Outline of Service 25^th May 2014

Wait for the Promise  Acts 1:4

Hymn 123:  Prayer for Power From Above

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Psalm 19:1-10  Declaration of God’s Handiwork

Bible Readings:                                                   

Moses Gets Help:  Exodus 18:1, 13-22

Sharing the Power:  Numbers 11:16, 24-29

The Three Feasts:  Leviticus 23:1-7, 15-16, 21-28

The Promise of The Power:  Acts 1:1-12

The Power of The Promise:  1 John 2:25-3:3

Hymn 34:  A Personal Promise

·        God has promised and given Power to help mankind in all generations

·        A greater Power was promised by Jesus Christ before He ascended

·        The Holy Ghost visited the disciples on the first Whitsuntide

·        First we can receive Power (anointing) from Above, then seek to abide in God’s Spirit as we draw closer to Him preparing for His return

·        Finally, when Jesus Christ returns God has promised that His Spirit will physically dwell within those prepared, and they will be made like Him, “for we shall see Him as He is” 

·        This Whitsuntide let us seek for the Power from God to not only rest upon us, but to abide with us forever.

Hymn 90:  The Promise Fulfilled

Doxology

Outline of Service 27^th April 2014

How Long....O Lord  Psalm 13:1

Hymn 3:  God’s Appointed Time 

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Psalm 13:1-6  Confirming God’s Presence

Bible Readings:                                                   

A Long Term Plan:  Jeremiah 33:1-3, 14-26

A Week Later:  John 21:1-14

Still Waiting:  11 Peter 3:1-14

Hymn 102:  Hold on to God’s Promises

·        God has a Plan for each of us individually, and for His People Israel collectively

·        We sometimes consider God’s Plan against our human expectations

·        God has a different way of doing things, and we must learn to wait

·        Jesus Christ will return to release God’s creation from the power of Satan

·       We must press on waiting to be saved or redeemed at His return

Hymn 72:  Seek, Follow and Wait

Doxology

The Paper March 2014

Building Bridges

When in an argument with friends or family, and maybe you are right but the other party does not want to give in, the old adage says – “do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy?” There is a turning point between justice and grace – between holding-on and giving-in!  Justice demands that the “right” answer is acknowledged by all parties – grace allows that one party might give in for the sake of peace.  Relationships thrive not because the guilty are punished, but because the innocent are merciful.  Bridges are built when both parties reach out towards the middle; they are generally not just built from one side.  If a bridge is to be built the offending party needs to acknowledge the offence that has been committed, and the offended party needs to forgive. 

Here it is Easter again.  Easter is the holiday at the tail-end of summer - the last break before the winter starts to set in.  As such many try to get away and enjoy a few days off from normal routine.  To many people these days Easter is the Season of the chocolate eggs – a figure of new beginning; and we think of fertility (again new life and opportunities) through the Easter Bunny – all of which are more akin to the emerging spring of the Northern Hemisphere than the encroaching winter in the south.  But the thoughts are still there!

To Christians Easter is a time of building bridges.  In the Christian faith it was the time when God reached out to forgive people for the wrongs they have committed either by choice or through human frailty.  He has given us a framework of right and wrong in Life’s Handbook – the Bible.  Those who acknowledge that their life is not as it ought to be, and seek reconciliation with God, will start building from the other side.  In our life situations it is the strong who must make the first move to build the bridge, so too it was the Creator who made the first move at the first Easter.

Easter is a core time in the Christian Faith.  It is the time when Christians believe that Jesus was crucified and rose again.  There is a large volume of secular evidence to support this claim, but predominantly Christians believe it because it is in the Word of God. Easter is the time when Christians think about the fact that God reached out to build a bridge so that we can communicate with Him.  We don’t know exactly the process of how this works, but the bridge is there for us to seek to complete from our side.  Those who are Christians have experienced in their everyday lives an inward conviction and feeling that the things recorded in the Scriptures, which have been believed for generations and handed down to us in our society, are true.  For sure we have the right to question the events and the process, but it would seem that today many people dismiss the authenticity of the importance of the original Easter on the grounds of thinking that we in our generation are more enlightened than those of the past, and think that we may know better.  But the process of Easter is about building bridges and reconciliation – this has not and will not change.

The content of being a Christian may change from generation to generation but the process remains the same – putting faith and trust in something that we believe is bigger than ourselves, and which is by nature beyond our comprehension. 

We would like to invite you to visit us, or a Church in your local Community, to reflect on the events of Easter and to think about how something that happened almost 2,000 years ago is still important today.  See Church Notices in this Paper for times of Meetings at the Christian Israelite Church at 196 Campbell Street – we have been in continuous service there since 1853 meeting the needs of people in a changing society. 

Rodney Gray – Pastor Christian Israelite Church, 196 Campbell Street, Sydney (www.cichurch.com or visit cichurch.blogspot.com.au)

Outline of Service 23^rd March 2014

My Sheep Hear My Voice  John 10:27

Hymn 123:  The Voice of the Heart 

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Psalm 143:1-2, 7-12  Deliver, Teach and Quicken Me

Bible Readings:                                                   

The Voice of Truth:  1 Kings 19:1-13

A Guiding Voice:  Isaiah 30:18-21

The Shepherd’s Voice:  John 10:22-42

Hymn 96:  The Good Shepherd

·        God speaks to us through our hearts and minds

·        His “voice” guides us in the right path

·        True believers hear and recognise the Shepherd’s voice

·        Jesus offers eternal life – “and they shall never perish”

·       Are we seeking not only spiritual life, but to be preserved in spirit and soul and body and truly never perish

Hymn 20:  Listen!

Doxology

Outline of Service 9^th March 2014

Obedience Through Love  John 14:15

Hymn 129:  Hate the Sin but Love the Sinner 

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Psalm 122:1-9  Peace be Within Thy Walls

Bible Readings:                                                   

God’s Covenant through Obedience:  Exodus 19: 1-11

Salvation through Faith:  Romans 4:1-8

Jesus Calls for Obedience:  John 14:1-17

Hymn 47:  Keep My Sayings

·        God has set out a life-style for people to follow in the Bible

·        Satan attracts the evil in people and turns them away from God’s instructions

·        Through Jesus’ sacrifice our sins are forgiven – even when we are not obedient to His commandments – ensuring the salvation of our souls

·        But Jesus said if you love me, keep my commandments

·        Through true obedience we can have the hope of being redeemed without (physical) death at Jesus Christ’s return

·       Let us ask God for the Power from The Other Comforter, through love, to work a work of obedience in us

Hymn 79:  The Light of Life

Doxology

Outline of Service 23^rd February 2014

The Times of Restitution of All things  Acts 3:21

  

Hymn 128:  Renewed Relationships with God 

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Psalm 104:1-9, 30-35 The Cycles of Life ..  

Bible Readings:                                                   

God’s Plan:  Daniel 12:1-13

Personal and Global Renewal:  Acts 3:1-26

Hymn 95 (Tune 96):  Universal Renewal

·            God had a Plan for the end from the beginning

·        The Bible gives us details about God’s Plan and life on this Earth is just one part of it

·        God created this Earth a beautiful place and put mankind on it

·        The devil has marred God’s creation by introducing evil, sin and death

·        God’s Plan gives we who are alive today the hope of being redeemed wholly when Jesus Christ            returns

·       God’s Plan includes a Time of Restitution of All Things, that God may be All in All (1 Cor 15:28) 

Hymn 3:  Be Part of It!

Outline of Service 9^th February 2014

Be Thankful Unto Him  Ps 100:4

Psalm 100 – A Psalm of Praise ..  

Hymn 104:  God’s Protection

The Lord’s Prayer from Luke 11:2-4

Bible Readings:                                                   

God’s Continual Guidance:  Exodus 16:1-15, 22-26, 32

Finding the Blessings:  Matt 25:1-33

Hymn 96:  God’s Continual Guidance

·        God has created the World and we who are in it

·        There is a God-shaped space in each of us that seeks to be filled

·        When we learn to praise and thank God we will feel fulfilled

·        Let us thank God for the promise of Jesus Christ’s return

·       We can each seek to be preserved alive in spirit and soul and body and be made immortal when He appears

Hymn 119:  A Hymn of Praise

Doxology