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Rash Words
by Doy Moyer “There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing” (Proverbs 12:18). Here’s one thought about our need to be careful with our words. What we say publicly reflects upon our spouses and loved ones. If we are constantly complaining about how bad things…
Read MoreRules for Religious Discussions
by Andy Sochor “But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence” (I Peter 3:15). It is incumbent upon all Christians to be ready to teach others.…
Read MoreThere Will Be a Rapture
by Terry Wane Benton If we consider that the words “caught up” in I Thessalonians 4:17 are translated as “rapture” in Latin, then there is going to be a “caught up” (rapture) moment. So, the word is there in Latin, and since the verse says we will be “caught up together with them in the…
Read MoreEzras Still Need Shecaniahs
by Jason Hardin In God’s Image “Ezra.” If you’re familiar with the Old Testament of the Bible, you remember the name. “Shecaniah”? Probably not. But here’s something we all need to understand: the “Ezras” of the world desperately need the “Shecaniahs.” In Ezra 10, after rebuilding the temple, restoring the Passover, and contending with a…
Read MoreGrace Is Sufficient
by Doy Moyer Paul describes certain visions and revelations that were beyond his understanding (II Corinthians 12). He then spoke of what he calls a “thorn in the flesh,” given to him to keep him from becoming conceited. He implored the Lord three times that this thorn would be removed from him. Whatever it was,…
Read MoreWhat One Teenager Can Do
by Dick Blackford The article below was written about 17-year-old Tim Wadlington. Tim died of cancer on Sept. 8, 1989, and I attended his funeral on the 12th at Eddysville, Kentucky. The church at Suwanne, where Tim worshipped, has a bulletin that is published solely by the teenagers, called The River of Life. I knew…
Read MoreWhich Apostle Had It the Easiest?
by Perry Hall Which apostle had it the easiest? James. That answer may be surprising. Even more surprising is why and how. In Acts 12, James is martyred first among the apostles. Some may question God’s fairness, and may even complain, “Why did God allow James to die but allowed Peter to live?” Considering the…
Read MoreI Thessalonians 5:4 and the Destruction of Jerusalem
by Terry Wane Benton Is “this day” (I Thessalonians 5:4) the destruction of Jerusalem? No! If “this day” is talking to the Thessalonians about the coming of the Lord in wrath on Jerusalem: How would that day overtake the Thessalonians as a thief? How did “sudden destruction” overtake any Thessalonians? Why did everyone “escape?” (I…
Read MoreWhy I Didn’t Leave the Church
by Matthew W. Bassford The posts appear pretty regularly on my Facebook feed. Some poor soul, simmering with hurt and anger, explains why they left the churches of Christ. The explanations are generally long and filled with accusations of bad behavior by brethren. I get it. Like many preachers, I have suffered at the hands…
Read MoreDo We Find Repenting Hard to Do?
by Perry Hall Do we find it hard to deeply and truly repent because we are basically a “good person” who has literally been “going to church” our whole life? How do we get better at doing the basic and primary requirement of repenting because the kingdom of God is near (Matthew 3:2)? Why else…
Read MoreTempted and Tried
by Perry Hall “For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another” (Mark 9:49-50). “Salted with fire” (Mark 9:49) is a notoriously hard saying of Jesus. Context can help.…
Read MoreThe Problem of Depression
by David Weaks Depression’s a problem that plagues most people, and Christians are no different. It’s a natural part of the human mind to take periodic emotional downturns. Here is the problem for Christians: somewhere along the way, someone decided that depression is a sin for a Christian. As my dad would say, “Horsefeathers!” God…
Read MoreWas Jesus Literally Forsaken?
by Doy Moyer Did the Father literally forsake Jesus at the cross? The Aramaic phrase spoken by Jesus on the cross, translated as “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” is often taken to mean just that (Matthew 27:46). Generally, the idea is that since Jesus was made to be sin on our…
Read MoreFinding an Unbroken Line of Churches
by Doy Moyer We sometimes hear talk about finding the original church. In the search for the original church, we may then make the mistake of thinking that we can find a line of churches that go all the way back to the 1st century to prove which one is the right church. Besides conflating…
Read MoreShut In
by Matthew W. Bassford Last Sunday morning was the last time I will ever attempt to assemble with the saints. I say “attempt” because I did not succeed in assembling. It was a debacle. About midway through the debacle, I resolved that I wasn’t going to put myself or my wife through such misery anymore.…
Read MoreShould Do or Allowed to Do?
by Doy Moyer “What should I do or not do?” is a question of wisdom. “What am I allowed to do or not do?” is a question of law. While we have boundaries of what we are allowed or not allowed to do, and these are vital to know, more will be determined by wisdom…
Read MoreA Call to Unity
by Matthew W. Bassford I watched a recorded worship service the other day. During it, I was invited to sing a verse of “Onward, Christian Soldiers” that I had never sung before. It reads: Like a mighty army Moves the church of God; Brothers, we are treading Where the saints have trod; We are not…
Read MoreCount It All Joy
by Terry Wane Benton It’s not what happens to you that matters so much as what you do with what happens to you. Who would have thought that Helen Keller would have mattered so much with all the handicaps she was dealt in life? Great people of great faith learn to turn trials into stepping…
Read MoreWhy Call Jesus Good?
by Doy Moyer Mark 10:17-31 tells of a rich, young ruler who approached Jesus and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He was interested enough to seek and find the right source for answers, but the issue was whether he was ready to listen and act. There is something important…
Read MoreLet’s Revisit “Judge Not”
by Terry Wane Benton Each time we speak or write on an issue of sin, we have told what God has said about that sin. When we do that, we are relaying God’s judgment (what He has said and the necessary implications of what He said). We are not making up things and trying to use…
Read MoreSupport the Weak
by Mike Johnson Paul closes the book of I Thessalonians with some very important and practical exhortations. In I Thessalonians 5:14, he “exhorts” (NASB — “urge”) the brethren to, among other things, “uphold the weak.” Christians have a responsibility to “uphold the weak.” The weak are those who are spiritually weak. Most churches have those…
Read MoreWhat’s Wrong with Today’s Youth?
by Bill Hall All along we hear questions raised as to what has gone wrong with today’s youth. Recently, a brother expressed his concern along this line and then asked, “What advice would you give young parents to help them avoid mistakes that we have made in our generation?” The first thing we would say…
Read MoreSome Benefits of Suffering
by Bob Waldron Via Guardian of Truth December 19, 1996 There is no problem in life more universal, more common, and more unique than that of suffering. It is a common malady of mankind; if we live long enough, we will experience some type or degree of suffering. It is not my purpose in this…
Read MoreThe Valley of Dry Bones
by Matthew W. Bassford We all know the song. In fact, many people who aren’t religious know the song. It is easily the most familiar concept from the book of Ezekiel, even though I think most people don’t know that the content of the song comes from the book. Stripped of its context and meaning,…
Read MoreWorking Behind the Scenes
by Bill Fairchild, Jr. “I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience …” (Revelation 2:2). It is said of the early Christians that each determined to do his part in Acts 11:29-30 “…which also they did.” I was engaged in a gospel meeting and had arrived at the building earlier than expected which…
Read MoreKindness Is a Virtue
by Jefferson David Tant It is well known that several passages in God’s Word mention the virtue of kindness. One that is quite well known is Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” There are also passages…
Read MoreThe God Seen in Nothing
by Matthew W. Bassford I love that God thinks so differently than we do. Because His ways are not our ways, He consistently reveals Himself to us using means that we never would have chosen. We prefer straight lines and straightforward propositions, but God works in subtlety and paradox. These things are His signature, His…
Read MoreSullen and Vexed
by Matthew W. Bassford The Israelite king Ahab is one of the most complex characters in the Bible. He isn’t a straightforward villain like Sisera or Caiaphas. There is good in him. When Elijah confronts him over the judicial murder of Naboth in I Kings 21, he repents and humbles himself. However, Ahab is doomed…
Read MoreBurdens
by Johnathan Perz Struggles, infirmities, and adversities are a part of life. We all face them. Paul describes a struggle he brought before God on three occasions, seeking that God remove it from him. Instead of removing the burden, God let Paul bear it, admonishing him with the words, “My grace is sufficient for you,…
Read MoreJamaica Patois Wisdom – Path
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 MoreCalvinism in Psalm 51?
by Matthew W. Bassford During my time as a preacher, I studied with people from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. Of them all, the people who knew their Bibles best were unquestionably the conservative Calvinists. They approached the Scriptures with a different perspective than ours, but the most devoted of them spend as much…
Read MoreI Have a Closed Mind
by Fanning Yater Tant, Vanguard Magazine, January 25, 1979 This editorial is being written on my birthday (December 30). I have now attained my three score and ten, and have reached a point in life where I am neither ashamed nor afraid to say some things which would have been ranked heresy at a younger…
Read MoreWhen Were Musical Instruments First Used in Christian Worship?
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton When Christianity arrived in the world, it drew followers from all nations. “And many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; That He may teach us concerning His ways And that we may walk…
Read MoreThis Is One of Them
by Terry Wane Benton “As Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and *said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.” And he…
Read MoreYour Speech Shows It
by Terry Wane Benton “As Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and *said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.” And he…
Read MoreThe Silence of the Scriptures (Tant)
by Jefferson David Tant For hundreds of years, Bible believers have had discussions over the question of “the silence of the Scriptures.” Does silence indicate that whatever is not specifically condemned is permissible? Thus, does silence give consent? Or does silence mean there is no authority for a certain practice, and it is therefore unscriptural?…
Read MoreWisdom in Learning God’s Commands
by Doy Moyer The ethics of Christians fall under the category of virtue. Virtue ethics is grounded in the attributes and character of God, for all virtue flows from Him. While there is an obligation of following rules (God’s commandments), there is a significant and vital component of learning wisdom. Why? Because, for the most…
Read MoreWhen It’s Time To Leave
by Joe Works Leave Peaceably That may not happen but it needs to be your goal. No good will come from “letting people have it” as you’re walking out the door (Romans 12:18; Hebrews 12:14). Leave Hopeful If people have treated you poorly maybe they will change. Pray sincerely for them. God changed you from…
Read MoreFor This Is God’s Will
by Ethan R. Longhenry “For this is God’s will: that you become holy” (I Thessalonians 4:3) Many people agonize over this question: what is God’s will for my life? They imagine God has a specific intention for them to live in a specific place, be with a specific person, have a specific career or job,…
Read MoreOur Mixed-Up, Topsy-Turvy Society
by Dennis Abernathy Our society can be described as running toward chaos. I am 77 years old, and today’s society is not the culture I grew up in. We are seeing more and more what the apostle Paul describes as “perilous times” (II Timothy 3:1-5). Today’s society is described in Isaiah 5. People were greedy,…
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