Roswell Street

Algernon Tennyson 1.22.2012

rsbcconnections — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:25:56 +0000

Announcements

rsbcconnections — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:01:02 +0000

In the Evening Service (January 29th) we’ll commission a new Ministry here at RSBC called “Faith Riders.” If you or someone you know enjoys riding motorcycles, invite him/her to be present tonight. Our guest speaker is Phil Pilgrim. This motorcycle ministry is centered around Jesus and sharing Him with others.

Sunday, February 5, 2012 – 10^th Anniversary Celebration of Dr. Ernest Easley & Julie! Combined 11:00am Worship in the Worship Center followed by a ticketed luncheon. All tickets have been distributed.

Dr. Easley has challenged every RSBC church member to participate in A Call to Prayer. Beginning next Sunday, February 5^th, we’ll receive a Prayer Card that will guide us through a monthly emphasis, beginning with A Call to Prayer for Our Church in the month of February.

Connection Service teaching schedule-

January 29 -Davin Benavides/Marvin Mumford will leading our music
February 05 -Combined Worship
February 12- Algernon Tennyson
February 19- Algernon Tennyson
February 26- Algernon Tennyson/Marvin Mumford will be leading our music

Devotional from Brad O’Kelley

rsbcconnections — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:14:51 +0000

But Jesus said, “Someone did touch me, for I was aware that power had gone out of me.”
Luke 8:46

Yesterday in the Connections service, Algernon used example after example to show the power of God being lived out in the lives of Christians. One of Al’s main points was that we often walk around defeated in our faith rather than allowing God’s power to truly be played out in our lives. The verse listed above is from a passage of scripture that shows God’s amazing power being used in the life of someone who believes.

I would like to think that I understand the concept of power, but maybe it is a different kind of power. I come from a family full of electricians who can run power to anything at anytime. Now believe me when I say that I am not an expert electrician, but I do have a healthy fear of electricity. When I was remodeling my home, one of the last things that I had to do in order to finish the job was change out all of the light switches and outlets in the house. This is a very easy job to me because I had done it before and I understand how electricity works. First, I would go to the circuit panel and turn off the breaker to the room or area that I was working on. That means that I cut off the power to each individual room so that no electricity was going to that room while I was working. I worked my way through a few rooms turning off the electricity as I went, but in the last room I made a mistake. At some point in time, before I bought my house, someone mislabeled the circuit panel for one of the rooms in the house. As I began to work on removing the first switch in the room, I realized that something was wrong when my screwdriver grazed one of the wires, made a blue spark, a loud pop, and knocked me back about three or four feet! The next thing I knew my hands were shaking and my teeth hurt because the electrical current had made its way through my body. I don’t recommend that experience to anyone because that is not the type of power that you want to experience.

The verse at the top of this page talks about a different type of power that Jesus was aware of. This verse comes from a passage that focuses on Jesus healing those who are sick. In this particular case, there was a woman who had come to see Jesus who had suffered from what the Bible calls a “hemorrhage.” A large crowd had gathered to see Jesus and the woman knew that she would not be able to get His attention. Rather than giving up on being healed by Jesus, the woman realizes that if she can just get close enough to touch Jesus then she would be healed. One of the greatest examples of faith is that the woman did not even need to touch Jesus himself, she knew that if she could touch the hem of His cloak she would still receive all of the healing power that Jesus had to offer. Jesus’ response to this situation in found in verse 48 when He said; “Daughter, your faith has made you well.”

So what does this mean for you and I today? We have to understand two things about this passage of scripture. First, we have to understand that there could have been hundreds of people that touched Jesus that day. The Apostle Peter used this excuse when Jesus was trying to figure out who touched Him by saying “people are crowding and pressing in on you.” Peter’s point was that there would be no way to know who had touched Jesus. Secondly, we have to remember that faith that the woman used when approaching Jesus. Other gospel accounts state that the woman knew that she only had to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment and she would be healed. The woman approached Jesus with sincere faith, knowing that something would happen because of her encounter with Jesus. The lesson for you and I is that we have to approach our heavenly Father with the same amount of faith that the woman had. We have to understand that God’s power is so enormous that even the smallest amount is able to provide a miracle. The Bible literally teaches in Genesis chapter one that God created heaven, earth, day, night, water, land, and animals with only the sound of His voice. That is how powerful God is! When was the last time that we approached God with complete faith in His almighty power? As you go throughout your day today, understand that God has enough power in the hem of His garment to create the largest miracle that this world has ever seen. Praise God today for His power. Ask God to use His power in your life today. Approach God in prayer with the same faith that this woman showed… Faith that even the smallest glimpse of His power will do life changing work.

Algernon Tennyson 1.15.2012

rsbcconnections — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:39:53 +0000

Open My Eyes – Part II from RSBC Media on Vimeo.

Announcements

rsbcconnections — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:40:36 +0000

Speaking Schedule for the Connection Service
January 22-Algernon Tennyson wraps up his “Open My Eyes” series
January 29-Davin Benavides
February 5-Celebrating Dr. Easley’s 10 year anniversary/all worship services will gather together in the Worship Center/Lunch will be provided FOR THOSE WITH TICKETS. Check with the church office for availability of tickets 770-424-9800
February 12-Algernon Tennyson

Men’s Ministry Breakfast-January 28th in the Vision Center. The tickets are $5 and available in the lobby.

High School Retreats-January 27-29 $40 Sign up ends today so CALL OR REGISTER ON-LINE (Scholarships available)

Girls: “Woven” our focus will be on unity. It will be a fun weekend of worship, Bible study, adventures and craft projects. We will be staying in a cabin in the mountains. Call Allison or register on-line at www.roswellstreet.com/highschool

Guys: “Man Weekend” It will be a fun time at the Cherokee Retreat Center in White, GA. We will worship, study God’s word, eat, MANLY activities, eat and forge new relationships! Call Luke or register on-line at www.roswellstreet.com/highschool

Coming in February!
Be on the lookout for “Prayer Emphasis” that will begin in February and run thru July

Devotional from Brad O’Kelley

rsbcconnections — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:41:13 +0000

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9

Yesterday in the connection service, Algernon walked us through the last half of first John chapter one. Al reminded us of the importance of taking the light of gospel message out into the world and sharing it with others. We also heard about the difference between darkness and light and the way each of them works in our lives. One of my favorite verses appeared in our message yesterday and I could not wait to get up this morning and talk about it!

Have you ever been in a situation when the right thing had to be done regardless of the consequences? Growing up, my best friend and I somehow managed to talk our parents into buying us BB guns. The rules were the same for each of our houses; no loaded BB guns inside the house. This rule seemed fair enough because there was nothing cool to shoot at inside the house. One day my friend’s mom went to the grocery store and left us in charge of the house while she was gone. Of course for our own protection we decided to bring our BB guns into the house just in case anything went down while we were home alone. Yes, we thought we could fight off a burglar with our BB guns. Everything was fine until my friend picked up his gun and said “I’m going to make sure the safety is on.” This could have been a good thing except for the fact that he decided to check the safety by pulling the trigger. Needless to say, the safety was not on and a beautiful glass door fell victim to a speeding BB. The glass in the door exploded as if it had been hit by a cannonball and my friend and I instantly went into panic mode. We decided that if we knocked out all of the glass, swept it up, and cleaned the area to the best of our ability, then nobody would notice the mistake that we had made. This would have been a great plan if the door that was now missing all of the glass was not a door that led outside of the house. The BB guns were Christmas gifts and the door that was missing all of its glass was shot out in January. My friend and I did not take into account that when we knocked out all of the glass in the door, there would be a freezing gust of winter air filling the house. When my friend’s mom returned home she instantly noticed the cold breeze and the lack of glass in the door. It did not take long for her to figure out what had happened. Our trial took place in the kitchen and our punishment was the loss of our BB guns for longer than we can remember. We also had to work off the cost of putting new glass in the door. Looking back on the situation now, I would say that justice had been served.

Think about that for a moment. We knew the rules, we broke the rules, and we received the proper punishment for what we had done. Does that sound fair to you? Let’s apply the same logic to our spiritual lives. We know God’s law and what He desires from us through His word, we constantly break the law and His commandments because of our sin, and we deserve the proper punishment. That sounds fair doesn’t it? It does sound fair except for the fact that we are missing one key element of God’s love. First John 1:9 says that God is “faithful and just to forgive us of our sins.” God is faithful because He gave us the gift of Jesus Christ to bear the punishment of the sins of the whole world. God is just because the death of Jesus on the cross was the right price for the sins that you and I commit. In other words, we broke the rules and deserved the punishment but Jesus took the punishment on our behalf.

So, what does this mean for us today? There is one thing that we left out in our study of this verse. John uses this verse to show our part in the forgiveness of sins when he says “if we confess our sins.” Confessing our sins sounds easy enough, but believe it or not it is a lot easier said than done. Sin separates us from God and takes us to a place where we think nobody would ever understand what we are going through. The truth of the matter is that Jesus understands because He paid the price for that sin. Jesus understands exactly how much that sin cost, the damage it has done, and the pain that it has caused us in our relationship with God. When we confess our sins to Him, He administers the perfect amount of grace and mercy to us because the price has been paid and He is faithful and just to those who call upon His name for the forgiveness of sins. Call on the name of the Lord today. Ask Him to forgive you for the sins that you have committed. Confess your sins to Him and allow His grace and mercy to fill your heart today. If we confess, then He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Confess your sins today and allow God’s faithfulness and justification to rule in your life today.

Algernon Tennyson 1.8.2012

rsbcconnections — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:37:52 +0000

Open My Eyes from RSBC Media on Vimeo.

Davin Benavides 1.1.2012

rsbcconnections — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:35:45 +0000

In It To Win It from RSBC Media on Vimeo.

Announcements

rsbcconnections — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:49:11 +0000

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! We hope to see you Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
Christmas Eve will be at 6:00 pm in the main Worship Center.
Christmas Day will be at 11:00 am in the main Worship Center

CLC or “Christian Life College” classes for the winter quarter will begin January 18. Check out The Herald or the website for more information.

MEN- There will be a breakfsat on Saturday, January 28th at 8:00am in the Vision Center. Tickets are $5 and will be available for purchase beginning January 8th.

High School Retreats coming for Girls and Guys-January 27-29 $40 (scholarships will be available)
Girls will be in a mountain cabin
Guys will be at the Cherokee Retreat Center
Check out the website or call our Student Ministry for more information 770-424-9800

Teaching Team Schedule:

January 1          Davin Benavides
January 8          Algernon Tennyson
January 15        Algernon Tennyson
January 22        Algernon Tennyson
Janaury 29        Davin Benavides

Wednesday evening dinners will resume January 11, 2012

Devotional from Brad O’Kelley

rsbcconnections — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:01:36 +0000

She will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.

Matthew 1:21

Today I am sitting in my office surrounded by gifts. Mandy and I have already had two different Christmas celebrations with different sides of the family. As usual, Mandy has received many unique and beautiful gifts and I have received my favorite gift cards. Our house has been decorated for Christmas for almost a month because Mandy likes to start the season early. I like to consider myself an exterior illumination expert. That is just a fancy way of saying that I am amazing at putting up outdoor Christmas lights. I like for our house to look classy, but I also want the planes that fly overhead to wonder if they should land in our front yard. As much time as I spend on the exterior of the house; Mandy spends an equal amount of time on the inside. Our tree always looks amazing and everything gets covered in a fresh coat of Christmas decorations. I love all of our decorations, but there is really only one thing that has to go up in our home at Christmas. Several years ago my mom went to Israel with a group from Roswell Street. Mom bought Mandy and I one of the most beautiful nativity sets that I have ever seen. The nativity is made out of olive wood and all of the pieces are hand carved. The nativity is so beautiful that Mandy and I have talked about leaving it up year round. Each year when we get the box down and arrange the nativity set in our living room, I always wonder what it must have been like to be there at the birth of Christ. I wonder what Joseph was thinking when the angel appeared to him and told him about the birth of the savior. Out of all of our huge decorations, I enjoy this small nativity set the most.

In the same way that I am drawn to this nativity set, I am also drawn to Matthew 1:21 in the Christmas story. This small verse at the beginning of the Christmas story paints the most beautiful picture of what Christmas is all about. This verse is the fulfillment of a prophesy that had been spoken hundreds of years prior. Mary would give birth to a son and the angel’s instructions were to call Him by the name Jesus. There are Christians and non-Christians that could tell you that this is what Christmas is all about. However, I am drawn to this verse because of the second half. There is a reason that the angel instructed Joseph to give the child this name. The reason for the name was because it meant “God with us.” There would have been no other name that would have covered the purpose of this child other than Jesus. The purpose of this name was to show the exact reason that Jesus was born. The second half of this verse gives us this reason; to save His people from their sins. Christmas is all about the birth of Christ and His birth takes on new meaning when we focus on its purpose. When I look at the baby Jesus in our nativity set I am reminded that Christmas is all about celebrating His birth, and His birth is all about saving us from our sins.

So what does this mean for you and I today? I believe that it is easy to say that Christmas is all about the birth of Christ. However, what if someone asked you why Christmas is all about the birth of Christ? Mathew 1:21 answers this question. The reason that Christmas is all about the birth of Christ is because He is the only one that has ever been born who could save us from our sins. So the next time that you see a nativity set and you are reminded that Christmas is all about Christ, remember the REASON it is all about Christ. The reason is because He is the only one who can save us from our sins. Merry Christmas!!