March 9, 2008
Volume XXVII - Number 10  

Undenominational Christianity
George W. DeHoff

Throughout the world are congregations of Christians who have obeyed the commands which our Blessed Lord said for sinners to obey to be saved. These Christians meet for worship and are organized into local congregations. They belong to no denomination. They have no central government or earthly headquarters. Each congregation is independent, taking the New Testament as its sole and only authority in religion. The members insist that if we believe the same things the early Christians did, and do the same things they did, it will make us the same thing. Paul was a member of no denomination, yet he was a Christian and a member of the Lord's Church.

The church of Christ was established on Pentecost day, A.D. 33, as we read in Acts 2. Every saved person was added to the church (Acts 2:47), thus the church is composed of all Christians on earth, and every saved person is in it. The members of the church were called "Christians" (Acts 11:26, a name which the Lord gave (Isaiah 62:2)). All names of human origin are condemned (1 Corinthians 1:12,13; Acts 4:12).

"The Word of God is the seed of the Kingdom" (Luke 8:11). This seed produced Christians when first planted. If we plant the same seed today, we will reap the same product. The life is in the seed. If there were not a Christian on earth today, you might become one by believing, repenting, confessing your faith in Christ, and being baptized. If there were not a church of Christ on earth, we might start one by obeying the Gospel the apostles preached. Paul went to Corinth and preached the Gospel and "many of the Corinthians hearing, believed, and were baptized" (Acts 18:8). Paul later addressed them as the "church of God" and "the body of Christ" (1 Corinthians 1:2; 12:27).

Nineteen centuries have passed since the beginning of the church, but we still have the same truth. We have today the same church unchanged in name, doctrine, organization, faith, and practice. We dare not use any creed except the New Testament (2 John 9). We must not add to our worship any doctrine or commandment of man (Matthew 15:9). Our plea is for unity - not simply union in diversity - but for all time on the platform given in God's Word (Ephesians 4:4-6). We plead no merit of our own - only the merit of Christ's shed blood and of His holy Word. The New Testament is the inspired Word of God and is superior to any human confession of faith (2 Timothy 3: 16, 17). Will you not join with us, in standing on the solid rock of God's Word?


AM SERMON:
"What Is the Church?"
(T/B/A)
PM SERMON:
"Who Has the Authority in the Church?"
(T/B/A)

Schedule of Topics
for this weeks Gospel Meeting

"The New Testament Church"

  • Sun 9:30am ....................Why Study the Church?
  • Sun 10:30am .......................What is the Church?
  • Sun 2pm ....Who has the Authority in the Church?
  • Mon 7:30pm .......The Organization of the Church
  • Tue 7:30pm ...............The Worship of the Church
  • Wed 7:30pm...................The Work of the Church

We encourage you to attend each and every service.

Lunch in the Annex
Visitors and members are invited to meet after the morning worship (about noon) for a pot-luck lunch in the annex.

Men's Breakfast
The monthly area Men's Breakfast will be hosted by the 5th Avenue congregation in Bartow this coming Saturday morning, March 15th, at 8am. The breakfast will be held at the North Jackson Avenue church of Christ building. There is a sign-up sheet in the foyer for those who plan to attend.

For The Pantry
This past Thursday, 10 families consisting of 29 individuals were provided with food from our Pantry. Items needed for the food program this week are:

  • Peanut Butter and Jelly (mixed)
  • Sliced Peaches
  • Pears
  • Spaghetti-Os

Please help out as much as you are able.

The Sin of Doing Nothing At All

He made no mistakes, took no wrong roads,
He never fumbled the ball.
He never went down 'neath the weight of a load
He simply did nothing at all.
He lost no hard fight in defense of the right.
Never bled with his back to the wall.
He never felt faint in his climb to the light
He simply did nothing at all.
So death came nigh, for life slipped by,
And he feared for the Judgment Hall;
When they asked him why, he said with a sigh,
"I simply did nothing at all."
So God will pardon your blunder, my friend,
Or regard with pity your fall;
But the one big sin that surely means hell,
Is simply to do nothing at all.

-- Selected
(as published in The Minister's Monthly, January 1969)
 

Ann Johnson, Wanda Greene,
Tom Hoffelder, John Baker,
Tom Bryant, Tammy Amidon,
Juanita Hilborn, Juanita Murphy,
Frances Kidwell, Zach Mathis,
Cindy Chambers, Pete Peeples,
Luther Pendergrass, Wilda Cox,
Pansy Sims, Brice Oliver,
Gina Dupree

– Shut Ins –
Ken Skinner, Robert Cox,
Frances Black, Jason Powell,
Mattie Hughs

– In The Nursing Homes –
Robert Pearson (Tandem)