Bethel Christian Church

01/18/2026

01/18/2026

1 Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.

Children have a very limited capacity for understanding and their reasoning is not the same as an adult. When we were kids, the one thing all children wanted was to grow up. We all wanted to be older. To be more mature and we couldn’t wait. Through life experiences and through teaching we eventually become “adults” and we leave childhood behind.

However, this is not always the same for our spiritual walk. It is not the same for our growth as Christians. Many of us are not much more mature in our Christian walk today than when we took our first step. One way that feeds us spiritually is to share a worship service with others. We can gain knowledge and understanding when we meet with other believers. Let this be the year that changes for you. Let 2026 be the year you start growing again. If you have been out of the habit of attending church, get back in the habit by attending today.

We are in a series looking at this idea about Spiritual Growth and it would do everyone good to come and listen to these messages. Today we are answering the question of “Why does God want us to grow?” Everyone can gain from hearing this message and we invite you to come and join us this morning.

Bethel service begins at 9:30AM and we have a seat saved for you.

See you there.

James

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01/17/2026

Acts 4:36-37
Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.

Here we are introduced to Barnabas, which is basically a nickname given to him from the apostles. When we think about nicknames, we are reminded that people get them because of their character or their actions toward others. We read here that the name Barnabas means “son of encouragement”. Other versions say, “son of comfort”. No matter how you look at it, he cared for other people. He spent his time lifting other people up. Even today when we tell someone to “be a Barnabas”, we automatically think of encouragement. What a way to be thought of and remembered.

Have you ever had a nickname? I think we all have and often they are not very flattering. What do people go right to when they hear your name spoken? Do people think of us in a positive light? We all could learn a lesson here from this verse.

Let’s all begin to put others first. We don’t have to sell our property, but we all possess something of value that can be used to lift others up. God has prepared us to be used by Him to strengthen other people.

Start today doing things to make others think of you in a positive way. Let’s all use whatever gift God has given us to benefit others. What a way to be thought of and to be remembered.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/16/2026

Psalm 65:8
New International Reader's Version
8 Everyone on earth is amazed at the wonderful things you have done.
What you do makes people from one end of the earth to the other sing for joy.

We have a dusting of snow on the ground this morning and it got me to thinking. As some people look out their windows and see this, they will be glad to see that it is only dusting but others will look, and they will feel disappointment because there is not more on the ground.

What kind of person are you? When you see the wonders that God does, are you joyful? How about when it is storming or raining, do you appreciate God then? We should all begin to look at nature and notice how wonderful God made it. If we looked at it with that kind of thinking, our whole attitude would begin to change.

Spend today just appreciating the wonderful things of nature. Sunshine, cloudy, cold, warm or whatever it may be, God made it and it all serves a purpose.

Thank you, God, for this great day!

James

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01/15/2026

Matthew 11:28
New International Reader's Version
28 “Come to me, all you who are tired and are carrying heavy loads. I will give you rest.

We are a tired people. The busyness and chaotic lives we choose to live will get in the way of us getting the rest and the peace that we all look for. We are told by society that these are the things that will bring us peace and calm. However, Jesus tells us that these things make us tired.

Earning a living is necessary for us to sustain, but we should not let it consume us. There is much talk today concerning a “healthy and balanced work/life”. But the real question should be, “how are we balance our ‘work/Jesus’ life?” When was the last time that you actually prayed for rest? It is funny that we think we don’t have time to talk to Jesus, but the very thing that gives us time is actually spending time in prayer with Him.

Are you tired? Spend time in prayer. This will help you get the rest you need.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/14/2026

2 Peter 1:3
Christians Are to Grow
3 He gives us everything we need for life and for holy living. He gives it through His great power. As we come to know Him better, we learn that He called us to share His own shining-greatness and perfect life.

We often will tell ourselves that we don’t understand what we read in the Bible, so we neglect to pick it up and read. However, we are promised that if we are diligent n our bible study, God will let us learn we need to learn when we need to learn it. We are to read and study regularly, and we should apply what we do understand.

God tells us that we need to grow as Christians and believers in Him but is impossible if we do not study scripture. Do not let study of the bible intimidate you because you feel you do not understand what you read. God will show you more as you read it more.

Pick up your Bible today and read, even if it is only one or two verses. Do it because those may be the one or two verses God wants to show you.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/13/2026

Colossians 2:6-7 New Living Translation
6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Most of us understand plant growth. You plant a seed. You give it water and place it in the sunlight and watch it grow. We understand that it must have all of these things to grow roots and become established so that it can weather storms that come against it. We will do what is necessary to protect these plants to help them survive.

Why don’t we nurture our faith in Christ with the same determination? We accept Him and we become Christians and many of us stop there. We don’t nurture our relationship with Him by studying The Word or prayer and maybe we don’t attend church with other believers regularly. Then when storms came along, we wonder why they are so difficult.

How deep are your roots in Christ? What are you doing to help your roots grow? Begin today to nurture and nourish your relationship with Jesus, then your roots will begin to grow and be planted deep to weather anything that comes along. Start right now. Don’t wait any longer.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/12/2026

1 Peter 1:14-16
So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

When we become Christians there are certain responsibilities that are put upon us. One of the primary responsibilities is that we are to strive to become holy. We should want to be like Him. Before we knew God, we didn’t know the difference. When we become believers, we should learn as much about God and His son Jesus as we can, but not just to have knowledge. We should learn as much as we can so that we know how to be holy. So we know how to be like them.

We are to love like Him. When we learn to love like Him, everything else comes together. We see others differently. Things that used to appeal to us, no longer do. So the question today is “How are you doing at being more like God and what are you going to do be like Him”?

Work on being holy, because he is holy and we are to become like Him.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/11/2026

2 Peter 3:18
New International Version
18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

How’s your growth in Jesus? Would you say that you are stronger now than you were a year ago? You should be. Our physical bodies may reach a point where we don’t grow anymore but our spiritual bodies should never become stagnant, however many people fail to grow in Jesus. They are content with where they are. Some people don’t ever pick up a bible and look at it. Others don’t pray as often as they should and there are some that have slowly given up the habit of coming to church to worship Jesus.

Where do you fit in? Are you growing in Jesus, even if it is a slow growth? Have you become stagnant or maybe even slipped backwards a little. Well, today is your day. You can start that growth that you need by spending time in church. Come to God’s house and worship Jesus. Don’t wait any longer!

Bethel service begins at 9:30AM. You are welcome to join us and we will have a seat ready for you. See You there!

James

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01/10/2026

Proverbs 12:1
New International Version
12 Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid.
TLB
To learn, you must want to be taught. Anyone who hates to be corrected is stupid.

God corrects us when we do wrong, but when He does, we become upset and we will question why we are experiencing problems. If we were honest with ourselves, we would find that He is trying to teach us something. It may be patience, or He may want us to be kinder to others. He may be showing us that we need to love more. He wants us to learn.

Solomon tells us here that when we reject learning, we are just being stupid. (His word, not mine) That’s harsh, but it should get the point across.

Maybe you are there right now and wondering why God is doing this when maybe it is “what” you maybe should look for. Ask God to show you what you need to learn and then apply it. As Christians we should want to be better.

Pray today for God to help you to use your failures to cause you to be more of a successful Christian.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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01/09/2026

Ecclesiastes 7:29
29 Here’s the only other thing I found.
God created human beings as honest. But they’ve made many evil plans.”

I have always enjoyed reading from the book of Ecclesiastes. I think that it is one of the most thought-provoking studies you can find. When reading this book, one could think that it is from a contemporary author because it sounds like our world today. Look at this verse today. God made us honest, but we want to do our own thing. Sound familiar?

We make a habit of trying things to please ourselves. We put ourselves first instead of God first. It doesn’t have to be like that though, because we can change. We can put God first. Will it be easy? No, it won’t, but it is possible.

Put God first. Ask Him to guide your plans. When you do this, you will find that it is much better than what the world tells you.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

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