WELCOME
Good morning First Baptist. We welcome you to worship this morning. Be sure to remember your brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the week as you pray for them, and as the Holy Spirit brings their faces to your mind. Be sure to also connect with them in the ways that are possible. And if you have any questions or would like to talk to someone, please don’t hesitate to contact the church through the church telephone and leave a message. (519-733-4144)
Songs
Call to Worship
This day….Jesus calls us to come and learn the ways of life.
We have come to follow Jesus.
Love your enemies,
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Yes, we have come to follow Jesus.
Songs
Prayer
Prayer of Confession & Assurance
The act of confessing our sin is not simply a recitation of our faults and wrongs, but also an opportunity to receive God’s mercy and share in that abundant grace. Confident of God’s love for us, let us offer our prayers, first in silence.
SILENT PRAYER
You call us to be your voices in this world
and we stay silent.
You call us to be your hands in this world
and we keep them hidden.
You call us to be your feet in this world
and we go our own way.
When we meet those who are doubting
and say nothing, forgive us.
When we meet those who need your touch
and do nothing, forgive us.
When we are called to take up your cross
and carry nothing, forgive us.
Breathe life into these bones
bring freedom to these lives
that we might declare
with heart and soul and voice
that you are our Lord and our God.
In Jesus’ name we pray,
Amen.
Assurance of Pardon:
He longs for us to be wise & not foolish, but He knows us and loves us anyways.
He promises us grace and forgiveness and Our God never breaks His promises.
An Anchor for the Storm
Today's Message: Evelin Wharram
Good morning my FBK family! It is so good to be here with you today. I am honoured to be able to share with you this morning. Before I get started, let’s take a moment to pause before our God.
Abba Father, our gloriously good God, our God of rescue, redemption and restoration. Lord, we give to you these next moments that we spend together. God may we hear what it is that you have for us. Please give us ears to hear and hearts to grasp Your words, Your message. Father, we sit at Your feet, longing to know You more, to hear You more clearly and to follow You more faithfully. We ask this in the name of Your Son and our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. Amen.
Two weeks ago from yesterday, I handed over the mantle of President of the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec to Eleanor Emmott, Pastor at Central Baptist Church in Sarnia. And I formally stepped into the role of Past President of CBOQ. It has such a nice ring, doesn’t it? Past President of CBOQ!
Handing over the Presidency came near the end of a full and interesting Assembly of our big old Baptist Family and the theme of Assembly 2024 was “All Hands on Deck”. Assembly is an annual gathering of CBOQ’s family of churches. It is part annual general meeting, part conference, and part family reunion. Assembly aims to provide a nurturing environment that fosters spiritual growth, encourages dynamic collaboration, and celebrates the Gospel of Jesus that binds our family of churches together. During Assembly, we gather, we worship together, we pray for one another, we make decisions together, and we grow as a family of churches. We hear from engaging speakers, thoughtful and talented worship leaders, and delegates from our churches. Chairing the Annual General Meeting of 500 delegates is the main job of the President of CBOQ. And this year our AGM was dynamic, challenging, interesting and somewhat stressful for me as the Chairperson.
But I think the thing that stood out the most about Assembly was the celebration and worship of God and all that He is doing among the close to 300 churches around Ontario and Quebec. God is working in big churches and small ones, city churches and rural churches, English-speaking churches and French-speaking churches, Cantonese-speaking churches and Farsi-speaking churches. God is at work! And He is calling each one of us to join Him at His work to share the great news of His redeeming love and to further His Kingdom. It was a celebration and an encouragement to be a part of it.
I received this gift at the end of Assembly. It is a Bible, that individuals at Assembly had the opportunity to sign by their favourite verse. Leanne, CBOQ’s Executive Minister, got the idea from our churches very own 200th Anniversary celebration. I opened this Bible the Monday morning after Assembly and began reading the names of old friends and new friends, friends for whom I have such love and respect and friends by whom I have been greatly impacted.
And so, at the end of my role as President and as I begin the role of Past President of CBOQ, I humbly come to share some thoughts with you that I have gleaned over this last while.
I have this quote from Michelle Cushatt in her book “I Am”. In it she writes,
“My Bible sits open, its nearness reminding me of its significance. I’m deeply aware of both my desperation for and my ignorance of the 66 books within. As much as I love God’s Word, I know I’m no pastor. I’m no scholar or theologian. My office walls display no seminary diploma in a shiny brass frame.
Who am I to unpack the mysteries of God and speak with authority on His love and grace? Who am I to wrestle with all I do not understand, to unravel its complexities and deliver both correction and comfort? I am ill-equipped. I’m just an ordinary woman searching for the Most High God.”
And friends, that is how I feel today. I am just an ordinary woman searching for the Most High God. But Michele goes on to say in her book that: “With the Spirit of God, however, even those of us who call ourselves ordinary will discover extraordinary revelation at the feet of Christ Himself.”
And so we ask …Holy Spirit come and help us discover extraordinary revelation…
I have this custom you see. I’ve had it for a number of years now. At the beginning of each calendar year, I prayerfully choose a word. The word may serve as a reminder or a challenge or an encouragement in my walk with Jesus throughout the year. Over the years I’ve chosen different words…words like called, contemplative, trust, abide. Last year, the word I had chosen was steadfast. And it is word that I continued to hold onto throughout my Presidency with CBOQ. The word steadfast keeps popping up, and I try to make note of it and pay attention to it when it does.
This year I chose the words hopeful expectation.
And over some time I realized, that as only God would have it, those words work together.
When I looked at the definition of the word steadfast, I found words like firm, fixed, and unwavering. And I thought of the scripture in Luke 6:46-49
Let me read it to you from the New International Version: (Jesus said to the people)
Scripture Reading: Luke 6:46-49
The Wise and Foolish Builders
46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
In this parable, I have learned, that Jesus was contrasting the religious leaders of that time who were rejecting Him to His faithful followers who would be responsible for communicating His message to the world. This was a call to obedience. It was a call to come to Jesus, to listen to His Words and then to follow them and put them into practice. It was a call to lay a foundation on the solid Rock of Jesus Himself and His Word. This message was for Jesus followers of that day and I believe that this message is also for us today.
You see, when we come to Jesus, listen to Him, trust Him and follow Him and His teachings, He has the power to transform our lives through the Holy Spirit. And that power is beyond anything that we can do or muster up ourselves, believe me. Jesus calls us to a new way of life and to a new understanding. He gives us hope and with it the promise that beyond the darkness there will be new life. Jesus is worthy of our trust and He is faithful. He gave His own life to secure our eternal lives. And friends, that’s really great news!
Contemplating the words steadfast, foundation, hopeful expectation, I thought of the words of the old hymn “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less” written back in 1834 by Edward Mote. In case the words aren’t familiar to you, they go like this…don’t worry, I won’t try to sing them! My husband, Wayne, is really relieved to hear me say that because he knows well I sing…
My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness…
On Christ the Solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand…
In every rough and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the vale. (valley)
When all around my soul gives way,
He all is then my hope and stay.
You see, one of the by-products of steadfast trust and faith in Jesus is hopeful expectation. And that hopeful expectation is in God Himself, rather than a particular outcome. And I think that’s really important. Let me say that again…
Our hopeful expectation is in God Himself, rather than a particular outcome.
Because, sometimes, as I’m sure many of you know and have experienced, the outcome may not be what we would hope for, choose or desire.
But in Psalm 112 we read this:
How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands…Even in the darkness, a light shines for the godly…They will not be shaken, they will not fear bad news, their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Their hearts are assured and they will not fear.
This Psalm is describing what we read in Luke 6. The person that this verse is describing is the person who reveres God, who deeply respects and honours Him and who delights in obeying Him. This is the person who builds on the solid Foundation of Jesus. As we trust in Jesus, our hearts become steadfast, firm, fixed and unwavering. We will be assured; we need not be afraid. The Light of Jesus will shine even in the darkness.
The hopeful expectation for the one who trusts in Jesus, is the expectation that through it all, through the darkness, through the storms of life, through the troubles and the difficulties, God will show up in unexpected ways. And we will see the evidence of His care if we keep our eyes open for it.
And this reminds me of the words of another song called “It is well” by Bethel Music…The words are
“The seas that are shaken and stirred can be calmed for my regard…through it all my eyes are on You…it is well with me…
So let go my soul and trust in Him, the waves and wind still know His name….it is well with my soul…”
You see friends, it IS well with our souls, when we steadfastly trust in Jesus, our strong foundation. Though the seas are shaken and stirred, we can have this hopeful expectation in Him.
Hebrews 6:19 affirms this when it says…
We who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
In the English standard version it reads,
We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul…
I love this…” seize the hope… as a steadfast anchor for our souls…”
One commentary described it this way…
Gospel hope (that is hope in Jesus), is our anchor. It is the special work of God in the soul…It is an anchor that is cast upon the Rock of Ages…It does not seek to fasten in the sand but rather fixes upon Jesus…Jesus Christ is the object and the ground of the believer’s hope and so the believer’s hope is…are you ready for this? …The believer’s hope is a steadfast hope! There it is! Steadfast hope!
Friends, when we believe in Jesus. When we trust Him with our very lives. When we honour Jesus and respect Him and delight in following Him, we have this hope that is fixed, and firm and unwavering even in the storms of life. We have a steadfast hope.
And I believe, along with this steadfast hope comes peace. Not peace that the world gives, but peace that comes only from Jesus. The prophet Isaiah told us about that peace in Isaiah 26:3 when he writes,
You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in You.
And Jesus himself assured us of His gift of Peace in John 14:27
Peace, I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.
Friends, God is worthy of our trust and He is gloriously good! Through His mighty power at work within us, through His Spirit, He can accomplish infinitely more than what we might ask or even imagine.
Be encouraged. Remain steadfast, trusting in Jesus, following and obeying Him. Seek to know God better, search the truths of His word, and put into practice the things you learn. Because when you do that, you are doing just what Jesus was talking about in Luke 6 when He described the man who built his house upon the rock. You won’t be shaken when the rivers crash against you or when the seas are shaken and stirred.
And then, tell everyone you know about this Jesus and the difference that knowing Him makes in your life. Tell them about the steadfast hope that you have because it is anchored in Jesus. Tell them because that is the best news that there is.
Hold tightly without wavering to your steadfast hope in Jesus. (Hebrews 10:23) remembering, dear friends, that the Lord Himself is the Rock Eternal, our strong Foundation
Prayer
Let us pray the words of Psalm 143,
Lord, let us hear of Your unfailing love each morning, for we are trusting You.
Show us where to walk, for we give ourselves to You. Rescue us from our enemies; we come to you for protection. Teach us to do Your will, for You are our God. May Your gracious Spirit lead us forward on a firm footing. For the glory of Your Name and for the good of all the people.
And God we pray, using the words that Jesus taught us…
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done,
On earth as is it is in heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
The power and the glory,
Forever and ever.
Amen
Song
Benediction
What about your life? Are you prepared for the storm? Put Jesus into your life -let Him be your Anchor at all times. Obey Him. Love Him. Serve Him. Honour Him. Do what He says. Then your house will be able to weather any storm.