The Consequences of Sin and Its Solution (Part 1)
Mike Riley
|
In 1973, the world-renowned psychologist Karl Menninger made headlines by writing the book, “Whatever Became of Sin?” It might be more accurate to say that he made “sermon headlines” by this title since countless preachers made reference to Dr. Menninger in their sermons. However, the secular press’ reaction to his book was at best minimal. Menninger’s main point was that public discourse about sin, which played a great part in our nation’s heritage, had seemingly fallen out of vogue, possibly contributing to a growing sense of personal moral irresponsibility in the 1960’s and 1970’s.
Living in a world where evil men and imposters proceed from bad to worse (2 Timothy 3:13), it does seem as if the word “sin” has disappeared from the human vocabulary. Even today, the idea of not preaching on the “sensitive” issue of sin, is even finding its way into the Lord’s church.
However, our responsibility as Christians, is not to join the majority in a world of evil who would seek to circumvent the issue or attempt to whiten up the blackness of sin (Isaiah 5:20). As disciples of Christ, our obligation is to:
“Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible” (Ephesians 5:11-13 NIV).
With these thoughts in mind, let’s ask ourselves: (1) “What are the consequences of our sins?”; and (2)“How does God deal with our sin problem?”
Sin Hurts God — Too often when people sin they begin by mourning over the “consequences” of their sin, such as disgrace, poverty, disease, and emotional discomfort, instead of shedding tears because they realize they’ve sinned against a holy God (Matthew 5:4; cf. James 4:8-9; 2 Corinthians 7:9-10; Ecclesiastes 7:3; 2 Samuel 12:13; Matthew 26:75).
When David had been confronted with his sin, he confessed to God, “Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight” (Psalm 51:4). David declared later in Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart — These, O God, You will not despise.” David’s heart was broken because he realized he had broken the very heart of God. Sin hurts God!
Sin Hurts Others — It’s utter selfishness to the core when people argue that their refusal to submit themselves to God only negatively affects them. What utter foolishness this argumentation becomes! Try reasoning this way with parents who have shed tears at the funeral of their fifteen year old son, whose life was taken due to the drunk driver who thought his drinking wouldn’t hurt anyone but himself.
Try convincing a broken-hearted woman whose world has been devastated by the adultery of her husband, and now she is forced to explain to her three children why their father left her for another woman. Sin hurts others!
To be continued next week
|
|
Elders
Leon Cort
Mark Craigwell
|
Minister
Mark Craigwell
Assistant Minister
Denver Simmons
|
Deacons
Raleigh Gallington
Anthony Johnson
Gregory Johnson
Carlfred Malcolm
Albert Martin, Jr.
Walter Maxwell
Richard Meuse
Barry Person
Jason Reid
In Memoriam
Gone, but never forgotten, our beloved brother,
James W. Wade, Sr.
|
|
|
Sermon for Sunday, July 23, 2023
Title: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly! (Part 3)
Text: 2 Peter 2:20-22
Speaker: Mark Craigwell
|
|
July & August Community Outreach: Our monthly community outreach grocery distribution will resume in the Fall.
Free Community Shredding Day: Saturday, July 29th, 9am-12 noon in church parking lot. Residential only (no business shredding), loose paper only (no books, magazines, or cardboard), and you must stay onsite while your paper is being shredded.
Free Youth & Family Ministry Car Wash: Saturday, July 29th, 10am – 2pm in the church parking lot. Car washes are free, but donations are gratefully accepted. Details below.
NAACP 2023 National Convention: July 26-August 1, in Boston. See below for link for details.
|
|
Masks are now optional for our in-person services and events, but all other COVID protocols remain in effect, including signing up for Sunday worship services in advance.
Upcoming Events:
-
Third Sunday Fellowship, Sunday, August 20th, hosted by Bedford Street CoC, 3pm.
-
Youth & Family Ministry Fundraising Car Wash, Saturday, July 29th, 10-2 in church parking lot.
-
Community Shred Day, Saturday, July 29th, 9am-12noon in church parking lot.
-
Xavier Craigwell's Graduation Celebration, Saturday, August 19th, 12 noon, Tenean Beach, Dorchester.
-
Roxbury CoC International Cook Out: Saturday, August 26th, 11am-4pm. Details to come.
-
Bedford St. CoC Summer Outdoor Concert, Saturday, August 26th, 6pm
Mature in Heart
-
Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Trip Payments: All payments are due by the end of June. Please see Bro. Gallington to find out how much you owe, and please submit any payments to Sis. Keitrice Johnson or Sis. Elizabeth Nagarajah. See details below.
|
|
Don't Miss Out! Please scroll through the entire e-bulletin each week to be certain not to miss any important announcements or links. Many items are repeated each week, but there are also new announcements that you'll miss if you don't scroll through the entire bulletin.
|
|
We will continue to offer two Sunday morning worship services to accommodate in-person attendees
The first service begins at 8:30 a.m. and runs until approximately 9:45 a.m.; the second service begins at 11:00 a.m. The weekly adult Bible class/devotional begins at 10:00 a.m. The usual sign-up rules and COVID protocols remain in effect, except that effective Sunday, May 14, 2023, masks will be optional at all in-person events (see detailed COVID response notice under NEWS & NOTES above). When you access the online sign-up form, you will be required to specify which service you would like to attend. Once capacity has been reached for a particular time slot, the form will no longer accept new registrations for that time slot. We will continue to livestream the 11:00 service on our YouTube channel, and we encourage members to utilize e-giving, even when attending in person.
PLEASE NOTE: THE LINK BELOW IS FOR NEXT WEEK'S SERVICE
In-Person Worship Sign-up
Please also note that there is a new registration link each week.
E-giving link
Livestream link
|
|
Shredding services provided by Bay State Shredding
Questions? See Bro. Gallington
|
|
Thank you to all who assisted with our June Community Outreach on Saturday, June 24th. Our monthly community outreach will resume in September. |
|
Remote & In-Person
Class/Meeting Schedule
|
|
Wednesday Night In-Person & Dial-In Bible Study
Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in-person and via freeconferencecall.com.
Dial in number: 978-990-5000
Access Code: 261232#
|
|
REMINDER: Please remember to mute your phone or computer when joining any of the above conference calls to avoid interrupting the class or service you are entering, particularly if you are joining the call after the event has started. |
|
COUPLES' MINISTRY MEETINGS WILL RESUME IN THE FALL via Zoom the second and third Fridays of the month at 7:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
|
|
This month's Women's Class will be held on Sunday, July 23, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. at the church building, and via Free Conference Call for those who cannot attend in person.
Dial in: 978-990-5000
Access Code: 261232#
Or, join the class online at
Presenter: Sis. Elizabeth Nagarajah
|
|
July 2023
Visitor Thank You Letters - Sis. Estela Rosario
Visitor Gift Bags - Sis. Veronica Tejeda
Baptistry -Sis. Sarah Williams
|
|
Please note that the dial-in number for this conference call has changed. The new number is 945-218-0112. The access code remains the same, 3730930. |
|
2023 Mature in Heart Pennsylvania Dutch Country Excursion: Our 2023 trip is scheduled for Thursday, September 14th through Friday, September 15th to see a production of “Moses” at the Sight & Sound Theater in Lancaster at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 14th. The cost for bus, hotel, dinner and show is as follows:
- $340/person for quad occupancy (families)
- $358/person for triple occupancy (families)
- $393/person for double occupancy
- $514 for single occupancy
- $830/couple for grand king room
Sign up is open now and a $75 deposit is required by to hold a spot. The number is limited by bus capacity and hotel availability. If you have not already done so, please get your deposit in ASAP to secure your spot so we can finalize the theater seating. Seats can only be assigned for purchased tickets.
Payments can be made via our e-giving link at:
https://www.churchofchristinroxbury.org/e-giving. Please follow up any payments with an email to cocroxbury@gmail.com with the subject line "Pennsylvania Trip Payment" and your name and payment amount in the body of the email so that your payments can be properly recorded.
|
|
Our monthly Men's Class will be held on Sunday, July 23, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. at the church building.
|
|
Young Adult Ministry (YAM) |
|
Date of next meeting will be announced. |
|
Monthly Ministry Meeting
1st Sunday of each month at 1:00 p.m.
|
|
Meetings & Events
7/4 - Men's Work Day at Maxwells' home.
7/3 - Ministers/Elders/Deacon's Meeting
7/9 - Deacons' Meeting following 11:00 service @church building.
7/16 - Retention Ministry Meeting following 11:00 service @church building.
7/22 - Veloz/Malcolm Wedding, 3:30pm @church building
7/23 - Men's and Women's Classes, 5pm @church building
7/29 - Youth & Family Ministry Car Wash, 10am-2pm in church parking lot
7/29 - Free Community Shred Day, 9am-12noon in church parking lot
|
|
Ministry Meetings - Please contact your ministry coordinator for remote meeting schedules.
|
|
- Sunday New Converts' Class, 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Bible Class (children) Sundays at 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Adult Devotional/Bible Study, 10:00am @church building
- Sunday Worship Service 8:30 and 11:00 am in person and 11:00 a.m. via livestream on YouTube. See above for details.
- Men's/Women's Classes, 5pm (4th Sunday of the month) @church building
- Youth & Family Ministry (1st Sunday of the month at 2pm)
-
Mature in Heart Women's Prayer (Tuesdays @ 10:30am) VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Prayer Meeting (Tuesdays @ 7pm) VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Mid-Week Bible Study (Wednesdays @ 6:30pm) in person and VIA TELECONFERENCE (connection info above)
- Mid-Week New Converts' Class (Wednesdays @ 7pm) @church building
-
Healing Hearts (Thursdays @6:15pm) VIA ZOOM
- Couple's Ministry (2nd & 3rd Fridays @ 7 pm)
- Women's Prayer (Saturdays 9:30am) VIA TELECONFERENCE (Connection info above)
- Ministers/Elders/Deacons Wives Meeting, (3rd Saturday @10 am) @church building
|
|
Bro. John Kurpiel, minister for the Lawrence congregation, hosts an international radio program, “Soul Food,” on Mondays and Tuesdays from 11AM until 3PM. The program airs on Ignite Radio Broadcast via Mixlr, an interactive internet radio platform. Use the link below to tune in to listen, or to participate in the conversation. Always free to listen. https://mixlr.com/ignite-radio-broadcast.
|
|
Church of Christ in Roxbury
81 Walnut Avenue
Roxbury, MA 02119
617-442-5826
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
