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How Old Is the Earth?
by Perry Hall A recent conversation with an atheist who was honest enough to admit a point I had made was from a perspective she hadn’t heard before. May we all be as honest! The information below is more than what I discussed with the young lady: In doing campus evangelism, I asked a young…
Read MorePreaching to Be Paid or Being Paid So You Can Preach?
by Perry Hall Men should not preach to get paid; men should be paid so they can preach. There is a fundamental difference in that statement: If someone preaches to get paid, the emphasis is on the preacher wanting to receive money from the congregation for the time that he preached. If someone is paid…
Read MoreJesus, the Rock
by Doy Moyer Rocks play an important role in Scripture. For example, when the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, God cared for their thirst by providing water from a rock (Exodus 17:1-7). Though they had tested God’s presence, God provided and demonstrated He was there. On the mountain, Moses asked to see God’s…
Read MoreIt Lives and Abides Forever
by Terry Wane Benton Some people who never read the Bible form a view of it anyway. They were told that the Bible is out of date, not up with modern culture, has lost its relevance to our times, and is just a mixture of myths and fables anyway. They did not get that view…
Read MoreSeeking a Church
by Jefferson David Tant So, you are moving to a new town, and you have various decisions to make. Where is a nice neighborhood? Are there any houses there that I can afford? Where is the nearest shopping center? How close to my job do I want to live? Is the traffic bad on the…
Read MoreYou Legalist!
by Dave Hart “You…you… legalist!!” I remember the first time I was called a legalist. It was not a compliment. The response was given after I had shown what the Bible commands on a particular subject. The exact words were, “I think it’s sad that you’re such a legalist.” Since then, there have been many…
Read MoreBroken Jars, Broken Lives
by Zeke Flores Jeremiah had been to the potter’s house. In Jeremiah 18, he saw the craftsmanship the potter exercised in creating and then reshaping his work. I’m sure he saw the pleasure in the artisan’s face as the vessel took the shape he intended. In chapter 19, the persecuted prophet is told to buy…
Read MoreJesus, the Bridegroom
by Doy Moyer God created Adam and Eve to be husband and wife, cleaving to each other in faithfulness (Genesis 2:24). Here is the beginning of marriage, but marriage was not meant to be an end in itself. Marriage is intended to point to something even greater: God and His people in a covenant relationship…
Read MoreThe Way to Live
by Fanning Yater Tant (1908-1997) (The following is from a notebook of my father when he was a student at David Lipscomb College, Nashville, Tennessee, in 1927. He was 18 years old at the time.) The finest thing that a man can give to this old world as he journeys through, Is to live each…
Read MoreGod Wants Me to Be Happy
by Zeke Flores “God wants me to be happy!” How many times have you heard that from someone? How often might you have said it yourself? Interestingly, the Bible says nothing like that. It does say that God wants you to be holy (I Peter 1:14-16), which is much deeper and far more significant than…
Read MoreA Father’s Helpful Words to His Son
by Gregory Roark “Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying: ‘I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. And keep the charge of the Lord your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes,…
Read MoreSome Thoughts About Dad’s Day
by Max Dawson A man’s first priority should be to “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). The meaning of that text is to let God reign in your life. Set Him as king in your heart. Seek His plan for making you the righteous person He wants you to be.…
Read MoreWhat Is Being Neglected or Forsaken?
by Adam Litmer The following question was recently asked: “What specifically is meant in Hebrews 10:25 by ‘neglecting’ or ‘forsaking’? Is it inferring a requirement of attendance, or is it addressing an attitude towards worship? If it is a requirement, wouldn’t that infer all opportunities (Wednesday night, etc.) set up by local elders or congregation?”…
Read MoreBelieving the Best About Other Christians
by Matthew W. Bassford I’ve stayed out of the online debate about how churches should respond to the coronavirus and whether churches that assemble are more righteous than churches that don’t (or vice versa). As far as I am concerned, this is a marvelous opportunity to honor the great Scriptural principle of congregational autonomy. If…
Read MorePut Jesus on Trial
by Perry Hall When talking with atheists, I like to tell them to put Jesus on trial. How do we do this? Practical: Examine Jesus’s Teachings: What do you think of Jesus’s teachings? Are Jesus’s teachings indicative of a wise man, a conniver, or a lunatic? How do Jesus’s teachings compare to others? Is Jesus…
Read MoreAd Hominem Arguments
by Doy Moyer One of the most common logical fallacies is the ad hominem. It occurs when a person attacks the character of another rather than addressing the argument. There are many ways this happens, but one that I have seen several times is in questioning the honesty of one who differs. You don’t agree…
Read MoreFather’s Day
by Ray Warfel, Jr. Today is Father’s Day, so naturally, I’ll start by mentioning Mother’s Day. Last month, on Mother’s Day, in my Sunday sermon, I highlighted various moms. Moms from long ago, moms who are a blessing, moms who never had children, moms to children who are not their own, and moms who were…
Read MoreWhen the Guests are Drunk?
by Terry Wane Benton Does John 2:10 say and mean “when the guests are drunk” as the NET so renders, or does the verse have a different connotation? My Interlinear renders this “have well drunk,” which is a far different meaning than “are drunk.” The interlinear rendering means only that they had a lot of…
Read MoreJesus, the Great Redeemer
by Doy Moyer To be redeemed is to be set free from an oppressive circumstance, generally by payment of a ransom price. Scripture tells a story of redemption, where people are set free from sin, purchased by the blood of Christ, and made again into a new creation fit for God’s service. Many passages claim…
Read MoreJust What Exactly Are the Standards?
by Terry Wane Benton I got a notice from the powers that be that I would not be able to do anything for one hour because I did something (like publish a good post with biblical and godly standards) that did not comport with their “community standards.” They didn’t say exactly what I did wrong,…
Read MoreA Living Hope
by Terry Wane Benton What is a “living hope?” Peter says we have this living hope “through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead” (I Peter 1:3). Thus, the resurrection of Jesus forms the basis of hope. When Jesus returned from the grave, it brought a dead hope to life and made it a “living”…
Read MoreCan Pets Become Idols?
by Terry Wane Benton I think we can see an unhealthy attachment to anything becomes a form of idolatry, the same as covetousness for money becomes a form of idolatry (Colossians 3:5). When our love for animals gets in the way of doing what God says, it can become a form of idolatry. We hear…
Read MoreThe Judge Is Standing at the Door
by Terry Wane Benton “Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door” (James 5:9). Don’t forget that the Judge is not off in some distant land attending to more important matters than our words and attitudes. He is standing…
Read MoreMy sister is too tired to attend worship
Question: Hello Minister, My question is, what should I do about my younger sister, who came to me in private about her walk? She is a young single mother who is getting by in life. She works all the time and is very tired on Sunday mornings. She only goes to church once every couple…
Read MoreDoes Love Sanctify?
by Adam Litmer The following question was submitted for consideration. “I was recently in a conversation where someone claimed that genuine love sanctifies homosexual relationships. I wasn’t sure how to respond to that in the moment. Would you mind offering some thoughts?” I’m happy to offer a few thoughts. The statement about genuine love “sanctifying”…
Read MoreJamaica Patois Wisdom – Help
by Jefferson David Tant The Jamaican Patois dialect is colorful, unique, and humorous. It is my desire to share some of the philosophy shown in this mix of colorful phrases that are witty as well as thought-provoking. I hope the readers both profit and enjoy. In my quarter-century plus of teaching there, I have come…
Read MoreThis Will Turn Out
by Terry Wane Benton “For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:19). He had a mob of angry Jews trying to kill him in Jerusalem and in route to Caesarea, was kept in prison at Caesarea for two…
Read MoreAre Translations Authorized?
by Doy Moyer Perhaps this seems like an odd question, but it is good to think about this. Since most people are not going to learn Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, the only way they are going to hear God’s word at all will be through translations. But how do we show that translations can still…
Read MoreLiteral or Dynamic Translations
by Doy Moyer It should go without saying that we want to have accurate Scripture translations. For many, that means wanting a “word for word” (aka literal) translation instead of a more “thought for thought” (aka dynamic) translation. While some translations get closer to doing that than others (e.g., NASB vs NIV), the truth is…
Read MoreAre Preachers Ministers?
by Terry Wane Benton Yes! They are not the only ministers in the church, but they minister in a certain way; they serve in teaching and edifying the church’s role. They minister the gospel to the lost and the saved. That is a certain way of ministering, but the average church member is a minister…
Read MoreThe King James Translators’ Thoughts on Bible Translations
by Doy Moyer I recommend reading the translators’ preface to the King James Version of 1611. It’s easily found online, and some older King James Bibles may contain it. It helps provide some context when trying to see the value in various translations. People today make claims about KJV that the translators did not make.…
Read MoreDo Newer Translations Leave Out Verses?
A meme has been passed around a good bit, usually with a warning that these newer versions, like the NIV, have removed certain phrases and verses. This is quite misleading and does not comport with how translations work and why certain phrases and passages are “missing.” The truth is, one could just as well argue…
Read MoreLaw of God and Law of Moses: Are They the Same?
by Terry Wane Benton Seventh-Day Adventists have long made the claim that the “law of God” is the moral and permanently binding “Ten Commandments” that were kept inside the ark of the covenant while claiming that the “law of Moses” was different. They claim it was “ceremonial” law and placed “in the side of the…
Read MoreDon’t Be a Peninnah
by Terry Wane Benton Peninnah provoked Hannah severely to “make her miserable” (1 Sam.1:6). If you don’t have anything better in life to do than to make someone miserable, you have made yourself pretty worthless. The story shows a serious flaw in the arrangement of polygamy, but it also shows a flaw in personal character.…
Read MoreIf Baptism Was a Work
by Terry Wane Benton The claim is made that baptism cannot be part of the salvation process (the process from lost sinner to saved and justified in Christ) because it is claimed that “baptism is a work” and “we are saved through faith and not of works” (Ephesians 2:8-9). However, this claim is very faulty…
Read MoreReceiving the Grace of God in Vain
by Terry Wane Benton Have you thought about the fact that you could have received the grace of God in vain? That is a very real possibility. How can we receive it in vain? “We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain” (II…
Read MoreJesus, Our Mediator and Intercessor
by Doy Moyer When we consider what Jesus does for us as His people, two terms are used to help us understand why it is so important to trust Him. Scripture teaches that Jesus is both our Mediator and our Intercessor. Let’s consider these terms. Jesus Is Our Mediator “For there is one God, and…
Read MoreIf We Taught More About Grace
by Terry Wane Benton If we taught more about grace, we would teach people to deny ungodliness and worldly lust. Paul told Titus that the grace of God had already appeared to all men. “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11). Now, what does grace teaching look…
Read MoreHow Do I Choose a Church?
by Johnny O. Trail One radio station in Nashville does nothing but talk radio. As an avid talk radio listener, I am always interested in the questions and comments of those who call in. On one show, the host deals exclusively with emails that listeners have sent in. The other day, one that caught my…
Read MoreA Manifesto for Myself on Social Media
by Doy Moyer Please note that these are thoughts I’m mulling over for my own growth and attitude as I think about culture. If you disagree with anything here, that’s fine. I ask for respect and consideration, but you are also perfectly free to ignore this. This is in first person because they really are…
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