“The Gospel in a Day” Sunday September 5, 10am – 4pm

Have you ever wondered why there are four Gospels? Come and join us as we look in depth at some of the characteristics of the Gospels.

In this one day course we will look at Jesus’ tours throughout Israel, and his ministry.

We will consider Jesus’ preaching style, looking at his use of parables – with a particular focus on the kingdom of God and the hope this continues to provide for us today.

Join us in searching the scriptures together as we see their consistency, though written by many different authors. See how and why Jesus quotes the Old Testament.

Finally we will consider the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the wonderful hope this provides for you today.

Children’s activities will be provided. Booking in for adults and children attending is essential! Please book in for this course using the contact details at the foot of this page.

Program for September 5:

10 am – 11 am – Session 1
11 am – 11:15 am – Morning tea
11:15 am – 12:45 pm – Session 2
12:45 pm – 1:30 pm – Lunch
1:30 pm – 3 pm – Session 3
3 pm – 3:15 pm – Afternoon Tea
3:15 pm – 4 pm – Session 4

Bike ride and BBQ, October 2

On Saturday October 2, we plan to meet at Dandenong Park for a bike ride to a beautiful spot for a lunch time BBQ. This will be followed by a ride back to Dandenong. To confirm the time and meeting place, and to “book your spot” please ring 9791 1699 or email info@dandenongbec.org.au before Monday September 27th.

Cost: A gold coin donation towards the cost of BBQ lunch.

The New Life Class

Sundays 11:30am – 12:30pm

Sept 5 – “Gospel in a day” course, 10am-4pm
Sept 12 – Living joyfully, in Scripture and in life
Sept 19 – For God so loved the world
Sept 26 – Pithy parables – drama workshop!

Did you know...

...that “Gospel” means “Good news”? The four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) tell the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Be kind to one another

“Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster and do it with no thought of reward. Your life will never be the same again.” This thought is a quote from Og Mandino.

I learned the truth of this saying in a painful way. The afternoon of the day my father was to die, I took him to the doctor. He was in good spirits. We had to do a lot of waiting. Waiting to see the doctor. Waiting in the lab for some tests to be made. Back to the doctor for more waiting. Minor surgery was scheduled for a few weeks later and I drove him home. He was tired but none the worse for wear, we thought. He ate his supper, watched a little TV and retired at a reasonable hour. He never woke up.

I had brought some work along to occupy the time while we waited for doctors, lab technicians and the like. I had no idea that he would be dead before morning. Had I known that, I would have spent those precious last hours in conversation with him.

The point of the quotation is that we should be treating everyone we meet as if they would be dead before midnight. If we did this, just think how much more thoughtful we would be. We would listen intently to what they had to say; we would be conscious of their feelings; we would muster all the kindness and understanding that we possessed.

How do we show our love for our Heavenly Father? By being kind to some of His children. The Psalmist tells us that the cattle on a thousand hills are his, so what can we give to the Creator of heaven and earth? We can give cups of cold water in his name to his children. This is the lesson our Lord Jesus Christ taught us.

We all know this academically, but that is not enough. There are so many things we seem to know that we do not do. It is important to know them, but it is essential that we do them.

The quote speaks a truth that we will all be wise to follow. None of us knows the day of our death but if we all treated one another as lovingly and kindly as we would if we were seeing each other for the last time, certainly our life would never be the same again.

What is lost because we treat someone with this amount of kindness and they do live through the night? Nothing is lost and a great deal is gained, because we have treated them the way we would like to be treated.

We may have heard the prayer of the little boy who said to God, “Please make all the bad people good and the good people nice.” Some may hold all the right doctrines and yet be unkind to the children of our Heavenly Father.

Paul tells us, “be kind to one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32). He also told us that “love is patient and kind.” (1 Corinthians 13:4). Our Lord told us that God “is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:35-36).

The only picture our Lord gives us of the judgment seat has to do with how we treated others, what we did and did not do.

We are all determining the amount of mercy we are going to receive at the judgment seat by the amount of mercy we now show to each other. “The measure you give will be the measure you get.” (Matthew 7:2). “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” (Luke 6:36).

This article was taken from “Minute Meditations” by Robert J. Lloyd

Advance notice: Nutrition course planned for Term 4!

If you are interested in preparing healthy food for your family, set aside Thursday evenings in Term 4. This 7-week course begins on October 14. More details in our Term 4 Courses Guide, in your letterbox next month!

All our plans will take place if God is willing!

Somewhere warm to visit during the winter months

How are you enjoying the winter? Some people enjoy the cold, whilst others wish for the spring to come, with the promise of warmer weather. Whether you are a “cold” person or a “warm” person, we have just the place for you to come to enjoy warm, friendly company, a hot drink and time to talk about the Bible! As an added bonus you can browse through the well-stocked shop, borrow books or a DVD or just sit and read. The cold winds may blow outside, but you’ll be warm and cosy!

Tuesday daytime Bible Study

Alternate Tuesdays 11am – noon

July 27, Aug 10, Aug 24, Sept 7

Are you available on Tuesdays for some interesting Bible study? Join others to find out more about men and women of the Bible. Discover the background to a variety of characters. There are many lessons to be learned from the people in Bible times, which can apply to us in our lives today.

Bible reading blog!

http://biblecourses.com.au/blog

One of our members has recently started publishing daily thoughts on Bible readings. These regular insights into the Bible are available from our website (www.biblecourses.com.au). Just click on the Blog link and enjoy ‘food’ from the Bible every day.

The New Life Class

Every Sunday 11:30am – 12:30pm

Aug 1 – Holiness in an evil generation
Aug 8 – Developing the fruit of the Spirit
Aug 15 – Sharing the gospel in 15 minutes (workshop)
Aug 22 – Is the God of the Old Testament different from the God of the New Testament?
Aug 29 – Finding peace in a world gone crazy

Advanced Bible Study Class

Alternate Wednesdays 8:00pm – 9:30pm

Aug 11 – Israel: whose land is it?
Aug 25 – Genealogies in the Bible
Sept 8 – Righteous Gentiles
Sept 22 – The importance of the Dead Sea scrolls

The Gospel in a Day

Sunday September 5
10am – 4pm

Have you ever wondered why there are four Gospels? Come and join us as we look in depth at some of the characteristics of the Gospels.

In this one day course, which includes lunch, we will look at Jesus’ tours throughout Israel and his ministry.

We will consider Jesus’ preaching style, looking at his use of parables - with a particular focus on the kingdom of God and the hope this continues to provide for us today.

Join us in searching the scriptures together as we see their consistency, though written by many different authors. See how and why Jesus quotes the Old Testament.

Finally we will consider the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the wonderful hope this provides for you today.

Children’s activities will be provided throughout the day. Be sure to book in to ensure your spot in this fantastic course where we will discover the Gospels in a day!

Please book in for this course.

Did you know?

... that the 4 gospels are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John? Find out more on September 5, 10am – 4pm.

Get out your pencil ... and try this crossword puzzle!

Please see the PDF version of this newsletter for this puzzle.

What’s on this month...

Monday 10:30am – The story of the early church
Monday 8:00pm – Are we living in the last days?
Tuesday 11:00am – Men and women of the Bible
Wednesday 10:30am – Happy Faces Playgroup
Wednesday 8:00pm – Advanced Bible study
Thursday 10:30am – Ladies’ Bible study
Sunday 11:30am – New Life Class
Sunday 11:30am – Bible Explorers (4-12 y.o.)
Mon to Fri 12:45pm – Bible readings
Sunday Sept 5 – The Gospel in a day