We Stand Up For Jesus

The struggles Sparta Baptist Church has experienced are not over entirely but faith we will conquer is abundant.  Visiting pastor, Jason Holbrook, shared a very powerful and encouraging sermon Sunday that helped the members of our humble church feel confident that what happened was God's will.  He reminded us that God has not been blind to everything going on but has been there watching.  His eyes have been on our church from the beginning and we often forget, in times of trouble, that he DOES see and hear everything.  Brother Holbrook reminded us that this is a time to dig deep into our foundations of our church.  He shared foundations a church should be built on and they are the very foundations Sparta Baptist Church was originally built on.

*The First Foundation:
The first foundation our church was/is built on is God's word.  Sparta Baptist Church makes no apologies for believing in the foundations our church was originally built on.  We believe the Bible is worth fighting for and worth defending.  We believe that in order to defend God's word we must know God's word.  It's not enough to just own a Bible.  You must study it.  Therefore; we have brought back regular Sunday School so that we can fellowhsip and study God's words as the Bible tells us to do with other believers.  All are welcome to join us for Sunday School from 9:30 - 10:30 each Sunday.  We have something for everyone.

2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)

 ¹⁵Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

*The Second Foundation:
The second foundation our church was/is built on is His plan of Salvation.  Have you ever wondered why there was so much "red tape" to go through to become a Christian or become saved or even join a new church?  We at Sparta Baptist Church believe Salvation is simple.  We believe Salvation is as simple as truly believing God sent his Son to die on the cross to save us from our sins and that you just accept him into your life.  We believe that baptism is a public profession of your faith, but you are saved the minute you believe and accept.  This is according to God's word.

John 3:16 (KJV)

 ¹⁶For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The Third Foundation:
Our third foundation the church was/is built on is Respect.  We believe that as Christians, we have to have respect for each other, respect for the church itself, and respect for God's presence.  We believe the church is a place of peace and comfort, not confusion and anger.  We believe church is a place to worship and spend time with the Lord.  It is not a place to build yourself up by what you do in the church.  The services you perform within the church should be only for the Glory of God and not for your own self-recognition.  Satan can often present a "gift" of pride for those that do a lot in a church.  Once pride enters your heart, respect for the Lord leaves.  You then work harder on perfecting your ego instead of perfecting your heart.  We believe it is up to us to keep respect for where we are and why we do what we do. 

Respect is listening to God's word without interruption or distractions.  Respect is keeping other worldly thoughts at bay during the study of God's word.  Respect is teaching our children to have the same respect God expects from us. 

The Fourth Foundation:
Our fourth foundation the church was/is built on is Faith.  We believe that without Faith it is absolutely impossible to please the Lord.  Faith is what pulls you through in difficult times.  He expects us to rely solely on Him for everything and in order to do that, one must have Faith.  The Lord reveals himself when we have Faith in Him.

Deuteronomy 32:20 (KJV)

 ²⁰And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.

When a church body goes through the trials that Sparta Baptist Church has gone through, Satan muddies the truth even more and fills the mind with doubts.  It is very difficult to have Faith that you made the best choices throughout the storm.  Sunday's sermon and study of scripture helped us at Sparta Baptist Church have the Faith that the Lord pulled us through this His way.  Our Faith can not be shaken.  It is an exciting time for our church.  We are digging down to our roots and remembering the foundations of our church. 

We pray the Lord sends us a true man of God that believes in following God's word as it is written and can believe in our church's foundations, to be our pastor.

Matthew 16:18 (KJV)

 ¹⁸And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

If you are looking for a church, please don't let Satan convince you that Sparta Baptist's circumstances are too big for you.  You might just miss an opportunity to be truly touched by His grace!  All members of our church would agree, that the Lord's presence is felt more now than ever.  We are truly excited about our church's future.  Please come out and be a part of it!  Experience the Lord's presence for yourself.  Join us next Sunday at Sparta Baptist Church!