Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington October 10, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future FALL 2021 What Do You Believe? September 5 – November 6, 2021 What Do You Believe About Anthropology? Genesis 1:26-31 Fall 2021: What Do You Believe? Genesis 1:26-31 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image,     in the image of God he created them;     male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. ﷟HYPERLINK "https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+1&version=NIV" Anthropology is the study of humanity through the application of biology, cultural studies, archaeology, linguistics, and other social sciences. (National Geographic) CONTEMPORARY ANTHROPOLOGY -SECULAR: Contemporary views of humanity are unashamedly secular in nature and devoid of any sense of transcendent realities. -SELF-CENTERED: Human beings are understood today through the lens of self-understanding, self-awareness, inward solutions, and expressive individualism. -SELECTIVE: Human beings are now viewed as being held captive to social norms and historical realities and we have been “set free” to select our own norms without regard to any acknowledgement of authority or need to be philosophically consistent. -SEDUCTIVE: The stories that emerge from a self-centered, selective, secular anthropology are powerful and often include profound narratives of victimization. CHRISTIAN ANTHROPOLOGY -CREATED: Human beings have been uniquely created by God as male and female in the very Image of God! God is our designer and our authority. -CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIP: God has uniquely equipped us as relational beings to live in relationship with Him and with one another. -CREATED FOR PURPOSEFUL EXISTENCE: We have been designed by God to live purposefully for Him in His creation. -CREATED YET FLAWED: Sin has affected the life of every human and every human institution. -CREATED WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF REDEMPTION: God has provided the answer for our dilemma----Redemption in Jesus Christ! -CREATED FOR ETERNITY: The Image of God secures for us an eternal existence.

First Baptist Church of Arlington - FBCA Podcast

What Do You Believe About Anthropology?

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington October 3, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future FALL 2021 What Do You Believe? September 5 – November 6, 2021 What Do You Believe About Prejudice? Acts 10:34-35 Fall 2021: What Do You Believe? Acts 10:34-35 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. Prejudice: an unfair and unreasonable opinion or feeling, especially when formed without enough thought or knowledge. -Cambridge Dictionary The problem we have with prejudice is not in its identification or definition; it is in its eradication. Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts. -E. B. White Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible. -Maya Angelou Prejudice lies at the root of many ills – not the least of which is racism. I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality… I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word. –Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced. –James Baldwin CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO PREJUDICE Because of our worldview (Image of God), we believe in the inherent dignity and worth of every human being. Prejudice and its ensuing ill are all results of the fallen nature of humanity and must be acknowledged as sin. We begin to address the sin of prejudice by removing the log from our own eye. Through God’s guidance and power, we commit ourselves to be agents of reconciliation and restoration in our own communities.

What Do You Believe About Prejudice?

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington September 26, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future FALL 2021 What Do You Believe? September 5 – November 6, 2021 What Do You Believe About the Government? Romans 13:1-7 Fall 2021: What Do You Believe? Romans 13:1-7 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. PLACE OF GOVERNMENT Derivative Authority Order Common Good Justice Limited Scope POSTURE OF CHRISTIANS TOWARD GOVERNMENT Submission Support Struggle

What Do You Believe About the Government?

Sunday, September 19th… _______________________________________________ "Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." Ephesians 4:1-3 Our life must authenticate our faith! _________________________________________________ 2021… A Journey of Faith Fall Series… What Do You Believe? last week: Truth this week: Jesus A very natural and appropriate progression! ________________________________________________ What do you believe about Jesus? 13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:13-16 _______________________________________________ Life's most important question… "Who do you say that I am?" Lots of opinions, but only one correct answer… "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!" _____________________________________________ Colossians 1:15-20 15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. ___________________________________________ Gospel of John the Greek word for "TRUTH" is used 25 times. ALETHIA = "the state of not being hidden; fully revealed, factual reality" For John, "truth" wasn't an abstract concept. It was tangible, relational, and embodied in the person of Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God. ___________________________________________ 1 John 1:1-3 1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. ___________________________________________ What does Jesus say about himself? 7 "I AM" statements by Jesus in the Gospel of John I AM the Bread of Life. I AM the Light of the world. I AM the Gate for the sheep. I AM the Good Shepherd. I AM the Resurrection and the Life. I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life. I AM the true Vine. __________________________________________ classic "trilemma" argument for Jesus' divinity "Lunatic, Liar, or Lord" C.S. Lewis… "Mere Christianity"… I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. ... Now it seems to me obvious that He was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view that He was and is God. ____________________________________ What's the alternative? Where else can you turn? No one else has the words of eternal life! The Scandal of Particularity "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6 _________________________________________ The battle is ultimately around the King! That's where the war is won or lost. "Jesus is Lord!" Pledge your allegiance to King Jesus. ________________________________________

What do you believe about Jesus?

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington September 12, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future FALL 2021 What Do You Believe? September 5 – November 6, 2021 What Do You Believe About Truth? John 8:31-32 Fall 2021: What Do You Believe? www.sacramentaljourney.org John 8:31-32 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” A worldview, defined in simple terms, is a concept which includes all dimensions of reality, from the existing individual to the universe itself. The worldview of a person or a group is that which brings integration—a comprehensive interpretation—to life. Worldview includes a sense of meaning and value and principles of action. It is much more than merely an “outlook” or an “attitude.” -John Newport, Life’s Ultimate Questions What is truth? -Pontius Pilate Source of Truth: Reason or Revelation? As Christians, we believe the ultimate source of truth is in the Revelation of an Almighty, Personal, and Purposeful God! The material world is neither divine nor uncreated. God exists. He is a Free Agent. God is both great and good! God is in control of His creation. God has uniquely designed human beings to live purposefully in His creation. God communicates personally with human beings in ways that are comprehensible and coherent with His intentions. God has responded to humanity’s plight redemptively. God has revealed Himself through His World, His Spirit, His Word, and The Word. Believing and trusting Him leads to freedom! The Bible is both the story of God and the true story of the world . . . So the Bible is not, or merely, a book about how to have a better life or how to handle life’s problems. It is a book that explains the universe and how God is in the process of redeeming and restoring it to its original good, true, and beautiful state. -Warren Cole Smith and John Stonestreet, Restoring All Things

What Do You Believe About Truth?

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington September 5, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future FALL 2021 What Do You Believe? September 5 – November 6, 2021 What Do You Believe About Belief? Acts 17:10-12 Fall 2021: What Do You Believe? Acts 17:10-12 As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. WORLDVIEW: a comprehensive conception or apprehension of the world especially from a specific standpoint —also called weltanschauung. “A Worldview is a system of beliefs that answer the philosophical questions of God, Man, and the Cosmos which influences how a person relates to and interacts with the self, others, and the world around them.” -Will Campbell WORLDVIEW: We are personally responsible for developing our own worldview. Developing a Worldview (C. Fred Smith) Who Am I? Where Am I? What Went Wrong? What Is The Answer?

What Do You Believe About Belief?

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington August 22, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future August 2021 A Faith-Filled Church August 1 – September 4, 2021 The Church: Saved, Sound, and Serving Acts 20:17-38 August 2021: A Faith-Filled Church A Faith-Filled Church Knows What Time It Really Is Understands God’s Empowering and Equipping Presence Devoted Gospel-Centered The Church: Saved, Sound, and Serving Acts 20:17-38 From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship. Context: Paul’s final Missionary Journey – destination Jerusalem The Church: Saved and Sound -Gospel is essential -Worship -Grace of God -Kingdom of God -Purpose of God -Faithfulness required for believers -Future inheritance The Church: Serving -Elders -Overseers -Shepherds -Sheep

The Church: Saved, Sound, and Serving

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington August 15, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future August 2021 A Faith-Filled Church August 1 – September 4, 2021 The Church: Gospel-Centered Acts 15 2021: A Journey of Faith August 2021: A Faith-Filled Church A Faith-Filled Church Knows What Time It Really Is Understands God’s Empowering and Equipping Presence Devoted The Church: Gospel-Centered Acts 15:5-21 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.” The apostles and elders met to consider this question. After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. When they finished, James spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me. Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles. The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written: “‘After this I will return     and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild,     and I will restore it, that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,     even all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’—     things known from long ago. “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.” The Gospel – The grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ! The Gospel – The message of God that is central to the People of God! The Gospel – The power of God that strengthens the church and unifies us around our mission!

The Church: Gospel-Centered

Summer Bible Study 8-11-21

Summer Bible Study 8-10-21

Summer Bible Study 8-9-21

Summer Bible Study 8-8-21

Dennis R Wiles FBC Arlington August 8, 2021 2021 A JOURNEY OF FAITH Celebrating 150 Years of Ministry: Appreciating Our Past Anticipating Our Future August 2021 A Faith-Filled Church August 1 – September 4, 2021 The Church: Devoted Acts 2:42-47 2021: A Journey of Faith August 2021: A Faith-Filled Church A Faith-Filled Church Knows What Time It Really Is Understands God’s Empowering and Equipping Presence Acts 2:42-47 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. DEVOTED – These early believers were committed followers of Jesus! DEVOTED TO: -Believer’s Church -Spiritual Formation -Fellowship -Worship -Ministry/Service -Evangelism/Mission -Supportive Infrastructure -Collaboration/Partnership -Expansion

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First Baptist Church of Arlington - FBCA Podcast

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