Check them out by visiting this DOC Identity Focus page on our website, where we will discuss this information together!
We will return to this blog for our weekly worship preparation beginning Ash Wednesday, on March 6.
February 10 - March 3rd OPCC will engage in a sharp focus on our identity as members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). There are many ways to join us!
Check them out by visiting this DOC Identity Focus page on our website, where we will discuss this information together! We will return to this blog for our weekly worship preparation beginning Ash Wednesday, on March 6. “Sunday morning is the most segregated hour of Christian America.”
That declaration, attributed to Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., used to shock Christians more than it does today. Although we may have heard this sentiment time and time again, we must keep that shocking nature of this statement at the forefront of our minds if we are to fully participate in our story as The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Disciples world-wide recognize that racial prejudice is bad, yet racism still exists all over our world. There is a distinct different between not being prejudice, and being intentionally anti-racist, and Disciples are working hard to bring anti-racist and pro-reconciling conversations into our life-long stories of church, and to our identity. To that end we will have a special opportunity THIS SUNDAY to be a part of these anti-racist and pro-reconciling ministries within the life of the church, and we hope you will join us: On October 7th we as OPCC, will worship at another Disciples congregation here in the area, Fellowship Christian Church (DOC) in Kansas City, KS. As a historically African-American congregation we give thanks that we can worship together on this day to honor both Reconciliation Ministries as well as World Communion Sunday.
Since July 15 we have been looking at the book of Ephesians, focusing on the keys to living as a community of faith. What are those keys to existing as the church? Through the month of August we will continue this walk through the letter to the Ephesians as it teaches the church how to be a community worthy of the gospel. In the midst of familiar interpersonal conflicts, the writer of Ephesians reminds them, and us, that they are “now in Christ Jesus,” no longer strangers to God and, importantly, no longer alienated from each other. Because of this new life in Christ they are experiencing a radical transformation of their identity – as individuals and as a community.[1] Their identity is no longer separated from one another, but rather they are a new family created by the love of God. The author of Ephesians asserts that Christians are created to live in community with one another. This requires a certain level of spiritual maturity that we can reach only when we act toward one another in the spirit of Christian love. This Sunday we will look at Ephesians 4:1-16 in which we see that God calls us to unity. In living in Christian community, created by the love of God, we are called to unity and that requires humility and acceptance of one another so that we can build up the community of Christ in love. We hope you will join us this Sunday at 10:30am - YOU are loved by God, and ALL are welcome here! [1]A Preacher's Guide to Lectionary Sermon Series: Thematic Plans for Years A, B, and C (Kindle Location 2968 - 3168). Westminster John Knox Press. Kindle Edition. Ephesians 4:1-16 (The Voice)
As a prisoner of the Lord, I urge you: Live a life that is worthy of the calling He has graciously extended to you. Be humble. Be gentle. Be patient. Tolerate one another in an atmosphere thick with love. Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were all called to pursue one hope. There is one Lord Jesus, one living faith, one ceremonial washing through baptism,and one God—the Father over all who is above all, through all, and in all. This God has given to each of us grace in full measure according to the Anointed’s gift as the Scripture says, When He ascended to the heights, He put captivity in chains; And in His triumph, He gave gifts to the people. (Well, when it says “He ascended,” then that must mean that He had descended earlier to the lower levels, that is, to the earth. The One who descended is the same One who rose from the dead to ascend far above all the heavens so that He could fill all things.) It was the risen One who handed down to us such gifted leaders—some emissaries,some prophets, some evangelists, as well as some pastor-teachers—so that God’s people would be thoroughly equipped to minister and build up the body of the Anointed One. These ministries will continue until we are unified in faith and filled with the knowledge of the Son of God, until we stand mature in His teachings and fully formed in the likeness of the Anointed, our Liberating King. Then we will no longer be like children, tossed around here and there upon ocean waves, picked up by every gust of religious teaching spoken by liars or swindlers or deceivers. Instead, by truth spoken in love, we are to grow in every way into Him—the Anointed One, the head. He joins and holds together the whole body with its ligaments providing the support needed so each part works to its proper design to form a healthy, growing, and mature body that builds itself up in love. The identity statement of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) states: “We are Disciples of Christ, a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world. As part of the one body of Christ we welcome all to the Lord’s Table as God has welcomed us.” But what does that mean? What does it truly mean to be a movement for wholeness? How do we accomplish this in the ways that we “do church,” and “be church,” both within these walls, and outside these walls? I hope you will join us as we begin to discern what that means, with a new sermon series beginning this Sunday. Together in worship we will walk with the church at Ephesus, and discern our identity, together. This walk through the letter to the Ephesians teaches the church how to be a community worthy of the gospel. In the midst of familiar interpersonal conflicts, the writer of Ephesians reminds them that they are “now in Christ Jesus,” no longer strangers to God and, importantly, no longer alienated from each other. Because of this new life in Christ they are experiencing a radical transformation of their identity – as individuals and as a community. What does it look like to live rooted in reconciliation – vertical and horizontal – with God and with neighbor? How do we practice it in radical ways? Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One, who grants us every spiritual blessing in these heavenly realms where we live in the Anointed--not because of anything we have done, but because of what He has done for us. God chose us to be in a relationship with Him even before He laid out plans for this world; He wanted us to live holy lives characterized by love, free from sin, and blameless before Him. He destined us to be adopted as His children through the covenant Jesus the Anointed inaugurated in His sacrificial life. This was His pleasure and His will for us. Ultimately God is the one worthy of praise for showing us His grace; He is merciful and marvelous, freely giving us these gifts in His Beloved. Visualize this: His blood freely flowing down the cross, setting us free! We are forgiven for our sinful ways by the richness of His grace, which He has poured all over us. With all wisdom and insight, He has enlightened us to the great mystery at the center of His will. With immense pleasure, He laid out His intentions through Jesus, a plan that will climax when the time is right as He returns to create order and unity—both in heaven and on earth—when all things are brought together under the Anointed’sroyal rule. In Him we stand to inherit even more. As His heirs, we are predestined to play a key role in His unfolding purpose that is energizing everything to conform to His will. As a result, we—the first to place our hope in the Anointed One—will live in a way to bring Him glory and praise. Because you, too, have heard the word of truth—the good news of your salvation—and because you believed in the One who is truth, your lives are marked with His seal. This is none other than the Holy Spirit who was promised as the guarantee toward the inheritance we are to receive when He frees and rescues all who belong to Him. To God be all praise and glory! This Sunday we will celebrate Christ by hearing Jesus' most famous sermon, all in one service. The Sermon on the mount produced the greatest sermon as Christ announced that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. He opens the sermon with the Beatitudes starting in Matthew 5:3 The attitude and character described by our Lord are unattainable by self-effort, but are brought forth by the work of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Found in the Gospel of Matthew, chapters 5, 6, and 7, this sermon is a wonderful collection of Jesus' teachings that tells us about living in God's way — in God's kingdom (that is at hand). Matthew tells us that Jesus went up a mountain to preach, and so we are reminded of all the other places in the Bible where people encounter God, and the word of God, on mountaintops. For example, Exodus tells us that Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 19-20). First Kings tells us that Elijah encountered God on a mountain (1 Kings 19). So when Matthew says, "Jesus went up a mountain and taught," he is saying to us: "Listen carefully! What you are about to hear is important; God is speaking to you here!" We hope you will join us for this unique service of lessons and songs as we celebrate the teachings of Jesus Christ. ALL are welcome to worship with us, and #allmeansall. Since the scripture is rather lengthy, we will provide a link to each chapter for your review.
Matthew Chapter 5 Matthew Chapter 6 Matthew Chapter 7 |
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Church Office Hours:
Monday - Thursday: 9:30am - 4:00pm Friday: 9:30am - 3:00pm ©2013-2024 Overland Park Christian Church |
Sanctuary Worship Schedule:
9:30am Sundays In-Person and Online Live-Stream Worship Broader Way Worship Schedule: 11:00am Sundays In-Person in the Fireside Room |