David Kneese, Curt Kneese's father, passed January 24th. Funeral Services will be held on Monday, January 29th at 10 AM in the Chapel of the Schaetter Funeral Home with Rev. Jim Barker officiating. Visitation is Sunday, January 28, 2018 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM. Graveside services and interment will follow in the Kneese Family Cemetery.
COMING SOON | Church Membership Directory!!
It’s been several years since our church has done a membership directory and we’re bringing it back! Over the course of January, Jim will have his camera set up in the Parlor. Following morning worship on any Sunday during January, step back there to have a family picture taken. The digital version of your family picture will be emailed to you, so you can print a copy for your home! After all the pictures are taken and assembled, we anticipate the directory will take about a month to create. We hope to have the final, printed version complete in March.
Bible Study on Wednesday at 5:30 PM.
Souper Bowl of Caring is Sunday February 4th. Please bring cans of soup for the food bank.
Scripture for Sunday
John 3:1-21 (ESV)
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. [2] This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him." [3] Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." [4] Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" [5] Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. [7] Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' [8] The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
[9] Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" [10] Jesus answered him, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? [11] Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. [12] If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? [13] No one has ascended into heaven except him who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. [14] And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, [15] that whoever believes in him may have eternal life." [16] For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
[17] For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. [18] Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. [19] And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. [20] For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. [21] But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out in God.
“For God so loved the world....” God desires to save the whole world. Much the same point was made in the call of Abram. God planned to bless all the peoples of the world through him. We must always keep two great truths in balance — God loves me but he also loves the neighbor. The personal realization of the momentous truth that “God loves me” is the prerequisite for the new birth, but that new birth can become a stillbirth if we don’t embrace the truth that God loves the world through me and people like me.
