What are the times of refreshing and the time of restoring all things?
Question: Dear sir, Can you help me understand this verse: “that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets…
Read MoreGod, Government, and the Bible
by David Gibson A vital principle of Bible study is that often one passage serves to qualify another. Together, they give a more complete picture of God’s will in the matter. For example, Christians are taught to obey the laws of the land (Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17). No exceptions? But what if a specific…
Read MoreWhen to Exercise Church Discipline
by Kyle Ellison The question of when to exercise church discipline is both agonizing and grueling, one that elders and members must grapple with from time to time. Elders feel the weight of this without a doubt, since they are charged with watching for the souls of those under their care. “Obey your leaders and…
Read MoreAbraham’s Informed Faith
by Clay Gentry God’s command for Abraham to sacrifice Isaac is arguably one of the most staggering tests of faith in the Bible. How could he trust God in the face of such a shocking demand? Abraham’s obedience was not an act of blind, desperate loyalty, but a calculated step of faith, fortified by a…
Read MoreDigging Through the Wall
by Cleve Stafford Some of the most uncomfortable parts of Scripture are the ones that feel a little too close to home. One of those moments shows up in the book of Ezekiel, in a vision that doesn’t get preached on very often, but maybe should. Ezekiel 8:7-12, “And he brought me to the entrance…
Read MoreWhat Hurts Us Can Also Inspire Us
by Gary Henry “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word” (Psalms 119:67). Painful experiences can help us, but only if we allow them to. “My brethren,” James wrote, “count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let…
Read MoreBecause I Tell You the Truth
by Terry Wane Benton Paul had no desire to be the enemy of anyone. He had every right to expect that people should and must appreciate truth, even if it hurts at first. The truth teller is telling the truth because that is what love demands. Love demands that people help people get out of…
Read MoreDon’t Marry a Canaanite
by Nathan Combs via Think on These Things God cares deeply about whom His people marry. When Abraham commissioned his oldest household servant to find a wife for Isaac, he instructed him to swear that he would not take a wife from the daughters of the Canaanites (Genesis 24:3). God then blessed the servant’s search…
Read MoreEvery Christian Is a Saint: God’s Surprising Truth
by Cleve Stafford When you hear the word “saint,” what comes to mind? For many, it’s a statue in a cathedral, a figure in stained glass, or someone canonized long after death by religious authorities. In some traditions, sainthood is regarded as a special status, reserved for only a select few extraordinary individuals. But when…
Read MoreCan We Have the Same Judgment?
by Terry Wane Benton “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (I Corinthians 1:10 NKJV). This pleading…
Read MoreWhy Become a Christian?
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2004/11/Why-Become-a-Christian.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Revelation 3:14-22 I. Many here are Christians. You’ve been Christians for a number of years. Do you remember why you became a Christian? A. Many people have never chosen Christ. There are some here who have yet to obey the Gospel’s call. B. Why do they hesitate? What is…
Read MoreWhy do people who do some good go to Hell?
Question: Hello, Is everything going well? May God bless you. I have a question for you. A classmate of mine asked me a question that I’m a bit helpless about. I am unable to answer him. He’s obsessed with the fact that some people who did many good things in their lives still go to…
Read MoreDisciples of Christ
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Disciples-of-Christ.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Matthew 28:18-20 I. No one name is used to describe a person. A. A single word cannot encompass all that a person is. I could be called a preacher, but I’m also a father, a husband, a writer, a teacher, a computer scientist, a singer, and many other…
Read MoreIs it OK to have a pet snake?
Question: Is it OK to own a pet snake? Only because you like them as a pet, not because you worship them. I was wondering, since the devil is often depicted as a snake in the Bible, would it be considered bad luck to have one as a pet? Thank you, Answer: People have domesticated…
Read MorePolitical Discourse
by Zeke Flores Political discourse is like the Las Vegas of Christianity; it’s an environment in which we think our sin is excused. Christians feel free to go wild, fear is perpetuated, strife is intentional, and hate is winked at. The thing is, what happens in this “Vegas” doesn’t stay there; it ripples far outward. There’s…
Read MoreHow do you deal with an elder’s wife’s gossiping?
Question: Do the wives of the elders have any authority over the other women of the congregation? Are there qualifications for the wife of an elder? How should it be handled when the wife of an elder repeats hurtful information about a member of the church she learns from her husband to others? Thank you.…
Read MoreWas Israel Having a King Sinful?
by Perry Hall A common position is that Israel’s wanting a King was sinful (I Samuel 8). Israel even confesses, “Pray for your servants to Yahweh your God, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king” (quoted I Samuel 12:19). I…
Read MoreTruth
by Zeke Flores There it stands in all its unvarnished, audacious boldness. It dares us to grasp it, to apprehend and understand it, to obey it. Truth tells us what we don’t want to hear (turn from sin!) and urges us to do what we don’t want to do (be baptized for your forgiveness!). Then…
Read MoreIt’s Good to Accept God’s Forgiveness Verbally
by Gary Henry via WordPoints.com “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9). Regarding our sins, we are grateful for two things. We’re thankful, first, that God is willing to forgive us, and second, that we can know…
Read MoreThe Apostle Paul
by Hugh DeLong Most of those who will read this note would acknowledge the fact that Paul was a chosen apostle, chosen by Jesus (Galatians 1:1), witnessed the resurrected Jesus (I Corinthians 15), was acknowledge and given the right hand of fellowship by the other apostles (Galatians 2:9), and was confirmed as a messenger of…
Read MoreIrrational Unbelief
by Perry Hall When speaking with Atheists and Agnostics, a common complaint is, “When I read the Bible, I see a God that does things that I don’t agree with such as….” So their reason for unbelief is that they don’t like the evidence! How would that thinking work in the real world? “I don’t…
Read MoreThe Difference We Can Make on the Job
by David Gibson A dear brother in Christ received a very affirmative written evaluation from his supervisor, commending him for his consistently positive attitude at work. Likely, this supervisor has observed others who gripe, gossip, and create friction among coworkers. In contrast, this brother’s attitude really stands out. Be positive. “Do all things without grumbling…
Read MoreIf Alcoholism Is a Disease
Author Unknown It is the only disease that is contracted by an act of the will. It is the only disease that requires a license to propagate it. It is the only disease that is bottled and sold. It is the only disease that requires more than half a million outlets to spread it. It…
Read MoreTest Yourself
by Hugh DeLong “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” (II Corinthians 13:5 ESV). We see in the two letters to the Corinthians that some of the disciples there…
Read MoreThe Mystery of Godliness (Flores)
by Zeke Flores Paul says godliness is a mystery, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to grasp. It’s like some men say, “Women are a mystery, I don’t understand them.” They mean that, to them, women are sometimes hard to comprehend, but not impossible. In the New Testament, the word “mystery” is usually used of…
Read MoreThe Leaders God Wants
by Doy Moyer God wants leaders. The Hebrews writer indicates this when he wrote, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage…
Read MoreActs of Disciples
by Jeremy Dehut October 17-19, 2025 Disciples Seek to Follow Jesus Disciples Are Devoted The Bold Life of Disciples Disciples Learn from the Past Disciples Overcome Unexpected Trials Three Seasons of Discipleship
Read MoreI think I’m beyond hope
Question: Brother Jeffrey, I am in my seventies. I keep having this “depression” that I’ve dealt with since High School. (By the way, I think depression is just a result of sin. After all, nobody in the Bible had a mental problem; it was just sin.) When I was young, I obeyed the Gospel, but…
Read MoreCan you explain two verses used by someone who believes in the rapture?
Question: Hello Sir, I have recently been talking with a nice lady who believes in the rapture. I asked her if she would tell me why she believes in it. She said I Thessalonians 5:9 and Revelation 3:10. Could you explain those to me? I was a bit perplexed about what to say in response…
Read MoreI’ve been living irresponsibly, but I want to serve God
Question: Dear Sir, I am a 35-year-old single man. I am writing this with utmost shame, disgust, and remorse for my sinful and irresponsible lifestyle when it comes to the sexual department. I have been very immoral, you name it, I am entirely guilty of the sin. Whether it be masturbation, pornography, fornication, you name…
Read MoreDoes “race” exist?
Question: In Mark 7:26, Mark mentions that the mother of the daughter who had the unclean spirit was a member of the Syrophoenician race. Don’t races not exist, as stated in Galatians 3:28 and Acts 17:24-26? Answer: The Greek word genos has several meanings. It can refer to a race, a nation, a kind (or species),…
Read MoreHow do I know God is good?
Question: Hello there, I need help with many spiritual questions. I was baptized into Christ a few years ago and had been exploring the spiritual aspects of life for many years before that. While at times I have experienced fleeting moments of assurance, most of my Christian experience has involved negativity and anxiety. I believe the…
Read MoreGod Is Good All the Time (2)
by Zeke Flores God is good! That pithy phrase pops up in my newsfeed several times a day, usually in a comment where someone reports something good in their life. It could be favorable results from a medical test, the arrival of a new baby, a financial windfall, the purchase of something new, or one…
Read MoreHow Can We Help Someone in Times of Loss?
by David Gibson A woman has a miscarriage. A middle-aged man is laid off from his job. A family’s house burns. Parents lose a teenage son in a traffic accident. A child is diagnosed with cancer. A surviving spouse must now go on without the other. Responding to loss A common response to the suffering…
Read MoreDepression Is Real
by Zeke Flores I understand the hard-fought struggle for those who wrestle with feelings of inadequacy, isolation, and gloom. And I know that when others say that depressed people should just “snap out of it,” well, that’s just dumb. Unfortunately, too many who grapple with depression hinder their own recovery by dwelling on the depression…
Read MoreThe Danger of Quietly Walking Away
by Cleve Stafford Picture yourself out on the open water in a small boat. The waves are gentle, the wind mild, and the sun warm on your face. You close your eyes just for a moment to enjoy the peace. But when you open them again, you realize something chilling: you’ve drifted far from the…
Read MoreEducation
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Education.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Psalms 78:1-8 I. Why go to school? What use is all those endless facts? A. A question I’m sure more school-aged children ask. B. Does an education have value? 1. To answer this we must compare the alternative. a. Solomon did this and concluded wisdom, which is gained by learning, is…
Read MoreHow Can I Be Happy with All These Troubles?
by Charles Box In our society, there is much talk about happiness. Happiness is even a Bible subject. In Psalms 35:9, we read, “And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.” We do not think of happiness as a choice, but happiness is, in fact, just that, a…
Read MoreYou Are Complete in Him
by Terry Wane Benton “And in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority” (Colossians 2:10). The book of Colossians says that nothing is missing or lacking in Christ. In Him we have all we need for assurance, forgiveness, direction, wisdom and knowledge, freedom from sin and…
Read MoreStill Trying to Prove a Point
by Becky René Some people carry an invisible burden. Long after the moment has passed, they continue to live in the shadow of a past insult, injury, or trauma. It might have been a harsh remark, a personal failure, abuse, rejection, a physical condition, or a tragic accident. Perhaps someone made them feel incapable or…
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