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What's up with the rock? 02/09/07
Greetings!
What's up with the Rock?
BRRRRrrrr!! Stay Warm Everyone - Come out of the cold on Sunday to hear Pr. Katie talk about Luke 6:17 - 26, which is a parallel to Matthew's Sermon on the Mount.
Sunday at 5:00 pm in the Pentecost Room we'll meet as a community to hear God's word and sing totally awesome songs!!
~Stacy and the SR crew!
"I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess." ~ Martin Luther
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I. Announcements
II. Solid Rock Contact Information
III. This Week's Readings
IV. Questions to Ponder
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I. Announcements
- 40 days of Spiritual Renewal - 2 - 2- 1 : sign up to renew your Spirit during Lent.
- Squares Circle - February 11 @ 7pm: Single Women contact Stephanie Hilton for more info. stephers32@hotmail.com
II. Solid Rock Contact Information
Solid Rock is blessed by the guidance of Pastor Rick Lund. With any questions regarding the service, please feel free to contact him at ricklund@bethel-madison.org or 257-3577.
III. This Week's Readings
1 Corinthians 15:12-20
12Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? 13If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; 14and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. 15We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ - whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. 17If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have died in Christ have perished. 19If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
20But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died.
Gospel ~~
Luke 6:17-26
17He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. 18They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. 19And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.
20Then he looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21"Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. "Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22"Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. 23Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. 24"But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. 25"Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. "Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. 26"Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.
IV. Question(s) to Ponder
As with every Scripture text, these verses of Luke lend to many topics of discussion and many voices of opinion. As I read and re-read these verses, TREASURES kept coming to mind. What is the first image that pops into your mind when you hear the word TREASURE? For me, it is the image of an old pirate treasure, full of gold pieces and jewels.
Reading this text reminds me to ask myself, "What is important to me?" If I treasure and live for riches of toys and material things, what do I have in the end? Will material items truly fulfill the inner need to be close to God? Will material items nurture the relationship with Jesus? In 2007, we rarely come across a pirate treasure chest full of gold pieces and jewels. However, we can oftentimes find ourselves shopping to have the latest gadgets and gizmos. How will the next gizmo and gadget fulfill your life? Will it nourish your relationship with Jesus?
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