Bethel Christian Center

Epaphras was from Colossae. His name is mentioned only three times in the Bible (Colossians 1:7; 4:12; Philemon 23). From these verses and the historical-geography of the Lycus Valley, we can glean hints about this man with a reputation for praying for specific needs in the churches where he ministered.” Morgan-Gillman Colossae was located in the Lycus Valley. This valley was situated on a very strategic road that went from Ephesus on the Aegean Sea eastward to Syria. It is located at the eastern end of the Meander River. Within this valley there are two other major cities, Laodicea and Hierapolis, within the region of Phrygia.

“In Colossians 4, the Apostle Paul lists eight less-familiar names from the early church. Paul’s “shout-out” to these saints reminds us of the vast majority of Christians who quietly play important roles in the kingdom of God. Even though these mentions are brief, they contain life-long lessons for us today.” Trevin Wax Some of these carry out their work primarily in a local setting; others travel with Paul or serve as his delegates when he cannot travel. Still, all of his co-workers act cooperatively with him in a wide variety of mission activities.

Timothy’s name means, “One who honors God.” He was a native of Lystra, Paul and Barnabas had visited in conjunction with their First Missionary Journey. It is very possible that Timothy heard and obeyed the gospel, having been raised to respond to God’s Word by his mother and grandmother. Paul apparently wanted to help develop this young man into a faithful Christian and gospel preacher, so Timothy became Paul’s “son in the faith.” Timothy became a close, trusted associate of the apostle Paul, and of great importance to Christians in Ephesus, Philippi, Corinth and other places. One of the great friendships of the Bible and one of the meaningful examples of how the older can lead the younger and how the younger can comfort the older is found in this Paul-Timothy model.

Even though Philemon is a very short epistle, there’s a lot here. This letter from Paul tells us a lot about how Christians deal with each other. It tells us about grace, mercy, kindness, and forgiveness. It is a demonstration of the power of God to restore relationships. This book shows the wonder of the grace of the Lord Jesus to us through the simple story of a runaway slave.

Saul had been such a vicious persecutor of Christians that even after his conversion the brethren were still afraid of him. When Paul eventually returned to Jerusalem following his conversion to Christ, Barnabas had to persuade the disciples to let the apostle fellowship with them. As a result of this intercession, a wonderful friendship between Paul and Barnabas was formed. Then as the Christian Church began to extend its reach into the known world, the Holy Spirit sends Paul and Barnabas on a special mission to share the Gospel in the area of Asia Minor. They take along a young man named Mark, to assist them in their travels.

The apostle Paul was a “people person.” He ministered to people, he trained people, he prayed for people. When one of those people, whom he had poured his life into, deserted him, he must have felt devastated and alone. This seems to be reflected in verse 11 when he wrote, “Only Luke is with me.” Let us examine the life of Demas and see what lessons we can learn from his failure. We are all prone to wander away from God. The principles gleaned from the life of Demas can prevent us from doing that!

Having left Ephesus, Paul went to Troas, a port city in the northwest corner of Asia Minor, where he expected Titus to arrive from his visit to Corinth. While Paul was there he went about his missionary work with his usual vigor, and God blessed his efforts. But in spite of a promising beginning in a city of great strategic importance, Paul cut short his work in Troas because, as he puts it, “my mind could not rest because I did not find my brother Titus there.” He simply could not attend to his work, his very passion, because of the anguish he felt over his strained relationship with the Corinthian believers. So he left for Macedonia in the hope of finding Titus there.

Antoinette transparently presents a challenge to walk in God's restorative power.

After just retiring from the police force, Larry Smith relates his experience to the experience of the believer's benefits package.

Today is a day of celebration. We are celebrating our graduates and their achievements. They have toiled, studied, and completed coursework to arrive at this time of recognition of their efforts and achievements. We pause to celebrate their preparation and beginning a new phase of life. Graduation is not an endpoint. It is a beginning.

A warning to the listener to re-evaluate our path make sure we are still heading down the straight and narrow.

A comprehensive look at God's faithfulness in the Bible

“Some Christians have been taught to repress their emotions as they worship. They’ve been told to fear feeling anything too strongly, and that maturity means holding back. But what we want to avoid is emotionalism, not emotions. Emotionalism pursues feelings as an end in themselves; it wants to feel something with no regard for how that feeling is produced or its ultimate purpose. In contrast, the emotions that worship is meant to express are a response to who God is and what he’s done.” Bob Kauflin We are not only to pursue God with our mind and will, but with our emotions also.

Everyone is zealous about something. All people have an innate desire to be passionate. I’m not talking about romantic passion, but rather a passion for life and a desire for purpose. We are passionate about work, striving to succeed. We are passionate about possessions, striving to have more. We are passionate about our sports teams. Think of this… we always have enough time, energy and money for those things about which we are passionate. The real question is: are we passionate about that which is most important? Are we passionate about God? The Bible has much to say about our 'zeal' for God.

Topics studied recently: The Pentecostal movement; The Holy Spirit Baptism, a life-changing encounter; scriptural examples of receiving the Baptism with the Holy Spirit, and conditions on receiving the Spirit fullness.

Robin Bertram encourages Bethel to assume its kingdom role in authority in the resurrection power of Jesus.

Jesus promised a vibrant pathway of life for every one of God’s beloved children — a way of: fullness (overflowing of the Spirit), fruitfulness (service to others), and fulfillment (joy through relationship). He promised “a well” of indwelling grace and joy when we come to know Him as Savior (John 4:14). He also promises rivers of grace and power when a believer receives the Holy Spirit Baptism to flow out from him to others (John 7:37-39).

In describing the Holy Spirit’s coming, Jesus specifically said, "Rivers of living water shall flow from the inner being of all those who believe me" (John 7:37-38). On Pentecost, what Joel had prophesied, Peter preached: "God has poured out His Spirit; a stream of restoring, healing power is released to mankind!"

The Baptism with the Holy Spirit

The book of 1st Corinthians is rich in information that our churches of today need to be aware. The problems faced there are still with us today, in so many ways. Perhaps in looking at this book, God can show us ways to face similar situations, and deal with them, so that we can accomplish much for His kingdom on this earth. Two of the main problems were dis-unity (which we dealt with earlier) and the problem of open, un-repented of sin in the church.