Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Christopher Engelsma. The sermon was a continuation of the pastor's series on Acts, but we read from Ezekiel and took a look at Acts. The sermon touched on baptism, similar to the last couple of sermons as we are studying the pouring out of the Holy Spirit onto the early Christians. Some modern Christians believe that only people who can make a credible confession of faith can be allowed to have the sacrament of baptism. However, as we study the Bible, we can see a reason to believe otherwise. The Hebrews would've understood a baptism to be a family event. If the head of a house was baptized, the entire house, including his children, which included the infants, would've been baptized. This practice appeared to have continued throughout the early church. 

Sermon Report

Yesterday's sermon was preached in the second half of Acts 2. Pastor Chris Engelsma preached on the first half last Sunday, so we did the second half this Sunday. This section of Acts is where Peter preached his Pentecost sermon. First, he gets out of the way of the accusation by some in the crowd that he and the rest of the Christians gathered there are drunk. Then he preaches, focusing not on the power of the Holy Spirit, or the beautiful things that had happened, but on Jesus Christ and everyone's need for repentance. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Christopher Engelsma at Covenant URC. The text was Acts 2. This is the chapter where the Holy Spirit is poured out onto the Apostles and the early Christians during the Jewish holiday of Pentecost. The spirit made all of the people hear what the Christians, and especially Peter, preached in their own tongue, Romans in latin, Arabs arabic, egyptians in egyptian, etc. Yet, despite this incredible miracle, what Peter focused on in his message was Jesus, not the Holy Spirit. This is because that is what the Holy Spirit is for, to bring people to Jesus. 

Susie Spurgeon's Legacy

 Susie Spurgeon is usually utterly eclipsed by her husband's achievements. However, she too served God faithfully and was one of the reasons her husband was able to do all that he did. She was known for her charity, especially for poor pastors and students. Her children spoke about how she would have them sing hymns around the piano, and of how well she managed the household despite her ill-health and frailty. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Christopher Engelsma at Covenant URC. The text was again Acts 1. In Acts, we see God's plan to spread the gospel to the Gentiles. Before this could happen, the Apostles had to receive the Holy Spirit, to be baptized in the fire as John the Baptist put it. John baptized Jesus, and the Holy Spirit came to him visually as a dove at that point. After that, Jesus was able to perform miracles because he received the Holy Spirit's power. In the same way, the Apostles received power, and in the same way, every Christian receives power. This doesn't always manifest in miracles or things as dramatic as tongues of fire, but it does happen.  

Susie Spurgeon's Last Days

 Susie Spurgeon's health declined until finally she died at 8:30 on a Monday morning. She blessed her son Thomas, and her son later said that the words would stick with him in his heart until he too was called home. It is recorded that her last words were "My husband!" Her funeral wasn't called a funeral but instead labeled as a homegoing. A choir from an orphanage Susie was involved in singing at the homegoing, and the story was carried int he newspapers of the day. 

Susie Spurgeon After Her Husband's Death

 After her husband's death was when Susie Spurgeon did most of her work, including raising money for charitable endeavors and publishing a few books. While not as prolific as her husband, Susie's writings are considered to be in good standing. Despite all of this, her bad health continued to plague her. Her son Thomas, who took over the management of his father's church, told the congregation once that Susie could come to a celebration that would last until 9, but she could only be there until 5. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Christopher Engelsma. The text was Acts 1, the beginning of a planned series through the book of acts. This passage relates the story of what happened after Jesus's death and resurrection was discovered and also records the story of Jesus's ascension back into heaven. The book of Acts was written by Luke, who we can assume was a gentile due to Paul listing him separately from the Jews in other books. Paul also indicates that Luke was a physician, which may explain why Luke accompanied Paul on some of his missionary journeys, as it appears that Paul may have had some kind of medical condition. In fact, Luke may have met Paul when Paul became sick and was forced to stop at an unnamed city to recover. 

Excerpt from The Time of Tears First Draft

 

Epilogue Part 4 - The Oathbreakers

The Dawnguard was shattered, for they had broken their oaths. A knight was supposed to have honor, and the Dawngaurd was the purest a knight could ever imagine being. And yet, the Dawnguard, all of them, had forsaken their keep, Ritholon, the Fortress of Light. They were oathbreakers, all of them. Arnon sat on an old log, staring into the flames of his company's cookfire, a picked-over chicken bone in his hand. He had never been very pensive, but lately, he had become thoughtful when night reigned. What was a man without honor? The rest of his company stood nearby, bedrolls stretched out near the fire, keepsakes and supplies kept close by in their packs. They had left everything behind, wife, children, kin, and perhaps their honor. Arnon hadn’t entirely decided if every knight here could be blamed for it. One thing he knew for certain. He could find no honor in himself roaming the countryside like a pack of bandits. They unintentionally threw any town they came near into terror. They had accepted what they thought were gifts until they realized they were simply bribes to make them go away. They avoided castles and cities, and larger settlements whenever they could. They didn’t want trouble. They traveled slowly, the knights taking up odd jobs, chasing away bandits, and taking part in a few minor skirmishes between nobles. The Basthians were quarrelsome people and often took to settling disagreements with their swords. Arnon thought that was why they called themselves a republic, with kings being nominated and ratified by the cities. Although they never seemed to be able to do that without besieging and sacking a city or two. It was a perfect land for a mercenary, but Arnon was no mercenary. A shocking number, to Arnon at least, of knights had left the Dawngaurd and become mercenaries. There was no honor in that, in fact, it lessened a man’s honor to become a sell-sword. Still, hunger would drive a man to do almost anything. The stories had always said love was the most powerful emotion, and Arnon had once agreed with them until he had tasted hunger. Even now his stomach gnawed at him. 

“High Captain,” Aedelon’s voice broke into his thoughts as Aedelon himself came closer to the firelight. The knights around them ceased eating, whittling, or merely staring off aimlessly into the darkness. 

“High Captain of what?” Arnon said bitterly. Aedelon sighed and said nothing, as he looked around himself. “Look at us, Aedelon,” Arnon stood, his voice rising. “We have become like deer roaming in the wilderness. We have no home, no king, no honor. Our oaths have been broken.”

“Yet still, the sun rises,” Aedelon looked to the east, where the sky was gray. “We have not given up our honor Arnon.”

“We killed the king,” Arnon shouted. “We swore to protect him, and we allowed him to be slain.”

“Sometimes, doing the right thing is easy,” Aedelon said softly. “And sometimes, it can be hard to tell which is right and which is wrong. Oaths can be sworn for the wrong reasons, and then they become dishonorable. We are defined by the paths we take, not mere words.” 

“But we killed him when he could do nothing,” Arnon turned, staring into the darkness with hate in his eyes. “How can you call that honorable?”

“I did what had to be done,” Aedelon’s voice came with weariness. “The king served himself, not Valos. He was corrupt, and he gathered corruption around like an untended wound gathers rot. He was tearing Arthlien apart.”

“But he wore the crown!” Arnon raged. “We swore to defend him with our very lives!”

“I always used to wonder what made a man worthy to be king,” Arnon looked to the sky, as orange, red, and pink light began to spill over it. “Was it his father’s honor, or his own? I do not wonder any longer.” 

“We are starving,” Arnon turned and looked into Aedelon’s eyes. “The Dawnguard will die if we do not do something.”

“I know,” Aedelon whispered, tears springing from his eyes. “That is why I came.”

“Are we going to return?”

“No. I have found the Firstborn Paros told me to look for. The boy is with him. He is the one that was prophesied.”

Arnon drew in his breath. “The Secondborn has come? A new Soulkeeper?”

“Aye.”

There was silence as all the knights looked to their captains. 

“Where is he?”

“North, he is in the north. In Elbanon.”

Beyond Belief to Convictions

 The author of this book felt called to preach to teenagers and young people, however, his zeal did not impress the leaders of the organization he belonged too. They assigned him to start a Unversity Mission... in South America. Later he found out the leaders had intended this to be an unofficial exile. His mission was so successful in South America that when the organization got new leaders they called him back to America to nip in the bud the community movement in the universities, just as he had done in South America. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Chris Engelsma at Covenant URC. The text was Acts 6. In this chapter. the Apostles accidentally overlook the needs of the greek widows in the early Church because of how busy they are. To solve this problem, they appoint seven "servants" or deacons, to take over the mercy ministry. These seven were likely all greek and allowed the Apostles and the Elders to focus on teaching and prayer. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Chris Engelsma at Covenant URC. The text was Acts 20:28. This passage chronicles Paul's journey to Jerusalem. He wants to get there quickly so that he can celebrate Pentecost there and to make it he skips going through Asia. However, he summons the Elders of the church of Ephesus to him in order to teach them a little about how leadership in the Church should work. The early Christian Church had two levels of authority: Apostles and Elders. Apostles had to have witnessed Jesus, so there are no real apostles in the modern church. The modern-day church has Elders, Deacons, and Pastors (Which count as a kind of elder). Elders are given the authority to lead and teach the church. 

Chuck Colson 2

 Chuck Colson served Richard Nixon in both elections, helping the former president gain victory in both elections. He was ruthless, and much of his strategies were underhanded, like much of that administration's policies. Eventually, the law caught up to them and Nixon pinned it on Colson. Colson left politics and began to rebuild his law business. Eventually, as watergate unfolded, the prosecution went after Colson. However, at this point, due to the intervention of Colson's Christian friends, he had given his life to Jesus. Instead of plea bargaining and lying to save his own skin, Colson pled guilty, and was convicted and given prison time. 

Chuck Colson

 Chuck Colson was born during the Great Depression. Despite this setback, his parents were ambitious and got him into a school that aimed at sending its students into the Ivy League. They succeeded with Colson, and after graduating he served as a marine in Korea. Once the war was over, he returned to America and studied law, graduating with honors, and keeping his excellent academic track record. After this he began getting into politics. 

How Spurgeon Healed

 Both Charles Spurgeon and his wife Susie suffered from illnesses. Although Charles's condition seemed mostly mental as his labors and anxiety took a physical toll on him, Susie's seemed more physical. One of Charles's friends, a doctor by the name of Bennet, invited Charles to come to a place near Bennet's estate, a place called Mentone. Mentone had both beautiful scenery and a wonderful climate, ideal for healing. Bennet himself, after deciding that he wouldn't survive tuberculosis, went to Mentone and despite the fact that he'd given up was healed. Charles went to Mentone, and after finding the climate helped him heal decided to bring Susie down with him, and returned to London to fetch her. 

Pope John Paul II

 Pope John Paul II, born Karol Wojtyla, succeeded Pope John Paul I after the shortest papal reign in history, only thirty-three days. Normally, there was a concession about who would be the next pope, but because of the sudden death of John Paul I the Italian cardinals didn't have the concession. Thus, they did something unexpected. They appointed a non-Italian cardinal as the pope, polish cardinal Karol Wojtyla. Wojtyla took the name John Paul II to honor his predecessor. He was a man vigorously opposed to abortion and contraception, and had written books about sexual ethics, making him both many friends, and many enemies. 

Sermon Report

 Yesterday's sermon was preached by Pastor Chris Engelsma at Covenant URC. The text was Isaiah 53, but the sermon focused more on 2 Corinthians 3, 10, and 16. Paul wrote the epistle (or letter) of 2 Corinthians in response to some accusations by members of that Church that Paul himself was not an apostle. Therefore, Paul wrote the letter to prove his case that he was in fact an apostle. This means that he had to toot his own horn a little bit. He pointed out several things to make his case, like that he had seen Jesus. He also used sarcasm, pretending that the accusations were true merely to make his point. 

Susie Spurgeon's Poor Pastor's Charity

 Susie Spurgeon ran a charity for pastors that were evangelical, poor, and actively involved in bringing about God's kingdom. She sent books and sermons to them to aid them in their preaching, as well as necessities like clothes and money. She was angered when congregations didn't provide for their pastors. One pastor sent her a letter telling her that his wife and two daughters had only one Sunday dress and a weekday dress each. This angered Susie, and she sent him clothes and money to help him get back on his feet. 

Jackie Robinson

 Jackie Robinson was the first black baseball player to play major league baseball and achieve the hall of fame. Jackie Robinson was a committed Christian and the manager contacted him with the plan to use him as the first black player to join the major league was also a determined Christian. Jackie was an exceptional player, but what made the manager choose him to play wasn't his skill, but his temper, or his lack of one. Jackie was subject to intense verbal and sometimes even physical abuse from all sides, from the stands, the players, the coaches, and especially from the press. Through it all, he stuck to his guns and didn't lose his cool once, proving that his race could play just as well as anyone else. 

Susie Spurgeon

 Unfortunately, Susie Spurgeon, the wife of the famous preacher and theologian Charles Spurgeon, suffered from a debilitating health issue for most of her life. She was told that church-going was one of the greatest joys in Christian life, yet according to the records of her church, she rarely went, listed as ill for most days. The disease seemed to be related to her uterus which may have been why she only ever had one pregnancy, twin boys. Charles also suffered from health issues relating mostly to his weight and anxiety and would have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder if he had lived in the present day.