I once had a guy tell me the Bible was “an idol of a dead book”.  The very next sentence that came from his mouth contained a verse of Scripture from the Bible.  These days, I am finding more and more people only want to believe select parts of the Bible.Why do people only seek to believe select parts?  Well, when one leaves out a certain part, it allows them to live however they please (in their life of sin).  The Bible is NOT “an idol of a dead book”, and we must NOT choose to believe only select parts else we run close danger to living apart from Christ.

Another person once told me that the Bible contains errors and flaws.  This person said they believed the Biblical text had been altered.  From over 24,000 original manuscripts of the books of the Bible we have, we know that the original (Greek and Hebrew) text have NOT been altered.  If someone, somewhere along the line altered the translation of the original text, I believe that one of the thousands of scholarly translators would have caught an altercation in texts by now.  We have more manuscripts of books of the Bible than any other book on this planet.  The books of the Bible have been translated more than any text in the history of this world.  So, the Bible being flawed or containing errors is NOT a valid argument.

Both of these people told me they believe God speaks to them in prayer, visions, and etc.  That’s great, and I believe God speaks to us in more ways that just the Bible.  However, we must not throw the Bible out, for we are easily deceived.  Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?”  Obadiah 1:3 says, “The arrogance of your heart has deceived you”.  God gave us His word (the Bible) so we can have instructions to follow.  When we become so arrogant to say that God’s word is “an idol of a dead book” or “God’s word to us contains errors or flaws”, we have been deceived by our own heart!  Man’s heart is evil all the time!  Genesis 6:5 states, “Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually”.  If our hearts are continually evil and easily deceived, why would we trust only our hearts?  God has given us HIS WORD (the Bible) as a guide to help us understand and know Him and what He desires for us!  God’s word (the Bible) is infallible and inerrant!  Our hearts are continually evil!  Do not be deceived, God gave us His word (the Bible) to teach us how to live our life, and to know Jesus is the Savior of the world.  Read the Bible, believe the Bible, and live by the Bible.

James 1:22 – “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”

This week, someone I knew personally died from an overdose.  He was 19 years old when he died. Four years ago, he lived in the same house my wife and I lived.  For a year and a half we struggled trying to reach this teenager for Christ.  We never reached him, but I pray that someone did.

As the news of his death hit me, I began to evaluate myself.  I asked myself questions like:  What did he see in me?  Did he see my frustrations with him?  Did he see when I became angry?  Did he see me losing hope? or, Did he see Jesus in me?  Did he see love?  I honestly do not know what he saw in me.  There were times when I would become frustrated, and there were times when I felt angry towards him.  I know that I loved him enough that I wanted him to come to know Christ, but did he see that!?

We are to be salt and light!  Salt to a tasteless people, and light to a dark world.  Are we as Christians being a tasteful light?  Are we doing our part to let people know there’s a better way to find satisfaction?  I will never again be able to speak to this young man and reach him for Christ.  My opportunity for sharing Christ with him has come and gone (though I did share Christ with him on several occasions).  There is an urgency in sharing the love of Christ with people!  No one is guaranteed tomorrow.  Will you be a tasteful light and share the love of Christ with people?

Matthew 5:13-15

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; ¹⁵ nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Have you ever bumped into an old friend that you considered to be a lifelong friend,but it turns out they were only a friend to you at that moment in your life?  Not long ago, I lost every contact in my phone.  Most of the people I considered friends contacted me within a month, and I received their phone numbers again.  However, there was one contact in my phone I considered to be a great friend.  After about 2 months with no call from this contact, I searched on the internet, found this person’s place of employment, and contacted this person.  I spent about 20 strange minutes on the phone before the realization hit me:  “This is not a great friend – this is not even a good friend anymore.”

Friendship with Jesus is not something we have to worry about.  Jesus calls us “Friend”!  He is such a great friend that He laid down His life for us!  It is a joy and a comfort to know that someone so amazing loves you and me so much.  There are no worries about whether or not Jesus will contact us back.  In fact, Jesus wants to talk with us daily.  It’s up to us to reach out to talk with Him everyday!

John 15:12-15

¹² “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are My friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵ No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends.”

WHY JOIN  A CHURCH?

Let’s face it, we need each other!

Why do the New Orleans Saints all wear the same uniform?  To identify that they are all on the same team.  Why do married people wear wedding rings?  To symbolize their commitment to a partner.  Why do we Christians get baptized?  To go public with our faith in Jesus Christ.

In the same way, church membership identifies your willingness to formally and publicly align with the mission, values, and beliefs of The Grove Church.

There are many reasons for having formal membership.
Here are a few…

ONE
Formal membership is valuable to the leaders of the church as they guide the church body.  Our mission here at The Grove Church is “to connect people to God, to others, and to service.”  We have been left on earth by God to reach unbelievers.  So at some point it is important to identify those who truly comprise the “family” at TGC, the core that can be counted on to build and sustain the ministries of this church.

TWO
Accountability.  While it is true that everyone can participate in just about anything around here, there are certain leadership responsibilities that are reserved for those who have made themselves accountable to the church through membership.  Even if you are not ready to become a leader yourself, you may be relived to know that those members in leadership positions have agreed through membership to support this ministry and to be held accountable.

THREE
Even though you will not find the term “church member” in Scripture, it seems that the concept of belonging is found throughout the New Testament.  Believers clearly identified themselves with a specific local body and were challenged to become devoted participants.

FOUR
Experience shows that membership benefits the individual.  In a culture where commitment is no longer highly valued, recognizable membership is an important step that moves each of us off the sidelines and into the game.  It is letting the church leadership know, “You can count on me.”  Members typically feel more ownership in the church.  They feel like shareholders rather than spectators.  They usually find it easier to connect with others and build lasting relationships

So, while you won’t receive an engraved plaque or a reserved parking spot when you become a member, you will draw great satisfaction from knowing that you are a part of something bigger than yourself, something eternal.  We want you to partner with us in reaching our world for Jesus Christ.

Over the next few weeks, you will have the opportunity to mark on your Connection Card, “I would like to join The Grove Church.”  I encourage you to commit to membership as early as possible. God bless!

Here we are already starting the second month of 2011! Although it seems much longer, it has only been one and a half years since The Grove Church had its first preview service, and one year and four months since we officially launched as a church. During that time, we have made some great strides and have seen some steady growth and progress as a church. Let me share some of those good things with you.
God miraculously supplied us with a great facility, and we had our first preview service on June 28, 2009, in the former theater in Turtle Creek Mall. At that time we had only 12 people who were a part of this new church plant (nine of which are members). However, with the help of many outside volunteers from two of my former churches, we were able to get off the ground and begin meeting. We officially launched as a church on September 27, 2009. For the first year of our existence, we were only able to offer Sunday morning worship and a Bible study/Prayer time and College/Career on Wednesdays.
Starting in September 2010, we implemented a Sunday morning Bible study at the church prior to our worship service. We call these small groups, Grove Groups. Presently we have six groups meeting including the children and preschool/nursery. Our plans are to start several more new Grove Groups during 2011 as God continues to enlarge our leadership base. As of February 2, 2011, we offer a program for all age groups from birth – adults on Wednesday nights. A ladies Bible study/luncheon has also begun and meets once a week at 11:30 am in our lobby.
The following statistics might be of interest to you pertaining to what God has done in the life of The Grove Church as of the end of January 2011.
1. We started the church with only nine (9) members the last Sunday in June 2009, and our membership is now at thirty-five (35) members. We generally offer a new member class every 2-3 months for those who are interested in joining.
2. Our average worship attendance for the last seven months is sixty-eight (68) people in attendance. That number represents a 28% increase over the same time period of the previous year.
3. We have 99 people on roll for our Grove Group Bible study (Sunday School), and we are averaging 38 in weekly atten-dance.
4. The best news of all is that we have seen twenty-one (21) people saved and baptized in the first year and a half of The Grove Church’s existence. That does not include the numbers of people who had been out of church for years, but have now become active in their attendance.
5. The Grove Church will conduct its first international mission trip to build a church in Brazil, June 2-11. The ladies and teenagers will be conducting a mission VBS while the men build the church. We have around 15 from TGC that are planning to participate, 2 others are former members of mine at Escatawpa Baptist Church, and 8 others from Kentucky are joining up with our group. We will be constructing a church building for a new church in the small town of Coconut Beach, Piaui, Brazil.
We are seeking donations to help defray the construction cost for the new church building in Brazil; or perhaps you would like to help sponsor one of the volunteers. If so, you can send your donation made out to The Grove Church, 1000 Turtle Creek Dr., Ste A5, Hattiesburg, MS 39402-1155. I really don’t enjoy making appeals for support, but as a young church our financial resources are limited and some of our volunteers have limited resources as well. However, in spite of our limitations, I believe that God wants us to develop a culture in this new church of participating in Kingdom growth through mission involvement, and that is what we intend to do. I do know that God will supply our needs according to His riches in glory! If He wants you to be a part of meeting those needs, you will be blessed as you obey.
Thank you for all the prayers and support each of you have given to The Grove Church and staff since the conception of the vision for the church in our hearts. Many of you have prayed for us and supported us since July of 2008. God is answering your prayers in a fantastic way! Please, please, don’t stop praying! There is so much to do, and so little time to do it before Jesus comes. Souls are hanging in the balance between heaven and hell. Collectively, our prayers can tip the balance