Come To The Bible Expectantly!

I love pastoring our church, and one of the main ways I seek to faithfully be a shepherd to you is through the ministry of the Word.

For me, this means marinating in the text of Scripture with prayerful desire for my own heart and life to be shaped and molded by God’s holy Word. I believe the Holy Spirit inspired every word of the Bible, and because He breathed-out the Word, it is alive!

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”—Hebrews 4:12

Martin Luther, reflecting on this, said it so memorably:

“The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands; it lays hold of me.”

Therefore, we should come to the Bible expectantly—when we read it at home, when we study it with other believers, and when we hear it proclaimed in the public assembly. May we cultivate an insatiable hunger and thirst for the living Word of God! May we, like the psalmist, open our mouths and pant because we long for His commandments! (Psalm 119:131).

Looking Ahead to the Preaching of the Word on Sunday Mornings

You may remember some time ago I began a series of messages that would take us through Genesis and Romans side-by-side. The idea was that in Genesis 1-11 we would hear about God’s creation, humanity’s fall, and God’s promise to redeem and restore humanity; then in Romans 1-3 we would see the Apostle Paul expound upon these doctrines. Then in Genesis 12-24 we would look at the life of Abraham, the man of faith; and in Romans 4-8 we would see what it looks like to live in the good of justification by faith alone.

Now we are spending a couple months in Genesis 24-36 which covers the lives of Isaac & Jacob. And guess who Romans 9-11 focuses on? We will see how God’s election of Jacob illustrates the sovereignty of God’s purposes and the mercy of God’s call on the lives of his people. And we will see how God is not finished with his plan to extend grace & mercy to all the nations of the world, including ethnic Israel.

So join with me this month in reading about Jacob in Genesis—and look forward to the month of April when we will dive back into Romans with a series that will likely extend through the remainder of this year (and maybe beyond!), taking us through the second half of magnificent letter of Romans (chapters 9–16).

Through it all, may we marvel at the wisdom of God’s plan and his mercy to include us in so great a salvation!

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”—Romans 11:36.

Rejoicing in God’s Word,

Pastor David Sunday

Upcoming Sermons

March 12—Genesis 29-31 | The Deceiver is Deceived
March 19—Genesis 32-33 | When Strivings Cease
March 26—Genesis 34-36 | God’s Mercy in a Messed-Up Family
April 2—Romans 1-8 | The Overflow of Grace
April 9 (Palm Sunday)—Romans 9:1-5 | Weeping Over Jerusalem