Faith Bible Fellowship

This Sunday, Feb. 28, we will conclude the Disciples’ prayer with “For yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever. Amen”

“S.D.G.” was written by Johann Sebastian Bach on his musical manuscripts. It means Glory to God Alone from the Latin “Soli Deo Gloria” He wanted everyone to know that all he did was for one purpose and his music certainly reflects that purpose in his composition.
“Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.” So says the Westminster Confession.
The glory of God is found in His goodness and holiness. We give glory to God through praise, worship, thanksgiving and obedience — all in recognition of His grace and beauty. So the glory of God is a two way street: we receive His glory through seeing His beauty and return that glory through worship. There is no higher, nobler and perfect work we can do other than bringing glory to God. Even the manner of our eating and drinking is to bring Him glory.
Actually the word glory means “heavy or weighty”; that is, God has substance and content. Emotions do not lead our worship, but instead they result from our recognition of who God is and His creative works. The Psalmist encourages us to glory and triumph in the works of His hands.
Here is a small sample of key passages to read this week encouraging us to give God His proper glory:

Monday – 1 Chronicles 29
Tuesday – 2 Chronicles 5
Wednesday – Daniel 9:1-18
Thursday – Romans 8:18-37
Friday – Romans 9:33-36
Saturday – Revelation 21

Think through each day how we can bring glory to His Name in how we live.

 

 The Point of It All [39:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Many of our Christian friends in other traditions begin their celebration of Lent next week, beginning with Ash Wednesday, when they may have the “imposition of ashes” placed on their foreheads in the shape of the cross.

The ashes will remind them of their mortality and also of their need to repent of their sins (in “sackcloth and ashes”). The cross will remind them of their immortality through Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of their sins.

As they move into Lent, they may practice some form of fasting, giving up certain activities or goodies for 40 days until Easter.

Some strains of Protestantism see a danger in celebrating special days and seasons, based on some passages in Paul’s epistles warning against empty rituals. Certainly God desires a broken heart and true humility, not torn clothes or ritualistic fasting.

We’ll look briefly at both sides of the issue, but we’ll spend most of our time talking about how we can, in fact, prepare our hearts for the commemoration of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection during Holy Week and Easter, practiced by ALL Christians. We may not formally keep Lent, but we can do certain things to help us develop a deeper appreciation for Christ’s sacrifice for us.

We may spend weeks or months preparing for a special family event or dream vacation. Please think about how we can spend 40 days preparing to commemorate the greatest events the world has ever known!

Thanks,
Jon

 

 Preparing for Holy Week [26:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This Sunday we will remember the Lord’s death for us. Jesus said “Do this in remembrance of me.” We remember that he died to save us from our sins, and set us free from the dominion of darkness. Our focus will be on the 6th petition of the prayer in Matthew 6…

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

When has Satan appeared in Scripture? Genesis 3, Job 1 & 2, Mount of temptation…

What is he doing and what are his methods? Ephesians 6:10-20 describe some of his activities, weapons and our defense.

James 1:12-18 is a key passage in understanding temptation. Read these passages over to help understand the meaning of Matthew 6:13.

 

 Declaration of Dependence [34:21m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download