Christmas Party

We are having a church wide Christmas Party on Friday December 15 at 6 PM. Stay TUned for more information.

Sunday Morning Bible Study Classes

Next Sunday February 6 we will resume our Sunday Morning Bible Study Classes at 9:30 AM. You may call it Bible Study, Sunday School or Bible Class, but whatever you call it and whatever your age there is a class for you. We have classes for Babies who are not yet walking, Toddlers to age 3, 4 to 6 Year olds, 7 to 9 Year olds, 10 to 13 year olds, youth aged 14 to 19 and two adult classes. Rita SOmgal our Bible Studies coordinator has been busy preparing rooms, reviewing literature, training teachers and getting everything ready for the Kickoff. We begin on Sunday February 6 so make plans to be in attendance. In the Sunday morning Worship time after Classes resume we will have a special service to commission and pray for our Class teachers. Don;t miss this Sunday, be there for the beginning of a great ministry.

Ladies Fellowship meetings

Every Wednesday at 10 AM several of the Church ladies have been getting together for fellowship and to enjoy each other's company. The first few meetings have been at the church. Meetings for the month of February will be at The Bothma's home in Mikocheni B. The goal of the meetings is simply to spend some time together in a relaxed atmoshpere and fellowship. As time goes by the ladies will plan things like trips and bible studies, cooking lessons and other assorted pleasant pastimes. There is no registration and no cost simply show up and join in the fun. If you do not know how to get to the Bothma's home come by the church about 20 minutes before 10 AM and ride over with Marla or talk with Billie or Jackie at Church on Sunday for directions.

Valentines Party at Protea Hotel on Ocean Drive

International Baptist Church is hosting a Valentines dinner Party for you and your sweetheart. Monday February 14 at 7:00 PM we will gather at the Protea Hotel on Ocean Drive for dinner together. The dining room limits us to 12 couples for the event and we are already halfway there. Space is truly limited so sign up soon. to register for the event either contact Dorothy Miller or visit the bulletin board in the church hallway and put your name on the sign up sheet posted there.

Sermon Notes 23 January 2011

Personal Worship Time

 

The first step in personal worship is to draw near to God.

    Set a specific time and place

    Turn off distracting noises and clutter

    Keep it                        Hebrews 11:5-6

 

There are some things that will be of great assistance in worshipping God.

    Scripture, The best translation of the Bible is one that you can    read and understand.

    The Psalms, there are 5 books of Psalms and 5 books of Moses.

        This is no coincidence

    Songs, memorize hymns or spiritual songs. Praise and Worship

    Choruses can also be very helpful.

    Spiritual writings

 

Not being obedient to what we know to do is the biggest obstacle in living a life of worship.                        Hebrews 10:31

    You can't worship someone you do not love.    I John 5:3

    Obedience is worship                Romans 12:1-2

    Obedience applies to every person        Eccles 12:9-14

 

Our attitude towards our personal time with God will keep us from Worship

    Worship is listening as well as speaking    Eccles 5:1-3

    Foolish speech on our part can bring trouble    Eccles 5:4-7

Sermon Notes 16 January 2011

Worship in Spirit and Truth

 

The first function of the Church is worship.

 

We worship God separately as individual members and corporately, as the gathered body of believers in Christ.

 

We worship for a variety of reasons:

    Because God is worthy of our worship

    Because God wants us to Worship Him

    Because lost people need to see us worship Him

    Because we need to worship for our own well-being

 

We must be careful to guard against worshipping a false idea of God rather than almighty God Himself.

 

 

6 Processes in Worship    Isaiah 6:1-13

 

Revelation    6:1    knowing God as He makes Himself Known

Adoration    6:3    admiring the beauty of God's "Otherness"

Confession    6:5    seeing ourselves in light of God's perfection

Proclamation    6:7    hearing what God has to say to us

Dedication    6:8    faithful response to His demands

Commission    6:9-13    God approves us and sends us to work

Sermon Notes 2 January 2011

Resolved

 

Anytime we encounter a "Therefore", we should stop and ask ourselves: What is it there for?

 

This "Therefore" summarizes Paul's expected response to the gospel

    Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice

    Be transformed by renewing your mind

 

The result of this offering is that we will be able to test and approve the good pleasing and perfect will of God.

 

There are some things that make this difficult.

    Our sinful Nature

    Other People

    Personal Pride

    Lack of Faith

 

New Years Eve Watch Party

International Baptist Church of Tanzania will host a New Year's Eve Watch Party at 8 PM on 31 December. We will begin at 8 pm and continue until sometime after Midnight. Everyone and anyone is invited and welcome to attend. Shortly before midnight we will pray in the New Year. Earlier in the evening we will play games and have fellowship and snacks and refreshments. Bring your favorite game or games and light snacks. The church will provide coffee, tea, juice and water.

Sermon Notes 26 December 2010

The Greatest Man who ever lived

 

Unique in His birth

    Born of a virgin             Luke 1:26-33

    Son of God                Luke 1:34-35

 

Unique in His power

    Overcoming temptation            Luke 4:1-3

    Casting out Demons            Luke 4:31-37, 40-41

    Curing diseases                Luke 4:38-39

    Performing miracles

 

Unique in his teachings

    Parables of unequaled beauty        Luke 10:30-37, 15:11-31

    Teaching with Authority

 

Unique in His death

    Even the centurion noticed        Luke 23:44:-49

    His death was only temporary        Luke 24

 

Yet more than a Man

    He forgave sins

    Received worship

    Demonstrated power over nature

 

Claimed He

    Existed before Abraham

    Was one with the Father

    Was the giver of Eternal Life

 

Luke's purpose was that we might know the certainty of the things about which we have been instructed. How can we answer the mystery of this singular individual?

Sermon Notes 19 December 2010

That believing, you might live

 

There are competing views of successful life that meet at the stable in Bethlehem.

 

The first is the thieves and robbers. Theirs is the way of easy money, win the lottery, hit the jackpot make it rich off other people's money, labor, and intelligence.

 

Jesus' way is the way of life. It is very different from the way of the thieves and robbers.

 

Jesus had everything and left it all for us.        Philippians 2:5-11

    Never stopped being God

    Emptied Himself of His rights as God

He performed miracles to show His disciples who He was

    Changing water to wine                John 2:1-12

    Healing an official's son            John 4:46-54

    Healing the man at Bethesda            John 5:1-14

    Feeding 5,000 with a single lunch        John 6:1-15

    Walking on water                John 6:16-21

    Healing a man born blind            John 9

    Rising from the dead                John 20

 

Knowing Jesus is eternal life.                John 17:3

Eternal life is not heaven. Heaven is where Jesus is and a very real place.

Eternal life begins when we receive Jesus by faith.

Eternal life is God's Holy Spirit living in each of us because of our faith in Jesus Christ.                        Gal 2:20

Eternal life prepares us for heaven. Because we have eternal life we have the opportunity to obey Jesus

 

What has He commanded us? Love one another.

John 13:34-35 people will know us as His if we love one another

I John 4:7-8 we fail to love because we do not know God.

Sermon Notes 12 December 2010

Jesus: Promised Messiah

 

Jesus is the Messiah. He completely fulfills the Old Testament Prophecies

    Born of a virgin            Isaiah 7:14    Matt 1:22-23

    Born in Bethlehem            Micah 5:2    Matt 2:1-6

    Grew up in Egypt            Hosea 11:1    Matt 2:13-15

    Began His ministry in Capernaum    Isaiah 9:1-2    Matt 4:12-17

    Healed their diseases            Isaiah 53:4    Matt 8:14-17

    God's Messenger prepared his way    Malachi 3:1    Matt 11:7-11

    God's Suffering Servant        Isaiah 42:1-4    Matt 12:15-21

    Taught in Parables            Psalm 78:2    Matt 13:34-35

    Triumphal entry on a colt        Zech 9:9    Matt 21:1-5

    He is the rejected cornerstone        Ps 118:22-23    Matt 21:42-44

    Disciples abandoned Him        Zech 13:7    Matt 26:31-32

    Gambled for His garments        Psalm 22:18    Matt 27:35

 

Many of the Jewish leaders failed to recognize this while Jesus was performing His public ministry. Even John the Baptist nearly missed the significance of these predictions.        Matt 11:1-6

 

The messianic kingdom has been inaugurated in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.                    Matt 12:22-28

 

What will you make of Jesus of Nazareth? How do you respond to the evidence Matthew presents?

Sermon Notes 5 December 2010

Jesus: The Mighty Son of God

 

Who does Mark say that Jesus Is?

 

Jesus is the mighty Son of God who defeats the enemies of God and Man

    Satan and temptation                Mark 1:12 - 13

    Overcomes demons                Mark 1:23 - 26

    Illness and disability                Mark 1:29 - 2:5

Jesus was misunderstood and somewhat enigmatic

    Misunderstood by the religious leaders        Mark 3:20 - 28

    By His own Disciples                Mark 8:16 – 21

    By common people                Mark 8:27 – 28

    Peter grasped the enigma            Mark 8:29

 

What is the significance of recognizing who Jesus is?

 

For Jesus it meant

    Suffering

    Rejection

    Crucifixion

    Resurrection

For the Apostles it meant

    Self-denial

    Persecution

    Losing their lives to find them in Him

 

How does God confirm who Jesus is?

    Triumphal entry with the common people

    Betrayal at the hands of two of his apostles

    Rejection and treachery at the hands of the religious leaders

    Crucifixion

    Resurrection

Sermon Notes 21-November 2010

Joy in the Journey

Luke 5:27-38

 

The Source of our Joy

    Repentance

    Obedient Discipleship

 

The situation of our Joy

    Not in isolated separation from the world

    In the midst of sinners and other people just like us

 

The circumstances of our Joy

    Joy is a fruit of the Spirit living in us    Gal 5:22-23

    Spirit of Adoption where we call God our Father

                        Gal 4:6, Rom 8:15

    Joy of hope that God works all things for good for us Rom 8:28

    Joy in the tribulations which produce Character

        And confirm our hope    Rom 5:3

    Joy of experiencing liberty over Law    Gal 4:5, Rom 8:1-2

    Joy of Wedlock to our soul's true husband    Rom 7:1-4

 

The rejection of our Joy

    Many people will prefer the routine of legalism and the false

    Comfort it brings to the challenge of following God on the

    Trail of life.

Sermon Notes 28 November 2010

Are You Ready?

 

This parable is set in the midst of Jesus long discourse on the end times. Jesus is teaching His disciples to be prepared for the certainty of His return from heaven.

 

This parable illustrates the foolishness of some Christians in preparing to meet Christ.

 

The virgins accompanied the bride to the bridegroom's home.

 

They displayed their foolishness in two ways during the ceremony.

    Not bringing enough oil to anticipate the groom's delay

    Going in search of oil at midnight

 

The defining characteristics of a fool

Thoughtlessness

    Wasting the time we have been allowed to mature

Superficiality

    Being more concerned about the oil than attending the bride

 

The defining characteristics of wisdom

Forethought

Luke 6:46-49 the two builders

 

Sincerity

James 1:22-25

 

The attributes of wisdom James 3:13-18

Peace-Loving

Considerate

Full of Mercy and good fruit

Impartial

Sincere

Small group bible studies underway

The small group Bible Studies meeting during the week are underway. Two groups are using the Design for Discipleship Series from Navpress. The group meeting at Francois and Katie Martins' house in Mikocheni will begin Book Two this week. Pastor Eric is the leader of this group but leadership duties rotate and are shared by various members of the group. Cost Mrema leads the group that meets an Chanan School in Mbezi Tank Bovu. They are also using Design for Discipleship.
The group that meets in Oyster Bay at Matt and Mary Stephenson's home will begin this week instead of last week as reported earlier on this Blog. This group will examine Romans verse by verse as the meet. They will meet every other Thursday at 6 PM. For more information on any of these groups, contact the leaders or the host for the particular group you are interested in or comment to this blog.

Blessings,
Pastor Eric

Sermon Notes 14 November 2010

Sins Against Grace

One Parable with two applications
Most obviously allegorical of Matthews parables
King is God,the Father
The Son is Jesus Christ
The Bride is the church
The Wedding feast is the Messianic banquet
Servants of the first announcement were the prophets up to John
Servants of the second announcement were the Apostles
The first group of invitees was Israel of the Old Testament
The second group of invitees is every tribe and tongue of earth
The wedding gown is the faithful life expected of a disciple

What then is the meaning of the parable?

The parable warns against two wicked responses to the grace of God so richly poured out on us in Christ. Together these responses prove the point of Jesus summary statement; "Many are called, few are chosen."

The first response is to despise the grace of God by ignoring it or refusing to accept it when it is offered to us. This was the sin of the first group of invited guests. Far too often this sin leads to a rejection which takes the form of violence.

The second response is to despise God's grace by refusing to deal with the sin God's Spirit reveals in our lives. This is the sin of Romans Chapter 6.

The balanced approach is grateful obedience to Christ which produces a life of Holiness and Love.

I Peter 1:22-25
Galatians 5:2-6

New Bible Study Starts Tonight

There is a new Bible Study starting tonight at 6:00 pm in Oyster bay. Matt and Mary Stephenson will be hosting an exegetical Study of Paul's Epistle to the Romans. This is the first night for this new exciting study.
Paul wrote this epistle in anticipation of a trip to Rome. The church at Rome was started by believing Jews who were converted to the Gospel following Peter's sermon at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out. Paul wrote this epistle as a way of introducing himself and setting forth the gospel he preached to the church at Rome. It is a brilliant defense and explanation of the Gospel of salvation by grace.
Throughout history, Romans has been an influential book not only within the church but in society as a whole. Romans 1:17 (Look it up) was the spark on which Martin Luther built the fire that became the protestant reformation. For many years Law schools used the first 8 chapters of Romans as an instructional example of logic and defending a point.
This study begins at 6 pm tonight at Matt and Mary Stephenson's house in Oyster bay. For directions you may call the church at 0222 774 423 (Land line) or 0777 180 097.

Family Fun Day This Sunday 14 November

Just a reminder that we have rescheduled our Family Fun Day for this Sunday 14 November 2010. We were originally scheduled for Sunday 31 October but conflicted with Election Day here in Dar es Salaam and elected to reschedule for a later date. Thanks for electing to worship with us and choosing to come this Sunday for Family Fun and Fellowship. Bring your favorite food for the potluck and a game or two to play together for the fellowship to follow. If the last event in August is any indicator we should all have a wonderful time.

Sermon Notes 7 November 2010

The Pharisee, The Sinner and the Savior

The scene is a banquet at the house of Simon, A Pharisee.

A Woman interrupts the banquet, where Jesus is a guest.
Simon, the host, misjudges the woman and her actions.
Jesus presents His host with a question in the form of a parable.
The host judges, correctly but reluctantly.
Jesus explains the womans actions.

The Pharisee, the Sinner, and the Savior

How should Simon (and by extension, me and thee) have responded to this parable?

"I love little because I have been forgiven little. I have been forgiven little beause I have not fully realized the grace of God towards me and received His forgiveness."

THe title of this sermon is deceptive because of the three main characters in the storyonly Jesus was not a sinner.
Simon, the pharisee, was a sinner inside the law, acceptable to most people.
The woman who intruded was a sinner outside the law, unacceptable to most people.
Repentance is harder for those who need to repent but don't know it or will not acknowledge it.

Whenever Jesus confronts our sinfulness our response is either faith or offense. One of us must be proven wrong, either Jesus or me.
He is either a rue, offensive man who points out my flaws and demands that I stop that behavior, or He is God's agent sent to redeem me through placing faith in Him and finding forgiveness in His response.

Sermon NOtes 31 October 2010

The Great Banquet

This pparable is beautifully elegant in its simplicity.

There is no complicated bckground to unravel. there is a rich depth in the background setting of the parable, but it is not necessary to understand any of the cultural settings to grasp the full meaning of the story.
One of the men dining with Jesus is overcome with the exuberance at the privilege of sharing the banquet with none other than Jesus of Nazareth.

In response to his comment Jesus tells a poem, seven stanzas long, that will be repeaed and cherished for the rest of history.

It contains the greatest news the world has ever heard at any time and in any place.

It also contains the direst warning ever announced to humanity.

The Good news: all who choose to attend the messianic banquet are welcome.

The warning: You are invited but it is possible so greatly to offend the host that you will be excluded from the banquet.

Each of the invited guests in the parable gave a flimsy excuse and offended the host, Jesus Christ Himself. In doing so they earned an exclusion from the guest list.

What escuse will you allow to keep you from joining in this feast?