Weekly Newsletter 4/12-4/19
FBC Marysville Weekly Newsletter
This past week:
- Church Workday: We had a great turnout at Church Workday. We had lots of people willing to give time out of their Saturday to gather at the building, clean, and do projects that make our space beautiful. Shoutout to Ronnie Marstiller and Elleigh Lampron who made our sign all shiny again!
- Start Here Class: We also had a good turnout for our recent Start Here Class on Sunday. As a result of that class, we learned that there are three candidates for baptism who desire to become a part of our church family!
Announcements:
- Missions month: This month, we have committed to a time of missions giving. At this time, we have taken up the challenge of going above and beyond in our financial giving in order to support local, state, national, and international missions.
- Be on the lookout for the next round of cohorts that our church offers. Our pastor's have written the Grow and Know 100 and 200 curriculums which focus on both the spiritual disciplines and theology.
- If you are not already a part of a Community Group, please check one out soon! We offer several different days and times for these groups to meet, and these are where the rubber meets the road in the Christian life. We gather in these groups to read God's Word, pray together, and do life with one another.
Prayer Requests:
- Russ and Betty Williams. For their continued health journey's.
- The Erwin family: We're saddened by the passing of Sue Hayes (Teresa Erwin's mother), but rejoicing that she is with her Savior at this moment. We've prayed for Sue for some time, and while the Lord in His providence did not heal her in this life, He has healed her perfectly in the next. Pray for the family as they grieve.
- Pray for gospel opportunities in the community we serve. What we call gospel opportunities are those times where we are allowed the privilege of sharing Jesus with those we interact with in everyday life.
Weekly Devotional from Acts 19:21-41
On Sunday, we studied Acts 19:21-41, hopping back into Acts after breaking for a few weeks to study the events of Holy Week. Where we left off was Paul had come into Ephesus to minister there and would stay for over two years doing so. He had been doing this with relative peace compared to some of the other places he had shared Jesus in on these missionary journeys. Paul's ministry and that of his companions had been blessed by the Lord, and we would learn that the gospel had reached essentially every nook and cranny of Asia Minor through these faithful saints. Now, this peace and prosperity would soon be met with hostility.
In the text at hand, Paul having resolved in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem and Rome, was still in Ephesus after sending Timothy and Erastus to Macedonia to collect the love offering for Jerusalem. Now, Demetrius, a silversmith was upset because the amount of people Paul was turning away from idols began to affect his business. Demetrius then rounded up anyone who made money off of idols of Artemis for worship, to form a rabble against the Christians in Ephesus. Having done so, the angry mob took two of Paul's companions by force and brought them before the city officials complaining about how they had supposedly deposed Artemis (the goddess whose temple was in Ephesus) of her glory. Their concern however, had nothing to do with a love and adoration for the goddess they supposedly worshiped. Instead, we see the underlying theme for their concern is focused on the fact that the worship of Artemis brought them wealth, and now that was hindered by gospel expansion.
The city clerk, determined to put an end to this angry mob, out of fear of being charged with rioting by Rome, calms them down. But what stuck with me from Sundays study was the reason he was able to calm them down, whether or not his motives were pure. See, in verses 35-41, we see the clerk proclaim the innocence of the Christians and dismiss the rabble. He first explains how Ephesus was indeed the temple keeper of Artemis, their false goddess, but he massages their shoulders by reassuring them of this. Then, in verses 36-40 explains,
"Seeing then that these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. For you have brought these men here who are neither sacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess. If therefore Demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open, and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. But if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly. For we really are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion."(Acts 19:36-40 ESV)
I would like for us to ponder something profound behind the words of the city clerk in Ephesus. See, even though his desire was to appease the people in order to stay out of trouble in the eyes of Rome, what he said was largely true. Though the Christians had 'turned the world upside down' as Acts 17:6 states, they had done so without flipping chariots, setting cities on fire, or taking people by force. These believers who were run out of cities, persecuted, beaten, and killed, have now been dragged into the courtyard of the city officials in Ephesus, and the clerk simply lays at the mobs feet that they had not broken laws, had not disrespected anyone, and had not done anything deserving what had taken place.
As Christians we serve a powerful God with a powerful gospel. We do not need to riot, disrespect, and attack those who are not in Christ in order to be effective for the Lord. The Christians at Ephesus were above reproach and blameless in their endeavors, so no charge could be brought against them. They simply, graciously, and truthfully ministered to the lost with the message of Christ, and the world was transformed as a result. People will not always like the transformation that the gospel brings, but when we preach against the false pursuits of the world and proclaim the true Savior, truth is on our side. We will be acquitted in the end if we minister with integrity like these believers did. Even if we are dragged into courts for our faith, the True Judge will dismiss our case when He provides us our eternal reward.
Anthony Lampron, Pastor