Southwestern Association of Seventh Day Baptists

Southwestern Association of Seventh Day Baptists A page for sharing Association info and local church news.

06/25/2026

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them.

Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
~John 10:1-9

Jesus is the Good Shepherd. His sheep know His voice, and He leads them to safe pastures. The evil one tries to steal the sheep away by distracting them and preventing them from hearing the Good Shepherd's voice. But Jesus is the door. The evil one cannot enter in through the door to steal the sheep, because he knows that the Good Shepherd is guarding His sheep. He tries to steal the sheep through deception and distraction with things like false doctrine, a busy schedule, and disobedience of God's laws. We need to make sure we are listening for and following the voice of the Good Shepherd.
-Jasmine Lynch

06/24/2026

I hate, I despise your feast days,
and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings,
I will not accept them:
neither will I regard
the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs;
for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
But let judgment run down as waters,
and righteousness as a mighty stream.

Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings
in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
But ye have borne the tabernacle
of your Moloch and Chiun your images,
the star of your god,
which ye made to yourselves.
Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus,
saith the Lord, whose name is The God of hosts.
~Amos 5:21-27

"Let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream" (v. 24, NKJV). God's justice cannot be stopped. It flows like the river, and no amount of sacrifice, no amount of burnt offerings, no amount of singing or playing of instruments can appease God as long as we continue to serve other gods and refuse to exercise justice and live righteously before Him. What He requires of us is to live righteously and administer justice to our fellowmen. As we are told in Micah 6:8, the Lord's requirements of us are to "do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God."
-Jasmine Lynch

06/23/2026

Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus;

Wailing shall be in all streets;
and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas!
and they shall call the husbandman to mourning,
and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
And in all vineyards shall be wailing:
for I will pass through thee,
saith the Lord.

Woe unto you that desire
the day of the Lord!
to what end is it for you?
the day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.
As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him;
or went into the house,
and leaned his hand on the wall,
and a serpent bit him.
Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light?
even very dark, and no brightness in it?
~Amos 5:16-20

Amos, the shepherd turned prophet, is often overlooked in our teaching, but he is widely believed to be the earliest of the writing prophets. Earlier prophets like Elijah and Elisha were known for their deeds rather than their message. Amos' message was one of doom for the northern kingdom of Israel. His message was about the Day of the Lord. the people thought they desired to see the Day of the Lord, but unfortunately, they were not preparing for it. And so, it would be a day of darkness and not light. When the Day of the Lord comes, there will be "wailing in all the streets" for those who have not repented. Are you prepared for it?
-Jasmine Lynch

06/22/2026

Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.

And he spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.
~Luke 15:1-7

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). Jesus graphically illustrated this to His listeners. Although this was a parable, the meaning was clear to everyone because of its practicality. We have one job to do. We must take care of the flock, and if one is missing, we must go find the lost. Too often, we forget the lost because we are focused on the existing members in the church. Instead of going to actively seek those who have left the church or who have never come in, we wait for them to come back home. Jesus came seeking the lost, and we should follow His example.
-Jasmine Lynch

06/21/2026

And they shall build the old wastes,
they shall raise up the former desolations,
and they shall repair the waste cities,
the desolations of many generations.
And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,
and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.
But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord:
men shall call you the Ministers of our God:
ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles,
and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

For your shame ye shall have double;
and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion:
therefore in their land they shall possess the double:
everlasting joy shall be unto them.

For I the Lord love judgment,
I hate robbery for burnt offering;
and I will direct their work in truth,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles,
and their offspring among the people:
all that see them shall acknowledge them,
that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed.
~Isaiah 61:4-9

Wow! This is a message of hope and deliverance. All the things that Israel could hope for are fulfilled in this passage: rebuilding of the old ruins; repair of ruined cities; strangers and foreigners serving as their workmen; double honor replacing their shame; and rejoicing instead of confusion. All these things would happen because "I, the Lord, love justice...[and] will direct their work in truth, and will make with them an everlasting covenant" (v. 8, NKJV). This covenant would extend to their descendants and make them known among the nations. That includes us. Let us not take our blessings for granted.
-Jasmine Lynch

06/20/2026

Ready for a Change?
Matthew 9:9-13

Pastor Dan Richards
Seventh Day Baptist Church of Texarkana
facebook.com/sdbtxk

June 20, 2026

06/20/2026

Happy Sabbath to all of our friends and family around the world! May you be blessed as you rest and worship our Lord on His holy day. Be a part of our weekly shout-out by sharing your greeting and location! 🙂 To learn more about what Seventh Day Baptists believe click here: http://seventhdaybaptist.org/about/statement-of-belief/
If you are close by, we would love for you to come and worship with us! Sabbath School at 10:00 am, Worship Service 11:00. Or you can join us live, right here on facebook! See less

06/19/2026

So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the Lord even require it at the hand of David's enemies. And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.

And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to slay David.

So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame.

And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, The Lord be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever. And he arose and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.
~1 Samuel 20:16-17, 32-34, 42

David and Jonathan's relationship is an example of faithful and fierce friendship. Jonathan was in the line of kingship, according to protocol, but God had planned kingship for David instead. Jonathan did not think of David as an enemy, but as his closest friend. Saul felt threatened by David because the people gave more credit to David than to Saul when David destroyed Goliath. Jonathan decided to do the right thing by aligning with the man of God, which meant going against his father, who was jealous of David's popularity. God protected David from his enemy, and He will do the same for us.
-Jasmine Lynch

06/18/2026

As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another.
~John 15:9-17

The word abide is used by Jesus ten times in this chapter. He wanted us to pay attention and to understand what it means to abide in Him. In verses 9-17, it is used three times to tell us that Jesus loves us and invites us to abide in His love. If we keep His commandments, we will abide in His love in the same way that Jesus has kept His Father's commandments and abides in His love. To abide means to stay continually connected with Jesus, to live in constant fellowship, to receive His lifestyle and obey His teachings. Are you abiding in Him? If not, what needs to change?
-Jasmine Lynch

06/17/2026

And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons; Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord is gone out against me.

And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.

And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law.

And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me. When she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her.
~Ruth 1:11-18

It is difficult to start over when we have lost everything. Naomi, with bitterness, decided to go back to Israel and start over, not knowing that God had not abandoned her. She had not lost everything. When you have God, you have everything no matter what else is taken away. God is a friend who "sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24b). Ruth was that kind of friend who would never leave nor forsake her mother-in-law, Naomi. She accepted Naomi's God, her people, and her land, and that made all the difference for both of them. She was willing to die taking care of Naomi, even if it meant remaining single. Ruth demonstrated God's love.
-Jasmine Lynch

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