Weekly Bible Verse: John 8: 31-36

John 8: 31 Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’ 33They answered him, ‘We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, “You will be made free”?’


34 Jesus answered them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. 35The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there for ever. 36So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Weekly Bible Verse: Luke 8: 26-39

Luke 8: 26Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— 29for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) 30Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. 32Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. 33Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. 34When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. 35Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 36Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. 37Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. 38The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39“Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.

Thanks Everyone

Thanks to Pastor Jay VanHorn and the congregation of Exton Community Baptist Church for offering me the opportunity to preach last Sunday. It was wonderful to be in the pulpit of my home church again.

Here is a link to the complete sermon: http://jsbrookspresents.blogspot.com/p/encouraging-words-for-cranky-days-15.html  For those who are curious and didn't hear it, this is a sermon guiding Christians away from being cranky with each other and the world and toward a more generous point of view.

J.B. Snyder

Wednesday Night Fellowship Has Begun

Yes, the weather is warm and summer is here in all but the most technical sense. It's time for fun in the sun at ECBC. On Wednesday evenings, starting at 6:00 p.m., we get together at the church to grill hot dogs (or something else if you bring it) and enjoy side dishes we all show up with (based on culinary expertise this ranges from hot dishes to potato chips). Everybody is welcome. There will be games too. It's a great and informal way to get to know members of the church and see if you want to stick around for the Sunday service as well. You are most welcome. Don't worry, things wrap up around 8 p.m. so there's plenty of time to catch up on your sleep before the next day's work.

The first fellowship night has been held and was a great success. Fun was had by all and if anyone went away hungry, well, that was her or his own fault!

See you soon!

Summer Hours Have Begun!

This is just a brief note to all ECBCer's and any visitors who want to come. We have switched to our summer hours as of this week. See above for the hours. We get an early start when the weather gets warm.

See you there.

Weekly Bible Verse: Luke 15: 25-32: The Prodigal Son's Elder Brother

Luke 15: 25“Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’ 28Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’ 31Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”

Sunday June 13 Pulpit Guest

This Sunday, June 13, ECBC will have a guest preacher. This is the church's current seminarian, Jeff Snyder. He has preached several times from the ECBC pulpit before and looks forward to this opportunity to preach to the congregation and to any visitors who stop by. All are welcome. The sermon title is "Come to the Party" and it is based on Luke 15: 25-32, the story of the prodigal son's elder brother. Jeff's allergist recently asked him, "Are you a gloom and doom preacher?"

Drop by Sunday and find out.

ECBC Summer Vacation Bible School

Exton Community Baptist Church will have a week of fun and faithful VBS activities at the church this July 18-22. Below is a copy of the submission form if you would like your child to attend. Please copy, print, and mail to the church so we know who's coming.

Christmas in July, Vacation Bible School 2010


Name

Birth date

School grade just completed

Street address

City State Zip

Home phone ( )

Cell phone ( )

E-mail

Parent(s) name(s)

Parent(s) work phone (s)

In case of emergency, contact

Allergies or other medical conditions

Name of home church, if any

Please print this form and return the completed form to:


Exton Community Baptist Church, 114 E. Swedesford Road, Exton, PA 19341

Weekly Bible Verse: 1 Kings 17:8-24

1 Kings 17: 8Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 9“Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 10So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.” 11As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” 13Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. 14For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.” 15She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. 16The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.


17After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18She then said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!” 19But he said to her, “Give me your son.” He took him from her bosom, carried him up into the upper chamber where he was lodging, and laid him on his own bed. 20He cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?” 21Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” 22The Lord listened to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. 23Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said, “See, your son is alive.” 24So the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”