CPC THIS WEEK: May 5, 2019 THE E-NEWSLETTER OF CHRIST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

“On Being Creedal”

On Sunday we’ll use the Nicene Creed as part of our worship. It will serve as an expression of what we believe – a “confession” of faith. Like the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed developed as a guard against encroaching heresies of the day. Church history informs us that the first three centuries of the church was against the backdrop of a hostile environment. That environment was a result of both an antagonistic external world and the internal theological conflicts of a growing Christian community.

Since we’ll be using the Creed, I’ve decided to include an adapted article on its history. Okay, it’s a little long, but I think you’ll find it helpful. While the creeds of the church never supplant the priority of God’s Word, they do help us to understand our history with a closer examination of truths that we hold dear. Such is the case with the Nicene Creed that came to us as the result of the first of the Seven Ecumenical Councils that marked the theological maturation of the church. I encourage you to take the time today or tomorrow to read the article. The issues confronting the Council of Nicea in 325 AD are still with us today!

Thanks for going deeper, PB

Time Wasted? We believe . . . in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten not made, being of one substance with the Father. —The Nicene Creed

You might have heard someone refer to theologians as wasting time and energy in their ivory-tower debates. (In the interest of full disclosure, I for one have never lived or worked in an ivory tower, and I can’t say I ever met a fellow theologian who has.) The ivory tower expression reflects the sentiment of those who easily grow weary of apparently inane theological debate and the seemingly endless wrestling over views on peripheral matters.

Indeed, to the making of theological views on any and all subjects there appears to be no end. Yet the church could not be as grateful to anyone as they can and should be to Athanasius, a theologian who wrangled over not just a word but over a letter for six decades! Athanasius spent his life in one long theological debate over apparent minutiae. And if he hadn’t, we’d all be in trouble.

Athanasius’s tenacity paid off. After his death in 373, the second ecumenical council convened at Constantinople in 381. Constantius II had long passed from the scene, and Theodosius II, who ruled over the Eastern Empire from 379–395, was anxious to rout the Arian controversy, in which Arius held the view that Christ was more than human, but not identical in essence or being to God. At Constantinople II any potential nod to Arianism, or even a wink to it, was put out of the church once and for all.

Athanasius’s view of Christ as being of one substance or essence (homoousion) with the Father won the day, while Arius’s view of Christ as similar substance with the Father (homoiousion) was declared to be outside the bounds of orthodoxy and thus condemned.

Wrangling over a Single Letter One has to ask why Athanasius endured so much for so long. Why did he wrangle for decades over one word, over one letter, i? The reason comes in a phrase also found in the Nicene Creed, a phrase that is attributed to Athanasius. It may not be too much of a stretch to claim this phrase to be one of the most profound, if not beautiful, phrases in all of theological literature: “for us and for our salvation.”

Athanasius wrangled with the best minds of the day and endured persecution at the hands of the most powerful politicians of the day, all for the sake of the gospel. The person of Christ, Athanasius believed, had everything to do with the work of Christ. If the church got it wrong on the person of Christ, the church would be wrong on the work of Christ. Athanasius spent six decades contending for a letter and contending against the world for the sake of the gospel.

Emphatic Affirmation

The Councils at Nicea (325) and Constantinople (381) emphatically affirmed the divine and human natures of Christ. The Nicene Creed declares Christ’s deity—he is “very God of very God”—and Christ’s humanity—“he was made man.” The Creed further and rather eloquently declares that this view of the person of Christ has everything to do with the work of Christ.

He is the God-man “for us and for our salvation.”

While not establishing the divinity of Christ, Nicea did express his deity, and his humanity for that matter, with clarity and eloquence and with a finality that has stood the test of time, providing the church with the orthodox definition of the person of Christ. This article is adapted from For Us and For Our Salvation: The Doctrine of Christ in the Early Church by Stephen J. Nichols.

CPC MINISTRY INFORMATION SUNDAY'S SERMON Title: “Our More Excellent Christ” Text: Hebrews 1:1-2:4 Pastor Bob Clark

SUNDAYSCHOOL–SundaySchoolisforallagestoday.OurAdultclassesare“LivinginGrace”ledbyElderJimRoszell(Library)and“BiblicalTheology101”ledbyPastorBobClark(Sanctuary).TherewillbenoSundaySchoolnextSunday,May12,inhonorofMother’sDay.

DEACONS’FUNDOFFERING–NextSunday,May12,wewillbecollectingtheDeacons’FundOfferingfortheMercyMinistriesoftheChurch.

MEN’SBOOKSTUDY–Themen’sbookstudy“LivingLifeBackwards”willbemeetingonSaturday,from8–9am.Ifyouwouldliketojoinusforthestudy,pleasecontactPastorBobClarkforabook.

YOUTHGROUPwillmeetonSundayat6pmatthechurch.

CPCCHOIRwillmeetat7pmonWednesday,May15.

CPCPRAYERGUIDES–WeeklyPrayerRequestGuidesforCPCfamilyandfriendsareavailableforyouattheWelcomeCenter.

MEMORYVERSESFORMAYareavailableattheWelcomeCenter.

RAMSEY BABY SHOWER – WOMEN you are invited to a Baby Shower for Candra and Celia Ramsey on Saturday, May 4, from 10am to 12 noon at the church. Brunch will be served. Candra is registered at Target and Buy Buy Baby (registry under: Candra & Justin Ramsey, Hagerstown, and Due Date March 28). Celia was born on March 22, 2019. Please RSVP to Arden Davis – Text or call: 765-914- 9486 or email: arden.clark@hotmail.com.

SAVE THE DATE!!! VBS-Savethedates:“PassporttoJapan”VBSwillbeJuly8-12from9amtonoonforages3-5thgrade.6thgraders-age100canhelp!

WOMEN’S MINISTRY TuesdayMorningLadies’BibleStudy,OldTestamentSurvey,1KingsledbyPastorBobClark,meetsinthechurchfireplaceareafrom8:30-10:00am.

Thursday Evening Bible Study, R.C. Sproul’s “Dust to Glory” led by Maureen Bradley meets every otherThursdayat6pmatthechurchoffice.

SUNDAY CPC VOLUNTEER INFORMATION THIS WEEK, MAY 5 WorshipNursery:JaneRobinson,RogerGolden,JacobKehlenbrink SundaySchoolNursery:KathyAnderson,AngieBowen Pre-K/KChildren’sChurch:ValMoore

NEXT WEEK, MAY 12 WorshipNursery:KimPratt,LanceFowler,DianaKehlenbrink SundaySchoolNursery:NoSundaySchool Pre-K/KChildren’sChurch:Ed&KimSoots,ColleenMartinCOFFEE FELLOWSHIP ThisWeek:ValMoore,CindyCook,TomDeckard NextWeek:JudyFord,NedraClark

WELCOME/GREETERS ThisWeek:MarkHarrington,JonFord NextWeek:Dan&LoriStaiferDEACON ON DUTY ThisWeek:LesHunt

NextWeek:BobFoust

WORSHIP ASSISTANCE May:Projection/GarrettAnderson;Sound/BrianTodd June:Projection/MadelineSteinfort;Sound/JodiMcKinney

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

May Birthdays!

4 Owen Fowler 6 Brenda Miller 8 Kurt Steinfort

14 Doug Miller 20 Jared McKinney 20 Rebecca Van Tilburg

24 Jim Roszell 27 Amiyah Davis 29 Judy Hall

May Anniversaries!

1 Roger & Jane Arnold, 1964 2 Butch & Angie Bowen, 1987 22 Dave & Judy Hall, 1965

22 Bill & Laura Kehlenbrink, 1993 26 Jesse & Melissa Owens, 1990 29 Chris & Val Moore, 2004

SONG OF THE MONTH

“LivingHope”

HowgreatthechasmthatlaybetweenusHowhighthemountainIcouldnotclimb

IndesperationIturnedtoheavenAndspokeYournameintothenight

ThenthroughthedarknessYourloving-kindnessTorethroughtheshadowsofmysoulTheworkisfinishedtheendiswritten

JesusChristmylivinghope

WhocouldimaginesogreatamercyWhatheartcouldfathomsuchboundlessgraceTheGodofagessteppeddownfromglory

TowearmysinandbearmyshameThecrosshasspokenIamforgivenTheKingofkingscallsmeHisownBeautifulSaviorI’mYoursforever

JesusChristmylivinghope

HallelujahpraisetheOnewhosetmefreeHallelujahdeathhaslostitsgriponme

YouhavebrokeneverychainThere’ssalvationinYournameJesusChristmylivinghope

(repeat)

ThencamethemorningthatsealedthepromiseYourburiedbodybegantobreatheOutofthesilencetheRoaringLion

Declaredthegravehasnoclaimonme(repeat)

JesusYoursisthevictory

ChorusJesusChristmylivinghope

OhGodYouaremylivinghope

“Living Hope” CCLI Song # 7106807 Brian Johnson | Phil Wickham © 2017 Phil Wickham Music (Fair Trade Music Publishing [c/o Essential Music Publishing LLC]) Simply Global Songs (Fair Trade Music Publishing [c/o Essential Music Publishing LLC]) Sing My Songs (Fair Trade Music Publishing [c/o Essential Music Publishing LLC]) Bethel Music Publishing; For use solely with the SongSelect® Terms of Use. All rights reserved. www.ccli.comCCLI License # 141009

! THE CHURCH IN THE WORLD !

Missiology Through Scripture: Sing to the Lord a New Song

“Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth! Sing to the LORD, bless His Name; tell of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations,

His marvelous works among all the peoples!” – Psalm 96:1-3 This is a proclamation toward the praise of God. It declares to all the nations to look forward to the gospel of Christ. All earthly inhabitants are called to praise God. The passage calls for a singing of a new song. If the song is the story of our lives, the new song is the creation of a new story in each of us. The discovery of this new song results in praise for God. Our missionaries are to go into all the world with the knowledge Yahweh controls lands and leaders. Missionaries are not to fear man but to obey God. The foundation of our Church, at the heart of our Scriptures, is the sending out of our best and brightest to reach the lost in all the nations. Duane Garrett said, “The Lord God of Israel rules over all the earth, and all its peoples must bow to Him. This is the great missionary song of the Bible.” Disciples of Christ go into the nations and declare and teach the meaning of Scripture knowing the result will be the spreading of His joy. Take note the order in which the actions take place in this passage. Followers the Lord are called to sing and praise the Lord. This results in a blessing of His Name and an expansion of His glory. When we love the Lord we daily tell others of what He has done for us and feel burdened to go out and declare His saving message to the lost. The passage, as well as our lives, begins with a God-centered relationship where we learn to thank Him for all. This results in an outward compulsion to interact with other humans. There is a direct correlation between the depth of our love for Christ and the irrepressible passion to share Him with others. Mike Pettengill is a veteran MTW missionary and the director of MTW West Coast. Mike Pettengill REFLECTION Apr 25, 2019 https://www.mtw.org/stories/details/missiology-through-scripture-sing-to-the-lord-a-new-song https://www.mtw.org/missionaries/details/mike-and-erin-pettengill MTW| West Coast & Canada Building Connections Close to You MTW | West Coast is a connection point for regional events, training, and help if you’re interested in serving one year or longer. We serve the states of Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, and Alaska. We also serve your Canadian church. If your church is in one of these areas, we’d love to connect with you! https://www.mtw.org/about/hubs/mtw-west-coast

COMMUNITY EVENTS Month of May

Breakout Beaver or Egypt Escape Rooms

Joseph Moore Museum 801 National Road West, Richmond, IN 47374

765.983.1303

Beaver: You will have 60 minutes to crack codes, find clues, solve puzzles, and save the world's most complete giant beaver skeleton before it becomes toast! This isn't an average weekend activity, this is a 60-minute challenge for people who like to solve mysteries and puzzles! Egypt: Can you rescue the scarab stolen from our mummy, Ta'an? You will have 60 minutes to crack codes, find clues, solve puzzles, and unravel this Egyptian mystery! This isn't an average weekend activity--this is a fast-paced challenge for people who like to solve mysteries and puzzles! *While this is designed for adults, families with children ages 10 and up have enjoyed the experience (and been successful in saving the scarab!). The clues are not designed for younger kids, but parents can choose if they want to bring them along anyway. *Times and dates vary – check with the Joseph Moore Museum in Facebook or call for info. $10/person To Register: https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=900ad7 **Please arrive ten minutes early to the Joseph Moore Museum Lobby as the breakout will begin promptly at the start time. (Each game can accommodate up to eight people.) Wednesdays, May

Food Truck Wednesday Jack Elstro Plaza

47 North 6th Street, Richmond, IN 47374 765.983.7275

Wednesdays: 11am - 2pm

Come out to Jack Elstro Plaza, 47 North Sixth Street, Richmond from 11am to 2pm every Wednesday between May and September and select from a variety of foods available from a varying selection of food truck vendors. There will be live music in June and July, courtesy of the Quigg Fund! *Coming soon at the Jack Elstro Plaza! Richmond Farmers Market: Saturdays from May – October and Tuesdays from July – October.

Friday, May 3 Warm Glow Spring Open House

Warm Glow Candle Company Store 2131 N. Centerville Road, Centerville, IN 47330

765.855.2000 Friday, May 3: 9am - 7pm

CANDLES! Great Sales, Wine Tasting, Book Signing, Gourmet Food Sampling, Kids Craft Station, Candle Dipping Station, Non-Profit Organizations and more!

https://warmglow.com/ Saturday, May 4

Downtown Cambridge City: Antique Fair Route 40, Cambridge City, IN 47327

765.334.8268 Saturday, May 4: 9am - 4pm

FREE for attendees! Join the businesses on Rt 40 in Cambridge City for the 2019 Spring Antique Fair. There will be outdoor antique dealers as well as numerous antique shops lining Rt 40 in Cambridge City. https://visitrichmond.org/visitors/events-festivals/antique-fair

Cope Environmental Center: Growing Lunch 1730 Airport Road, Centerville, IN 47330

765.855.3188 Saturday, May 4: 10–11:30am

Ever tried container or square-foot gardening? Come out to Cope to discover the perks of growing your own food and explore different methods of gardening in small spaces. Fee: $2/person if you register before the program. $3/person for day of event.

http://www.copeenvironmental.org/upcoming-events-programs/

Kindness Rocks Workshop Old National Road Welcome Center

5701 National Road East, Richmond, IN 47374 765.935.8687

Saturday, May 4: 11am – 3pm

What started in Cape Cod has spread world wide and has now set some roots in Wayne County, Indiana! The Wayne County Convention and Tourism Bureau is happy to announce that a community rock garden has blossomed at the Old National Road Welcome Center. The idea is

simple: paint inspirational messages on rocks and leave them for others to find. The rocks will be placed in front of the Welcome Center and available for both locals and tourists. The rocks at the Welcome Center vary from inspirational messages to travel-related images and uplifting graphics. Those who take a Kindess Rock have three options: keep it if you think it’s meant for you, give it to a friend or re-hide it somewhere new. The Tourism Bureau only asks that you take a photo and share it online with hashtag #VisitRichmondIN. The community is invited to paint and hide their very own kindness rocks as part of the annual National Tourism Week Kick Off Celebration on May 4 from 11am – 3pm at the Old National Road Welcome Center.

https://visitrichmond.org/visitors/events-festivals/kindness-rocks-workshop

Sunday, May 5

Richmond Community Orchestra Richmond Civic Hall Performing Arts Center

380 Hub Etchison Parkway, Richmond, IN 47374 765.373.9251

Sunday, May 5: 3:30-5pm

Richmond Community Orchestra Free Concert including special guests: Students in the Strings Initiative Program:

http://rcoindiana.org/

Tuesday, May 7

Early Morning Hikes Cope Environmental Center

1730 Airport Road, Centerville, IN 47330 765.855.3188

Tuesday, May 7: 7-9am

Free early morning bird hikes are returning to Cope Environmental Center (CEC) this spring. Visit CEC on Tuesday mornings from 7-9am. Bird specialists Jim Seany and Ron Williams will be leading the hikes. These hikes offer an opportunity for bird enthusiasts, experts, and aficionados to come and share their knowledge of and excitement about birds. You could spot a robin, hear the call of the red-winged blackbird, or go on a “wild-goose chase” for the elusive, marsh-dwelling Sora. There is no fee for these hikes. Registration is not required. Please note that these hikes are subject to cancellation due to weather.

Contact CEC at 765.855.3188 or head to www.copeenvironmental.org for more information.

Wednesday, May 15

Toddler Times: Are You My Mother? Cope Environmental Center

1730 Airport Road, Centerville, IN 47330 765.855.3188

Wednesday, May 15: 10-11am Join us monthly where kids explore the outdoors of CEC through a story, hands-on activities, crafts, and a hike. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Be sure to dress for the weather! Toddler Time happens rain or shine! Fee is $3 per toddler for pre-registration or $5 per toddler for day-of registration.

http://www.copeenvironmental.org/upcoming-events-programs/

Thursday, May 16

Fresh From the Garden Quaker Hill Conference Center

10 Quaker Hill Drive, Richmond, IN 47374 765.962.47374

Thursday, May 16: 11:30am – 1pm Enjoy our Fresh From the Garden series for 2019! On each occasion Chef Rich will select from the season’s best and create a delightful and healthy lunch. Enjoy a meal with co-workers and friends in a relaxed atmosphere on your own time schedule. As you dine in feel free to tour the Evans House or enjoy a stroll on the grounds. Reservations Required: $12 per person.

http://www.qhcc.org/events.html Friday, May 17

Music at the Club

Forest Hills Country Club 2169 South 23rd Street, Richmond, IN 47374

765.962.2860 Friday, May 17: 7-9pm

The Starr-Gennett Foundation will again sponsor a series of music and dancing events at Forest Hills Country Club, beginning May 17, 2019. Featured artists include Frank DeVito, keyboard and vocals; Steve Mathews, bass; Kevin McDonald, drums; and Lorna Bonner, vocals. A highlight of the 2019 season will be the return of Richmond’s beloved jazz pianist Carol Lou Woodward on June 21. Save these dates now – dance like Fred & Ginger – or just listen and enjoy!

May 17; June 21 (Carol Lou); July 12; August 16; September 20; October 18

https://visitrichmond.org/visitors/events-festivals?page=1