54th Anniversary Of Faith Baptist Church – Jan 1, 1968-2022
The Vision
The first part of November 1967, Bro. James Gardner, pastor of Moore’s Fork Baptist Church, in Clermont County, was making a hospital visit in Hillsboro. Feeling the Lord’s leadership on the way back home, he sought to find if there was an interest in the Lynchburg area for a sound New Testament Baptist Church. Upon inquiry, interest was found.
God Opened The Door
An empty church building was found on Freiburg & High Streets in Lynchburg, which was leased for two years, with the option of buying at the end of the lease. The work opened with a two-week meeting, January 2-14, 1968, with Bro. Gardner preaching each night, except Thursdays, with Bro. James Head of Wilmington filling in. In spite of the cold, snowy weather, the attendance averaged about 70 each night. On Sunday, January 7, 1968, Bro. Robert Miller of Dayton, KY, preached, at which time there were 5 requests for membership, plus 2 confessions of faith. On January 14 & 28, Bro. Terry Parnell of Dayton, KY, preached. January 21, Bro. Alwin Pflueger of Moore’s Fork preached.
A Pastor Called
On Thursday night, February 1, 1968, in the regular business meeting, Moore’s Fork Baptist Church extended the call to Bro. Robert Miller to pastor the Lynchburg mission. He is to give full time to the work. He is to lead the people there in complete accord with the position of the sponsoring church in all matters of doctrine and practice. At such time that the mission and sponsoring church agree, the mission will be organized into a local Independent Baptist Church. Bro. Robert Miller formally accepted the pastorate of the mission, and with his wife, Cinda, and son, Robby, moved to the rented parsonage in Lynchburg, on February 24, 1968.
An Independent Baptist Church
January 9, 1971, the mission was organized into the Faith Baptist Church, with 32 charter members.
SHARING
Where Is He That Was Born King Of The Jews?
He is no longer in Bethlehem’s stable. Shortly thereafter, He was whisked away to Egypt to avoid Herod’s murderous act. From there, He came back to the city of Nazareth in Galilee. He went to the river Jordan to receive New Testament Baptist baptism at the hands of John. Then, He was led of the Spirit into the wilderness unto being forty days tempted of the devil. He ministered in Galilee and Jerusalem. He was betrayed, crucified, and placed in the tomb for three days and three nights, after which, the angel announced: “He is not here: for He is risen as He said.” He made appearances unto His own, and after commissioning the church, He ascended to the Father’s right hand, with the standing promise, “He shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.”
Jesus is now at the right hand of God, to make intercession for us–WHAT AN INCREDIBLE TASK!
Unselfishly, Jesus left the glories of heaven to sacrifice Himself for our salvation. Ever since then, He has unselfishly devoted Himself, day and night, for approximately 2000 years, hearing every prayer of all His own, and without fail, as our personal advocate, and properly presented them unto the Father.
Only a Saviour of infinite power, compassion, and patience could keep up with and accomplish a task of such magnitude. Just how many prayers do you suppose Jesus hears and mediates every day, without missing or neglecting any, and yet He admonishes us to pray more than we already are?!?! O what a Saviour! O what a High Priest! O what a friend we have in Jesus!
Jesus is still ever so busy about His Father’s business. He was born for us. He died for us. He arose for us. He lives for us. He is coming again for us–ALL FOR US!! Jesus has put us above Himself. He has made Himself to be our Saviour and servant. He works nonstop for us. He has prepared a place for His own in His heavenly estate.
Are you one of His?
If you have been born again, are you rendering unto Him your reasonable service, by presenting yourself to be a living sacrifice, to prove what is that good, acceptable and perfect will of God?
If not, why not? We will all answer to Him.
SHARINGWe’re Not To Harbor Self With Excuses
“Then Said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” Matthew 16:24
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26-27
This is not a command to hate people. It is not speaking of hating in the deliberate, malicious sense, but in the indirect sense, the sense of denying all that would interfere with or come between our following the Lord.
An example of this could be Abraham’s response in following God’s order to offer up Isaac, Genesis 22, Hebrews 11:17-19. Abraham could have let his feelings for his son forbid his obedience to God. But he did not. His faith in following the Lord refused the constraints of paternal love, thus hating in the negative sense. But what he did was not driven by any ill will towards his son, Isaac, but rather he acted on the hope and expectations of pure faith.
Fleshly relations, or associations, will afford conflicts of interest with respect to following Christ. Human feelings about our obligations to fleshly relationships has the propensity to excuse oneself from following the Lord, to attend to fleshly relations. Thus, we have to deny the dictates of human feelings, when and where these conflicts arise, to determine the will of God. Instead of being drawn away from doing God’s will, because of the constraints of fleshly love, we are to have a hatred for anything that becomes an object that seeks to prevent our following the Lord, which includes our fleshly relations.
The principle of discipleship is that we develop a personal, spiritual constitution that requires that we obey and follow the Lord, no matter what the conflict of interest, even if it be ourselves.
“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” Luke 9:24 No matter what the personal cost in the short term for following the Lord, it will reap a bountiful harvest in the long term. But to lack the faith to put God first, seeking to save ourselves from any personal losses, will backfire with both a failure in this life and an eternal loss.
God honors those who honor Him, 1 Samuel 2:30. To cave into our circumstances, rather than having done all to stand, will not only short circuit Divine favor, but it will wean us away from being dedicated to the Lord. “How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation.” Hebrews 2:3
SHARING“Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.” Proverbs 22:28
Nations have boundaries. States have boundaries. Cities have boundaries. Every piece of owned property has boundaries. A deed of ownership describes those boundaries. If you own property, you want those boundaries to be known and honored. Thus the need for boundaries has already been established and needs not be debated.
What purpose do boundaries serve? Is it just something to do with the land itself? Will the land sneak off during some dark night unless it is contained by some boundary? Boundaries are for the understanding of the people who live there, not the soil itself.
Boundaries are about human rights and limitations, dos and don’ts. A boundary distinguishes where one can do according to their own will and where they cannot. This is pretty common knowledge with most. BUT this is a matter that must first be taught and then upheld in real practice.
“Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him” Proverbs 22:15 “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 Just as property boundaries require respectful behavior, so does human conduct require teaching, training, and discipline to develop a good sense of what one can do or shouldn’t do.
For unteachable creatures, people build fences, etc., to keep them within proper boundaries. Otherwise, it is by being shown where the boundaries are and being disciplined to recognize and respect them that proper dos and don’ts are established.
A church must also establish proper boundaries in teaching, practice, and stand. “Teach them to observe.” Matthew 28:20 Compare: 2 Corinthians 10:4-6, 2 Timothy 4:1-2, 1 Corinthians 5:1-7, and 2 Thessalonians 3:6,14.
Just as it is disastrous to let a child run wild and loud, climb walls, ransack the store shelves, etc., and conduct themselves as if they are entitled to unbridled behavior because they are a kid, it is equally disastrous for Christianity to ignore ongoing disobedient spiritual behavior in their midst.
For faith in obeying God’s Word to be the norm, there must be the boundaries of self discipline and accountability in place. Otherwise, the Holy Spirit will be quenched and iniquity will get the upper hand.
Parents, be sure and train your children with the proper respect for boundaries.
Christians, remove not the ancient landmarks set by God’s Word.
SHARINGThanksgiving In Adversity
We associate giving thanks with times and experiences of good fortune. However, this deprives us of the full benefits of thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is about giving glory to God, rather than glorying in the things of this world. It is to focus us on the person and power of God, regardless of our circumstances.
When Job lost all his children and was stripped of all his possessions in one day’s time, his recourse was: “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” When David and his men returned home to find their homes burned, with their families and possessions carried away, while David’s men spake of stoning him, “David encouraged himself in the Lord” (1 Samuel 30:6). When Stephen was facing the blood thirsty crowd that would bash and crush his body unto death by stoning, “But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:55)
The Book of Daniel sets forth men who would rather die giving glory to God, than they would live under the favors of a God denying society. In the day of trouble, the Psalmist wrote: “I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities” (Psalm 31:7).
In times of adversity, we should be thankful that we have a God who knows all about our troubles: “In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him” (Ecclesiastes 7:14). As we are yielded to and abiding in Christ, God can use our adversity to show us things that we would never realize otherwise–things needed for our spiritual improvement.
Faith and reconciliation with God’s will opens the door to the understanding of appreciating God and what God does through all the circumstances of our lives: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
Consider–“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6). A person robbed with violence once prayed: “I thank Thee first because I was never robbed before; second, because although they took my purse they did not take my life; third, although they took all, it wasn’t very much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, and not I who robbed.”
“In every thing give thanks!” 1 Thessalonians 5:18
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