scobpastor

Easter

The time is nearly upon us. This Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the time between Good Friday and Easter. In many ways his is the most important season of the church year.

Now you might want to ask the question, What about Christmas? No doubt Christmas is hugely important. After all this is the day when we celebrate the incarnation. God becomes man, Jesus comes to earth to rescue His people it is very important, and we should celebrate it as best we can. Jesus is truly God’s greatest gift, but in the midst of that celebration, there is something we need to remember. The purpose of Christmas is Good Friday. Jesus came to lie down His life for our sins, to pay a price we could never pay. I’ve often wondered what the disciples would think if they would see us calling that day, “Good Friday.” Their friend was brutally killed and they were in fear for their lives. Remember they lived this story in real time. They did now know all that we know, and I doubt they would have seen that day as good, at least not when they were living it. And friends we need to make sure we get something as well. We need to remember the purpose of Good Friday.

We spend a lot of time in the church talking about Jesus’ sacrifice, Jesus dying for our sins, and please don’t get me wrong, we should definitely talk about it, but we have to remember that is not the end of the story. The purpose of Christmas might be Good Friday, but the purpose of Good Friday is Easter, when Jesus rose from the grave. Jesus didn’t stay in the tomb. He paid our price and on the third day He rose again. This is incredibly good news for all who place their faith and trust in Him. Because just as He rose, so too will we. The celebration of Easter is the celebration of eternal life, bought at a high price, the price of God’s only begotten Son. Have you placed your faith and trust in Jesus? Do you believe what the Bible says about Him? Do you believe that what He did on the cross, He did for you. He loves you. Trust Him and believe in Him today.

How do I do that. Well the Bible says all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. If you think about this, you know it to be true. There is no one who gets this life perfect, except Jesus and that is why He could lay down His life for us. Only a perfect sacrifice will do. So he first step is to pray and confess your sin to Him. Ask Him to help you to turn from your sin and live for Him. That is called repentance and it simply means to turn around. Then ask Him to come into your heart and to be your Lord and Savior. Tell Him you believe in Him and thank Him for paying your price. From there, life is a journey of learning to follow him and love Him more each day, and the good news is you don’t have to face it alone. First and foremost, His Holy Spirit comes to live in you, guiding and helping you, and secondly God has given the church, other believers to help you learn to follow Jesus. If you need that kind of help (and we all do), please consider joining us here at Springfield. We would love to have you.

Join us for our Easter Services Sunday April 21.

Sunrise service, 7:30 a.m.
Breakfast 8:30 a.m.
Easter service 10:00 a.m.

Our regular services are at 10:00 a.m. with Sunday School at 9:00 a.m.

Spring is Coming

I have to admit, while I love God and know He has a reason for everything He does, Winter is my least favorite time of year. It’s during this time that we sometimes end up canceling and postponing or trying to figure out whether or not to cancel or postpone. In making these decisions, we have to balance our desire to worship God together as the body, with our desire to keep our people safe. It’s sometimes a pretty difficult decision, but thankfully that time has almost passed for another year.

The Spring promises to be a busy one here at Springfield. Our upcoming calendar has a lot of things on it. Besides our regular Sunday morning worship (10 a.m. every Sunday, Lord willing) and Sunday School (9:00 a.m. every Sunday, also Lord willing), we have our annual Yard Sale, March 22,23 this is a regular event and the community is invited. Come on out and find a bargain or two. Proceeds from the sale go to support the ministries of our church. Church members will want to note our annual Spring council Meeting Sunday, April 7 after service at 1:00 p.m. This is a time when we make important decisions pertaining to the life of the church. On Good Friday, April 19 we will be hosting our Annual Easter Egg Hunt (time to be announced). Then please join us on that holiest of days Easter, Sunday, April 21. We will be having a Sunrise service at 7:00 a.m. our regularly scheduled 10:00 a.m. Service with breakfast in between. May 5 will be our semi-annual Love Feast Service at 6:00 p.m. The Love Feast is our communion service and commemorates the Last Supper, especially as expressed in John chapter 13. It includes a foot washing service, simple meal and bread and cup communion and is open to all baptized believers. Rounding out the Spring and heading into Summer we have our annual trip to an Iron Pigs Game on May 24 and finally we’re hosting a bus trip to Sight and Sound Theater to see their show “Jesus” on July 16. There are still a few bus seats available.

As you can see there’s a lot going on and I for one am looking forward to it. Spring is almost upon us. In the mean time, be safe out there, and in ever season, give God the glory!

God bless,
Pastor Dave

Moving Toward Spring

It seems we just got through with Christmas and all that is associated with it, and before long, we will be at Easter. Time sure does fly. This got me to thinking. Do we really get all that happened between that first Christmas and that first “Easter”Sunday. I put Easter in quotes because that day was not called Easter for many centuries after the day when our Lord arose from the grave. This passage of roughly four months could be said to represent about 33 years in the earthly life of Jesus. In the first 30 of those years, our Savior was born and raised, learned and grew and started his earthly ministry. His ministry lasted only about three years. Consider that impact. In three years, He taught, healed the sick, raised the dead, trained his followers and did all the other things that are listed in the Gospels and undoubtedly more. All that in three years, but beyond that, here we are nearly 2000 years later and the movement He started, His Church is still building and growing and flourishing. The odds against that kind of impact from three years of any human life are monumental, unless…

Unless He is exactly who He said He was. The son of God and God in the flesh; the promised King who would rule forever on David’s throne, the fulfillment of prophecy; the King of kings and Lord of lords. For he record, that is exactly who we believe He is here at Springfield. But there’s more. He is Savior. He came and paid the price for our sins, so that if we will place our faith and trust in Him, we will receive eternal life. This is God’s promise for everyone who will believe. So the big question for you is, Do YOU believe? We’d love to tell you more, we’d love to answer your questions and share what we have received. This much I can tell you for sure. God loves you, right here, right now, right where you are, no matter who you are, and no matter what you have done. God has a plan and a purpose for you life and you were worth so much to Him that He gave His only Son for you.

In our world, much of society gets all amped up about Christmas and rightfully so, but there is a hierarchy that should not be overlooked. The purpose of Christmas is Good Friday, the day Jesus died for our sins on the cross. At the end of the day, this is why He came, to rescue us and set us free. That being said, the purpose of Good Friday is Easter, when Jesus rose again from the grave for you and me. If we will place our faith and trust in Him, we receive the ultimate gift, Eternal life. We’re almost to Spring, a time when everything is, in a sense reborn and new life begins. It’s not coincidental that Easter falls in Spring. It is the ultimate expression of new life.

Have you received it?

Christmas Gifts

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” That’s the start of a very familiar Christmas song and it’s true, Christmas is a wonderful time. There’s the trees, the family gatherings, the meals, and of course, the gifts. I must confess, and this may sound a little shocking coming from a pastor, but I love Christmas gifts. Right now, the most spiritual among you may want to take me aside and say, “You know pastor, the good book says it’s more blessed to give than to receive.” For the record, I know that and the I like the giving even more. There is just something so special about searching out and finding that gift that touches a heart, and really shows you care. I just love it, but all of this begs a question. Why do we give gifts at Christmas?

After all for the most part, it’s not your birthday. Why do we give gifts? Well I think it comes down to two things. First, we might be commemorating the gifts of the magi. You might know them as the three kings, though there were probably many more than three of them and it is somewhat doubtful that they were kings. The word Magi comes from the same word from which we get the word “magician.” They were most likely astrologers, people who believe you can predict the future from looking at the alignment of the stars and planets. One day they saw a new star. That got their attention and they followed it, likely for as much as two years. When they arrived, they found the Christ child and worshipped him. They also brought him gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. Those gifts were very valuable, but there’s more. Think about it. Gold is a gift for a king. Frankincense was a kind of incense used in worship, so you might say it was a gift for a God. Myrrh was a spice used in the preparation of dead bodies. Put them together and what do you have? Gifts for a King who is also God who came to die. They show us who Jesus is and what he came to do.

Beyond this, there was a practical application. Joseph would soon receive a warning in a dream, take the child and flee to Egypt. Herod, the current king, perceived Jesus, the new born king as a threat, and was planning on killing Jesus. As a result, Joseph would have to move his young family to a foreign land almost instantaneously. With very little in the way of resources, how would he pull off such a move? Well the journey was quite possibly made affordable because someone gave him gold, frankincense and myrrh. This is definitely one of the reasons why we give gifts, but there is another much simpler reason. We give gifts to commemorate the greatest gift ever given. The gift of Jesus Christ, who came to take away the sin of the world, save us from our sins and give us eternal life. If you have not already received that gift, please receive Him this year. Just pray and ask Him to forgive you and ask Him into your heart to be your Lord and Savior. If you need more information on this, we are here for you.

One last thing. There are some people in our world for whom this is not the most wonderful time of the year. Maybe they’re grieving or hurting. Maybe they’re lonely and just need a friend. This Christmas, why not be the gift? Go to them and help and bless them. Invite them in. Show kindness. Be a blessing.

May you have a wonderful and blessed Christmas,

Pastor Dave and your friends at Springfield Church of the Brethren

Fall Is Here

It’s officially Autumn. It’s the time when our Lord shows another facet of His amazing creativity, as the greens of Summer give way to the reds and oranges and yellows and browns creating some of the most amazing vistas imaginable. We are blessed to live in a truly beautiful world.

Of course, Fall is a busy time here at Springfield. Our Trunk or Treat event is coming up on October 27. This is a time when we can bless the children of our community with a safer alternative to trick or treating, as we open our doors (and our trunks) to them with plenty of treats as well as games and other ways to let the community know we are a church who cares. But it gets better, after Trunk or Treat, people can stay and be a part of our Chili Cook-off and Pie Contest, with more games, and lots of delicious food. It’s a chance for us to get to know our community and share in some good old fashioned Fall fun and fellowship.

Then just a few weeks later we will be joining with our brothers and sisters from Springfield Mennonite Church to prepare thanksgiving meals to share with people living in the hotels in our community. This will occur on Saturday, November 17 in our fellowship hall and we will take all the help we can get.

Finally, we’re moving toward Thanksgiving and our Thanksgiving Eve service, which we will be sharing with First Church of the Brethren, Quakertown. This should be a wonderful service with people from both churches bringing their gifts and talents to the Worship of our Lord. It will be held on Wednesday November 21, at 7:00 p.m. This will be a great way to prepare our hearts for the holidays. Yes there is a lot going on at Springfield this Fall. Why not come and be a part of it? Our regular services are at 10:00 a.m. every Sunday morning, preceded by Sunday School at 9:00 a.m.

Love Feast

You might see that term and wonder, “What on earth is that?” Well it’s sort of like a communion service, but it’s a little more involved. You see way back in our history someone went back to John 13, a passage on the last supper, and saw there was more than just bread and cup. As the evening starts, Jesus is celebrating the Passover with His disciples. Now in those days it was customary to wash ones feet as they entered a home. This may have had something to do with the fact that most walked everywhere they went on dirt and stone streets in sandals. They shared these streets with animals, so, as you an imagine, feet were often covered with filth by the end of the day. Further, if the home owner was in a position to have servants, the responsibility of foot washing generally went to the servants, and if there were multiple servants, the washing of feet fell to the servant of lowest rank.

Well in the upper room there were no servants, and so Jesus began to prepare to be the washer of feet. Now this was way out of order, at least in the minds of the people in the room that night. Jesus at the very least was the rabbi, the highest ranking person in the room and beside this, the disciples were beginning to realize he was more than a rabbi, but rather the Messiah, the Son of God. Jesus was the last person who should have been washing feet in the room.

Finally Peter objected. He understood that their roles should be reversed and it is then that Jesus tipped his cards, so to speak, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” Ah, there’s a lesson here, and there was. Jesus was trying to show these followers of His that no one is too important to serve others. This would be a vital lesson for them, because they would soon be the leaders of the church. And so Jesus washed their feet, all of them, including Judas who would soon betray Jesus to death. Yes, knowing that this would happen, Jesus still served Judas.

Jesus sums up His lesson this way:

“13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master,nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”

It is for this reason that foot washing is a part of our love feast service. Is it uncomfortable? Yes to some degree, but it is so meaningful. It teaches us two vital lessons for life in this world. That we need to humble ourselves and serve and that we also sometimes need to humble ourselves and allow ourselves to be served.

In addition, we share a simple meal, as we contemplate what Jesus has done for us, before the evening culminates with Holy Communion. This service shows us both our part in Jesus’ death as He died for OUR sins, but then it also reminds us that we also share in His resurrection. This is a beautiful and powerful service that serves to unites us as the body of Christ in the blessed hope Jesus bought for us with His blood. We do the service twice a year, and if you get the chance, you really should check it out.

Join Us for a New Bible Study Later this Month

I was reading David Jeremiah’s new book, 31 Days to Happiness, which by the way will be one of the resources we will use in our study of the book of Ecclesiastes in a few weeks. In the chapter I am reading right now, Jeremiah is writing about the easy way versus the right way and he shares some insights into the way Jesus was tempted in the desert. Satan made three proposals to Jesus:

“If you want food (Jesus had been fasting for 40 days), just turn these stones into bread.”

“If you want fame, just leap from this temple , into the arms of angels.”

“If you want followers, just bow down to me.”

The devil knew exactly where Jesus was going, but he suggested the wrong ways to get there.

Yes, Jesus wanted food, but he needed fasting, not fast food.

Yes, Jesus wanted fame, but through the way of the cross, not ways that were crass.

Yes, Jesus wanted followers, but through victory over sin, not by giving sin the victory. 

The testing of Jesus was all about convenience versus commitment.

Which are you seeking? Join us as we start this study, later this month. We meet at the church, 920 Passer Rd. Coopersburg, PA Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m.

Some Days I Have the Best Job

The reason is simple. I get to create stuff that will help and bless others. Case in point. This Friday, my church will be doing our one day arts day VBS. We don’t quite have everything we need to do a full week of Bible school (YET!) so instead we have this one day, creative bonanza where the kids come in and make art, have fun and learn about Jesus all day. It is a lot of fun. Our theme this year is the New Creature workshop. In the morning we’ll look at what it means to be a new creature in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17) while we paint interesting creatures as a reminder. Then in the afternoon we’ll look at one of the great benefits of being a new creature in Christ, the fruit of the Spirit. Nine evidences that the spirit of the Living God is living and active in the life of every believer. I wanted to create a way to help the students learn this powerful verse. So with the help of an unknown rapper named AMOS AMOK (He might sound familiar) I made this video. It was a lot of fun and I really think it might be helpful to a lot of churches. If you’re in another church and you think this might be useful, feel free to download it and use it. I’m sure AMOS won’t mind.

Trying New Things

There’s an old saying, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.” It’s true of most of life and it’s true of churches, at least to some degree. Now before I go any further, this is not a complaint. We have a love of great things going for us at Springfield. This is an amazing group of people who I love with all my heart. I am extremely pleased with this congregation and I’m proud (can I say that) to be their pastor. They are open and loving and there’s one more thing…

They’re open to trying new things. Now there’s nothing wrong with tradition and there are some traditions that are worth their weight in gold, but we are also tasked with taking the unchanging message of the Gospel to an ever changing world, and in order to do that, sometimes we have to try new things.

Last night we sponsored a comedy show by Brad Stine and people were blessed. We’re little short on children to do a vacation Bible school, so rather than just saying we don’t have enough children to do a traditional VBS, we looked at who we do have and rethought what VBS could be. Now we offer a one day Art Day VBS for our community. We make art, teach the Bible, and all the other great things people associate with VBS and it works.

We also started doing paint parties at our church as a way of welcoming the community, and in September we will be offering a unique art/storytelling program called Pictures of Jesus. In my heart, I know we’re just scratching the surface, but we’re trying to create an environment of empowerment where people can use their gifts to try new things to the glory of God. If you have a skill or a talent that you want to use for a greater purpose, this might be the right church for you. Come on in and check us out.

Why Brad Stine?

I can’t believe this, but in a little over a month, my church is going to be welcoming internationally known comedian Brad Stine. Yes, my little country church in Pennsylvania is going to be welcoming someone who has appeared in large venues all over the world. To say I’m excited about this would be a pretty profound understatement, but maybe not for the reason you think.

I’m a huge fan of his comedy, but that’s not why we’re doing this.

It’s not because it’s a feather in our cap to bring a guy like this in. Oh we’re excited to have him, and we’re pleased to bring him in, we’re grateful that he is willing to come to smaller churches like ours, but that’s not why we’re bringing him in.

I’m sure it’s going to be entertaining, because this guy is HILARIOUS, and I know everyone who comes is in for a real treat, but even that’s not why we’re bringing him in.

No, we’re bringing Brad Stine to our church because in the midst of what is going to be a hilariously great night, is the fact that this is going to be an excellent presentation of the truth that sets people free, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So come and join us on July 15 at 6:00 p.m. and invite a friend, or two or ten. I really believe that this will be a great night for everyone and for some it will be life changing.

So please join us on July 15.

Here’s a little sample of Brad at work.