The Church of the Covenant

Sunday School for preschool and K through 5th grade will move back to the classrooms this week. If you have any questions or need more information please contact Miss Yvonne @ [email protected].

Jeremiah7: 1-7, Romans 12: 1-3 "This is what the Lord God Almighty, the God of Israel says: Reform your ways and actions, and I will let you live in this place." v.3 Rev. Scott Shetter Church of the Covenant, Washington PA Sunday Worship, October 25, 2020

Pastor Letter REFORMATION This is the Sunday set aside annually to commemorate the posting of Martin Luther’s posting of his theses on the doors of the church in Wittenberg. That moment is the defining moment for what becomes known as the Protestant Reformation.... Though there are many who had been setting the stage for years prior to this, it was Luther’s theses that caught the world on fire as he condemned the church for drifting away from its first love. This called the church to take a good, hard look at itself. The problem was that the church did not want to look inward to see where it had drifted away from its calling. That was a painful thing to do because it would require that they see their faults anddare I say itreform. This caused the church to be divided and has caused many a trial for each of the denominations that came forth from those protests against the church. This was nothing new. Jeremiah had been calling for the Israelites to reform, and Paul would do the same. If the church is not the building but is made up of the people, then the church being called to reformation is ongoing because of our human nature always drawing us back into the same old traps. In other words, reformation begins with the transformation of each of the individuals that make up the church. We may find that we do not like what we see when we look into the looking glass of the Scriptures, but that is the place where we are going to see the traps and whether we are stuck in them once again. We are called to love one another and to take care of one another. We are called to love and care for those that are hopeless and disenfranchised. We are called to live life uncomfortably. Living out the Great Commandment to love the Lord our God and to love others as ourselves requires that we reform our ways. Let us call upon the Holy Spirit to transform us through the renewing of our minds and spirits. Let us be transformed by His power, and let us reform our ways in thought, speech, and action, and stun the world by what happens when God takes control of His people. Who knows? It could be the start of the New Protestant Reformation. Faithfully, Pastor Scott Jeremiah 7:3 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place.

1 Samuel 2: 22-36 "And I shall raise up for Myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in My heart and in My mind." V35 Rev. Craig Kephart, Guest Pastor Church of the Covenant, Washington PA Sunday Worship, October 18, 2020

Pastor Letter THREE M’S BUILDING A SURE HOUSE Tucked into the foundational documents of our Presbyterian Church are these words. ... Holiness is God’s gift to the Church in Jesus Christ. Through the love of Christ, by the power of the Spirit, God takes away the sin of the world. The holiness of the Church comes from Christ who sets it apart to bear witness to His love, and not from the purity of its doctrine or the righteousness of its actions. Because in Christ the Church is holy, the church, its members, and those in its ordered ministries strive to lead lives worthy of the Gospel we proclaim. Within those few lines I specially invite you to see that word strive. So many life strivings are after something to be achieved: the schooling toward graduation, the application toward employment and the conscientiousness toward promotion, or the research and development toward greater production and profits. Today though, we will be reminded that in the Christian Church we Jesus-followers are striving, yes, but striving after what already has been achieved. Our holiness is both an ‘already’ and a ‘not yet.’ Strange, huh? We’ve already received our salary paid in full, but we still need regular performance reviews. Let’s see if we can give our strivings a score. Yours and His, Craig Kephart Washington Presbytery See more