Christmas Party

Well this is as good as we got with our Christmas babies (sorry to Luke who just left and Noah & Judah who are covered). They are in it, but not a single smile!!! But we did have a great time.

Christmas Giving

Merry Christmas to all!
We hope you are having a wonderful Christmas season and wanted to share a few ways that you can give back to that baby who gave us so much!
1. Its the season for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions. This supports Southern baptist missionaries around the world. Please pray about how your family can give generously and sacrificially this year and be creative-match your Dec tithe, give as much as you spend on gifts for family, give your unexpected bonus or if God isn't pressing on your heart to give really big, please give something. We are highly encouraging everyone in our church to give to this (for more details read below).
2. The Homebuilders Sunday school class is collecting money for Norman Elementary family Christmas food boxes ($35) and sleeping bags for homeless who attend Church Under the Bridge ($10). We will be accepting cash or checks (made out to HPBC) Sundays Dec 5 & 13 and a big in gathering at our Christmas party on Dec. 12. Let's see how many our class can do.
Thanks for your generous spirit this Christmas season!

Lottie Moon served as a missionary to China for almost 40 years during the end of the 1800s. She tirelessly wrote letters home to urge Southern Baptists to give so more missionaries could join her sharing the good news. A lot of changed since that time and the IMB now has around 5000 missionaries serving overseas. They are supported by Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and the Cooperative Program. Last year the LMCO fell $30 million short, so the number of missionaries being able to go in 2010 is extremely limited. Caleb and I went with a two year program in 2002 that is now on hold in 2010 so if we wanted to go this year the IMB would have to tell us sorry but there isn't enough money! Yes the economy is bad but we are very very blessed and all of us have money that we can give so others can go and share the gospel. Many other missionaries with other agencies spend years raising support to go but Southern Baptists have always supported missionaries so the didn't spend the time and have the financial worries; an independent missionaries normally raises $60-80,000 per year to live while the IMB only uses around $41,000 per missionary per year so the money is well spent. Let's not be the generation that stops supporting our missionaries. Let's let God soften our hearts and give so the $100,000 HPBC goal is blown out of the water!

Save the Date! Christmas Party...

We'll be celebrating Christmas with a traditional family dinner on Saturday, December 12th at 5 PM. There will be an ornament exchange for the children, so please keep that in mind as you do your Christmas shopping. Please save the date early so we can enjoy the beautiful season as a church family! An E-vite will follow in a few weeks.

Abraham Pt. 6 -- The Climax

This week we will study the climax of Abraham's story in Genesis 22. I anticipate only covering one chapter this time because of the richness and depth of the story as how it relates to our story in Christ.

Please take the time to read this chapter and meditate on how it relates to us. you should see some obvious parallels between this story and the gospel, as undoubtedly many have heard them before.

Often in OT study these parallels are called "types". Types are people, events or even themes in the OT that occur repeatedly. Often we see these types as foreshadowing events and people in the NT. Chatper 22 is rich in these types, so see what comes to mind when readng it.

Also, here are a couple of questions to consider:

1. How could a good and loving God really ask Abraham to sacrifice his own son? Doesn't that seem barbaric?

2. The Bible says God was testing Abraham...what exactly was he testing Abraham for? Abraham had already left his home and family and circumcised himself in trust and obedience to God...what more did God want?

3. If God knows everything, including Abraham's heart and thoughts, why does He need to test Abraham at all?



-casey

Pumpkin Fun

We had a great time at the Pumpkin patch and Phil's tonight. We missed everyone who wasn't able to attend.

October Shopping Time

It's time to go shopping for good causes!
Shopping List- Candy, children's underwear, canned foods and toys!
HPBC is doing a lot in October and here is how you can be a part:
Bring a bag of candy for Fest 31 the Oct 31 Festival at the Quarries, then bring your family and invite your friends and neighbors.
All children's Sunday schools are collecting children's underwear (Undies Sundays in Oct) for an orphanage in Juarez, Mexico.
Its Fall food drive and boxes are by all the doors of the church. With the recession many are in need right here in Austin.
Coming up is Operation Christmas Child, where we will pack boxes for children all around the world (be looking more details on this one).
If you have any questions let me know:
elizabethharris01@yahoo.com
And remember it is more blessed to give than to receive!

Abraham Pt. 2 and 3

Just wanted to type a few notes about what we covered last Sunday and give a heads up on what we will be covering next Sunday.

First...last Sunday.

I want to correct a mistake I made in class...I said that, within the context of Chapter 16 that Sarai (Abram's wife) was already at menopause. I was wrong...that isn't explicitly stated until chapter 18.

Going back to chapter 15, we see that God makes a covenant with Abram regarding the promised land and Abram's descendants. Abram seems to doubt God's promises of offspring and land by asking God for some tangible evidence of their fulfillments. We might be temtped to think Abram shows a lack of faith, but the story doesn't seem to implicate Abram in the least and he is even commended for his belief and faith within the story.

How should we look at it, then? I think it actually paints a positive picture of Abram in that he aggressively asks God to fulfill his promises. God has already promised to Abram the things he asks for...so I don't think that Abram is so much doubting God as he is seeking the fulfillment of his promises...the blessings from God. It reminds me of Jesus' following teachings:

1. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled"
2. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all of these things will be added unto you"
3. The parable of the man who knocks on his neighbor's door in the middle of the night to borrow something. Jesus says that he who knocks repeatedly is who will be answered, versus the guy who knocks once and gives up when his neighbor doesn't wake up.

The lesson is that vibrant faith does not simply wait idly for God's blessing, but persistently seeks it from God. Here Abram is the father of faith and his reward is the covenant which acts as an unbreakable contract with God over the promised land.


For next week we will cover chatpers 17, 18 and 19 which deal with circumcision, Isaac, and Sodom and Gomorrah. Come with comments and questions!

until then...

casey

Reading for Sunday's Lesson

This Sunday we will continue to study the life of Abraham in Genesis. Specifically we plan to cover chatpers 15, 16 and 17. I know this is way short notice but please read ahead tonight or tomorrow morning if you have time. I think you will get more out of class if you take some time to do so...plus we might have more interesting questions and discussion in class.

Going forward we will try to do better as far as letting you guys know ahead of time what to read and maybe getting some points to think about as well.

See you tomorrow!

Fall- October Social!

Mark your calendars for OCTOBER 17th! We'll be meeting at Saint John's Methodist Church's annual pumpkin patch! it is usually a very beautiful patch. Very very kid-friendly, they set up on their playground and it is a fenced in area. Dress in oranges, browns and yellows as we hope to get a good group photo! Pick a pumpkin and then we'll move down the street to Phil's Icehouse for dinner and ice cream!!!

Saint John's Methodist Church is located on 2222 at the intersection with Burnet Road, Phil's is just down the street on Burnet. We realize this is TX-OU weekend and hope to celebrate a post game win!!!

Fall Mission Opportunities

Just wanted to give you a heads up on some missions opportunities for the next few weeks:

Pray 9:38 is going strong. Commit to pray for 38 minutes for the 9 weeks between 24 and Great Destinations that God would send labors into his harvest field (Mt 9:38). Pick up brochures in the breezeway and to strengthen this commitment, watch this 6 minute video.
http://www.higherpraisetube.com/video/7205/Tears-of-the-Saints--Leeland-Delirious

Great Destinations (HP's annual missions weekend) is Nov 13-15.
Nov 13-Guy's night at the Quarries
Nov 14-Ladies brunch with Operation Christmas child shoe box packing after (be watching for more details)
Nov 15-Sunday evening service will be a time of testimonies with missions fair following including children's activity area and extended childcare for two and under.

A mission trip is going to Latvia Oct 13-23.
The team will also be taking craft supplies for the church that are unavailable in Latvia or too expensive. We are asking anyone who feels led to help us in this area. They need Tacky glue, soft stickers, regular stickers, washable markers, ribbons of various colors and widths, inflatable balls for child development games, and music CDs that are peaceful and relaxing.
They are also collection scholarships for handicap children to attend a Christian program.

A Mission trip is going to Sudan Oct 27-Nov 7.
"We are taking art material that will be used in a very large Mural that will be developed during the week during the presentation of the Gospel - $600. This mural will stay there as a testimony." They need donations to fund this project.

There will be a box at our basement coffee bar the next weeks to collect supplies and money for these trips. Remember these groups in your prayers! Let me know if you have any questions.

Our Class is Moving THIS Sunday...

Once again the Homebuilders classroom is on the move! We'll be relocating to the SOUTH BUILDING BASEMENT, SB2. To find this room, take the elevators just outside of the A Division (where the nursery is) down to the basement. You'll notice that the entry way to the preschool divisions looks MUCH different. The ARC and colorful wall paintings are gone. We have been promised something very special and inviting to take the place in the coming weeks. There will be coffee and fellowship as usual. The Door will also be joining us in the basement! If you have any questions please email us. See you Sunday!!!

1 John and Love

Loving What God Loves
Today's Reading: 1 John 4:7-21
Recommended Reading: Matthew 25:31; Luke 10:25-37; 19:1-8

We all have people in our lives who absolutely drive us nuts. We might call them EGRs because, in order to be around them, Extra Grace is Required. Maybe they're socially awkward, and conversations with them seem about as invigorating as reading the tax code. Or maybe they're loudmouths who hold really strong opinion and think that everyone else wants to hear their advice. Or maybe they just have a personality trait that is completely opposite of yours. Whatever the case, one thing is true about all of these EGRs: They matter intensely to God.

And if that doesn't induce enough guilt, John piles on more. He points out that if you say you love God yet secretly detest a fellow believer, you don't really understand what loving God means.

When it comes to loving what God loves, John points out that your response affects more than God. It's also of crucial importance to you! John states this forcefully because refusing to love what God loves poses a huge danger to us. If we dishonor the very people for whom God sent his Son to die, we can't be in tune with God's heart at all.

So when we love what God loves, we make sure to control what we say. We think through how we will come across to people around us. We willingly reign in our responses, aiming to make them godly. In short, we attempt to respond as God would respond, to act as Jesus would.

We'll make these efforts because we want the kind of relationship with God that he wants us to have. As Christians, we're called to love what and whom he loves, and that starts with one another - even our EGRs.

Questions:
Who are the people in your life you'd classify as EGRs - people you find tough to love?
What steps can you take to show these people that they matter to God - and to you?
What steps can you take to change your hearts towards your EGRs?

from the Men's Devotional Bible via Mary!

BBQ Mission

I take this BBQ stuff way too seriously.

Though I’m a born and raised Texan who has always ‘liked’ BBQ, only last summer did I really begin to understand and develop a passion for true central Texas BBQ, and what separates the sublime from the mediocre. Almost everything in Austin, by the way, falls under mediocre. I’ll wax philosophical on the difference later if you want to hear a fat boy talk about BBQ in detail, but first I want to offer some suggestions of how to do this trip if you are interested.

I would bring at least $30 in cash. You might only need $20, but I’m not sharing my brisket if you run out of money. We are going to four places in the span of a few hours…so PACE YOURSELF. I would order a representative sample of the mains meat (usually brisket, sausage, and pork ribs, but whatever you want). If I’m eating at four places, I’m eating at most at each place a quarter pound of brisket (hopefully less, but its funny ordering 1/8th a pound), one pork rib, and a couple of bites of sausage. It can make sense to get in groups of about four and let one person order and pay for the whole group, switching the payer at each place. You could also take a small cooler to hold your left-overs at each place to save for later. Prioritize…I don’t recommend getting sides. They needlessly take up space, cost money, and are typically somewhat mediocre anyway.

Alright…about what makes Texas BBQ special and what separates the great from the mediocre.

While Texans will smoke about any meat and serve it with potato salad, typically three meats are considered Texas BBQ staples: brisket, sausage, and pork ribs. Honorable mentions go to beef ribs and chicken. Out of those three, brisket is considered the most uniquely Texan, the most difficult to cook given it being really tough, and therefore the key meat on which Texas BBQ is judged.

Brisket naturally comes in both lean and fatty sections, and the one that yields the best flavor and texture, when smoked correctly, is the fatty or ‘moist’ section… so my suggestion is to ask specifically for it. According to central Texas tradition, brisket is ideally slow smoked over real wood (post oak, sometimes mesquite) in a real pit. Gas and commercial smokers are frowned upon. Additionally, it is only seasoned by a dry rub consisting mostly, if not entirely, of salt and pepper. No marinades or basting allowed. It takes a lot of experience and skill to get the best results consistently this old fashioned way, but the reward should be some of the best meat you have ever eaten. These are the key characteristics of a brisket done right: moist, tender, good crust, rendered fat, and deep smoky flavor.

Rendered fat is fat that has basically melted so that few actual ‘globs’ of fat are left in the brisket…and what globs there are melt in your mouth and are not gristly at all. This also leads to the meat being tender and moist. The smoking process actually bastes the meat in its own fat. As far as the crust, the rub should have mixed with the smoke, heat and fat to form a very flavorful bark or black on the brisket. The blackened ends of a good brisket are usually the most coveted. And finally…smokiness. Often you get moist and tender brisket that tastes like really good roast beef…but we are after BBQ here, and a deep smoky flavor throughout the whole meat is desired.

You may notice I never mentioned sauce. That is because if BBQ is done right it doesn't need any sauce. One of the places we will go to (Kreuz, former #1) doesn't even have sauce. I really didn't understand this until I had really good BBQ last year, and now I hate it if I have to use the sauce somehwere...and I really like sauce (generally speaking).

For pork ribs, many of the same things are desired: moist, tender, crusty, and smokey. You will see two styles of ribs this Saturday, some with only a salt and pepper rub similar to the brisket, and others with a sweet glaze. I can’t decide which is my favorite.

And finally, the sausage. Sausage varies greatly from place to place, but in at least Lockhart and Luling, the sausage is primarily all beef sausage and pretty different compared to most other places I have been to. If you aren’t familiar with this style of sausage, which I think owes its uniqueness to the heritage of German and Czech meat markets that birthed this kind of BBQ, it may surprise you somewhat. I love it, though, and can barely eat plain store quality pork sausage anymore. It’s often judged on how coarse the grind is (almost like ground beef shoved in the casing) and how much snap the casing has. I think rating sausage is the most subjective process of the three meats.

If you’ve read this, I apologize for wasting your time pontificating on meat. BBQ is better enjoyed through eating than reading. See you on Saturday! Don't be late or you are going to need your own map or GPS.

-casey (fat boy) birch

Recap of 1 John 4 and 5

Sunday July 2nd - 1 John 4:7 – 5:3

Obviously, the main theme of this passage is love. This is the third time John has taken time in his letter to address the importance of loving ‘the brothers’. While the central theme is enforced and reinforced each time, John also adds a new aspect each time to the teaching. In chapter 2, John presents love for other believers as obedience to God’s commands, and as evidence of knowing Him. In chapter 3 he adds that we love because Jesus loved us; and that as he laid down his life for us, we should lay down our lives for each other…loving in action and not just talk. Here in chapter 4 John focuses on love in three basic concepts.

1. Those who truly love God love their fellow Christians. In the span of 18 verses, this thought is stated about 10 times in one form or another.

2. We love, because God is love, and he loved us first by sending us Jesus. “God is love” is the new concept here and I think unique to 1 John, at least in terms of being explicitly stated. Three ways of understanding this passage as I said it aloud, putting stress on different words. First, it is only in god we find perfect love. The world desperately tries to find love in so many things and people, but it is found only in God. Secondly, God is love right now. We might be tempted at times to think of God as being loving when he sent Jesus, or when thinking of being in heaven with him in the future, but often forget to understand that God is love right now…and will be forever. And finally…everything that love truly is and should be…is found in God. The ultimate expression of love is what God is and came to us in the person of Jesus Christ.

3. Jesus and his life was/is God’s love for us in that he died for us. That death paid the price for our sins. That death brought us, who were in death, into eternal life. That death provides for us to be free from fear of judgment.

And this is why it is an imperative that we love, and one reason why John seemingly uses it as the prime example of obedience and knowledge of God…because God himself is love, and our relationship with him through Christ is solely due to an act of love. It is the basis of our relationship with God. And when John stresses the importance of believing the right things about Jesus (all God, all man, and the Christ), those are the things which underline and emphasize his act of love that saves us.

So as much as the idealists in our world hope for love without God…it is impossible. You can’t have one without the other.


Sunday July 9th - 1 John 5:4-21

In verses 4 and 5 John tells us that we have and will overcome the world. Defining the world as the systems and values of fallen humanity, we discussed what this really means. There are several levels I think this could be understood: 1) that ultimately one day God (and us) will triumph over evil decisively and eternally, 2) that by believing Jesus now we have already beat the world’s power over us, and 3) we are beating the world’s influence in our lives every day.

But this victory we have by our faith isn’t just by faith for faith’s sake, or positive thinking, it is because of the object of our faith…Jesus Christ. And the testimony of Jesus (who came to us through blood and water as a man) is presented to us through his baptism (water), and his crucifixion (blood) and subsequent resurrection. And the Holy Spirit, as it descended on Christ at his baptism like a dove, testifies of him to us now and dwells in us, giving us eternal life. God’s children will live forever.

So we should approach God in prayer knowing he will hear and answer us according to his will. And what is more according to his will than that his children overcome their sin. So we should expectantly pray for each other when we sin. Now, sinning unto death is a phrase that is somewhat confusing to us, but I’m inclined to believe that is doesn’t refer to one particular sin, but more to the person that is in open rebellion against God according to what John has laid in this letter. This rebellion would be characterized by: refusing to believe the truth of who Jesus is and what he did, refusing to love other Christians, and giving no heed to obeying God’s commands. Those who are described as thus are in death, even as we are in life.

God has promised to keep those safe from sin and death those who are his children…and apparently he uses our love and prayers for each other’s sin to do this.
With such a God…how can we entertain thoughts of putting anything else before him (idols)?

I’ve really loved digging deep in 1 John and teaching it, and I look forward to continue to understand and teach the word of God in this class. But before we move on, Caleb will teach on these same passages the next couple of weeks with an emphasis on how we apply these truths to our everyday lives.

1 John 4:7 - 5:3

This is the next to last section of 1 John that we will be covering. The focus on this passage is obviously love. I hope you have continued to read the whole book around once a week and that it has helped you grasp this little book that says so much in terms of its force.

If you can, please take some time between now and Sunday morning to read and meditate on this passage. Here are some questions to consider while doing so:

1. What is the expectation John is placing on believers and to whom are the targets of our expected actions?

2. Why are we expected to do this?

3. What does John say enables us to do this?

4. What are the four reasons John lists as to why God sent Jesus to the world? (Three are pretty obvious, the fourth really isn't too explicit, but its closely related to the other three.)



-casey

John 3 Recap

Honestly I wasn't very pleased with how the lesson came out and I apologize if you didn't get the most out of it. I will try harder next time to make the most out of the time we have. So let's review some of it briefly.

1 John 3:1-3

How loving is it for God to take us, who were children of the devil rebelling aginast Him in our sin, and adopt us to make us His children, which gives us forgivenss, heaven, purity, etc?

Do we really put our hope in not only what Jesus has done for us but in also what he will do for us when he comes back? That he will make us as he is? Does that thought give you comfort, give you hope, and make your day better when you think of it? If so...John says that hope in Him purifies us. Only hoping in Jesus do we beat the sin in our lives.

3:4-10

If sin is rebellion against God, what Jesus came to take away, and was not ofun in ?Jesus at all...how can we keep on sinning when He lives in us ans we in Him? That is the question John is asking. Rmember though, he isn't asking it to shake his finger at believers, but to show that the heretics in John's churches could not be of God since they had such a cavalier attitude towards their sin. They were sons of the devil, as were we before we were born again...born of God.

3:11-18

What else distinguishes the children of Satan from the children of God? Their love for the brothers (and sisters). Those of Satan generally hate God and his offspring as typified in Cain. Hate is murder (remember the Sermon on the Mount?). Murderers abide in death. God's children love as he loved us. Instead of taking life through hate we give ours in love. We passed from abiding in death to abiding in life...Jesus, the word of eternal life.

3:19-24

The children of God can have confidence to approach our heavenly father in prayer. Living a righteous life of love (which requires believing in His son) assures our hearts to ask God for what we need and He wants to give us.

Until next time...

casey

1 John 3 - Children of God

This will be briefer due to the fact that I'm doing this update from my phone (which means probably even more typos than usual). Chapter 3 is all about being children of God. It covers much of the same subjects that were covered in the God is light section, but adds its own insights. I hope everyone will be reading the whole book this week in addition to reading chapter 3 with a little more depth. Here are spmecwuestions to consider while reading:

vv.1-3: why would John say that it is loving for God to make them his children?

vv.4-15: how comfortable are you with the phrase 'children of the devil'? Why or why not? Who are they and how do we treat them?

vv.16-24: does your heart ever condemn you? What should you do about it or keep in mind?

See you Sunday morning...God bless!

Casey

Recap of Sunday

1 John 2:18-28 and 4:1-6

I will recap last Sunday’s lesson by reviewing some of the major concepts and terms from the passage that we discussed and give verse references with them:

‘the last hour’ (2:18) – John tells us we are in the end times, which can be a little hard to understand if the last hour started almost 2000 years ago and Jesus still hasn’t come back yet. I think it is important to understand that a few things together marked the start of the last days, or ‘beginning of the end’, for the apostles. That would be first foremost the first coming of Jesus (Heb 1:1), but also the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2) and the appearance of antichrists. While the apostles were certain those events signaled the ‘last hour’, they were not certain how long this time would last before Jesus returned.

‘Antichrist’ and ‘antichrists’ (2:18, 22; 4:3) – John says that (the) Antichrist is coming, but that many antichrists have already come. One way to read this is that John says one big bad Antichrist is going to come and signal the end times, but there are many lesser antichrists already on earth making trouble. These antichrists are actually the primary reason for John’s letter…they have come out of John’s churches and broken away to teach their own heresies. John says that the fact that they broke away reveals they were never true believers to begin with. John defines antichrists by their denial of Jesus as the Christ, the God in man.

‘anointed’ and ‘anointing’ (2:20, 27) – One thing John says differentiates the believers and the antichrists is the anointing from God the believers have. He may be using a play on words. ‘Christ’ is a term meaning ‘Messiah’, but literally means ‘anointed one’ in the Greek. Therefore antichrist literally means ‘opposite of’ or ‘against’ anointed or anointed one. It is the believer who has the anointing, the Spirit of God and His word indwelling, that gives them knowledge and teaching, not the lying antichrists.

‘abide’ (2:24, 27, and 28) – John uses this word over and over in his Gospel and letters…to understand what the Holy Spirit is telling us through John we have to understand this concept. We are to abide in Jesus, and therefore abide in the Father. At the same time, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and his word is supposed to abide in us. This is the idea…that we continually live and exist in Him, and He in us. It’s a picture of close fellowship and communion, and this should characterize the lives of all believers…and maybe a description of the union of our spirit and identity with His…the new creation.

‘test the spirits’ (4:1-6) – There are really only two ultimate sources of spiritual inspiration…God and the evil one. How do we tell them apart? John says the spirit of antichrist denies Jesus the Christ came in the flesh from God. Also, only people from the world listen to this message. On the other hand, only people of God listen to the Spirit of God’s message, that Jesus is the promised God-man. It may seem a bit simplistic to us (and inadequate to judge today’s false prophets), but that could be attributed to two things: 1) this was all that was needed by John’s church members in this specific situation to tell the false prophets from the real guys, and 2) his church members probably needed to basic and clear cut guidelines to help the confusion that undoubtedly occurred as the result of the schism.

I'm loving our journey through 1 John so far, and can't wait to go through the rest of it!

-casey

The Spirit of the Antichrists

Hey folks! This Sunday we will be covering 1 John 2:18-29 and 4:1-6. We are taking the first few verses from chapter 4 out of order because the subject matter is very similar in these two passages. John speaks about antichrists and false prophets that were among the members of his churches. And if you haven't read through all of 1 John this week please take 15-30 minutes and do so.

Take extra time if you can to focus on what we will cover Sunday and consider these questions as you do so:

1. What does John mean by "it is the last hour"?

2. What is the difference between "antichrist" and "antichrists"?

3. What is the "anointing" and how does it "abide" in people and teach them?

4. How have we overcome the antichrists/false prophets?

One more thing, we are combining classes with the Door due to the holiday, so we might end just staying in their room...not sure at this point as it will probably depend on how many folks show up in total.

-casey

Michael Jackson and 1 John

I think probably everyone in our class felt some sort of reaction at the death of Michael Jackson this last weekend. For our generation, Michael Jackson’s music played a large role as the soundtrack to our adolescence. Maybe that is more so for us fogies up in our middle 30’s, who were just around 10 years of age when Thriller came out, but I think it continued to resonate for even most of you younger folks too. He was a gifted musician and performer who could capture attentions across age, gender and race.

Now what in the world do the life and death of Michael Jackson have to do with our study in 1 John? I’ll get to that, but first let me say a few things. First, in partial answer to that question, any real concept revealed in scripture should be applicable to real world life. Not every teaching will touch every part of your life, but, generally speaking, it should be easy look at life and the world around you and be reminded of how scripture teaches us about, and applies to, our lives. Secondly, I am not writing this to bash Michael Jackson at all. As troubled as he seemed to be, especially later in his life, we should be saddened by his passing or the passing of any human, if not for their loved ones, for the thought that they will be meeting God and eternity, and the consequences of not being prepared for that. May God have mercy on his soul.

Really what sparked this post was not so much MJ’s death as much as one blogger’s words in reflection on it:
And therein, to me, lies both the triumph of his achievements but also the makings of his (and in a sense, our) tragedies. As Jeff Chang argued, "for that voice, he lost his childhood. Or more precisely, he gave it to us," which isn't quite like saying he died for our sins but I think part of what Jeff is suggesting is that if Michael wasn't blessed with such a magical presence, we may not have liked him so well. And if we didn't like him so well, maybe his life would have turned out more normal, less (self)-destructive. These "what if" scenarios are impossible to answer, of course. All we know is the Jackson we were given and if his life is to be read as a kind of sacrifice to our pleasure, at least we can honor that by celebrating his libations.

From Soul Sides blog.

It was the blogger’s intentional references to Christ that made me consider what lessons might be learned. He is, of course, very right that the life and death of MJ wasn’t for our sins, but later he suggests his life could be “read as a kind of sacrifice to our pleasure”. In context, he is speaking of the fact that Jackson’s life appeared to be very tortured as he got older and this was almost certainly due to the fact that he was so loved and adored by his fans from an early age. In that sense, it was for our pleasure that he sacrificed his life.

Obviously I have to compare that to Jesus, who sacrificed his life that we might have life itself…eternal, meaningful, with God, cleansed and forgiven of the sin that stains us. What a waste, it seems, to sacrifice a life for the sake of pleasure. And I mean pleasure in a worldly sense…not in the divine. Divine pleasure is to take joy in nothing other than God, or in other things only as they give glory to Him. Worldly pleasures in music, food, sex, power, personalities, and things, as ends unto themselves, lead only to death…like MJ’s. He is an example of somebody who was devoured by our lust for those types of things. Jesus, too, died as a result of our fleshly cravings. But he rose from the dead to give us life and freedom from those earthly desires. He and desires for him will live forever! Desires for the things of this world will be destroyed with it. If you haven’t caught on yet, this directly relates to 1 John 2:15-17 that we have discussed the last couple of Sundays in class.

This passage, and the example of MJ, stands as an opportunity for us, especially as Americans, to examine our hearts for those desires that fall short of God. I’m actually a little flabbergasted that the blogger suggests we should be “celebrating his libations”. A ‘Libation’ is a drink poured in sacrifice to a god. Should we really celebrate MJ’s tragic life as a sacrifice to the god of our temporal, meaningless quest to be entertained? (I know he probably only means to celebrate those enterntaining, moving things MJ did with his life for us, but with a heavenly perspective, what is the difference?)

We love to be entertained. We love our music. We love our sports. We love our movies and TV shows. We love our houses and cars. We love our celebrities. We love them to death…and that is the problem. That kind of love only leads to death. The King of Pop lies cold in the ground waiting on eternity…a victim, some would say, of our lust for entertainment. But the King of Kings already paid the price for our lusts and now calls us to be much more than earthly entertained…to enjoy God Himself!

-casey

Teacher's forum recap with sound files

I'm posting the sound files from the 2nd part of the teacher's forum we did on June 7th. Enjoy:

Josh talks on the sometimes violent or evil heritage of Christianity.

Russ talks on why God seems so distant some times.

Russ talks on what is required to enter heaven plus a follow up question.

John 1:1 - 2:17 Recap

IT was a lot to cover and we were short on time, so I apologize the lesson was rushed. I'll summarize what we covered as briefly as I can and I was going to give the outline, but it doesn't format very well on the blog. I look forward to Caleb's application lesson this Sunday.

Summary:

"Jesus who was with the Father from the beginning is eternal life and became man. We saw him, fellowship with him, and would love for you to do the same.

Let me cover the basics...God is light. Light and dark don't mix. Being in the light with God means we are forgiven sinners. If you claim not to sin, you are a liar. Being in the light with God means you do what he says. If you claim to know God and don't do wat he says, you are a liar. Doing what he says means loving your brother. If you say you know God and hate your brother you are a liar.

I'm writing you guys because I believe you are in the light, forgiven, and know God...be encouraged!

But...do not love the world...that is incompatible with the love of God. the world is passing away, but God and those who do what he says will live forever."

Some additional thoughts:

1. We know John is writing this at least in part to respond to heretics who have torn the church. It's inferred in this passage that they were claiming to be sinless and also to know God while not keeping his commandments nor loving their brothers. John calls them out for being the liars they were.

2. Consider the profundity of John calling Jesus the "word" both here and in his Gospel (John 1:1-5). Jesus not only carried God's word or message, but was the very essence and substance of God's message for us.

3. Notice how there appears to be little middle ground for John...you are either with God in the light or in the darkness...there doesn't seem to be in between. Either you keep God's command or you don't. Either you love your brothers, or you hate them.

4. What an encouragement verses 12-14 must have been to John's readers at a time when their churches had just been ripped apart and faith had been challenged.

5. I think the warning in verses 15-17 should resonate loudly with American believers today...I think we really struggle with loving the world.

Women's Discussion

Summer-July and August
Wednesday night 6-7:30 at HPBC (room tba)
We will begin by discussing Shepherding A Child's Heart so get a copy and read a few chapters. After we feel we have covered that we will move on to another book.
Dinner is served in the Fellowship Hall starting at 5 (great price good food) if you want to join in that. Childcare starts at 6.

Update - Thanks for praying and Keep it up!

Last week was VBS Xtreme Encounters and at least 7 Homebuilders volunteered-thanks. We had a great week. Around 450 kids attended, many prayed to receive Christ and lots of money was given for Sudan and CWJC food pantry. 7 kids and our own Mary & Dave got baptized on Friday in Quarries Lake-Praise the Lord! Thanks for all your prayers.
...Now keep them up because this week is the family mission trip to So. Texas. They will be doing manual labor around a Christian camp and then an all age VBS. The Clarks are part of the team!
After the Sudan trip, Josh deKoning shared with both classes about his experience. If any of you were moved and want to be more a part of praying for Africa, here is an opportunity:
Come and join in prayer for God's work among the peoples of Africa.
Saturday, June 27th, 10am-noon, Friendship Hall, HPBC.

1 John 1:1 - 2:17

I know it is a lot but this is the passage we will be covering (or attempting to cover) this Sunday morning. So, in addition to your at least weekly reading of the whole book in a single setting, I am asking you to read just this section (1:1-2:17)with some particular focus. As you do so, keep these questions in mind:

1. In the introduction (1:1-4), what does John teach his churches about a) Jesus and b) the undergirding reason for his writing? Does this passage echo any other passages in the Bible you can think of?

2. How does section 1:8-2:2 either seem to balance or contradict section 2:3-11? Especially 2:1 vs. 2:4?

3. When reading section 2:12-14...try to hear it as one of John's church members might have. How would you take it?

Thanks...can't wait to see you guys this Sunday morning!

Oh, I also need to post some notes form last week for those who weren't here and want to catch up with our journey in 1 John. I'll try to do that.

casey

This Sunday, June 14th

This week we start a new series of lessons that I am really excited about. Reading the results of the class survey we handed out back in March, one thing that resounded over and over was the desire for the class lessons to really dive into the Word of God. This is completely in line with my own desires, so we will be studying the book of 1 John for the whole summer.

The curriculum we were (mostly) following is also studying 1 John, but only for the month. I want to dig into the Bible and really try to understand the truths of 1 John and how to apply them on their own terms, instead of quickly going through selected portions topically...if that makes sense.

Caleb and I are going to try some new things as well so you can take advantage of what we feel are some of our individual strengths. This Sunday I will be just giving an introduction to the book and how we will be studying it. I've already had a blast just preparing for this introduction.

What you can do: PLEASE try to take some time in the next few days and spend 15-30 minutes to read through the whole book of 1 John in a single setting.

There are only five chapters folks, its not too hard. I recommend reading through the whole book in a single sitting so you can try to grasp the meaning of the whole work, as it was intended to be read, rather than only focusing in a few verses or passages within the book. Those verses and passages make much more sense, sometimes, when you have a good feel for the context of the whole book. If you don't seem to get much out of it the first time, don't worry, after reading it a few more times it starts to sink in...and that is exaclty what I'll be encouraging us to do while we are studying it....read through the whole thing at least once a week.

I hope on Sunday to hear some of your initial thoughts or reactions to 1 John as a whole.

See you Sunday morning!

casey

Moms, Kids, and Discipline Questions

I wanted to go ahead and try to give an answer for a couple of questions we got for the teachers' panel that we won't get to in class. I'll quote the question and give my best answer.

1st Question: when the bible refers to the "rod" in discipline does it mean spanking or could it just mean consistent discipline? how literally do we take it?

All of the references to the 'rod' I'm aware of come from the book of Proverbs. In context I believe the writer of Proverbs (generally believed to be Solomon) is meaning a literal rod for disciplining that looks very similar to how folks discipline via spanking today.

The question then becomes (with the assumption that the Bible is the authoritative word of God), are references to the rod in Proverbs to be interpreted as 1) absolute commands, and 2) the only alternative for every situation. I believe the answers to both of those questions to be "no". While I do take the Bible very seriously, I also believe Proverbs is primarily a collection of sayings that give general and practical advice. For the most part, they are not commands, but rather applications of Godly based wisdom phrased in such a way that they are memorable and stick with you (at least in the original language and culture, though its amazing how well some of them translate).

Therefore, I don't see that we are commanded to use 'rod' based discipline as the only option in our parenting. However, at the very least these verses in Proverbs stress the importance of serious discipline, and further they lend a lot of wieght to spanking as a method, being that it is the only one specifically prescribed in scripture that I'm aware of (outside of stoning in the OT law, but that is another subect).

Question #2: im reading a book on moses and the author used moses's birth mother as an example of stay at home moms. she had the opportunity to train him up in his toddler years and lay a religious foundation that stuck w/ him into adulthood. he encourages all mothers to follow by example and stay at home w/ their kids and not do preschools ect (unless you have to). i am a stay at home mom who also takes advantage of preschool so my son can develop socialization skills. he is painfully shy and would never adjust to school otherwise. what does other scripture/biblical examples suggest? is preschool not a good thing?

I don't know that we have a lot of scriptural examples for things like pre-school. The example of Moses is only tangentially related, in my opinion. Being raised in Pharoah's house as his own grandchild is a little different than sending your kid to a pre-school...it is more like giving your kid up for adoption. That being said, there are a few legitimate parallels you could draw, however it is far from being prescriptive on how to raise your children, other than showing the importance of instilling in them the faith we have.

In Moses' situation, he was going to be solely raised by another family and be ignorant of his people's customs and God. Moses' mother was able to not only give him those things he would miss, but also be his mom. This is quite different than already being a stay at home mom, and sending your kid to a part time preschool to help him socialize.

I think there are definite advantages to moms staying home with their kids, but some situations won't allow it. The Bible, I think, is silent on trying to impose some sort of rule. Like many other things, this is not necessarily a black and white issue, but requires consideration of many angles, weighing of pros and cons, and possibly most importantly, a check and review of motives.

Relating to both questions, while the Bible has made many issues black and white, there are many more which are gray. If you think about it, religions often have opportunity to give many commands that ultimately end up being culturally or situationally relative. Part of the amazing nature of the New Testament is it's lack of culturally relative commands. Not that there aren't any, but I think God very much limited scripture to focus on the basic absolute truths that are easily applicable across time an cultures. Other "holy" books are full of commands that make little sense out of their chronological and cultural context. The Old Testament could be accused of this as well, however, the New Testament provides us the lense in which to apply and understand the OT laws.

The flipside of that, however, is that we don't have specific direction or commands from the Bible for many of life's questions and decisions, and we are left to apply His law of love situationally. Prayer, His Word and Holy Spirit help us with that, and there is a lot of freedom we have in decisions...often we abuse our freedoms for our own selfish ends. But praise God for his wisdom, direction and the freedom we have in Him. It is tough trying to guess WWJD in all situations of life, but He is graceful and merciful where we get it wrong. We are not going to mess up our kids beyond God's ability to save them. Raising them our very best our kids are still sinners in need of redemption and sure to be "messed up" to some degree or other.

THANK YOU JESUS FOR SAVING US!

Teachers' Panel on 5-31-09

Hello good people of the Homebuilders and the Door!

I've uploaded audio files of the teacher's panel we had last week and have the links below just in case you missed class that day or if you just want to make sure you heard us right because you can't believe what kind of heresies came out of our mouths. :)

I'm just kidding, of course, but seriously, none of us are claiming to be infallible in our interpretation and application...we are trying to be as faithful to the Word of God as possible, though, and not relying on the wordly philosophies de jour.

We covered four questions in class and I've got links for each (questions about Moses and tunring the other cheek are combined):

Introduction and Caleb discusses questions related to suffering.

Casey answers questions on the sin of Moses at Meribah Kadesh and how to apply Jesus' instruction to "turn the other cheek".

Josh gives a short answer to the question of why we pray when God already knows what He is going to do.

I've got another post coming soon addressing two questions on stay at home moms and disciplining children, since we won't cover those in class.

As always...I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

casey

Dinosaurs

Someone asked how dinosaurs fit in the bible. While I am going to restrict my answer to dinosaurs alone it is obvious that this question pivots on another broader question of evolution

I believe there are two main opinions on this question. We’ll address them separately.

1) Young Earth – dinosaurs must have existed we know this from fossil records and man existed form the beginning of creation so thus they must have coexisted and we might expect a mention or showing in the bible… This is coupled with a few side arguments that explain the disappearance of the dinosaurs later, most commonly it is sited that they didn’t live after the flood.

Evidences in support of this opinion:
a) A plain reading of Genesis with our culture’s understanding of “Day” makes it certainly seem logical – man created in first 7 days… unless dinosaurs died the same day they were created they should coexist!
b) Several passages in the bible describe unknown creatures with characteristics so wild that they might be dinosaurs, here are a short list of them
The Behemoth : Job 40:15-24 (brontosaur)
The Leviathan : Jobe 41:33 and Psalms 104:26 (Kronosaurus)
c) The bible in several places uses the Hebrew word that also means “dragon” and it is often translated differently though. For example in the story of the creation Genesis 1:21 when the NIV mentions “great creatures of the sea” which in the KJV was translated “great whale” is this Hebrew word that is sometimes also translated “dragon”… since the word “dinosaur” certainly wasn’t around then some people suggest this usage should be translated differently,… possibly dinosaur.
d) There is a limited few people who seriously claim that archeological evidence can be found for the existence of various known dinosaurs with well known ancient civilizations, thus proving that man and dinosaur did coexist. Here are two links but I have no idea if this is valid or not!!!!
http://www.rae.org/pteroets.html
http://www.bible.ca/tracks/peru-tomb-art.htm

2) Old earth (ie - evolved earth) – this is the bible doesn’t mention dinosaurs because they were mostly extinct by the time man/Adam evolved.

Evidence for this opinion:
a) Scientist of various beliefs, some Christian, other not, down through the history of exploration have almost entirely agreed with the fossil record. While there are limited attempts to say that the majority of the fossil record formed quickly by Noah’s flood – this is suspect since the no plausible explanation of why the massive flood would so neatly lay down layers that contain only specific species of creatures, then another layer with other species, and another layer with different species –so many layers that show a dynamic growth, dying off, growth, dying off… etc. of the species of the world.
b) The descriptions of leviathan in the bible can be matched up with creatures we are familiar with such as the great whales and odd species such as the Oar fish that resemble massive beasts or sea serpents. Whalers for hundreds of years referred to the whales as the leviathans. The massive Nile crocodiles fit the job description of the behemoth possibly.
c) As for the coexistence of dinosaurs and man… that is obvious to modern scientists and the reason why I said earlier that they where “mostly” extinct. Not only do we coexist with their supposed offspring/relatives the birds; alligator, crocodile, caimans, and gavials are most certainly living dinosaurs that have lived almost unchanged for hundres of thousands of years. Though they’re considered reptiles they are certainly odd since they don’t have scales, have four chambered hearts – while all other reptiles have only 3 chambers…etc… they are only placed there in classification cause they don’t fit anywhere else.
d) The extinction of species has been common for thousands of years – according to the fossil record it has been a long time since there was a diversification of species via evolution. So if the bible mentions creatures that are uncommon to us that is certainly possible, but it doesn’t mean we have to assume it is one of the known dinosaurs of the fossil record. It could be any number of creatures that have gone extinct, but are most likely common animals to us that are described in an ancient unlearned language.


Now for my personal opinion. From my reading and education I land on the side of opinion #2. I think that the enormous weight of evidence for an older earth is hard to argue against. It is more likely in my mind that words, literature, and biblical passages do not have to be interpreted in a way that is so drastically antithesis from scientific observation which is in it’s basic framework without any agenda.

Tragedy and pain

Two things I wanted to add/clarify from Sunday morning.
1) I think it was understood where our joy and satisfaction are suppose to come from... but I never remember saying it clearly. Point is: if we trust in the promise to come and are so satisfied with our relationship with Christ... if his promise of peace in our hearts is real... then we find all the joy we need in Christ and the hope of heaven. So we relate to sufferings in the light of a greater happiness.

2) Also I should have guessed that people would suggest that I'd be mad at my dad, but I never think that way. He may have made a sad choice but for me the world around him is the target of my anger, the sin and unjustness that brought about deep depression. If a little girl comes home and says she believes she is fat and ugly... I'd hope we don't get angry at her for what the world has unfortunately forced into her mind. A man who comes to the conclusion that his life is worthless is to be pittied even if he caused other people trouble because of his decision.

This in my opinion is an example of how the futility of life is a means that God uses to make us look to him. If he allowed this world to be full of meaning and purpose we might not look to him, the ultimate glory. But if this world is seemingly pointless, troublesome, futile and purposeless then we have a tendency to look up to him for help. This is what he wants. So my dad has never been the target of my anger... his story is instead a reminder that we grown inwardly and wait in hope for something infinitely greater than this and it makes me say "come lord Jesus, come!"

I'll post a link to a copy of my notes for the talk today and a copy of the sermon I mentioned by John Piper and
more about dinosaurs in the bible this evening here on the blog.

To Be a Baptist (or not)...

Thank you all for a great discussion this morning! I really enjoyed hearing your thoughts and opinions on the whole denomination thing. I really like that we have some diversity of denominational backgrounds in the class...and thanks for not being timid about it.

Please go check out the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message:

Its not too terribly long and gives a great overview of Southern Baptist theology, though again, Southern Baptist churches are not required to adhere to it, necessarily.

Here are a few additional details that we didn't get to related to Baptist beliefs. In addition to the things we discussed about Baptism, I forgot to mention (though most of you probably know) two things: Baptism is strictly by immersion (meaning a dunk vs. a sprinkle) and is required for local church membership (of which voting is a key privelage). Regarding "immersion", that is quite the literal meaning of the Greek word we translate "baptize"; see "βαπτίζω". It is documented, I think, that sprinkling became an alternative way to baptize for those who were not near an adequate water source to dunk in...and so for many it eventually became the standard.

Also, Baptists, being out of the Separatists tradition, also agree very much with the separation of church and state for two reasons: 1) they do not want a state endorsed denomination where government would influence the church, and 2) they do not want law overriding man's conscience on spiritual matters, in which they believe he should be free from compulsion. That has the potential to be in conflict with the portion of the Baptist Faith and Message that says something to the effect that encourages Christians to influence law to reflect Christian morality...but that is another subject.

I know there are other things too but just reading the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message should fill in the gaps.

Also, I have a new blog I'm just starting to discuss the strange things I wrestle with in my head and my first real post is about this whole Baptist thing. Check it out and comment if you'd like: theought.wordpress.com.

see you soon...

casey

May 17th Class Lunch

Reminder that we are meeting at Phil's Icehouse and Amy's Ice cream after church on Sunday, May 17th. There is a wonderful playground outside (with shade).

Here is a recap and one point we never got too.

Central question: While Barnabas is named for his speaking encouragement to other people... ponder the physical real tangible encouragement he gives... he doesn't just encourage with words, he gives money, he trusts and stands up for people, he attends and participates, and mKeep this also in mind, we're looking at Barnabas as he gives us an example of a early church member, not a 'leader'.

Ch2:41-47 Early church characterized by generosity, benevolence, fellowship miracles and learning from the apostles. (interestingly the first meetings seem to be held in the temple...)

Ch4:36-37 Enter Barnabas(Joseph). Joseph was a Jewish christian born in Cyprus and comes to the church leaders with money from the sale of land. He is called Barnabas which means "Son of Encouragement"
- His first recorded "encouragement" was to give cold hard cash

Ch7:54 - Ch9:28 Enter Saul. Saul is not welcomed by the apostles ... not shocking as he is connected with the first martyr of a Christian in Jerusalem! (Stephen). It is Barnabas who speaks up for him and welcomes him!
- He 'encourages' the inclusion of a very unlikely convert by bringing him to the apostles. Barnabas is not a first hand witness to Saul's conversion nevertheless he trusts and vouches for Saul...

Ch.11: 19-30 Enter the Gentiles! Up to this point Christianity was Jewish. As Gentiles became believers the leadership in Jerusalem wanted to check it out... they send Barnabas. Barnabas then does something unlikely, before he goes back to Jerusalem with any news he goes to get Saul!!!
- Saul's first mission trip was initiated by Barnabas... Saul was "encouraged" to be a missionary by being taken by the hand and physically brought!

(We didn't talk about this one) Ch.15:1-35 Gentiles included! Barnabas and Paul go to the "Jerusalem Council" to decide what should be required of Gentile Christians. I'd speculate that Barnabas's words where probably more reliable still than Paul's... I mean he has a bad history in Jerusalem...

Ch.15:36-41 Barnabas raises a new missionary/Barnabas and Paul split. In a past mission trip John Mark had left them in the middle of the trip. Now Barnabas wanted to bring him back in on another trip, but Paul didn't. Paul didn't want a "quitter" on his team. So Barnabas and John Mark go to on a different mission trip.
- Here Barnabas stays in his role of "encouraging" new members
- Here Barnabas doesn't judge John Marks past 'failure' if indeed it was , but 'encourages' him by taking him on another trip... he doesn't give up on John Mark.
- Paul, now sufficient, still mimics his former leader and brings on other men (Silas and Timothy)

While I will never be compared to Paul... I might hope to be compared to Barnabas someday.

Taking Your Questions...

On May 31st we will have a combined Sunday School class with the Door in which the five teachers between the two classes (me, Caleb, Josh, Russ, and Dave Taylor) will form a panel to do our best to answer any questions you may have.

So think about what questions you may have that really puzzle you or cause you some consternation. You can either email those to homebuilders.hpbc@gmail.com or add a comment to this blog post with your question (which you can do anonymously if you want).

I'm looking forward to your questions!!!

-casey

Pray for Africa Group

For those of you who were inspired by Josh's trip to Sudan, just wanted to let you know that there is a HP group who regularly prays for Africa and God's work there. They have a quarterly brunch. Anyone can attend and the next one is:
Sat June 27th 10am
Friendship Hall
African nationals, people who have been to Africa and anyone who wants to see God's work there is invited. I (Elizabeth) went to the last one and it was awesome-African American gospel singing, powerful prayer by a Nigeria woman and a short lesson by a man from Ghana. Robert shared about the Sudan trip. Caleb played with the girls at a park while I went so if others want to go I am sure we could work out childcare sharing. They also meet weekly on Sunday nights to pray.

This Sunday AM

I hope everyone is having a great week! Please remember Josh and the Hyde Park mission team in Sudan this week as they are living the activities we will read about in Acts 2 this Sunday. Of course, we all should be living it here, but I think a trip to Sudan is much more focused and obvious!

We will be in Acts Chapter 2 this week, so please read the whole thing with a particlar emphasis in verses 14-41, if you will. As you read, ask yourself the following questions:

1. In verses 14-41, we see Peter as the main orator, basically giving a sermon. Compare and contrast (is this high school english class?) Peter in this passage versus how he acts in Luke 22:50 (cuts off an ear), Luke 22:55-62 (Peter denies Christ), and Luke 24:14. Is there a difference and if so...why?

2. When Peter quotes the prophet Joel in verses 16-21, how does Joel's prophecy relate to what was happening at that moment? Does the OT prophecy have implications beyond what was happening in Acts 2?

EXTRA CREDIT (we must be in high school again)...

Have you ever wondered why God chose the particular time, place, and people he did to reveal Christ and His holy spirit? Why didn't he reveal Jesus much earlier?

love you guys...see you Sunday!

-casey

Easter Sunday Lesson Overview and Additional Thoughts

Here are some closing thoughts and comments on Easter Sunday’s lesson from Luke 24:
In the marketing world we have a term called “FUD” or fear, uncertainty and doubt. We use it when one company spreads some negative press about a competing company’s product or service. Whether it was due to human nature, or possibly even Satanic influence, there definitely was some FUD among the disciples about Jesus’ and their own fates.

Though the events in Luke 24 all center on the resurrection of Jesus, they really seem to be more about how the disciples come to grips with it, and how Jesus helps them understand and overcome their FUD, rather than theological teaching on the resurrection itself. We spent a few minutes discussing the importance and theological impact of the resurrection, and I would refer you to 1 Corinthians 15 for further study there, but I think one way Luke’s witness of the resurrection is helpful to us is its example of overcoming our own doubts and fears of God as believers.

Jesus used two primary tools to calm and convince his followers that he indeed did rise from the dead and could be trusted to keep his word: the physical evidence of himself and the witness of scripture. I’d like to talk about how these can help us when we doubt God and his goodness and trustworthiness as well.

Even though it might seem completely sufficient for Jesus to just to have offered his own risen body as evidence, he made a strong appeal to scripture, even using it before he revealed himself to the two on the road to Emmaus. Why bother taking them through the OT when he could have just said, “Here I am, put your fingers in my nail holes!”? I think for a couple of reasons:

Jesus was a Jew (as were his disciples) and the Jews held the scriptures (think OT, here) in very high regard. It was important that what happened to Jesus had legitimate basis in the scriptures to have validity. Even though the event was miraculous in itself, if it wasn’t founded in what God’s word had to say about Messiah, it didn’t matter.

This begs the question, though, if the Jews regarded the scripture highly and studied it thoroughly, then how did they miss Jesus as fulfillment of the Messianic promises? The answer to this question is intertwined with the second tool Jesus used to dispel the FUD…himself. Remember if you will that on a couple of occasions in Luke 24 the scripture tells us that Jesus himself had to open the disciples’ minds so that they can understand the scripture. And so Jesus himself is the key to understanding the very scriptures and witness to him that they are. Studying the scriptures on their own without a humble and repentant faith leads to nothing but empty head knowledge.

CONCLUSION:

Today we have the scriptures of the Old Testament in addition to the New Testament to provide truth and guidance in our lives, even the very Word of God. It is easy to criticize the disciples for their lack of faith and trust in Jesus and what he said, but if we are honest many times we realize that we don’t believe God in all he has to say in our lives. Our fear and doubt can put a wall of separation between us and the risen Lord…not allowing him to work in us. The solution? I think the example is that we should seek what the scriptures say about the character and promises of God related to our lives…but we can’t stop there. The power to really understanding what the word has to say lies in focusing on Jesus and relying on his power via the Holy Spirit to open our minds. We have to trust, or at least want to trust, even when we doubt. We have to look at this beautiful crucified, yet risen, savior and fall in love with Him and the hope he gives us. If we approach the scriptures enamored with Christ, I believe the Holy Spirit will open our hearts to truly understanding what God’s word has to say to use so that we can be changed, and the FUD will be dispelled.

-casey

Easter Sunday!!! (Luke 24)

Otherwise known as Resurrection Sunday...

If I focus on it long enough, I get really excited about celebrating this day of most important significance with you! I say 'if I focus', because most of the time
I feel so distracted I can't focus on anything but what is right in front of me. I think our spiritual lives would greatly benefit from practicing some regular quiet times of focus on Him.

This Sunday morning we are continuing in Luke 24. I encourage everyone to please read it a few times and meditate on its meaning and let the Word impact you. What is the significance of the events described in the chapter? What main points is Luke trying to get across by framing his resurrection account how he does? At the very least, please consider the following two questions:

1. In between chapter 23 which we covered last week (the crucifixion), and chapter 24 this week (the resurrection), there is a period of about 36 hours. In this time what feelings and thoughts do you think the disciples and women were going through?

2. In what ways do we "look for the living among the dead"?

And for extra credit:

3. Compare the different gospel accounts of the resurrection and see if you can determine the sequence of the events of the first encounters the disciples and women have with Jesus and the angels. (Matt. 28, Mark 16, Luke 24 and John 20) It is probably more challenging than you think!

Postscript April 5th - Christ on the cross

Here are some main points discussed this Sunday as we read Luke 23. Number 4 is the most important so skip to it if you are low on time.

1) We discussed vs. 3 & 4 where there is fuel for people who would attack Christianity that Christ never claims divinity as we believe. The language in the verse can be translated to mean “YOU said it, not me” and then Pilate takes this as reason to find him innocent of the accusation that he claimed to be king. We need to have a deeper and broader understanding of the Gospels so that we cannot be tripped by such a false claim.

2) Since we are convinced that he does claim and die for the idea that he has a "Kingdom not of this world" and believe it is evident even to a non-Christian who would read the gospels - it is instructive to reflect on the "Liar Lunatic or Lord" idea as we read this passage. This challenge says that the claim that Christ was just a good religious leader, equal to others, is ridiculous. A man that dies with the accusation that he has claimed that he is the Messiah (sent by God, of God and brings eternal salvation) can't be "just a good teacher" he is likely just a crazy person, a deceiver, or who he says he is. This is a good question to put toward people if we can get them to read the gospels for themselves and see his claims, character, death and resurrection.

3) It was wisely said that we shouldn't expect this little evangelical tool to automatically convince someone and we shouldn't present it that way. While it might be evident to us that Christ’s person is completely different than Joseph Smith – who died in a gun battle trying to save himself, or Muhammad – who sanctioned and lead the mass murder of any dissention to his group, other faiths may also try this type of challenge. A person will not be argued into the kingdom and that isn't what I wanted to suggest when I brought this up, but that it is a good challenge to get them to at least start considering what their heart tells them... NOT their brains! What does their heart tell them he is after they have read the gospels and considered the choices?

4) An evaluation of the two criminals is eye opening. The interaction is an example of salvation being given to a person from Christ himself and a little illumination brings some clarification to salvation. Two initial observations are striking. One is – The man who was offered salvation didn’t ever ask for it…he just received it. He just asked that Christ remember him when he is in heaven. This man assumed that he would be in hell at that time! Two is – the other criminal is the one who asked for salvation! It is obvious to any reader that the difference really isn’t the asking, but the heart condition of the individual. This comparison clarifies for me that salvation is, truly is, an entirely free gift of amazing grace extended to the repentant. The clarification is made deeper when we consider whether “belief” or “faith” is what saves… and not meaning to cause any great issue I’d say the lesson is simply that neither of those is what saves… God saves those who are repentant. Consider also Paul who never ASKED to be saved! This was made even deeper by one person who reminded us that even repentance is granted by God. Point is – God is sovereign and gracious, handing out salvation at no cost to those who deserve it none at all.

The cross to toddlers?

Discussion prompt:

Everything about our faith needs to be entrusted to our children. It has come to my attention that there are some differing opinions about when and how to talk to our children about the wonderful truths of Easter. Here are some opinions. Please respond to this blog with opinions for all of us to benefit from.

1) The death and resurrection of Christ is paramount to our faith and thus should be shown, taught and explained to our children at the earliest possible time, with no filtering at all. Children should be made to understand his sacrifice in totality.
2) The death and resurrection of Christ is paramount to our faith and thus should be shown, taught and explained to our children at the earliest possible time, but the graphic nature of the story should be toned down and it should be made "kid friendly" so that it doesn't scare them.
3) The death and resurrection of Christ is paramount to our faith, but is too graphic of an idea for young children and should be avoided till they are older. Also, making it "kid friendly" miss-communicates the true suffering of Christ and cheapens his sacrifice by making it "pretty" and so it should only be communicated when it can be safely communicated in total truth.

lesser ideas to discuss:
4) The Easter bunny and eggs are to be avoided since they are "secular"
5) The Easter bunny and eggs are harmless cultural icons and can be used along side christian ideals.

Easter Egg Hunt!

We had a great time at our Easter Egg Hunt/Picnic/Playground time! We think over 75 kids participated. We handed out lots of fliers, gave and got several emails and had a good time visiting with the residents of Brackenridge! We also discovered ways to make next year even better (a megaphone!).
See slideshow below.

Easter Egg Hunt!

This weekend!

Hope to see everybody at the Egg Hunt. If you can't be there, then pray for us and that God will bring many out for the fun and to hear about the real reason for Easter and our church.

Sunday School:
To get back on schedule, we are now finished with Nehemiah. Remember: focus on the wall (or whatever God has given you to do)!
This week we'll start a four week series on Easter-the cruificition and Jesus.
Read Luke 23.

Nehemiah 5

We have at least one lesson left in Nehemiah (possibly two). It would thrill me to death if most of you actually read Nehemiah chapter 5 this week in preparation for this Sunday's lesson. If you do find yourself reading it, I'd like you to consider the following questions and be prepared to discuss your thoughts in class, if you are so inclined:

1. In chapter 5, we find that Nehemiah and the Jews with him in Jerusalem and the surrounding area have another big issue that becomes an obstacle in accomplishing Nehemiah's (and God's) goals. At a high level, how does this issue compare/contrast with the issues Nehemiah faced that we discussed last week (chapters 2 and 4)?

2. How do the issues presented in chapter 5 compare with issues our nation is facing right now?

Thanks...I look forward to seeing everyone Sunday morning!

casey

Nehemiah 2:19 - 4 :23

We will discuss Nehemiah chapters 2 through 4 on Sunday if you want to read it by then. Our focus will be on events in the very last part of chapter 2 and events in chapter 4, not 3 though it has some interesting details about the wall that a map may come in handy for. One above shows how Nehemiah's wall section compares to the larger city of Christ's time. Also, a quick Google search for pictures of what remains of Nehemiah's wall is interesting.

Two fairly opened ended starting questions:

1) While verbal opposition started early, who where the first people to be physically attacked because of the wall project and what might this tell us about opposition to our own plans? (hint - it wasn't Nehemiah's workers)

2) In 2:19, they tell Nehemiah that he is "rebelling against the king" - why is this a silly taunt, and more importantly why didn't Nehemiah respond with "I got permission ....!"

LogOn Online!!!

Many of our church family have enjoyed the benefits of receiving the weekly Hyde Park LOGON online.

Receiving the LOGON online enables you to get the publication earlier in the week as well as saves the printing and postage charges associated with providing you a hard copy.

If you are willing to begin receiving the weekly Hyde Park LOGON online, contact the church at: 512.459.6587 or email charris@hpbc.org

Easter Fun!

Egg Prep Playgroup
Wednesday, April 1 (no joke) 3:30, HPBC playground by the Ark
We'll let the kiddos play while moms stuff eggs. Bring eggs and candy (if you can't come to the playgroup, you can bring these to church before). There is always Wed night dinner-great food and price-at 5 if anyone wants to stay.

Class picnic & Easter Egg Hunt
Saturday, April 4, 10-1, Brackenridge UT Student Housing (Seth & Angie's place)
We will let the kids play while some of us get the word out about the Egg Hunt to the residents (as an outreach). We'll then have a picnic and set the eggs out. At Noon will be the hunt and we will have info sheets about our class and church for people who come. Bring your friends, your family's lunch and something to share (chips, cookies, drinks, etc).

Nehemiah Chapters 1 and 2

Hey everyone! Nice to see everybody this morning who made it out. This is the second week in our new digs with the Door and it is still a little tight for those of you who have been. But don't worry, our fearless leaders are working on a resolution that we should have really soon. We've actually had just enough room for the number of folks that have come the last two weeks, but if everyone showed up we would be busting the seams! But we have about three proposed fixes so I'm confident we will get it resolved in the near future.

I thought we had a good lesson this morning on Nehemiah, but I'm sorry we didn't have more time for discussion. I would imagine we might have more time for it in the next couple of lessons...but I'm not sure.

I just wnated to recap the main points of the lesson:

1. In Nehemiah, we see God as the main character using Nehemiah to further His plan of redeeming the world. Don't we want God to be the main character of our life stories, using us to bring about his redemption of the world?

2. There are three main things I picked out of Chapters 1 and 2 that I think we can apply to ourselves if we want to part of God's redeeeming plan like Nehemiah.

a. Nehemiah knew his PURPOSE. We was committed to the covenant between the Jews and God. He could have been content just to live the nice life of a royal employee in Persia, but he longed to see his people in their promised land, safe and protected in Jerusalem where they could rebuild their nation, and worshipping God in his temple. This work lead to the possibility of Jesus being born when, where and who he was.

b. Nehemiah PRAYED for his role in rebuilding Jerusalem. He prayed for days, night and day. Possibly for four months straight! His prayer in chapter 1 stands as an example for us.

c. Nehemiah had a PLAN to fulfill his purpose. When the opportunity came to ask the King of Persia permission to rebuild Jerusalem, Nehemiah already had a detailed plan in place of what he needed from the King to accomplish his goal.

Are we committed to and aware of our PURPOSE in the new covenant of Jesus Christ? Are we in PRAYER about how we go about bringing God's redemption through Christ in our world? Do we have a PLAN to go execute what we know we are supposed to do?

I hope that this lesson causes you to re-evaluate your life in terms of what you are doing and why, and how it relates to the great commission Christ gave us. I know it has caused me to do that. I look forward to the next few leesons in Nehemiah this month. God bless!!!!

casey

Starting Nehemiah

Hey Everyone!

I'm excited to start our seiries of lessons this month in Nehemiah. Most of the lessons are focused on looking at Nehemiah's example and applying that to our lives, so I focused this morning on the redemptive-historical importance of Nehemiah's life and work. God used Nehemiah to bring about fulfillment of his covenantal promise to Moses and Israel, which ultimately led to the redemption of mankind through Jesus Christ. Therefore Nehemiah also gives us a foreshadowing or 'type' of Christ in that he was used by God to further redemtption.

I challenge everyone to read Nehemiah this month (and Ezra too if you want to go all out). As you read and as you hear the lessons, keep in mind that Nehemiah doesn't just serve as a good moral example for us (even though he does), but that we can see God working out His plan of redemption through Nehemiah and the other characters of the story. Try to see Christ in it as well.

We didn't get to dive into the actual lesson this morning from Nehemiah Chapter 1 but I encourage you to consider these questions from the literature as you study it:

1:1-3

1. What do we learn about Nehemiah from these questions?
2. What do you think would be the natural response from someone in Nehemiah's position?
3. What questions should we be asking about the world around us?

1:4-7

1. Why did Nehemiah begin his prayer focusing on God?
2. What do we learn about the character of God from Nehemiah's prayer?
3. How can we embrace the character of God as we pray for the needs of others?
4. How does our commitment to prayer demonstrate our commitment to the needs of others?
5. How would our world be different if Christ followers saw confession as one of our first action steps to meet needs?


1:8-11

1. When we act on the promises of God, what qualities should characterize our service?


Thanks and God bless...

casey

March Family Friendly Events in Austin

3/4/09 Austin Farmers Market at Triagle Park. 4-8 pm. Free parking in nearby garage. austinfarmersmarket.org

3/7/09 Explore UT -- Open House at the UT campus. Events and fun for everyone. 11- 5pm. utexas.edu/events/exploreut

Celebrate Texas parade up Congress Ave. 10:30 am.

"If You Give A Pig a Pancake" and Other Story Books performance at One World
Theatre. 11 am and 1 pm. $12. oneworldtheatre.org

Sunset Valley Farmers Market -- Fresh meats, produce, and specialty prepared
foods available for purchase in the parking lot of the Tony Burger Center. 9 am - 2 pm. sunsetvalleyfarmersmardet.org

3/13/09 - 3/28/09 The Star of Texas Fair and Rodeo will be held at the Texas
Fairgrounds in Austin. A sneak peed event will take place on March $13
with $1 rides, free gate admission, and free parking. www.rodeoaustin.com

3/18/09 Absolutely Incredible Kid Day at the Austin Children's Musuem. 5 - 8 pm.
$1 austinkids.org

3/28/09 Zilker Garden Festival -- Musical entertainment, vendors, and children's
activities. Zilker Garden 10 am - 5 pm. zilkergarden.org

Moving & One Year!

Great things for our class-
We have outgrown our room so THIS SUNDAY March 1 we are moving
Homebuilders – MOVING FROM S238 TO E228 (if you are at the stairs with the water fountain and painted deer just down from the Ark this is just up those)

Our class is ONE YEAR old and we are having a celebration weekend! March 14 & 15 starting with a bag making party along with the Door. This to make Easter themed bags to hand to people on the sides of the road (look for more details and evite to come). Then Sunday during our class instead of a regular study, Caleb and Casey will lead discussion about our class-what were our original goals, are we doing all God wants, how can we all be involved? Then after the service we will be having a class lunch at Central Market! Plan to join in all the fun.

Mark your calendars - Two great fundraisers

Here are two great groups to support. We can talk about going as a group.

Austin LifeCare (Pregnancy Support Center) Partnership Dinner
Friday, March 6, 2009 6pm - 9pm
Doubletree Hotel, Austin

Christian Women's Job Corps (provides training for women in poverty)
Ladies' Luncheon
Tuesday, April 21 - Great Hills Baptist Church
Tickets are $20 and childcare is provided.

Easter Fun

Our class is planning an Easter Egg hunt at an apartment complex for our children and the children living there. The Dollar Store already has their Easter Eggs in stock, so feel free to start buying them. Not only will we need them for the hunt, but we plan on making Easter bags for the homeless and hope to include some Easter eggs in there as well. Thanks for all that you do!!!

Clubhouse Worship?????

Anyone? Our class is suppose to work tomorrow! At the same time, one of our little ones, Avery is being dedicated so feel free to go to that too.

Can you Believe it???????

We have ANOTHER new class member! Dylan Jacob Miller was born at 7:11 am on 1/24/09. Little Dylan is still at the Children's Hospital and needs our prayers. Please pray for his speedy recovery and peace for both him and his family. Also, the family would appreciate it if we prayed for all of the kiddos in the hospital. Thanks!!!

SUPER BOWL

We had a great time at our Super Bowl party last night and thanks for coming. We had 18 football fans here watching the game on our 70inch screen! There was TONS of good food and it was a blast.

More Introductions...

We recently had 2 other babies born that didn't get properly introduced. I'm pleased to introduce you to....

Carter Vaculik



Gloria Joy

Another new class member

Scott James Waldo was born on Friday, January 30, 2009 at 10:06pm.

A New Class Member

Casey and Kathryn Birch had their beautiful boy, Levi Thomas. He was born January 28th at 9:35p weighing 8 pounds, 1 ounce and was 20.5 inches long. Congratulations guys!!!

Super Bowl Party

We are having a Super Bowl Party at the Ashcraft's house! Bring your favorite party snack and join us for a fun night. Email us for directions!!!

Club House Worship

We need volunteers to work Club House Worship on February 8th. Club House Worship is the children's church that takes place during the big service. All you'll need to do is make sure the kids stay safe and help the teachers with the projects. Let us know if you are interested.

Party!!!