MINISTRY

Meaning in the Madness

A Study in Ecclesiastes: January 8-April 2

Chaos. That is a word that seems to capture the zeitgeist of our age. Instability, wars, pandemics, and institutional breakdown have led people to wonder: is anyone in control? Do meaning and purpose exist?  Indeed, with endless choices and uncertain times people today are less secure and more jaded than ever before. Doubts about everything are the new normal. We are living through an era that feels a bit … mad.

 

So… how do we live by faith in a world of madness? That is what the book of Ecclesiastes is about. It assumes doubts and offers answers not addressed anywhere else. It explores issues that haunt us at the end of life. In short, this ancient book offers meaning in the madness by directing us to the purpose giver: God himself.

 

Over the 12 weeks, we are going to explore all the important issues in life: Meaning, purpose, happiness, work, wealth, fame, power, suffering, justice, and death. The world’s answers are incoherent and incomplete. The teacher of Ecclesiastes shows us that order is possible in chaos, meaning is birthed despite the madness, and true beauty is revealed at the feet of our Creator King. Join us as we discover meaning in the madness.

Recommended companion reading:

hangman

1/8 – Book and Series Introduction
1/15 –  Meaning in the Madness
1/22 – Purposeful Use of Time
1/29 – CONTEND CONFERENCE
2/5 – Meaningful Work
2/12 – False Meaning: Worship and Money
2/19 – Meaning in the Midst of Pain
2/26 – Wisdom and Meaning
3/5 – Meaningful Joy 
3/12 – The Danger of Folly
3/19 – Meaningful Risk
3/26 – The Creator of Meaning
4/2 – Meaningful Death 

Sermons

Unbelievable-Christmas

Is Christmas Unbelievable: December 2022

Many people assume that the story of the baby in the manger at Bethlehem is just another made-up fantasy for kids. In this series based on the book by respected apologist Rebecca McLaughlin, we will outline the evidence that Jesus was a real person, explaining the reliability of the Bible’s accounts of his life and why believing in a virgin birth is not as ridiculous as it might sound. This series shows that there is a rational basis for the belief that the world’s most famous story is fact, not fantasy—and how those events in history can infuse our lives today with meaning and joy

12/4 – Was Jesus Even a Real Person?

12/11 – Weren’t the Gospels Made Up Later? 

12/18 – How Can You believe in a Virgin Birth?

12/23 – Christmas Eve Eve

12/24 – Christmas Eve

12/25 – Christmas Online Event

Recommended companion reading:

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Inside out Sermon
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Sermons

MBC Communion / Lords Table

The next Baptism will be:
August 25

Lord’s Table | We practice two ordinances at MBC: Baptism and the Lord’s Table. By participating in these ordinances, Christians proclaim both their individual faith in Christ and our whole congregation proclaims our unity in the Gospel. MBC believes that the Lord’s Supper (Communion) is a commemoration of the Savior’s death, and, through participating, we “proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.” MBC Articles of Faith, Article XI – To prepare our hearts for the Lord’s Supper we must understand that we are practicing these four things when we come to His table:   

We Worship

This ordinance is part of corporate worship, normally on the first Sunday of each month. This is why the Lord’s Table is for believers only. It is an act of the gathered family, the church. Unbelievers may be present, indeed, we welcome them to be present as there is nothing secretive about the Lord’s Supper, it is done in public, but it is the family meal for those who have already professed their faith in Jesus Christ and have come to worship.

 

We Remember

Human beings are prone to forgetfulness. This is especially true spiritually. Therefore, the mental action of all the participants of the Lord’s Supper is to focus our minds on Jesus, especially remembering his sacrificial and historical work of dying on the cross for our sins. 1 Corinthians 11:24-25 says “Do this in remembrance of me.” At the table we remember.

We Give Thanks

The word “Eucharist” in 1 Corinthians 11:24 means to “give thanks.” We are filled with gratitude at the table because Jesus paid our sin debt and provided for us in abundance all that we need.

We Practice Self-Examination

The Scripture says a person “ought to examine themselves before he or she eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on themselves. (1 Corinthians 11:28-29) It’s important that we come to the table with a clear conscience before God. We come and confess our sins and renew our covenant commitment before God.

 

For Further Study

Communion is explained in the following key Scriptures: Matthew 26:26-30, Mark 14:22-26, Luke 22:14-20, 1 Cor 11:23-32.

Check our our informative Mini-Series on the Lords Table

Check out more of our relevant content on our You Tube Channel

Resources to Learn More:

Questions?

Pastors Bob Erbig & Dave Hentschel

Lead Pastors

Contact Bob & Dave with any questions

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.”

- 1 Cor 11:26, ESV)
Luke-Act Two-Meeting-Our-Savior
Easter Service 2024
Luke-Act III: On the Road with Jesus
Luke-Act IV: Stories with Jesus
Unbelievable-Christmas
Meaning in the Madness
Choose Joy April 16 - June 25
From Ruin to Redemption
Spiritual Warfare July 2 - August 6

Family Ministries

The next Baptism will be:
August 25

Family Ministries Resource Page | We live in a complex world. Raising the next generation to own their faith has never been more challenging—or more necessary. Yet, in the Scriptures, we see three institutions that God created: The Family, The Church, and the Nation—but the family is the foundation of society.

At MBC, one of our core values is building strong families. One of the ways we do this is by equipping parents and their children to navigate the difficult issues of the day. This page is for you. Below you will find some suggested resources to help you answer the most pressing issues of the day. Don’t see something? Ask us a question below!

 

MBC Kids Philosophy of Discipleship | We are passionate about discipleship. This resource was written to explain how we aim to lay the foundation for kids to grow in God’s Word while they are a part of our MBC Kids ministry. Download this document for more on our philosophy.

Don’t see something? Ask us a question below!

Submit your question

Websites

  1. The Colson Center for Christian Worldview
  2. Breakpoint
  3. What Would You Say?
  4. AXIS
  5. The Center for Parent & Youth Understanding
  6. The Barna Group
  7. Fuller Youth Institute
  8. Impact 360 Institute
  9. Summit Ministries
  10. Stand to Reason
  11. Reasons to Believe

Video

  1. Raising The Next Generation in Turbulent Time by Voddie Bauchum
  2. Helping The Next Generation Navigate Today’s World by John Stonestreet and Brett Kunkle
  3. How to Raise and Alien Child by Jen Wilkin
  4. The Storm Tossed Family: How The Cross Reshapes the Home by Russell Moore
  5. The Strange New World of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman

Books

  1. Parenting: 14 Gospel Principals That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
  2. The Tech Wise Family: Everyday Steps to Putting Technology in Its Proper Place by Andy Crouch
  3. Running With Horses: A Parenting Guide for Raising Children to be Servant Leaders for Christ by Larry Taylor
  4. A Practical Guide to Culture by John Stonestreet & Brett Kunkle
  5. Strange New World by Carl Trueman
  6. How Children Raise Parents by Dan Allender 
  7. The Intentional Father by Jon Tyson
  8. Faithfull Different by Natasha Crain
  9. Another Gospel by Alisa Childers

Podcast

  1. The Think Biblically Podcast
  2. The Upstream

Seminars

Several times a year we offer seminars for MBC families and those in our community. We run these events to equip families to navigate the difficult cultural terrain we are living in. Here are examples of past seminar topics:

  1. The Tech-Wise Family
  2. Raising Generation Z
  3. Families in an Age of Anxiety

Building Strong Families

Check out this sermon from Pastor Bob on “Building Strong Families” from our 2025 “Summer in the Scriptures” sermon series!

Questions?

Picture of Bob Erbig

Bob Erbig

Lead Pastor: Preaching,
Family Life & Mission

Contact Bob with any questions

Questions?

Picture of Bob Erbig

Bob Erbig

Lead Pastor: Preaching,
Family Life & Mission

Contact Bob with any questions

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

-2 Timothy 4:1-5, ESV-
From Ruin to Redemption
Upside Down Glory
Resilient Life
Stephen Ministry
Getting Connected
MBC Hospitality Team
Market Street
Membership
Times & Directions

New Believers

Begin Your Journey Here | The Gospel of Jesus Christ is Good News! But first, there is some bad news. The Bible tells the whole story of humanity in four parts:

Creation

The first book in the Bible is Genesis, and it says that God created the world and it was good (Gen 1:31). There He created a man and a woman and placed them in a garden called Eden. They were to be fruitful and multiply and to partner with God in caring for this world, and the presence of the glory of God was there with them … until sin came into the world.

 

Fall

The tragedy of the Bible is called the Fall, that moment when mankind rebelled against God and His right to govern and rule over their lives. Since this moment, all of creation has fallen into sin. Sin is disobeying God and his commandments, rebelling against God, and falling short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And mankind is desperate and groaning for things to go back to the way they were supposed to be and awaits its promised liberation from bondage (Romans 8:19), until the promised redeemer would come… 

Redemption

In the fullness of time, God sent His son, Jesus Christ, to live the life we should have lived which was a perfect sinless life and to die the death we deserved. He died as a substitute on the cross for our sins, was buried, and then rose victoriously over the grave. He then gave his followers a commission to proclaim this Gospel (good news). The message of the Gospel is the message of God’s grace, mercy and the forgiveness of sins for all who believe.

Restoration

But this is not the end of the story… The testimony of the Bible is that God has every intention of renewing and restoring this world to a glory surpassing what it had at first. (Eph 3:20-21; Haggai 2:9) Jesus taught his disciples about the coming “renewal of all things.” (Matt 19:28). Our final destination is a renewed and restored world with resurrected bodies living with God who dwells among His people (Rev 21-22). This is why the good news is so good. We find that to be very exciting! 

So what do you do now?
Our response to the Gospel is to place our faith in Christ. Are you ready to trust Him? If you have recently made a decision to begin a relationship with Jesus, how wonderful! This means two things: First, Jesus has become your savior. Second, you have become a child of God. We call this Salvation. Becoming a follower of Jesus is the most important decision you can make in your life. Know how excited we are for you!
 

We want to help you in any way that we can. We hope Millington Baptist Church will be a place where you can connect with God, His word, and with Christian friends. Here are some important next steps you can take:

 

Next Steps:

Keep Learning

Here is a book for you that will help you begin your relationship with Christ on a solid foundation. Take time to read one chapter each day.

 

Now That I’m a Christian: What It Means to Follow Jesus

Grow in your faith

Check out this series we did about how to grow in the Christian faith.

Cultivating the Christian life

Get Baptized

Baptism is a public profession of faith in Jesus Christ. If you’ve made the decision to trust Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, baptism is your next step of obedience! Learn more about baptism, check out our FAQs, and even sign up to be baptized by visiting our Baptism webpage.

Stay Connected

One of the best ways to grow in your faith is by being around other Christian friends who want to support you to be all God has made you to be. Here are some opportunities at MBC.

Getting You Connected

Small Groups

Adult Ed

Senior Luncheon

Shared Interest

Women’s Ministry

Pray

Our God answers prayer. Spend time with God every day talking with Him and listening to what He has to say to you through His Word and through His Spirit. If you would like other members of our Church Body to pray with you or rejoice with you over answered prayer, you may submit a request at MBC prayer. 

Read your Bible

Reading God’s word is the single greatest thing you can do to grow your relationship with God. Here are some recommendations:

Youversion bible app, a good hard copy ESV Study bible, and maybe a link to the Bible project youtube channel.

We are so excited about your decision to begin a personal relationship with Jesus and want to help you follow through with this in any way that we can. Please let us know if you have any questions or would like to talk about your decision! 

Questions?

Pastors Bob Erbig & Dave Hentschel

Lead Pastors

Contact Bob & Dave with any questions

Questions?

Picture of Pastors Bob Erbig & Dave Hentschel

Pastors Bob Erbig & Dave Hentschel

Lead Pastors

Contact Dave and Bob with any questions

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”.

-Romans 6:23, NIV
We Need a King
Fruit of the Spirit
Triumphs & Tragedies of Israel's Kings
Luke-Act III: On the Road with Jesus
Summer in the Scriptures
Salt Light and Barbecue Sauce
Rediscover Christmas 2020
Luke-Act IV: Stories with Jesus
From Ruin to Redemption

Baby Dedications

The next Baptism will be:
August 25

Let the little Children Come | 
At MBC we believe in the importance of building strong families. A key component of this value is raising children to know and love Jesus Christ.  In light of this, we encourage parents to take make a public commitment to raise their children in the Lord—this is called a “baby dedication ceremony.”

A baby dedication is a ceremony in which Christian parents make a commitment before the Lord to raise that child according to God’s Word and God’s ways.

This practice may be new to you depending on your church background. Baby dedication is NOT the same as infant baptism. We believe baptism is an individual decision a person makes when they are older and have made a commitment to follow Jesus Christ. For more information, see the BAPTISM page. By contrast, a baby dedication is a commitment by the parents, and an invitation to the larger church family, to help raise their child to follow Jesus. There are several good reasons for this practice.

“Listen, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.

-Deuteronomy 6:4-7, NLT-
Schedule Your Dedication

3 reasons to Dedicate your children

First

It models the concern and love Jesus had for little children.

As a church, we are people who love babies! We want to care and invest in the littlest and most vulnerable among us. Jesus said this in Matthew 19: “Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”” (Matthew 19:13-14). Baby dedication reflects the love Jesus had for children.

Second

It reminds the church of its calling to be an extended family.

Scripture teaches that the church is our spiritual family and following Jesus is costly (Ephesians 3:14-19; Mark 10:29-30). Parenting is hard work and God gives us an extended spiritual family who can help carry the Load. The church should love and support families in this good work of raising the next generation.

Third

It is an opportunity to share the Gospel with unbelievers.

During a baby dedication, families will often invite relatives to watch this important ceremony. Baby dedication offers an opportunity to share the Gospel message with those who might not yet believe. When asked—why are we dedicating this child? Because we want them to believe the Gospel—Jesus died for our sins, Jesus rose from the dead, and Jesus is coming back. That is the hope for our children!

How does the process work?

If you are interested in taking this important step as a family, the process will work like this:

  1. First, contact one of the pastors about your interest and fill out the baby dedication WORKSHEET.
  2. Second, you then meet with one of the pastors so they can get to know your family and organize a time to have the ceremony.
  3. Third, you will create a video of your family sharing why you want to dedicate your child. You can see an example video below.
  4. Finally, your video will be played during a service on a Sunday morning and you will take part in a short ceremony when you recite vows before the congregation—this is a public commitment to raise your child to know Jesus!

Questions?

Picture of Bob Erbig

Bob Erbig

Lead Pastor: Preaching,
Family Life & Mission

Contact Pastor Bob with any questions

Questions?

Picture of Bob Erbig

Bob Erbig

Lead Pastor: Preaching,
Family Life & Mission

Contact Bob with any questions
Rise Up and Build - Ezra Nehemiah
Luke-Act One-To Save the World
Luke-Act Two-Meeting-Our-Savior
Luke-Act III: On the Road with Jesus
Easter Service 2024
Luke-Act IV: Stories with Jesus
Unbelievable-Christmas
Meaning in the Madness
Choose Joy April 16 - June 25

Women’s Bunco Night

Friday, April 12, 6:30pm

Can you count to 6? Then you can play Bunco! This fun, fast-paced game night is open to all women, from high school on up. It’s a great way for women of all ages and generations to get to know one another.

Please bring a dessert or an appetizer to share if you are able.

IMPORTANT! Please REGISTER by 12 noon, April 3!

Call the church office or contact Laura with any questions. 

Register Here

Shared Interest Groups

What is a Shared Interest Group?

Shared Interest Groups are groups formed around a common goal and are generally informal in nature.

 

What is a Shared Interest Group’s purpose?

Groups are intended to help people to build relationships with each other in a gospel-centered way apart from the Sunday morning worship experience. Groups are created to help people engage with others, both within and outside of the church, in cultural, artistic, recreational, leisure and sports activities.

 

Who should consider joining a Shared Interest Group?

Individuals, small groups, teams or whole communities can join a Shared Interest Group. They  are relevant to people of all different ages, abilities and levels of skill…in other words, there’s something for everyone!

Shared Interest Groups are fun, interactive, and designed as great way to get to know others. Participation serves as a valuable supplement toward building biblical community.

If you are interested in leading, joining, or suggesting a Shared Interest or Activity group, please fill out this form or email Amy Huber (ahuber@millingtonbapitst.org) or Laura Garcell (lgarcell@millingtonbaptist.org) 

Click on any of our Shared Interests Groups below to sign-up

Arts & Crafts
Beach Days
Camping/RVing
Card & Board Games
Cooking/Baking
Cycling
Dancing
Fishing
Gardening
Golf
Hiking
Hunting/Shooting
Kayaking/Boating/SUP
Knitting/Needlework
Movies
Photography
Piano/Singing/music
Pickleball
Reading/Book Club
Running
Tennis
Woodworking
Day Trips

MBC YouTube Channel

Now you can watch us on YouTube!

We are thrilled to announce the launch of MBC’s own YouTube channel, MBC Unhindered!  Visit the channel to rewatch or catch missed Sunday sermons, special teaching topics and various fun and inspired content. 

Hit the Subscribe button on the site or this graphic to receive new content notifications delivered to your In box.

Internships

Apply to One of Our New Internships.

We are excited to announce the Millington Baptist Church (MBC) Internship Program! Our desire is to equip leaders to succeed in all facets of church ministry. The MBC Internship Program will provide interns with hands-on ministry experience, as well as intentional leadership training and development for one of our ministry seasons.

Internships are available for the follow terms:

Summer Session (May- August)
Fall Session (September- December)
Winter/Spring Session (January- April)

 

Specific start and end dates will be discussed with you during the interview process. Longer internships are available based on availability.

Internship Informational Packet
Application

If you are ready to proceed, you may download and complete the application, and forward to Pastor Bob Erbig. You will then be connected with the appropriate MLT Member for an interview and next steps.

Available Internships.

There are currently no internships available.  Stay tuned for future opportunities.

Available Internships.

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