The Vineyard- December 25, 2011

The Vineyard

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. – John 15:5

I Timothy 6:6-8

-          What do you think Paul means when he tells Timothy that there is great gain in godliness in contentment?  How does contentment increase our godliness?

-          We come into this world with nothing, and we leave it with nothing, and yet God stands at either of our life.  What does this tell us about how we should prioritize our pursuit of material vs. spiritual blessings?

-          Paul seems to say that contentment is based on needs, not wants.  If we have everything we need, we should be content, even if we don’t have everything we want.  What are ways you could help others find contentment, by meeting their needs?

Luke 2:1-7

-          Jesus was the model of contentment, as he was willing to be born in a barn, and have a manger for a bed.  Does the Son of God, the creator of the world’s willingness to be born into such humble surroundings cause you to re-evaluate your priorities?

-          Jesus was born in a barn because there was no room for them in the inn.  More than likely, if they had known who Jesus was, they would have made room for Him.  We do know who Jesus is, so do we make room for Jesus, or do we seclude him in some out-of-the-way corner of our lives?

Prayer Requests- December 25, 2011

Prayer Requests:

Recent Requests:  Those who have lost jobs, especially at Cabrini and the hospital in Oakdale, Stan Broussard, Drew Babb, Vonnie Johnson, Alton Peters, Allie Mae Doyle, Thelma Polk, Darwin Jones, Cody Clausner, Arnold Gill, Jimmy Parks, George & Vera Lee Johnson, James Johnson

Continuing Requests:  Dianne McDonald, Bernice Thibodeaux, Bill Goree, Mary Ann Fuller, Tonya Chelette, Benny Richard, Roanne Ballio, Mrs. Joe Danton, Martha Townsend, Dot Melder, Tom Fuller, Bubba Jones, Darwin Jones, Juan Martinez, Harvey Paul, Harvey Paul, Jr., Charlie Wilson

Deployed Military:  Tyler Johnson, Robert Rogers, Blake Thompson, all those serving in the military

Cancer Patients:  Shelby Atkinson, Yvonne Bass, Leonard Butter, Shirley Cameron, Gleeta Chamberlain, Jerry Cole, Sharon Cook, Jody Corbet, Rodney Cotton, Dorothy Crane, Wanda Dauzat, Ava Dore, Aly Ericson, Ruth Ann Fisher, Jared Gordon, Steve Goudeau, Allie Harvey, Johnny LaHay, Maria LaMartiner, Dot Langston, Mariliyn Lavisphere, Mattie McReynolds, Elaine Melder, Bob Morrow, Clark O’Banion, Jeanie O’Rorke, Doug and Claudia Pinkston, Wes Roberts, Donny Shows, Linda Sipco, Carlos Smith, Robert Smith, Wally Pullen Smith, Walter Stagg, Glennell Stanley, Jackie Teasely, Will Tulos, Dalton Welch, Shane West, Charles Whitten, Britney Wilson, Geraldine Willis, Charles Young

Nursing Homes:  D. C. Carruth, Janie Jenkins, Helen Johnson, John Kenner, C.J. Meyers, Doris Polk

Deaths: James Reynolds family, Max Earl Melder family, Antonio Sanchez family, Timothy Coker family, Margie Cloud family, Clayton Whittington family, Bradley Cathey family, Blake Kellogg family

Unspoken Requests

James Reynolds

Remember the family of James Reynolds as they lay him to rest tomorrow.  Visitation will be here at the building tomorrow beginning at 8AM, and going until the funeral at 10AM.  As always your prayers are greatly appreciated!

The Vineyard- December 18, 2011

The Vineyard

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. – John 15:5

Mark 9:30-37

-       -    Jesus disciples missed the point of His teachings as they fought amongst themselves.  Do you ever miss the point, and spend more time worrying about your own status than how you can help and serve others?

-      -   When you receive others, do you treat them as you would Jesus Christ?

Mark 9:38-41

-       -   Did the disciples want to stop the man from exorcising demons because he didn’t follow Jesus, or because he didn’t follow them?

-       -   Do you judges others based on their agreement with you, or based on their agreement with Jesus?

Mark 9:42-50

-         -    It is our mind that ultimately leads us into sin.  Why then do you suppose Jesus refers to cutting off a hand or foot, or tearing out an eye that causes us to sin?

-         -   Jesus analogy is really about valuing things, even our own bodies, more than we value our relationship with God.  This could mean either indulging in sin, or avoiding suffering in the name of Christ, because of a desire to serve the body. 

-         -   Salt acts as a preservative, but only in significant quantities.  What does this tell us about the importance of the church, and Christian fellowship?

Prayer Requests- December 18, 2011

Prayer Requests:

Recent Requests:  Those who have lost jobs, especially at Cabrini and the hospital in Oakdale, Stan Broussard, Drew Babb, Vonnie Johnson, Alton Peters, Allie Mae Doyle, Thelma Polk, Darwin Jones, Cody Clausner, Arnold Gill, Jimmy Parks, George & Vera Lee Johnson, James Johnson

Continuing Requests:  Dianne McDonald, Bernice Thibodeaux, Bill Goree, Mary Ann Fuller, Tonya Chelette, Benny Richard, Roanne Ballio, Mrs. Joe Danton, Martha Townsend, Dot Melder, Tom Fuller, Bubba Jones, Darwin Jones, Juan Martinez, Harvey Paul, Harvey Paul, Jr., Charlie Wilson

Deployed Military:  Tyler Johnson, Robert Rogers, Blake Thompson, all those serving in the military

Cancer Patients:  Shelby Atkinson, Yvonne Bass, Leonard Butter, Shirley Cameron, Gleeta Chamberlain, Jerry Cole, Sharon Cook, Jody Corbet, Rodney Cotton, Dorothy Crane, Wanda Dauzat, Ava Dore, Aly Ericson, Ruth Ann Fisher, Jared Gordon, Steve Goudeau, Allie Harvey, Johnny LaHay, Maria LaMartiner, Dot Langston, Mariliyn Lavisphere, Mattie McReynolds, Elaine Melder, Bob Morrow, Clark O’Banion, Jeanie O’Rorke, Doug and Claudia Pinkston, Wes Roberts, Donny Shows, Linda Sipco, Carlos Smith, Robert Smith, Wally Pullen Smith, Walter Stagg, Glennell Stanley, Jackie Teasely, Will Tulos, Dalton Welch, Shane West, Charles Whitten, Britney Wilson, Geraldine Willis, Charles Young

Nursing Homes:  D. C. Carruth, Janie Jenkins, Helen Johnson, John Kenner, C.J. Meyers, Doris Polk

Deaths: James Reynolds family, Max Earl Melder family, Antonio Sanchez family, Timothy Coker family, Margie Cloud family, Clayton Whittington family, Bradley Cathey family, Blake Kellogg family

Unspoken Requests

The Vineyard- December 11, 2011

The Vineyard

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. – John 15:5

Mark 9:14-29

-     Jesus disciples failed in their attempt to do the very thing he had commissioned them to do, to cast out demons.  This failure by Jesus’ disciples caused the boy’s father to doubt whether Jesus’ Himself could cast out the demon.  How does your behavior as a Christian reflect Christ?  If people know you are a follower of Christ, would that make them more or less likely to want to learn more about Jesus?

-  Jesus reveals to His disciples that their mistake was in their self-reliance.  By failing to pray, they have cut themselves off from the very power needed to fulfill their calling.  How is your prayer life?  Are you plugged into the source of power that enables us to walk as Christians?    

Faith vs. Doubt

-  Faith and doubt coexist, because neither would exist without the other.  Just as we know light only because we have experienced darkness, we know faith, only in relation to the doubt that we have experienced, and continue to experience. 

-    The boy’s father expresses something that we all can relate to, that inside each one of us is a strange and awkward mixture of faith and doubt.  He expresses a desire to move farther away from doubt, and closer to faith.  What has your journey in faith been like?  Do you feel you have more faith now than when you first began?        

Prayer Requests- December 11, 2011

Prayer Requests:

Recent Requests:  Those who have lost jobs, Vonnie Johnson, Alton Peters, Allie Mae Doyle, Thelma Polk, Darwin Jones, Cody Clausner, Callie Carruth, Arnold Gill, Jimmy Parks, George & Vera Lee Johnson, Max Earl Melder, James Johnson, Margie Cloud

Continuing Requests:  Shirley Goree, Janet Prather, Dianne McDonald, Bernice Thibodeaux, Robert Maddox, Bill Goree, Pete and Eva Stewart, Trevor Clark, Rachelle Johnson, Abby Arnaud, Marvin White, Shirley Decker, Tony Keith, Glennell Stanley, Mary Ann Fuller, Tonya Chelette, Benny Richard, Roanne Ballio, Mrs. Joe Danton, Martha Townsend, Dot Melder, Perry Fleming, Tom Fuller, Bubba Jones, Darwin Jones, Juan Martinez, Harvey Paul, Harvey Paul, Jr., Charlie Wilson

Deployed Military:  Tyler Johnson, Robert Rogers, Blake Thompson, all those serving in the military

Cancer Patients:  Shelby Atkinson, Yvonne Bass, Leonard Butter, Shirley Cameron, Gleeta Chamberlain, Jerry Cole, Sharon Cook, Jody Corbet, Rodney Cotton, Dorothy Crane, Wanda Dauzat, Ava Dore, Aly Ericson, Ruth Ann Fisher, Jared Gordon, Steve Goudeau, Allie Harvey, Johnny LaHay, Maria LaMartiner, Dot Langston, Mariliyn Lavisphere, Mattie McReynolds, Elaine Melder, Bob Morrow, Clark O’Banion, Jeanie O’Rorke, Doug and Claudia Pinkston, Wes Roberts, Donny Shows, Linda Sipco, Carlos Smith, Robert Smith, Wally Pullen Smith, Walter Stagg, Jackie Teasely, Will Tulos, Dalton Welch, Shane West, Charles Whitten, Britney Wilson, Geraldine Willis, Charles Young

Nursing Homes:  D. C. Carruth, Janie Jenkins, Helen Johnson, John Kenner, C.J. Meyers, Doris Polk

Deaths: Clayton Whittington family, Joyce Melder family, Bradley Cathey family, Blake Kellogg family

Unspoken Requests

Praise: Carolyn Willis is doing better, and Drew Babb’s procedure went well!  

Galatians 4:8:20

Galatians 4:8-20

-          V. 8-11

o   V. 8

§  Cf. Acts 14:8-18; I Thessalonians 1:9-10; and I Corinthians 8:4-7; 10:19-22; 12:2

§  “those that by nature are not gods” could be a reference to participation in the cult of the emperor

o   V. 9

§  The reference to God acknowledging them is a statement of the divine initiative

§  Could Paul be saying that for the Gentile Christians to turn to the law is the same as their returning to the pagan worship of the past? 

§  The description of the elemental spirits as weak is a reference to their inability to save or justify, while their description as beggarly is a reference to their lacking of any spiritual riches or value

§  “knowing” in this context is not referring to an intellectual knowledge, but rather an intimate experience

§  “Relationship with God does not have its basis in [human] seeking (mysticism), or doing (legalism) or knowing (Gnosticism), but it originates with God…and is carried on always by divine grace.”

– Richard N. Longenecker

o   V. 10

§  The observance of days, etc. was apparently something they saw as obligatory, and to view it as such was effectively the same as worshipping the forces that dictated the calendar. 

§  Cf. Colossians 2:16

§  Observances of the calendar are generic, and thus can refer back to pagan or emperor worship, or forward to the Jewish cultic calendar if they seek to follow the law of Moses

o   V. 11

§  The Galatians are like “the dog who runs along a stream with a piece of meat in his mouth, and deceived by the reflection of the meat in the water, opens his mouth to snap at it, and so loses both the meat and the reflection.”  - Martin Luther , “The Freedom of the Christian”  in Luther’s Works

§  Cf. I Corinthians 15:58, Philippians 2:16, I Thessalonians 3:5

-          V. 12-20

o   V. 12

§  He became as them by surrendering his claims as a Jew, so he asks them to become as he is by also surrendering their attempts to become Jewish

o   V. 13

§  Suggestions as to Paul’s malady include malaria (he would have retreated to the altitude of Galatia to recover), epilepsy (the reference to not scorning or despising literally meaning not spitting out, a typical response to ailments like epilepsy thought to be the result of evil spirits), and ophthalmia (the reference to the fact that they would have given him their own eyes)

§  No way of knowing if the ailment is the same as the one referenced in II Cor. 12:7

§  Evidence that eyes problems might have been Paul’s ailment: 1. He uses a scribe for many of his lengthy letters (Rom. 16:22; I Cor. 1:1; I Thess. 1:18; II Thess. 3:17) 2. He refers to his problem as a weakness of the flesh and not a demon 3. His bodily presence when preaching was described by some as being weak (cf. II Cor. 10:10) 4. We know he was blinded on the road to Damascus 5. Paul references sounds but not sights from when he was taken up into the third heaven (II Cor. 12:1-7) 6. He writes with very large letters (cf. 6:11)

o   V. 14

§  The welcome as an angel, or messenger of God is commendable given Paul’s physical state

§  Spitting would have been a popular way of attempting to ward off the “evil eye”, which someone in Paul’s state would have often been assumed to bear

§  Cf. Matthew 10:40; Luke 10:16; John 13:20

o   V. 15

§  Cf. Deuteronomy 32:10, Psalm 17:8, Zechariah 2:8

o   V. 16

§  Telling someone the truth is a mark of genuine affection, and yet here it seems to have alienated Paul from the Galatians

§  Cf. II Cor. 12:15

o   V. 17

§  “shut you out”- if the Galatians go over to a following of the law, ironically they will be shut out from the people of God because of their Gentile heritage

o   V. 18

§  Reference to the Galatians being made much of, or them pursuing the good?

o   V. 19

§  Cf. I Thess. 2:7

§  Cf. Mark. 13:8; Matthew 24:8; Revelation 12; I Thessalonians 5:3; Galatians 4:27

§  The fact that Paul is speaking to many different churches probably means that he is speaking of Christ being formed in them as individuals

o   V. 20

§  Written words are no substitute for conversing in person, and can sometimes be misinterpreted, or at the very least fail to communicate the intended sentiment

o   The desire to return to former worship practices would have been stronger if the Galatians felt socially isolated, or that they had lost economic or political opportunities by abandoning their previous form of worship.  Perhaps they sought a new social circle in the synagogue and through following the law?

The Vineyard- December 4, 2011

The Vineyard

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. – John 15:5

Mark 9:1-13

-          Even when confronted with the glory of Jesus, Peter’s response is to make three booths, one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah.  He failed to understand that as God, Jesus alone is to be praised and worshipped.  Even having experience Jesus’ grace and forgiveness, do you ever find yourself wanting to worship other things, or even other people?

-          Despite the glory of the transfiguration, there was much work left to be done, and hence much suffering left to undergo for Jesus.  What the disciples mistook for the end was really only the beginning.  Did you feel like your putting on of Christ was the end of a journey, or simply the beginning of one? 

Psalm 4

-          In this psalm David expresses both knowledge of God’s saving action in the past, and also a present need for God’s help.  Our awareness of God’s past goodness and faithfulness gives us confidence to continue to approach Him for help in our time of need. 

-          While being confident of God’s help, David also asks questions.  Have you ever experienced a time in your life when you had faith, and yet you also had many unanswered questions?  This psalm of David’s shows us that questioning builds our faith, and is a part of the process of placing our hope in God.  

Prayer Requests- December 4, 2011

Prayer Requests:

Recent Requests:  Sylvia Johnson, C.J. Meyers, Paige Johnson, Lois Johnson, Jimmy Parks, Carolyn Willis, George & Vera Lee Johnson, Max Earl Melder, James Johnson, Margie Cloud, D. C. Carruth

Continuing Requests:  Shirley Goree, Janet Prather, Dianne McDonald, Bernice Thibodeaux, Robert Maddox, Bill Goree, Pete and Eva Stewart, Trevor Clark, Rachelle Johnson, Abby Arnaud, Marvin White, Shirley Decker, Tony Keith, Glennell Stanley, Mary Ann Fuller, Tonya Chelette, Benny Richard, Roanne Ballio, Marie Cook, Mrs. Joe Danton, Martha Townsend, Dot Melder, Perry Fleming, Tom Fuller, Bubba Jones, Darwin Jones, Juan Martinez, Harvey Paul, Harvey Paul, Jr., Charlie Wilson

Deployed Military:  Tyler Johnson, Robert Rogers, Blake Thompson, all those serving in the military

Cancer Patients:  Shelby Atkinson, Yvonne Bass, Shirley Cameron, Gleeta Chamberlain, Jerry Cole, Sharon Cook, Jody Corbet, Rodney Cotton, Dorothy Crane, Wanda Dauzat, Ava Dore, Aly Ericson, Ruth Ann Fisher, Jared Gordon, Steve Goudeau, Allie Harvey, Johnny LaHay, Maria LaMartiner, Dot Langston, Mariliyn Lavisphere, Mattie McReynolds, Elaine Melder, Bob Morrow, Clark O’Banion, Jeanie O’Rorke, Doug and Claudia Pinkston, Wes Roberts, Donny Shows, Linda Sipco, Carlos Smith, Robert Smith, Wally Pullen Smith, Walter Stagg, Jackie Teasely, Will Tulos, Dalton Welch, Shane West, Charles Whitten, Britney Wilson, Geraldine Willis, Charles Young

Nursing Homes:  Janie Jenkins, Helen Johnson, John Kenner, C.J. Meyers, Doris Polk

Deaths: Joyce Melder family, Bradley Cathey family, Blake Kellogg family

Unspoken Requests

Praise: George Johnson was able to go home, but is still in need of prayers for restored strength.