50 Foot Banana Split Night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

50 foot Banana Split Night! pic.twitter.com/lMi4Xv30Dw

— Mike Miller (@emikemiller) September 24, 2015

Back to Church Sunday-- Just ASK!

2015 VBS Highlight Video

Volunteer Thank You!

2015 Soccer Camp

Here's the video from Russell Moore we viewed Sunday putting the Supreme Court's decision regarding same-sex marriage into a biblical perspective and explaining how we can engage people with the hope of the Gospel.

Call2Fall THIS Sunday, June 28th!

Like Dad, Father's Day Video

Here's our video from Father's Day.

The Gospel According to Judges (Judges 9) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

Judges 9 centers on the tragic actions of Gideon’s son, Abimelek. Although immediately following victory over the Midianites Gideon declared, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you” his judgeship spiraled downward as he assumed many ungodly liberties taken by kings of his day. His many wives and idolatry led “all Israel” astray. (Judges 8:23,27)

The account of Abimelek reads much like a judgeship only without a repentant cry of the people to the Lord for deliverance and the Lord raising up a deliver. After rousing his mother’s kin to join him in killing his brothers he establishes himself as king of Shechem. His reign begins to unravel when God “stirred up animosity between Abimelek and the citizens of Shechem so that they acted treacherously against Abimelek” (Judges 9:23).

The Scriptures offer many warnings to God’s people about counterfeit messages and people. What counsel do the following Scriptures provide for dealing with a counterfeit prophet/teacher/god/prophecy/message?

Deuteronomy 18:21-22; 1 Kings 14:23-24; Jeremiah 28:8-9; Matthew 7:15-20; 2 Corinthians 11:20 & 1 John 3:7-10--

Deuteronomy 13:1-4; Ezekiel 13:17-23; 1 John 2:20-23; 2 John 7-11--

Isaiah 28:7; Jeremiah 23:11,14; Zephaniah 3:4; Galatians 1:6-9--

1 John 4:1-6--

Romans 16:17-18--

2 Timothy 3:1-9--

Titus 3:9-11--

Memorize This

1 John 4:1-- Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 

Journey Off the Map VBS July 13-17TH!

The Gospel According to Judges (Judges 8) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

Judges chapter 8 begins following a great military victory by Gideon and his small army of 300 mighty men and ends in spiritual defeat with Gideon’s idolatry ensnaring his people, “Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family” (Judges 8:27). In this chapter Gideon faces five common snares (lures): pride, power, lust and idolatry. What additional insights about these snares are gleaned from the following Scriptures?

(Pride) Proverbs 8:13, 11:2, 16:18; Luke 1:51; Acts 20:19; 1 Corinthians 8:1and Philippians 2:3--

(Power) Deuteronomy 8:17-18; 2 Chronicles 26:16; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Ephesians 1:19, 3:20; and 2 Peter 1:3--

(Money) Proverbs 11:24; Matthew 6:24; 1 Timothy 3:8 and 6:9-10--

(Lust) Proverbs 6:25, 7:21; Romans 13:13; Galatians 5:16; Colossians 3:5; 1 Peter 2:11; and 1 John 2:16-17--

(Idolatry) Exodus 20:3,4; Judges 2:1-3; Hosea 3:4-5; Habakkuk 2:18; 1 Corinthians 10:7, 14; 1 Thessalonians 1:9; and 1 John 5:21--

What encouragement do the following Scriptures provide for those desiring to resist such snares?

Romans 8:37--

Hebrews 2:18--

James 1:2-3, 12--

1 John 4:4--

Memorize This

2 Corinthians 4:7-- But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

This spring Club JAM’s (NMBC’s mid-week elementary ministry) focus has been “Wise Choices.” The verses that kicked off this teaching series were Proverbs 3:5-6.

I enjoy hiking and the hiking I enjoy the most is when the trail is clear and straight. On these trails you are able to see your way for a long distance and can anticipate what is ahead. This is not the kind of path most of us walk most of the time. In fact, Jesus said as much when He cautioned His disciples, “In this world you will have trouble…” (John 16:33).   He also stated that “narrow the road (trail) that leads to life…” (Matthew 7:14).

Good trails have markings. The portion of the Appalachian Trail I hiked in Pennsylvania was marked

by white rectangles painted on the trees along the trail. No matter how obscure the trail, if you could see these white markings you knew you were on the right path.

Proverbs 3:5 begins, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart.” For our journey, the Bible is our markings. No matter how difficult or narrow the path we can trust God and His Word. Verse five continues, “and lean not on your own understanding.” In addition to taking God at His Word we must let go of our own understanding. Just like a pilot must learn to trust his instruments above his senses to avoid becoming disoriented, so we must trust God’s Word above our “wisdom.”

Here’s how we summed it up with the kids, “Walk through life with God by your side… His wisdom (not yours) will be your guide.”

Happy Trails!

Memorial Day, May 25th 2015

Middletown Memorial Day Parade starts at 10:00 am at Bayshore Middle School. Leonardville Rd.

Parade Route: Leonardville Rd. to Appleton Ave. to Center Ave. to Brevent Ave. Turn right onto Highland Ave.; left on Leonard Avenue and right on Viola Ave. to the Post Home on Route 36. Parade scheduled to end about 11:30 a.m.

The New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation will hold a Memorial Day Ceremony Monday, May 25 at 11 a.m. The Vietnam Era Museum and Educational Center will be open to the public free of charge from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

The Gospel According to Judges (Judges 6) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

We’re introduced to Gideon in Judges 6:11, as a young man who rather timidly is “threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites.” The angel of the Lord appears to Gideon and addresses him, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior” (Judges 6:12b).  

The Lord did not address Gideon according to his disposition of courage  but rather the Lord’s call for him to be courageous.  This is an important truth for every Christian to grasp. The Christian’s position in Christ is based on Christ’s performance. 2 Corintians 3:4-6 explains, “Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant…”

What do the following Scriptures reveal about your position in Christ?

John 6:37--

John 15:3--

Romans 8:29; Ephesians 1:11; & 1 Peter 1:2--

1 Corinthians 6:11--

Colossians 1:22--

Colossians 3:1 and Romans 6:4--

Ephesians 2:4 and 1 John 3:1--

Philippians 3:20; Ephesians 2:19 and Hebrews 12:22--

2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15 and Ephesians 2:10--

In light of your position in Christ, how do you sense the Holy Spirit calling you to respond?

Memorize This

2 Timothy 1:7-- For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

If the LORD with with us, then WHY...?

Every one of us has asked a variation of the question asked of the Lord by Gideon in Judges 6:13, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?'" (NAS) God is continually at work all around us all the time. Sometimes we recognize His hand at work, other times we don't.

I came across this video by Moving Works telling the story of Walt and Annie's struggle with infertility, and God's hand at work writing a beautiful story for them that was over 20 years in the making. Enjoy!

The Gospel According to Judges (Judges 3:12-31) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

In Deuteronomy 28:7, Moses sought to prepare the Israelites for life in the promised land promising that if they fully obeyed the Lord their God and carefully followed His commands,  “The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.” Moses also warned the Israelites that if they did not obey the Lord their God “The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies” (Deuteronomy 28:25). Judges 3:12 records that once again “the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel.”

When Israel “cried out to the Lord” , the Lord raised up another deliverer (judge)-- Ehud, a “left-handed man” (Judges 3:15). The Hebrew phrase used here means literally, “hindered in the right hand” and likely reveals that in this case left-handedness was viewed as a defect (Holman Study Bible notes, Judges 3:15-17). This further explains why King Eglon would be willing to grant an audience with Ehud alone without his guards as Ehud was certainly not viewed as a threat.

God’s use of Ehud inspite of his physical limitations one example of a pattern echoed throughout the Bible as 1 Corinthians 1:27 declares, “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” (KJV). What additonal insights do you glean about God’s pattern of using the weak or seaminly insignificant for His glory? What weakness(es) of your do you sense the Holy Spirit desiring to use for God’s glory in your life?

Deuteronomy 7:6-8--

Judges 4:9 & 7:4--

1 Samuel 16:6-12--

Jeremiah 9:23-24--

Zechariah 4:6--

Mark 6:38 & Luke 9:13

Luke 21:1-4--

2 Corinthians 11:30-12:10--

Memorize This

2 Corinthians 12:10-- That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 

NMBC Middle School Youth at JAM

Proud of our awesome students for serving the Lord this weekend at #JAM15 these teens trained to communicate the Good News of Jesus well, then showed a whole group of kids love throughout the day to earn the right in pointing them to the Savior! Powerful weekend! #nmbcyouth

A photo posted by Nick D'Angelo (@therealnickyd) on May 9, 2015 at 1:34pm PDT

The Gospel According to Judges (Judges 4-5) Questions for Reflection

Judges 4 and 5 covers the judgeship of Deborah. Deborah was both a prophetess and judge, “And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time” (Judges 4:4, KJV). The Hebrew word for prophetess can refer to a woman prophecies, the wife of a prophet (as in Isaiah’s wife) or poetess. Deborah fulfills both the first and last of this description, prophesying (forthtelling) in Judges 4:6, “Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded…” and her “song” (hymn) in Judges 5.

Read Judges 4:1-10. What observations do you make about Deborah’s life and character?

What do you observe about the significance of the role of the prophetess from the following Scriptures?

Miriam (Exodus 15:19-21)--

Huldah (2 Kings 22:14-20 & 2 Chronicles 34:22-33)--

Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:13-15)--

Anna (Luke 2:35-37)--

Philip’s daughters (Acts 21:9)--

Read Deborah’s Song in Judges 5:1-31. In what area of your life do you sense the Holy Spirit leading you to be courageous?

Memorize This

Judges 5:2-- "When the princes in Israel take the lead, when the people willingly offer themselves-- praise the Lord! NIV

2015 National Day of Prayer

The Gospel According to Judges, Part 4 (Judges 3:1-11) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

Judges 3 introduces the first three judges of Israel: Othniel (3:7-11), Ehud (3:12-30), and Shamgar (3:31). Othniel was introduced in Judges 1 as the couragious warrior who won Caleb’s daughter in marriate (Judges 1:12-13). (Note: the Hebrew term “brother” can also mean kindred or simply of the same tribe. )

Read Judges 2:22 to Judges 3:4. Why is it significant that Israel’s first judge  was a man whose faithfulness was tested and proved genuine?

There are fourteen judges in total. Twelve appear in Judges and two in 1 Samuel (Eli and Samuel). Major judges refer those of whom we’re given an account of their judgeship while minor judges are those whose judgeship is summed up in one verse. Read the introduction of each judge. What impression does this lead you to make about these men and women?

Othniel (Judges 3:9)--                          Jair (Judges 10:3-4)--

Ehud (Judges 3:15)--                           Jephthah (Judges 11:1)--

Shamgar (Judge 3:31)--                      Ibzan (Judges 12:8-9)--

Deborah (Judges 4:4)--                       Samson (Judges 13:24-25)--

Gideon (Judges 6:12)--                        Eli (1 Samuel 4:18)--

Tola (Judges 10:1)--                           Samuel (1 Samuel 7:15)--

 Read Hebrews 11:32-33. What judges are listed? What does this reveal about their faith?

What do you observe about the relationship of the Spirit of the Lord and the judges from the following Scriptures?

Judges 3:10--

Judges 6:34--

Judges 11:29--

Judges 14:6; 19; and 15:14--

Memorize This

James 1:2-3-- Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. NIV

The Gospel According to Judges: Part 3, (Judges 2) Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

The first chapter of Judges looks back at the faithful example of Caleb and the the failure of each tribe to wholeheartedly obey the Lord. Chapter two begins with God confronting the Isrealites for their disobedience, “And you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars. Yet you have disobeyed Me. Why have you done this?” (Judges 2:2).

Chapter 2 ends with God explaining that He would use the nations who still remained in the land following the death of Joshua to test Israel, “I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and wlak in it as their ancestors did” (Judges 2:22). Scripture reveals that God tests His people to deterimine the genuiness of their faith. Compare Judges 2:20-3:2 with following other examples of God testing His people. What insights do these scriptures reveal as to the purpose of testing?

Job 23:10--

Exodus 16:4; 20:20 and Deuteronomy 8:2-3--

Zechariah 13:9--

1 Peter 1:7--

James 1:2-3--

What positive results of testing do you observe in the following individuals who were tested by God?

Abraham, Genesis 22:1-18--

Solomon, 2 Chronicles 1:7-12--

Hezekiah, 2 Chronicles 32:31; 2 Kings 19:14-36--

Paul, 2 Corinthians 12:7-9--

Memorize This

James 1:2-3-- Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. NIV

On one occasion of Jesus preaching to a crowd of followers John observes, “many of his disciples said, ‘This is a hard teaching. who can accept it?’” (John 6:60, NIV). Certainly God’s command to Joshua and ancient Israel are “hard teaching.” Working through hard teachings is a part of a Christian's duty to study to show himself approved... In his book to fellow pastors, Brothers, We are Not Professionals, John Piper writes in his chapter, Brothers, Show Your People Why God Inspired Hard Texts, 

And if God ordained for some of that precious, sacred, God-breathed book to be hard to understand, then God unleashed in the world not only an impulse to teach people how to read but also to think about what they read-- how to read hard things and understand them and how to use the mind in a rigorous way.

Here are a few additional thoughts to keep in mind and we teach through Judges:

1. God is sovereign over life and death. Job 1:21 And said, 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. (KVJ)

2. God is a righteous Judge. Psalm 7:11 “God is a righteous judge…”

3. The ancient world was cruel, inhumane and brutal.  In Joshua and Judges God uses ancient Israel as His instrument of judgment. Death, war, and hatred toward one another are all results of the fall, the entrance of sin into the human experience.

Remember, war and death were not a part of God’s original plan at creation. Following His creation God declared all that He had made, “very good.” It was Adam’s rebellion against God that brought death into the human experience, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned” Romans 5:12, NIV.

4. Even in judgment there are glimpses of God’s mercy and grace.

Genesis 15:16 reads, “In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.” One commentary observes of this scripture, “God would wait centuries giving opportunity for this people to repent! His grace and mercy waited to see if they would repent and turn from their headlong plummet into self destruction” (Hard Sayings of the Bible).

Read Timothy Keller’s excellent article The Issue of Holy War here. 

The Gospel According to Judges: Judges 1:19-36 Questions for Reflection

Dig Deeper

The focus of the first verses of the book of Judges is on the family of Caleb. Timothy Keller in his book Judges for You observes, “The family of faithful Caleb here, in miniature, is what all Israel should be like.” Caleb was one of the twelve scouts sent out by Moses to investigate the land of Canaan (Numbers 13:6). Only he and Joshua brought back a positive report that Israel indeed should proceed into Canaan. This is not because Caleb and Joshua minimized the threat the people of Canaan posed but rather their faith in the power of God to keep His Word was sure. After the other scouts spread word of the strength of inhabitants of Canaan urging the Israelites to retreat Caleb was the first to speak up, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, He will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us” (Numbers 14:7b-8). It is Caleb’s partner Joshua who rises to prominence and is chosen by the Lord to lead the Israelites after the death of Moses, but Caleb remains an example of life-long faithfulness to the Lord and his family.  

What examples of faithfulness do you glean from Caleb in the following Scriptures?

Numbers 13:30; & 14:1-9--

Numbers 14:24; 14:30, 38 & 26:65--

Deuteronomy 1:35-36--

Joshua 14:6-7--

Joshua 15:13-19 & Judges 1:12-15--

Judges 1:20--

Memorize This

Joshua 1:9-- Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” NIV