Transitional Pastor, Bro. Shep Johnson
click on the link below to view
Bro Shep Johnson message
June 21, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orXsJfWvjn0
June 28, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYv2BC431VE
Wednesday Bible Study and Prayer
Reedy Branch Baptist ChurchJuly 1, 2020
Dear Reedy Branch Family:
Join us for worship this Sunday at 10 AM. Please remember to follow all
proper precautions regarding the Coronavirus. Let’s be sure we take care
of one another.
Here’s today’s Bible Study ...
“Walking With God”
Genesis 5:21-24 & Hebrews 11:5-6.
I try to walk each day in Douglas and evidently some folks have taken
notice over the years.
For instance, consider the following observations
• His legs are too white!
• Wherever does he get those clothes?
• He sure doesn’t walk as fast as he used to.
• I wonder how fast he could walk if a dog started after him?
Well, today I want to talk about the most famous walker in history. His
name was Enoch.
Enoch isn’t famous because of how far he walked, or how fast he walked, or
even where he walked.
Enoch is famous because of his walking company. Enoch walked with God.
The name Enoch literally means “DEDICATED.”
Enoch was the “dedicated one.”
Let’s look at two passages of Scripture; Genesis 5:21-24 & Hebrews 11:5-6.
Genesis 5:21-24 (NASB95) says,
“And Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah.
Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father
of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. So all the days of
Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God;
and he was not, for God took him.”
In the Bible phrase “walked with God” was used to describe only one other
person, Noah. You will find that reference in Genesis 6:9.
Genesis 6:9 (NASB95) says, “These are the records of the generations of
Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with
God.”
Methuselah is known as the son of Enoch and the oldest man to ever live,
but it is never said of Methuselah that he walked with God. According
to Genesis 5:25-27 (NASB95), “And Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven
years, and became the father of Lamech. Then Methuselah lived seven
hundred and eighty-two years after he became the father of Lamech, and he
had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Methuselah were nine
hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died.”
Now look with me at Hebrews 11:5-6 (NASB95):
“By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was
not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before
his being taken up he was pleasing to God. And without faith it is
impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is,
and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
We actually know very little about Enoch, but we do know these two things:
• First, Enoch walked with God.
• And second, evidently Enoch never experienced death; he just walked
into heaven one day hand in hand with God!
The writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 11:1-2 (NASB95), “Now faith is
the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For
by it the men of old gained approval.”
Well what does it mean to walk with God? Well consider these three
observations.
1) First, it means that we spend time with God.
• You can’t walk with someone unless you spend time with that person.
• In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NASB95) we read, “Pray without ceasing.”
In Psalm 1:1-2 (NASB95) we read, “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the
counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the
seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His
law he meditates day and night.”
• We can spend time with God through prayer and the reading of His Word.
That’s how we can walk with God.
• It is impossible to walk with God if your are constantly distracted by
the concerns of school, job, and pleasures. You can’t walk with God unless
you are consciously spending time with Him. That’s one of the reasons that
as your pastor I emphasize prayer, Bible reading, and church involvement.
Set aside time this week to listen for God’s voice. He will show you
exactly what it means to follow Him.
2) Second, walking with God means that we follow God and His will for our life.
• FAITH ... FORSAKING ALL I TRUST HIM!
• In Luke 9:23 (NASB95) Jesus said,
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his
cross daily, and follow Me.”
• Charles Sheldon in the great devotional classic In His Steps asks over
and over the question,
“What would Jesus do?”
That question should help direct the course of our lives.
• You simply cannot walk with a person unless you chose to follow that
person and go in the same direction.
3) Third, walking with God means that we do not get ahead of God.
• This may be our greatest challenge.
• Deuteronomy 31:8 (NASB95) says, “ ... the Lord is the one who goes
ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do
not fear, or be dismayed.”
• When my son was young, we used to go fishing together. I would be
careful to remind him when we were walking at the pond’s edge that he must
follow me and never get ahead of me. If he followed me I could
look for any danger that might threaten him and also provide him some
protection.
But if he insisted on running ahead he could have encountered a snake,
he could have fallen in a hole, or he could have cut his foot on some sharp
object.
• God has a special plan for our lives. But we must not run ahead of Him.
There could be serious danger lurking in the shadows.
• We have to patient and wait on Him. His way is always best and His pace
is always right.
Enoch was fully dedicated to God.
The definition of dedication is this: “Set apart for someone or for some
service.”
Enoch was set apart for God and set apart for God’s service.
God had all of Enoch, and thus Enoch walked with God.
Does God have all of you?
• Are your regularly spending time with God?
• Are you following God and His will for your life?
• Are you staying with God or trying to get ahead of Him?
Dedication means giving your all.
Does God have your all?
A pastor was once asked to define faithful church attendance and service.
He replied, “All I ask is that we apply the same standards of faithfulness
to our church we would apply to other areas of life.” THINK ABOUT THAT
FOR A MOMENT.
• If your car started one time out of three, would you consider it faithful?
• If you failed to come to work 5 or 6 times a month, would your boss call
you faithful?
• If your refrigerator quit for a week now and then, would you excuse it
and say, “I’m not concerned, it works most of the time!”?
• If your water heater greeted you one or two days a week with cold water,
would you be pleased?
• If you missed two mortgage payments in a year’s time, would your mortgage
holder say, “Oh well, 10 out of 12 payments is close enough!”?
Enoch was dedicated to God.Enoch walked with God.Enoch was faithful.
That simply means that God could count on Enoch. Friends, can God really
count on us ?
When workers are needed at the church, are we available and willing? One
day this coronavirus will fade away. Imagine all of the work that will
need to be done for the Kingdom of God. Folks, this is a good church ...
but if we are to become a great church ... all of us will need to be
walking with God.
We will have to become a people God can count on to “take up our crosses
daily and follow Christ!”
Brother Shep
Weekly Prayer List (July 1, 2020)
Our Church, Community, Nation, and World as we battle the Coronavirus.
Unity and Love among our fellow Americans
Mildred Dockery Family
Robert Wigley
Andrea Strong
Tony Howard
Darrell Wooten
Jason McCollum
Marc Reed
Deborah and Marvin Wooten
Johnny Saylor
Grady and Margaret Mimbs
David Barnes
Mickey Jower
Melanie Marshall
Jamie Kight
Betty Ann Ford
Shirley Trowell
Shirley Simmons
Amber Morris
Bobbie Stewart
Lonnie and Addie Mae Myers
Nell Green and her sister, Sharon
Michelle and Johnny Cecil Newell
Clarence and Sandra Dockery
Ellen Deen
Freddie Lewis
Barbara Rish
Marilyn Rish
Geneva Mobley
Helen Jones
Selena Merritt
Jean Corbitt
Chris Kinnet
Bruce Veasey
Conner Courson
George Myers
Ellen West
Roy Trowell
Bob Colton
Don Elridge
Bill Whiddon
John Anthony Taylor (son of Helen Jones)
Grocery Store Employees
Farmers
Businesses
All medical and healthcare personnel
All first responders
All law enforcement
All those who are sick with the Coronavirus or have family members and
friends who are sick with the Coronavirus.
Military
Missionaries
Our President and Governmental Leaders
Those who need Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior
Many UNSPOKEN prayer concerns
If you know of names that should be added or removed from our prayer list
please call me at (912) 381-4896 or email me at shepfbc2@gmail.com
