YAM eNews Week of April 27, 2003
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IN THE eNEWS THIS WEEK
Calendar
Coming Up
NewsFlash—Summer Job at TFB
[Your Contribution Could Be Here]—Tana’s Tales from DownUnder
Studying Romans with Pastor Charlie
Suggested Study Plan For Romans
The Gathering—Why Did Jesus Have To Die On The Cross?
Tuesday Bible Study—Big Rocks
Soul Work—Why did Jesus need to die?
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CALENDAR
SUNDAYS
Worship @ 8:45 am—Main Worship Center
Current Study: Pastor Charlie is teaching through Paul’s Letter to the Romans
The Gathering @ 10 am—YAM room
Current Study: Tom on, “The Importance of Easter: What it means and what it doesn’t mean”
An online summary is available weekly at http://tfbyam.blogspot.com/
Eating together (most weeks) @ 11:45 am—restaurant changes, meet in the patio or see Mike N
TUESDAYS
Bible Study @ 8 pm—YAM room
Current Study: Big Rocks, taught by Laura
An online version is available weekly at http://tfbyam.blogspot.com/
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COMING UP
SUNDAY May 4
@ 5:00 pm
SEE SPOT ROCK
visit http://www.seespotrock.com for more info
SATURDAY, June 14
9:00 am to 12:30 pm
UNIQUELY YOU
Trying to figure out what you were made for?
Discover your divine design!
SUMMER EVENTS… at least so far (send in your ideas!!)
Sparks games
Baseball
Weekend retreat
Taco Saturday
Pool Party
LABOR DAY WEEKEND, August 29 to September 1
COLLEGE BRIEFING
Forest Home
In our world we are often faced with hard and challenging situations.
What do you depend on during these times?
Jesus Alone!
…CHRIST IS ALL THAT MATTERS… Colossians 3:11 NLT
Cost: $145, $25 non-refundable deposit due at sign-up
Scholarships available, ask Laura or Tom
Visit http://www.gospelcom.net/foresthome/collegebriefing2003.htm for info
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NEWSFLASH—SUMMER JOB AT TFB
Helper for Director of Christian Education (Lynne Foster)
Everything from grunt work to program planning
Ten weeks
$100 (before taxes) a week for a total of ten weeks = $1000
Payday is every two weeks
Contact Lynne Foster if interested:
tfbce@pacbell.net
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[YOUR CONTRIBUTION COULD BE HERE]
HI everybody-
Sorry about the long wait in between messages. I have been very busy these past two months. School is going well. I am staying on top of all of my assignments, which is good. In March, the church put on their Colour Conference, which had 8,000 women at it. I never want to have to feed 8,000 women ice cream again. Talk about a nightmare! I did survive, and have the Hillsong Conference in July to look forward to.
I have learned more about life in the few months I have been here. Not only did we go to war, but I have had to learn to overcome numerous cultural obstacles. Such as everything being closed Friday-Monday on Easter Weekend. It's hard not being able to go to the store over 4 days! Trust me, the cupboard can become empty very quickly! I am enjoying a lot of Australian life. My Australian friends have helped me learn to relax a bit more, which is always a good thing! I am doing my internship with my supervisor Geoff. That is always interesting, because he, and whoever is in the room with us, find my very American sayings funny. Like, they do not say candy, they say lollies. Candy is the name for the woman of the night, not a sugar high. I try not to say that too much! They also call soda, fizzies and french fries chips. So at McDonalds, I have a hamburger and chips.
I have not been to the city (Sydney) very much, but when I have gone, it is a great city, with wonderful night life. I was asked to go to the Pub, but I decided against it. Though it might have been an interesting experience. I am excited about the week break I have in two weeks! My roommates and I plan to go to the city and a day trip to the Blue Mountains. That should be not only fun, but very relaxing. Well I need to get going, and do one of four papers done. Have a great rest of the Semester and I will talk to all of you over the Summer.
Your friend from Down Under,
Tana Rice
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STUDYING ROMANS WITH PASTOR CHARLIE
The Christian View of Life
THE BENEFITS OF BELIEVING
Romans 5:1-11
- WE HAVE PEACE WITH GOD, V.1
When you have peace with God:
1. You lose your fear of God, John 15:15
2. You lose your fear of death, Hebrews 2:14-15
3. You lose your fear of doubts, Ephesians 6:11, 16
4. You gain a calm assurance before God even though you are imperfect, Romans 8:1
- WE HAVE 24-HOUR DIRECT ACCESS TO GOD, V. 2
In Roman culture, the term translated “access” was used in reference to those gaining access to Caesar.
In Jewish culture, the term was used in reference to the holy of holies in the tabernacle. This was the inner room where no one could go except the priest, once a year, and only with blood. When Jesus was crucified, the thick, floor to length curtain was split (Luke 23:44-45). The writer to the Hebrews tells us the significance of this. Hebrews 4:14-16 tells believers to enter the throne of grace with confidence.
- WE HAVE A NEW HOPE, V. 2
- WE HAVE A NEW MEANING IN LIFE’S STRUGGLES, V. 3-4
2 Corinthians 4:16-18
- WE ARE FILLED WITH GOD’S LOVE/PRESENCE, V.5
- WE HAVE A GUARANTEED FUTURE WITH GOD, V.9-10
God is absolutely able to keep those he saves, Jude 1:24
No one—absolutely no one, not someone else and not you—no one can take a believer out of Jesus’ hand or the Father’s hand, John 10:27, 29
“Adoption” is one of the words the New Testament uses to describe salvation. In Jewish culture, an adopted child could never be disowned. The relationship was secure. Romans 8:15 tells us that we have received the Spirit of adoption, who testifies that we are God’s children.
Hebrews 7:25 says that God is able to save us completely. And completely means completely.
Those who trust Christ are safe.
--Charlie (lks)
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SUGGESTED STUDY PLAN FOR ROMANS
1. Read a chapter a day. When you’ve finished the book, start over. By the end of the series—about six months—you will have read Paul’s Letter to the Romans eleven or twelve times. How cool is that?
2. Memorize! Three plans:
LIGHT LOAD: memorize Romans 14:1-15:2—a total of 25 verses. Memorize one verse a week and you will finish in about six months.
MODERATE LOAD: memorize Romans 14:1-15:2 and Romans 12— a total of 46 verses. Memorize two verses a week and you will finish in about six months.
HEAVY LOAD: memorize Romans 12:1-15:13— a total of 71 verses. Memorize three verses a week and you will finish in about six months.
To know it, you gotta DO it!
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THE GATHERING—
[also available at http://tfbyam.blogspot.com/]
From Tom:
Today we talked a bit about why did Jesus have to die on the cross. Couldn't there have been some other way? One thing, if this is the way God chose to do it, we can be totally assured this was either the best
way, the only way, or both.
There are some very good reasons why it probably had to be this way. We talked about potential reasons for it being done the way it was. Some responses were, He (Jesus) was human, there was no way we could do enough works to pay for it ourselves, that it would somehow seem wrong if we committed the crime but then "paid" for it ourselves with our own "money" so to speak. These get us pointed in the right direction.
I gave the comparison of different "crimes" and their payment. I started by saying if we were to kill some insects for example, we wouldn't be arrested (in this case we would probably be applauded). But now if someone were to kill say a cat or dog, many people would be upset, and a person could be potentially arrested. The reason is because we attach some value to cats and dogs. They're "worth more" than insects. Taking the next big jump is if someone hurts or even kills a human. Laura mentioned, we could even get in trouble for things we might say to other humans (threats, discriminatory statements, etc). Ultimately, for murder, a person could receive the death penalty for killing someone. Why? Because of the value we place on human life. In fact, being created in the image of God, would give us probably the greatest "value" of any worldly thing. So, for insects, no penalty, cats and dogs, some minimal penalty maybe a little jail time. Murdering someone, life in prison or death, depending on the circumstances. Now, what happens when a crime is committed against God, an infinite being? How does one pay for that crime? How many good works need to be done? An infinite amount??? If someone murdered someone, could they do enough "good works" to pay for that crime. No.
So how does one pay for crimes against an infinite being? Essentially, it takes an infinite being to pay for an infinite crime. But the fact that crimes of humanity were involved, human nature is also essential.
Enter Jesus.
We are helpless in ourselves to pay for our crimes against God. It doesn't matter if it's a lie, we steal something, or we kill someone. Ultimately, the crime is beyond our ability to pay. Therefore, Jesus provided the only way for this to be done. Being infinite in nature, by being willing to act as payment, by "rendering Himself as a guilt offering" (Isa 53:10) He would have the authority to take on our sins and therefore provide the way for our salvation. So all I can say is "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor 15:57).
I apologize for having to gloss over some heavy-duty theology. If there are things you have questions about, let me know.
Next week, we will be looking more in depth into 1 Corinthians 15, which teaches many aspects not only of Jesus resurrection but ours as well.
Have a great week,
Serving the Lord,
Tom
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TUESDAY BIBLE STUDY
YAM Tuesday—Big Rocks
[also available at http://tfbyam.blogspot.com/]
[A "Big Rocks" study booklet will be available in a few weeks. Send an email if you're interested.]
Big Rock One: The Word: 2 Timothy 3:10-17; Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Big Rock Two: God: Psalm 145:17-21; Hebrews 12:4-11
Big Rock Three: Man: Genesis 1:26-31; 1 Corinthians 2:14-3:4
Big Rock Four: Sin: Genesis 2:25-3:7; Ephesians 2:1-3
Big Rock Five: Christ--Isaiah 9:1-7; John 1:14-18
Big Rock Five: Redemption-- Isaiah 53:10-12
This week: Big Rock Six: Redemption--John 3:16-21
THE MENU
First: Get out your bible and read the passage a few times.
Second: What do you notice—who, what, when, where, how?
Third: Divide the passage into chunks that make sense.
Fourth: Summarize each chunk with a crispy sentence.
Fifth: Using the passage as your guide, try to answer your questions.
Sixth: Ask yourself, “So what?” What difference does/should this passage make in your life?
Here’s a few thoughts from Tuesday:
- In the culture of Jesus’ day “name” meant much more than “personal designation.” A name expresses the essence of the person. It reveals the total character, nature, and destiny. Knowing a name implies relationship. So, what might it mean to believe in the name of the one and only Son?
- Jesus/John uses a series of contrasts to develop a picture of salvation in this passage. See if you can find them.
- Spend some time figuring out all the pronouns. Some are a bit difficult and require some thought.
- Here’s the big idea: God’s sending of his one and only Son to save darkness-loving humanity …results in the eternal life of those who believe and the standing condemnation of those who do not believe.
So what?
- Since we are those who believe in the name of the one and only Son and since we live by the truth, how do our thoughts, attitudes, and actions compare with this reality? How can we put ourselves in a place where change can occur?
- Based on this passage, how would you answer the question, “How can a loving God send people to hell?” Support your answer.
Coming up...
Big Rock Seven: Spirit--Ezekiel 36:22-32; John 16:5-15
Big Rock Eight: Church--Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ephesians 4:7-16
Big Rock Nine: Future--Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 20:11-15
[the above preview may change, but it probably won't]
--Laura
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SOUL WORK—Why did Jesus need to die?
If you want to stretch your brain and think a bit more about why the Son of God had to die, read Cur Deus Homo (Why the God-Man) by Anselm. It’s a definite brain stretcher, but it’s good stuff from a great guy. Anselm was the Archbishop of Canterbury and lived from 1033 to 1109.
For those of you looking for something a bit lighter, check out the one pager, Why would God have to die to save people from Himself?
