Gifts in Diversity: The Body of Christ 1Corinthians 12 May 25, 2003 Scripture Reading: Ephesians 4:1-16 Introduction: As if the Corinthians couldn’t think of enough things to be divisive about, Paul now addresses the issue of spiritual gifts. In the last chapter we discussed solutions for the differences…

30 They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” 32 But they did…

Introduction I like to build things. Over the years of our marriage I have made a bed, some shelves, a climbing wall and a few other projects. In some of these projects I would talk to Jess about how I needed a new saw to make the project easier. Her response was often the same. Can’t you do it with…

Introduction: I. What Are The Gifts Of The Spirit? A. Unity In Diversity. 1. Ignorance of the Gifts of the Spirit. a) The Ignorance Occurs on Both Sides of the Issue. & Some lack the understanding that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for today. & Some lack of knowledge concerning their proper scriptural…

Launch: Summit Like a Sherpa Jeff Jones, Senior Pastor November 2/4, 2007 Acts 10:1-46; Acts 11:2-3, 18 Everest Bumper Introduction Today we continue our series on the book of Acts called Launch, how God helped that church take off and how we too both as a church and as believers fly the mission God…

By Pastor Glenn Pease Back in the 1600's William Lantan was the captain of a ship headed for Barbados. A thousand miles off the coast his vessel sprang a leak, and he had the crew take refuge in their longboat. They had a plentiful supply of bread, but little water. After 18 days of drifting they were…

Equipping disciples for ministry Our series as you know by now is based of (Eph5:11-16). To help the church know the important work and the function of the body in the work of ministry (service). Our theme passage 11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some…

By Pastor Glenn Pease Back in the mid 1800's a light-colored moth was very common in the industrial city of Manchester, England. When these moths landed on the bark of the trees they blended in so well that the moth eating birds could not see them, and the result was that they multiplied rapidly. Some…

Introduction I have here two pieces of wood that I need to hold together. I also have some bolts. If I put this bolt through the wood, will it stay? For a little while. Right? It depends on how we apply pressure. What if we switched out the bolt? Would that make it hold? No. We would have the same problem.…

Why are toes important? One of the smallest parts of the human body is the toe. Most of us have 10 of them and likely take for granted their importance. The toes provide support and balance to a person when they are standing, walking, running or doing anything on their feet. When a person takes a step,…

Worship and Witness

The Pillars of Community XV: Community & Unity Philippians 2:1-11 April 19, 2009 Prep: · Sermon 11, Cecil’s conflict sermon · EDASC notes, notes · All passages, unity verse (in leftovers) Intro: Importance of unity · We are back in our series on community, driven by our mission statement, which I should…

Why does Christianity continue to grow? What are the values that drive its culture-spanning history? How does it transform cultures and people into better versions of themselves, rather than forcing the one culture on everyone? The values of inclusion and diversity, which lie at the heart of Christianity, account for all these questions. But then why does the church struggle so much with the modern Western values of inclusion and diversity? Where did they come from? How are they different? Join us as we grapple with these questions in the hope that we can understand how, as modern, Western Christians, we can embrace the values of Christianity while reaching out to a broken world.

Alastair talks about Paul’s advice to the Corinthians on spiritual gifts and encourages us to offer our gifts for God’s purposes.

How does the world respond to the events happening in our world today with racism and diversity?

Acts 20:28-31 28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among…

Alastair speaks about 1 Corinthians 16 and the challenge of bringing a diverse church together in community, family and relationship through the power of the Gospel.

We are reminded that God graciously gives us one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God. We are encouraged to act in a way that reflects the unity we have in Christ.

Maybe divisions can serve a purpose? Rather than have everyone agree on a side - and it be the wrong side - like before the flood; maybe it is good that people have different views and perspectives? Maybe if we don’t call it division - what if we call it diversity? How can we leverage diversity to recognize what is good and spread it throughout the earth?

1 There was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment. 2 He was a devout man and feared God along with his whole household. He did many charitable deeds for the Jewish people and always prayed to God. 3 About three in the afternoon he distinctly saw in a vision…

Pastor Kern shares on the beauty of diversity and unity in the Body of Christ through God's Holy Spirit.

Introduction Greetings & Welcome I grew up in a conservative, traditional Baptist home. My father was a minister of music and, later, in another church, he became a deacon. Our church wasn’t a large, megachurch, though it was large for our small, college town in Southwest Arkansas. It was a proper Baptist…