Today was our 3rd and final week in the “Jesus Saves” series as we focused on “Our Returning King.” In Matthew 24, Jesus himself assures us of His return and tells us what to expect before he comes, when he comes, and after he comes.
We went with a band of solely men today. Jeff walked in the auditorium during sound check and said, “This is the ugliest this stage has ever looked.” I was hoping to hear something like, “Wow, this stage reeks of raw masculinity,” but that’s not exactly what we got. We did miss the ladies today, but we wanted to do something different.
Just so you know, we do prize men leading in the church. Many times, women are the only ones in churches that are passionate about worship, and we want to change that. Oftentimes, men are unengaged with their arms crossed during services. We want bold, men of God not afraid to lead worship as our church family gathers and as their individual families gather.
We started by singing “Hosanna” and “I’ll Fly Away.” We got fun with some of the arrangements.
After that, Michael George led our Bible Drill students, fresh from the South Carolina meet yesterday, to challenge the congregation in a Bible Drill. It was so great to hear all that these young students knew about the Bible.
We then led “Lord, I Need You” and “Arise My Love.” The last song was originally written in 1987 by Newsong and is such a great, powerful song. It was a great opportunity to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and our anticipation of his return. Our fellas really went for it and I thought the roof was going to come off the building with the rejoicing going on in the room. “The grace could not hold the King!”
Jeff’s message on Christ’s return was very helpful. Our job, as we wait, is to persevere and to proclaim. We persevere through these difficult times and the ones to come, and we proclaim the gospel in all the nations so that they can know Jesus (Matt. 24:14).
We ended the service at the piano singing the lines, “When Christ shall come with a shout of acclamation and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart. Then I shall bow in humble adoration and there proclaim, ‘My God, how great Thou art!'”
Next week we start a series entitled “Between Sundays” that I am very excited about. What would happen if we walked with Jesus more than just on Sundays? What would happen if we were the church all week-long?
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Travis Agnew serves as the Lead Pastor of Rocky Creek Church in Greenville, SC. His most recent book is Just (About) Married.
