Faith Covenant Christian Church

11:00 a.m. Service

CALL TO WORSHIP

*INVOCATION

*CONGREGATIONAL HYMN

*RESPONSIVE READING

*PRAYER

SONG OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP

WELCOME / ANNOUNCEMENTS / FELLOWSHIP

OFFERTORY PRAYER AND OFFERING

*INTERCESSORY PRAYER

*PRAYER OF FAITH AND COMMITMENT

SPECIAL MUSIC

WORD OF GOD – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

*INVITATION TO SALVATION AND DISCIPLESHIP

[You may join Faith Covenant Christian Church by: Baptism, Christian Experience,

Re-Dedication, Transfer Letter, or Watch Care]

HOLY COMMUNION (1st Sunday Of Every Month)

BENEDICTION

This Week's Message

Date: March 30, 2025

Preacher: Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Sermon: The Rewards Of Unfledging Faithfulness

Scripture: 1 Kings 17: 1-6

1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” 2 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: 3 “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. 4 You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.” 5 So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

BLOOD SPLATTERED ALL OVER THE PLACE !

I am not a hunter. I am not against it at all, and several of my boys are very much into the sport. I have a very conflicted relationship with the deer population. On one hand I see them as beautiful creatures of God’s creation; but on the other hand, given the 10+ family incidents of car collisions with these overgrown rodents, I applaud all efforts at herd control! My issue for not taking personal revenge against them is that I don’t want to deal with the blood and guts! That is disgusting! So, I’d probably not do well as a priest in the Levitical system in Israel. There was blood all over the place … regular sacrifices and hunks of meat and innards, etc. And … blood everywhere! Everything about the Old Testament system of sacrifice pictured the terrible cost of sin, along with the costly and bloody price of redemption. Why blood? Why sacrifice? Why the innocent for the guilty? Well, it all goes back to the beginning. Adam and Eve needed to be clothed to cover their nakedness and sin. Where did the skins come from? Yes, from innocent animals – slain to provide cover for the guilty sinners.

On the Day Of Atonement, Aaron was to come into the most holy place and into the presence of the ark, take blood from a slain bull and sprinkle it on the atonement cover of the ark. On the next trip into the most holy place, Aaron was to take blood from a goat upon which the lot had fallen to be slain, and its blood is sprinkled on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. The sprinkling of the blood on the atonement cover, or mercy seat, signifies the covering of sins and the restoration of the covenant between God and His people. They point forward to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

The concept of atonement remains relevant today, addressing the universal human need for forgiveness and restoration. Imagine carrying the weight of your transgressions and mistakes throughout the whole year, and then being given an opportunity to lay them down, seek forgiveness, and renew your relationship with the divine.

No matter how you look at it, paying for sin is costly. This entire concept of atonement is ripe with significance and meaning that would find ultimate fulfillment in the work of Christ in which He sacrificed His life for us. Above, I spoke light-heartedly about the spattering of blood. Let us be much sobered by our own sin that has contributed to the price of our own individual redemption: Christ’s life for ours.

DAY OF ATONEMENT

Leviticus 16:11-19 is about the Day of Atonement, highlighting the solemn ritual of two goats—one sacrificed as a sin offering to cleanse the sanctuary and the other bearing the sins of the Israelites into the wilderness, symbolizing the removal of sin and reconciliation between God and His people.

Aaron begins the ceremony by sacrificing a bull as a sin offering for himself and his household. He then takes two goats and casts lots to determine which one will be sacrificed to the Lord and which one will be the scapegoat. The blood from the slaughtered goat is sprinkled on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. Meanwhile, the scapegoat is brought forward, and Aaron lays his hands on its head, confessing all the iniquities, all the transgressions and all the sins of the people. The goat is then led away into the wilderness, symbolically carrying the sins of the people with it. The goat is a picture of Jesus: He is represented as satisfying the heart of God for us and rendering God free to love us without any restraint. God's justice has been satisfied. Christ also bears the whole weight and load of our guilt, all that which the Devil tries to use as a basis upon which to ground his accusations against us. All this is to be sent back to him from whence it comes. When our Lord died, he went into the wilderness of death like this goat and returned to Satan all the accusations which he has against any believer at any time.

This passage is teaching us what we are to do with these accusations. In Ephesians 6:16, Paul calls them the fiery darts of the wicked one, i.e., all those little suggestions to us that we really aren't accepted and loved by God. These are all the haunting memories of our past shame, our feelings of unworthiness, our filthy thoughts, and the flashes of fear that come upon us. What are we to do with them? We are simply to put them right on the head of Jesus and say, Lord, take them back to Satan. They don't belong to me. They belong to him. That is where they came from, and I am sending them back.

In a world marked by guilt, shame, and the consequences of our actions, the message of atonement offers hope and a pathway to reconciliation with God. Through Christ’s sacrifice we find purification from sin, healing from transgressions and peace through His wounds. Through Jesus, we have a direct avenue to seek and receive forgiveness, mending our relationship with God and experiencing His grace and mercy in full measure.

By embracing this message of atonement, we can find peace, forgiveness, and a renewed relationship with God, experiencing the fullness of His grace and love in our lives. And our minds and hearts can be at peace.

SUNDAY SCHOOL NEXT WEEK

April 06, 2025

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Christ’s Once-for-All Sacrifice~ Hebrews 9:23–10:4, 11–14, 19–25

After participating in this lesson, each learner will be able to:

1. Identify how a person enters the holiest place.

2. Explain why Christ had to die only once.

3. Recruit an accountability partner for mutual encouragement

in love and good works.

A Better Sacrifice

Hebrews 9:23–10:4 NIV 23 It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. 25 Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26 Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. 1 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2 Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. 4 It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Christ’s priestly work fulfilled and transcended the old covenant patterns of worship. Since the earthly tabernacle was purified with animal sacrifices, the cleansing of its heavenly counterpart required a more precious sacrifice. Christ entered that heavenly tabernacle to offer Himself on our behalf. Unlike earthly high priests, who must offer the same sacrifices year after year, Christ sacrificed Himself only once. In Hebrews 10:1–4, the author explains why Christ’s sacrifice and priestly service were necessary: the Law was intended to foreshadow the true purification that Christ would bring. Animal sacrifices of the old covenant were never sufficient on their own. To defend this claim, the writer points to the repetitive nature of past sacrifices. If they were truly effective at cleansing God’s people, they would not need repeating again and again. Rather than purifying God’s people, animal sacrifices served to remind them of their need for more purification. In truth, the sacrifice of animals could never deal with human sinfulness.

A New and Living Way

Hebrews 10:11–14, 19–25 NIV 11 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. 14 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. 19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

The author draws more contrast between Christ and the priests of the old covenant. In the past, priests never saw an end to their duties; they performed the same ineffectual sacrifices every day. Christ, on the other hand, offered Himself as a sacrifice once for all and took His rightful seat as king at the right hand of God the Father. Unlike offerings of animals, Christ’s self-sacrifice was effective in making God’s holy people “perfect,” free from the guilt of their sins. Verse 20 makes a metaphorical comparison between the temple’s curtain—which separated sinful humans from God’s holy presence—and “body” or “flesh” of Jesus. At the same time that Jesus was killed, the separation between God and humanity could end (compare Matt. 27:51). Christ’s blood opened a new way for us to enter God’s presence, with confidence instead of fear. As the high priest of God’s heavenly temple, Christ enables us to “draw near to God” with security in our salvation, purified of sin and guilt in our innermost beings. As our faithful high priest sustains our hope, we encourage one another “toward love and good deeds” (v. 24). We must remain engaged in the community of God’s people, encouraging each other as the day of Christ’s return draws near.

About Us

OUR HISTORY

Faith Covenant Christian Church began on February 27, 2014 following a fellowship dinner for displaced former members of Crossroads Christian Church. Following that first meeting, we formed a Planning Committee and began meeting @ Best Western Hotel at Cedar Bluff. On May 7, 2014, we adopted the name Faith Covenant Christian Church, with our foundational verse being Jeremiah 50:5. On June 22, 2014 an invitation to membership was given by Rev A. David Baxter and 21 people united with Faith Covenant Christian Church. Women’s and Men’s Ministries began having regular meetings. In September 2014, we began having Sunday School and Wednesday Night Bible Study. In November, Youth Ministry began. By the end of 2014, 10 more people joined, three as new converts. We moved into our current space on April 1, 2015 and look forward to serving God faithfully. Following a yearlong pastor search, our pastor, Violet P. McRoy, was called on April 18, 2016. In March 2018, Pastor McRoy resigned as pastor, due to poor health and other personal issues. God quickly responded to our prayer-laden search and Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr. was elected to the pastoral position on April 16, 2018. In May, 2024, we will celebrate our 10th church anniversary and are looking onward, upward and forward to serving God faithfully.

OUR PASTOR

Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Pastor Yeldell was born in Mt Pleasant, Texas, the third of five children of Nokomis and Dollie Pearl Yeldell. His father, also a Pastor for over 60 years, was called to Memphis, TN, where Nokomis Jr. grew up. Following graduation Pastor Yeldell attended Southwestern Christian College. He then served four years in the United States Air Force. He then decided to move to Knoxville, TN to further his education. After serving in leadership capacities in various ministries at Foster Chapel Baptist Church, Pastor Yeldell was called into the ministry in 2010.

Faith Covenant Christian Church represents Pastor Yeldell’s third and prayerfully final pastorate.

WHAT WE BELIEVE

FAITH COVENANT Christian Church accepts the Holy Scriptures as the revealed will of God, the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice, and holds to the following foundational truths:

1. The One True God

GOD IS… He is the eternally existent and immutable Father, Creator of the Universe and everything therein. He is the Lord of heaven and earth, and in Him we move and have our being. He is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Our Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is One God in three distinct persons: one in essence and purpose and distinct in personality and function. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. He is the essence of love, goodness, faithfulness, kindness, mercy, grace, holiness, righteousness, and justice.

2. The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the eternally existent Son of the living God, the fullness of the Godhead bodily, the image of the invisible God, and the firstborn of all creation. Through Him was made everything that is made—things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things are held together.

He was born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God through His substitutionary death on the cross. He was resurrected bodily from the dead, and sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us.

3. The Work of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the Counselor, the Spirit of Truth, who goes out from the Father and testifies about the Son. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of guilt in regards to sin and righteousness and judgment. He is given to all who believe, for Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit according to the promise of God the Father, who gives the Spirit without limit. The Holy Spirit lives with us and in us, bringing about the endowment of power for life and service, as well as the bestowment of the gifts and their uses in the work of the ministry. These gifts of the Holy Spirit, distributed according to His own will (Hebrews 2:4) include: prophecy, service, teaching, encouragement, contributing to the needs of others, leadership, mercy (Romans 12:6-8), message of wisdom, message of knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, distinguishing between spirits (discernment), tongues, interpretation of tongues (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).

4. Salvation from the Penalty of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the penalty of sin. Mankind, though made in the image of God, has inherited through the first man, Adam, a sinful nature. By this nature, all mankind has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and thereby, was alienated from God; dead in transgressions—gratifying the cravings, desires, and thoughts of the sinful nature; following the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air; stirring up wrath against himself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed. But God did not appoint mankind to suffer wrath, but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—and saved us by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

5. Salvation from the Power of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the power of sin. Having been crucified with Christ, we put to death the deeds of the body so that sin shall have no dominion over our mortal bodies. We have received the Spirit who is from God so that we may live by faith, understanding what God has freely given us to accomplish His purpose:

He has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our personal knowledge of Him as Savior and Lord.
He has given us His precious and magnificent promises by which we may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
He has given us apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ, His church, may be built up.
He has given to us the manifestation of the Spirit through spiritual gifts for the common good.
He has given us the ministry of reconciliation: that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him.

6. Salvation from the Presence of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the presence of sin, for the Lord Jesus died and rose again, and will Himself come down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God. The dead in Christ shall rise first, and we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth will pass away. And we shall dwell with God in the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. We shall be His people, and God Himself will be with us and be our God. He will wipe every tear from our eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things will have passed away.

7. The Inspiration and Inerrancy of Scripture

God’s Word is TRUTH. The Holy Scriptures (both the Old and New Testament) is the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God. We are saved from the penalty, power, and presence of sin by grace through faith that comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God, which testifies of Jesus Christ. By His Word, God has revealed Himself, His plan, His purpose, and His ways—so that we would come to Him to receive eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord.

OUR MINISTRIES

Faith Covenant Christian Church operates under a FIVE FOLD Ministry concept

I EXALTATION

Deacons- Bro. Reggie Lindsey, Bro. William Lundy

Holy Sacraments And Sacred Days – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Media- Bro. Anthony Lindsey

Music- Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Program – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Public Relations – Bro. Reggie Lindsey, Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Pulpit – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Reconciliation – Ministerial Council

Ushers – Sis. Teresa Farmer

II ENABLING

Benevolence – Bro. William Lundy; Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Food Pantry – Bro. Karl Townes

Hospitality – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Intercessory Prayer – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Missions – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

III EDUCATION

Bible Study – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Youth Church –

Sunday School – Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Supplemental Education And Training – Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Vacation Bible School –

IV EDIFICATION

Church-Wide Edification – Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Men’s Ministry – Bro. Karl Towns

Women’s Ministry (WICS) – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Youth – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

V EQUIPPING

Administration – Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Finance – Sis. Teresa Farmer, Sis. Tiaeshia Kelso, Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Transportation – Bro. Karl Towns

Trustees – Bro. Karl Towns

Kitchen Ministry / Special Events – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Comfort And Care Ministry - Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.