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Compiled by the Faith Newsletter editor: Burt Pearson
Contents:
From Your Pastor
Florida Presbytery Meeting
Welcome To The Griggs
Youth And Family Evening
The Regulative Principle
Don't Be Afraid To Ask For Help
Friends And Family Day
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From Your Pastor |
Dear Church Family,
As we approach the half-way point of 2010, I want to say thank you for all of your hard work. I have served in several other churches, and I have never seen a congregation work so hard, and do so much with the resources that God has entrusted to them. We are hard workers—which is a great thing. Let us always pursue excellence to the glory of God! God calls us to be faithful with His resources, and with our priorities that He sets for us in his word. And yet, I am sure you would agree that faithfulness is more than merely working hard and doing a lot of things. Therein lies the struggle—how to faithfully, tangibly, apply biblical principles and precepts in gospel ministry without compromise, which will bring the most glory to God, most effectively equip and minister to the saints, maintain our fellowship, and most effectively reach out to the community. To put it another way, leading the flock to green pastures where there is the most nourishment, growth, and satisfaction because God is most glorified in us. Let me assure you that is the goal of the Session here at Faith, although the process has not gone as smoothly or as expeditiously as some had hoped or expected. Having said that, I believe we are on the right track in at least a few areas, while there is still much work to be done in others.
First of all, we are committed to gospel-centered proclamation of God’s Word in our teaching and preaching, including Sunday school, and small group Bible Studies, and community groups, as well as in our worship service. We are committed to the priority worship, because there is a true sense in which worship is what the Christian gospel is all about. The eternal gospel that we preach is summarized in Revelation 14:7 as “Fear God, and give him glory…and worship him.” Additionally, the preaching of God’s word is the primary means of grace for the believer. The Session is offering two worship services (morning and evening) with two different sermons every Lord’s Day.
Secondly, we are committed to family-integrated ministry. We believe that an integrated, family-based ministry will enable us to effectively fulfill the directives of Deuteronomy 4:9; 1 Corinthians 12:12ff; and Ephesians 4:12-13. It will equip and enable our church to fulfill its role by teaching all our members the biblical principles of fruitful family relationships. Therefore, rather than focusing on any one specific group in our congregation, we are focused on our entire Faith family, having a congregational ministry approach. We believe this integrated ministry will benefit all our members, and, God willing, our community.
Thirdly, leading our congregation in reaching out to our unchurched, unreached neighbors is a strong desire, and goal, of our Session. Additionally, our Outreach Committee is working diligently to develop strategies so that we as a congregation can more effectively connect to our community. We welcome your ideas and suggestions as well. Most recently, we had a very good turnout for our Friends and Family Day event held on May 15. Over 110 people attended—including approximately 10 potential new contacts. Most in attendance were our members and their extended family, which is great fellowship! The Outreach Committee, along with many other recruits, worked so hard to help make it such a nice event, and we are grateful it was so well received. Having said that, outreach is one of the areas where we need considerable improvement. We as individuals (including myself of course) can, and must do more to carry out our own individual part of the Great Commission. Even if we held more events like Friends and Family Day, unchurched, unreached people seldom come to a church sponsored event on church property, although it does happen occasionally as we saw at our last event. Most certainly we need to continually seek creative ways to reach out to the unchurched, unreached in our community as a church body. And yet, true outreach occurs when we, as individuals, make friends with our unchurched, neighbors and show genuine love to them, and then as the friendship grows we tell them about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and invite them to worship with us at Faith. Perhaps we would be well served to focus on equipping individuals with skills and creative ideas that we as individuals might better connect with the unchurched, unreached people in our providential spheres of influence.
Finally, fellowship is an important part of the body life of our congregation. In Acts chapter 2, after Peter’s sermon at Pentecost, verse 42-43 says, “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.” As we continue to grow numerically and spiritually, we must also strive to deepen our relationships with one another. This is certainly a challenge for us all in the day and age in which we live. I spent the last two weeks reviewing our church calendar for the first half of this year in order to gain a greater perspective. Every week we see the bulletin announcements, and flyers publicizing the various activities of the church that have been planned with the congregation in mind. However, you cannot get a proper perspective of the entire organization until you take a monthly calendar (like the one Brenda provides) and you record absolutely everything that takes place in that month—and I do mean everything—including the number of people and families those monthly activities affect. When you have completed that task, then sit back and look at it. A visual aid would be much more helpful at this point but here is a list our activities for a typical month: Sunday School, morning worship, evening worship, choir practice every Thursday evening with a lot of extra rehearsal for special Easter music, Wednesday, and Thursday morning Bible study, two community groups meet in the evening every other week (another one is beginning soon) a new women’s study is beginning in June, men’s prayer breakfast the first Saturday of the month, women’s breakfast every third Friday of the month, the Christian Education Committee and the Outreach Committee, meets every month, Worship committee meets every other month, the Deacons meet once a month, the Session has been meeting twice and sometimes three times per month. Additionally, as a congregation, we have been averaging more than one major event every month (Jan.—Officer training, Feb.—Rowell farm trip and Fellowship dinner, Mar—Teacher training, Apr.—Missions weekend with Scott Moore and Women’s prayer breakfast with Kathy Barron, hosting Florida Presbytery, May—Youth and Family evening, Friends and Family Day, and Graduate recognition). Then add to the calendar all of the hours of work, and the number of people it takes to plan and execute one of these events—which sometimes is a “Herculean task.” Also, don’t forget the times when so many in our congregation minister to the needs of one another when a family crisis occurs, or when there is sickness or death. Then include elder visitation and shepherd care, and all the work our deacons do on a monthly basis to manage the physical resources God has given to us. On top of all these church activities and responsibilities, everyone’s personal lives are filled with numerous activities, hobbies, and responsibilities. Fellowship is very important to us all, and no one wants to see that diminish. In fact, we want to strengthen it. At the same time, making time for fellowship, and having people who are able to fellowship, and who can commit to making themselves available for fellowship is a tremendous challenge. I realize that most people are trying to support the overall ministry and participate as much as possible. So this is not an indictment on anyone, nor is it an admonition, or even a complaint. I am simply stating an observation of reality. We are all very busy. Believe me when I say, I understand busy. My point is, we are committed to deepening fellowship and to providing meaningful opportunities for our congregation. Moving forward, we ask for your continued grace, and patience.
In conclusion, I want you to know we are currently finalizing a calendar of events for the remainder of the year which will be available to the congregation very soon. In the meantime, would you be in prayer for the Session as we seek to be good stewards of your time. Please also pray that God would direct us as we prioritize activities and seek to apply biblical principles and precepts in gospel ministry, which will bring the most glory to God, most effectively equip and minister to the saints, maintain our fellowship, and most effectively reach out to the community.
I truly am looking forward to the remainder of 2010 God willing. May you be encouraged as we seek His Kingdom, and His righteousness in all that we do.
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Grace and peace,
Pastor Adams |
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Florida Presbytery Meeting |
On Tuesday, April 27, the spring stated meeting of the Florida Presbytery was held at Faith. The meeting went very well.
Largely responsible for the meeting's success were the efforts of several of our ladies. Thank you ladies.
Provided for the morning break were muffins, bite size cinnamon rolls and cookies.
Karen Thornton developed and prepared the lunch menu which included mastaciolli, chicken fingers, rice, green beans and cole slaw, with rolls and a sheet cake for dessert. Karen did all the cooking and buffet-served the various items with capable assistance from Jean Poole, Liz Spengler and Marian Sweigart.
These ladies did Faith Church proud. |
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Welcome To The Griggs |
On April 18, 2010, Hank and Miriam Griggs joined the Faith family. They are originally from Bradenton, FL. Their families were close friends – they shared mutual friends and went to the same church growing up. They married 45 years ago, after finishing college. They have one son who lives in Brandon, Mississippi and greatly enjoy their two grandsons, now 12 and 9 years old.
Hank was a math teacher for 28 years and then finished the last 10 years of his career as a guidance counselor at Space Coast Junior/Senior High. Miriam was a media specialist at Suntree Elementary School. They are now thoroughly enjoying retirement.
The Griggs both enjoy trips in their 5th wheel after recently upgrading from a luxury pop-up. Hank is an avid hunter and fisherman. His largest trophy was an 8-point buck. This past year he got a 7-point buck along with two gobblers, one which set a size record. Miriam enjoys all sorts of reading.
Hank and Miriam’s faith journeys were very similar. They were both brought up in Christian homes and were exposed to the gospel early and consistently. Family devotions were a regular part of life. Miriam accepted Christ as her savior in elementary school; Hank was a teenager when he
knew he was called. They are both happy in the Faith fellowship and enjoy being part of our loving and caring family.
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Welcome to the Griggs! |
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Youth And Family Evening |
Saturday, May 8, 2010, was perfect for the Faith Youth and Family evening celebrating Faith’s high school graduates at the Richardson’s home. The black and gold decorations made it obvious that the three grads, Chris Fallows, Todd McInerney and Amanda Richardson, were all Merritt Island Mustangs. Faith members of all ages attended, giving the special opportunity for the older members to chat with the youngsters somewhere other than church.
The pool soon was filled with swimmers, the little ones in floats and life jackets. The braver young people jumped off the sail boat into the canal. (Why is that always so much more fun than jumping into the pool?!) All who ventured out in the kayaks experienced up-close dolphin encounters – a real treat that doesn’t happen every kayak excursion.
Hot dogs, BBQ pork and turkey sandwiches accompanied Charlie Harris’ awesome baked beans and Al Stewart’s world-famous corn pudding. Amanda cut the cake and dessert finished off the evening.
Faith Youth and Family events give us extra opportunities to get to know each other better, offering time to laugh and play together, especially across generation lines. If you missed this time of fellowship, there will be the next opportunity… Don’t miss that chance to better get to know your brothers and sisters in Christ at Faith!
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Submitted by
Mari Richardson |
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The Regulative Principle |
To Glorify God and Enjoy Him Forever
Why? This unique one word question represents the life's work of Socrates. For those who are not familiar with Socrates, he was a Greek philosopher who sought the ultimate truth by asking questions until the person he was asking could no longer answer. He was very much like a child who asks "Why?" after every answer you give. Socrates' work ultimately led to his execution and he died without discovering the ultimate truth. However, this question has been refined over the years and it is now stated more along the lines of, "Why do we (humanity) exist? What is our purpose?" The first of these two questions is easy for a Christian to answer since we all know that God made us and that is why we exist. The second question is a little more complex though.
What purpose has God given to people? Some might say that we must follow the Great Commission while others might say that we must be fruitful and multiply. While both of these answers are absolutely correct, I believe that they are only part of a larger purpose. In fact, I am agreeing with the Westminster Assembly of Divines who wrote and published the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms. Thankfully, they were much wiser men than I and were able to answer this question in Shorter Catechism question and answer number one, which states:
Q: What is the chief end of man?
A: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
In twelve words these men answered a question that the "greatest" intellectuals in history have never been able to successfully answer. However, in doing this they raise another question: how do we accomplish this chief end? Thankfully they did not write only one question in this catechism which brings us to question and answer number two which states:
Q: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him?
A: The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.
This is simple enough to understand, but in recent days Christians have been drifting further and further away from this. Before I continue, it is necessary to give a name to this principle. In this article I am referring primarily to worship and this principle, when applied to worship, is known by theologians as the regulative principle of worship, or just the regulative principle.
The regulative principle basically states that the only things that can take place in a worship service are those things that God has commanded in Scripture and that everything that He has not commanded is forbidden. The opposing view is much more liberal and is called the normative principle of worship, or the normative principle. It states that as long as something does not violate Scripture then it is permitted. I will restate that I agree with the Westminster Assembly of Divines in that I hold to the regulative principle, but what Biblical evidence do I have to support my position? I have asked this question of myself and I have found several passages that support this position. Starting with Deuteronomy 4: 1-2: "And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you."
Moses tells the Israelites that they must only do what God commands. The regulative principle is in agreement with this passage of Scripture, but the normative principle is in opposition to this passage since it allows things to be added.
Next, in Deuteronomy 12: 32:
"Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it."
This restates the previous point, but it is useful in demonstrating that this is a reoccurring theme in Scripture.
A practical example can be found Leviticus 10: 1-3:
"Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized* fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, 'This is what the Lord has said, 'Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.'' And Aaron held his peace." *(As a side note, the word "unauthorized" is sometimes translated as "strange" or "foreign".)
God did not tell Nadab and Abihu to offer this fire. They did it of their own accord. They were adding to God's commands and for this they died. They followed the normative principle not the regulative principle. They paid the price for not following only and exactly God's commands. This is similar to when Uzzah placed his hand on the ark of the covenant to stabilize it and he died on the spot (2 Samuel 6). His intentions were good, he was trying to keep the ark from falling, but good intentions are no match for God's commands.
Jumping forward a little to Psalm 78: 5-8:
"He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments; and that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God."
The psalmist discusses that the children should keep God's commandments and that their fathers were unfaithful. This unfaithfulness is exactly the point when it comes to how we are to worship God. We are to worship according to His commandments and through faith. When the psalmist is discussing the faithlessness of Israel he is referring to many incidents, but among them is idolatry. One of the most familiar examples is the golden calf that Aaron made when the Israelites thought that Moses was dead (Exodus 32). Aaron made an alter before the idol and sacrificed to God (the real God) before it. His intentions were to honor God, but Scripture tells us that three-thousand Israelites were killed for this sin. Again, adding to God's command ends in death.
My final Scripture reference will be John 4: 22-24:
"You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth."
Jesus is speaking to the Samaritan woman at the well in this passage. He says that we, "must worship in spirit and in truth." To worship in spirit means that we have a heart for the worship we are giving God. On the practical level this means that we follow along when Scripture is read. We listen and pray with whomever is praying aloud. We not only sing with the rest of the congregation, but also pay attention to what we are singing. We pay attention to and prayerfully consider the sermon. Last but most certainly not least, we participate in the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Not just by taking part in them, but focusing on the meaning that they possess and the great role that they play in our sanctification. This is a small sampling of what it means to worship in spirit. To worship in truth means that we must know what the truth is about worship. What is the only source of truth? Of course the only source of truth is God and since God reveals Himself and His truth in Scripture, this is where we must look to for the truth about worship. This is where the regulative principle comes into the picture.
If Scripture is the only place where we can learn the truth about worship, then we must only do what Scripture commands which is what the regulative principle states. We must have both spirit and truth in worship. If we only worship in spirit then our "good intentions" are all that matter. We can clearly see from Nadab, Abihu, and Uzzah that good intentions are not enough. However, if we only worship in truth, then we only give God lip service. This is what Israel did many, many times in the Old Testament and it is one of the things that the psalmist discusses in Psalm 78 (see above). So we must worship in both spirit and truth in order to honor God appropriately.
There are many other passages of Scripture that the regulative principle is in agreement with and to date I have found none that it is in contradiction with. All of these examples from Scripture given, what does the Associate Reformed Presbyterian (ARP) Church have to say on the matter of the regulative principle. The Directory of Public Worship of the ARP Chapter 2, Section 1 says:
"The God who calls us to worship also directs us how to worship. The word of God given to us in the Holy Scriptures is the only rule to direct us in how we may worship and glorify Him. What He commands us, we must do, neither adding to nor taking away from anything which He commands."
I could not write a better definition of the regulative principle of worship than this section of the ARP standards. This statement clearly agrees with my rather feeble definition from earlier. We can do only what God commands. To do otherwise is disobedience and sin. Another excellent statement about the regulative principle is Chapter 2, Section 2 which states:
"The parts (elements) to be included in the worship of God are either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be derived from Scripture."
This statement clarifies the previous one and also serves to make the clarification that if a reasonable, logical conclusion may be drawn from the commands that God gives, then this also serves as a part of worship. For example, the ordination and installation of officers takes place during a worship service. God does not command us explicitly that this is to be conducted in a worship service, but we are able to come to this conclusion based on other commands that God gives concerning the ordination of officers and how these ordinations and installations were conducted in the New Testament.
All of this said, the regulative principle is in agreement with Scripture, the Westminster Standards, and the Standards of the ARP. The ARP holds to the regulative principle, Faith holds to the regulative principle, and the officers of Faith hold to the regulative principle since they vowed to uphold the Standards of the ARP when they were ordained and installed. To this end, I can assure you with great confidence that the officers of Faith will continue to apply the regulative principle and lead this church according to Scripture as it is revealed through Holy Ghost.
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In Christ,
Bryan T. Hall |
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Don't Be Afraid To Ask For Help |
As we get older there are everyday normal things we can no longer do as well (or do at all) as when we were younger.
The trouble is most folks don't want to "bother" anyone. They may hold back because they are used to taking care of things themselves. Nobody needs to know about their health, financial, etc. problems.
*Downsizing can be a big problem. We collect things all our life and then retire to a smaller place and can't fit all the "stuff" into our new place.
*Seeking help to learn a new hobby or skill which would help to make living with health issues easier.
Of course the first one to ask for help is Jesus in prayer. In Mark 11:24 Jesus said:
“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”
Free help sources:
*We Help Brevard (253-6326) Referral service for elderly friendly businesses.
*SHINE (1-800-963-5337) Trained volunteer counselors to assist in questions concerning Medicare or Health Insurance Coverage.
*Brevard County discount drug card program (633-2076) For information talk to Tammy Harris.
*My Boomer Senior Resource Guide is available at CVS Drug Stores.
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Blessings,
Jack Poole |
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Friends And Family Day |
The Friends and Family Day held May 15th was enjoyed by our church family and many visitors from the area. Attendance was estimated between 110-125 for the afternoon.
The children had fun digging for treasure, trying their skills at bean bag toss, football toss and other games provided for them. There was constant activity around the jump house which is always a big hit!
Those who were unable to come missed out on some special moments such as our Sunday School Superintendent, Dave Kalm, dressed in his security attire of animal balloons complete with balloon belt pistol and unusual cap. Many children and adults enjoyed the unique animal balloons created especially for them. We also had a great deal of fun observing the variety of artistic face painting on the attendees as designs were completed by our talented face painting artist.
Unlimited snow cones were a great hit with everyone on a warm afternoon and we thank the Syms family for providing the snow cone truck. We also enjoyed hot dogs, cotton candy and many other treats for the whole family.
The highlight of the afternoon was an outstanding performance by Dr. Dan, the Magic Man from "The Magic Dove" shop in Cocoa Village. Our activities room was filled to capacity for the 50 minute show as Dr. Dan used his talents and tricks, incorporating numerous references to scripture to show the Love of Jesus to his audience. The children were anxious to volunteer when Dr. Dan needed help and even Pastor Adams ended up being a participant in the show, explaining how Jesus can wipe away our sin.
We thank everyone who came to support this outreach. Many volunteered their time in different ways to make this successful and I sincerely thank everyone who donated their time and talents throughout the planning and also the day of the event.
My special thanks to the Outreach Committee, Deacons, and Elders, for all your special efforts and hard work. We thank our Lord for the beautiful weather He provided for the event and for all His Blessings.
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Russell Penick
Chairman, Outreach Committee |
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