Vacation Bible School provides an opportunity to not only minister to the children at both Fifth & Plymouth Heights CRC church, but it allows us to reach into the community as well. Last year, over two thirds of the 120 children who participated were non Fifth kids! At Sky VBS, kids imagine what it would be like to bounce among the clouds, soar with eagles, and reach for the stars. Start soaring now - register here to be a part of this Sky VBS! This journey will change kids forever. Each day, children will see how much God loves people by participating in many activities that help their faith flow into real life. If you would like to become a volunteer or donate items click here. If you have any questions, please e-mail Krista Batdorff or call the church office at 245-9247.
Join the Fun! Habitat for Humanity has created small renovation projects that will be completed in a week or less. Volunteers will perform exterior repairs, painting or landscaping. If swinging a hammer or digging in the dirt doesn’t appeal to you, there will be volunteer opportunities to provide snacks, sending out communication notices and other less messy tasks. Come to an exploratory meeting on Sunday, April 22 after the service and learn more about this community service opportunity. The meeting will be held in the East Community Room (the room behind the kitchen). Contact John Leegwater 452-2754 or Lori Kane 949-9700 with questions.
Disciples of Jesus follow Jesus in giving away their lives. (sermon audio)
Of all the marks of a disciple, this is the capstone – a willingness to sacrifice of oneself to follow Jesus. By definition, a disciple is follower of Jesus, not just someone who is intrigued by Jesus or thinks highly of him. Disciples of Jesus are followers of Jesus, so when we talk about Growing disciples who make disciples, we are talking about growing people who: 1) follow Jesus faithfully no matter the cost and 2) help others do the same.
The dictionary defines sacrifice as the “surrender of something for the sake of something else.” And that is exactly what God has done for us in Jesus. Jesus willingly gave his life for us, not simply as a model of selfless living for us to follow (though his example certainly is that) but as a sacrifice for our sin.
Think about that truth. Pick up the Bible and read Hebrews 10:1-14. Let your heart ponder this sweet center of the Gospel – “we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Theologians call it substitutionary atonement. Simply put – Jesus died in our place, and that death reopened the possibility of a relationship with God.
Throughout the series, we have been looking at the stages of spiritual growth as defined by the REVEAL study:
The idea is that all of us are on a spiritual journey and called to keep moving spiritually, to be growing people. The ultimate goal of following Jesus is to become more and more like Jesus, not simply to use Christianity to improve our lives. A distinguishing characteristic of a Christ-Centered person is a mindset of surrender. “Rather than expecting Jesus to be there for the sole purpose of helping them with their lives, they respond to his call to sacrifice and lay down their lives to serve Jesus and advance his mission in the world” (Move, Greg Hawkins & Cally Parkinson, p.93). This is what it means to be a sacrificing person.
In Ephesians, the Apostle Paul tells us to follow the example Jesus when he offered up his life for us (Eph. 5:1-2). In Romans, Paul writes this: “Offer your bodies as living sacrifices.” Basically, this means “live as if you’ve died to yourself.” It is exactly what Rob Ellis was getting at in the March 16 devotional he contributed to our Lenten Devotional Guide. Rob wrote this: “This is the true meaning of discipleship—the suffering through the loss of our natural self by denying its sinful lusts.”
This death to self becomes visible to others through a willingness to sacrifice of self to follow Jesus. A willingness to sacrifice for the sake of others is love. And as the old song says, “They will know we are Christians by our love.”
Disciples of Jesus follow Jesus in giving away their lives.
“A Night with the Artist,” Dan Van Duinen, will be held at Fifth Reformed Church on Tuesday, March 27th from 7-8 pm. During Holy Week, April 1-7, Fifth Church is honored to connect to the Western Michigan Artistic Community and incorporate Van Duinen’s photographic piece, “In Light of Suffering” into the “Thieves on the Cross Station.”
Dan is a commercial photographer by profession – and you may also recognize the names of his brothers, Tracy, Corey and Randy, also Art Prize artists. On March 27th we will share a short question and answer session with the artist as well as some refreshments. Come hear what inspired Dan to create and include last year’s Art Prize exhibit. Then also sign-upto attend Fifth Church’s interactive Stations of the Cross between April 1 & 7. http://www.fifthrc.org/_bpost_11035/Stations_of_the_Cross_Sign_Up%21
Fifth Reformed Church is located at 2012 Griggs, SE, Grand Rapids, MI.
As tough as it may be to be a joyful giver, in some ways serving is even more difficult than giving. Giving is about giving money and serving is about giving of our time.
In Mark 10: 35-45, James and John request places of honor from Jesus. First of all, that decision isn’t Jesus’ to make. Also of importance is the reaction of the other disciples—they were upset! Upset that James and John requested something that should be freely given, and upset that they hadn’t thought of asking Jesus the same thing first.
“You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you” (Mark 10:42-43).
Jesus reminds the disciples that true power lies in caring and advocating for the powerless. Much like today, in the
disciples’ time powerful people were hoarding resources because they could. Jesus tells them that some people in
positions of power misuse their authority, but that is not to be the case for followers of Jesus.
“Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave
of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”
(Mark 10:43-45).
God measures greatness in service and servant-heartedness. Jesus is our example in this. He didn’t come to be served;
the passage above clearly states the action Jesus came to do: serve and give. If Jesus came to do these very things and
Christians are called to be like Jesus, then clearly Christians should be marked by their giving and serving.
Giving and serving speak to releasing things of great value to us – our money and our time. Both are essential marks of a
disciple, and important because of why God instructs us to do them. His purpose is to work out full redemption in us:
to grow us, stretch us, make us more like Jesus. As we talked about last week, giving has the potential to lead our hearts closer
to Christ. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The same is true of serving.
A study of over 1000 congregations in North America assessed how people experience spiritual growth. They found five
catalysts that moved people in subsequent growth areas:
Salvation by Grace: I believe nothing I do or have done can earn my salvation
The Trinity: I believe the only true God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Serve the Church: I serve in a ministry once a month or more
Prayer to Seek Guidance: I pray to seek guidance for my life
Reflection on Scripture: I reflect on Scripture for meaning in my life
This shows the significance of serving. The survey found that serving is THE most catalytic experience offered by the
church. (The other catalysts rely more on personal growth and belief.) Here at Fifth, this responsibility rests with the
Pastoral Deacons, who lead the congregation in ministries of mercy, service and outreach. They don’t do all the serving
themselves. They lead us in serving.
So we serve not just because we are commanded to in the Bible, but because we understand why the Bible commands
us to serve:
It’s the right thing to do as a gracious response to all God has done for us.
When we serve, God works in us to make us more like Jesus.
Disciples of Jesus follow Jesus by serving others.
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Weekly Grapple Connection
Grapple Question: Is it EVER OK to Lie? Students Learn: God Rewards Those Who Act on Faith Dig Into the Bible: Joshua 2:1-14
Next Sunday treat: Quinn Batdorff
*****
CONNECTING IT THROUGH THE WEEK Is it ever OK to lie? Have a family discussion about these situations:
• Is it OK to lie to a friend to keep a surprise party a secret?
• Is it OK for undercover police officers to lie about their identities?
• Is it OK for parents to tell their children that Santa and the Easter Bunny are real?
• Is it OK to lie about liking someone’s cooking or clothes to avoid hurting the person’s feelings?
Talk about the possible outcomes or consequences that could result from these lies. Take a family vote and decide if it would be OK to lie in those circumstances. Then read Joshua 2:1-24, and decide if you think it was OK for Rahab to lie in her sticky situation.
Grapple Question: Do I Have to Like Everyone? Students Learn: Love Everyone, Even if You Don’t Like Them Dig Into the Bible: Acts 7:51-60
Next Sunday treat: Ben Hoerle
***** CONNECTING IT THROUGH THE WEEK Have you ever been really offended by something someone said but never got a chance to tell the person how the words hurt you? Even though many people are hard to get along with, the Bible tells us to treat others the way we want to be treated. More easily said than done, huh? Talk to your teenager about a time you went out of your way to love a difficult person. How did that feel? Hard? Satisfying? Healing? Even though we don’t deserve it, God still loves and accepts us.
