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Prepare - 4/29/18

4/28/2018

Our sermon passage for this Sunday is John 13:21-30:

After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus' side, so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking.So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him.Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.

As we prepare to gather together for worship tomorrow morning, pray for. . .

1. . .Chris as he prepares to preach our sermon passage
2. . .our time in gathered worship to encourage and build up our members and that we would be transformed as we look to Christ together
3. . .the salvation of the unbelievers who gather for us

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Prepare - 4/22/18

4/19/2018

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Our sermon series "The Path of Christ" continues this week as we take a look at John 13:1-20:

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”

As we approach our worship gathering this Sunday morning, pray. . .

1. . . that we know and love the saving humble work of Christ in his incarnation and earthly ministry.
2. . . that Christ's stewardship of authority as a servant would mark our body as we lead in our homes and communities.
3. . . that we be equipped to follow Jesus' example into the lowest tasks with confidence in our identity as sons and daughters.
4. . . for Jeremy as he prepares to preach the Word.
5. . .for the conversion of the unbelievers who gather with us.

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Prepare - 4/16/18

4/12/2018

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Our sermon passage for Sunday is John 12:44-50:

And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.

As we approach our corporate worship gathering, pray for. . .
1. . . Jeremy as we prepares to preach God's Word
2. . . our church family to grow in our understanding and appreciation of the eternal life that the Gospel brings us
3. . .the unbelievers who gather with us on Sunday morning to believe in Christ and be saved
4. . .our children to hear and trust in the Gospel as it is taught this Sunday in Kid's Worship

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Prepare - 4/8/18

4/5/2018

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Our sermon passage for Sunday is John 12:37-43:

When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.” Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

As we approach our corporate worship gathering on Sunday, pray for. . .

1. . . Jeremy as he prepares to preach God's Word
2. . .the Gospel to be evident to all who gather with us through our interactions, prayers, singing, and teaching
3. . .the work of the Spirit in regenerating the hearts of the unbelievers who gather with us so that they might trust in Christ
4. . .the work of the Spirit amongst God's people to lead us to repentance and cause us to not love the glory that comes from man

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From Cherokee to Redeemer: Why We Changed Our Name

4/3/2018

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In our February 2018 Members' Meeting our church family voted to change our name to Redeemer Baptist Fellowship. This congregational decision concluded more than a year of consideration and discussion over the idea of transitioning to a new name. The primary reason for this transition was the confusion that the name Cherokee caused for many of our neighbors. As we talk with people who live in our area, we're almost always asked about the significance of our name and if we are are a church primarily for Native Americans. If our church still met in the Cherokee neighborhood (as it did prior to its move to East Memphis in 1979), referring to our body as Cherokee Baptist Church would make sense. Now, after almost 40 years in the Sea Isle neighborhood, the name doesn't help people understand the location, doctrine, or people who make up our church family.

The name Redeemer was an easy choice for us because it represents Jesus Christ, the Savior we treasure and follow. While we could have chosen a name based on our location, it felt like the right choice to communicate the greatest news and primary truth about our church in our name: that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of sin and made us sons and daughters of God.

The Symbolism in Our New Logo

We had three goals in our new logo:
1 - We wanted to highlight three elements that detail the three core elements of our body life together: the gospel, community, and mission.
2 - We wanted to highlight our unity in the Gospel that transcends color, background, age, and socio-economic status. The stained glass background of the logo helps depict that unity.
3 - We wanted something that connected us with our past. Even as a church replant that is experiencing new life and vitality, we want to embrace our unique heritage as a body that has existed for 65+ years and that seeks to stand in the larger historical stream of confessional Baptists. The stained glass windows in the back of our church's sanctuary originally inspired us to incorporate this symbolism into our logo.

What hasn't changed?

A new name doesn't mean that we're a new church. Our location, doctrine, and mission haven't changed. Our passion to know Christ in community and to make him known in our community hasn't shifted. Instead, it's our hope that embracing a new name will help us better engage our neighbors individually and our city as a whole with the life-transforming news of the Gospel. We're grateful for our legacy as Cherokee Baptist Church and we're excited to see what God might be pleased to do as we call ourselves Redeemer Baptist Fellowship.

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Worship Guides

Prepare - 4/29/18

Prepare - 4/22/18

Prepare - 4/16/18

Prepare - 4/8/18

From Cherokee to Redeemer: Why We Changed Our Name

The Symbolism in Our New Logo

What hasn't changed?

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