Beyond President's Chapel @ Elim Bible Institute and College

Rev. Tim Case, Senior Pastor of Covenant Life Church in Henrietta NY, challenges our students to deepen their understanding of what biblical worship looks like. “Worship is a central part of who we are.” He states, "As worship is a response to the awe of God, we can give worship no matter the circumstance we are in". There is a difference between being a worshiper and someone who gives an act of worship. We can see this difference in the story of King Saul. A true worshipper is someone who is not in rebellion against God. Either we are worshipers of false gods or worshipers of Jehovah. True worshippers of God are servants of God. “We always serve what we worship, and we always worship what we serve.” This message will transform your life. 

Rev. Dick Grout opens our 2023 Worship Emphasis Week by talking about revival in our worship. He addresses the meaning of revival and how this concept should affect the posture of our hearts in worship before the Lord. The three main points covered in this sermon are repentance, reveal, and return. Rev. Dick states, “Real worship takes place only where He is revealed; thus, we must not forget that our worship does not end when the worship team stops playing music." 

“God will use the skills you are learning now in your future, so don't take them for granted." Josiah Houseal, a graduating senior of the 2023 class, references the story of Noah from Genesis 6 to point out that God did not just leave Noah to figure out how to build the ark. God gave Noah the measurements of which the ark needed to be. Josiah states "God doesn’t call us to do things that He didn't prepare us for. And if He calls us to do something we aren't prepared for, He will equip us along the way." We must cherish the opportunities that we have today. We don’t have to dread our current responsibilities but realize that God is using them to build our character for what he has for us in the future. We hope you enjoy this message!

On Thursday, January 26th, guest speaker Richard Raines, Theology Professor, came to share with EBIC. Professor Raines encourages our students that, in order to engage our culture, they must know how to think theologically. He affirms the Lord is using EBIC to prepare them not only for ministry but in their personal lives. Using the story of the burning bush in Exodus 3, Professor Raines illustrates what it means to trust in God. This is a message that will change your life! We encourage you to listen to it.

Rev. Dick Grout, Worship Director at EBIC, shares with the student body what prayer is all about. Referencing Matthew 7:7, Rev. Grout affirms that "prayer is an act, an action, Christians have done since the first century and still continue to do to this day. Therefore, don’t stop.” He asks "Why does God structure prayer as such? If God already knows what we need, and what we are going to ask, why does He encourage us to pray? Could it be that it helps to grow in dependence on the Lord by continuing to seek and to knock?" There are two types of relationships. One is a need-based relationship, while the second is about communion. Which one do you have? This is a message that will speak to your heart!

Rev. Gerald Coleman, Campus Pastor at Robert Wesleyan College, speaks to our students about yielding to the Father. He states, "the process begins with the seed of surrender, but this seed must develop deep roots in order to be strong. The fruit will come if you tend to the roots." Rev. Coleman encourages our students to be aware of tending not to only the visible parts of our lives but the things we do in private. God wants us to tend to all parts of our lives. When a root is nourished, the tree is strong. If we surrender all parts of our lives to Him and submit to His will, we will grow stronger and healthy against the temptations of the enemy.

Pastor David Ham conducts a "Questions and Answers" panel with the student body. He covers the topics of placement, leadership, openness to criticism, mentorship, and the use of creativity. Pastor David states, "nothing should ever take priority over the Gospel. We need to be open to criticism and how to move past one's mistakes. We are not to look back to past mistakes but look back to the cross because our strength is found in Jesus. Commitment to Christ and Christ alone is key! Know who you are in Christ and be ready to defend the faith."

"We must remember this truth, the light shines will always overcome the darkness." Pastor David Ham shares with our students a powerful truth. He states, "If you want to overcome darkness, you need to talk about Jesus. We must fix our eyes on Jesus and not on anything else." It is important to remember that prayer is fundamental in the life of the believer. Before we move against darkness, we ought to pray. The more we pray the more intentional we are about overcoming darkness.

Rev. David Ham continues with his series during our Week of Prayer 2023 by stating that "A kingdom perspective changes everything. A kingdom perspective is made by prayer." As believers, we have 2 perspectives to choose from: the world's and God's perspective. We must remember that, even though at times things may look hopeless or we don't understand it. If we choose God's perspective, we will see beyond hopelessness. The story of the cross doesn't end in death but in everlasting life for all who believe in Jesus Christ.

Rev. David Ham, EBIC Alumni, affirms "God, who loved you so much, sent His Son Jesus to give you everlasting life when you choose to follow Him. You are the image bearers of Christ." Rev. Ham reminds us that we are not just called to absorb all the goodness of God's presence, we are called to bear witness for Christ's sake. We are called to trust in God when we share the gospel with others. Oftentimes sharing the gospel will cause us to face adversities because the enemy fights back when we try to win people for Christ.

Alex Seidler continues his two-part sermon this time speaking on making disciples. He presents this process through the illustration of sourdough bread and how long the process is of making sourdough bread. "This is a process that requires patience", affirms Alex, "patience is necessary and essential for the process". He reminds the students that our main goal in life is to make disciples. But this goal goes beyond words. It's a lifestyle. People are not looking for information on how to follow but for a demonstration. Not just telling them how, but showing them how to lead a life of following. Thus, making disciples takes prayer and effort! This is a message that will change your life. 

Alex Seidler, Director of Global Ministries, ends the first day of Prayer Week with an inspirational message surrounding the question: Is God your steering wheel or is He your spare tire? Alex, challenges the students by asking them, "Are you willing to become a person of prayer? The end goal of prayer is looking right into Jesus' eyes." Through many stories of missionaries who serve in different countries, he describes God's process of prayer as slow, humbling, intense, and difficult. We are called to be a people of prayer. Prayer is not meant to be a last resort but a first priority. 

Dr. Antonelli kicks off the 2023 Week of Prayer with a powerful message on hearing the voice of God and being led by the Holy Spirit. Dr. A talks about Samuel and how he struggled, at first, with recognizing the voice of God. He affirms, "there are two important components to God's voice. The first is divine words - God-breathed, powerful, and influential given to us through the Bible. The second one is applicable to our lives. Jesus' words are life-given, active, and practical." This is a message that will encourage you in your walk with the Lord.

Mark Winheld, Senior class of 2023, preaches about the freedom found in forgiveness. Mark defines forgiveness as a decision someone takes when they let go of an offense caused by another person. He warns the students against the effects of unforgiveness. He affirms, "When we choose to not forgive someone our hearts grow bitter and angry causing our hearts to debilitate physically and spiritually. However, we must remember that all of us have been forgiven by our Heavenly Father. Therefore, we need to forgive others because God has forgiven us, and empowers us to forgive."

What is the heart of missions? Pastor Tim Case, Senior Pastor of Covenant Life Church in Henrietta, NY, motivates the students to understand the heart of God in order to understand the heart of missions. Psalms 145:8 says, “The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.” Love is the heart of God towards people. It’s because of God’s great love that He desires that none should perish but that His people should instead choose life. Sadly, as Christians, we can know this concept very well, yet not apply it. Before we ask God where He wants to send us, we need to live out His heart for others. This is a message that will change your perspective! 

What does it mean to love my neighbor? As a pastor of pastors, Rev. Tom Brazell has not only experience leading the local church, but the international church as he and his wife served many years in the Dominican Republic of Congo. He shares with our students a straightforward message about how Jesus said what He meant, and meant what he said. Acts 1:8 affirms, "...you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Jesus not only commanded his disciples to go to the ends of the earth to minister but He ministered to different people throughout Judea, Samaria, and wherever God took Him. Rev. Tom elaborates on what it means to minister to our own Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. Most Christians, he states, "would not admit that they dislike Samaria (those people who are difficult to minister to)". Nevertheless, we are called to love and minister to "Samaritans" simply because God loves them too, and they need a savior.

Alex Seidler, Director of Global Ministries at Elim Fellowship, has a passion for seeing the least reached places of the earth reached for Jesus. As a graduate of Elim Bible Institute and College, Alex knows that the heart of Elim is for missions! Alex shares the secret to changing the world: taking small steps of obedience. Preaching from Matt. 21:28-31, Jesus shows us that the Son who obeyed the Father was not the one who only declared his obedience through words but followed through with actions. “God is not interested in all of our talk. God is interested in our walk. The world is changed by people like you and me taking simple steps of obedience to whatever God has in front of us.”

We can do missions because Jesus calls us to follow Him wherever He goes. And when He calls us, He forms us into the vessels that He intends for us to be. Rev. Matthew and Stephanie Slisher share their experience as missionaries on the field and how God stirred their hearts to go. They told the students, “As you give a little bit of your heart to the Lord to be stirred He’s going to give you new and greater things. You might be comfortable and happy right where you are now, so be prepared, if you’re going to be stirred, it might get uncomfortable”.

Pastor Tim Fuest takes the deception of our times head-on by asking the question: Who are you? Society today has elevated personal truth above God’s word; anyone can define themselves based on feelings, jobs, hobbies, etc. Even though the book of Acts was written over a thousand years ago, the 19th chapter talks about seven brothers that failed to cast out one demon because they were unsure of their identity. In order to know our identity, we need to know how we are accepted, secure, and significant. Pastor Tim combs through scripture to show how our identity is established in the Word of God and that when we know our identity, we can live the way that God created us to live. 

There is just one thing that Dominic Renaldo wants everyone to remember about his message: it’s not about us, it’s all about God. With a basketball in hand, Dominic shared about his younger self’s ambitions to be a star player on his team and what that taught him about doing what God created him to do. “We need to be willing to serve God in every single capacity”. By knowing his role, Dominic was able to best serve his team in their championship game by not playing—in the end, they won. God sometimes calls us to sit on the sidelines when it comes to ministry; it’s in these moments that we need to remember: it’s not about us, it’s all about God.