SERMON RECAP: COMMITMENT based on Philippians 2:19-30

As human beings, we sometimes struggle to understand abstract concepts, especially matters of faith that go against human nature. If we are to follow Christ, we should commit to humility (Phil 2:1-11) and develop healthy attitudes concerning integrity, salvation, God’s will, our temperament, holiness, and perseverance (Phil 2:12-18). But how do we actually do those things? God often gives us examples of ordinary people we can look to as guides that point us in the right direction. In this passage, Paul points to Timothy and Epaphroditus as examples of Christ-like commitment.

1. Christ-like concern for others (Phil 2:20-21). Timothy was praised for his commitment, seeking the welfare of others, demonstrating empathy and compassion, and pursuing Christ’s interests instead of his own. We can follow Timothy’s example by putting others above ourselves, seeking the wounded and broken, and becoming a healing presence that brings them to Christ.

2. Submission (Phil 2:22-24). Submission is the willful surrender of one’s will to follow the instruction and lead of another. Paul praised Timothy, noting that no one was like him and that he was like a son. Timothy shows us that we too can walk in submission through commitment to discipleship, learning more each day how to follow Jesus, as well as serving others and sharing the gospel.

3. Supportive community (Phil 2:25-28). Epaphroditus was praised by Paul for being a fellow laborer, a soldier, and a brother. Paul did not give out these titles lightly! Rather, Epaphroditus faithfully served as the church’s messenger and assisted Paul in the work of the ministry. We can show the same commitment to Christ by being faithful in the work. He was faithful, even when he was sick and near death, longing for the community. Further, Paul, Epaphroditus, and the church all grieved together and displayed mutual concern for one another.

4. Hospitality (Phil 2:29-30). The church showed commitment as well through welcome, honor, and recognition of Epaphroditus.

Paul provides Timothy and Epaphroditus, as well as the church’s response, as a living example of how to walk in humility and healthy attitudes before God. It would be wise to learn from their example!

Reflection Questions

1. Why are empathy and compassion vital for a life of faith?

2. Do you seek after Christ’s interests, or your own?

3. Why is submission difficult?

4. Why should we embark on a lifelong discipleship journey?

5. Why do we benefit from a supportive community of faith?

6. How can we show radical hospitality?

Upcoming Service

This Sunday, Pastor Ryan will continue the series on Philippians with the sermon titled “Leaving the Past Behind,” based on Philippians 3:1-11. What should we leave in our past, and why? Come by or tune in on Sunday to find out!

Daily Bible Readings for October 20 – 26

October 20: Psalm 139 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 21: Psalm 140 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 22: Psalm 141 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 23: Psalm 142 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 24: Psalm 143 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 25: Psalm 144 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 26: Psalm 145 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

This Week’s  Events:

October 21 – Fall Festival Setup @ 7 pm

October 23 – Bob Hess Memorial Service @ 7 pm

October 24 – Fall Festival from 10 am – 1 pm

October 25 – Evangelism project @ noon

October 26 – Revelation Bible Study @ 7 pm

Upcoming Events:

November 7 – Beaver Creek Cares

November 20 – Game Night @ 6 pm

November 29 – Hanging of the Greens

December 24 – Christmas Eve Candelight Service

December 28-30 – Winter VBS

VERSE OF THE MONTH!

Every month, we will feature a verse. The goal is for the entire church to learn this verse for the month, so we grow in our memorized Bible knowledge. The verse for October is Philippians 2:13:

“For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”

Announcements:

CHILI COOK OFF RESULTS

Congratulations to our winners:

Soup/Chili Category

1st – Jane Wood

2nd – Heather Cooper

3rd – Tess Southerly

Dessert Category

1st – Joyce Wright

2nd – Deb Hoover

3rd – Winne Wilfong

First place collected a $25 gift card to Dairy Queen, second place a $10 gift card to Smiley’s, and third a $5 gift card to Klines.

STRENGTH IN PEERS

We will have a box for donations toward Strength in Peers throughout the month of October. Please bring your donations in throughout the month. You can refer to the list below. 

FALL FESTIVAL

Fall Festival will be Saturday, October 24 from 10 am – 1 pm.  Please share the flyer with as many people as you can! We have about 100 flyers to still distribute!

Here are the arrival times:

8:30 am – Outdoor setup crew

9:00 am – Kitchen crew

9:30 am – Games/Station crew

9:45 am – Gathering prayer before the event

If you are running a station, you will receive an email or text this week with instructions on how to operate your station.

SETUP

For those willing to help assist with the setup of the Fellowship Hall, please meet at the church on Wednesday evening, October 21, at 7 pm. We will move the items from the upper Sunday School room and stage the Fellowship Hall for Fall Festival. In addition, we will need all pledged tables in the Fellowship Hall no later than Wednesday, October 21 at 5 pm.

Beaver Creek Cares

Beaver Creek Cares will take place on Saturday, November 7. In addition to Strength and Peers, Operation Christmas Child shoebox assembly, and Bingo at White Birch, this year we will collect Thanksgiving-themed items for the food pantries and sort them for delivery. These are the types of items we desire to collect: boxed stuffing, instant mashed potatoes, cans of green beans, cans of corn, cans of yams/sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, jars of gravy, cake/brownie/cookie mix, Velveeta mac and cheese (no milk needed), vegetable oil, sugar, flour, applesauce, canned pumpkin, chicken or vegetable broth, cornbread or corn muffin mix.

Social Media

Beaver Creek has updated its social media page. Please follow and share so many people can see what is happening at Beaver Creek! You can find the pages as follows:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beavercreekchurchva/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeaverCreekChurchVA/

Four Ways to Give! 

1) Mail your tithe to the church office

2) Drop it by the church office on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday, 9 am – 1 pm

3) Our online giving platform: https://beavercreekchurchva.churchcenter.com/giving

4) Place in the offering plate on Sunday! 

Pastor Ryan Cooper
Beaver Creek Church

Upcoming Service

This Sunday, Pastor Ryan will continue the series on Philippians with the sermon titled “Commitment,” based on Philippians 2:19-30. Following Jesus sometimes comes with adversity. How can we show commitment to Christ? Come by or tune in on Sunday to find out!

Daily Bible Readings for October 13 – 19

October 13: Psalm 132 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 14: Psalm 133 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 15: Psalm 134 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 16: Psalm 135 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 17: Psalm 136 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 18: Psalm 137 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 19: Psalm 138 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

This Week’s  Events:

October 15 – Leadership Team @ 7 pm

October 18 – Congregational Business Meeting & Chili Cook-Off

October 18 – Evangelism Project after Chili Cook-Off

October 19 – Revelation Bible Study @ 7 pm

Upcoming Events:

October 24 – Fall Festival from 10 am – 1 pm

November 7 – Beaver Creek Cares

VERSE OF THE MONTH!

Every month, we will feature a verse. The goal is for the entire church to learn this verse for the month, so we grow in our memorized Bible knowledge. The verse for October is Philippians 2:13:

“For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”

Announcements:

CHILI COOK OFF & CONGREGATIONAL BUSINESS MEETING

Immediately after church will be the Chili Cook-Off and the Congregational Business Meeting. We will award a prize to the top three point scorers for both the chili/soup category and dessert category. Please type a brief description of your dish and provide a name. If you need the office to type up for you, call the church before Saturday!

STRENGTH IN PEERS

We will have a box for donations toward Strength in Peers throughout the month of October. Please bring your donations in throughout the month. You can refer to the list below. 

DIAPER SHOWER

Thank you for all who participated in the diaper shower for Kayla. If you would like to put a note in any of the books, the books will still be available for the next few days in the Pathfinders room.

FALL FESTIVAL CANDY COLLECTION

We are collecting for Fall Festival. Last year, we had a sizeable turnout and we went through nearly 5000 pieces of candy, 250 large candy bars, and 150 Little Debbie lunch cakes. The most popular candy is the non-chocolate mini-mix you can find at Costco. Let’s try to achieve the same amount of candy again this year! UPDATE: This is what we specifically still need: 1 18-ct box of skittles/starburst (found at Walmart), 1 18-ct box of Swedish fish/sour patch kids (found at Walmart), and 1 18-ct box of nerds variety mix (found at Walmart). If you plan to purchase any of these items, please also email Pastor Ryan so that way he can mark it off the list.

FALL FESTIVAL

Fall Festival will be Saturday, October 24 from 10 am – 1 pm. If you helped last year and would like to continue in the same role, please contact Pastor Ryan, Joe Satterwhite, or Katie Cooper.   Right now, we still have three games that need volunteers to run, as well as one more in the kitchen and one more to assist with the prize table!  Also, please share the flyer with as many people as you can! We have about 100 flyers to still distribute.

SETUP

For those willing to help assist with the setup of the Fellowship Hall, please meet at the church next Thursday evening, October 22, at 7 pm. We will move the items from the upper Sunday School room and stage the Fellowship Hall for Fall Festival. In addition, we will need all pledged tables in the Fellowship Hall no later than Wednesday, October 21.

Social Media

Beaver Creek has updated its social media page. Please follow and share so many people can see what is happening at Beaver Creek! You can find the pages as follows:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beavercreekchurchva/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeaverCreekChurchVA/

Four Ways to Give! 

1) Mail your tithe to the church office

2) Drop it by the church office on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday, 9 am – 1 pm

3) Our online giving platform: https://beavercreekchurchva.churchcenter.com/giving

4) Place in the offering plate on Sunday!

Pastor Ryan Cooper
Beaver Creek Church

SERMON RECAP: HUMILITY based on Philippians 2:1-11

Humility is one of the most difficult things for any Christian, let alone any person, to practice. Humility requires setting pride, desires, wants, and agendas aside and yielding to another. In our human nature, stained by sin, we are prone to pride and self-preservation above all else. So how do we demonstrate a humility mindset? Why does God call believers to act and respond in humility? Without humility, we will never truly allow God to direct our lives. God knew it would be difficult, so Jesus became our example. How can we demonstrate a humility mindset?

1. Fully surrender control to God (Phil 2:6-7). Although  Jesus is fully God, he did not consider equality with God something to be grasped. In other words, he relinquished control to the will of the Father. Jesus did not use position or authority to take advantage. Rather, he took a kenotic posture by emptying himself. He showed us that the way comes from a complete surrender to God and to let go of control.

2. Become a servant (Phil 2:7). While in the flesh, Jesus emptied himself and became a servant to all humanity. The term doulos can be translated both as servant and slave. Both did the work of a master. The difference is the slave did so out of force, while the servant willingly chose to do the master’s work. Humility is that act of choosing to place God’s will and work above our own. And who do we serve? Our fellow humanity. We can follow Jesus’ example there too, as he became empathic and relatable, showing people the way to the Father, reaching them in their weakness.

3. Be obedient (Phil 2:8). In the middle of the word obedient lies the word “die.” You cannot walk in obedience if you only partially follow through; obedience demands full and complete commitment. Jesus’ act of obedience included death on a cross. If we follow Jesus’ example, we too have a cross to bear. We have to be willing to put our flesh, our desires, our old sinful ways to death and walk in the ways God asks of us. In doing so, we break Satan’s hold over our lives.

How do we put humility into action? We start by pursuing Christ above all else (Phil 2:1). That requires reordering our priorities, making everything fall in line with Jesus and releasing those things that do not. Second, we operate in compassion (Phil 2:1), allowing our hearts to break for the broken, those held in bondage of sin. Compassion allows us to see people in the same way Jesus did. Third, by seeking spiritual unity (Phil 2:2), pursuing the same goal together as the Spirit leads. Fourth, we should remove selfishness and conceit (Phil 2:3), for selfishness and humility cannot co-exist! Fifth, by valuing others (Phil 2:3), investing in the lives of others rather than ignoring them or treating people like projects. Last, by considering the interests of others (Phil 2:4).

Humility is difficult. It goes against our pride and sinful nature. But as we grow in our walk with Jesus, he calls us to follow in his steps. Can we be like Jesus and walk the path of humility?

Reflection Questions

1. Why is pride difficult to surrender?

2. What are some areas that you struggle to release full control over to God?

3. What priorities exist in your life that do not align with your faith?

4. What is God asking you to do, that you resist to obey?

5. What steps can you take this week to demonstrate humility?

Upcoming Service

This Sunday, Pastor Ryan will continue the series on Philippians with the sermon titled “Healthy Attitudes,” based on Philippians 2:12-18. As believers, our attitudes toward life should be different. What should they look like? Come by or tune in on Sunday to find out!

Daily Bible Readings for October 6 – 12

October 6: Psalm 125 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 7: Psalm 126 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 8: Psalm 127 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 9: Psalm 128 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 10: Psalm 129 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 11: Psalm 130 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

October 12: Psalm 131 What is one thing you learned you did not know before?

This Week’s  Events:

September – collection of candy begins for Fall Festival

October – Strength in Peers Collection begins

October 10 – Diaper Shower for Kayla Satterwhite @ 2 pm

October 11 – Evangelism Project @ noon

October 12 – Revelation Bible Study @ 7 pm

Upcoming Events:

October 15 – Leadership Team @ 7 pm

October 18 – Congregational Business Meeting & Chili Cook-Off

October 24 – Fall Festival from 10 am – 1 pm

November 7 – Beaver Creek Cares

VERSE OF THE MONTH!

Every month, we will feature a verse. The goal is for the entire church to learn this verse for the month, so we grow in our memorized Bible knowledge. The verse for October is Philippians 2:13:

“For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”

Announcements:

STRENGTH IN PEERS

We will have a box for donations toward Strength in Peers throughout the month of October. Please bring your donations in throughout the month. You can refer to the list below. 

DIAPER SHOWER

We will host a diaper shower on Saturday, October 10 at 2 pm for Kayla Satterwhite. Every lady of the church is invited to attend! Please see the attached flyer for more information, and let us bless Kayla! Please RSVP to Heather or the church office, or respond to this email!

FALL FESTIVAL CANDY COLLECTION

We are collecting for Fall Festival. Last year, we had a sizeable turnout and we went through nearly 5000 pieces of candy, 250 large candy bars, and 150 Little Debbie lunch cakes. The most popular candy is the non-chocolate mini-mix you can find at Costco. Let’s try to achieve the same amount of candy again this year! UPDATE: As of this email, we are at about 80% of the candy we hope to acquire. This is what we specifically still need:  about 1200 more small pieces of bite-sized or fun-sized candy (especially chocolate), 1 18-ct box of skittles/starburst (found at Walmart), 1 18-ct box of Swedish fish/sour patch kids (found at Walmart), and 1 18-ct box of nerds variety mix (found at Walmart). If you plan to purchase any of these items, please also email Pastor Ryan so that way he can mark it off the list.

FALL FESTIVAL

Please save the date for Fall Festival. It will be Saturday, October 24 from 10 am – 1 pm. If you helped last year and would like to continue in the same role, please contact Pastor Ryan, Joe Satterwhite, or Katie Cooper. Also, please share the flyer with as many people as you can! Right now, we still have four games that need volunteers to run, as well as one more in the kitchen and one more to assist with the prize table!

Social Media

Beaver Creek has updated its social media page. Please follow and share so many people can see what is happening at Beaver Creek! You can find the pages as follows:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beavercreekchurchva/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeaverCreekChurchVA/

Four Ways to Give! 

1) Mail your tithe to the church office

2) Drop it by the church office on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday, 9 am – 1 pm

3) Our online giving platform: https://beavercreekchurchva.churchcenter.com/giving

4) Place in the offering plate on Sunday!

Pastor Ryan Cooper
Beaver Creek Church