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A Leader Who Follows?

Challenge Central: a CBC devotional

by: Pastor Lars Janssen

Take a moment and list the first five names that come to mind when you think of a leader. Now consider how many of those names were politicians, heads of organizations, or authoritative figures. Every name on my list fell into one of those categories. Now that’s not necessarily wrong, but such a narrow definition of leadership is why we Christians often run into trouble when we become leaders. This can be true when we lead at work, in the church, and in our families.
Paul addresses leadership in each of these areas throughout the book of Ephesians. In Ephesians 6:9, workplace leaders are reminded that they are masters serving The Master. In Ephesians 4:12, church leaders are framed as having been given to the church “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.” Perhaps most misunderstood is Paul’s description of leadership in the family in Ephesians 5:23, “the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church.”
The common thread in all of these leadership statements is the leader’s relationship to The Master or Christ’s body or Christ himself. The leader is led by Jesus. The leader leads for Jesus’ purposes. The leader leads as a reflection of Jesus. So Paul is reminding leaders to follow Jesus, join in his mission, and reflect his leadership. There isn’t even a whisper of being the boss. Each instance places leaders in a subordinate position to Jesus—led by Jesus, leading for Jesus, leading like Jesus. But how did Jesus lead? How did Jesus explain leadership?
We are not left to wonder about this. In Mark 10:35-41, two of Jesus’ disciples (James and John) ask him to promise them authoritative leadership roles in his coming kingdom: “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” In verses 42-45, our beloved Jesus gently uses the moment to teach true leadership:
“And Jesus called them to him and said to them, ‘You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’”
What does it mean to lead under Jesus, to lead for Jesus’ purposes, and to lead as Jesus leads? It means being the best employer because Jesus is the best Master. It means contributing actively and creatively to the good of Jesus’ church because that is what Jesus does. It means lovingly laying myself down for my wife just like Jesus did for the church. Leaders aren’t bosses, they are first-servers—those who move first to follow Jesus on his mission in his way.
The loudest most persistent people are not the leaders Paul is talking about in Ephesians or the leaders Jesus describes in Mark 10. Jesus’ leaders—at work, at church, and at home—are first-servers.

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Having Purpose In Life

Challenge Central: a CBC devotional

by: Pastor Alan Rietberg

I really enjoy reading books about history and real-life stories. I just finished reading a book called, “The Vanished: The Evaporated People of Japan”.

Japan has a population of 125 million people who live in an area slightly smaller than Newfoundland & Labrador, and this book recounts the stories of a sad, modern-day phenomenon where 100,00 citizens ‘disappear’ annually.

As I read the personal stories recounted by the reporter, my heart was moved as most were running away because they felt hopeless, alone, or without a significant purpose. They decided to withdraw from their jobs and families with little or no forewarning—abandoning their devastated relatives, friends and co-workers, and what they thought was a life of entrapment.

I thought of the sorrow felt by those left behind, and the deep distress of the person who ‘disappeared.’  This is not the kind of life that God wants a person to have, feeling hopeless, helpless, or alone.  But people do, and they continue to seek fulfillment in places that only temporarily satiates their emptiness. 

We can find fulfillment in following God’s plans for mankind in general and in our personal lives by bringing glory to God.  The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10: “We are God’s handi­work, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

We find our long-term satisfaction by yielding to God’s will for our lives. In 1 Corinthians 10:31 we see that bringing glory to God is to be our purpose in life.

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  We then blend that together with Matthew 5:16, where it says: “…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”  Mark 12:30 resonates with God’s purpose for our lives when we read “… you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” 

The last verses I’d like to mention are found in 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20 where we read: “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So, you must honour God with your body.” (NLT)

Where do we find fulfillment?  In following God’s purpose for life!

What is our purpose in life? Bringing glory to God in all we think, say, and do!

Where do we find hope? Through forgiveness of our sin by trusting in what Jesus did for us on the cross and becoming a child of God!

Jesus declared in John 3:36: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.“

If a sense of purpose, fulfillment, joy, hope, and peace have been eluding you or someone you know, it may be because those things (and more) are being sought in the wrong places. Please be assured of God’s help by trusting Jesus’ words in John 6:37:  “…I will never refuse anyone who comes to me.” (Philips)

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Don’t Skim Through the Genealogies

Challenge Central: a CBC devotional

by: Barb Rogelstad

For the past 35 years, I have been a serious genealogy enthusiast. Hours have been spent journeying through websites, thumbing through dusty stacks of books in libraries, examining land registries and maps, and travelling to archives to seek information that will lead me to my roots. Details are important when you research your family tree. You can be led far from your roots if you don’t pay attention to the specifics of the BMDs (birth, marriage, death).

Genealogy and lineages, unfortunately, are the parts of scripture that many people skip over when reading the Bible. They skim through the genealogies and miss the details. Most of all, they miss the reason why the genealogies are included in the Bible. The genealogies lead us to the birth of Jesus Christ. The events leading up to Jesus’ birth are found in the prophecies of the Old Testament. A Messiah is promised! He is from the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, Judah, Jesse, and David. The family tree is detailed and revealed in the genealogy recorded in both Matthew 1:1-17 and Luke 3:23-38.

Matthew’s recorded genealogy account starts with Abraham: “So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.” (Matthew 1:17).

Luke’s recorded genealogy account goes all the way back to Adam: “When He (Jesus) began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years old, being, as was commonly held, the son of Joseph… Cainan, the son of Enoch, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.” (Luke 3:23, 37b-38)

Notice the repetition of the words, ‘the son of’ in these verses. It is important to know that we are all sons and daughters of someone. I know that I am the daughter of Patrick Joseph Parrott and Winnifred Devine and I have inherited a few precious items that belonged to them. More importantly, I have a spiritual inheritance that can never perish and is kept for me in heaven. Isn’t that awesome? First Peter 1:3-4 states: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.”

Do you know for certain that when you die you will be with the Lord Jesus and obtain an inheritance reserved in heaven for you? You can know for certain right now! Would you pray this prayer?

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Saviour from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do Your will. I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Rejoice, for you are “the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ.” (Jude 1:1)

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Subscribe to the Events Calendar

Always Be In The Know!

The Events Calendar on our website can now be added to your own virtual calendar as a subscription.

Once subscribed, you can see what’s coming up at Central and keep up-to-date with any last-minute changes.

You can now add church events to your Google Calendar or iCalendar with the click of a button which allows you to see future events without continually having to remember to check on the website for updates.

Our main events calendar page now includes a handy subscribe button right at the bottom of the page. You’ll find a dropdown list there, with choices for Google Calendar, iCalendar, and the classic .ics export.

Once you click on Google Calendar or iCalendar, you’ll be redirected to your calendar application of choice and can add the church events calendar with one simple click. Further features (such as being notified of newly-added events) can be added in the settings of your calendar program.

If you’d rather not add the whole events calendar but are interested in only certain events, you can add them individually. On a single event page, the Google Calendar link will add the event directly to your Google Calendar. The iCal Export link downloads an .ics file for you to import to iCalendar or another calendar source.

As always, our Events Calendar can be accessed directly here: www.cbcbrantford.ca/events.

Christmas is an Opportunity

Challenge Central: a CBC devotional

by: Pastor Alan Rietberg

In New York’s Hayden Planetarium a special Christmas holiday show was enhanced by an added feature. A giant lollipop tree was projected onto the planetarium dome, surrounded by a horizon filled with brilliantly coloured toys which came to life and danced to the tune of “Jingle Bells.” At the climax a huge figure of Santa Claus faded into a snow storm, and then the star of Bethlehem broke through into the starry sky that would have been seen above that town on the night of Jesus’ birth.

The designer of this show may not have realized that he had dramatically staged the supreme Christmas message our world needs to understand: the recovery of the lost meaning of Christmas. The show’s effect must have delighted the hearts of all the children who saw it. For believers it is a tragic loss to substitute “Jingle Bells” for “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing,” and a lollipop tree for the manger of Bethlehem.

This approaching season is about God’s incarnation when the angels proclaimed, “God with us.” (Matt. 1:23). We celebrate Jesus coming into the world to give us a gift: Himself. The REAL story of Christmas is seen, in part, in Galatians 4:
4 But when the proper time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman…
5 God did this so He could buy freedom for those who were under the law and so we could become His children.
7 So now you are not a slave; you are God’s child, and God will give you the blessing He promised, because you are His child. (NCV)

Christmas began in the heart of God and it is completed when it transforms the heart of someone.
It’s a constant challenge to let the “tinsel” of Christmas fade while allowing the truth of Jesus to shine through in our lives.
Scripture says, “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:8,9 NIV)

Christmas is one of the most important times of the year because the world around us is drawn to asking “what’s this all about”? We, as followers of Christ, have the opportunity to be regularly filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.

Let’s share the joy of Christ with others.

Let’s share the freedom from the penalty of sin with our friends, neighbours and relatives.

Let’s not be fearful in proclaiming that we are God’s child during this Christmas season.

Let’s recover what seems to be the lost meaning of Christmas and share it with others!

Let’s grab hold of this opportunity to show others that we believe in Him.

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