The Bible and Helpful Bible Study Tools
by Mike Riley
|
As John was bringing his gospel to a close, he explained his purpose for writing in John 20:30-31-NKJV:
“And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”
In Colossians 4:16-NKJV, Paul wrote:
“Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.”
In 2 Timothy 4:13-NKJV, Paul made a personal request to Timothy:
“Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come — and the books, especially the parchments.”
Paul needed to have certain manuscripts with him during his imprisonment as well as additional material for reading and writing.
All of the above passages stress the importance of the written word in the spread of Christianity. It was the method chosen by God for its preservation. What a great privilege it is to be able to hold God’s completed written Word in our hands and to be able to read the very words that emanated from His mind (Matthew 4:4-NKJV; John 12:48-50-NKJV).
As we study the Bible, do we need to know what a particular word means or a particular passage teaches? Is there a particular Bible subject that we need to know more about? Do we need to know more about the Lord’s church? (Matthew 16:18-NKJV). There’s an abundance of Bible concordances, dictionaries, lexicons, encyclopedias, and commentaries (see under “Study Resources”) on the Internet that will help answer our questions.
One of this author’s favorite Bible study tools is Biblebrowser.com, which contains not only all of the above helps, but provides multiple versions of the Bible with parallel translations as well.
Let’s put the above helpful Bible study tools to work for us so that we might better understand God’s written Word.
One Cautionary Note: As we use the Bible study helps listed in this article, let us compare the information found in these helps with the inspired Scriptures (Acts 17:11-NKJV; 2 Timothy 3:16-NKJV; cf. 1 Corinthians 2:1-13-NKJV; Gal. 1:11-12-NKJV; Ephesians 3:1-3-NKJV; 1 Peter 4:11-NKJV). Any information that is contrary to biblical teaching should be immediately rejected and classified as false teaching (Romans 16:17-NKJV; Gal. 1:9-NKJV)
|
|
Elders
Leon Cort
Mark Craigwell
|
Minister
Mark Craigwell
Assistant Minister
Denver Simmons
|
Deacons
Raleigh Gallington
Anthony Johnson
Gregory Johnson
Carlfred Malcolm
Albert Martin, Jr.
Walter Maxwell
Richard Meuse
Barry Person
Jason Reid
In Memoriam
Gone, but never forgotten, our beloved brother,
James W. Wade, Sr.
|
|
|
Sermon for Sunday, August 6, 2023
Title: Don't Forget to Remember to Remember
Text: 2 Peter 3:1-4
Speaker: Bro. Mark Craigwell
|
|
Here We Grow Again: Jitaya Hightower, daughter of Bro. and Sis. James and Shante Creech, was baptized into Christ on Wednesday, August 2, 2023, at Gander Brook Christian Camp in Maine. Let us welcome our new sister in Christ!
|
|
Masks are now optional for our in-person services and events, but all other COVID protocols remain in effect, including signing up for Sunday worship services in advance.
Upcoming Events:
-
Young Adult Ministry Event: Sunday, August 13th, in church parking lot, 1-3 p.m.
-
Third Sunday Fellowship, Sunday, August 20th, hosted by Bedford Street CoC, 3pm.
-
Xavier Craigwell's Graduation Celebration, Saturday, August 19th, 12 noon, Tenean Beach, Dorchester.
-
Roxbury CoC International Cook Out: Saturday, August 26th, 11am-4pm. Details to come.
-
Bedford St. CoC Summer Outdoor Concert, Saturday, August 26th, 6pm
Mature in Heart
-
Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Trip Payments: All payments are due by the end of June. Please see Bro. Gallington to find out how much you owe, and please submit any payments to Sis. Keitrice Johnson or Sis. Elizabeth Nagarajah. See details below.
|
|
Don't Miss Out! Please scroll through the entire e-bulletin each week to be certain not to miss any important announcements or links. Many items are repeated each week, but there are also new announcements that you'll miss if you don't scroll through the entire bulletin.
|
|
We will continue to offer two Sunday morning worship services to accommodate in-person attendees
The first service begins at 8:30 a.m. and runs until approximately 9:45 a.m.; the second service begins at 11:00 a.m. The weekly adult Bible class/devotional begins at 10:00 a.m. The usual sign-up rules and COVID protocols remain in effect, except that effective Sunday, May 14, 2023, masks will be optional at all in-person events (see detailed COVID response notice under NEWS & NOTES above). When you access the online sign-up form, you will be required to specify which service you would like to attend. Once capacity has been reached for a particular time slot, the form will no longer accept new registrations for that time slot. We will continue to livestream the 11:00 service on our YouTube channel, and we encourage members to utilize e-giving, even when attending in person.
PLEASE NOTE: THE LINK BELOW IS FOR NEXT WEEK'S SERVICE
In-Person Worship Sign-up
Please also note that there is a new registration link each week.
E-giving link
Livestream link
|
|
Our monthly community outreach will resume in September. |
|
Remote & In-Person
Class/Meeting Schedule
|
|
Wednesday Night In-Person & Dial-In Bible Study
Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in-person and via freeconferencecall.com.
Dial in number: 978-990-5000
Access Code: 261232#
|
|
REMINDER: Please remember to mute your phone or computer when joining any of the above conference calls to avoid interrupting the class or service you are entering, particularly if you are joining the call after the event has started. |
|
COUPLES' MINISTRY MEETINGS WILL RESUME IN THE FALL via Zoom the second and third Fridays of the month at 7:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
|
|
This month's Women's Class will be held on Sunday, August 27, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. at the church building, and via Free Conference Call for those who cannot attend in person.
Dial in: 978-990-5000
Access Code: 261232#
Or, join the class online at
|
|
August 2023
Visitor Thank You Letters - Sis. Veronica Tejeda
Visitor Gift Bags - Sis. Sharee Farley
Baptistry -Sis. Cora Morrison
|
|
Please note that the dial-in number for this conference call has changed. The new number is 945-218-0112. The access code remains the same, 3730930. |
|
2023 Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Dutch Country Excursion: Our 2023 trip is scheduled for Thursday, September 14th through Friday, September 15th to see a production of “Moses” at the Sight & Sound Theater in Lancaster at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 14th. The cost for bus, hotel, dinner and show is as follows:
- $340/person for quad occupancy (families)
- $358/person for triple occupancy (families)
- $393/person for double occupancy
- $514 for single occupancy
- $830/couple for grand king room
Sign up is open now and a $75 deposit is required by to hold a spot. The number is limited by bus capacity and hotel availability. If you have not already done so, please get your deposit in ASAP to secure your spot so we can finalize the theater seating. Seats can only be assigned for purchased tickets.
Payments can be made via our e-giving link at:
|
|
Our monthly Men's Class will be held on Sunday, August 27, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. at the church building.
|
|
Young Adult Ministry (YAM) |
|
Date of next meeting will be announced. |
|
Monthly Ministry Meeting
1st Sunday of each month at 1:00 p.m.
|
|
Meetings & Events
8/7 - Ministers/Elders/Deacon's Meeting
8/13 - Deacons' Meeting following 11:00 service @church building.
8/13 - Young Adult Ministry event, 1-3pm in church parking lot
8/20 - Retention Ministry Meeting following 11:00 service @church building.
8/20 - Third Sunday Fellowship at Bedford Street CoC, 3pm
8/26 - Youth & Family Ministry International Cookout at Houghton's Pond, 9am-4pm.
8/26 - Bedford Street CoC Outdoor Summer Concert, 6pm
8/27 - Men's and Women's Classes, 5pm @church building
|
|
Ministry Meetings - Please contact your ministry coordinator for remote meeting schedules.
|
|
- Sunday New Converts' Class, 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Bible Class (children) Sundays at 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Adult Devotional/Bible Study, 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Worship Service 8:30 and 11:00 am in person and 11:00 a.m. via livestream on YouTube. See above for details.
- Men's/Women's Classes, 5pm (4th Sunday of the month) @church building
- Youth & Family Ministry (1st Sunday of the month at 2pm)
-
Mature in Heart Women's Prayer (Tuesdays @ 10:30am) VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Prayer Meeting (Tuesdays @ 7pm) VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Mid-Week Bible Study (Wednesdays @ 6:30pm) in person and VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Mid-Week New Converts' Class (Wednesdays @ 7pm) @church building
-
Healing Hearts (Thursdays @6:15pm) VIA ZOOM
- Couple's Ministry (2nd & 3rd Fridays @ 7 pm)
- Women's Prayer (Saturdays 9:30am) VIA TELECONFERENCE (Connection info above)
- Ministers/Elders/Deacons Wives Meeting, (3rd Saturday @10 am) @church building
|
|
Bro. John Kurpiel, minister for the Lawrence congregation, hosts an international radio program, “Soul Food,” on Mondays and Tuesdays from 11AM until 3PM. The program airs on Ignite Radio Broadcast via Mixlr, an interactive internet radio platform. Use the link below to tune in to listen, or to participate in the conversation. Always free to listen. https://mixlr.com/ignite-radio-broadcast.
|
|
Church of Christ in Roxbury
81 Walnut Avenue
Roxbury, MA 02119
617-442-5826
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
