Today’s Quote — Intimacy (Bonar)

When You Are Busy…

“The accent in the church today is not on devotion, but on commotion” one writer said a generation ago. The temptation in the church (and most of life) is to fill schedules with activities, to let expectations of others become personal demands, and to base a sense worthiness on the extent of busyness. So Matt […]

God’s Love for MIssions

God’s Love for MissionsSelected ScripturesJune 2, 2024 John Paton was a missionary to the Hebrides (19th C.). Late in life he recounted the 40-mile walk he took when in his early 20s to go from his home to the train station where he would find transportation to go to seminary to prepare him for the […]

One Thing…

One Thing…Psalm 27May 26, 2024 I have read that in Deadwood, SD there is a sign in a museum that had been left by a beleaguered prospector in the area: “I lost my gun. I lost my horse. I am out of food. The Indians are after me. But I’ve got all the gold I […]

Sermon: An Acceptable Debt

An Acceptable DebtRomans 13:8-10March 28, 2021 What makes a church a church? Biblical preaching and teaching. Corporate worship (including baptism and communion). Purity of the gospel. Evangelistic proclamation. Generous fellowship. Sacrificial service. Church membership and church discipline. What makes Grace Bible Church Grace Bible Church? What sets us apart and makes us unique? What identifies […]

Fellowship with God

This post was originally published June 3, 2013; it is being republished today because the theme fits this past Sunday’s sermon so well. The term “fellowship” is used regularly in the context of the church (do non-believers use the word?). Often the word is used synonymously for “food” or “feast,” as in, “be sure to […]

Sermon: Fellowship and the Cross

Fellowship and the Cross 1 John 1:1-4 November 29, 2020 Many years ago (while in seminary) I was an evangelism trainer on a team of people from our church who went out weekly to share the gospel. One of the people on my team was a good friend from seminary. As we were headed back […]

The church – God’s compelling community

One of the best books I read last year was The Compelling Community, co-authored by Mark Dever and Jamie Dunlop. Last week I found an interview that Dever and Dunlop did for Nine Marks, discussing the book. Often books will make statements that suggest immovable principles. This interview “softens” some of the hard statements of […]

Sermon: Cultivating Community

“Cultivating Community” Ephesians 4:1-3 January 10, 2016 Tom Pennington tells the story recounted in the book Great Church Fights by Leslie Flynn. The tale recounts a feud in a Welsh church looking for a new pastor. The newspaper article read this way — Yesterday the two opposition groups both sent ministers to the pulpit. Both […]

Sermon: Hospitality, truth, love, and missions, Pt. 2

Hospitality, Truth, Love, and Missions, Pt. 2 3 John 7-14 October 5, 2014 Years ago, when then-speaker of the house Sam Rayburn discovered he had terminal cancer, he shocked everyone when he announced that he was going back to his small hometown of Bonham, Texas. He was often asked, “They have the finest facilities in […]

Sermon: Hospitality, truth, love, and missions

Hospitality, Truth, Love, and Missions, Pt. 1 3 John 1-6 September 21, 2014 One thing we speak of frequently at GBC is the shape of our church ministry: what will we do and how will we do it? There are so many competing ideas of what a church is and how it should function that […]

Sermon: Restrictions to Fellowship

Restrictions to Fellowship 2 John 7-13 September 14, 2014 The first time I remember a Mormon coming by our house when I was a child was when we were living in Minnesota. I think it was January. My Dad answered the door, saw who they were, stepped outside, closed the door, and shared the gospel […]

Sermon: The Basis of Fellowship

The Basis of Fellowship 2 John 1-6 September 7, 2014 Satan is the ruler of the world (1 Jn. 5:19). That makes the world a wicked and awful place. And despite our discouragement about what we find in the world, we’ve come to expect what we find in the world and from the world. But […]

Essentials Conference audio

Audio from the recent Essentials Conference on fellowship, hosted by Countryside Bible Church is now available. The messages included: Sunday, Feb. 9 “The Challenge and Limits of Biblical Koinonia” (Romans 15:5-7) — Mike Fabarez “The Kind of Body Life God Favors” (1 Thessalonians 5:12-15) — Jerry Wragg “Body Life: Deformity or Symmetry” (Romans 12:3-8; 1 […]

Sunday Leftovers: Fellowship with God

The term “fellowship” is used regularly in the context of the church (do non-believers use the word?). Often the word is used synonymously for “food” or “feast,” as in, “be sure to bring enough food to the fellowship (feast)…” or “come Wednesday evening as we enjoy fellowship (a meal) together…” While fellowship can take place […]