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Week of November 12, 2023 | |
Faith — Before or After Repentance?
By Mike Riley
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There are many folks in the religious world who believe and teach that repentance comes before faith, but that belief and teaching is not true according to the inspired Scriptures. Without first acquiring faith(Romans 10:17-NKJV; cf. 2 Timothy 2:15-KJV; Acts 17:10-12-NKJV), an individual would not know “what” to repent of or “why.”
For example, in Acts 2, let us note the order in which faith and repentance are found. In Acts 2:37-NKJV, the Jews that Peter instructed, wanted to know what to do in order to be saved. Peter’s reply was, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38-NKJV).
The question now arises, “If repentance is required before belief [faith], why were these Jews not told by Peter to repent and believe?” The simple answer is, they already believed from the inspired gospel sermon that Peter had just concluded preaching to them (Acts 2:14-36-NKJV; cf. Romans 10:17-NKJV). His sermon convicted them of their killing the Son of God — so much so, that they were “cut to the heart” — wanting to know what they needed to “do” to rectify their sinful condition (Acts 2:36-37-NKJV; cf. Acts 9:6-NKJV).
There are also those who teach that repentance and faith cannot be separated — that whenever you have the one — you have other. This teaching is false as well, because in John 12:42-43-NKJV, the Bible records these words:
“Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for the loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”
Even though many of these religious leaders [Pharisees] believed in Jesus (they had faith), they were unwilling to repent and confess Jesus as the Son of God. Thus, we see that repentance and faith are two separate acts — faith [belief] always preceding repentance (note the examples of conversion in the book of Acts).
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Elders
Leon Cort
Mark Craigwell
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Minister
Mark Craigwell
Assistant Minister
Denver Simmons
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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.
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Sermon for Sunday, November 12, 2023
Text: Numbers 34:5-7
Title: The Lord is Longsuffering
Speaker: Bro. Mark Craigwell
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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.
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Couples’ Ministry resumed meeting on Friday, November 10th via Zoom.
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Tech Day: 3rd Saturday of the month, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the church building. This month's session will take place on Saturday, November 18th. Bring your cell phones, tablets, laptops for help with your tech issues. See Bro. Javier Jackson, Jr., or Bro. Jerard Samuel for details.
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Annual Thanksgiving Outreach: Saturday, November 18, 2023, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon. See Upcoming Events section below for details.
- Upcoming Events:
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Housewarming Celebration & Fellowship for Sis. Sharee Farley, Saturday, November 18th, 2-4 p.m. See Upcoming Events section below for details.
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Boston Metropolitan Evening Worship Service: Sunday, November 26th at Florian Hall, Dorchester, 5:00 p.m.
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2024 Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Dutch Country Excursion: We are now accepting registrations for next year's excursion to see a live performance of "Daniel" and the Sight & Sound Theater. See Mature in Heart Ministry section below for details and link to registration form. Registration form and deposits due by 12/31/23.
- Youth & Family Ministry
- V.I.P. Teen Talk, Friday, November 17th, 6:30-9 p.m. at the church building.
- Gingerbread House Party, Saturday, December 9th, noon-4 p.m. at the church building. $12 per participant. All welcome.
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The congregation is requesting member support of its Mission Fund as we provide an educational stipend to Bro. Phillip Morrison while he attends Sunset International Bible Institute full time for the next 18 months to train as a minister. We are asking members to commit/pledge at whatever amount your heart and ability can provide for this period of time. This is a commitment over and above your regular giving and we hope all members will participate to the level of their ability and heart for God. Our target is to provide $3,000 per month and all commitments, whether large or small, are helpful and appreciated.
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Please make checks and money orders payable to Church of Christ in Roxbury and write Mission Fund in the memo line.
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Electronic donations may be made via the E-Giving option at ChurchofChristinRoxbury.org/e-giving, followed up with a text or email to Bro. Gallington [(617) 922-4598, [email protected]].
Click here to complete the pledge form electronically.
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OUR CURRENT COVID PROTOCOLS | |
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Effective immediately, and until further notice, we have suspended the requirement for attendees to sign up in advance to attend Sunday worship. We have also suspended attendance taking at our in-person services, classes, and events. Masking remains optional.
Remember that although COVID numbers are down, COVID has not gone away, and is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Please protect yourself and those around you by adhering to the guidelines below.
If you test positive for COVID after attending an in-person church event, please notify us by email at [email protected] or by text to Sis. Gloria Gallington at 617-922-5987 so that notifications can be made as needed.
For up-to-date information regarding COVID in Massachusetts, click the link below:
COVID-19 Updates and Information | Mass.gov
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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. Our weekly Bible classes for all ages begin at 10:00 a.m. 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. As noted under News & Notes, it is no longer necessary to sign up in advance to attend worship services in person.
E-giving link
https://churchofchristinroxbury.org/e-giving
Livestream link
Church of Christ in Roxbury - YouTube
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Thanksgiving Outreach 2023 | |
Please check the posted lists on the bulletin board, or check with the contact person to determine how many more of each item are needed. | |
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Brothers Jerard Samuel and Javier Jackson, Jr.
invite you to join them for Tech Day
Bring your cell phones, tablets and laptops for technical assistance with email clean-up, storage, best practices, etc.
WHEN: Saturday, November 18, 2023
TIME: 11 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
PLACE: Church Building
Our first two sessions (October and November) will be specifically geared towards our Mature in Heart/Senior Citizens, but all are welcome to attend. A sign-up sheet has been posted on the bulletin board downstairs.
Coffee and donuts will be served.
Please contact Bro. Jerard or Bro. Javier with questions.
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Our monthly community outreach grocery distrubution will resume in JANUARY 2024. | |
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Remote & In-Person
Class/Meeting Schedule
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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#
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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. | |
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Rehearsals are held on Thursday evenings at 7:30 p.m. at the church building
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The Couples' Ministry meets the second and third Fridays of the month at 7:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted. | |
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November 2023
Visitor Thank You Letters - Karla Unger-Laffin
Visitor Gift Bags - Sis. Sandra Wade
Baptistry - Sis. Sylvia Cross
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2024 Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Dutch Country Excursion:
We are accepting registrations for the 2024 trip to Lancaster County Pennsylvania to see the September 19th showing of "Daniel" at the Sight and Sound Theater. The bus will be scheduled to leave at 4am on the 19th and estimated to return between 9pm and 10pm on the 20th. A minimum initial deposit of $120 is required to secure a spot. This should be completed by December 31, 2023 to allow us to plan for the number to attend. The deposit (and subsequent payments) can be made by cash, check (payable to Church of Christ in Roxbury), or electronically via our e-giving link: churchofchristinroxbury.org/e-giving. If you make your deposit or any subsequent payments electronically, please follow up with an email to [email protected] with the subject line 2024 Pennsylvania Trip, and your name and payment amount in the body of the email.
The number of participants is limited by bus capacity. The overall cost of the charter bus, show ticket hotel and banquet has increased by $54 per person from 2023, however we have made some changes and restrictions to try to reduce the impact.
1. The minimum number for the event is increased from 24 to 30 (bus passengers). This will ensure that the bus cost per person is no more than $145.
2. The family-only restriction is removed for triple and quad hotel accommodations. However, we are requiring that all roommates be identified at the time of registration and the spots are not confirmed until all roommates have registered. There are also restrictions on refunds to make sure room costs are covered. More details are available upon request. Please see Bro. or Sis. Gallington, Sis. Keitrice Johnson, or Sis. Elizabeth Nagarajah with any questions.
Based on the changes described above, the following are the trip costs for 2024:
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Quad Occupancy hotel room, banquet seat, bus seat and theater seat -- $352
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Triple occupancy hotel room, banquet seat, bus seat and theater seat -- $371
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Double occupancy hotel room, banquet seat, bus seat and theater seat -- $408
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Single occupancy hotel room, banquet seat, bus seat and theater seat -- $535
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Grand king hotel room, two banquet seats, two bus seats and two theater seats -- $859
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Banquet seat and theater seat only -- $120
Please click here to access the online registration form.
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The date for the November men's class is TBD.
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Young Adult Ministry (YAM) | |
Date of next meeting will be announced. | |
Monthly Ministry Meeting
1st Sunday of each month at 1:00 p.m.
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Meetings & Events
11/7 - Ministers/Elders/Deacon's Meeting
11/12 - Deacons' Meeting following 11:00 service @church building.
11/18 - Tech Day, 11am-1pm
11/19 - Men's & Women's Classes, 5pm @church building
11/26 - Boston Metropolitan Evening Worship Service, 5pm @Florian Hall, Dorchester
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Ministry Meetings - Please contact your ministry coordinator for remote meeting schedules.
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- 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 11:00am in person and 11:00am 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)
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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
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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
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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.
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Church of Christ in Roxbury
81 Walnut Avenue
Roxbury, MA 02119
617-442-5826
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