Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA

All Anabaptist beliefs intersect in the way Anabaptists do church. In their view of the church, we see their understanding of salvation (saints), baptism (believers), relation to sinners and society (separated), their sense of responsibility for each other (disciplined and shared goods), and their commitment to shared values, space, goals, and commitments. For Anabaptists, a disciplined brotherhoo...

When we see people, how do we see them? Sometimes we see categories. Sometimes we see the behavior of others. At times, we hardly notice people at all. How did Jesus see people? When He saw the multitudes, He had compassion (Matt. 9:35-38). Jesus’ compassion for humanity is evident in Eph. 2:1-10. In this, we observe our common condition, His compassion, and ultimately our calling. In Jesus&...

Usually, when we hear the words “The First World War,” we immediately think of the First World War, which began in 1914 with the assassination of Prince Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne. This assassination led to multiple countries becoming involved and declaring war on each other. In Genesis 13, we read of the separation of Lot and Abram; Lot, who chose the fertile plain of th...

Many of us have shopped at Aldi’s and have been motivated to return our shopping carts to their place… for the incentive of getting our quarter back! Aldi’s, as well as other merchants, uses catchy phrases to show their dedication to their customers… “.the customer comes first!”, “you are our everything,” and that we should, “drive a little, sa...

The most fundamental difference between the general Protestant and Anabaptist views of salvation is that the Protestant view makes salvation/justification something that happens outside a person (external), and the Anabaptist view makes it something that happens inside a person (intrinsic). The Protestant view says that Christ’s righteousness is imputed to the believing person’s account in heaven,...

The Bible assumes the reality of God and is not occupied with speculation about the nature of God. The Bible is concerned primarily with God’s self-revelation and the appropriate human response. Many verses in Scripture speak of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’s work in human affairs. There were many significant councils that discussed issues surrounding the meaning of the Trinity. Nicea (325) sa...

We find five different positions on the church/state relationship in 16th-century Anabaptism. Medieval: The church and society are the same thing. This is the view of all groups in 1500 and the view even of the Swiss Brethren prior to January 1525. Radical dualism, as represented by the Schleitheim Confession of 1527: This is the view that there are two kingdoms, the kingdom of God and the kingdom...

One lesson we can learn from Abraham and Lot’s relationship is the proper view to have toward wealth. The antidote for greed and love of money is contentment. This may seem obvious, but if we simply can come to the place where we are satisfied with what we have, we will not have a constant urge to gain more wealth. Another lesson we can learn from Abraham and Lot is how to deal with conflict. Abra...

The Anabaptist view of Biblical interpretation is Christocentric. For all Anabaptists, Christ was the center of Scripture. Christ is the cohesive Person and “principle” in all the Scriptures and the “key” to understanding Scripture, both Old and New Testaments. Anabaptists said that the written Word, no matter how well it is interpreted or understood, is a dead letter in the heart until the living...

You Matter to God – Psalm 139 Are we significant in God’s eyes or are we only a dust speck? Is God really paying attention to me? Psalm 139:1-6 You know when I sit and when I rise; my going out and my lying down, you perceive my thoughts, you are familiar with all my ways, you hem me in, behind and before. What kind of attention is this that God has for us? Is it a caring kind of attention?...

Concerning baptism, in the 16th century, civil governments viewed infant baptism as the act that made the newly born baby a member of society and a member of the church. Luther, Zwingli, Bucer, and all 16th-century reformers except Anabaptists agreed with the Roman Catholic Church that infants must be baptized. The reasons each of these reformers used to defend infant baptism differed, but they al...

Abram & Sarai were nomads, always traveling, looking for food and pasture for their animals. When drought came, they moved to Egypt. So this story begins with a famine. Water is a necessity for both mankind and animals. Egypt had the Nile River. Abram told Sarai to lie to Pharaoh about who she was so it would go well with him. Pharaoh saw that she was beautiful and had her brought to the palac...

The movement that became known as Anabaptists was characterized by its focus on Scripture and gatherings of scholars for the purpose of study. These gatherings often included Latin, Hebrew, and Greek scholars, and men trained in theology. This is the kind of group that studied Scripture in Zurich with Zwingli from 1515 to 1523. As in other cities where these kinds of groups met, the discussions su...

Scripture teaches that baptism should follow a response to the proclamation of the good news concerning Christ’s life, teaching, death, and resurrection. According to Rom. 10:8-10, when the Word is preached and the heart believes and the mouth confesses that God raised Jesus from the dead and that Jesus is my Savior and Lord, God saves. I Pet. 3:18-22, Rom. 6:1-6, and Col. 2:11-15 teach that at co...

The name Sarah means “Princess.” She was a mother to many people. In Genesis, Sarah struggled with infertility for years. To solve the problem of having an heir, she decided to give Hagar to Abraham. Now, she is almost 90. God understands the needs of women. When the three men showed up at Abraham’s tent door, Abraham displayed Middle Eastern hospitality. He provided them with a shady...

This sermon summarizes and contrasts the Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Anabaptist positions on five major 16th-century issues: their view of political, social, and economic reality; their view of authority and tradition; their view of what it means to be saved; their view of what the church is; their view of what ethics applies in human relations. The Catholic and Protestant views of political,...

This is a message of encouragement for those who are discouraged or feel like they are not on a “mountain top.” It is the story of Elijah’s discouragement and flight in the wilderness after the victory at Mt. Carmel and Jezebel’s subsequent threat on his life. Instead of chiding him, God met him with comfort and grace – a drink, a cake, and a still small voice. Mounta...

The Anabaptist/Mennonite movement began in the 1500s during a grand reaction to the Roman Catholic Church in Europe. This reaction, called “the Reformation,” was rooted in the abuses and anti-Biblical practices that had developed both in society and in the Roman Catholic Church since 100 AD. Europe was going through deep intellectual, social, political, and religious turmoil. All desires for refor...

Abram was the first in his lineage to be called, and his influence can be found in the roots of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. The name Abram means “exalted father,” while Abraham means “father of many nations.” He hailed from a wealthy family in Ur of the Chaldeans, but the people there did not serve God. When Abram’s father passed away, the call came for him to l...

Today we remember the resurrection of our Lord which happened about 2000 years ago. I wonder what the eleven disciples, the women, and the other disciples experienced during this time? How do you account for such total despair at the crucifixion and 50 days later such joy and boldness when they received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost? Can we be as invigorated as they were? Matthew 26:30-75 (NLT) Pet...

The source of the church’s power is Jesus Christ. In the early church Christians were not afraid to die. People saw this faith lived out as they watched martyrs die and they wanted this kind of strong faith. The result was that the early church grew and spread. We also have this same power today because of the one who is leading us. We have the Holy Spirit which empowers us. The power of the churc...

Sacraments/ordinances in the NT: There is no list of sacraments/ordinances in the NT. The picture we get in the book of Acts is unstructured gatherings in spontaneous, dynamic community life meetings, and activities such as baptism and the Lord’s Supper happened organically several times a week. In the NT mention is made of other community activities as well, such as community of goods, speaking i...

Bread in the Old Testament – People have eaten bread for years. Bread is mentioned many times in the OT. Bread was the number one food eaten in the OT. Where there was famine, bread is what was usually mentioned. The Israelites cried to Pharaoh in the land of Egypt for bread. Elijah went to the widow and asked for bread. The Passover feast used unleavened bread. Bread is the symbol of God’s...

How can we come to the Lord’s supper with honesty about our sins and failures but discernment that the Lord’s body and blood offer us forgiveness and mercy and life? I Cor. 10:16-17 Christ was available to the children of Israel. He was near them, sustaining them but none of that impacted their souls. They were not in fellowship with him. By partaking of the Lord’s supper we are participating with...

God has tasked us to help others learn about His love and be good examples of His followers. We should use our individual talents and abilities to work together and help God accomplish what He needs. People have been given different abilities and resources and we should leverage them to do good. The post Us – Doing His Will appeared first on Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA .