Many, of those around us, preach a man made gospel, made up of a handful of unrelated Bible verses, and tell people that they are then saved. They claim to believe the Bible, that God wrote the Bible, and that the Bible is inerrant, but do they teach, and preach, what the Bible records about the teaching of Jesus?We preach the Kingdom of God. That is what John the Baptist and Jesus preached, and what Jesus told the twelve disciples to preach, and what He told the seventy to preach, when He sent them out. Check these things out in Luke 9:1,2 and Luke 10:9-12. That is what the Apostle Paul, and the other Apostles preached also.
Jesus told a Jewish Pharisee named Nicodemus that if a man ( person ) was not born again ( from above ) he couldn't even see ( comprehend ) the Kingdom of God. ( John 3:3 ) And, if a man was not born of water ( a natural birth ) and born of the Spirit ( a spiritual birth ), he couldn't enter the Kingdom of God. ( John 3:5-6 ) He summed this up by saying that a person must be born again from above. ( John 3:7 ) THATS WHAT WE PREACH!
Why are we saying from above? Because that's the literal translation of the Greek manuscript, from which English Bibles are translated. The Greek word ανωθεν means " from above " or " from the top ". In other words, God is the source of the new birth, not the one being born again, or a particular church or preacher.
In the gospel according to Matthew, we usually find the Kingdom of God called the Kingdom of Heaven. A comparison between verses containing the Kingdom of Heaven in Matthew, and verses containing the Kingdom of God, in Mark, Luke, and John, reveals that they are talking about the same Kingdom. More than 30 times in the book of Matthew, we find Jesus referring to the Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God. And, not once, do we find Jesus referring to anyone as " saved ".
In the remaining gospels, Mark, Luke, and John, we find that Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God over 45 times! And again, not once, do we find Jesus referring to any person as " saved ", as that term is used in many churches today.
What about the book of Acts? Read Acts 1:1-3. After His resurrection, what did Jesus speak of? He spoke " of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. " Read Acts 8:12. What did Philip preach? " ...the things concerning the Kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ..."
Read Acts 14:22. What did Barnabas and Paul say to the people in Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch? " We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God." And in the rest of Acts, 19:8, 20:25, and 28:25-31 the Apostle Paul " preached the Kingdom of God, testified of the Kingdom of God, and was preaching the Kingdom of God."
In Acts, the word saved occurs a number of time, but never in the past tense. It is always used in the present tense " being saved " as in Acts 2:47 ) or in the future ( shall be, or will be, as in Acts 2:21, 11:14, and 15:11 ) A favorite verse ( or I should say part of a verse ) that is often quoted, by those who think they are saved, in the present, is Acts 16:31 where it says , " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. " Note that it says will be ( future ) and that Paul and Silas preached the word of the Lord, to all that were in the household of the Philippian Jailor, before baptizing anyone.
In the letters written by the Apostle Paul, the Kingdom of God is repeatedly mentioned. Check out 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, 15:24, 15:50, Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 4:11 etc. The Kingdom of God was at the core of the preaching of the Apostle Paul. How is it that the Kingdom of God is absent from most of the preaching about the gospel? We believe that most preachers are preaching only a small part of the gospel.
Come and check us out! We don't pass a plate, or a bag, in front of your nose,- to try to get money from you, or plead for money as the others do. There is a vase in the rear of the church.
Giving is as you feel the Lord prompting you to give. There is a vase at the rear of the church for anyone who desires to give an offering. There is no pressure to give. And, unlike many places, we really do worship. Members and visitors are free to sit, stand, kneel, or prostrate themselves before God. We celebrate Holy Communion at the end of every service, and offer to pray for healing for those who are sick or injured, according to James 5:13-16.
Our Sunday morning services are being held at the Mexico Beach Civic Center. In accordance with federal laws, we have permission to use this beautiful, heated and air conditioned, facility on Sunday mornings at 10:00 AM central time. We begin with a short time of greeting and fellowship and then TJ leads us in worship. After the service we have a time of fellowship, and sometimes, a pot luck luncheon.
The Mexico Beach Civic Center is located at 105 N. 31st Street. It is the white building with the dark green roof, which is just behind that new Mexico Beach restaurant, Mango Marley's. It is behind Parker Realty, and is on the northeast side of Rte 98. It is about 7/10 mile south of the Mexico Beach Welcome Center. For a map showing the location of the Mexico Beach Civic Center, click below the photo:
Mexico Beach Civic Center
