P r a y e r

Requests

Health and Other:

Denver Conley

Ohio Mission Bible Training Center

Janet Pence

Shalom Orphanage

Sharon Webb

Wayne Wiedenbein

Shut Ins:

Barbara Boris

Jewel Calmes

John Porter

Carol Setty

Cancer:

Jeffery Aurigema

Kari Crafton

Judy Roush

Mark Sears

Family Loss:

Missions:

The Brittons, The Millers, The Newmans

HCC Leadership:

Steve Allen

Brad Clouse

Roger Epley

Dan Fauber

Micah Herrick

Mike Labig

Adam Steele

Richard VanZant

Military:

Tyler Amos

Ryan Burns

Mark Conover

Thadeus Conover

Corey Hughes

Phillip Mycroft

Average attendance for the month of January was 298

Average weekly giving for the month of January was $16,474.00

Our weekly need is: $11,229.13

One question often asked when preachers are getting to know each other is, “How did you receive your calling?” The idea behind this question is that vocational ministry is a calling, meaning that God communicated to them that he wanted them to serve by becoming a preacher, missionary, worship minister, etc. Most ministers have a time or place where they felt God calling them individually. I remember a couple of instances in my life where I felt that God was directing me to pursue this career.

Moments at camps and youth groups where God spoke to me through youth workers, volunteers, worship services, and friends. I heard God calling me.

The Bible is full of examples of God calling people to serve him a in specific way. Abraham heard the voice of God giving instructions about what he should do, where he should go, and what would happen in the future. Jacob wrestles a blessing out of God one night. The nation of Israel hears the voice of God at Mt. Sinai and is set apart as his holy people. Mary receives a direct message from God through an angel. The twelve disciples have Jesus, God in the flesh, physically being with them and instructing them. The Apostle Paul is blinded by a vision of Jesus where Jesus confronts what he was pursuing with his life. For many people in scripture, the calling of God is an obvious and life-altering experience.

This idea of God calling a person is very appealing. Most people want their lives to serve a higher purpose than their own happiness or comfort. They want to know that their life has made a difference in the world at large as well as in the lives of others. If you are a Christian, you don’t just want your life to matter here and now but also for eternity. But not everyone has a moment when God calls them individually. A moment where God says, “This is what I want you to do with your life.” For most people, God’s calling on their life is not that clear.

Throughout the New Testament, the word that is used most often to refer to this new group of people, these followers of the risen Jesus, is the Greek word ekklesia. This word literally means “called out ones.” It was used in Roman and Greek cultures to refer to assemblies where people could make their voices heard about what the government should be doing. When the Jews translated the Hebrew text into Greek (the Septuagint), this word was used to refer to the nation of Israel. The early church took this word, infused it with new meaning and context, and used it to refer to themselves as the “church.”

So, if the church is a group of “called out” people, who has called them out? The answer, of course, is God (Romans 8:30; 9:24; 1 Corinthians 1:9). The Apostle Peter describes the call of God on the church this way, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). The church is a group of people who have been called by God. This means he has a special purpose that we are to fulfill as part of the church.

This all goes back to holiness. When God set the nation of Israel apart from every other nation, he was making them special, different, not ordinary; he was making them holy. This is why he was specific in instructing them to avoid the practices and customs of other nations. They were not like other nations; they were set apart, holy. Now because of what Jesus has done, the church has become God’s “holy nation.” Not in a physical sense like the Jewish people, but in a spiritual sense. This is why now, at long last, Gentiles could be included in God’s people. It isn’t about where you were born or who your parents were; it’s about being “born again” and God being your heavenly father. Jack Cottrell says this about the similarities/differences between the nation of Israel and the church, “Whereas OT Israel sought purity through (geographical) separation, the church seeks separation through purity” (The Faith Once for All, pg. 401). We are still called to be holy, but we pursue this holiness in the midst of an unholy world. The way we seek separation is through our purity, by acting, speaking, and being different from everyone else.

This is the call of God on the life of every Christian that we would live lives that look radically different from the lives of our friends, family, classmates, coworkers, etc. This is how we seek to be separate, holy in our current culture. We do not walk in darkness because we have been “into his marvelous light.” The way you conduct business, how you speak to your friends, the things you watch on television, the music you listen to, the way you raise your children, every aspect of our lives is to be a pursuit of holiness. We are the church, the called out ones; each one of us has the call of God on our lives. The question is, “Will you answer the call?”

Grace and Peace, Adam

About The Author

Adam Steele is originally from western Pennsylvania. When he was eleven his parents moved to West Virginia where he lived through his time in high school. Adam attended Central Christian College of the Bible in Moberly, MO. While in college he met his lovely wife April. Adam and April have two children Silas and Sadie. Before coming to Hillsboro, OH they served at First Christian Church in Jackson, TN. Adam has a passion for ministry and for God’s word and has served as Youth and Families Minister at HCC since 2016.

AIM (Archery in Ministry) is an archery program offered here at Hillsboro Church of Christ. AIM begins Sunday evening, February 26, 2023. This 6 week session is for Middle Schoolers (grades 6 - 8). We will meet in the Connection Café at 5:00 p.m. and will dismiss at 6:00 p.m.

Purpose of the Prayer Ministry

The prayer ministry is to actively encourage and promote prayer and unity within the life of the church. To lift HCC ministries, people and their concerns in prayer so that God would work through His mighty power to accomplish His will and bring glory to His name by:

• being open and responsive to the Holy Spirit

• praying that God’s love, guidance and healing power would be released for the benefit of His people and to His glory

• praying for people in a way that encourages them to seek God and His freedom in salvation

Goals of the Prayer Ministry

• build up HCC into a mobilized house of prayer

• provide prayer support for individuals of HCC

• pray for concerns in the church family

• challenge believers to pray

• equip believers in prayer

• pray for missions and evangelistic outreach

• seek and develop prayer warriors within HCC believers

If you would like to join Always Say a Prayer ministry, or if you would like to receive notifications of prayer requests, you can do this two ways:

1. Email a request to join the ASAP ministry to: asaprayer.hcc@gmail.com

2. Text “@hccprayer” to the number 81010 (do not use quotation marks)

By doing this, when the church receives a prayer request that is permissible to be made public, you will receive an email or text of the prayer request.

Dee Smaltz is in charge of this ministry, and if you have any questions, you may contact her.

(If you would like your ministry to be highlighted in the newsletter, please contact Susie Burns)

Augustus Caesar; Emperor of Rome; Divi filius (son of the divine); Rex regis (King of kings); Ruler of Pax Romana (Roman Peace) at the height of one of the greatest empires in the history of the west. He lived from 23 September 63 BC to 19 August AD 14 and ruled the empire for 41 years.

When looking at that impressive summary, the astute among us may notice a few things. First, some of his titles may overlap with those of someone else we know. Son of the Divine, though a reference to his adoptive father Julius Caesar, whom the Romans had recognized as a god, could be thought of as Son of (a) God. Also, as emperor, he was the high king or the king over all kings. Next, you may also notice that a certain date happened during Augustus’ life, what we would consider the change from BC (before Christ) to AD (anno domini, ‘the year of our Lord’). This points to the birth of a rather world-changing figure in Christ Jesus. When we put all these pieces of information together, we are confronted with the reality that the titles that Jesus and the church claimed during his ministry would have had major sociopolitical implications.

We often see in the Gospels the conflict between Jesus and the political/religious leaders in the Jewish state that he regularly came into direct contact (and often conflict) with. But we have to remember that there was always a looming reality in that era. The mighty Roman wolf was always a reality hovering over and ready to devour. Jesus, making the claim to ‘Son of God’ and ‘King of kings,’ was simultaneously spitting in the eye of one and stepping on the toes of the other.

So, what does this all have to do with the concept of Ekklesia? Well, the best way to understand an ancient teacher/writer is to look at the context within which they were teaching. We translate ekklesia as ‘church,’ but there was a greater context to this term at the time. The most literal translation was ‘the called out ones.’ In an ancient Grecian context (pre-Rome), it was the governing body of a city-state. It was the job of the ekklesia, a pseudo-democratic body of free landowning men of the city, to come together and make important decisions for their communities together. But as Rome made her conquest across Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, the term was modified. Before bringing the full might of the army, Caesar would send a diplomatic group of forerunners into a region. These forerunners were often from that area, spoke the language, and understood the culture. Their job was to prepare the way. They would teach the good news of pax romana (the peace of Rome) and the superiority of her culture, religion, and mores. In this way, the conquest could potentially be more peaceful. When the locals saw the impressive military force and understood the profit of being ‘Roman”, many would lay down arms and welcome their new benevolent overlords and the peace they brought.

When Jesus taught that he was building and sending out his ekklesia (or church), none of these realities would have been lost on him. When Paul began traveling throughout the empire to spread the Gospel (good news) of the peace of the Kingdom of Heaven, none of these realities would have been lost on him. There is a part of this message that was intrinsically subversive. But the message is so incredible that the ekklesia is not called to raise arms against Rome. Instead, his church is called to lay down their lives, show mercy to all, and ever have the grace of God on their lips. It was a higher calling and, to many, a stranger one than had ever been called for in history.

This is the same calling we each have. We are called to lay down our lives, to show mercy to all, and to always have the good news of Jesus on our lips. We should look strange to any culture that we live within because we are the forward advance who is teaching the culture, religion, and mores of a kingdom that is far off. One who will one day come and bring peace unlike any that has ever reigned on earth. We are each from this place and speak the language of this place, but we are devoted to and pointing toward a better heavenly kingdom. So, if you are in awe of Jesus, who he is, and what he has done, then get out there, ekklesia, and spread the good news of the peace of Heaven, which is coming to reign!

About The Author

Micah Herrick began ministry in 2012 after being commissioned for ministry by his home church, White Oak Christian Church, in Cincinnati, OH. Micah is currently serving HCC as Worship Minister, as well as leading our Evangelism team and coordinating our online presence. He has served in both Youth Ministry and Worship Ministry in Richmond, IN and Knightstown, IN before coming back to Ohio to serve in Hillsboro.

He is pictured here with his wife, Rebecca, kids; Rowan, Luci, Kennedy, and Finn, his mother and father; Steve and Valeri Herrick.

God has been doing amazing things at HCC in 2023!

Alyssa Cline was baptized Sunday, January 1st. Be sure to congratulate her and welcome her to the family.