The Gym is BACK!
After several years of not being able to use the gym because we could not control the temperature, the gym is back in service!!!! Today (Feb 29th) a new HVAC unit was installed and we can now keep it warm in the winter and cool in the summer. And to CELEBRATE, we have a Church Fellowship potluck lunch scheduled for the following Sunday (March 10).
Mark Your Calendar
March 10th – Church Fellowship!!!!! – sign-up to bring food
March 30th – Community Spring Fling – sign-up to help
Classes Moving this Sunday!
Join us for an enriching Sunday Bible Study experience! This Sunday, we’re delighted to introduce a new Children’s Sunday School class, prompting a classroom shuffle to accommodate this exciting addition. The changes entail moving classes around to create space for the new class.
The new children’s class will be held in the adult’s former room, conveniently located across the hall from our current Children’s Sunday School class. The Older Adult class will now meet next door where the Young Adult class used to gather, which is the first room on the right after descending the stairs. The Young Adult Bible Study group will relocate to the Education Building, offering them a fresh and revitalized meeting space following their recent renovations.
Here’s an updated list of our Sunday Bible Study classes:
- Infant – 3-year-old nursery
- 4-year-old – 1st grade
- 2nd grade – 5th grade
- Teens
- Young Adults
- Not Young Adults
Rest assured that there will be someone to help you to the correct location on Sunday mornings! We eagerly anticipate welcoming you and having you join us for Sunday Bible Study this week as we embark on this exciting phase of growth together.
From the Desk of Pastor Tom
So we have been talking about the powerful, viral spread of the Gospel in the book of Acts. It is beginning in Jerusalem and will soon begin spreading far beyond the borders of Israel reaching into the entire world. Here at the center of this rippling transformation, we see the believers growing in committed community with each other until a serious obstacle arises. The ministry and testimony of the church was going to be attacked by those who appeared to be insiders, but were, in reality, pretenders filled with selfishness, pride, and Satan’s influence. Acts 5 shows us the church’s first internal obstacle to Gospel growth.
The humbleness required to admit inadequacy and sin lends itself to a caring community. The great number (multitude) of believers who were now unified around the message of Jesus Christ was being noticed. They cared sacrificially for each other within the family of God. Some, like Barnabas, even sold possessions to provide a fund for the needy in the church. This is the backdrop for the events of Acts 5 with Ananias and Saphira.
This next account from the early days of the believers is going to be set in stark contrast to the loving care seen in Acts 4:32-37. Adherence to the Gospel message fosters care for others in humility and love. Christ exemplified this unmistakably when he willingly and humbly left heaven to live with us and die for us (Philippians 2:8). What we are about to see in Ananias and Sapphira however, is that people are naturally full of selfishness and pride. Humans can turn even good deeds into an opportunity to feed their own pride.
They saw the gratitude and appreciation Barnabas and others received through their sacrificial giving and decided they would also give. But… they decided to keep a portion of the money and lie, saying they had given it all. Peter even reminds Ananias in verse 4 that all of the land was his and Ananias was free to use it or give it however he would like. God had not commanded him to give it, yet he and Sapphira had schemed up a way to advance their own reputation and feed their pride while appearing to do a good deed. They were trying to twist this Gospel community of love and sacrifice into a tool for self-pleasing and selfish gain. They had lied to the Holy Spirit of God and they were testing God. They wanted to see if God would (or could?) actually judge sin.
God answered. He takes sin very seriously. The God of the Bible is a holy and loving God who desires to redeem sinners but must judge the unrepentant. This is essentially the message of Scripture. We have sinned against God and deserve judgment but God is merciful in giving opportunities to repent. The Gospel is His message of rescue for humanity by the satisfaction of His judgment by His holy wrath being poured out on Jesus Christ as he died on the cross. His love sent His own Son to die in the place of sinners. Each sin against the Holy God of the universe carries the penalty of death. The Bible tells us God sees and knows all things, even the thoughts and motivations of our hearts (read Psalm 139). A person cannot confuse, trick, out-maneuver, or deceive God. And God is committed to the purity of His people and His church. This obstacle appeared to everyone around the event like it had arisen from inside the church and God made it shockingly clear He hated sin. Yet there was continued Gospel growth even in the middle of sin and shocking judgment.
Watch It Again
Sunday Worship – Ricky Horton
Viral Gospel – Life Among the Believers: One Heart, One Soul, and Great Generosity
Sunday Bible Study – Chip Edwards
Galatians – Lesson 2 – Genuine Good News
And be sure to subscribe to the Eastside YouTube channel. Subscribe here!
