Theology

 *NEVER LET GO OF YOUR DREAM* Persistent people begin their success where most other people quit. As Christians, we need to be known as people with great persistence and endurance. A person with commitment, persistence and endurance will accomplish more than a thousand people with interest alone. The more diligently we work, the harder it is to quit. Persistence is an habit and so is quitting. As you launch into the New Year 2021, never worry about how much money, ability or equipment you are starting with - Just begin with a million worth of determination! Always remember that it is not what you have that mattered most in life but what you do with what you have that makes the whole lot of difference. Many people eagerly begin "the good fight of faith" but along the line they forgot to add Patience, Persistence and Endurance to their enthusiasm. By Perseverance, the snail reached the ark ... Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Many times, our Dreams and Plans appear not to be succeeding

 *30/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE TOPIC: *A PROPHET WITHOUT HONOUR PART THREE* Text: Matthew 13:53-58 Mark 6:1-6 Luke 4:16-30 Topic verse: *But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house"* Mark 6:4 Jesus announces the five purposes for which God has sent him: to preach good news to the poor... to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour (Luke 4:18-19) This announcement takes place during Jesus' visit to the synagogue of Nazareth where he publicly presents himself to the nation as God's Messiah. Invited by the leader of the synagogue to read from the Scriptures, Jesus stands, is handed a scroll that he unrolls to the intended passage, reads the passage, rolls the scroll up again, hands it back to the attendant, and sits down to speak while all eyes remain fixed on him (Luk

 *TURNING TO GOD IN THE FACE OF CATACLYSM* Some have recognized the present crisis as a moment for spiritual reflection and renewal. The following is excerpted from a remarkable March 26,2020, Wall Street Journal article "A Coronavirus Great Awakening?" by Robert Nicholson, director of a nonprofit organization for Christian advocacy in the Middle East, it reminds us that at times like this we should turn to God and seek His will. "Could a plague of biblical proportions be America's or Nigeria's best hope for religious revival? As the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II approaches, there is reason to think so ... Gazing at the ruins (of that war) from his window at Cambridge University, British historian Herbert Butterfield chose to make sense of it by turning to the Hebrew Bible. "'The power of the Old Testament teaching on history ... lay precisely in the region of truths which sprang from a reflection on catastrophe and cataclysm,' Butterfi

 *2020 CHRISTMAS SERVICE* TOPIC: *A KING IS BORN* Text: Isaiah 7:10-16; 9:6-7 Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-23 Luke 1:26-56; 2:1-52 Two thousand years ago a man appeared on the scene of history. He was born into the world and grew up into manhood just like every other person, but this man was different to anyone else. He was no ordinary man. A virgin conceived by the Holy Spirit to bring Him to birth. He was God, Himself, coming to the earth in human form. He was the "Son of God" (Luke 1:26-35). *"In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth". John 1:1,14* The Prophecies of Jesus' birth 1. The Messiah would be the seed of a woman. Genesis 3:15 Galatians 4:4 2. The Messiah would be a descendant of Abraham. Genesis 12:3 Matthew 1:1 3. The Messiah would be a descendant of

 *23/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE TOPIC: *A PROPHET WITHOUT HONOUR PART TWO* Text: Matthew 13:53-58 Mark 6:1-6 Luke 4:16-30 Topic verse: *But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house"* Mark 6:4 Jesus has returned to Nazareth, his hometown, with the disciples. On the sabbath he was given a chance to teach in the synagogue. His teaching there amazed the home audience, making them wonder about the source of his teaching, of his wisdom and of miracles he was reported to have performed elsewhere (Mark 6:2). They took offense at him because *they reasoned that none of what they were seeing could be traced to his human origins* (Mark 6:3). In that they were correct! But they would not go further and trace their source to God because they still saw Jesus as just the carpenter. They had failed to see God at work. In response, Jesus repeated the proverb that says a prophet receives honour

  *WILL JESUS FIND FAITH?* *In times of crisis more people turn to God, yet usually for only a short time. Will we break the pattern?* Jesus posed a startling question to His disciples in *Luke 18:8: "When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"* Faith in God is diminishing day by day, year by year. Statisticians and researchers have produced many reports showing the decline of faith in America and the Western world. When a crisis strikes our world - be it a war, a terrorist attack or a health pandemic - we often see short-lived return to faith. More prayers go up to God for a short while. Recent Pew research polling has found that most people are praying more during the coronavirus outbreak than before. But the pattern we've seen before is that as a great crisis is resolved and fades, life goes back to normal. Churches are mostly empty again. What are people thinking, and does it matter? Why should we be concerned about what society at large believ

  *WILL JESUS FIND FAITH?* *In times of crisis more people turn to God, yet usually for only a short time. Will we break the pattern?* Jesus posed a startling question to His disciples in *Luke 18:8: "When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"* Faith in God is diminishing day by day, year by year. Statisticians and researchers have produced many reports showing the decline of faith in America and the Western world. When a crisis strikes our world - be it a war, a terrorist attack or a health pandemic - we often see short-lived return to faith. More prayers go up to God for a short while. Recent Pew research polling has found that most people are praying more during the coronavirus outbreak than before. But the pattern we've seen before is that as a great crisis is resolved and fades, life goes back to normal. Churches are mostly empty again. What are people thinking, and does it matter? Why should we be concerned about what society at large believ

 *20/12/2020* *THIRD SUNDAY SERVICE* TOPIC: *A PROPHET WITHOUT HONOUR PART TWO* Text: Matthew 13:53-58 Mark 6:1-6 Luke 4:16-30 Topic verse: *But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house"* Mark 6:4 Jesus has returned to Nazareth, his hometown, with the disciples. On the sabbath he was given a chance to teach in the synagogue. His teaching there amazed the home audience, making them wonder about the source of his teaching, of his wisdom and of miracles he was reported to have performed elsewhere (Mark 6:2). They took offense at him because *they reasoned that none of what they were seeing could be traced to his human origins* (Mark 6:3). In that they were correct! But they would not go further and trace their source to God because they still saw Jesus as just the carpenter. They had failed to see God at work. In response, Jesus repeated the proverb that says a prophet receives honour everywhere

 *16/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE TOPIC: *A PROPHET WITHOUT HONOUR PART ONE* Text: Matthew 13:53-58 Mark 6:1-4 Luke 4:16-30 Topic verse: *But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his relatives, and in his own house"* The call of God is honourable; the call to priesthood and ministerial offices are God ordained and no man can question it. Romans 11:29; Numbers 23:19. "Familiarity breeds contempt" is a famous English saying, It means that when people know someone well, they no longer regard that person as worthy of respect or honour. Many tourists pay a great deal of money to visit the spectacular Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Yet millions of Zambians and Zimbabweans have never taken the trouble to visit one of the seven natural wonders of the world right there on their doorstep. Jesus was gaining a reputation as an effective itinerant preacher and faith hea

 *13/12/2020* *SECOND SUNDAY SERVICE* TOPIC: *A PROPHET WITHOUT HONOUR PART ONE* Text: Matthew 13:53-58 Mark 6:1-4 Luke 4:16-30 Memory verse: *But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his relatives, and in his own house"* The call of God is honourable; the call to priesthood and ministerial offices are God ordained and no man can question it. Romans 11:29; Numbers 23:19. "Familiarity breeds contempt" is a famous English saying, It means that when people know someone well, they no longer regard that person as worthy of respect or honour. Many tourists pay a great deal of money to visit the spectacular Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Yet millions of Zambians and Zimbabweans have never taken the trouble to visit one of the seven natural wonders of the world right there on their doorstep. Jesus was gaining a reputation as an effective itinerant preacher and faith healer, a ra

 *09/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE TOPIC: *...in that land ...in the same year* Text: Genesis 26:1-13 Memory verse: *"Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundred fold; and the LORD blessed him. The man began to prosper..."* Principles of Prosperity 1. Covenant with God. Genesis 26:3-4; 12:1-3 2. Obedience to God's voice. Genesis 26:5 3. Sowing - "in that land" Matthew 13:1-9 4. Receive God's blessing  "in reaping or harvest" Proverbs 10:22; Genesis 26:12 No matter the weather or other enemies of crops, where the hand of the Lord is, there is bound to be a good harvest. "Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well" Matthew 6:33 expresses an eternal principle. The Lord blesses those who place their trust in Him. Isaac was at Gerar because the Lord had ordered him to stay there for a while, saying *and I will be with you and will bless you (Genesis 26:3a

 *06/12/2020* *THANKSGIVING SERVICE* THEME: *ANGELS: MESSENGERS OF GOD* TOPIC: *ANGELS MINISTERED TO MANY PEOPLE* SUB-TOPIC: *PAUL* Text: Acts 27:23-24 *#before the shipwreck#* Acts 18:9 *Believers hope against hope, and Paul had not forgotten that God had assured him that he would reach Rome* (Acts 23:11). At this dark time, Paul stood up before them (Acts 27:21b). He reminded the people that he had warned them of coming disaster before they left Crete but his speech is more one of encouragement than blame. He assured them that although the ship would be destroyed, God would save their lives (Acts 27:22). He could say this confidently because he had had a divine revelation the previous night (Acts 27:23). Paul was careful to specify that the God who sent him this message was the God he served, for the others on board had presumably been praying to their gods, and in particular the god of the sea. The angel's message shows that Paul too had been tempted to despair, for he was speci

 We are grateful for the generous tithes and offerings of the members of the Church and other supporters who voluntarily contribute to support this work of proclaiming the gospel to the world (Matthew 28:19-20). We do solicit the general public for funds. Contributions to help us share this message of hope with others are welcomed. Account name: *The Ecumenican Church.* Banker: *Ecobank.* Account number: *2280020397.* All funds would be audited annually by an independent accounting firm. *#TEC*

 *02/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE THEME: *ANGELS: MESSENGERS OF GOD* TOPIC: *ANGELS MINISTERED TO MANY PEOPLE* SUB-TOPIC: *HEROD* Text: Acts 12: 21-23 *#to strike him and kill him#* It is unclear why Herod was so angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. Both cities were seaports, like Caesarea, the provincial capital of Judea. The dispute may have been an issue of seaport business, since competition was great. The important point was that the cities did not want the angry king to set an economic embargo against them. Through the royal official Blastus, the people of Tyre and Sidon received an appointment to present their case to the King. *#The voice of a god#* The Jewish historian Josephus also provides an account of this display, informing us that in an attempted appeasement of the King, the people confessed that he was "more than a mortal". Herod, instead of rebuking the address of deity, enjoyed the adulation - until he discovered the consequence of such bla

 *02/12/2020* MID-WEEK *HOLY COMMUNION* SERVICE THEME: *ANGELS: MESSENGERS OF GOD* TOPIC: *ANGELS MINISTERED TO MANY PEOPLE* SUB-TOPIC: *HEROD* Text: Acts 12: 21-23 *#to strike him and kill him#* It is unclear why Herod was so angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. Both cities were seaports, like Caesarea, the provincial capital of Judea. The dispute may have been an issue of seaport business, since competition was great. The important point was that the cities did not want the angry king to set an economic embargo against them. Through the royal official Blastus, the people of Tyre and Sidon received an appointment to present their case to the King. *#The voice of a god#* The Jewish historian Josephus also provides an account of this display, informing us that in an attempted appeasement of the King, the people confessed that he was "more than a mortal". Herod, instead of rebuking the address of deity, enjoyed the adulation - until he discovered the consequence of such bla