Thy Rod & Thy Staff
Nondenominational Church
A place to serve, not sit.
What We Do
Church Purpose
Our purpose at our Bible base church is to get people to be like Christ and turn from that which is contrary to Him. We would like very much to lead others to make Christ the foundation of their lives. We would like to show Jesus as a faithful friend, a loyal companion, as someone who will stand by our side when no one else will.
As a body of Bible based Christian believers, we see our whole purpose as doing the will of God so that His Spirit might be manifested in our midst. With His hand we hope to convince others that Christ is our Lord and Savior. We want to show that if we trust in Him, He will very clearly show us that He is who He claims to be.– a Provider who can supply whatever we need whenever we need it under any and all circumstances, a Physician with no limitations in His healing power, a Counselor with infinite understanding and wisdom. We would very much like to reflect Christ in our midst as the Good Shepherd (Psalms 23 and John 10:1:18), as the one and only way to God, our Father in heaven.
Consequently, our Bible based churches goal is to get others to see the love of God and act accordingly. Undoubtedly God wants us to do His will but He wants it to be done out of love. God wants us to serve Him not because we have too but because we want too. God wants us to serve Him because we see Him as He is. He wants us to do His will because we see that doing His will is for out good. This is the purpose of our church and the platform on which it stands. We want to weld together a body of believers who love Jesus Christ so much that they want to be just like Him.
What Jesus Did
‘Holy of Holies’ – Mark 15:37-38
Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
Key Thought
The meaning of this event and its symbolism are powerful. The curtain in today’s scripture was the one between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place in the Jewish Temple. For the Jews, the place of atonement [1] was in the Most Holy Place, and only the high priest could go to the place of atonement on behalf of the people and only once each year, on the Day of Atonement. The tearing of the curtain from top to bottom symbolized that the cross of Christ opened up the way for us to go straight to the place of atonement at any time — go to the place of ultimate forgiveness in the very presence of God. [2] Jesus is the sacrifice for our sins that completely cleanses us and makes us right with God. Neither physical barriers nor specific time or place constraints any longer stand between us and God’s grace and mercy. Jesus opened up for us the way to the very heart of God. As horrible as the humiliation of the cross was for Jesus, it was even more glorious for us because it ushered in a new way (called the new covenant) for God to deal with his people. (Please read today’s Related Scripture Readings for more information.) What Satan, through evil men, intended for harm, God used to bring great good. Jesus became our Savior, and his sacrifice became the basis of our salvation.
[2] Exodus 30:6; Leviticus 16:2.
Today’s Prayer
Loving and sacrificial God, thank you for this gift too wonderful for words to describe and for paying the price that was too costly for us to pay. In Jesus’ name, I offer you my prayer and my life. Amen.
Related Scripture Readings
Ⓒ 1996-2024 Heartlight, Inc. This material may not be reproduced in part or whole for commercial use without written consent. What Jesus Did! is written by Phil Ware and is available in book form. Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.