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Jesus Heals the Hurting
by Doy Moyer The world in which we live is filled with heartache and pain. This is part of the corruption experienced by humanity due to the problem of sin (Genesis 3). Things in this world are not as they were initially created to be, and we know things need to be made right. Our…
Read MoreGrandmother’s Bible
by John Shafer One day, a mother told her daughter that she would be spending time at her grandmother’s house. The little girl told her mother how excited she was, because of how great grandmother’s Bible was. “Why is it so great?” her mother asked. The little girl told her all the stories and people…
Read MoreA Line in the Sand
by Zeke Flores “This came about because the sons of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their God” (II Kings 17:7). “The line in the sand.” by Bernard Spragg, NZ, via Flickr A line in the sand has a universal meaning: Don’t cross it. II Kings 17 tells of the end of the northern kingdom of…
Read MoreJesus, the Ruler Over the Kings of the Earth
by Terry Wane Benton “And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Revelation 1:5). Jesus is “the Ruler over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 1:5) and…
Read MoreThree Gods or One God in Three Persons?
by Dudley Ross Spears via Unmasking Sophistry, Jan-Mar 2024, vol. 4, no. 1 Originally published in Gospel Truths, Vol. IV, Number 6, June 1993, pp.13-14 The Bible teaches there is only one God. “Have we not all one father? Hath not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother,…
Read MoreThe Revelation of Jesus Christ
by Terry Wane Benton “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants–things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John” (Revelation 1:1 NKJV). Since this book is the Revelation of Jesus Christ, it seems clear that it is revealing all…
Read MoreJesus, the Firstborn from the Dead
by Terry Wane Benton “And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Revelation 1:5 NKJV). “Firstborn” is a term that can point to the one that was…
Read MoreJesus, the Faithful Witness
by Terry Wane Benton “And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Revelation 1:5 NKJV). Jesus is the faithful, dependable witness! No man has seen God at any…
Read MoreDealing with Temptation
by Jefferson David Tant One of my early morning activities is reading the daily newspaper. Not only do I learn what’s going on in the world, but sometimes I get a smile when there is a misprint or misspelled word. I read about one in a weather report. It read “Fair weather tomorrow with no…
Read MoreEvaluating Movies and Shows
by Doy Moyer While it is difficult to find movies or shows that are worth watching (for various reasons), I do believe Christians need to consider how to evaluate what they watch and hear from the biblical perspective. In recently reading Unraveling Philosophy by Groza and Moreland, I found these questions helpful: What is the…
Read MoreThe Wrong Definition of Growth
by Paul K. Williams (deceased) John Cripps asked an elder in the United States why the church where he was a member was growing. He replied, “When we stopped pounding the pulpit on the issues we started to grow.” The elder also said that the elders were divided on the subject of divorce and remarriage,…
Read MoreIt’s in the Greek
by Greg Gwin As we study and discuss the New Testament there is sometimes a reference made to things that are contained in the original language. Someone will mention that “the Greek says” this or that. It’s not a bad thing to try to understand something about the meaning of words as used by the…
Read MoreGossipers
by W. C. Hinton After denouncing tattlers and gossipers, the apostle immediately defines what he means by a “busybody.” He says that they speak “things which they ought not.” In other words, they misuse their tongues! (See I Timothy 5:13). Do you ever gossip about others? Be honest now! It’s a very common sin. Many…
Read MoreLegalism … Again … and Again … and Again …
by Jonathan Perz Ugh. (Yes, I just started a post off with the word “ugh.”) I realize that many of my brethren have grave concerns about the idea of “legalism.” It has become quite paramount in the thinking of some. The way some speak, there is nothing worse in Scripture than being a “legalist” and…
Read MoreEstimating Jesus’ Birth
by Chas D. Mayfield To understand when Jesus was born, we have to go back about 18 months to the beginning of the Jewish New Year. Add up the weeks 2 (for the Passover and Pentecost weeks) + 8 (Zachariah served the 8th division of Abijah) + 1 (Luke 1:23 Elizabeth conceived immediately?) + 40…
Read MoreBefore Jesus Was Born
by Doy Moyer The Gospels of Matthew and Luke both speak to various details concerning the birth of Jesus Christ. The Gospel of Mark says nothing about these details but rather jumps right into the work of John and then immediately to the baptism, temptations, and beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. The Gospel of John…
Read MoreYour First Love
by Terry Wane Benton “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love” (Revelation 2:4). The first love was the focused and enthusiastic love they had at the early stages of their conversion. As John in his epistle stated, “We love Him because He first loved us” (I John 4:19) and…
Read MoreI Am Debtor
by Jarrod M. Jacobs When the apostle Paul wrote to the Romans, he said, “I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise” (Romans 1:14). What did that mean? How could he have been a “debtor” to them when he had not seen them yet…
Read MoreChristmas, Brought to You by Jesus!
by Larry Ray Hafley Our title was on a sign I saw south of St. Louis. Doubtless, it was placed there by people with the noblest of intentions. I am sure they meant nothing but the best for the religion of Jesus Christ! However, they could not prove that statement if their lives depended on…
Read MoreI Can’t Get No Satisfaction
by Rick Lanning Ecclesiastes: Solomon’s Masterpiece Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones fame, both turned 80 years old this year. They have been singing rock-n-roll hits for 60 years. Back in 1972 Dick Cavett interviewed them on his TV show and asked them when they were 29 years old, “Do you think…
Read MoreJamaica Patois Wisdom – Clothing
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 MoreChristmas
by Paul Earnhart This is the time of year that the world has set apart for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. All Christians should rejoice that Jesus did come into the world as recorded in the Bible. At this time of year, two things are always amazing to observe. The first is that…
Read MoreA Resource for Grace and Peace
by Terry Wane Benton “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 1:4-5). The…
Read MoreBecause Jesus Was Born
by Doy Moyer “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). While the Gospels of Matthew and Luke give considerable space…
Read MoreOn Enemies
by Terry Wane Benton They made up their mind not to like me for no good reason, but God loves me greatly for deep reasons. Who do I trust? They undermine me, but God upholds me! Who matters to me the most? They choose to keep me out, but God chooses to keep me near.…
Read MoreWorshipful Music
by Robert F. Turner Plain Talk, July 1969 Recuperating from surgery, I lay bedfast, half-hearing the radio. Suddenly I realized that the instrumental number being played was the very old and beautiful hymn, Near To The Heart of God, and that I was brought into a worshipful attitude as I listened. The shocking aspect of…
Read MoreWhere the Blame Actually Belongs
by Terry Wane Benton Humans have a terrible habit of shifting blame. We saw it in the Garden of Eden when Adam blamed the woman and God who gave her to him, and we saw it in the people of Jeremiah’s day. God brought the truth before their consciences, saying, “Your ways and your doings have…
Read MoreMy People Are Foolish
by Terry Wane Benton I find it remarkable that the Old Testament Bible was written by Jews for Jews, but does not compliment these people. It calls them stiffnecked and displays a long history of disobedience to God, and yet people today want us to think that they just “made it up.” What? If I…
Read MoreA Heart of Stone or a Heart of Flesh?
by Jarrod M. Jacobs Twice in the book of Ezekiel, God spoke about the fact that He would take the people and remove their “stony heart” so they might have a heart of “flesh” (Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26). In context, the “stony” heart describes the person who has been disobedient and obstinate against God. The heart…
Read MoreDeath Is Yours!
by Paul Earnhart via Christianity Magazine, 12(7), 10 (1995) Solomon warns of the folly of building life on youth because it slips away like the morning mist and the once vital body turns frail and slips its earthly moorings (Ecclesiastes 11:9 to 12:7). I remember my first intimate contact with death. As a young and…
Read MoreLuke and the Birth of Jesus
by Doy Moyer Luke’s intent to “compile an account of the things accomplished among us” as handed down by eyewitnesses begins with the birth of John the Immerser. John’s role would be to “turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God” by going “as a forerunner before Him in the…
Read MoreSet a Mark
by Jarrod M. Jacobs Ezekiel 9 continues the record of Ezekiel’s vision from chapter 8. Here, he sees God calling men, specifically executioners, to Him, for they were going to execute those who had gone astray into idolatry. Remember, this is a highly figurative vision, but these men in the vision stood for the execution…
Read MoreMatthew and the Birth of Jesus
by Doy Moyer Matthew describes the birth of Jesus succinctly and factually: “Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way” (Matthew 1:18). This is after he has spent time on the genealogy of Jesus, showing that He is the rightful King descended through the line of David. He is expressly called “the…
Read MoreChrist Sent Me Not to Baptize
by Terry Wane Benton In I Corinthians 1:17 Paul said, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.” The assumption that denominational people make is that Christ did not send Paul to baptize because…
Read MoreWhat Is the Law?
Original Author Unknown edited by Michael Garrison Have you wondered just what “the law” refers to in the New Testament? It does not always refer to the Ten Commandments. Note the following: Genesis is called the law. Galatians 4:21-23 refers to Genesis 16:15; 21:1-3. Exodus is called the law in Romans 7:7 which refers to…
Read MoreWhen Jeremiah Wanted to Quit Preaching
by Terry Wane Benton It wasn’t just mental fatigue and having to deal with obnoxious attitudes, but having to constantly deal with brethren undermining him and working against him, some even looking for ways to get rid of him for good! It got to where he dreaded preaching the needed message of repentance. It was…
Read MoreYou Never Know What’s Going to Stick
by Zeke Flores A while back, one of my daughters was going through a box of her papers that we had stored in our attic. She ran across a paper she had written and given to me in her teen years that listed 10 reasons why I should let her get her belly button pierced.…
Read MoreThe Seriousness of Teaching
by Jarrod M. Jacobs Twice in Ezekiel, God warns him about how serious it is to teach God’s truth and warn people when they are in sin. Ezekiel 3:17-21 and 33:2-9 make it clear that Ezekiel served as a “watchman” for the Lord. As such, he had the duty to warn people about sin and the…
Read MoreThey Shall Know a Prophet Has Been Among Them
by Jarrod M. Jacobs When Ezekiel was called to be a prophet, God made certain things very clear to him. God made it clear that these people were a “rebellious house” (Ezekiel 2:3). God does not mince words regarding His people! He lets Ezekiel know the kind of people he will be facing. At the…
Read MoreA Hard-Headed Prophet
by Jarrod M. Jacobs Ezekiel 3:4-11 describes for us God’s intent for the prophet Ezekiel. He was sent to a specific group of people, the house of Israel (Ezekiel 3:4). He did not go to foreigners or those who had never heard, but to those who had heard again and again and refused to obey…
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