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Some Believed
by Hugh DeLong “In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks. But the Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren. Therefore they spent a long…
Read MoreCan You Be Saved Without Baptism?
by Terry Wane Benton Can a person be saved although they have not been baptized? Was this the case of the thief on the cross? Jesus commanded baptism in His name after He was raised from the dead (Mark 16:15-16). The thief was like David, pardoned under the terms of the Old Testament (Hebrews 9:15-17).…
Read MoreWhy Anyone Still Follows a 2,000-Year-Old Book
by Steve Wolfgang via InLight Media To be fair, the Bible is a very old book. You might wonder how relevant it could even be to our modern questions and problems. But there’s a reason the Bible is still the best-selling book of all time, and it’s the same reason people keep coming back to…
Read MoreWhat Kind of Drugstore Is This?
by Edward O. Bragwell, Jr. I saw a cartoon posted in a brother’s drug store with the caption saying in effect: “What do you mean you don’t have nuts and bolts? What kind of drug store is this?” Our society expects more from a drug store than just drugs. The sign may say “Drug Store,”…
Read MoreConsuming Fire
by Chadwick Brewer “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29). The Hebrew writer has spent considerable time telling us that Jesus is a great High Priest. In…
Read MoreGod’s Description of Himself
by Zeke Flores “Then Yahweh passed by in front of him and proclaimed, ‘Yahweh, Yahweh God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth'” (Exodus 34:6). This is God describing Himself. Not Moses describing God, nor Israel describing God. God Himself says, “This is who I am.” Compassionate. Gracious. Slow to…
Read MoreVisitor or Member?
by Terry Wane Benton Many congregations are made up of workers who pitch in to help the local church grow in edification and meaningful fellowship in the work and worship of God. They try to be involved in teaching classes, preparing communion, cleaning the building, hosting meals for other members, and fostering togetherness. They try…
Read MoreHard Thinking
by J. Watson My Dad was a preacher. He was a good man, a kind man, a strong man, a people person, a completely God-focused man. Lately, I’ve been going through times when I wish I had his strength and wisdom to rely on. As I’ve been thinking a lot about him lately, I have…
Read MoreThree Principles for Living Well
by Terry Wane Benton “He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8 NKJV). Do justly Be fair with others. Start at home with your wife, husband, and children. Make this…
Read MorePrayers and Thoughts
by Edwin Crozier As Paul continued to instruct the Philippians in the wake of calling out Euodia and Syntyche, he addressed two important aspects of maintaining harmony. First, recognize that a great deal of disharmony comes from anxiety. Let’s face it. Viewing others as more significant and prioritizing their interests over our own can make…
Read MoreRighteousness
by Terry Wane Benton In Jesus’ great sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus spoke of the necessary principles of those who would be part of His kingdom. He said that if our standard of “righteousness” did not exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, we could by “no means enter the kingdom of…
Read MoreEuodia and Syntyche
by Edwin Crozier In one little paragraph, we find the rubber hitting the road for Paul’s letter to the Philippians: “I entreat Euodia and Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and…
Read MoreOnly God Can Make a Man
dby David Gibson A designer with a lowercase “d” A few years ago, we visited with a man who helped design a life-size robot of Abraham Lincoln. Not only did it look realistic, but it could even stand up and make a speech. The designer showed us the schematics of its inner workings—a true marvel…
Read MoreBible versus Other Religious Writings
by Terry Wane Benton There are two ways to test the validity of a book’s claims about itself. There is the external test, which considers the historical accuracy and archeological evidence in its favor. Then there is the internal test, which considers prophetic accuracy, unity, harmony, and unusual marks of foreknowledge or super-human knowledge. When these…
Read MoreCongregational Divorces
by Perry Hall Divorces can get ugly. Husbands and wives can get cutthroat, trying to financially and emotionally consume the other. Anything that is personally untoward to the attorneys can be used as a fair game to play a court game unfairly. Too many divorces can be over trivial issues, which leads to such ugliness.…
Read MoreChrist versus Culture
by Ed Harrell via Christianity Magazine, June 1988, p. 11 Reinhold Neibuhr, along with others, argued that all religion tends to be captured by its culture. Rather than standing in judgment of the world around them, most religious people find ways to give divine sanction to their society. I have no difficulty in seeing that…
Read MoreRemembering
by Ed Harrell via “Remembering,” Christianity Magazine 2:1, January 1985, p. 32 Cluttered with a record of every trivial encounter of our experience, our minds have a very limited capacity to call most of that memory to the conscious surface. Most of us remember very little about our past…None of us could reconstruct with any…
Read MoreGod’s Job is Perfection; Our Job is Pressing On
by Edwin Crozier What a statement Paul made in Philippians 3:12. He had not already obtained the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Neither was he already perfect. Don’t forget Paul’s circumstance in writing. He was in prison. For all he knew, he was going to receive a death sentence. He…
Read MoreLook to Exemplary Disciples
by Edwin Crozier I’m sometimes surprised by how Christians talk about the selfishly ambitious teachers in Philippians 1:15-17. The way I hear some people talk about these men is as if Paul were unconcerned about their envy and rivalry. Oh, sure, they should probably do better than that, and they probably need to grow some…
Read MoreLearning the Story of God and His People
by Hugh DeLong As a preacher, I have converted many people, most of whom knew very little about the actual bible story. Then it took time to ground them in this story of God and His work. This was particularly true of our preaching efforts in China. How were they to learn this story? In…
Read MoreGuard What Was Entrusted
by Terry Wane Benton Paul was passionate about defending the original apostolic teaching that was given by the Holy Spirit. He wept about men corrupting that original teaching and passionately appealed to the elders at Ephesus to be on guard for themselves and that of others who would creep into the flock (Acts 20:28f). Paul’s…
Read MoreHow Has God Revealed Himself?
by Terry Wane Benton Skeptics argue that God should reveal Himself more personally than He did in Jesus, claiming that the claim of incarnation is not sufficient to their way of thinking. They demand a personal encounter to force away their doubts. Yet, God has revealed Himself in prophets, in words, in miracles, in creation,…
Read MoreWoke?
by Terry Wane Benton I think people in the “woke” movement need to truly wake up. It seems that depravity and everything unrighteous and evil are the fruit of the tree of this movement. You had all the markings of this movement in areas of Greece and Rome in the first century. At Corinth, it…
Read MoreJudah: Most Improved
by Eric Reynolds via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 “Most Improved” awards are often the most special. While some have the talents or disposition to excel from the start, others stand out by improving. We celebrate these dramatic developments because they are rare, whether in sports, the classroom, or in life. When a…
Read MoreWhy I Left the Jehovah’s Witnesses Organization
by Leon Kennedy via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 1, March 1995 I have left a human religious organization, but I have not left Jesus Christ. I am just a Christian now, a member of Christ’s church. Jesus is my Savior, who is the only Savior of mankind (Luke 2:11). I would like to sincerely say…
Read MoreDo All Without Grumbling
by Edwin Crozier Paul has told them to do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but always view others as more significant. Then he told them to always obey, following in Jesus’ footsteps. In Philippians 2:14, he wraps up this section with a surprising teaching. “Do all things without grumbling or disputing…” (Philippians 2:14 ESV).…
Read MoreI Sat and Waited
by Brandon Edwards I do that a lot, waiting. Waiting for students. Picking up food. Sitting in the car waiting for my kids. But waiting has not always been something I have enjoyed. In fact, waiting has never been my favorite thing – and in a culture that wants everything now, waiting is the thing…
Read MoreWork Because God Is Working
by Edwin Crozier Text: Philippians 2 Jesus established the example. He left the throne of heaven and lived among us as a servant. God highly exalted Him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name because He was obedient even to the point of death on the cross. “Therefore,” Paul says in…
Read MoreBorn of God: Ramifications for a Lifetime
by Steve Klein via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014 In John 3:1-7, Jesus told Nicodemus, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” “You must be born again.” For centuries, virtually everyone who…
Read MorePious Pretense and Treacherous Hearts
by Allen Malone via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 4, December 1994 In the early hours of TET (the Vietnamese Lunar New Year), Buddhist pagodas, overflowing with whispered prayers and incense smoke, are the scene of pious treachery. The pagan congregant, convinced that the gods will be more inclined to listen if prayers are offered with…
Read MoreMen Wanted
by Kenneth Frazier via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 4, December 1994 “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong” (I Corinthians 16:13). Of this verse, Thayer says the meaning is: “to make a man of or make brave. To show oneself a man, be brave.” W. E. Vine says it…
Read MoreWhen Words Are Pressed Too Far: Understanding Poetic Language In Scripture And Song
by Becky René Why Over-Literal Interpretation Can Lead to Misunderstanding From time to time, concerns are raised about the wording of certain hymns. A particular line may be singled out and questioned on the grounds that it could give the wrong impression or, if taken at face value, appear to teach something inaccurate. Such concerns…
Read MoreDiscriminating Against Biblical Marriage
by Michael R. Baggett Would you have thought 20, 30, or 40 years ago we would live to see the day when Biblical marriage would be discriminated against? Biblical marriage is treated like just one kind of relationship in our society. In some cases, it is not recognized at all. What I saw today while…
Read MoreThree Days
by Chadwick Brewer “They departed and went into the hills and remained there three days until the pursuers returned, and the pursuers searched all along the way and found nothing” (Joshua 2:22). Here, after leaving Rahab’s house in Jericho, the spies spent three days hiding in the hills waiting to see if the searchers would…
Read MoreWearing Yourself Out
by Zeke Flores “You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone” (Exodus 18:18). Jethro gives Moses a reality check. Moses is trying to handle everything himself. Every problem. Every dispute. Every responsibility. And Jethro basically says,…
Read MoreFrom an Unlikely Source
by Zeke Flores “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink” (Exodus 17:6). Israel is thirsty, frustrated, and convinced God has abandoned them. Instead of rebuking them, God gives water from a…
Read MoreContradiction or Expanded Details?
by Terry Wane Benton Many are those who think they see “contradictions” everywhere in the Bible, but my experience has been that after more careful consideration, these so-called contradictions are but an expansion of details, both of which can be true. For example, one common claim is that Luke says the men who journeyed with…
Read MoreMy Needs Are Met
by Jefferson David Tant via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 4, December 1994 Within the context of Philippians 4:10-20, are these words: “Not that I speak from want; for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live…
Read MoreDo we withdraw from those who have admitted their sin?
Question: Good day Jeffery, A few months ago, in my old congregation, the preacher, a married man, was having affairs with some sisters. One became jealous and reported to the father of another sister that she was having an affair. This other sister’s father was a preacher in another congregation. He brought the matter to…
Read MoreDo we not forgive the unrepentant?
Question: Does Luke 17:3 imply that we are not to forgive a brother or sister until they have repented? I know God will not forgive until we have repented and asked him for forgiveness. Answer: “Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him” (Luke 17:3). Jesus states…
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