NBRC Service 09/7/2008 - How are we to live?

In the audio podcast of this service, the Scripture reading begins at 17 minutes 10 seconds and the Sermon begins at 18 minutes 30 seconds.

Scripture: Romans 13:8-14

Sermon: How are we to live? Love one another.

Audio Recording:
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NBRC Sermon 08/31/2008 - Another Way to Live Together

In the audio podcast of this service, the Scripture reading begins at 21 minutes 10 seconds and the Sermon begins at 23 minutes 05 seconds.

Sermon: Another Way to Live Together
Romans 12:9-21

We know up here that Jesus came, among other things, to give us a better way to live together in the human family, but left to ourselves the human family fractures.

We know that the Holy Spirit inspired book of Romans is all about—what 3 new members?… Sin, Salvation, and Service, and that one way we serve this God who loves us so much is to live in new community. We know, in the words of Barack Obama’s acceptance speech on Thursday night’s 45th anniversary of Dr. King’s march on Washington that God has a dream! for us to live together as black and white, husband and wife, Arab and American because v. 9 says… We know all of this… up here…

But, left to our own devices, we naturally live apart. Larry Forni told me the story of the condo they bought on LBI a decade ago. It had started out as one house, but the retired couple divorced. So they converted their house into a his and hers condo. He walked through this door with his girlfriends to his place; and she walked through that door to her place. Never the two shall meet; never the two apart. Their best community.
You know how that is: who comes down aisle 7 that you don’t slip over to aisle 8?
How does God help us live together? By affecting more than just our heads.
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From the Paster - September

God is growing our mission! As of September 15, 2008 North Branch will close on the Lawrence House. $360,000+ has been raised towards the $450,000 purchase of the house. And from January 1, 2009 the mission of this house begins!

Or should I say, “begins again?” Right about 50 years ago the church briefly owned this house. It was not the parsonage, but it was purchased along with the field that became our parking lot. Along about the time that I was born, the church subdivided the land and sold this house on 3.3 acres to the Lawrence family to finance the parking lot. God had already destined that this place house a vibrant ministry to our community.

Fast forward to 2005 and 2006 when the church tried to purchase this without a capital campaign. The Ten Year Facility Planning Committee, chaired by Bob Kiser, looked at buying it with state COAH money; we looked at a ministry that could help us pay it off; but it was not to be. Seeing this as God’s stop sign, the long-range planning committee disbanded.

Then last fall I got a call to come to the diner for breakfast. There sat a group of people from our congregation that had raised, at that time, about $350,000 towards the purchase. Quickly we reassembled the Ten Year Facility group. This time, without a large mortgage overhead, God lead us quickly to a ministry born right here in North Branch. Read more

The Messenger September 2008

Click to read North Branch Reformed Church’s monthly newsletter:
The Messenger September 2008

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The Shepherd’s Kids and Young Adult News September 2008

Click to read the latest issue of North Branch Reformed Church’s monthly newsletter for children, teens and college students:
The Shepherd’s Kids and Young Adult News September 2008

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Event Calendar September 2008

Click here to see our scheduled events for September 2008.

NBRC Sermon 08/24/2008 - The New Life in Christ

In the audio podcast of this service, the Scripture reading begins at 13 minutes 50 seconds and the Sermon begins at 15 minutes 40 seconds.

Scripture: Romans 12:1-8

Sermon: The New Life in Christ

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NBRC Sermon 08/17/2008 - Sabbatical Learnings: Am I the Garden [State's] Keeper?

Sermon: Am I the Garden [State's] Keeper?
Genesis 2:4b-15

The other night I listened in to the Olympic coverage as our President reminisced with Bob Costas how he rode a bike around Beijing in 1975. That’s all there were, he said, there were no cars. Well, well, look what progress has brought Beijing now! Those aren’t clouds surrounding The Bird’s Nest—that’s smog! Did I say “progress?”

Contrast China with still densely populated Holland. To tell you how densely populated the Netherlands is, when Sita Hofstra came to Bridgewater, she thought us rural! The air is clean, though the landscape is dotted with wind turbines, for the Dutch have a national goal to produce 20% of their energy from renewable sources by 2020.

In this Tale of Two Nations which one does the US, not to mention our Garden State, want to follow? To keep an air metaphor, I think it’s pretty clear. But how?
I hear the Spirit saying that depends upon how we relate to God’s creation.

There are two songs that we sing expressing our attitude toward God’s creation.
The first is: This world is not my home; I’m just a passin’ through. If heaven’s not my home; then Lord what will I do?… I can’t be at home in this world anymore.

That old gospel song may be the theme song of President Reagan’s Secretary of the Interior James Watt’s congressional testimony within which he is reported to have said:
After the last tree is felled Christ will come back.

So, don’t worry about this world’s smog because it’s the next world’s clouds that matter.

Since the Industrial Revolution the West has had a mostly till no keep view of our world. We’ve been all about chopping trees and paving cornfields. Development with little preservation. Biblically we stated that God gave us dominion over the earth; spelled do my opinion with this land! We believed this because eventually all believers will just be strumming harps on clouds in the most important world to come. This world? We’re just a passin’ through so let your SUV belch as much CO2 into the air as you want.

There’s another song that expresses a more biblical view toward God’s masterpiece
The trees of the field will clap their hands…while you go out with joy!
You shall go out with joy, and be led forth in peace.
The mountains and the hills will break forth before you.
There’ll be shouts of joy, and all the trees of the fields will clap, will clap their hands…
Notice how nature is clapping God’s praise. Trees have value! Of course this is a metaphor and not meant to be taken literally. But it’s a picture of how even the Poconos will participate in Jesus’ salvation. Because, in the end when Jesus comes, heaven will not be on puffy clouds up there, but on a renewed earth down here called: the new earth.
This lends itself to a till and keep view of the world. There is development /tilling because the Bible does begin in a Garden and end in a city. But there is also preservation/keeping the garden; like our hill dancing vision. So we exercise God’s dominion over worms not by crushing them underfoot, but by stepping around them for they add value since our preserved earth survives into the next life in the transformed New Earth.

I’ve asked environmental consultant Dave McGeown to tell us two things: 1) how God has given him influence on national environmental policy; and 2) at least one thing that we can do to care for the planet. Maybe besides the Dutch bike riding, wind turbines and Sita’s compost dish next to the sink. Leeuwarden recycles plastics/cans and compost.

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Note: There was no audio recording of this service.

NBRC Service 08/10/2008 - Sabbatical Learnings: The Mother Church Still Teaches

In the audio podcast of this service, the Scripture reading begins at 21 minutes 39 seconds and the Sermon begins at 23 minutes 40 seconds.

Scripture: I Kings 19:11-18

Sermon: “Sabbatical Learnings: The Mother Church Still Teaches”

Do you ever feel like Elijah? I do. I alone am left. Here stands Elijah exhausted after singlehandedly attempting to turn Israel back from the fertility god Baal to the Lord. Elijah’s on retreat at Mount Horeb seeking direction from God. He stands in the sheer silence of the mountain cave feeling so alone. The people are cavorting with temple prostitutes in worship of Baal. They are bowing before 7-breasted idols. The Lord’s temple is in disrepair, the commandments are forgotten, and his prophets are spat upon.

Have you ever felt alone in your faith?
Read more

NBRC Preschool Open House Friday September 5, 2008

Preschool Open House
Friday, 9/5/2008
10:00am -12:00pm

This is an opportunity for all new families to walk through the facility and become more familiar with the school. Those who have previously attended a tour with their children may not find this Open House necessary.

For details, please contact the Preschool: (908) 725-2326 or by email.

Download brochure (PDF)

Do you know a friend who may be interested in the North Branch Reformed Church Preschool? We’d appreciate if you forward this information.

Thank you.

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