say your own prayer quietly - and then leave your prayer request card on the altar. If you check that it is a public request, we will then share it on our Prayer Chain Group online. Brandi - thanks for the idea. Dave and Mike - thanks for bringing up the heavy prayer rail and installing it so solidly for us all.

Summer Activities Survey. Sunday you’ll find a survey insert in your program. This will help us to plan our fun summer events. Check off all the events that sound like something you and/or your family would enjoy. You can choose as many or as few as you want. Also we have provided room for you to make your own suggestions. Summer is right around the bend! Yay!

Jam Band Next Sunday! Our new worship band has been practicing for the last three months. Brandi, Mark, Dan, Don, Brett and Dave are really excited to lead you all with worship and praise next Sunday morning. Two of the songs are ones you all know and love. Two of the songs are brand new ones that we have learned and we believe you will come to love them also. So plan on coming next Sunday morning just a little early and get those most coveted front row seats. No extra charge!

You'll notice a lot of sound equipment set up when you come into the sanctuary Sunday morning. That's because Brandi and I took a couple hours Tuesday morning going through all of our gear and figuring out what worked and what did not.

We did order some replacement parts. Believe it or not some of our original equipment was ordered 9 years ago now!

Anyway, this setup will facilitate two more rehearsals - this Saturday morning and next and then the actual worship event next Sunday. Much thanks go out to Brandi, Don, Dave, Dan and Brett for their dedication and their love of music.

Dinner and Music - Saturday Evening, May 5th. Paul Lintern will be offering another wonderful evening here at St. Luke’s Point of Grace. He has put together a historical evening, which he is calling “The Great War - 1918 A Century Later.” 

There will be three special and individual hours. At 6pm we will enjoy a concert and program in our sanctuary. At 7pm we will go downstairs for dinner and a dance - 1918- style (the dance part is optional!) Sheri is cooking the meal so you know it's going to be good!

Then at 8pm we will go back upstairs to his Great Room for more music supplied by local musicians. All this is offered on a donation basis, with all donations accepted to benefit the Saturday evening Neighborhood Meal program. Sounds like fun and a worthy cause too!

Blessed Church! Can't you tell that things are really going well for us so far this year at Church Requel? I've had multiple conversations with some of you that confirm God's blessings to us. Many new and welcome faces. Enthusiasm for fellowship. Appreciation for God's Word! Just this morning at breakfast - Ed, one of our newest attendees - came up to me and thanked me for getting him started in the Bible app. He says it's one of his favorite things to do each evening now! Wow!

Remain faithful! God is working in mighty and marvelous ways among us! Love you all much! Hope to see you all Sunday morning! - Pastor Mark

The New Mindset [Sermon]

Our outlook on life takes on an incredibly positive hue when the resurrected Jesus is among us. As we study the final verses in the Gospel of Luke, we discover the peace of Christ that can calm the troubled mind. We also learn that regardless of the illness and weakness we suffer in our present bodies, that our minds can envision our imperishable, resurrected future bodies and that makes all the difference in those suffering moments.

The sermon outline PDF can be downloaded here.

The New Mindset - Luke 24:36-49 NIV

We want to study one last appearance of the resurrected Jesus. Jesus appeared and their mindsets were immediately changed. Same for us.

When The Resurrected Jesus Is With Me…

#1: My mind is controlled by the ___PEACE OF CHRIST___ .

While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” / “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?” Luke 24:36, 38 NIV

Imagine that you were there and suddenly, out of nowhere, Jesus is standing next to you. Yes that would freak you out! The rules have changed. If Jesus can appear out of nowhere, what else could happen? This is why he says first, “PEACE…” “Don’t be troubled.” “Why doubt?”

When we become Christ-followers, the same is true for us. Hearing voices in our heads is normally not a good thing! Being led by someone other than ourselves sounds freaky! All to which Jesus says to us, “PEACE.” “Don’t be troubled.” “Why doubt?”

Focus on those last 4 words: “rise in your minds.” This is where the battle for peace takes place. Whether you’re troubled by following Jesus for the first time, or that bad diagnosis, or the IRS letter - the trouble takes place in our minds. And that’s actually a good thing, because there we have choices. Choice of what we follow: The peace path or the worry way! And like an exit ramp off a freeway, the default is Worry Way. You have to choose to exit, to get off the main route. Jesus IS that exit!

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.” Colossians 3:15 NIV

Let’s break this verse down. You were called to peace. That is your destination if you are a member of the body of Christ! So what is going to rule in your heart? A close reading will show a distinction between “Christ” and “the peace of Christ.”  Many believe wrongly that if Christ rules then they won’t worry. Not true! You can be a Christian and allow worry to rule your mind. You must (1) be a Christian and (2) CHOOSE to let Christ’s peace rule. Two decisions. Two choices. Another translation:

“The peace that Christ gives is to guide you in the decisions you make.” Colossians 3:15 GNT

I love this translation because it makes clear what “rule in your hearts” means. It is guidance for the decisions you make. Many of us now use our Maps program to drive to an unknown destination. The satellite system lets us know where we are, where our destination is and how to get from here to there. Following the Peace Path instead of the Worry Way is much the same thing. God knows where our peace lies, He knows what’s got us worried, and He knows how to get us from here to there. The choice on our part is whether or not we choose to follow.

#2: My mind looks forward to a ___RESURRECTED BODY___ . Naturally the disciples were scared. They thought Jesus was a ghost!

“Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” / “Do you have anything to eat?” Luke 24:39, 41b NIV

Jesus wasn’t a ghost. Not a spirit. He was flesh and bones. He was in his resurrected body! A resurrected body of flesh and bones! Same for us.

“How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come? The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” 1 Corinthians 15:35, 42-44 NIV

Don’t allow yourself to be carried off by the world’s idea of the afterlife. The Bible is really clear about this. We get confused because the Bible uses the words, “natural body” to describe our present bodies and “spiritual body” to describe our resurrected bodies. The key word though is BODY! Certainly our new bodies will be imperishable, glorified and powerful - and what all that means, we can speculate upon. But one thing for sure - we WILL have bodies. On that, our minds can be sure!

#3: My mind is opened to  ___SCRIPTURE’S MEANING___ . This is so important. I know you expect to hear me say this. But look at this…

“Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.” Luke 24:45 NIV

What is so important. Simply this. Jesus did NOT say “Let me tell you Scripture.” Which HE alone could have done. He was, after all, the Son of God, 2nd person of the Trinity, now resurrected. And anything he would have said at that moment would have become for us Scripture for all eternity! But INSTEAD the Bible tells us 2 things. 1st - that they could understand the Scriptures. He used what was Scripture then to help them to see the importance of everything that happened. Now if Jesus was focused on Scripture, what does that say about us? 2nd - Without Jesus they never could have understood. “He opened their minds.” That is a perfect explanation for us too! We need our minds opened…

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” John 16:13 ESV

According to Jesus, the Holy Spirit is the revealer of all truth. So when we come to God’s Word, we also come to God’s Spirit and we ask both to speak truth to us. The Bible itself testifies to itself as to its usefulness:

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”  2 Timothy 3:16 NIV

So we should attempt - with God’s help - to understand God’s Word.  Why? (1) Teaching (Doctrine); (2) Rebuking (showing mistakes / convicting of sin); (3) Correcting (how to stop living the wrong way and get back on the right track) (4) Training in Righteousness (what we are aiming for - how to live God’s way!

#4: My mind is a ___WITNESS___ to the wonders of Christ.

“You are witnesses of these things.” Luke 24:48 NIV

Notice that the disciples were not now supposed to be expert theologians - well studied enlightened saints who could do no wrong and could make every decision rightly from this point forward. Their job was to be witnesses. To simply tell people what they saw and heard. That is our job too - to be witnesses for Christ. How do we do this? 2 ways! First…

“Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works
and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16 ESV

We do the right thing at the right time in the right way, all the while making sure that God the Father receives all the credit. 

That means Second, that we put words to our actions…

“We cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:20 NIV

Both of these go together. If we simply do good works without the words, then people just assume we are good people… good for it’s own sake. Without attaching any importance to God’s role. But if we talk talk talk but never do the walk walk walk, well then people won’t listen to our words.  Here’s an important truth. We CAN’T DO THIS, at least in our power.

“I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” Luke 24:49 NIV

The disciples couldn’t do this in their power either. They had to wait. Are you willing to wait for God the Holy Spirit to empower your mind?

Brett Baptized This Sunday!

Happy Friday Church Requel!

We are all so excited for Brett Angel. He will be baptized at Church Requel this coming Sunday morning. I had the chance to talk with him about it on Wednesday morning. He shared with me his personal story of how he found Jesus in his life exactly one year ago. He will share that with all of you on Sunday. It's a good story!

Brett is not one to rest - even on his baptism day! So he will be joining Brandi, Amy, Aaron and Bessica on the praise team this Sunday. In fact they are rehearsing at 8:45 Sunday morning - bright and early! - so they can be ready to lead of us. Let's make sure to thank them for their hard work.

Meal After Church! After the worship service we will all gather together downstairs to celebrate with Brett and his family. We will be serving a simple meal of soup, salad and sandwiches. So plan to stick around a while longer on Sunday to enjoy the fellowship.

Jam Band Practicing! After the meal the Jam Band will be practicing again upstairs. When we were deciding whether or not to practice again I suggested that we take a week off so that Brett would have the afternoon free. To which he replied - "NO! I have the whole afternoon off! I don't have to work! I want to play in the Jam Band!" Gotta love that attitude!

I'm pretty excited to play Sunday too. As some of you already know, my new ukulele was delivered to me yesterday. It really sings! One of the things I really wanted in this new instrument was a pickup installed, just so I could plug into the church sound system for the Jam Band. Can't wait to hear what that sounds like.

We are hoping that we will all be able to lead worship with our instruments by April 29th. But you all are most welcome to stop up and sit and listen or sing with us as we practice together on Sunday. Many thanks go out to Brandi, Chris, Dan, Don, Dave and Brett for their enthusiasm for this project.

Sermon This Sunday - Next To Last In Luke! We are very close to wrapping up the Luke sermon series. This Sunday we will talk about Luke 24:36-49. I've named the sermon, "The New Mindset." 

Our outlook on life takes on an incredibly positive hue when the resurrected Jesus is among us. Sunday we'll discover the peace of Christ that can calm the troubled mind. We'll also learn that regardless of the illness and weakness we suffer in our present bodies, that our minds can envision our imperishable, resurrected future bodies. That makes all the difference in those suffering moments.

For those who would like a head start, the sermon notes are already posted. You can find them in your Bible app. Click on "Event" and then "Church Requel." Or you can view them in your browser window here.

Pancake Breakfast Next Sunday! We will celebrate the 96th and final Luke sermon next Sunday by enjoying a pancake breakfast together first. That "first" word is the operative one in that sentence. The breakfast begins at 9:30am next Sunday morning BEFORE the worship service begins. Many thanks to Sheri and to Dave for coming up with this idea and making it possible for all of us!

Summer Survey Starts NEXT week. In next week's program you'll find a survey asking you about fellowship events you might be like to enjoy together this coming summer. We'll give you the option of some of the events we've done in the past along with some new ones we have added. We will also give you some room to make your own good suggestions! The ones that receive the greatest interest will be the ones Brandi and I try to schedule for you. Speaking of Brandi - her idea! Brilliant! Also - you'll notice an announcement in this week's bulletin (already printed) that the survey is included this week. It's not. My mistake. Goofed by a week. 

I think that will do it for this week's newsletter. Keep the faith everyone! Can't wait to worship with you on Sunday! Love you all, Pastor Mark

When Jesus Breaks Bread

There are many times when Jesus is with us even though we don’t know it. But we can be sure of His presence when we break bread at the communion table. Two of His earliest disciples learned this truth shortly after Jesus’ resurrection as they were walking on the road toward Emmaus. These disciples knew all the facts, but their eyes opened to their faith beyond the facts. Will our eyes - and hearts - be open to the faith beyond the facts too?

You can download the sermon outline here.

When Jesus Breaks Bread - Luke 24:13-35 NIV

We come to an unusual post-resurrection story. Two followers of Jesus - Cleopas and another unnamed follower - were walking on the road to Emmaus on Resurrection Day, when a third person starts walking with them. Luke lets us in on it - the 3rd walker is Jesus, but they don’t recognize him. In fact, they were kept from recognizing Jesus!

“As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.” Luke 24:15-16 NIV

#1: Jesus is often with us even _WHEN WE DON’T RECOGNIZE HIM_ .

If this was the case then, why could it not also be the case with us today? I believe there could come a time in Heaven - after this life is over - when we will discover times that Jesus was with us and we didn’t even know it. In fact, Scripture tells us that when we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit those imprisoned we are actually doing those things to Jesus. Indeed that is how he knows us! (Read Matthew 25!)

There also are other times Jesus is with us and we might not know it.  Again, the Bible teaches us that one of Jesus’ names - Immanuel - …

“‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel’ (which means, God with us).” Matthew 1:23 ESV

Jesus himself promised us that if even 2 or 3 gather in His name…

“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” Matthew 18:20 ESV

This is one of those cases where there is fact and faith. I can point out all the Scriptures that tell us that God is always with us and will never forsake us, I can show you were Jesus Himself said the same thing, and you can even agree with me. We would say that this is fact. We would even say we believe it. BUT we don’t believe IN IT! There is a difference between head knowledge and heart knowledge. In the first case we believe it but we don’t trust it. Chair illustration - I believe this chair will hold me up but the only way I will really trust (believe in) the chair holding me up is if I sit in it. Believing Jesus is always with me is the same thing.

#2: We can know all the __FACTS_ but still not know the __FAITH_ .

“Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” Luke 24:18 NIV

The two walkers to Emmaus had all the facts. They told the story of everything that happened, but it didn’t meant they believed it. Jesus…

“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” Luke 24:27 NIV

Let’s break this down a little bit. “Moses and all the Prophets” - what’s that code for? When you read this you should translate this in your minds - the Old Testament. Moses would be the first five books. The Prophets would be prophetical books. It was not unusual in the 1st century for Rabbis to have this entire thing completely memorized! But Jesus took it a step further. He not only knew it. He knew what it meant. And he could explain what it meant to others (teach). THAT was a rare gift and something that would be an incredible thing to hear. And in this case, specifically, Jesus is saying the entire OT points to him! This leads us to another important truth for us today. It’s not enough just to read Bible. We must have the Holy Spirit explain it to us!

“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” Ephesians 1:18 NIV

Paul prays for the believers in Ephesus that God the Father would give them God the Holy Spirit for both wisdom and revelation. Wisdom to know the facts and revelation to believe how it applies to us now!

Let’s suppose that Jesus has been close to you this week, but you haven’t recognized him. Is there a way - something you can do - that will lead your eyes to be open to His presence in your life?

#3: Jesus is most clearly  _REVEALED TO US_ when we break bread.

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him.” Luke 24:30-31a NIV 

Certainly we want to be careful about holding out the communion time as a magical way of enchanting the Presence of Jesus. (Did you know that is where the original meaning of Hocus Pocus came from?) However, it is true that these Emmaus Christ-followers eyes were opened at that exact moment. AND SINCE it appears that “they were kept from recognizing Jesus” at the beginning, then something or Someone beyond them opened their eyes at that moment.Certainly early Christians

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Acts 2:42 ESV

All 4 were ways in which they could corporately meet with one another AND with Jesus Himself. That same devotion works for us today. This is why we include communion as a regular part of our worship. (Tell story of how it got started in house church and then remained with us. Now it seems strange to go to a church that doesn’t include communion, yet that is the Protestant tradition.)

One more important take-away for today:

#4: When we encounter Jesus we should _SHARE THE EXPERIENCE_ .

I don’t just mean this in an evangelistic sense, but with one another!

“They asked each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?’ They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem.” Luke 24:32-33a NIV

Did you catch that “returned at once?” They didn’t wait around. They didn’t say to themselves - “Wait until Sunday.” They returned at once. There was an urgency to it. Why? Because the others had to know too!

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11 NIV

This is such an important part of our Christian journey and sadly too many of us are missing out. Did you know there are 94 verses in the NT with “one another” in them? Love one another. Accept one another. Forgive one another. Bear with one another. Greet one another. Christianity is a “one another” kind of group. There is no such thing as a Lone Ranger Christian. And really there shouldn’t be even such a thing as a Sunday only Christian either! We should have relationships with “one another” so that when on those occasions in our lives when Jesus is revealed to us, we can “at once” tell others about the experience.

There are two really good reasons for this.

#1 - It’s good for others. You have a responsibility to build others up with your encouragement. And your “Jesus sighting” should be a positive, encouraging story to share with someone else. Who knows? Maybe they are struggling with their own faith and God is counting on you to be the one to provide the encouragement. In those cases you literally become Jesus to them!

#2 - It’s good for you! You also need the affirmation of your experience. Each time you tell your story it becomes just a little bit more real to you.  Have you noticed how much doubt can settle in when you keep the good news to yourself! Get in the habit of sharing with others… and listening to others when they tell you their good news. Win-win! 

April Showers Of Blessings!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

One might think that with Easter now over that there might be a lull in activity at church. We know that's never going to be the case at Church Requel, right? Lots of exciting things on the agenda coming up. Let me tell you about just a couple of them.

Brett Gets Baptized Next Sunday! First big news of the day... Brett Angel has decided that he would like to be baptized! Yay! Brett began his Christian journey one year ago the same weekend in 2017. How fitting that exactly 52 weeks later he should make that commitment public by being baptized in our church service. 

This has some special meaning too beyond the obvious. You may not be aware of this detail, but the man who put our baptism pool together many, many times was Jack Nichols. A couple years ago he trained Don Angel how to do it. Now with Jack gone to his glory, our very first baptism since then will be Don's son - Brett. And guess who will be assembling our baptism pool? Brett's dad! I'm just certain that Jack would be so happy right now.

I also love Sheri's response when she heard the news. "Well Mark, we just have to have a meal afterward!" I tried to explain that we were already planning a pancake breakfast the next weekend. To which, Sheri asked me - "What's that got to do with anything?" Ha! So we're going to have a fun, simple meal after next week's service - soup, sandwiches, and salad - all compliments of Sheri Nichols. (I'm sure she wouldn't mind help, so let her know if you want to bring something to eat.)

Pancake Breakfast April 22nd. Two Sundays from now we will celebrate the ending of our Luke sermon series. We began our current series Christmas Sunday 2015. April 22nd will be our 96th and final sermon from the Gospel of Luke! 

Dave Repp and Sheri Nichols have put their collective energies together to provide all of us with a fantastic pancake breakfast BEFORE the worship service begins! So plan to come early at 9:30 and fill up with pancakes. (But no dozing off from your sugar comas during the last sermon later than morning!)

Speaking of the Luke sermon series - the entire library of 96 sermons can be found online at YouTube. I remind you of this so that you can watch anytime. There is something really powerful about viewing these sermons in a short, concentrated period of time. God can speak to you through His Word many times and in many different ways. These are also easy to share with other people in your life - friends and family who could really benefit too! Here's the link to the entire library on YouTube.

What About This Sunday? We are not overlooking this coming Sunday! We have something very special planned! I believe you are going to LOVE LOVE LOVE the worship set that Brandi, Missie and Trish have planned for you. We will be singing "How Great Thou Art" by David Phelps, "Everlasting God" by Lincoln Brewster, "Call Upon The Lord" by e Elevation Worship, "Control" by Tenth Avenue North and "Broken Vessels" by Hillsong. These girls have worked really hard to make this worship time as special as it could possibly be. I'm so excited to worship with you all Sunday morning.

Our 94th sermon from the Gospel of Luke is entitled, "When Jesus Breaks Bread." We will be walking down the road to Emmaus along with the two disciples in Luke 24. They discover a 3rd walker with them. If you'd like a head start, you'll find the sermon notes already posted in your Bible app. Just click on "Events" and then choose "Church Requel." Or you can click here to open up another window in your browser window.

There are many times when Jesus is with us even though we don’t know it. But we can be sure of His presence when we break bread at the communion table. Two of His earliest disciples learned this truth shortly after Jesus’ resurrection as they were walking on the road toward Emmaus. These disciples knew all the facts, but their eyes opened to their faith beyond the facts. Will our eyes - and hearts - be open to the faith beyond the facts too?

Jam Band! One last piece of good news to share with you all: The Jam Band will meet again this Sunday after church. Why share this with all of you? Because the last time we got together, we thought we had enough songs ready that we could lead worship soon. So Brandi has us scheduled for the last Sunday in April - the 29th! Home grown live music at church! Won't that be great? We still need lots of practice, so we'll be meeting after church this Sunday. You all are welcome to stick around with us too!

Keep praying... for Shelli's mom, who was taken down to Riverside last Sunday and placed in intensive care with failing organs. Shelli told me some great news this morning - that her mom has improved to the point that she has been placed in a regular hospital room and may even be coming home soon! Yay God! The doctors tell Shelli that her mom is still quite seriously ill so let's keep praying. Shelli greatly appreciates those who have been praying for her family this week!

I think that will wrap up this week's edition of the Church Requel Friday Newsletter. Is there someone you know who would appreciate an invitation to Church Requel? Forward this to them and tell them how much you love your church. That invite may just be what they're waiting for! God bless! Love you all much! Pastor Mark

The Most Incredible Message

Where do you search for Jesus? If you don’t find Him maybe it’s because you’re looking in the wrong places. We celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on this Easter Day 2018 and talk about what this means for each one of us. This is such incredible good news it must be shared. 

The sermon outline handout PDF can be downloaded here.

The Most Incredible Message - Luke 24:1-12 NIV

He is risen! {He is risen indeed!} We celebrate Resurrection Day each year by the name of Easter. Our annual Christian holiday. Imagine that first Easter, when Jesus’ followers didn’t know what we know. What would that have been like? By stepping into their lives we recognize what it is like for many people today to discover the real and risen Savior.

#1: When we search for Jesus ___WE DON’T ALWAYS FIND__ what we’re looking for.

Imagine that first group of women looking for Jesus by searching in the tomb.

“On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.” Luke 24:1-3 NIV

That’s where they expected to find Jesus because that’s where they last saw Him, where they last experienced Him. They walked with Joseph to deposit Jesus’ dead body in the tomb. But Jesus wasn’t there! Often the same is true for us too. We remember an earlier experience of church or a younger version of ourselves with some degree of faith. And we try to return to that place or to that person only to discover that Jesus is no longer there. Those who are searching for the real and authentic Jesus, don’t give up! The search is worth it! Jesus does want you to find Him, but not among the dead relics of your yesterdays.

#2: When we search for Jesus _DON’T LOOK AMONG DEAD__ but among the living.

“While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead?’” Luke 24:4-5 NIV

Every time someone encounters angels in the Bible, it is a frightening experience. They are God’s messengers. They told Mary about Jesus. They told Joseph (Jesus’ earthly father) to marry Mary & to flee to Egypt. Their message this time? To ask a question! Why look here? When I was a kid one of my favorite games to play with my Grandma was “I SPY.” She would hide a red bottle cap and we had to find it. She would sit in her easy chair and yell out “cold” if we were far away, “warmer” if we got closer and “Mark you’re on fire!” If we were right on top of it. Angel saying “why look for living among the dead” was their way of saying “cold!” What about you today? Are you searching for Jesus where you last found him, only to find out that that version of Jesus is just a dead memory? Don’t look for Jesus there because…

#3: The most incredible message: ___HE HAS RISEN___ .

“He is not here; he has risen!” Luke 24:6a NIV

This is WORTH the celebration! This is why we sing and dance! We don’t find Jesus among the tombs of dead people, because He is not dead. He is alive and well! Have you ever done a Facebook search for an old high school friend and been surprised by what you found? That person you knew so well in 1975 no longer has long brown hair. Has held a long career (NOT IN ROCK AND ROLL), has gained a little weight and a few wrinkles! And they live in a whole different place now! Why? Because they are living their living lives! That’s what living people do! Jesus is the same. (Except for the weight and the wrinkles. Ha!) We wouldn’t expect to find our old high school friends back in high school. And we shouldn’t expect to find Jesus where we last saw Him either! He’s alive and doing amazing, incredible things. What we should ask is, “Jesus, where are You at? Help me to find You! I want to be where You are!” The search is SO WORTH IT! Why? Because the Bible makes it very clear that Jesus’ resurrection is not just for Him, but also…

#4: Remember what Jesus said! If we believe in Him _WE WILL RISE TOO_ . I love this part of the story because the angels don’t just leave it at “He’s not here.” They remind the women of what Jesus said. 

“Remember how he told you, while he was still with you…” Luke 24:6b

When we search for Jesus we also need to be reminded about what Jesus said to us! And for that we have The Bible - the living, breathing, inspired Word of God. Jesus’ Holy Spirit still speaks through His Word! If we want to find Jesus, this is where we start. Like any good detective looking for someone who is lost, who has the opportunity to read their diary, we should want to do that too if we want to find Jesus! Here’s what we will find about what Jesus said about his death and life and ours!!!

“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” John 11:25-26 NIV

And to make sure we get it, we are reminded of this truth again…

“By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will also raise us also.” 1 Corinthians 6:14 NIV

Here is a fascinating Christian truth. If we are searching for Jesus but we can’t find Him, it’s not because He’s dead. It’s much more likely that it’s because we are dead! Oh we may be alive in a physical sense, but not in a spiritual sense. Jesus also talked about our need to be born again (anew, from above). The Bible talks about us being dead in our transgressions (Eph. 2:1). To know Jesus and to be able to believe so that we might also be resurrected means that we need new life now!

#5: Such good news needs to be ___SHARED___ with others.

“When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others.” Luke 24:9 NIV

The very first thing these women did upon hearing this incredible good news was to go back and tell the disciples. Imagine their excitement! They’d just seen not one, but two Angels and were given the best news possible. Very human to want to share the good news. BUT - these disciples (the very ones who would eventually give up their own lives telling others the good news of Jesus) DID NOT BELIEVE!

#6: Give room for others to ___SEARCH FOR JESUS___ in their own way.

“They did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.” Luke 24:11-12 NIV

So two things we learn here:

1st - Just because something is so obviously true and exciting and wonderful for us, doesn’t mean that it will be the same for other people. And that’s ok! Often we Christians get in our own way when other people struggle with their belief. Remember that even Peter and James and John didn’t believe the first time they heard it either! We have to give some room for people to work through their own doubts about what we so firmly have faith in.

2nd - Each person finds Jesus in their own way. It’s not the same for everyone. The women believed from the angels. Mary M. believed when the gardener turned out to be Jesus. Thomas believed when he poked his hands into the holes. Every person finds Jesus in his or her own way. And that’s ok! Maybe you were saved at an altar… or a revival meeting… or by reading Scripture… or by having someone debate the merits of the Christian faith with you… or by experiencing the wonders of God’s creation. The way it happened for you may not be the way it happens for the other people in your life. Don’t focus on the method but on the message.

Jesus is alive and well. He is risen. And because He is risen, I believe I will rise too some day! And if you believe in Jesus, you too will live and be resurrected. Then we’ll have an eternity together to celebrate!