This Sunday is the first Sunday of September, and we are going to kick off Fall with a brand-new series:  1 Timothy:  Fight The Good Fight. 

For months, I have been marinating in 1-2 Timothy.  We will do 1 Timothy in the Fall, and 2 Timothy in the winter and early spring.  These are incredibly important books for Christians to know deeply, especially in these times we live in, with so much false teaching and confusion.  

Brothers and sisters, we are in a fight with the world, which seeks to pressure us to conform to its sinful patterns (this does not mean fighting the lost people of the world, who we are called to love and win to Christ, but fighting against the pressure to conform to the sinful patterns of the world)…the flesh, our sinful nature and the issues that spring from it…and the devil, our supernatural enemy. 1 Timothy calls us to “fight the good fight!”  It tells us how, by God’s grace and strength, we can be victorious. 

It is going to be a great Fall at First-Suffolk.  First, be faithful in your Sunday attendance.  There is no substitute for weekly corporate worship.  Second, get involved in a Bible Study.  There are lots to choose from.  Third, we will have an invigorating class on Wednesday nights, as we ask, “What is a healthy church?”  Fourth, if you have children, make sure they are in Sunday School on Sundays, and AWANA or Student Mid-Week on Wednesday nights.  There are all kinds of ways to grow and serve!  

We are living in a chaotic, broken world.  We need one another.  We need the Body of Christ.  We need the Word of God.  Let’s fight the good fight together this Fall at First-Suffolk. 

It is fantastic to see many of you bringing your friends to worship!!  We are seeing this more and more…many new faces.  Who’s your one?  It starts with one.  Love them enough to reach out to them this week and invite them to join you on Sunday.  By God’s grace, I’ll see you then, with a Bible in my hand… 

By His Grace, For His Glory, To The Nations, 

Dr. Thurman Hayes, Jr.