Hillview Family and Friends!

Ushers and greeters. We can create an alternate schedule. If anyone is interested, please see LaTanya Dunn.

Sis. Debbie will be having Children’s ministry 1st through 4th Sundays.  On the 1st Sunday the children will  do special projects. Please text Sis. Debbie if your child will not be in attendance. 5th Sunday no children’s ministry.

Feb. 28th- Sis. Debbie’s Birthday. 

Feb 28th-To the leadership team, Annual Reports are due. Email your reports to hillviewchurchofgod@gmail.com.

March 1st– First day of Women’s History Month.

March 8th– Daylight Savings time (Spring forward)

March 8th   Annual business meeting after church service. A  light lunch will be served.

March 14th– Church Summit. 8am– 12pm.

March 15th– Baptismal service. If anyone wants to be baptized, please see Pastor Dexter.

 

Offering Envelopes are located on the wall outside of the sound booth.

Church of God on Facebook

Church of God News

http://www.chognews.org/ 

Donate With PayPal 

Years ago, there was a TV commercial for the financial firm E F Hutton. The commercial took place in a busy restaurant. One man said to another, “My financial adviser is E F Hutton, and he says,” the camera pans the restaurant, and everyone has their hand to their ear listening to what E F Hutton had to say.

 

How attentive do we listen to God when He speaks to us? Do we even recognize the voice of God when He speaks? Are we excited to meet with God and talk with Him, or are we afraid? You might ask, why would people be afraid to talk with God? Let’s take a look!

 

After God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, Moses led the nation to Mount Sinai. There they were to meet with God. The meeting was arranged, the people consecrated themselves and went out to hear from God.

 

Exodus 19:16-19

16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.

17 Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently,

19 and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.

 

Exodus 20:18, 19

18 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance

19 and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”

 

The people were terrified of God, so much so they told Moses, you talk to God then tell us what He said, and we will do it. Here we have the people of God not wanting Him to speak directly to them, but through a mediator. In this case the mediator was Moses.

 

 

I’ve been studying in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a prophet of God. Listen how God described Israel (God’s Chosen People) to Ezekiel.

 

Ezekiel 2:3-5

3 He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their fathers have been in revolt against me to this very day.

4 The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says.’

5 And whether they listen or fail to listen– for they are a rebellious house– they will know that a prophet has been among them.

 

A pattern has been established, God speaks to His prophets, and they relay God’s message to the people. FYI being a prophet was a tough job, not because of God, but because of the people. Ezekiel’s life was an object lesson to the people. An object lesson is a method of teaching where the teacher uses a physical object or visual aid to explain or discuss a lesson.

 

Ezekiel 3:22-27

22 The hand of the LORD was upon me there, and he said to me, “Get up and go out to the plain, and there I will speak to you.”

23 So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown.

24 Then the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet. He spoke to me and said: “Go, shut yourself inside your house.

25 And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.

26 I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, though they are a rebellious house.

27 But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says.’ Whoever will listen let him listen, and whoever will refuse let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.

 

I’m going to make a statement now that I encourage you to research, don’t just accept it because I said it. We’ve been talking about the role of a prophet in the Old Testament. Some believe God uses prophets today like He did during the early church. “Biblical prophets of old had a foundational ministry in the early church, and they are not needed today. (Ephesians 2:20)” Once a foundation is laid you build on it; you don’t lay another foundation.

 

From today’s text we see a shift in how God speaks to us. “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.”

 

“In the book of Hebrews Jesus’ true identity as God is revealed. Jesus is the ultimate authority. He is greater than any religion or any angel. He is superior to any Jewish leader (such as Abraham, Moses, or Joshua) and to any priest. He is the complete revelation of God. This means Jesus alone can forgive sin. He has secured our forgiveness and salvation by His death on the cross.”[1]

 

When Jesus died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two. This symbolized more than a physical tearing of a cloth. It was a bold declaration that even the most common of people could now enter into the presence of God and commune with him. Before, people had to go to the physical high priest to hear a message from God. But now, Jesus has become the perfect High Priest, and the most common of people can enter into his presence.

 

“Christ’s sacrifice was the ultimate fulfillment of all that the OT sacrifices represented-God’s forgiveness for sin. Because Christ is the perfect sacrifice for sin, our sins are completely forgiven-past, present, and future. Christ has removed sin, which barred us from God’s presence and fellowship. We must only accept his sacrifice for us. By believing in Him, we are no longer guilty but cleansed and made whole. His sacrifice clears the way for us to have eternal life.”[2]

 

God spoke to his prophets and they in turn would instruct the people.  How does He talk to us today? He talks to us through His Word, through our experiences, and through prayer. The Apostle John said this about the Word:

 

John 1:1-4, 14

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning. ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ¹⁴ The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

 

Jesus is the Son of God and He speaks to us through God’s Word. What has Jesus told us from the Word that guides us with the help of the Holy Spirit? The Gospels are full of Jesus’ teachings. I’ve selected a few teachings to share with you this morning.

 

Mt 7:13, 14

¹³ “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴ But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

 

This Word is instructing us that only one gate leads to eternal life with God and only a few discover the difficult road that leads to it. Jesus is the gift of God that leads to salvation and eternal life. Make sure before it is too late that you are entering the right gate.

 

Mt 11:28- 30

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

 

If you are not careful you will allow religion to burden you down with unnecessary rules and regulations God never intended for you to bear. Jesus offers us love, peace, and healing now, and one day eternal life and joyful unity with him. Jesus’ yoke implies hard work but not dead-end legalism and self-powered effort. Nobody wants to help you carry the world’s yoke, but Jesus will help you carry his yoke.

 

John 15:1-7

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

 

Jesus is the vine, and God is the Gardener, who carefully plants and cares for the branches with one purpose—that they bear fruit. The branches are those of us that claim to be followers of Jesus. Fruitful branches are true believers who, by their union with him, produce much fruit. We draw our energy and nourishment from him. Remember, if you only make a superficial commitment to Jesus, you will be separated from the vine and thrown in the fire and burned.

 

John 17:12-17

¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

 

Jesus is telling us He chose to love us and die for us. Then He invited us to live with Him forever. It is up to you to accept or reject His offer. Jesus is also telling us not to be a hater, but to love one another. He also calls us friend and has made known to us everything His Father has made known to Him.

 

Regardless of the way God chooses to “speak” to us today, remember one truth. He will never contradict His Word, and the message He gives will always bring glory to God.

Study Questions On

How Does God Speak To Us

 

1. Did you ever have an encounter with God that was frightening to you?
2. How should a sinful life respond to a righteous God?
3. Do you agree or disagree that since the office of prophet was a foundational ministry they are not needed today?
4. How does the book of Hebrews describe Jesus?
5. What did the tearing of the veil in the Temple from top to bottom signify?
6. What does it mean to you to enter through the narrow gate that leads to eternal life?
7. Was it easy for you to exchange your worldly yoke with the yoke Jesus offers?
8. As you look over your life in Christ, have you been a fruitful branch?
9. Being friends with Jesus has its perks. Can people say that about being friends with you?

[1] Life Application Study Bible, Megathemes on the book of Hebrews, 2133.

[2] Ibid

 

Continue to pray for the sick and shut-ins and their caregivers. Prayer is needed for our entire congregation as we are all dealing with spoken and unspoken needs and requests.

Weekly Events

Sunday School: 9:30am  

Worship Service 10:45 am Sermon live stream 11:15 am You tube http://www.youtube.com/@HillviewChurchofGod-u3m

Facebook:(https://www.facebook.com/HillviewCOG

Face