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Wrongfully My Enemies
by Terry Wane Benton Ever had people who seemed to hate you for no good reason? They made up their mind that they did not like you, but that was not enough. They worked behind your back to undermine you and sought to get rid of you or ruin you. David would say “welcome to…
Read MoreCafeteria-Style Religion
by Ethan R. Longhenry An investigation of the local bookstore or magazine rack or a quick search on the Internet shows how Americans today are very interested in “spirituality.” Plenty of books abound across the whole spectrum — “Christian inspiration,” “New Age,” and many books describing elements of Eastern religions. These trends were recently documented…
Read MoreThe Need for Foundations
by Jefferson David Tant In news reports from Atlanta, Georgia, there have been pictures of a service station/convenience store that is collapsing. What is the problem? There is a large water conduit running under the property, and evidently, a huge leak has formed, perhaps even a collapse of some sort. This has caused the collapse…
Read More“Mite” God Be Our Creator?
by Larry Hafley Leucania Moth (False Wainscot Moth) Tiny mites infect and inhabit the ear of the Leucania moth. Yes, I said, “the ear,” singular. In whichever ear the mites first locate, the other is left free. Hence, if the left ear of the moth is infested by mites, the right ear will remain clear…
Read MoreChrist Did Not Send Me to Baptize
by Terry Wane Benton What did Paul mean by this statement in I Corinthians 1:17? Preaching the gospel is what leads to people being baptized (Mark 16:15-16). You could read the whole Old Testament, including the Law of Moses, and it will not command you to be baptized. Only the gospel will lead people to…
Read MoreThe Bible and the Poverty Problem
by Matthew W. Bassford In 2003, social scientists Isabell Sawhill and Ron Haskins noticed three striking differences between poor people in America and the nonpoor. First, poor people generally hadn’t completed high school; the nonpoor had. Second, nonpoor people kept a steady job; poor people didn’t. Third, nonpoor people got married before having children; poor people…
Read MoreOn Praying to Jesus
by Nathan Ward If you haven’t yet, you will likely encounter a person who believes Christians should not pray to Jesus. The position is often accompanied by what seems like reasonable logic, at least on a surface level. We ought not to pray to Jesus, it is said, because he is our mediator — and…
Read MoreUncleanness (Article)
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Students of the Bible are frequently confused by the Old Testament laws regulating uncleanness. Many do not understand the purpose of the laws and often wonder if they impact the Christian in some way or not. The concept of unclean is certainly an old one. It predates Moses, being first mentioned…
Read MoreClapping in Worship
by Gardner Hall Is it wrong? If so, why? The last few years have seen the introduction of handclapping in congregations of the Lord, including a few that have opposed institutionalism. Though motives are often praiseworthy, serious questions are raised by the practice. Is it presumptuous? Is it practiced because God wants it? Or rather,…
Read MoreIs It Possible to Preach Christ and Not Preach Baptism or the Church?
by Donald Townsley via Guardian of Truth, December 15, 1988 From time to time men set forth the doctrine that we should “preach Christ” and leave the controversial subjects of the plan of salvation and the church alone. Some say, “just preach the man and not the plan”; others say, “preach Christ and not the…
Read MoreWhat’s Down that Road?
by Warren E. Berkley The most vital consideration for every human being and certainly every Christian is the allegiance of the heart and obedience of the life to God. While we must avoid the arrogance of self-righteousness and the bondage of human creeds and traditionalism, we must determine with all our hearts to never relax…
Read MoreLiving on Borrowed Time
by Jefferson David Tant “The days of our years are threescore years and ten, Or even by reason of strength fourscore years; Yet is their pride but labor and sorrow; For it is soon gone, and we fly away” (Psalms 90:10). Having reached that milestone of threescore and ten a few years ago. I feel…
Read MoreI Have to Die to Get Better
by Doy Moyer Have you ever felt that way? You feel so sick that you about wish you’d go ahead and die so that you’d feel better? We even say that as a bit of a joke (or maybe not). Of course, at the time that we feel so bad, we do wish for pretty…
Read MoreHeaven Will Be Even Better
by Roy Diestelkamp In song songbooks by many congregations is the old hymn: “For The Beauty Of The Earth.” The first verse says: “For the beauty of the earth, For the beauty of the skies, For the love which from our birth Over and around us lies, Lord of all,…
Read MoreThe Historical-Political Background of the New Testament
by Russell H. Dunaway Jr. via Truth Magazine Vol. XLIV: 9 p14 May 4, 2000 Beginning in 606 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon launched the first of three successive attacks upon the city of Jerusalem and the people of Judah. During the second attack (597 B.C.) Ezekiel, Daniel, and about 10,000 other inhabitants of Jerusalem were…
Read MoreOpposition to Teaching Christianity
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton In February 2019 Barna Group released the results of a poll which they titled, “Almost Half of Practicing Christian Millennials Say Evangelism Is Wrong.” They divided their survey group into Millennials, GenX, Boomers, and Elders. Almost all surveyed agreed with the statements: “Part of my faith means being a witness about…
Read MoreHow to Become a Christian
by W. Frank Walton “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (II Corinthians 5:17). The Bible says salvation from sin is only in Christ (Acts 4:12). The most important commitment you’ll ever make is deciding to become a true Christian. What “steps”…
Read MoreElders as Shepherds
by Charles Brackett A shepherd is literally one who feeds. He is a pastor. In Bible times, the typical shepherd tended his own flock or delegated the work to his children or close relatives. By virtue of ownership, he was highly motivated to the work. No sacrifice was too great for his sheep. He sheltered…
Read MoreNow Concerning Spiritual Gifts
by Ron Drumm It would be wonderful to have a spiritual gift like the ability to do miracles or the ability to speak in tongues. There are nine gifts of the Spirit listed in the New Testament. They are the word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, healings, working of miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits,…
Read MoreFree Agents
by Ray Baker One of the many things the Scriptures teach with all surety is the free moral agency of men. The Lord did not create robots when He made us, nor did He fashion ‘puppets on a string.’ He made us creatures of choice, and His desire is that our hearts will choose to…
Read MoreIs Socialism a Biblical Concept?
by Matthew W. Bassford Much to my surprise, for the first time that I can remember since the Cold War, there is a flurry of national interest in socialism. As someone who is a student of history, this concerns me. As someone who is politically unaligned, I’m not sure what to do about it. I…
Read MoreTwo Genders
by Terry Wane Benton Male and female made He them (Genesis 1-2). God said it and did it. That settles it. There is no third and fourth gender option. I was not able to “decide my gender.” That was fixed at the moment of conception. I operate under the fact of my gender assigned by…
Read MoreExpository Teaching
by Joanne Beckley I find that expository preachers often do not really ask, What’s the purpose of this sermon? What should it do in people’s lives? If you say, “Why are you preaching on Romans 5?” some preachers answer, “Well, because last week I was in Romans 4. Next week I’ll be in Romans 6.”…
Read More“It Is Written”: Reflections on Authority, CENI and Grace
by Doy Moyer Those claiming to be Christians will make the claim on the basis of what they believe the Scriptures teach. This is so, regardless of how far right or left on the spectrum of thought they find themselves. This is not to say that all interpretations are correct or that as long as…
Read MoreWhat Is Your Attitude Toward Brethren Whose Children Go Wrong?
by Peter J. Wilson via Truth Magazine, May 3, 2001 The rearing of children at any age is a fearful responsibility. God entrusts into our care a soul (worth more than the whole world) wrapped in a tiny body. While that child is a gift from God (Psalms 127:3; Genesis 33:5), we are really stewards of that…
Read MoreMerciless Progressivism
by Matthew W. Bassford The other day, I read a fascinating op-ed, “The Cruelty of Call-Out Culture” by David Brooks. It tells the story of a member of a punk-rock band who called out the band’s lead singer for sending an unwelcome, explicit photograph to a woman, leading to his banishment from the punk-rock scene.…
Read MoreBaptized but Not Converted
by Fred Shewmaker Years ago in a home Bible study, the couple with whom we were studying complained that the words I was using were too big. Being somewhat inexperienced in home Bible studies, I was surprised by their complaint. The words about which they were complaining were all words found in the Bible. I…
Read MoreThe Holy Spirit and My Feelings
by Doy Moyer It’s not good theology to attribute to the Holy Spirit that which the Holy Spirit never attributes to Himself. Doing so results in both faulty and contradictory claims, and this is exactly what we often see. Feelings get attributed to the Spirit, which are then contradictory to the feelings of others who…
Read MoreThe Kingdom of God Is Within You
by Bryan Matthew Dockens According to Jesus, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21). Contrary to popular theory, the establishment of God’s kingdom would not be a visible event. The coronation of Christ…
Read MoreCleaning Out the Barn
by Mark McCrary Growing up, this was the job I hated the most (and, hate is not too strong a word). Three times a week I had to clean out the feed room in the barn. That includes everything you think would be included. It was a stinky, unpleasant job. I did it because it…
Read MoreJesus versus Muhammad
by Terry Wane Benton Due to sin, there was a need for Jesus. He came to deal with the inward issue of sin. He was prophesied to come to deal with sin (Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 53). Muhammad only made sin worse as he was a sinner. Jesus worked miracles to prove His words were from…
Read MoreJesus and the Passover
by Alan Feaster “for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40). Jesus, we know without a doubt was in the grave for three days, it was prophesied many times. When we say three days,…
Read MoreYou Can Be Loved But Not Yet Accepted
by Terry Wane Benton God loves the lost and seeks to save them. They are not saved and accepted just because God loves them. Love longs for reconciliation, but just because God loves us it does not mean we are reconciled to God. God demonstrated His love by giving His only Son for us (John…
Read MoreAged Preachers – “Seeking an Answer”
by Travis Main via Church of Christ Articles Baptisms and burials: over a lifetime, the preacher performed a great number of these. From Genesis to Revelation, his words carefully uttered the precepts of God. His hair was once full, and his face youthfully smooth. Now his hair sports only grey, and wrinkles outline his face. God…
Read MoreThe Rationale of the Tolerant
by Warren Berkley via Truth Magazine – May 16, 1974 The idea of sinking all our differences into a sea of “love” and sweet tolerance and uniting in division seems to be rapidly reaching every part of the religious world. Denominational bodies who have formerly harbored revenge are now skillfully defending latitudinarianism and independence of…
Read MoreA Godly View of Sin
by Sewell Hall “What happened to sin?” This question, occasionally asked these days, can be answered with another question: “Whatever happened to God?” When people lose sight of God, sin cannot be far behind. The World’s View of Sin Worldly people usually have in mind some vague definition of sin. In their view murder is…
Read MoreVerdict on the Resurrection
by Ray Madrigal via Guardian of Truth – April 4, 1991 Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict? In these closing statements, I will briefly summarize the evidence that you are asked to weigh. Since this case is one of history, I shall appeal t Verdict on the Resurrection o the…
Read MoreFalse Dichotomies
by Gardner Hall A false dichotomy is treating two different principles or ideas as mutually exclusive when they are not, or an issue or group of issues as the only options when there are others. In a controversy, the use of false dichotomies often involves a demand to choose one principle or the other when…
Read MoreIgnoring Shemaiah
by Matthew W. Bassford Of all the leaders in the Bible, Nehemiah is one of my favorites. He confronts a wide variety of problems, but through them all, he remains steadfast in his purpose, trusts God, and eventually achieves success. One of Nehemiah’s most revealing actions, though, is something that he does not do. Nehemiah…
Read MoreFaithfulness, Not Perfection
by Matthew W. Bassford Over the past few weeks, Shawn and I have spent Sunday mornings explaining how it is that we can know that we are heaven-bound for certain. We’ve seen that we can put our confidence in the powerful sacrifice of Jesus and in the perfect forgiveness of God. However, that doesn’t quiet the…
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