When I first went
into the ministry as Education Pastor at FBC Brownsville, even though I had a
master’s degree in Religious Education, I really didn’t know what education
ministers do all week…Order Sunday School material, then what?? I called up the
music minister and asked him what Frank, my predecessor, did. He said, “You
would have to ask him,” almost as if he didn’t know either.
At First Baptist
Killeen, the education ministry is all about the Bible. The 12 deacons we are
considering are asked if they believe the Bible is the Word of God. We believe
that God’s Word has the right to command our beliefs and our actions!
Many of those who
attend Sunday morning only and
don’t come to a LifeGroup...
...don’t come to a
study on Sunday or Wednesday evenings...
...and don’t
study the Bible in a small group...
...they do not really get the whole picture of our church,
Christianity and what it means to be a disciple of Christ in the context of a
small group of believers.
This BELIEVE
series is a great time for those who only attend the
FBC Killeen worship service to become a part of a small group study. The text
book BELIEVE is about 95% specifically selected Scriptures to reinforce 30 key
Beliefs, Practices and Virtues. The other 5% is explanation of how to Think,
Act and Be like Jesus.
The following devotional comes from Zondervan:
KEY QUESTION: How can I know God and his will for my
life?
How do we know
God? How do we understand and see the world we live in? How do we grasp where
we came from and why we are here? How do we know where this story is ultimately
heading?
The answer is
profound—God reveals himself and his grand plan to us. Our Role is to listen
and believe. The Bible repeatedly records that God communicated to his people
at specific times with specific messages. In some cases, such as with Moses at
the burning bush, he spoke audibly.
In other instances
he spoke through dreams or visions or less direct impressions. But the words of
the Lord were always given to his people to reveal his plan for them and for
all humanity. God revealed his story because he loves us.
The Lord spoke
mostly through prophets in the Old Testament and through Jesus and the apostles
in the New Testament.
Throughout the
Bible the writers warned readers that they should not add or take away from
God’s Word. God has given and preserved his Word for us so we can rely on it to
guide our lives into all truth and according to God’s good plan. Therefore,
Christians revere the Bible and affirm its right to command our beliefs and
actions.
KEY VERSE
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful
for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the
servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy
3:16–17)
KEY IDEA
I believe the Bible is the God-inspired Word of
God that is the Supreme Authority which guides my beliefs and action.
KEY APPLICATION: What difference does this make in the
way I live?
The Bible is the
lens from which we view the world. God’s Word informs what we think and feel about everything we
encounter. We see the intervention of God in history, in our present lives, and
on into the future as He continues to write his grand story.
We are obligated
and motivated to study the Bible to understand God’s will for our lives. The
Bible forms the content of truth we seek to marinate our minds in.
The principles in
the Bible must govern our lives, even when we don’t fully understand or like what it teaches.
YOUR TURN
In what ways have
you experienced the Word of God as “alive and active” in your own spiritual
life?
