As we continue our Christology, this week we are focusing on the teaching ministry of Jesus. This is the Revelation of the Christ. Through his preaching, he displayed the attribute of wisdom as he proclaimed words of life.
Nobody taught like Jesus. No one will ever teach like Jesus. He was able to communicate long messages to all types of people and his words survived in a mainly oral culture for us to read today.
Some things to remember about Jesus’ teaching ministry:
The above picture is of the boys joining the choir for warmup this morning. As people were coming in for practice and we got things rolling for run-through, the boys joined the choir. Obadiah especially liked pointing in the air like McFadden and making his “Mommy” singing face with the open mouth and dropped jaw. Fun times!
It was a wonderful day of worship! Even in the giving, we were reminded of how everything we do is an act of worship. In addition to some baptisms this morning, we also had Jeff share a way that people could financially support our missions effort in Africa. After sharing how to do this, it seemed so fitting to sing: “Let the glory of Your name be the passion of the church.”
Today, we worshiped to:
Amanda and I love watching The Biggest Loser. While there has been some wearisome drama this season, Tuesday night had me standing up and applauding as I watched this father and son duo in the weigh-in show a great example of a father showing affirmation for his son. Chism was being sent off and his youth pastor father, Mark, was …
Jam up day with the church family! Jeff, now a grandpa of 4 grandchildren, gave an incredible message out of John 8 on the Light of the World. We were also blessed to hear from our own Carl Burrell concerning the Gideon’s ministry with which he is involved.
We had a great group of worshipers in the house today as we got rowdy in Jesus name. While we always have a great crew, it was great to have Gary Funderburk back among us to blow that saxophone for us. During practice, I had to remind the band to keep playing and singing and stop listening to him because he was doing such a great job!
Today, we worshiped to:
Continuing on through our Christology, we arrive this week at the Temptation of the Christ. This event reveals Christ’s holiness. He was set apart, and while he was fully God, he was full man, and he never sinned.
In his 33 years of life, he never rolled his eyes behind his mother’s back. He never kept more money than he should. Never had one lustful thought concerning a woman. Never used his words to demean another.
After his baptism by John, Scripture teaches that Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by the Devil himself. It also seems a test like Job’s in that God is leading Christ to the wilderness to prove to Satan his undeniable holiness. What’s interesting is that while Satan is a worthy adversary, his tricks have not really changed. He’s not the most creative of sorts. His temptation to Christ was the same as the temptation in the Garden of Eden: “Are you sure God’s Word says…”
He still uses it today, doesn’t he?
Here are some things to note:
It was a powerful time together as the church this morning! We started off our services with a rousing reading of Phil. 2:1-11 and went straight into the worship set focusing on the words: “every knee will bow and every tongue confess.” We used a 5-piece acoustic group this Sunday which was a fun, percussive setup.
Today, we worshiped to:
We also promoted the Marriage Getaway through a fun means. Here is the video we shared:
This text was sent to be after service and I think it summed up today’s worship. At North Side, we are not dictated by a worship formula. We are not tied to any tradition. I’ve been given the freedom to lead from the text we are preaching from. Today, was one of those days of not going way back, but just going a little bit back.
It doesn’t matter how old it is, a good worship song is a good worship song.
Today, we worshiped to:
At North Side, we’re all about discipleship. In addition to discipling our worship team on Wednesday nights, I am also discipling a great group of college students right now. These guys come over to our house on Wednesday nights and we get into the Word. This semester, I am teaching this group, and our worship team, through the gospels.
We are doing a Christology of sorts. A study of the life of Christ is normally organized around speculations or disagreements instead of simply going to the text. In this study, I am using 14 main events or categories of Jesus’ life to get a clearer picture of the historical figure and the world-changing Savior.
Last night, we discussed the Anticipation of the Christ. We actually started in our previous session by teaching through the entire Old Testament in one night. I told the big picture of God’s plan from the beginning. The blank page in between the testaments reveal a 400-year period of silence where God said nothing to his people. While Israel waited to see if God would speak again, God brought a word in the Word himself!
In John 1, the apostle teaches that Jesus was that Word in the beginning at creation, and not only was he with God, he was God. Just like the light that God created with a simple word in Genesis, at the fullness of time, the Word appeared and was the light of man. The darkness could not overcome the light, the Word, the God in flesh who dwelt among us.
During this study, we also looked at the reasoning and information concerning the difference of the 4 gospels. Four gospels were written because 4 authors had 4 specific audiences that they were educating concerning Jesus:
Amanda is taking the boys to help with Meals on Wheels today. At breakfast, I was trying to tell the boys that since it’s Christmas, we need to serve others because Jesus came not to be served, but to serve (Mark 10:45).
They were excited, but what Obadiah said next had me rolling in stitches (or wondering if he was a prophet).
Whoa.
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
This morning at North Side was ridiculous. Jeff’s message from John 5 was one of the most powerful messages I have heard. The thought that there are many people complaining about their situations but really don’t want to get well resonated so much today. Still processing all of that goodness. If you didn’t get to hear it, check it out here on Monday morning.
Today, we worshiped to:
What a great day of worship at North Side! I enjoyed borrowing my buddy’s mandoguitar to play on Sunday morning. I had many questions about this little beauty. It’s not a mandolin. You play it like a 12-string guitar. Besides trying to get my fingers to stay within the frets, I had a good time playing this little chimy instrument.
Jeff’s message was incredible! The thought that many people would believe in the miracles of Jesus yet not have their lives changed was so applicable for today. So, so good.
It was one of those worship services that I had all types of undercurrent themes riding throughout. It was a different service intentionally, but had some fun turns along the way (at least, I think ;)). Here’s what I mean.
Today, I was blessed to be able and preach at my college roommate’s church. I spoke on adoption (our adoption into God’s family and the need for children to be adopted into our families). Praying that many families will either adopt or sign up for foster care. While I loved being there, I hated missing out on North Side. With …
Our worship team is the best. You can see from the picture above the sacrifices that each of them (and their families) make week after week. This was taken during soundcheck early this morning where Cory’s son, Nate, asked if he could bring his pillow and keep sleeping. The ability to sleep beside Cory’s amp is a very impressive feat. So appreciative of all our volunteers on this Thanksgiving week that work tirelessly to lead in worship!
We focused on Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well. Jeff’s message was incredibly powerful! Never heard so much insight into this passage. We also watched our Worship Preferences video this morning that we made with some talented folks (more on this later this week).
Today, we worshiped to:
Powerful day of worship today! Jeff’s message was spot on. John 3 – you must be born again. Incredible to watch people give their lives to Jesus! Wonderful time of baptism and more children being baptized by their fathers – love it! Today, we worshiped to: Jesus Loves Me – North Side Worship All My Fountains – Chris Tomlin I …
What a great day at North Side! The big idea focused on Jesus’ cleaning the temple. Whether you realized it or not, we attempted for every element to focus on this passage. From song selections focusing on the sanctuaries of God, to praying for God’s work with other churches, to the message, we all tried to get this point across.
So appreciative for David Little, Director of Missions of the Lakelands Baptist Association, joining us today to remind of God’s work among our other churches. It was wonderful to pray for other churches in our city.
Today, we worshiped to:
What a great to day to be a part of North Side! Grateful for all the wonderful things going on! Remember: 1. The Fall Festival this Saturday from 3-5. Thanks Georges for reminding us! 2. Africa interest meeting tonight at 6 pm in the chapel. 3. Families are growing stronger since this move to united worship. It was awesome hearing those stories today!
Jeff’s message was the BEST message I ever heard on John 2 when Jesus turned water into wine. It was the ONLY sermon I’ve ever heard on that passage, but even if I had heard tons, that dog would hunt (that’s country slang meaning it was great!). I never knew all the implications of what happened. Huge message! Check out this Baptist preacher talk about alcohol in a completely different light!
We had a great family worship last night where we talked about this passage. Getting ready for services this morning, I asked the boys, “What did Jesus turn water into?” Since wine isn’t a word we use around the house often, they were trying their hardest to come up with it. I helped them out by starting with the “w” sound.
Obadiah said, “Waffles? Jesus turned water into waffles.”
Almost. Well, he could have if he wanted to!
Today, we worshiped to:
What a great day at North Side! As we focused on Jesus’s saving nature and the fact that he still calls out disciples for his work, we got a chance to Skype in with one of our own serving on the mission field, Kim Tomlinson. Serving in the American Samoa, Kim is reaching many families for Christ. By her saying yes, she was not only obedient to Jesus’ call, but she served as such an inspiration to our church. Kim’s Facebook status: definitely worth it to stay up from 130am-430am here in Samoa to be able to skype with my church family in Greenwood 🙂 🙂 So thankful to have an amazing church family that supports me 🙂
This is a picture of the baptism service she talked about yesterday – I hope her description impacted your worship yesterday like it did mine!
Today, we worshiped to:
I was so thankful that my buddy, JW, got to lead us in worship today at North Side! We did a highlight for our Sonshine ministry at North Side, and Greg Thompson and JW helped us be mindful of how God is using all of North Side. After the video, they both shared, JW prayed and then led in worship to “I’ll Fly Away.” Awesome time!
Today, we worshiped to:
Since the inception of student ministry (not that many years ago), the growing belief is that parents should aid and assist the student pastor to evangelize and disciple the students. By serving in either assistant teaching roles or crowd control, parents are expected to help the student pastor in his ministerial work focused on their children. I cannot begin to tell you how many parents describe that situation and say that the student pastor spiritually “raised my child.”
If we were to follow the biblical example, we would reverse the trend. Parents should not aid and assist the student pastor. The student pastor should aid and assist the parent to evangelize and disciple one’s own child.
Wow, what a stellar day to be a part of North Side!
We kicked off a new series today studying the Book of John entitled, “Knowing Jesus.” To start things off, we celebrated some baptisms. We sang “Come and Listen” as our candidates told why they were being baptized. My favorite part of the day was watching fathers baptize their children! Doesn’t get better than that for me. Coming off the “Courageous” series, movie release this weekend, and our 1st family worship guide, it was incredible to watch!
Today, we worshiped to:
The day so many of us have been praying for and planning for finally came. We did something that most church growth experts and consultants say should never be done. With what we did today, we should have had a church split or people walking out in disapproval.
Instead, we worshiped as one family.
Today, North Side united 3 services into 2. We got rid of 2 styles and united under the heading of “worship.” We united families instead of segregating them. And while I believe that God has been honored with our church before, I think this was another level of obedience and worship that we engaged into today. I’ve heard plenty of encouraging words from this morning, but even if those weren’t there, God was honored and our church worshiped today in spirit and in truth.
Today, we worshiped to:
The other week, I had one of those cherished moments as a father. The pic above is a cropped pic of my son, Obadiah, in a restaurant bathroom.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, he will hate me one day, I understand, but I couldn’t pass it up.
As I waited for him to complete his business, he looked up at the two rails on the wall and shocked me with what he said:
I really don’t have too many words to describe North Side’s Good Friday service. I have never heard our people sing out so much, and I have never seen such expressive worshipers. We remembered the cross, and we could barely contain ourselves!
We celebrated communion, baptism, read Scripture, and worshiped. I loved that one of our elders, Jerry Rentz, led the communion. Most visitors would have imagined he was a staff member by how great of a job he did! After the service, John Kennerly did a coffeeshop performance for us that was pure delightful. Great day.
I kinda imagine that may be the 1st Good Friday service in a line of many more. Just a hunch.
We worshiped to:
What a pivotal day for North Side. It was one of those days where God was so clear to me in so many different areas, that it was hard to shake. Continuing on through Derailed, here is where we landed today:
Derailed by Idolatry (1 Corinthians 10-11). The Corinthian church had gotten into the habit of gathering together in the name of the Lord but making it all about themselves. They had become their own idols. In this message, we hear how this warning still applies to us today and what it means for the future of North Side.
The picture above shows holding a document entitled “The Glory of God.” As North Side has sought God’s leading on our future, we believe he has spoken to us concerning the future of worship styles at the church.
There’s nothing like going home to me. I wish you could follow along with me my drive up the driveway after work every day. The excitement is at different levels at different days, but normally I walk into 3 people jumping around and cheering like I am the best person in the world. No matter how hard the day had been, this hysteria at 5:10 makes all things right in the world.
The other day, as I noticed Obadiah and Eli’s faces pressed against the window, banging on it with their hands, I thought they had gotten taller. Turns out, they had climbed up on the window sill anticipating my arrival. I don’t know why Eli was still peering out the window when I was standing behind him, but regardless, it was a special moment as they climbed up eager to see my truck arrive in the driveway (even if they did disobey by climbing up there).
The reason they get that excited is due to their perception of the person they are anticipating. I don’t think I’m that spectacular, but in this season of life, they do. And they show me in how they eagerly wait and celebrate my arrival.
The problem is that we aren’t that eager concerning Jesus’ return.
What a fun Sunday as we kicked off our December series, “Jesus Loves Me (This I Know)” as we started trekking through the 1st section of Ephesians.
Knowing His Gifts (Eph. 1:1-14) – We know that Jesus loves us based upon the gifts he has given us. Through his work, he has reconciled all creation to himself and has united the church. His immeasurable gifts are more than what we ever deserved.
Today, we worshiped to:
We are doing a really fun opener each week, and this week was the ladies’ week to get after a great gospel number. They tore it up! Next week, the guys are up. All I’m saying is don’t be late…
I’ve been so humbled by so many comments from Sunday’s worship services. People have gone out of their way to say how impacting the time was, how we should have just kept singing for a few more hours, how tears of joy were flooding their eyes as we sang to our King. Most of people commented, “that was ‘good’ worship.”
I’m not gonna lie. I thought we were about to sing the roof off that place all 3 times Sunday morning. I personally almost sang myself back into tonsillectomy rehab cause I just couldn’t hold it back. But was it really “good” worship?
Sure, I loved the song selections. The band was smoking and played the dynamics just right. The singers nailed their parts. The choir sounded like an angelic force to be reckoned with. The congregation was outsinging all the microphones on stage. It was loud. It was engaging. It was powerful.
But was it really “good” worship?
“The Cross of Calvary” was a song written with the purpose of writing a modern day hymn. I wanted to show how the cross was not an afterthought but was a part of the whole plan from the beginning. The cross was the plan from the very start. I did a lot of phrases in the chorus that showed the …
Authentic Christian community is more than an novel concept, it is a biblical command and practice. Looking at the life of Jesus, one can find an example on how to share life with others. It’s more than coming to church. It’s doing life together. It was a great Sunday as we kicked off the new series “Solitary Confinement.” The picture …
Last Sunday, we led with a new song entitled “The Cross of Calvary.” After writing a modern-day hymn for our upcoming CD, “Overcome,” Amy Cromer’s voice was just made for this song. Her rendition of it on Sunday and on the recording just blew me away. What I love about her connection to this song is that she lives this …
This week’s book of the week is John Piper’s The Passion of Jesus Christ. Love me some Piper, but I love me some Jesus even more. This book’s tag line (and what the 2nd edition was renamed) is 50 Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die. These 50 small chapters pack so much theological truth into the reasonings Jesus came, died, …
Continuing on in the True[ish] series, North Side focused on “Jesus: More Than a Role Model” today. A time to celebrate the cross and remember Christ’s sacrifice through observing communion. Today, we worshiped to: Here I Am to Worship – Tim Hughes Amazing Grace – Chris Tomlin (NS Worship Version) In Christ Alone – Stuart Townend How Deep the Father’s …
In constructing correct doctrinal beliefs, we each must wrestle with the issue of the Trinity. The Trinity is the term used to express the belief in the Christian Godhead as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Trinity is one of those beliefs that Christians claim to hold, but we often find ourselves unable to articulate …
Second week in the Wilderness series. This picture is of Fred the Manequin who watches over our tech team in the back on Sunday mornings. He has served the last few weeks as a stand-in for Jeff as our light and camera techs work some things out. He has scared many people over the last few weeks as they walk …
Normally, I’m not a fan of most church signs, but this one I dig. Even though it is a picture of a white, American Jesus which isn’t that close to reality, the message should get some people to think twice. Enjoy the picture and the context: Confront the elephant in the pew!
In the third post of this series on what to do when your mentor falls, I want to leave you with an encouraging though: When Your Mentor Falls (Part 3): Don’t Confuse the Fallen for the Savior Don’t Discount Their Impact Don’t Overlook Your Frailty Don’t Confuse the Fallen for the Savior Remember that we are called to follow Jesus …
I am currently working on another degree through Southern Seminary. Southern’s president is Dr. Al Mohler who you may have seen debating it up on the Larry King Live show or other talk shows. He is a brillant man and also has a blog that he updates everyday. In our Making Faith Stick class, we have talked about teaching the Bible …
I stumbled upon this video last week. I can’t tell if it is serious or a joke. I would love to hear your feedback on its a) intention, and b) your favorite moment. What’s your opinion? Is this video legit or a joke? And what’s your favorite moment?
Due to the reading on leadership and time of self-reflection, I have identified some areas in which I need to change concerning my own leadership skills. First, I must constantly develop my own personal relationship with Jesus. In order for me to leave a legacy to my family and my congregation, I need to ensure that my personal relationship with …
a·tone·ment (ə-tōn’mənt) Pronunciation Key n. Amends or reparation made for an injury or wrong; expiation. Reconciliation or an instance of reconciliation between God and humans. Atonement Christianity The reconciliation of God and humans brought about by the redemptive life and death of Jesus. Obsolete Reconciliation; concord. The gospel begins with God, but we messed it up through Rebellion. Our sinful …
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