Bethel Mennonite Church – Gladys VA

God is good. Even when we don't understand. Colossians 1:12 - God rules over the powers of darkness today, just as he did at the time that these words were written. All of God's creation is sustained by his power. All of creation, the milky way, the stars, the oceans, all of it is under the control and is sustained by God. Isaiah 40:12-20 - How big is God. He weighed out the mountains and the vall...

Marriage is for life. Divorce is not God's plan. These are things we believe, but that we don't talk about too much. The permanence of marriage is an inconvenient truth for many different groups of people. Many conservative christian people are "up at arms" about homosexuality, it is a sin. That remarriage after divorce is a sin as well is something that is also true. How grounded are you in the t...

We don't know exactly what Mary new at this point and what she didn't know. Did she know that Jesus was going to die? Jerusalem was crowded with pilgrims who had come from all over to celebrate the Passover. They didn't know that they were about to witness the "real" Passover lamb's sacrifice. There was a large crowd of people following Jesus. The religious leaders of the day didn't appreciate thi...

The people of Jericho knew that there was a people coming who were formidable beyond anything that they had seen before. These people had crossed the read sea. They had went up against numerous nations along their journey towards the Canaan. When the son of man appears it will be incredibly clear. It is incredibly easy to become depressed when we see the terrible things that go on around us. It is...

Our attention must be on Jesus Christ and the Word. By recognizing Jesus and his death and resurrection our old life is dead and buried… we are raised with Christ. We are told to live out our faith within our homes, to grow up to maturity. When we are at home we tend to let down our guard and drop the pretenses that we may have… even there we are called to live out the Christ life. The post Living...

Let’s take another look at the cross of Christ and think about what it really means for each of us. The blood of Jesus is something that we understand as Christians. The blood is only part of the cross experience. By faith we also die with Christ on that cross. Every day as we take up the cross anew we experience death again. The disgrace that Hebrews talks about here is the cross, the symbol of d...

Thomas was a loyal disciple of Jesus. He wanted to know the truth. He didn’t trust the other disciples when it came to whether Jesus had actually been raised from the dead. Thomas wasn’t going to be mislead by his friends. When Jesus talked to Thomas he said, “look at my hands and my side…” He didn’t say, “Thomas, here I am, believe it.” What would the other disciples have said if they were in Tho...

We see in verses from both the old and the new covenant - truth is very important to God. Even Christians within the body of Christ struggle with telling the truth. Maybe we complement people when we don’t really feel it. You might say you’re glad to see someone when you’re not. You may say you’re fine when you’re not. Lying is a bad thing for the body… silence is also not a good thing for the bod...

If we are going to reap fruit we do need to plant. Paul says here that we will plant… we need to make sure we are planting good seed, that we are making a good investment. A farmer invests in good seed and good fertilizers he puts in the work. He trusts that if he puts in the work, effort and investment he can reap some kind of benefit at some point in the future. It takes an ongoing will and dete...

The heart is very important. It is the seat of our thoughts and attentions and attitudes. Above all things, guard your heart. The heart of a man (or a woman) is very important. Our heart makes us who we really are. God knows our hearts. He knows our hearts completely. What God sees in our hearts should matter to us. What kind of heart pleases God? David was described as a “man after God’s own hear...

The Holy Spirit is associated with the power to live differently than we would live without the Holy Spirit. The Holy Sprit was within Jesus “without measure.” The Holy Spirit will also be given to us in sufficient abundance that it will pour out. The Holy Spirit is available for you and me “without measure.” We are the only ones who can hinder the amount that we have in our lives. Be filled with...

God is big enough to bring healing in any situation. How do you sense when someone has a problem with you? How do we deal with it once we realize that a brother or sister has a problem with you. We need to ask ourselves, is this person intentionally trying to hurt me or are we just being too sensitive. Both Jacob and Esau had a responsibility here in their reconciliation and forgiveness. The post...

If we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive our sins. Our sins are removed as far as the east is from the west, not as far as the north and the south. We needed forgiveness and God has given us forgiveness. Not only at the point of our conversion, but also on an ongoing basis. This is a reality of life, we all need forgiveness. Jesus is willing to forgive us. When we look at the cro...

Our society has more access to information than at any time in history. We are also more educated than ever… yet we seem to be somewhat more ignorant than we’ve ever been. Paul is talking about a change of behavior to match the change what has changed on the inside. The new self isn’t something that we just come up with on our own. It is created. This process is only possible for those who have be...

With Christ as the cornerstone the church will be built. The gates of hell won’t be able to overcome the church. The children of Israel were one of the first referred to as a “congregation.” We see here the beginning of the “congregation of Israel.” Abraham was called and he went. "Abraham was our father. We are part of his bloodline, that's what is important.” It was for Abraham's faith that God...

Abel's blood was speaking so loudly that it was heard in heaven. The blood of Jesus, which was shed on the cross is speaking better things than the blood of Abel. Blood is very important. If you lose too much blood you lose life. Blood is important because life is important. What is it that Abel’s and Jesus’ blood is speaking to us? Abel’s blood in the ground was really bad news for Cain. Jesus bl...

The sovereignty of God is well established in scriptures. God is over all, all-powerful, all-knowing and all-wise. Just as nothing was created without him, nothing is beyond his reach or beyond his rule. When God decrees something, it will happen. Man can choose to rule his own life. God holds man accountable for the choices that he makes. Whether we are a christian or a sinner, to hear that God i...

What we really need, and the only way to grow in Christ, is to have a life giving and life changing relationship with Jesus Christ. Paul makes it clear that he and Epaphras were not competing. They were in fact working together. The gospel was being preached, people were accepting it and lives were being changed. How can we be planters and waterers and proclaimers and encouragers? It seems like Pa...

If the Holy Spirit lives in you, you are a gifted person. Maybe you don't feel like you have something special to offer all the time... but you do. What Jesus has given you is valuable, Jesus is not a stingy giver. He knows you better than anyone and has created you for a special purpose. If the price of these gifts that we have received was Jesus coming to earth and dying on the cross... that is...

There are a lot of things that change, but Jesus never changes. He is rock solid. This doesn't mean that he doesn't move. Jesus is always at work and moving among and within those who are his. We will all face death. Death is a huge change. If we know Jesus it is a great change. If we do not know Jesus it is a really bad change. Niagara falls is considered to be one of the 7 wonders of the world....

The last enemy to be destroyed is death. We shouldn't be preoccupied with dead, but it is very good for us to take a look every once in awhile at the issue of death. It is a very important subject for us to think about and come to terms with. God did not plan for death but He knew it would happen. God did not say that if Adam and Eve ate of the tree they weren't supposed to that he would kill them...

Our bodies need water. Water is a solvent, which means that it dissolves other things, in our body this means that water carries all kinds of things to all parts of our body. A healthy body needs to have a correct balance of water inside and outside of each cell. Our bodies are largely water... we can live without food for a long time, but we can't live without water. The post The Water of Life ap...

Jesus wants the living seed that he has given us to grow deep and change the way that we interact with those around us, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. After Jacob had died and was buried. The brothers of Joseph began to wonder what Joseph would do to them. Would he punish them for how they had treated him years ago? The post The Forgiving Brother appeared first on Bethel Mennonite...

Some opportunities are fun and exciting. Other times we wish that opportunities that come our way would go on past us. What would happen if instead of trying to find excuses and reasons for not taking part in some opportunities we would instead look at them as opportunities to "occupy our mountain." Ephraim and Manasseh were asking that... The post Occupy Your Mountains appeared first on Bethel Me...

It is much easier to begin planting and watering when children are younger. Teaching our children is something that begins at a very early age. Every home has to deal with difficult things. How parents respond and how they deal with that can be a real testimony to their children. There is a spiritual battle going on. Each of us are being attacked. The post The Role of a Parent appeared first on Be...