Dear Members and Friends of IBCZ,
I would first like to thank all the members of the Ruschlikon Bible Study Group for providing such a delicious lunch following our worship last Sunday. Not only did we enjoy a tasty meal, but we were also able to have a wonderful time of fellowship with one another. I did not count how many people attended, but it seemed every chair was taken. Thank you for giving this great gift to the church family!
Second, I would like to offer a suggestion in light of the sermon last Sunday, which was based on Phil. 3:10-14. There Paul shared that the goal of his life was to know Christ, to keep growing in his understanding of who Christ is and all He has done for us, to know Christ more deeply as he surrendered to Him and thus experienced Christ’s resurrection power working within him transforming his character and empowering him to accomplish all God called him to do, and to know Christ further by sharing in His sufferings, for as Paul suffered for his faith in Christ he was able to appreciate more fully how Christ suffered for him.
Paul is really our example in this, yet the task of knowing Christ more fully in all these ways may seem overwhelming and we hardly know where to start. So, I suggest you identify one thing to start with, one thing that will help you know Christ more deeply, and as a result love Christ more fully.
Perhaps it is setting aside 15 minutes each day to read God’s word, letting Him speak to you, and then speaking to God in prayer. If you are not already part of a Home Group, now may be the time to start. Perhaps there is a step of obedience you know God has been calling you to take but you have been reluctant. As you now step out in faith, you will come to know our Lord’s faithfulness as He enables you to accomplish what He calls you to do. If you commute to work by train or bus, you can listen to a podcast or recording of a Christian teacher/preacher, or read an insightful Christian book. If you have children at home, maybe you could help your children come to know Christ more fully as you have family devotions, or reserve one evening a week to watch an age-appropriate Christian video.
Taking on too much at once is a sure way to fail, but if you can identify one thing to help you know Christ more fully and give yourself to that one thing, over time you will experience the joy of knowing our Lord in ever-deeper ways.
May the Lord give all of us grace to do this.
Pastor Bob