EAST TAMPA CHRISTIAN CHURCH
7824 S. 24th Ave., Tampa, Fla. 33619 / (813) 626-2507
Terry Tyree, Minister
ORDER OF WORSHIP
Announcements
Prayer
Sermon
Invitation Song
Communion Song
Communion / Offering
Praise Songs
Blessed Be Your Name
Forever
Come, Now Is the Time to Worship
Closing Prayer
“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
ON THE CALENDAR
Sunday: Sunday School: Adults, 9 a.m., Children, 9 and 10 a.m., Worship, 10 a.m.
Tuesday: Hunger-Free Mission food sharing, 10 a.m.
Wednesday: Bible study and prayer meeting, 6 p.m
THIS AND THAT
Birthday this week: Brianna Cheatham (today)
Meditations next week: John Thomas
FROM THE WORD
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands.
Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person.
1 John 2:1-4
ADDITIONAL
We live in a very blessed culture in 21st century America. We live in a world of options and diverse blessings. Think about this. At the risk of making everyone tune out of worship today in favor of thinking about lunch, fast forward to a post-service lunch decision type conversation. We have options in this regard. For lunch today, you can have food from whatever country you want—sometimes we get into heated debates about this. “I’m thinking Mexican,” someone says. “No! We need to get Italian!” Another voice rings out. “How about a good ol’ burger?” We can go around and around with so many options. It’s a blessing and a curse. Mostly a blessing, though.
We love being able to choose things based on our own preference. So, when we start hearing God saying things like “trust and obey” in the Bible, we might be given some pause. We might start thinking if we submit to God, we will miss out on all the wonderful options we have in this life. Aside from ‘obvious sins,’ there are constant distractions that keep us connected and/or entertained. The devil likes to use these things to slow us down and keep us constantly pivoting to the next thing—we can do this much that we miss what God wants for us.
That’s why Ananias said this to the apostle Paul in Acts 22.16: “Why do you wait?” Paul wanted to learn what it means to follow Jesus, and Ananias let him know what the next step in his journey was. “Arise and be baptized…wash away your sins, calling on his name.” Paul was baptized then and there. After that, he didn’t slow down or stop. He kept his job as a tentmaker while he went on spreading the gospel and encouraging disciples to do the same thing. There was no slow down or quit in Paul.
This same apostle tells us to imitate him as he imitates Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1) Are we eager to obey King Jesus the way Paul was? Do we believe God’s purpose is higher than our own? Does the love Jesus brings dwell in us and urge us to move the way he moved?
Are there aspects of your faith that need attention? “Why do you wait?” Don’t delay. Obey God—not out of sense of obligation but out of an earnest love and excitement for the joy, peace and purpose that will surely come when you do.
Cain Atkinson
TODAY IS THE DAY OF SALVATION
The invitation at the close of each worship service extends an opportunity for anyone outside of Christ to unite with him and become a Christian through belief (John 3:16); repentance (turning away from sin,
Acts 2:38); confession of belief in Christ (Romans 10:10); baptism into Christ for forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit (Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Romans 6:1-8) and devoting the rest of your life to
Christ (Matthew 10:22).
The Lord’s invitation also is open to anyone desiring to rededicate his or her life to Christ; to baptized
believers wanting to transfer their membership to this congregation, or to request prayer support.
ABOUT US
For more than a half-century, we have been a restoration plea fellowship in unity with other independent New Testament church bodies. Certainly, we are not the only Christians, but we are Christians only.
In that regard, we assume no denominational name. We observe the Lord’s Supper every Sunday to honor him and reflect upon his great sacrifice on our behalf (Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 11:23-28, Hebrews 10:25).
We teach directly from the Bible. Where it speaks clearly – such as the Gospel plan of salvation and other directions or commands – we seek unity. In matters of opinion, where the Bible does not expressly speak, we seek liberty. In all things, however, we speak love for one another, just as Jesus loved us and laid down his life for us!
If you agree with these matters, please join us to proclaim salvation and unity to those who need to hear it in the name of our blessed Lord and only Savior, Jesus Christ. We urgently invite you to do so since his glorious return is imminent.
OUR ELDERS
Jim Fairchild (813) 361-7809 jfairchild@famins.com
Dan Hefner (813) 244-9843 danshirlh@msn.com