Church Blog

Brothers and sisters,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday we worshiped our great God and Savior as we sang about His greatness and read from His perfect Word. We then learned from Mark 14 about the Lord’s introducing His Supper to His church that would observe it until He comes back. Then we observed the Lord’s Supper. The observance of the Lord’s Supper shows the fulfillment of the old covenant and the inaugurating of the new covenant through the blood of Christ. It reminds us to continually remembers Jesus. It proclaims the death of Christ for the forgiveness of sin. It provides a sense of special communion with Jesus. Also, it symbolizes the oneness of God’s people and our need for one another. The Lord’s Supper regularly reminds us that Jesus has provided everything we need for eternal forgiveness, eternal life, and eternal community. James Brooks wrote, “Those who eat the broken bread indicate their desire to have fellowship with Jesus and his other disciples. Those who consume the cup indicate their commitment to the new covenant.”

We will have a potluck luncheon following morning worship next Sunday, January 21, 2024. Bring enough food for your family and a little extra for any guest who might come.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Sisters and brothers,

Happy Monday to all and Happy New Year! We gathered yesterday and joyfully praised our great God and Savior. From Mark 14, we learned people ultimately will either adore Jesus in worship or reject His gift of salvation in disdain. No one can remain neutral about Jesus forever. As individuals listen to His Word and learn increasingly of the gift of salvation offered to them, they will respond in two ways. They will either come to receive, embrace, and grow in His undeserved love and grace. Or they will respond by rejecting or simply ignoring His grace, thinking they do not want or need Him. If they reject Jesus, then they will ultimately grow in hostility to Jesus. Will be you like the religious leaders and Judas Iscariot and have open or secret disdain for Jesus and the need for forgiveness and salvation through His blood, His cross, and His resurrection? Or will you, like Mary of Bethany, respond to His love by receiving, believing, and then seeking to lavishly love and worship Jesus? Which choice will yours?

We will observe the Lord’s Supper during our worship gathering next Sunday, January 14, 2024.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. I was reminded again yesterday, when someone shared a prayer concern with me, that none of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Brothers and sisters,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday’s advent theme was joy and we worshipped with joy! The Lord Jesus has come and will come again! The message centered in looking at those who had seen the Lord Jesus when He came to earth. We learned that all who believe will see salvation face to face because salvation is Jesus. We will see Jesus. We will be in His presence forever. We will not see some religion that delivered to us a way of salvation. We will not see one who gave us four steps to salvation. We will see the One Mary, Joseph, and Simeon saw and held. We will see the One the shepherds and the wise men saw and worshipped. We will see the One John saw and baptized and testified to as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We will see the One the thief on the cross saw, the One who on the day of the thief’s death took him to paradise. We will see the One the apostles and early believers saw dying, rising again and ascending to heaven. We will see the One we have not yet seen but know now. Yes, we shall see Jesus as He is and, on that day, will be made perfectly like Him in His character and live with Him forever. We will see the One we have yearned to see since we received the forgiveness He purchased for us with His blood. We will see the One we have trusted with our lives, the One who saved us and made us His children! Yes, we will behold our Lord Jesus face to face!

On Christmas Eve and New Year’s Even there will be no morning Bible Study. We will start worship on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve at a special time: 10:00 AM.

During the month of December, we will be taking up the Lottie Moon Offering for International Missions. We encourage you to pray and give toward supporting missionaries who takes the good news of Jesus to places that have no or little witness to the saving gospel of Jesus. If you write a check for the Lottie Moon Offering, make it out to East Madison and use the Lottie Moon envelope.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Sisters and brothers,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday we celebrated the peace, the shalom, the complete well-being, we have in Jesus. We remembered Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross to provide that peace as we took communion together. Then we looked at Joseph, the stepfather of Jesus, from Matthew 1 and 2. We learned there are no words of Joseph recorded in the Bible. Joseph simply listened well to the voice of the Lord and quickly obeyed when God spoke. And it would be my guess that Joseph listened well to others. All of us need to learn from Joseph that we are to listen to God and tune into other people. It is more important to hear from God than it is for Him to hear from us. And when we listen carefully to others as they speak, we can more wisely know how to communicate God’s love to them. Do not be one who simply loves the sound of your own voice. Believers continually seek to hear and heed the corrections of the Lord, the warnings of the Lord, and the direction of the Lord as He speaks to us by His Holy Spirit through God’s Word. Today, as you hear God’s voice, do what He leads you to do.

We will be having a potluck luncheon next Sunday, December 17, after our worship gathering. Bring enough food for your family and maybe a little extra for any guest we might have.

On Christmas Eve and New Years Eve there will be no morning Bible Study. We will start worship on Christmas Eve and New Years Eve at a special time: 10:00 AM.

During the month of December, we will be taking up the Lottie Moon Offering for International Missions. We encourage you to pray and give toward supporting missionaries who takes the good news of Jesus to places that have no or little witness to the saving gospel of Jesus.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Brothers and sisters,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday in the songs and scripture Pete chose for our worship, we looked with anticipation to the celebration of the birth of Christ Jesus our Lord. We then focused on the greatness of Jesus from Luke 1 as Mary was told that she would be the human mother of Jesus. We saw Jesus’ inherent greatness in that He is great in and of Himself whether people accept His greatness or reject it. We recognized the greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ in that Jesus has the greatest name, the name before which every knee will bow. We realized the greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ in that He has absolutely the greatest Father, Most High God. We grasped that Jesus has the greatest throne and heritage that fulfills all the promises the Word of God made about the Messiah. We perceived the greatness of His miraculous and unique virgin conception and birth. Don’t reduce celebrating Christmas to merely presents, family, and food. Don’t even reduce it to the birth of a child, or the birth of someone who made a huge impact on the world. Remember Christmas is about the Great One of the universe, God the Son Himself, becoming Emmanuel, God with us, to do for us what we could not do for ourselves-save us from sin! The story of Christmas forever remains the story of the greatness of Jesus Christ, Immanuel, God with us.

This Friday, December 8, we will meet at the church building at 6:30 PM and then go out to carol in our neighborhood. Then, we will come back to the building and enjoy treats together. You might feel like you can’t go out and carol. That is understandable. We want you to come for the fellowship. Bring a Christmas treat we can share as we celebrate the season together.

During the month of December, we will be taking up the Lottie Moon Offering for International Missions. We encourage you to pray and give toward supporting missionaries who takes the good news of Jesus to people that have no or very little witness to the saving gospel of Jesus.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Sisters and brothers,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday as we looked in Luke 1 at the lives of Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist, we saw that living for Jesus is a life of preparation. God is always preparing us as His children for what He will do now and what He will do in the future through us. God prepares us for what is ahead as we walk with Him today. God prepares and works through us in spite of our imperfect faith. And God’s preparation of His people always leads to His perfect timing in working in and through their lives. Yes, truly, God prepares the world and His people for His determined times of deliverance.

I have come to love a new Christmas song called, “O Come All You Unfaithful.” It describes me and the mercy God has on me and all of us. I think you might like it too. Here is a link: O Come, All You Unfaithful • Official Video – YouTube.

On Friday, December 8, we will meet at the church building at 6:30 PM and then go out to carol in our neighborhood. Then, we will come back to the building and enjoy treats together. Plan to bring a Christmas treat we can share as we celebrate the season together.

During the month of December, we will be taking up the Lottie Moon Offering for International Missions. We encourage you to pray and give toward supporting missionaries who takes the good news of Jesus to places that have no or very little witness to the saving gospel of Jesus.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Brothers and sisters,

Happy Monday and happy Thanksgiving week to all!

Yesterday we worshipped the holy, holy, holy Lamb of God Who is forever worthy to receive glory, honor, wisdom, and power. Also, from God’s Word in Psalm 69 and Romans 1, we learned the importance of cultivating a grateful heart. God created each one of us and provides us with life and everything we need to live. God gives us every single blessing we know or will ever know. And most important of all, God provides forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life by the costly price of the sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God. We were created and then redeemed to know and love God, to live life for His glory, and to give thanks to Him all our days. Knowing this, we seek to cultivate grateful hearts. We seek to focus on the blessings we have been given. We seek not to be distracted by the difficulties of our lives in such a way that we forget the multitude of blessings God has given to us! God is so good and we as His people ought to live lives of continual gratitude toward Him.

In keeping with the theme of Thanksgiving, Bart and Lauren have a nephew, Seph Schleuter, who is a Christian artist with a song, “Counting My Blessings” that you may have heard on the radio. I love the song! Here is a link: https://youtube.com/watch?v=c17u2lkSzEI&si=gOfbKXLtsEu4vEc2.

On Friday, December 8, we will meet at the church building at 6:30 PM and then go out to carol in our neighborhood. Then, we will come back to the building and enjoy treats together. Plan to bring a Christmas treat we can share as we celebrate the season together.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Sisters and brothers,

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday was a wonderful day of worship, fellowship, and thanksgiving. We had a great time last night feasting together, enjoying one another, and speaking to one another of God’s blessings and goodness to each of us. Yesterday morning as we worshipped, we praised God for His wonderful grace that believers have received and live in every day. From Mark 13, we looked at Jesus’ teaching to His apostles and us about near future events that would happen in their generation and events that will precede Jesus’ coming back. We learned that Jesus did not share these things with us so we would be preoccupied with trying to figure out the exact timetable of His return. Jesus shared these things with us so we would be faithful as we serve Him looking for His return. We are to always be diligent about the tasks the Lord has entrusted to each of us. Are we ready for Jesus to return? Live everyday walking with and serving Jesus and look forward to His sure return. May we, with the church of every age, say, “Even so. Come Lord Jesus.”

On Friday, December 8, we will meet at the church building at 6:30 PM and then go out to do some caroling in our neighborhood. Then, we will come back to the building and enjoy some treats together. Plan on bringing a Christmas treat we can share as we celebrate the season together.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Brothers and sisters,

Happy Monday to all! As we worshipped yesterday, we thought in both our singing and in the message of the wondrous mystery of our Savior Jesus. We learned from what we sang and from God’s Word in Mark 12 that Jesus is the descendant of David and Lord of all. Jesus is fully human and fully divine, God the Son who became flesh and dwelt among us to do for us what we would not do for ourselves-save us from sin and give us eternal life. Matt Boswell helped us to:

Come, behold the wondrous mystery
Christ, the Lord upon the tree
In the stead of ruined sinners
Hangs the lamb in victory
See the price of our redemption
See the Father’s plan unfold
Bringing many sons to glory
Grace unmeasured, love untold

Come, behold the wondrous mystery
Slain by death, the God of life
But no grave could ever restrain Him
Praise the Lord, He is alive.

East Madison Thanksgiving celebration will be next Sunday Evening, November 12 at 5:30 PM. I hope you plan to join us at this wonderful celebration!

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church

Sisters and brothers,  

Happy Monday to all! Yesterday as we worshipped, we learned how blessed we are! Doug Plank reminded of this in a song he wrote that we used yesterday, “Blessed is the One.”

Blessed is the one whose sins are overcome
Whom God has sheltered deep within His grace
Blessed is the one who trusts in God the Son
His steadfast love the sinner’s hiding place

I will always hide at my Savior’s side
I find my refuge in His sovereign care
When the waters rise, God will hear my cries
His steadfast love will hold me safely there.

Jesus, Your blood covers all my sin
Jesus, Your love draws my heart to sing
What a Savior, Jesus!

We can continually thank God for our Savior Jesus. Then from Mark 12, we looked at those who were trying to trick and trap Jesus. Jesus exposed their hypocrisy. But one of their group was open to Jesus and truth. From this passage, we found we could ask ourselves a few questions about our lives. Do we simply want to hang with people who think exactly like us and reinforce our opinions? Or do we seek Jesus in truth and want to truly know Him and truth? Do we come to Jesus seeking for Him to reinforce our false political or religious preconceptions? Jesus will not be cornered by any political faction or bamboozled by false religious ideas. Do we want to trap Jesus, or do we want to know Him as the Way, the Truth, and the Life? Do we want to find the love, purpose, and meaning in life found only in Jesus? Jesus’s enemies were seeking to judge and trap Jesus with these trick questions, but they found Jesus will be the One judging them. The scribe who was open to Jesus found commendation and encouragement from Him, as will all who seeking Him then and now. Jesus wants us to be like this scribe open to His love and truth. Jesus will be open to any who approach Him seeking truth.

I wanted to thank all who helped in any way with the “Trunk or Treat” outreach to our community. We had a steady stream of families during the whole time of the “Trunk or Treat.” I know Carla and I had a few very meaningful interactions with people who came. It was a family effort of the EMBC family, and it was wonderful!

Next Sunday, November 5, we will celebrate the Lord’s Supper during morning worship. Also remember to change your clock and “fall back” as that day is also the end of daily savings time.

East Madison Thanksgiving celebration will be November 12 at 5:30 PM in less than two weeks! There is a sign-up list for the foods we will need on the table in the foyer.

Remember to keep praying continually for each other. None of us know fully the burdens our brothers and sisters in Christ might be carrying.

Love being your pastor!

Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church