Sojourners and Pilgrims
by Ed Brand Peter urges saints to regard themselves as sojourners and pilgrims. A sojourner is one who lives among aliens. Pilgrims live in a strange place, away from one’s own people. Hostility is injected into this alien, strange place by the phrase, which wars against the soul (I Peter 2:11). He says the present…
Read MoreGod and 1984
by Orlando Gonzalez Several days ago, I had gotten around to finishing George Orwell’s (pseudonym of Eric Arthur Blair) magnum opus, 1984. Despite being written about 73 years ago, I can certainly see that it still stands the test of time as one of the most recognizable and profound novels of the 20th and 21st…
Read MoreDo you have an article by a liberal preacher on your website?
Question: Is the article “Is the Christian Obligated to Forgive the Sinner Who Will Not Repent?” by the Curtis A. Cates who was at one time the director of the Memphis School of Preaching in Memphis, Tennessee? Answer: “John answered and said, ‘Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried…
Read MoreDo occasional sins lead to spiritual death?
Question: Good afternoon, I heard a preacher recently state that in Romans 6:12-18, Paul makes a distinction between presenting your members as instruments for unrighteousness (Romans 6:13) and slaves of unrighteousness (Romans 6:16) which leads to spiritual death. The point being made here was that when a Christian, on occasion, yields his members as instruments…
Read MoreWhen are emotions wrong?
Question: When are emotions wrong? If you feel something, does that make it automatically wrong, or is there more to it than that? One thing I really struggle with is when I feel certain things, I automatically get upset with myself for having felt them at all. Answer: “He who trusts in his own heart…
Read MoreThree Reasons I Don’t Like Denominations
by Wes McAdams Radically Christian Mahatma Gandhi is quoted as saying, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” If you ask me, I’d say, “I love Christ (and I love you), but I do not like your denominations. Your denominations are so unlike Christ.” If…
Read MoreMarriage Counseling
by Matthew W. Bassford I’m a simple man. I believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God and that it is sufficient to equip us for every good work. My favorite hymn is “Give Me the Bible”. Consequently, whenever I encounter a problem that afflicts the soul, I presume that the solution lies…
Read MoreOur Persistence
Our Persistence – Part 1Our Persistence – Part 2 by Garry Floyd
Read MoreThe Bible Doesn’t Say, “Don’t Do It,” Does it?
by Wayne Jackson Solomon once wrote that “there is no new thing under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Certainly that saying is true with reference to the arguments that a swelling “progressive” element within the church is employing in defense of the idea that the use of musical instruments is permissible in Christian worship. Or at…
Read MoreBlind to the Truth
by Matthew W. Bassford Upton Sinclair once said, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.” Few better illustrations of this truth exist than the behavior of the craftsmen of Ephesus in Acts 19. They, along with everyone else in the city, are familiar…
Read MoreIs Change Always Right?
by Glen Young Change is difficult. We all have experienced this truth. How many New Year resolutions have fallen by the wayside after a few weeks? There is no doubt that changing bad behavior is necessary even though it is difficult. It is not my intention to discuss the need to change bad behavior. However,…
Read MoreHow can Christ be equal to the Father when he submitted to the Father?
Question: I read the article, ‘Who was the angel that Jacob wrestled with at Jabbok?’, and I was a bit confused. If Christ was called a messenger of God before he took a lower form (Philippians 2:6-8), how can we argue objectively with the Jehovah’s Witnesses that he is equal to God? In I Corinthians…
Read MoreReasoning Includes God
by Doy Moyer Reason has been granted to us by God as those made in His image. When we try to reason without acknowledging God, we become our own idols by assuming that we do not need God. This leads to futility in thinking (Romans 1:21; Ephesians 4:17). In doing this we are relying on…
Read MoreIs fasting required to communicate with God?
Question: Regarding fasting: some pastors say that when you want God to communicate with you, you have to fast for three days or more, and if you want to be delivered from certain things fasting has to be involved. Is it really true? Secondly, in Matthew 17:19-21, may I ask for further clarification? What are…
Read MoreCan Obedience be Partial?
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Can-Obedience-be-Partial.mp3 by Raymond Warfel
Read MoreIs it wrong to charge for marriage counseling?
Question: Hi Jeffrey, I hope you are well. I have this desire to be a counselor on relationships and marriage, Also, I have this desire to do public speaking. My dream is to help people in these areas while serving God. I have signed with someone, who does these things, to mentor me in these…
Read MoreIs it “end of the world” or “end of the age”?
Question: Hello, My son has fallen into the web of denominational teachings, including some off-the-wall organizations with the typical anything-goes philosophies, premillennialism, rapture, etc. He and I have finally begun to discuss the truth with the myths he believes. I have sent him several of your articles on the “End of Times, Rapture, etc” he…
Read MoreHow God Is Disobeyed
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/How-God-Is-Disobeyed.mp3 by Raymond Warfel
Read MoreBack to Basics
by Frank Jamerson Christ and the Law Covenants The Kingdom
Read MoreReturn to the Lord
by Warren E. Berkley “‘Yet even now,’ declares the LORD, ‘return to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, weeping and mourning; and rend your heart and not your garments.’ Now return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness and relenting of evil” (Joel…
Read MoreGod’s Unchanging Hand
by Ken Weliever, The Preacherman “For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, inasmuch as we,…
Read MoreWhat Shall I Do?
by Jefferson David Tant One undeniable certainty of life is that it is full of choices. What time to get up in the morning, what clothes to wear, what food to eat, what car to buy, who to marry, what occupation to pursue, what friends to choose. All of them have consequences. And of course,…
Read MoreLet Justice Roll Down
by Doy Moyer “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” (Amos 5:24) We typically think of justice as being connected to our legal system, and this is important. However, justice, biblically, must also be practiced personally. It isn’t just about what we do legally; it’s about how we as…
Read MoreAre some of the problems behind homosexual attraction due to not understanding what it means to be male?
Question: Dear Mr. Hamilton, I read your response to the young man who asked: “I think I’m gay because my penis gets erect for guys and not gals.” Your answer to why the young man doesn’t get erect around young women was excellent and clear: “You don’t get the same reaction because you don’t see…
Read MoreContending with the Almighty
by Doy Moyer The book of Job is not as much about Job and his faith as it is about God and how He operates. Job was being tested, to be sure, but God even more so. Does God bless Job for nothing? Is God being unfair and unjust? Is God the true adversary? Does…
Read MoreSin versus Grace
by Doy Moyer Sin is much more than just the commission of a bad act here or there. It is a condition in which we reside. Sin is something in which people walk and live (Colossians 3:7). We were dead in sin and were by nature “children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1-3). Sin holds us captive…
Read MoreThe Unusual Style of the Bible
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/The-Unusual-Style-of-the-Bible.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: II Peter 1:16-21 I. When we talk about the Bible, a major point made in its defense is to point out the unusual unity it displays despite being written by about 40 writers over a 1,500 year period. A. The authors lived in different regions, had different occupations. B. The writings…
Read MoreThe One Thing that Matters
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/The-One-Thing-that-Matters.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Luke 11:5-13 I. How do you pray? What do you pray for? A. A young Chinese preacher asked me to explain Luke 11:9-10 better so that he could teach others in his area better B. God is all knowing, but God expects us to ask 1. Consider how many people won’t even…
Read MoreIs it wrong to bow during a prayer offered by someone who does not live a Christian life?
Question: My brother often leads prayer at family gatherings. I have a problem with this. He drinks alcohol daily, often is intoxicated, and lives a sexually immoral life. When he says, “Let’s pray,” everyone bows their heads. My husband is always present and sometimes he does lead the prayer. My brother is not a member…
Read MoreThe Preacher’s Work
by Andy Sochor When Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, one of the matters he addressed was the support of preachers (I Corinthians 9:3-14). He explained that although he did not take wages from them (I Corinthians 9:15; cf. II Corinthians 11:8), he had a right to receive such support. To show that a…
Read MoreIs having a child by artificial insemination without being married acceptable to God?
Question: Hi! I know someone who wants to have a child but doesn’t want to marry. She is planning to have artificial insemination instead to keep her reproductive organ healthy by bearing a child at least once in her life. She considers adopting too, soon, if she still can. She just prefers having a child…
Read MoreWhy would a prophet tell my mother to bathe me?
Question: Good morning sir, I saw your counseling online and I immediately felt at peace, so I felt I should ask for your advice sir. Some weeks ago, my grandmother’s prophet of a celestial church came to the house and asked my mum to bathe me as she would a child. He said it was…
Read MoreMormonism and Polygamy
by Jefferson David Tant It is well known that in the 1800s the Mormon Church taught and practiced polygamy. Its founder, Joseph Smith, had many wives. Andrew Jensen, who was an assistant Mormon church historian, listed 27 women who were married to Joseph Smith (see the Historical Record, pp. 233, 234). The Mormon author John…
Read MoreSome Things I Want to Teach My Children
by Bill Hall “And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath; but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). In keeping with the instruction of this passage, there are certain things that I want to teach my children. Reverence I want to teach my children proper reverence and…
Read MoreJames, Peter, and I
by Matthew W. Bassford Acts 12 offers one of the great conundrums of the New Testament. In the first few verses of the chapter, the wicked king Herod Agrippa arrests and executes the apostle James, the brother of John. Shortly thereafter, he arrests Peter with the same intention. However, God sends his angel to rescue…
Read MoreTaking Advantage of Personal Contacts
by Jefferson David Tant The day was hot, and they walked a long distance. They were passing through unfamiliar territory among people of a different culture, and some were possibly nervous. By now it was noon, and the sun was beating down. At last, a resting place ahead – a well. The group left their…
Read MoreIs imagining what God is like idolatry?
Question: Hi Mr. Hamilton, How have you been? I’ve been wondering, is it sinful or idolatrous for me to try and picture God or Christ in my mind? This is often something I do whenever I pray for God’s wisdom on a matter, when I’m stressed out about something and just want to leave those…
Read MoreI want to change my life. Can you help me?
Question: Greetings to you, I have read almost everything that you have written on homosexuality and you have answered most of my questions. Still, I feel like writing to you with some of my other questions and feelings. I am a young guy. Since I can remember, I felt attracted to men and not girls. I…
Read MoreA Better Understanding of Baptism
by T. Sean Sullivan As many lessons as having included baptism, one might think everyone has it all figured out. However, lessons don’t always stick and their points are not always being absorbed as they should. There also seems to be a never-ending stream of false ideas from out there. With so much confusion on…
Read MoreCount Your Many Blessings — But Use Them
by Kent Heaton As a nation, we are blessed in measures far exceeding the majority of people in the world. The material wealth possessed by Americans may seem rather routine but in most countries owning a pair of shoes is like owning a rare jewel. Stores often are filled to the brim with an abundance…
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