Wellington Church of Christ

Last week, Nathan Bradbury, Levi Turney and I hiked the Grand Canyon.  There are many ways to see the different parts of the Grand Canyon, and a person could explore it all of their life and not see it all. 

To maximize the experience and see as much as possible, we hiked from the top of the south rim to the Colorado River at the bottom and then back up a different trail that took us back to the top of the south rim of the canyon.  In total, we hiked a little more than 17 miles and were in the canyon a little over 14 hours.  We hiked the full 17 miles all in the same day.

I often have heard people blame the devil for their sin, but how much of our sin is simply due to the fact that we love sin?  James 1:14 says,

But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust (emphasis mine).

We live in a time when people go to great measures to feel safe.  This is best illustrated in larger cities. 

First, you have to figure out where the safest neighborhood is in the city and move there.  You will no doubt be in a gated housing addition.  I’ve even visited a friend who lived in a gated housing addition within a gated housing addition!  Two sets of gates!

It is helpful to think of Christians as a reserve army.  What is a reserve army, exactly?  It is an army that has been trained exactly like the regular army, but after being trained, returns to civilian life until it is called into service.

I am so very excited to continue our study of Matthew.  I love the approach of Matthew in presenting Jesus as King and Savior.  Here’s what we’ve covered so far:

It’s easy to name the greatest gift that God has ever given to mankind, which is obviously Jesus, but it’s much more difficult to name the greatest common gift He’s given.

I was once discussing the topic of giving to the church with a man who was employed by the church.  I was shocked when this same man told me that he did not give any offering to the church.

Over the past weeks as I have studied the Bible in preparation for what I would preach regarding the topic of financial giving, I have also read and listened to a large number of teachings on the subject.

Last year I knew of two churches that conducted studies regarding the giving percentages of their members.  The results surprised me.  Both studies showed a similar result of financial giving by less than 50% of its members.

Giving, Part 1

I’ve shared before that my favorite part of corporate worship is taking the Lord’s Supper.  What I haven’t shared is how much I love the “separate and apart” part that comes right after the Lord’s Supper – the offering.