Philemon, Onesimus, and Paul
by Hugh DeLong How do you respond when you read something in the New Testament that you have trouble agreeing with, or that you’re unsure whether you would, in that situation, obey? I will not give you my list, but over the years of learning and growing as a disciple, there have been such passages!…
Read MoreBeing a Disciple
by Hugh DeLong Paul wrote: “Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men” (Titus 3:1-2). To be a disciple of Jesus, we must live our lives according to His teaching.…
Read MoreGod Loves the Broken
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/God-Loves-the-Broken.mp3 by Raymond Warfel Download Audio
Read MoreThe Storms in Life
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/The-Storms-in-Life.mp3 by Raymond Warfel Download Audio
Read MoreA Center of Certitude
from A Place to Stand by Elton Trueblood via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 The most pragmatic reason for seeing that Christ is the most dependable reality is the evidence of changed human lives. When we consider Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus, we are in the realm of the empirical…
Read MoreThe Discovery of the Mount Sinai Manuscript
from True or False by David Otis Fuller, ed., p. 71 via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 This famous Codex (with facsimiles of the handwriting and with an account of its discovery) is published in full in Dr. Scrivener’s work entitled ‘A Full Collation of the Codex Sinaiticus’ (1864). Constantine Tischendorf, a noted German…
Read MoreBelieving Thomas
by Kenny Chumbley via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 Have you ever had an unflattering picture of yourself circulated about—one you don’t think looks like you at all? (While writing this opening sentence, the thought occurs to me, “Is there such a thing as a flattering Floyd Chappelear picture?”) Has a report about…
Read MoreThe Impact of Jesus
Excerpted from If God Came by Jim McGuiggan, p. 101-102 via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 Take a moment and think about it. How did the son of a Jewish carpenter manage to affect our world so powerfully? How many millions of church buildings and edifices have been erected to his name in…
Read MoreThe Myth of Spontaneous Generation
by Kenny Chumbley via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 See if your child’s biology textbook says something like my high school biology textbook (Modern Biology): “The myth of spontaneous generation… Pasteur’s decisive defeat of spontaneous generation…So it was that Louis Pasteur substited a proved and valid concept, biogenesis, for a theory which had…
Read MoreZion, the City of the Great King
by Bob Hutto via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 When David consolidated his reign over both Judah and Israel, he and his men took Jerusalem from the Jebusites, including the fortress at Zion. David built his palace there and moved his capital from Hebron. From that time forward, Zion was known as the…
Read MoreMy Death and Restoration
by Earl Kimbrough via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 Many people have had close brushes with death. This would be traumatic anywhere, but to approach the gates of eternity on a foreign shore is surely a supreme fear. J.W. McGarvey experienced such during his six-month excursion to the Middle East in 1879. The…
Read MoreWhat I Learned from My Daddy
by Bobby Graham via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 As the oldest son of Leon and Mary Graham, I learned much from them. Natural learning occurred daily in life’s laboratory, where God’s Word was stressed, and right living was the natural product of this teaching. I never doubted Daddy’s love, though I confess…
Read MoreCan a congregation ask its preacher to step down?
Question: Dear Sir, I greet you in the name of Christ, and thanks for all that you do for the church. I would like to ask a great question that has been bothering me. Can a congregation tell a preacher to step down from his role because of old age? This would be the congregation’s decision…
Read MoreBeing Sensible
by Hugh DeLong Be Sensible! Paul demanded this of older men (Titus 2:2), younger women (Titus 2:5), and younger men (Titus 2:6), and then of all disciples (Titus 2:12). But what does that mean? Basically, it means to have a sound, self-controlled, well-governed mind that produces wise, restrained, godly behavior. It is not merely “being…
Read MoreWhen Your Children Leave Home
by Brandy L. Pack Some of my friends’ children are becoming independent, moving out, or getting married. They asked me for help dealing with this transition. It was a question that caught me off guard a little. I have three faithful children, and two of them are living independent lives. I also have two children…
Read MoreThe Unsearchable Riches of Christ
by Terry Wane Benton “To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8-9 NKJV). A man who had first thought Jesus was a fool who misled people and fought against His church had an…
Read MoreSound Doctrine
by Russ Bowman “But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1). Sound doctrine – healthy teaching – is vital. It is the task of men like Titus – evangelists who declare the gospel of Jesus Christ. And it should be the aim of everyone who aspires to follow…
Read MoreDid Jesus feel shame?
Question: Hi brother Jeffrey, A friend of mine from our congregation wrote a short article in which he stated Jesus felt shame. He used Matthew 23:37-39, where Jesus laments over Jerusalem. He said Jesus was ashamed of Jerusalem. I don’t believe this to be true. My friend also stated that Jesus felt the guilt of…
Read MoreDo I have a right to this woman?
Question: I am writing because we both sincerely desire to know God’s will. We are not looking for someone to simply approve our relationship or tell us what we want to hear. We are asking for biblical guidance, even if the answer is painful. Our situation has become emotionally, spiritually, and morally complicated, and we…
Read MoreNo One Can Snatch Them
by Terry Wane Benton In John 10:28, Jesus points to the safety of staying within range of the Shepherd’s voice. “My sheep hear my voice,” and this hearing sets the stage for the next claim: “no one shall be able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” The Father’s hand is the pen, the…
Read MoreRules for Detecting Apocrypha
by Ron Halbrook via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 (I am regularly asked why the Apocrypha of the Catholic Bible should not be considered a legitimate portion of God’s word. Several years ago, Rpn Halbrook presented the following material to the Bible class he was teaching in Athens, Alabama. Brother Halbrook has given…
Read MoreLeslie Diestelkamp Has Died
Author Unknown via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 (Most of you knew Leslie Diestelkamp and what a wonderful saint he was. He has gone on to be with the Lord after a lengthy illness following a stroke. The following is a letter from a father to his children who are away from home.…
Read MoreMisinformation
by Jeff Smelser via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 No informed individual can rationally claim the Bible does not condemn homosexuality. There are people who try to make such a claim, but these fall into two categories: the uninformed and the biased representatives of the homosexual community. The latter are engaged in a…
Read MoreI’m Only Human
by Ney Rieber via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, December 1995 When someone uses the phrase “I’m only human!” you can be pretty sure that they are getting ready to do something inhumane. What do we mean when we say “I am only human?” Most often, “I’m only human!” is used to describe a person’s…
Read MoreTeaching Other Faithful Men
by Hugh DeLong Having preached now for over 50 years, one of my favorite instructions on preaching is II Timothy 2:2: “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” I think this may have been the…
Read MoreWithout Compromise
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2003/11/Without-Compromise.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: II Corinthians 6:14-7:1 I. Disagreeing parties are often urged to reach a compromised position. A. After all, Christians are told to live peaceably – Romans 12:18 B. We are to pursue the things that make for peace – Romans 14:19 C. Without such a pursuit of peace, we cannot see…
Read MoreThe Discipline of an Athlete
by Lee Wildman via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 Paul used examples from athletics to illustrate principles by which Christians are to live. His readers, especially those in Greece and the surrounding areas, knew very well what it meant to be an athlete in the 1st century. Let’s look at some of those…
Read MoreThe Faith of Abraham
by Jeremy Paschall via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 In the Gospel of Jesus Christ, God has revealed His power to save mankind from sin (Romans 1:16). It is not a salvation based upon the works of men (Ephesians 2:9), requiring that they “earn” their way with sinless obedience (Romans 3:20), for then…
Read MoreWhat Can Kill a Church?
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/What-Can-Kill-a-Church.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Revelation 3:1-6 I. The certainty of life is that it will eventually be followed by death – Ecclesiastes 9:5 A. And it is not just people who die, churches die as well. 1. Unlike people, churches don’t have to die, but they do. B. The church at Sardis appeared to…
Read MoreSuppositions Without Support
by David Gibson Jumping to conclusions John the Baptist warned the Jews, “… do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father …” (Matthew 3:9). Simply depending on physical descent from Abraham without the faith and repentance God requires is a baseless assumption (see John 8:37-42, 44, 47; Romans…
Read MoreThe “Let Us” Admonitions in the Book of Hebrews
by Rowland Gbamis “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16-NKJV). The book of Hebrews addresses Christians who, after years of serving the Lord, began to drift from the truth and were in danger of hardening their…
Read MoreHumility Among God’s Children
by Rowland Gbamis “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble” (I Peter 5:5 KJV). In a world that celebrates self-promotion, personal branding, and the relentless pursuit of recognition, humility stands…
Read MoreShame
by Terry Wane Benton “For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret” (Ephesians 5:12). Yet many want to flaunt what should be held in shame. Some want others to see their pride in their rebellion against the word of God and want to shame those who…
Read MoreKeep a Close Watch on Yourself and the Teaching
by Edwin Crozier Surprisingly, the letters written to Timothy and Titus, both evangelists, say almost nothing about what we typically mean by evangelism. When we talk about evangelism, we are usually talking about bringing the gospel to those outside of Christ. But these three letters almost exclusively talk about the evangelist’s work among the congregation…
Read MoreMany Convincing Proofs
by David Gibson Is it just wishful thinking—the belief that Jesus did indeed rise bodily from the dead? Or is there good, solid evidence for it? Luke says of the apostles, “To these He presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days …” (Acts…
Read MoreHow Would You Answer?
by David Gibson A friend asked how I would respond if someone said he did not believe the Bible is inspired. This is what I told him. If the person is open to the truth, I would first prove that Jesus rose from the dead. “Nothing is more crucial in the field of Christian evidences…
Read MoreThe “Christian” President
by Whit Sasser James Garfield was the only minister elected as President. He was a preacher, even having, as a young man, once preached in a meeting with an elderly Alexander Campbell. It is claimed that he said upon his election as our 20th president, “‘I now step down from being an elder of the…
Read MoreWhy do so many myths of gods’ births involve stars?
Question: Why do stories of many gods’ births have a star at their births, such as Krishna? Answer: Mankind has long toyed with the idea that the stars controlled events. Astrology is “The study of the movements and relative positions of celestial bodies and their supposed influence on human affairs.” It is a belief that…
Read MoreAn Inconsistent Obituary
by Craig Meyer via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 3, September 1995 In the July 1993 issue of Reflections On Truth, David Padfield reports an obituary in the Chicago Tribune of May 22, 1993. It seems that William Bentley, a Pentecostal preacher, died while conducting Sunday services at the Progressive Beulah Pentecostal Church. Bentley had served as…
Read MoreScience’s Impact on Christian Teaching
by Kenneth W. Ledbetter via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 3, September 1995 [The author is an aerospace engineer with NASA, most recently involved with the Hubble Space Telescope project, and is a faithful Christian at the Annandale church of Christ.] How many of the everyday devices around you can you honestly say you understand the…
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