BULLETIN MARCH 27, 2016

Dean Road church of ChristWELCOME VISITORS!

You are our honored guests! Please fill out a white or green card and place it in the collection plate when it is passed around. We invite you to stick around after the assembly, so we can

get a chance to know you! ****************************

Announcements • REMINDER: Please silence or turn off any electronic device that may disturb the assembly.

• Prayer Requests/Updates: • Pray for those of our number who have traveled to Orlando this weekend to attend the Lads to Leaders

Convention. • Keep *Jacqueline Richard, her sister *Caroline, and her brother *Steve in your prayers as all three will be

having medical procedures performed this week. • CONTINUED PRAYERS: *Louise Cauthen; *Dutch Dekker (back issues); *Undre & Inyam Griggs (expecting,

July); *Craig Kelly (recovering from knee replacement surgery)*Lamar Marjenhoff; *Mary Rhodes (undergoing chemotherapy); *Marie Rutkowski (shoulder injury); *Ashley Van Guilder (Navy); *Rita Webb (upcoming knee procedure); *Our Elders. • Others to keep in prayers: Frequent visitor *Bobbeye Donorama (cancer treatments); Reata Dunlavy's

husband, *George Dunlavy, and son, *Michael Dunlavy; Stacie French’s mother, *Jeanette French, (cancer, pneumonia); Belinda Bryant’s brother-in-law, *Jerry Shepard (cancer treatments); Jimmy Sullivan’s brother, *Tim Sullivan (melanoma cancer, spiritual health); *Kevin, Keli, & Eleanor Westmoreland (mission trip to Peru); Glenda Sullivan’s sister and brother-in-law, *Sandy & Brian Williams.

• General Announcements: • THIS COMING SATURDAY, April 2nd, the Mount Dora Children's Home and Academy is hosting their

annual benefit dinner here in Jacksonville. If you are interested in attending, please see *Dutch Dekker for tickets!

• NEXT SUNDAY, April 3rd, we will be holding a congregational meeting prior to our PM Assembly starting at 5:00 PM.

• Worship Assignment Calendars for the month of April are available on the table in the lobby.

**FRIENDS AND FAMILY DAY!** NEXT SUNDAY, April 3rd, we will be holding a special “Friends & Family Day”! We encourage

all of our members to invite a family member, friend, neighbor, or co-worker to our AM Assembly and to stay for a special fellowship lunch in the Fellowship Hall! Our members are

asked to bring a dish to share for the fellowship meal.

The Plan of Salvation Hear the Gospel.

Romans 10:17 Believe Jesus is the Son of God.

Acts 16:31 Repent of Sins.

Luke 13:5 Confess the Name of Jesus.

Romans 10:10 Be Baptized for Remission of Sins.

Acts 2:38

What Must I Do to Keep from Falling?Read Your Bible Daily.

2 Timothy 2:15 Add to Your Faith the Seven Christian Graces.

2 Peter 1:5-11 Attend Every Service.

Acts 20:7, Hebrews 10:25 Be Faithful Unto Death.

Revelation 2:10

1968 Dean Road, Jacksonville, FL 32216 www.deanroadchurchofchrist.org (904) 721-0055

BULLETIN MARCH 27, 2016

Have an item or information that needs to go into next week’s bulletin? Let *Justin Hirt know by 5:00 PM Thursday!

Fruits of Repentance There is a distinct difference between “fruits of repentance” and “forgiveness”. The confusion appears to be the result of not understanding who will benefit from each. Many people believe forgiving someone is a benefit to the person who is forgiven. That mindset will help explain why people believe a person needs to do “something” before they can be forgiven. Some will say that “something“ can be as small as an apology, while others may feel a remorseful person should attempt to nullify each wrong they committed against the person.

2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV): For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

It is clear in scripture we should immediately forgive others of any wrong we have endured. We do not have the luxury of waiting for others to apologize to us before we forgive them. The reason is also clear; an unforgiving soul is not a soul that is in fellowship with God. Our issue must be resolved for us to partake in the Lord’s Table (Matthew 5:24) and for us to pray to our Father. Some will go days, weeks, months, or even years before they forgive another; but we should not go a moment without the ability to communicate with God.

Mark 11:25 (NKJV): And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.

Fruits of repentance are something that happens over time and are separate from our ability to forgive others. The outpouring of love will prick the person who needs to be forgiven to change their life for the better. It is no different than our relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus had already forgiven us when He came to the world as a human being and died in our place. We showed no fruits of repentance to encourage Jesus Christ to die for the remission of our sins.

Romans 5:8 (NIV): But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Similar to the people who actually placed Jesus on the cross, we put Jesus on the cross with our sins. Also comparable is the way Christ forgave the people who crucified him without them apologizing or showing sorrow for their actions. It is true that we need to be baptized for the remission of sins to be saved; but does the consequence of our action/inaction reflect on whether God forgave us? Consider someone guilty of murder being required to serve a mandatory sentence of 20 years. There is nothing that the victim’s family can do to shorten the criminal’s sentence; but they can still forgive them of all consequences they can control. They can pray for the person and write encouraging messages to them. They can feel sorrow (instead of joy) for the person who is about to lose their freedom. Sin separates us from God and the wages of sin are death, so the mandatory sentence is the mandatory sentence. That is why we must put to death our old body in the watery grave of baptism - so we can live again with our new body in Christ. But the fact that we have an outlet only proves God has already forgiven you.

~Undre Griggs

Last Weeks Stats - 3/20: DBR ~ 24; Classes ~ 53/37; Assembly ~ 70/53; Contribution ~ $1,309.75

Calendar of Events March

25-27 Lads 2 Leaders Convention (Orlando, FL) April

3 - Fellowship following AM Assembly 3 - Services at Taylor Care Center, 2:00 PM 3 - Congregational Meeting, 5:00 PM 9 - Golfing Fellowship 10 - Birthday & Anniversary Celebration

Fellowship after PM Assembly 30 - 5th Saturday Area Wide Men’s Prayer

Breakfast, 8:00 AM May

1 - Services at Taylor Care Center, 2:00 PM

March Birthdays 3 - Reata Dunlavy 4 - Damen Myers 10 - Gavin Salisbury 10 - Hailey Shifferd 14 - Elsie Pylant 16 - Shan Li Adams 18 - Florence Touchton 25 - Gerrit Dekker 27 - James Mashburn

March Anniversaries 2 - Randy & Jerri Lloyd 20 - Scott & Rachael Shifferd 21 - Jimmy & Karen Sullivan

Schedule of Services

Sunday WednesdayMorning Bible Study 9:30 AM.............. Bible Study 10:30 AM..........................AM Assembly 10:30 AM....................... Bible Study 7:00 PM..........................PM Assembly 6:00 PM.......................

1968 Dean Road, Jacksonville, FL 32216 www.deanroadchurchofchrist.org (904) 721-0055