Changing the Book of Mormon and other Mormon Absurdities
by Jefferson David Tant One of the strange Mormon doctrines states that the reason for the dark skin of Negroes and Indians is that God cursed them as the result of sin. But as the result of these people being converted, their skin would lighten, and they would become a “white and delightsome people” (2…
Read MoreWhat does Jeremiah 31:36 mean?
Question: Good evening. I want to know what ordinances are being referred to in Jeremiah 31:36. And what does it mean by Israel will cease from being a nation? Jeremiah 31:36 (NKJV) “If those ordinances depart From before Me, says the LORD, [Then] the seed of Israel shall also cease From being a nation before…
Read MoreThe Day of the Lord
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Day-of-the-Lord.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Acts 2:14-24 I. In Peter’s first sermon, he quotes the prophet Joel who warns of the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. A. As we read the warnings of God through the prophets, repeatedly we find references to “the day of the Lord” or “the day…
Read MoreDoes your confidence in God’s grace grow when you try to be faithful to God?
Question: Jeffrey, This may seem like a silly question. but I was wondering how you might feel about it. I think the more a person tries to be faithful to God, the more his confidence grows in His grace. Is there any specific Scripture that you know of that would support such a thought? Answer:…
Read MoreWhat should happen to funds when a congregation closes?
Question: What should happen to funds when a congregation closes? Answer: It should be remembered that the funds that a congregation has belong to God and not the members of a congregation. This is implied when Ananias was told that any money he had was his to do with as he desired, but once it…
Read MoreChrist and Fulfilled Prophecy
by Jefferson David Tant God has not left us without proof. There are many ways to authenticate the truthfulness and accuracy of the Bible, which firmly establish the fact that the Old and New Testaments are not the product of the mind of man. There had to be some higher power that caused it to…
Read MoreGod’s Providence
by Ken Green J. W. McGarvey, the great Restoration preacher and scholar of the 19th century, published two sermons on providence. One was based on the Genesis account of Joseph. The other was based on the book of Esther. Both narratives are permeated with the amazing and mysterious providence of God. The dictionary defines providence…
Read MoreIf two people agree to be exclusive and committed before having sex, are they bound together for life?
Question: Is my ex married to the girl he is dating? I still love him and share a child with him. He admitted to having sexual relations with a girl. She said, before having sex with him, that she didn’t want to have sex unless they were exclusive and committed. Well, he basically agreed by…
Read MoreI don’t want to force him, but my boyfriend doesn’t want to marry me
Question: I’m right now in a situation in which my boyfriend doesn’t want to marry me. From the beginning of our relationship, I didn’t want to force him but I wanted this relationship to end up in a marriage. From a religious point of view and I’m from an area where marriage is important before…
Read MoreIs it wrong to marry a non-virgin woman?
Question: My girlfriend is in her mid-twenties. She has a very good heart and she is very beautiful both inside and out. She lost her mother at the age of 8 and was brought up by her grandparents. She had two previous affairs before me. Both of the affairs ended with her being the innocent…
Read MoreWhere Is the Cross of Christ?
by Doy Moyer When I make it about how I feel, what I like or don’t like, how inconvenient things are to me, or how I shouldn’t have to do x, y, or z because it’s difficult, then I have to ask… where is the cross of Christ in a religion ordered after my preferences?…
Read MoreWhen Your Mate Has Fallen
by Jefferson David Tant An unfaithful spouse is not a new phenomenon in our generation. We can trace it as far back as David and Bathsheba in the Old Testament. But it is dealt with even before that, as the Law God gave to Israel had specific provisions concerning this sin. No other problem is…
Read MoreWhat Are You Doing for the Lord’s Church?
by Terry Wane Benton It is not what the church is doing for you, but rather, what are you doing for the Lord’s church? Jesus died and spilled His blood for the church. She is His bride, and she is special, purchased with His own blood (Acts 20:28). He expects us to keep her pure,…
Read MoreWhat Kind of Tongues Are Meant in I Corinthians 12?
by Clem Thurman in Gospel Minutes, Vol. 58, No. 47, Nov. 20, 2009. The apostle Paul writes of various “gifts of the Holy Spirit” in I Corinthians 12-14. Notice the reading in I Corinthians 12:7-11: “But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit to profit withal. For to one is given through the…
Read MoreHandling the Crafty
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Handling-the-Crafty.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Joshua 9:3-16 I. Some people don’t deal with others in a direct fashion A. Stating their goal would not allow them to reach their target because they know it would be rejected, so they manipulate others B. While both men and women engage in craftiness, it is often a complaint of…
Read MoreIt Was Only a Small Fib (Sermon)
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/It-Was-Only-a-Small-Fib.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Revelation 21:6-8 I. I have concluded that much of the work of psychologist, psychoanalysts, and even philosophers is to help mankind remove the guilt and shame of their own actions. A. People don’t want to hear that their actions are wrong, their conscience is bothering them enough, thank you very…
Read MoreI Have Fought a Good Fight
by J. D. Tant (1861-1941) Sixty years have come and gone. I hope and pray that long after I cross the great divide, hundreds will read my sermons, be taught the way of life, and take up their cross and follow Jesus. I am leaving this bit of history that others may know that life…
Read MoreDebate Thy Cause
by Earl Kimbrough Searching the Scriptures, January 1984 Religious debating in the nineteenth century became what one historian calls a “serious American indoor sport.” Many at the time certainly practiced this method of defending and spreading their beliefs. But no people used it more effectively than the restorers of New Testament Christianity. Most of the…
Read MoreHow many men did David’s chief captain slew at one time?
Question: The chief of the mighty men of David lifted up his spear and killed how many men at one time? Eight hundred “These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-Basshebeth[a] the Tachmonite, chief among the captains.[b] He was called Adino the Eznite, because he had killed eight hundred men at…
Read MoreWhen are people’s spirits created?
Question: Some people believe, which was also me until now, that God made man’s spirit and not his physical body. Only in Genesis 2:7 had God put man’s spirit in a body. Is this wrong? Also, when God created man on the sixth day, did God just create Adam and Eve? As some also believe…
Read MoreThe Living Redeemer
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Living-Redeemer.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalm 49 I. When we get ourselves into difficulties, most of us depend on our family to help us out A. I Timothy 5:8 – A Christian is to provide for his own. B. Proverbs 17:17 – A brother is born for adversity II. In the days of the Old Law a…
Read MoreResist the Devil
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Resist-the-Devil.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: James 4:1-10 I. When we are faced with temptation, it is a struggle to resist A. The urge to give in seems overwhelming. Even when we know we should not, too often we do it anyway – Romans 7:14-15 1. Since the action goes against what we know and want to…
Read MoreWhy Do Christians Have Problems?
by Carey Scott from an outline by Donnie S. Barnes If everything is supposed to work out for our good, why do we still have problems? After all, does Romans 8:28 tell us that all things work out for good to those who love the Lord? Then why do faithful Christians have problems? Rejections, defeats,…
Read MoreRefinement
by Terry Wane Benton All that happens to us in this life is part of refining us. Like gold is purified through the harsh fires of testing, and as testing refines and strengthens our quality of faith and character, we come out in the end with a glory that looks more like the glory of…
Read MoreA Social Media Warning from the Psalms
by Edwin Crozier I am not trying to establish a legalistic rule here. Rather, I want to caution you to think a little more deeply and thoroughly before you post. “If I had said, ‘I will speak thus,’ I would have betrayed the generation of your children” -Asaph, Psalm 73:15. Asaph recognizes the dangers of…
Read MoreDon’t Live in Fear
by Terry Wane Benton Fear of the virus, Fear of the vaccine, Fear of getting the virus, Fear of spreading the virus, Fear of side effects of the unknown, All are legitimate issues that we must grapple with and approach with caution and discernment. But each person must also be cautious about unreasonable fear and…
Read MoreThe Blessings of Following Christ
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Blessings-of-Following-Christ.mp3 by Raymond Warfel
Read MoreIt Is Better to Go to the House of Mourning
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/It-Is-Better-to-Go-to-the-House-of-Mourning.mp3 by Raymond Warfel
Read MoreFor what purpose is God calling in Acts 2:39?
Question: I have a question on Acts 2:39. Quite a few brethren say that verse 39 speaks of two generations: To you (those there that day) and to your children (next generation) and contemporary with them, those who are afar off (Gentiles).” Some in the faith say the promise is Joel’s promise just mentioned, the…
Read MoreSatan’s Devices
by Jefferson David Tant The apostle John wrote some words concerning Satan in Revelation 12:9: “And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” We are…
Read MoreIf the Dead Are Not Raised
by Matthew W. Bassford Recently, I attended this year’s Truth Lectures, which had as their theme eschatology, the study of the end times. Many of the lectures addressed preterism, the belief that the prophecies of the Bible all already have happened. In particular, preterists claim that the prophecies about the final judgment, the resurrection of…
Read MoreThe Sabbath as a Type
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Sabbath-as-a-Type.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Hebrews 4:1-11 I. Paul, in arguing that the Old Law was not in effect, concluded – Colossians 2:16-17 A. There were reasons why the Israelites were to worship as they did. Their worship foreshadowed both things in the Christian age and in the age to come – heaven B. This is…
Read MoreDid the Jews accuse Jesus of being born of fornication?
Question: In John 8.41, did the Jews accuse the Lord of being “born of fornication?” Answer: You are reading more into the exchange than was stated. ” “I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have…
Read MoreThe Wiles of the Devil
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Wiles-of-the-Devil.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 6:10-18 I. Satan is a real being A. Jesus warned Peter that Satan wanted him – Luke 22:31 1. Much like Satan wanted Job – Job 1:6-12 B. Peter warned us that Satan wants to devour us – I Peter 5:8-9 C. Thus, we have to know our enemy – II Corinthians…
Read MoreYoung People’s Program
by Robert Turner In the small town of Sundridge, Ontario, Ca. 300 miles north of the U.S. — Canadian border, the young folk of a small congregation (45-50) put many of their U. S. counterparts to shame. They are High School and under: with the same love for and participation in sports, parties, etc., that…
Read MoreAre Abijam and Asa brothers?
Question: In I Kings 15:1-2 and I Kings 15:9-10, both Abijam and Asa are said to be sons of Maacha the daughter of Abishalom. Does that mean they are brothers? Answer: II Chronicles 14:1 is clear that Asa is the son of Abijah. What makes Hebrew genealogies difficult is that “son” and “daughter” are used…
Read MoreYou should make videos answering important questions for teen boys
Question: Hello, I wanted to email you because I have a few things to say. I’m looking at these other questions from young men my age and I’m wondering “OK, do we need to stop as a society and talk more about these things?” We need to openly discuss these important issues. Your site is…
Read MoreWhat if a person doesn’t get a chance to partake of the Lord’s Supper before dying?
Question: Good day Minister, I’ve been baffled to understand this: “Can someone have salvation after confessing his faith and being baptized on the first day of the week after church service in the morning but he doesn’t partake of the Lord Supper even though the day has not passed and he dies.” Thank you! Answer:…
Read MoreDid the magicians know in advance what Moses planned to do?
Question: Dear sir, I read the article above. I wanted to know why the Egyptian magicians added to the problem of frogs rather than removed them. You said they could not remove them, but have given no logical explanation why they could not. In regard to the snakes you said and I quote “ All it would take…
Read MoreJohn, Jesus, and Jehovah’s Witnesses
by Jefferson David Tant Those who are familiar with the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ teaching about Jesus Christ are aware that they believe that Christ is not the Son of God, but that he is Michael the Archangel, a created being. Note the following quote from their writings: “the evidence indicates that the Son of God was…
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