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• Ignorance Does Not Excuse Sin

  …ster WongMixxMySpaceNetvouzNewsvineoneviewOnlyWirePlugIMPropellerRedditSegnaloShoutwireSimpySlashdotSurphaceSphinnSpurlSquidooStumbleUponTechnoratiThisNextTwitterWebrideWindows LiveYahoo!Email This to a Friend  Link HTML:  Permalink:  If you like this then please subscribe to the RSS Feed.Powered by Bookmarkify™ More »God does not consider ignorance an excuse for sin and will not overlook a sin ju…

• The Need to Preach on Sin

  ers worse than himself as regards sin.  So what?  Does that make a man a success just because he can find others worse than himself?  Does that make me sin free?  No way!  “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3:23 NKJV)  “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8 NKJV)  “The wages of sin is death.” (Rom. 6:23 NKJV)  We all live condemned…

• Does God Really Care?

  rn with physical or mental disabilities, deformities of body or mind?  Why do we have earthquakes that kill thousands including infants and toddlers, why cyclones, why starvation?  And the list could go on and on and on. Does God care?  It is easy to give up on God as one contemplates what he has seen and heard.  It is easy to lose faith.  What is the answer?  This is a subject that is important to study because there has probably never been a pe…

• Willful Sin–Can Anyone Be Saved?

  e man as he had repented.  I remind the reader Paul wrote and spoke by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. 2 Cor. 12:21 clinches the meaning of Heb. 10:26 for me.  It reads as follows, “I am afraid that when I come again my God may humiliate me before you, and I may mourn over many of those who have sinned in the past and not repented of the impurity, immorality and sensuality which they have practiced.” (NAS)  What do we have here?  Chri…

• God’s Willingness to Forgive–King Manasseh

  It is not unusual to find in religion, as it relates to Christianity, two extremes of thought.  There are those who feel God is so full of loving kindness that he will readily forgive us of any and all of our sins if we just ask him.  We may be kind of sorry that we  did whatever it was we did, sorry about the consequences at least, so feel we must ask God’s forgiveness but the truth is if the same set of circumstances were to arise again we wou…

• Lessons for the Church from Isaiah (Chapter 1)

  Paul says, in Rom. 15:4, “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning” (NKJV) as he writes to the saints (Christians) in Rome (Rom. 1:7 NKJV).  The prophetic book of Isaiah written hundreds of years before Christ can teach us much about God–what pleases him, what displeases him, his nature, who he is, what or how he feels, his thoughts, his sense of justice, etc.  I think most of us would like to know God better a…

• Sin

  Honestly Deceived The Pleasures of Sin Better to Have Never Been Born Jesus and the Furnace of Fire Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? More on Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? Three Attitudes That Destroy the Hope of Salvation Disobedience to Jesus Must a Man Seek God Indifference – The Great Destroyer Looking Down Your Nose Ghost Hunting and Consulting the Dead Christianity, Homosexuality, and Gay Marriage The Wicked Shall be Tu…

• Why Do Men Run From God?

  Why do men run from God?  It has been a question with me for years and one I have had the deepest interest in because I cannot understand it and things I cannot understand when it comes to the way people behave have a way of bothering me.  I have always wanted to know why men do what they do.  I have wanted to know how men think and why they think the way they do and thus what motivates a man.   The reality is only God can know for sure for only…

• Never Give Up

    What do we do when that happens?  Too many just gradually give in to those kinds of feelings and give up.  But, is the situation hopeless?  Does it have to be that way?  I would like to take a look into the lives of some of God’s people who seemingly had the same problems I speak of here and see what they did that was sinful, what led them to do it, and how they handled it in the hope that it will help all of us. There is no doubt that Moses wa…

• Repentance–How Can I Be Sure?

  13:3, 5) Repentance is a command to all men everywhere in all time to come as long as the earth shall stand.  Paul, in his speech in the midst of the Areopagus in Athens, made this statement: “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained.  He has given assurance of this to all by raisi…

• When did Obedience Become Legalism?

  We seem to be living in a time in the present Christian era where people seem to feel that all that matters in Christianity is love and God’s grace, that obedience is simply legalism, and that people do not have to obey Bible commands for salvation (except, of course, for the command to believe in Jesus as the Savior). Grace is made cheap.  Live as you like, call yourself a Christian, and God’s grace will cover you.  It is said it is what is in …

• The Wicked Shall be Turned into Hell

  David, in Psalms 9:17, made this statement:  “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.” (NKJV)  That is strong, strong language and language people do not want to hear.  Some would probably call it hate speech.  People do not want to hear about hell and many reject God because of the concept of hell as taught in the Bible.  I suspect it is highly likely many who look at what I write from time to time…

• The Pleasures of Sin

  ason” (KJV) or “the passing pleasures of sin” as the New King James puts it.  “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.” (Heb. 11:24-25 NKJV) There is another passage found in 2 Thess. 2:12 that also teaches there is pleasure in sin.  That text simply speaks of those who will be condemned becaus…

• More on Willful Sin—Can Anyone be Saved?

  ally (he is here talking about the word ‘willfully’—Denny), for all sin is voluntary, or is committed willingly, but must refer to a deliberate act, where a man means to abandon his religion, and to turn away from God. If it were to be taken with metaphysical exactness, it would demonstrate that every Christian who ever does anything wrong, no matter how small, would be lost.” You will be hard pressed based on my research to fin…

• The Prodigal Son–When He Came to Himself

  he was not the person who could see reality; he was not the person who could reason correctly. One could almost say sin is a form of insanity.  If the Bible is true (as it is) does any man of reason think he can fight against God and win?  How does one fight against God and win?  A sane man reasoning correctly sees there is only one course of action to pursue–a willing submission to the power that is, to the “rock that is higher than I” (Ps…

• Looking Down Your Nose

  217; and say to the poor man, ‘You stand there,’ or, ‘Sit here at my footstool,’ have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?  Listen, my beloved brethren:  Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?  But you have dishonored the poor man.  Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts?  D…

• The Struggle to be a Spiritually Minded Man or Woman

  Every person that has ever contemplated the subject of life and death, the meaning of life and eternal destiny, and has chosen faith in Christ as the route he/she desires to walk has found himself/herself in a constant struggle.  On the one hand there is the deep desire to do what is right according to the will of God as we read it in the Bible and on the other hand there is that desire within us that wants to do what we want to do which often m…

• Bible Contradictions on Salvation?

  If we believe the Bible is the word of God why do we often interpret it in a way that makes it contradict itself?  Truth is harmonious or else it’s not truth and cannot be.  Jesus says of God’s word, “your word is truth.” (John 17:17)  It does not oppose itself when properly interpreted. Martin Luther was persuaded he had found contradiction in the Bible between what Paul wrote in Romans about salvation being by faith ver…

• Christian Living

  Pray For Others Lest You Sin Is Church Attendance Essential for Christian Salvation? Are Works Essential for Christian Salvation? Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? More on Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? Ignorance Does Not Excuse Sin Never Give Up Does God Really Care? Three Benefits of Being a Christian in This Life – Hope, Love, Peace The Struggle to be a Spiritually Minded Man or Woman Fear God Regrets If Miracles Have Cease…

• The Hardening of the Human Heart

  There are passages in the Bible that are frightening.  Heb. 3:12-13 is one such passage. “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘TODAY,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (NKJV)  This is a passage addressed to Christians but the idea that the heart can be hardened by sin is appl…

• The Joy and the Danger of a Clean Conscience

  common reaction from those who finally decide to quit fighting the conscience they have violated and pay the price conscience demands. The apostle Paul said, “I have lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.”  (Acts 23:1 NAS)  He made this statement the day after his arrest in Jerusalem.  How many of us can say what Paul said?  Can you?  Can I?  My guess is very few can. Peter who denied Christ could no…

• Sin in the Desert–Testing God at Massah and Meribah

  One lesson that is clearly taught in the Bible is that man is not to test God.  Moses in speaking to the children of Israel told them, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah.” (Deut. 6:16 NASB)  Jesus in speaking with the devil while he was being tempted said, “It is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” (Matt: 4:7 NASB)  Paul in telling us not to follow t…

• Hypocrites in the Church

  NASU) Paul’s desire for the Philippians (and for us) was that they might be “sincere and blameless until the day of Christ.” (Phil. 1:10 NASU)  The writer of the book of Hebrews instructs us to draw near to God “with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Heb. 10:22 NASU)  Enough has been said without going furthe…

• Bible Authority, Foot Washing, the Holy Kiss, and Head Coverings?

  n ever before.  You name it and it is being done somewhere.  Every type of special service the mind can imagine (and many that you cannot) is being held.  The idea is that anything we do in worship with the intent of pleasing God, to glorify God, is acceptable to him—anything we can dream up with no scriptural authority required. It has always been terribly difficult for me to see how one gives glory to God by adding to his word and doing things …

• Keep Your Heart With All Diligence

  Yes, life is a struggle to do what is right.  Perhaps this is why I get upset with Christians of a liberal bent.  Their idea comes across to me as being as though they were saying “you go ahead and struggle I am depending on God’s grace” which translated means I will pretty much do in my life what I want and let God’s grace cover me in the end.  We are suppose to “fight the good fight of faith” (1 Tim. 6:12 NKJV) and have been given a sword (the…

• Behold the Judge is Standing at the Door

  It is sometimes hard for Christians to grasp emotionally that they will be judged by Christ on the Day of Judgment.  So much has been made of the grace of God and God’s love that it is hard to come to grips with the idea of judgment but James in writing to Christians says, “Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.  Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!” (James 5:9 NKJV)  That ought to be a sober…

• Weak, Defiled, and Seared Consciences

  ak conscience?  The first time one reads about a weak conscience in the New Testament is in 1 Cor. 8:7-12.  This entire chapter is devoted to the subject of eating meats offered to idols and whether or not it is acceptable in God’s eyes for a Christian to eat such meats.  One should also read 1 Corinthians 10 beginning around verse 14 through the end of the chapter on the same subject and Romans 14 also has some application even though the …

• Why Men Do Not Believe

  e was an unbeliever.  Yet, Paul, then known as Saul, was an honest man for he says elsewhere in Acts 23:1 while standing before the Council or Sanhedrin that “I have lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day” (NAS) or, as the NKJV puts it, “in all good conscience.” It would be easy to say unbelievers are all dishonest but we have already shown that will not work for Paul’s case proves t…

• A New Creation in Christ

  f will be exalted.’” One could probably get up several lessons from this one parable but today I want to concentrate on one specific aspect of the story–the need man has, all men, to become a new creation in God’s sight.  In two places in the New Testament we read of man’s need to become a new creation, a new spiritual being. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away;…

• The Conscience as a Witness

  A man can run from many things but one thing he cannot run from is his own conscience.  Wherever a man goes his conscience follows him just as much as his shadow and is a constant companion.  It is a man’s witness to himself and to God of his character as it relates to his willingness or unwillingness to abide in what he considers to be that which is right and good. The conscience cannot be a man’s perfect guide for it like man’…

• Must a Man Seek God?

  Should a man seek God?  Many men and women who if you were to ask them if they believed there is a supreme being we call God would answer in the affirmative and yet they feel no need to seek God.  With them God is God and he is just and good and so he will save them as long as they live what they consider to be a reasonably good life (reasonably good by their own personal standards and society’s standard).  They do not concern themselves w…

• Without Natural Affection and Covenant Breakers

  itness between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant.  But did he not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one?  He seeks godly offspring.  Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.  ‘For the Lord God of Israel says that he hates divorce, for it covers one’s garment with violence,’ says the …

• Christianity and Multiculturalism

  –DS) said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.’” (Mark 16:15-16 NKJV)  God is “the Savior of all men” (1 Tim. 4:10 NKJV), not just the Savior of one nationality, or one language, or one race of people.  In this sense then certainly the gospel is multicultural.  Where you live, what …

• The Faith of Enoch

  The Bible tells us that, “By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God.” (Heb. 11:5 NAS)  Enoch and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) were the only two men to ever be born and not die a physical death.  Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven after a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated him from …

• Disobedience to Jesus

  Disobedience to Jesus is far more widespread among people who call themselves Christians than what is generally recognized to be the case.  Over the years the doctrine that man is saved by grace through faith alone without any kind of works has become so prevalent in men’s thinking that it seems it has driven out of men’s lives the sense of any kind of responsibility to obey God other than mentally assenting to the son ship of Jesus….

• The Faithfulness of Jesus to God the Father

  …221; (NKJV) Reading this passage and its surrounding context awhile back got me to thinking about the faithfulness of Jesus.  We seldom think about Jesus being “faithful,” that is in the sense of being faithful to God, even though we know he lived a sin free life.  I think there is profit to be had in looking into this subject in as much as Jesus is to be our example.  It is Jesus who said, “If anyone desires to come after me, l…

• What Must a Man Believe to be Saved by the Gospel?

  That the gospel of Christ must be believed (as well as obeyed) in order to receive Christian salvation is made abundantly clear by the apostle Paul in one of the best known passages found in the Bible–Rom. 1:16:  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Rom. 1:16 NAS)  It thus becomes essential that we learn what it is that …

• Better to Never Have Been Born–Why?

  e Lord” but it seems few do today.  It is like men and women are living their lives going around singing the song “who is afraid of the big bad wolf” like we did when we were children only now applying it to God in adulthood.  It is as though there is nothing in the least to be concerned about even though they know full well that if the Bible be true they are living in active disobedience to the teachings of it as regards Jesus,…

• The Christian, Politics, and the Government

  h men have lived it speaks to us not in specifics but in general statements on the subject.  As it relates to specifics it is often hard to know exactly what one ought to do under some of the scenarios which arise but we have God given principles by which we can act. I write on this topic not so much out of a desire to do so but because a discussion of the subject is needed especially at this time where here in America I doubt the country has eve…

• Is Church Attendance Essential for Christian Salvation?

  of torment “where ‘their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched’” (Mark 9:44 NKJV) and “shall never be quenched.” (Mark 9:43 NKJV) This is a question that is really very easily answered if one will accept the word of God as being the one and only and final authority on deciding the question.  The answer is no; one cannot be saved if he will not attend church by which is meant the church worship services.  Hear God’s word on the subject. …

• Acceptable Prayer

  When a person runs into trouble in his or her life they are often counseled to pray.  That is usually one of the very first things that is done and most certainly we ought to turn to God in our times of trouble.  James says, “Is anyone among you suffering?  Let him pray.” (James 5:13 NAS)  The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us to “draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grac…

• Christianity, Homosexuality, and Gay Marriage–What Do We Do With the Bible?

  One of the wonderful things about America is that we have gotten to be smarter than God (hope you recognize satire when you read it).  We are now wiser than he is, we know better than he does how to love our fellowman and what is inherently right, and we no longer need his word as any kind of a guide to life.  God if you will just take a seat over here to our left behind us and let us handle this we will take care of it.  Yes, maybe you had it r…

• Regrets

  …of him having free access to the tree of life.  For food all he had to do was reach up and pluck it from the tree on which it grew.  There was no need to store it or do hard labor for it, for it was always going to be there.  God walked with him in the garden and thus for a time he had full fellowship with God.  Adam gave it all up. Do you not think while he was toiling the soil by the sweat of his brow fighting the thorns and thistles and realiz…

• Non-Offensive Christianity

  If someone was to ask you or me what constitutes Christian character what would we say?  Off the top of our head we would most likely say love for God and our fellowman and faith in the Lord Jesus.  As we thought about it more intently we would add things like the fruit of the spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Gal. 5:22-23 NKJV)  We m…

• Jesus Defines Repentance

  The Bible clearly teaches that repentance is a command of God to all men (Acts 17:30) and that if we fail to repent we shall perish (Luke 13:3, 5).  It is essential then that we come to a proper understanding of the meaning of repentance.  What does it mean to repent?  Jesus tells us and we can find no higher authority on the subject than Christ himself.  Let us hear what he has said. “The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this ge…

• How Was Noah Saved Through Water?

  How was Noah and his family saved through water?  Peter, in 1 Peter 3:20-21, says they were but just how is a little hard to understand without some thought and study.  The passage reads as follows:  “when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.  There is also an antitype which now saves us, namely baptism (not the removal of the f…

• Christ and Baptism in Colossians

  … deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression.” (1 Tim. 2:14 NAS)  We need to read the Bible, even more we need to study it, “a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of God.” (2 Tim. 2:15 NAS)  We need to read the book of Colossians and see what it teaches about Christ and baptism.  What Paul teaches there he teaches elsewhere in the New Testament as well. “Christ in you, the hope of glory,…

• The Sin of Being Unthankful and the Need for Thanksgiving

  ters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” (NKJV)  Did you note “unthankful” and “unloving” in this listing? Actually, most of us do not find it too …

• Faith, Works, and Baptism

  and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” (NKJV)  The washing of regeneration is a reference to baptism and is specifically excluded by Paul as being a work of righteousness which we have done.  To the contrary it is a part of God’s mercy as per the teaching of this verse.  One acquainted with the New Testament cannot read Titus 3:5 without being reminded of John 3:5, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the S…

• Resource Sites

  iscussion on faith and opinion.) The Sonship of Christ  (Be sure and scroll down the page once you get to it.  This is an extremely unique and valuable one of a kind sermon.  It details the relationship of Christ the Son with God the Father like nothing else I have ever read, a late 1800′s sermon by Dr. T. W. Brents.) Short Essays in Biblical Criticism  (Have you ever had to deal with someone who would ridicule or find fault with the Bible …

• Who Gets to Decide–God or the Church?

  which denomination you belong to for we will all be saved despite our differences or which denomination we might be in. Well, if we are all going to be saved anyway what is the big deal and why be divided?  Where and when did God give a command that his saved ones be divided rather than united?  And, yet, they feel no sin is involved in their division. Denominationalism also teaches, though they do not intend it, that sin does not matter.  If I a…

• A Good and Pure Conscience

  have done in helping others out but which we let slide and failed to do when we knew we should have stepped in and acted. Of course, we have to remember that having a good conscience by itself does not mean we are right with God.  If so in ages past those who worshipped idols, offered human sacrifice, and even cannibals in the distant jungles of Africa and Southeast Asia were justified.  Their cultures said those things were right and thus their…

• Pray For Others Lest You Sin

  of Israel:  “Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you.” (NKJV) Now I am not a Samuel nor are you but it makes you stop and think does it not?  Samuel was praying for God’s people.  Are we exempt from doing the same?  Are we under no obligation? During Jesus’ ministry he once was asked what the greatest commandment in the law was. (Matt. 22:36)  His response was love for God “with all you…

• God’s Hardening of the Human Heart

  Does God ever harden people’s hearts?  No doubt about it.  Every Bible student is aware of God’s hardening the heart of Pharaoh back in the book of Exodus.  This was God’s plan before Moses arrived in Egypt.  “And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.”…

• What Does the Phrase “My Name” Mean in the Bible?

  have more than one meaning.  Some meanings are easy enough to figure out for in some few places the phrase is used like we would use it today but I am not interested in those passages.  I want to know the unique way in which God in the Old Testament and Jesus in the New Testament used the phrase.  We start in the Old Testament. Exodus 9:16 is a good place to start.  God has instructed Moses to tell Pharaoh, “for this reason I have allowed …

• Misunderstanding the Grace of God

  cost as found in Acts 2:38. His position is not unusual.  Millions of people have read Paul’s statement in Eph. 2:8-9, “for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (NKJV) and said okay, that is it, no need for further study. I would like to say first of all this is a poor approach to God’s word to isolate and elevate part of his …

• Jesus and the Furnace of Fire

  ey know Jesus would say, “No, he would never do that.”  Well, if not he is a liar.  If he is a liar you cannot depend on a single word he ever uttered for who would know when he was lying and when he was not?  But God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). Let us take a closer look and see who it is that will be cast into this furnace.  It is “those who practice lawlessness.” (Matt. 13:41 NKJV)  I know vast numbers of people while good i…

• Faith Comes by Hearing the Word of God–the Implications

  “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Rom. 10:17 NKJV)  On its surface this proclamation by Paul is very simple and easy to understand and yet the failure to grasp its implications has brought much division and strife among those who believe Jesus is the Son of God.  Faith and opinion are mixed and it seems no one is able to separate the two.  It appears to the casual observer that one man’s faith is another man’s op…

• Things God Cannot Do

  The Bible teaches there are things God cannot do.  Why not?  It is certainly not because he is wanting in power or knowledge but it is a matter of who he is, his nature or character.  We can understand that.  There are things you and I could do but our character would never allow it.  I thought it would be good to use an online Bible concordance for the New King James Version and type in the word “cannot” and see what came up.  I was…

• Diotrephes Loves To Have the Preeminence

  omeone great.” (Acts 8:9 NKJV)  In verse 10 of Acts 8, the Bible says, speaking of the people of Samaria with regards to Simon, that they “all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, ‘This man is the great power of God.’” (NKJV) When Peter and John arrived Simon saw that the Holy Spirit could be conveyed to others by the apostles laying hands upon them.  Simon reverted back to his days prior to his conversion, desired this power, and s…

• Indifference – The Great Destroyer

  education? Would that concern you? Would you be indifferent toward that? Even more so what if you have a son or daughter, a husband or wife, a mother or father, a brother or sister, or a close friend who is indifferent toward God and his word and thus toward their soul’s salvation, what then? What then indeed and that is what makes the word “indifferent” such a fearful word? If God and his word are matters of no serious concern …

• Fear God

  I have often heard it said that a Christian should have no fear of God.  I have mixed feelings when I hear that for it is one of those truths that can easily lead to false conclusions unless the statement is clarified. John indeed says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”  (I John 4:18 NKJV)  It is true that every Christian can have fear …

• Demas Has Forsaken Me

  ve he wanted to go off to commit adultery, cheat, lie, and steal.  I don’t think he left because he wanted a first century equivalent of a 3 car garage and a multi million dollar home.  I don’t think he quit and left Paul and God because he wanted to be rich and famous.  I think he left because he wanted out of the line of fire, wanted an easier life, wanted to live in peace with the world, wanted to live much like others of his countrymen.  Cert…

• Which Denomination Did Jesus Build?

  church.  It would be comical if not so serious.  The implication is that doctrine and truth do not matter nor does practice.  Believe what you want, practice what you want, just believe intellectually that Jesus is the Son of God and that is all that matters. What a waste Paul writing all those letters to the church at Corinth trying to correct wrong practices (shall we say sin).  A waste because it did not matter; they believed in Jesus and were…

• Instrumental Music in Christian Worship–Is it God’s Will?

  I am sure there are millions of people who call themselves Christians who have never given the subject of instrumental music in Christian worship a thought.  It is just taken for granted that it is a part of acceptable worship to God.  I suspect even most of us who were raised in a religious setting where instruments were never used in worship wondered about it at one point in time or another.  Was it really wrong to use them in worship and if s…

• Abuse of the Old Testament

  authority for Christians today as the New Testament?  How should Christians today relate to and handle the Old Testament scriptures?  These are questions we all ought to be interested in for we are saved by truth, not error. God has commanded us to rightly divide the truth (2 Tim. 2:15) and Peter says (2 Peter 3:16) that the scriptures can be twisted to our own destruction thus we must be careful and not make assumptions or just give our opinion…

• Peter’s Preaching and the Apostle’s Preaching

  ames or Peter against Paul. The truth is the scriptures do not belong to Paul, or James, or Peter, or to any other writer even if their name happens to be attached to a letter.  “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2 Tim. 3:16 NKJV)  The scriptures came by inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  God used men’s tongues and pens to …

• Abortion Luke 1 – All You Need to Know

  Luke 1 tells you all you need to know about abortion and a woman’s right to choose.  Abortion in politically correct liberal speech is referred to as a choice today but I am far more concerned with scripturally correct speech than I am politically correct speech and I think you ought to be too.  Our concern ought not to be how society views a matter or how those who have gained power view a subject but how God sees it. I remind you that th…

• Obedience of Faith and Justification by Faith–Opposing Doctrines?

  m. 16 he speaks of the gospel being made known to all nations with the purpose being “obedience of faith.” (Rom. 16:26 NAS) Obedience of faith is simply the obedience that grows out of or is the result of faith.  No man obeys God who does not first believe God.  Without faith there is no motivation for obedience.  Where there is no faith the natural man prevails–our fleshly human nature.  We do that which pleases us without thought of God. …

• Confirmation Sunday–No Bibles Required

  brews spoke of how an “oath for confirmation” (Heb. 6:16) is for men an end of all dispute but was just making an observation about secular matters among men in order to make a greater point about the confirmation God has made to man.  Another search on the word “confirm” only brought up 2 hits (Rom. 15:8 and 1 Cor. 1:8) and like the references above neither have relevance for the practice of a “confirmation Sunday,&…

• Paul’s Conversion (Justified by Faith)

  …DS) to the death.” (Acts 22:4 NKJV)  He says, testifying against himself, “many of the saints I shut up in prison … and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.” (Acts 26:10 NKJV) Will God have a man like this, a man this bad?  Saul clearly had personal responsibility in the death of Christians.  Christians died because of his actions whether he ever cast a stone personally or not.  But, the answer to the …

• Three Benefits of Being a Christian in This Life – Hope, Love, Peace

  ow about the need for hope. “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.” (1 Thess. 4:13-14 NKJV)  The Christian lives “in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.” (Titus 1:2 NKJV)  When one gr…

• Peter’s Second Gospel Sermon

  … “means properly to ‘turn; to return to a path from which one has gone astray; and then to turn away from sins, or to forsake them.’ It is a word used in a general sense to denote ‘the whole turning to God.’” (This is from his commentary on Acts.)  It does not then designate one specific thing but includes everything not covered by the word “repent.” One needs to ask some questions.  Earlier in this sermo…

• The Church as the Body of Christ–Which Means What?

  …l made up of men and women and boys and girls of accountable age who each in their individual spirits have submitted to Christ in both faith and obedience.  “You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.” (Rom. 8:9 NKJV)  “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.” (Rom. 8:14 NKJV)  “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body (the fleshly physical body we each pos…

• Fornication–Take It Lightly at Your Peril

  “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are:  adultery, fornication…and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal. 5:19-21 NKJV)  One of two things is true today–the world either believes it can treat God with utter contempt or no longer believes in him and his word period.  Man has always had to battle sexual desire …

• The Cleansing of the Church at Ephesus

  Many believe the church at Ephesus (the church being the membership) was cleansed from sin by faith based on the teachings of their denomination and the famous Ephesian passage found in chapter 2 verses 8 and 9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” (NAS)  Many, many passages of the New Testament teach that salvation is a matter of …

• Faith in the New Testament–Different Meanings

  …n a little paperback Merriam Webster Dictionary that I have being curious as to what I would find.  I found 4 meanings listed as follows:  (1) allegiance to duty or a person which you could call loyalty (2) belief or trust in God (3) complete trust and (4) a system of religious beliefs. I then went to another book I have entitled An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words by W. E. Vine.  This is a standard work, a word definition book quite …

• The Church as the Family of God–Things Found in It

  The church in the New Testament is described under various appellations the best known perhaps being the family of God.  It is the designation that touches the heart with the greatest force.  We long to be part of a family, to have people that care about us and care how we are doing and who will help us willingly and gladly should we need it, people who do love us.  One of the saddest things one can experience in life, a gut wrenching experience…

• Jesus the Foundation of and the Builder of the Church

  Lest the reader be misled by the title reading into it what is not there the church that is being talked about in this article may not be the one you are a member of so proceed if at all with caution having been forewarned.  You can judge for yourself after reading.  I begin with Jesus as the foundation of the church. After Jesus’ arrest he was brought before the Jewish council where he was asked, “‘Are you then the Son of God?…

• Honestly Deceived

  In 1 Kings 13:1-33 we read of a man of God, a prophet, who came from Judah to Bethel to prophecy against the altar there.  Jeroboam, the king of Israel, was present at the altar.  Jeroboam was the king who had made the two golden calves for the children of Israel to worship one of which resided at Bethel (1 Kings 12:25-33).  On the altar there sacrifices were made to the golden calf that resided there.  As the prophet arrived he found Jeroboam a…

• Praying to God to Bless the Bread–Really?

  “God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24 NKJV) Whose job is it to bless the bread and bless the fruit of the vine when the Lord’s Supper is being  observed in the communion service?  One hears continually prayers or petitions to God to “bless the bread” and to “bless the fruit of the vine.”  Why?  I have no idea other than it has been done so long it has…

• How Does One Get Into the Church Christ Built?

  being in the church built by Jesus then the denomination has no reason for existence and should drop its denominational name and associations and just call itself what it would be under those circumstances–the church of God, the church of Christ, the church, or some other scriptural name or designation.  It would be “the church” and not “a denomination.”  It would be the church Christ built. In this article I am not concerned about how one …

• The Parable of the Talents–the Sin of Fear

  s been lost.  Would the farmer be happy? The parable of the talents while couched in the language of business affairs is really a story about spiritual matters.  Its purpose is to teach us a lesson about our relationship with God and what he expects of us.  Indeed, the parable begins with the words, “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man.” (Matt. 25:14 NKJV)  The man in the spiritual application of the parable is God.  Talents were …

• Christian Circumcision

  Most everyone is aware that in Old Testament times beginning with Abraham God required that the males among whom he was in covenant relationship be circumcised or else be cut off (excluded) from among his people.  We first read about this commandment when God made a covenant with Abraham in Gen. 17 (read especially verses 10 through 14).  It was a fleshly circumcision (v. 11), it was to “be a sign of the covenant between me and you” …

• The Truth So Called Christians Will Not Accept

  Most people who call themselves Christians are in reality not Christians at all no matter how dedicated they may be to their faith.  The word of God is truth (Jesus speaking–John 17:17) and stands as the one and only standard that is acceptable to the God of heaven and of men.  It, not man, sets the standard for who is a Christian. As there is a political correctness in our land there is likewise a religious correctness that one must adher…

• Mary of Bethany–Doing What You Can

  g to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability they were freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints?” (2 Cor. 8:3-4 NKJV)  Loving God means we long and desire to give to him and his work. We cannot bestow our goods on Jesus directly as did Mary of Bethany but we must remember that the church is the body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18, 24) and that …

• A Heart Right With God (Test Your Heart)

  In Acts 8:21 Peter uttered the following words to Simon who was in his company, “Your heart is not right in the sight of God.” (NKJV)  How important it is that the heart be right with God.  “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt. 5:8 NKJV)  Simon could not be saved without a change of heart.  It is imperative that we know all we can about the human heart of which the Bible speaks and which we each possess.  Knowing the he…

• Is Holy Spirit Baptism The Baptism That Saves?

  baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.”  (Mark 1:5 NKJV)  We know Jesus when baptized “came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.”  (Matt. 3:16 NKJV)  So our very first introduction to the subject of baptism relates it to water, not the Holy Spirit.  However, John did prophecy of two other baptis…

• Mt. Sinai and the Day of Judgment

  What do the children of Israel coming to Mt. Sinai have to do with the Day of Judgment?  More than you might think.  The children of Israel reached Mt. Sinai in the third month after they left Egypt (Ex. 19:1-2).  They had had by this time many experiences and had seen God working actively on their behalf in miracle after miracle.  They had seen the plagues in Egypt from many of which they were spared.  They had crossed the Red Sea on dry ground…

• He Feared

  … to have faith in sufficient strength to remain faithful.  It is a challenge to all men to develop a strong faith. Paul, in writing to the Christians in Ephesus, in chapter 6 verse 11, tells them to, “Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.” (NAS)  In verse 13 he explains saying, “that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”  In speaking of t…

• Ways into Christ–How Many Ways Are There?

  e.  But it goes without saying that our love for one who is not walking in the light of truth cannot change truth itself.  No man is saved “unconditionally” which is to say saved regardless of belief, character, and conduct.  God saves sinners true enough but not while they actively engage in the practice of sin unrepentant. The fact remains that no matter how much we desire another’s salvation it is up to them to bring their life into accord wit…

• Spiritual Mirages

  …nt. In the realm of religion, just as in the realm of personal relationships, there are mirages.  People think they see things that are in reality only illusions.  One such example is found in the book of Jeremiah.  Jeremiah, God’s prophet, had been prophesying for years to Judah to repent and amend their ways lest God send a foreign force to their country for their destruction and ruin.  They never listened and so God did indeed send the B…

• Saved by Jesus Outside the Church?

  de and not found in scripture.  I am not fond of terminology that cannot be found in scripture.  Why not express biblical concepts in biblical language?  Why not use language like “faith in Christ,” “love of God,” and other scriptural language one can readily pop up in a Bible concordance search? All of that aside I want to deal with the idea that one can develop this relationship with Jesus on a personal level that will s…

• The Parable of the 10 Virgins–7 Lessons

  …9)  To ask is to answer. I know families as honest as the day, morally above reproach, kind, generous, do not drink, do not curse, have a great family and family life yet have no interest in religion, in Christ, the Bible, or God although they may offer a prayer at the Thanksgiving meal.  They may, if pressed, make a claim to believe in God but a Bible would last them 10,000 years for it would never be used nor would there ever be any point in ex…

• They Loved the Praise of Men

  Most of us given a choice would like to be well thought of and spoken well of for our life and beliefs rather than to be reviled, criticized, and despised.  This is natural and easily understood but there is danger that this natural desire lead us into sin.  When one gets to the point where he cares more about what people think than what God thinks and what God commands he is in trouble, in trouble with the Lord and Savior. In studying the subje…

• King Saul–As Long as It Glorifies God

  …sons for those of us living today. Every Bible student who has been a student any length of time is aware of Samuel’s encounter with King Saul as Saul returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites.  Saul had been commanded by God through Samuel to go and put to death every living Amalekite and to destroy everything they had. (1 Sam. 15:3)  He disobeyed sparing the life of King Agag, king of the Amalekites, and the best of the livestock bringing t…

• Who is the Believer in John 3:16?

  Sometimes things that are the most obvious are also the easiest to overlook.  No passage in the Bible is better known nor been memorized more than Jesus’ statement in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (NKJV)  This was part of a conversation that Jesus was having with a man named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews who …

• The Grace of God and the Parable of the Laborers–Is God Just?

  Everyone is pleased to have the grace of God in their life but are we disturbed by it when his grace shows up in the lives of others seemingly more generously than in our own?  I am afraid that is sometimes the case.  The parable of the laborers found in Matt. 20:1-16 is a perfect example and is also an excellent illustration of how man feels he knows more about what is just and right than God does. The passage is too long to quote here but I wi…

• What Does The Phrase “Born Of Water And The Spirit” Mean? (The New Birth)

  Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3:3, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (NASU) and then a couple of verses later clarifies his statement when he says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5 NASU) This passage has greatly troubled people over the years to the extent that many have just c…

• Denominationalism’s Sin Against Peter

  The apostle Peter has taken a beating among denominationalists.  I would feel sorry for him save for the fact that I would be feeling sorry for the wrong party seeing as how he was an inspired apostle of God and his antagonists are but mere flesh and blood men and totally uninspired. It was not always the way it is today.  For at least a few hundred years after his sermon in Acts 2 he was honored by those who proclaimed faith in God and belief i…

• The Silence of the Scriptures

  name on a board as a confession of your sin and then have it pronounced that your sins were forgiven and your name would be erased from the board, gift flags made during worship to symbolize your desire to offer your gifts to God, and on and on it goes.  The fantasies of men dreaming up ways to worship God the way that pleases and satisfies them seems to be endless, anything and everything the mind of man can imagine.  As I said earlier research …

• If Baptism is Not Essential for Salvation

  Baptism is not essential for salvation according to most denominations.  The thought came to me recently if baptism is not essential for salvation what then?  What are the necessary implications of such a doctrine?  (1)  If baptism is not essential for salvation then Jesus taught error when he said, “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5 NKJV) for you can enter the kingdom of God without water …

• The Heart of Man from a Biblical Perspective

  The Bible has much to say about the heart of man.  The word “heart” in the New King James Version of the Bible is found 835 times in 775 verses according to the E-Sword concordance for the NKJV.  The study of the heart of man is thus a massive study and I might add from a human point of view a complex one.  God knows all of our hearts, “For you alone know the hearts of all the sons of men.” (I Kings 8:39 NKJV)  The question is do you and I know …

• The Chastening of the Lord

  People often have a misconception about God.  They cannot imagine that God would ever bring upon us trials and tribulations, punish us for our sins, or do anything in this life but bring us good–good as we measure it.  God is love, God is grace, and the very idea that God would ever send upon us anything but that which is most pleasant is abhorrent to their way of thinking. There is no doubt that when one looks at the big picture that God …

• Abraham’s Faith (Faith Accounted for Righteousness)

  Every person who truly believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, is interested in having what we might term “saving faith.”  The Bible could not be any clearer than it is on our need for such faith.  Paul tells the Ephesian Christians, “By grace you have been saved through faith.” (Eph. 2:8 NKJV)  To the Christians at Rome he speaks of them “having been justified by faith” (Rom. 5:1 NKJV) and then the…

• Faith, Manna, and Grumbling Against God

  In 1 Cor. 10:10 the Christian is commanded to not grumble (NASB).  Taken in context (1 Cor. 10:1-11) the passage is telling us not to follow the example of the children of Israel in the things they did of which grumbling against God was one and which thing seemed to be a national pastime.  If you read the book of Exodus you soon learn they were continually grumbling against God.  They were a dissatisfied and unhappy lot and their dissatisfaction…

• The Need to Sing in Worship

  around and you never sing while physically able to do so there is a problem.  When you never or only very rarely sing there is a problem. What is that problem?  The question is answered with another.  Is singing a command of God for worship?  If it is but I fail to do it when I am able am I sinning?  I see no way around that conclusion.  If I am a Christian and the Lord’s Supper is being observed and the emblems are passed around but I fai…

• Are Works Essential for Christian Salvation?

  …ian salvation, is easily answered by taking one such passage and doing exactly that.  The passage is Eph. 2:8-9 which reads, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (NKJV)  We read that and immediately answer our question by saying no works are not essential for Christian salvation.  The only problem with that is that it is the wrong a…

• Christ the Savior of the Body but Which One–the Matter of Timing?

  …ury is so self evident from even a casual glance at scripture I do not want to waste much time on it here.  Many of Paul’s salutations in the epistles establish that fact for he often begins with words like, “To the church of God which is at Corinth” (1 Cor. 1:2 NKJV), “To the churches of Galatia” (Gal. 1:2 NKJV), “To the church of the Thessalonians” (1 Thess. 1:2 NKJV).  It is hard to write to a body not yet established, to something that does n…

• Unhappy With the Church of Christ?

  such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults; lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced.” (2 Cor. 12:20-21 NKJV)  Yes, there is no n…

• Repent–How Hard It Is To Do

  mbers of his own family.  Only 8 people were saved from the flood–Noah and his wife and his sons and their wives. The Bible says of those who died in the flood that they were “disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared.” (1 Peter 3:20 NKJV)  It was the “world of the ungodly” (2 Peter 2:5 NKJV) that perished in the flood. I take from the passages quoted above that Noah preache…

• Must the Christian Keep the Sabbath?

  l had come out of Egypt but had not yet reached Mt. Sinai.  The events that transpire in Exodus 16 occur in the second month of their journey (Exodus 16:1).  This is the time when the children of Israel were grumbling against God (see Ex. 16:2-3, 7), complaining about food, and the time when God gave them manna to eat.  They were given instructions from God through Moses about how to gather the manna, store it, and use it. “This is what the…

• The Grace of God in Baptism

  Most Americans of a Christian persuasion believe that baptism has little to nothing to do with the grace of God. One wonders have they never read Titus 3:4-7? The truth about God’s grace and its tie in with baptism is clearly set forth in Paul’s passage to Titus which reads as follows: “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he s…

• The Kind of Faith in God That Destroys

  There is a faith, a so called Christian faith, which destroys.  Those who hold such a faith, while sincere, do not understand faith from a scriptural point of view.  Faith is all too often defined as “what I believe.”  There is more to saving faith than just believing in Jesus, believing he is the Son of God. If faith alone, defined as what one believes, could save by itself then even the demons could be saved for James says, “…

• Moses, the Waters of Marah, and a Lesson for Today

  …ET Bible, the Hebrew word “Marah” means bitter.  The Bible says, “The people complained against Moses, saying, ‘What shall we drink?’” (Ex. 15:24 NKJV)  One has to understand Moses was only God’s representative thus to complain against Moses was to complain against God (see Ex. 16:8).  Moses individually had no power to provide them with water and they knew that so the complaint was against God. This mani…

• How Does the Blood of Jesus and Baptism Tie Together

  I know of no one who claims to be a Christian but what believes we are saved by the blood of Jesus.  All believe that for the Bible clearly teaches it stating it plainly, “We have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Eph 1:7 NKJV)  There are very few, however, who realize where God has placed that blood spiritually speaking.  Christianity is a religion of the spirit.  No man is saved by coming into physical contac…

• What is it a Man Must Believe in Order to be Saved?

  nt–we must believe in Jesus.  Yes, that is true, but what does that mean?  I will talk about that later in the article but there are other things we also must believe according to the scriptures. (1) One must believe in God’s existence and that he rewards those who diligently seek him.  “But without faith it is impossible to please him, for he who comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those who dilig…

• He Went Away Grieved

  ooks into the heart and knows that the young man has an idol in his heart.  Perhaps even the young man himself did not realize that such was the case.  But in the end he loved his wealth too much to give it up for Christ, for God, despite believing in Christ.  Again we find another lesson—belief alone will not save you.  I say nothing by saying that but what inspiration has already said—read James 2. Then we come to those words we all almost know…

• The Washing of Water by the Word–Baptism and Salvation

  spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.” (NKJV) The phrase “washing of water” is a direct reference to baptism.  “By the word” signifies the reason for the baptism–God’s word.  God’s word directs one to be baptized. Some think they can be saved outside the church.  There is no way that can happen.  Why?  Because Christians are the church and it is Christians that will be saved.  The church is the b…

• The Church Christ Built–Marks of Identification

  …men.  Actually, no formal name was ever given to the church Jesus built.  It was often referred to by various figures such as:  the body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23, 4:12), the Lamb’s bride (Rev. 21:9-10, Rom. 7:4), the church of God (Acts 20:28), the church of Christ (Rom. 16:16), the church of the living God (1 Tim. 3:15), the church of the firstborn (Heb. 12:23), the household of God (Eph. 2:19), the flock of God (1 Peter 5:2), God’s field (1 Cor….

• Christianity–Who Rules Reason or Emotions?

  our religion is emotionally based and eventually, if that is the case with us, it will lead us to disaster. Truth and reason will always win out given enough time.  Emotion rules for a season, truth and reason for eternity.  God’s word is truth (John 17:17).  It does not matter how you feel emotionally about what he has said.  It doesn’t matter whether or not you like it or would like to see it changed or given a different twist than what it see…

• Christian Wars–A Misnomer

  Christians, God’s children, have for years taken a beating by those who make the claim that Christians have been responsible in part, at least, for religious wars that killed tens of thousands of people during the Crusades and in Europe itself during the Middle Ages.  There never was any truth to it and never will be. Just because a Catholic claims to be a Christian does not make him one.  Just because a Protestant makes the claim to be a …

• The Kingdom of God and the New Birth–A Matter of Timing

  Why write an article on the topic the kingdom of God and the new birth?  The answer is really quite simple.  As long as people today have a desire to be saved in the way Jesus saved some during his personal ministry on earth–by faith without baptism–there will be a need to show the error of that position.  On this subject timing makes all the difference. When did Jesus become a king with a kingdom over which to rule?  When Jesus was …

• For By Grace You Have Been Saved Through Faith Alone

  No, Eph. 2:8-9 does not read that way but that is the way most seem to want to read it.  Let me quote the verses for you from the New King James version. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” There is no believer in his right mind who would discount the grace of God in man’s salvation.  You do not believe you deserve to be sav…

• Jesus as the Bread of Life (John 6:48)

  iptive terms used in reference to Jesus in the Bible of which the bread of life is but one. In the book of John alone Jesus is described as the Word (John 1:1), the Light (John 1:9), the only begotten (John 1:14), the lamb of God (John 1:29), the Messiah (John 1:41), the Son of God (John 1:49), the bread of life (John 6:48), the light of the world (John 8:12), the door through which one must enter if he is to be saved (John 10:9), the good shephe…

• Israel’s Rebellion at the Red Sea

  The children of Israel that God sent Moses to bring out of Egyptian bondage into the Promised Land were a faithless group almost from the very beginning.  Their rebellion against God began before Mt. Sinai and even before the Red Sea crossing.  The Psalmist said, “Our fathers in Egypt did not understand your wonders; they did not remember the multitude of your mercies, but rebelled by the sea–the Red Sea.” (Psa. 106:7 NKJV)  It…

• Parable of the Tares–No Middle Ground

  …8221; (Matt. 13:24-30 NKJV) There has been a lot of debate over the years about this parable among commentators as to whether or not the kingdom referred to in the parable is the church or the entirety of the world over which God rules.  For the purpose of this article it really does not matter for the thing that struck me as I was reading this passage a few days back and which has spurred me to write on it is the stark contrast between the tares…

• The Case of Cornelius and the Holy Spirit

  …ospel in one location and another in a different location so that we can never really know what the gospel is?  Does the Holy Spirit preach one message concerning salvation in one location but a different one elsewhere?  Does God show partiality toward some?  Are some saved one way and others in a different way?  The Bible says, “there is no partiality with God” (Rom 2:11 NKJV) and Paul says there is but “one faith” (Eph. …

• Canaan and Heaven–How God Gives

  How God gives to men is not only an interesting study but also one of upmost importance as it relates to our salvation, a salvation which is clearly set forth in the scriptures as being a free gift of God to man.  “Being justified freely by is grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 3:24 NKJV)  It is by grace through faith that we are saved and not by works. (Eph. 2:8-9)  Salvation is specifically said to be “the gift of God…

• The Blessing of Affliction and the Goodness of God

  …ry possibly our lives for the rest of our time on earth and so what do we do?  Will we complain about the bitterness of it all or will we take advantage of what should be an eye opening event, get our lives in order, and seek God as we ought?  Life is brief and to be granted an opportunity to have our eyes opened to what life really is and to our ultimate end and accountability before God is indeed a blessing. In the book of 1 Corinthians in the …

• Abel’s Sacrifice by Faith versus Cain’s Sacrifice

  Abel, the son of Adam and Eve, is the first person listed among many in Hebrews chapter 11 commended by the Holy Spirit for their faith.  Of Abel it is said, “By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.” (Heb. 11:4 NKJV)  Men have long been troubled by this passage trying to figure ou…

• Healing For the Brokenhearted

  … from the cause of Jesus’ broken heart but is not a broken heart a broken heart?  Is pain not pain?  Is sorrow not sorrow?  Must one’s heart be crushed by a particular thing in order to call it a broken heart? Can God help us mend?  God understands that in this life there are things that are too big for us to deal with alone.  We are put in a position where we cannot act in a proactive way for we have lost that power.  Events have ove…

• Be Faithful to the Lord (The Conversion of Lydia)

  …n assembled there.  The first mystery to some people is found in the statement in verse 14 where it is said that “the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.”  Well, how did he do that?  Did God take a kind of spiritual crow bar to her mind and heart and force conversion on her?  Did the Holy Spirit come upon her in some mysterious operation taking over her will and making her receptive to the gospel as Paul pre…

• Jesus’ Baptism and You?

  t he says.  What did he mean by that?  The answer is found in Psalms 119:172, “My tongue shall speak of Your word, For all Your commandments are righteousness.”  Jesus was baptized because it was the righteous thing to do for God had commanded it and all of God’s commandments are righteousness. In Matt. 21 Jesus is being confronted by the chief priests and the elders who want to know by what authority he is doing the things he is doing.  The Bibl…

• Deeper Spiritual Understanding–How do I Acquire It?

  A person who is a sincere Christian, a true believer from the depths of his/her heart, is a person who hungers and thirsts for righteousness (Matt. 5:6) desiring deeper spiritual understanding.  There is always a desire to know more and understand better.  There is an inner longing to draw nearer to God and feel closer to him and so the way is sought to do so. But the question is how do I do this or accomplish this which I so desire?  If I just …

• The Book of Ecclesiastes

  ie we lose it all. I believe we error greatly, however, when we read the book and get from it the idea that there is no use or value in striving to achieve in this life.  When we live this life with understanding and purpose, God being at its center, we can find joy and happiness.  Hear Solomon: “He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, …  I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice,…

• Work Out Your Own Salvation

  …o we will have it before us and know what it says. “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure.” (Phil. 2:12-13 NKJV) Is this a correct translation of the Greek text?  It is according to the American Standard Version of 1901, the English Standard Versio…

• Things People Do Not Know About the Church

  here is no such thing as a Christian who is not a part of the Lord’s church.  “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47 NKJV)  Who is saved?  Is it the Christian or the non-Christian?  If God has not added you to the church there is a good reason–you are not yet one of those who are being saved. It is only the church that Christ sanctified and cleansed “with the washing of water by the word that he migh…

• Whatcha Gonna Do When They Come For You?

  his the judgment.” (Heb. 9:27 NKJV)  A few verses later in chapter 10 verses 30 and 31 we read, “And again, ‘The LORD will judge His people.’  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Paul says it this way in 2 Cor. 5:10-11 (NKJV), “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good…

• Cornelius’ Conversion–Final Thoughts

  follows that because the Holy Spirit fell on Cornelius that he was saved instantly at that point in time. But, I read the verse in context.  One verse above this one, in verse 12, it is stated, “If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.” (1 John 4:12 NKJV)  Two verses down I read this, “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” (1 John 4:15 NK…

• Everlasting Life–The Believer of John 3:16

  ave.  They merely assume they know so every man becomes a law unto himself, declares himself a believer, and is in his mind (and often in his family and friend’s minds) saved without ever offering any real concern about God’s commands or any serious obedience to them.  Many have made no real attempt in years to worship God or read his word let alone put him first in their life yet they are saved.  We go to the funeral home for visitat…

• Ghost Hunting and Consulting the Dead

  is not just a matter of walking through a building and seeing what happens but it always, sooner or later, comes down to an attempt to make contact with the dead and that is where the problem comes in.  Why?  Because of what God has said. “There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conju…

• If Miracles Have Ceased–the Implications

  Have miracles ceased?  They have if we are talking about the kind of miracles performed by Jesus, the apostles, and those possessed of spiritual gifts in New Testament times.  The purpose of those miracles was to confirm that the word spoken was from God himself.  Such confirmation was needed.  Put yourself in the shoes of those living back then.  Here one comes into your midst claiming to speak for God.  Is he delusional, a mad man?  Is he a ch…

• The Peace Found in Forgiveness of Others

  ject to the supreme spiritual being—God himself.  It is not the physical man that gets hurt, who develops anger and bitterness and hatred and who is unwilling to forgive, but the spiritual man. Man was created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26).  As we have received hurt at the hands of others we have to remember we all, every one of us, have hurt God with our own lives.  This has been true of man from the beginning.  “And the Lord was sorry that he…

• Can one be Just a Christian in Christ’s Church without being in a Denomination?

  ises all kinds of problems. If what she said is true then of what value is the Bible in our generation?  In the early years of Christianity the Bible (the gospel message) made Christians and Christians only that were added by God to the church.  “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47 NKJV)  If the pure gospel message of the New Testament will not do that today then of what value is it? Does the gospel mess…

• Faith is Not Just What You Believe

  nd not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46 NKJV)  He is “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” (Heb. 5:9 NKJV) Thus a salvation by faith without works of obedience would also be a salvation without love for God.  Faith only advocates will not have baptism as an element of salvation for they fear it is a work.  Well, no more so than repentance.  When the Bible teaches we are saved by grace through faith and not of works, Eph. 2:…

• What Is Baptism (the Sprinkling Hoax)

  sed with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”  One is not and cannot be buried by sprinkling or pouring.  Phillip and the eunuch both went “down into the water” (Acts 8:38 NKJV) and “came up out of the water.&#…

• Are Paul’s Writings as Authoritative as Jesus’ Words?

  eter, and Jude wrote as well. The truth of the matter is every single word of the New Testament excepting only those words added by translators for clarification (usually marked by being printed in italics) came directly from God the Father including the words of Jesus himself.  In John 1:1 Jesus is called “the Word” (NKJV) but he says later, “He who rejects me, and does not receive my words, has that which judges him—the word t…

• Forgiveness

  God’s Willingness to Forgive–King Manasseh Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? More on Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? The Need to Preach on Sin The Peace Found in the Forgiveness of Others Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Forgiveness Contacting the Blood of Salvation No Condemnation Is Your Name Written There? The Goodness and Severity of God Are You Ready? …

• Who Governs the Church if We Follow the Bible?

  orld full of denominations and the Roman Catholic Church.  If we are not careful we just inherit a religion from either our parents or our wife or husband and claim it for our own all the while assuming it must be pleasing to God.  The truth often is the one whose example we are following after likely received his/her religion the same way. One of the easiest ways to test one’s religion is by comparing how the church of which he is a member…

• One Church—A Thing Hard to Accept

  art has already made up its mind and evidence will not change it.  That was the way it was with Jesus’ miracles, even his resurrection did not convince those who had already made up their mind he could not be the Son of God (Matt. 28:11-14). In his last recorded meeting with the Jews in Rome during his imprisonment there Paul made this charge against the Jews, not all but some: “The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet…

• Saved by Faith or Saved by Holy Spirit Baptism–Which Is It?

  nd in Act 10 is where most of the difficulty arises.  People feel that when the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius that saved him or, let me get this straight, did it mean he was already saved before the Spirit fell upon him for God would not place his spirit on an unsaved sinner? Thus my first question is which is it?  It makes a difference.  If the Holy Spirit falling upon Cornelius is what saved him, he being an unsaved sinner before that happene…

• Singing and Playing in Christian Worship

  t you all the information your heart could desire. This is a historical fact about instrumental music in Christian worship none will deny.  (The earliest date I have seen listed in my research is around 670 AD.)  If it was of God, if the apostles had instructed the early Christians to use it, then it goes without saying that in those very early years they would have been worshipping with it.  The very fact that we can be certain beyond doubt that…

• Though He Slay Me

  The title for this article comes from the Old Testament book of Job, chapter 13 verse 15, where Job makes the statement, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust him.” (NKJV) The story of Job as told in the Old Testament is one of pain, suffering, and sorrow, of the loss of loved ones (sons and daughters), of possessions, of health, and very nearly of hope.  His state got to be such that his wife’s advice was, “Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9 NKJV)  De…

• Three Attitudes That Destroy the Hope of Salvation

  Most everyone is willing to concede they desire to go to heaven after this life is over and live there with God eternally versus dying and going to hell “where ‘their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’” (Mark 9:48 NKJV)  That is the way we ought to feel and God certainly approves of our desire along that line.  Unfortunately, our desire for heaven and our attitudes while living here on earth are often in con…

• The Great Commission and Cornelius

  o their combined authority and receive all the blessings that go along with doing that. That the baptism of the Great Commission was water baptism goes without saying as the command was made to men to do this to others.  Only God, not man, can baptize one in the Holy Spirit.  Furthermore, those they taught and baptized were to go out and do the same thing (“teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” Matt. 28:20 NKJ…

• Are the New Testament Scriptures Alone a Sufficient Guide to Heaven?

  sufficient then those denying such make it clear they are not Bible believers despite any and all claims to the contrary. The Holy Spirit speaking through Paul the apostle said, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:16-17 NKJV) Who was Paul, at …

• The Mysterious Eloquent Evangelist

  tely the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he helped greatly those who had believed through grace; for he p…

• The Army of the Lord–the Church

  re is no hardship to be endured as a Christian.  Wrong!  Paul made it clear it is not a matter of whether or not we will be persecuted but more a matter of when or where or degree for he says, “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (2 Tim. 3:12 NKJV) There is, I think, a greater implication in Paul’s statement than we generally are willing to accept.  We think if someone on the national scene has spoken a…

• The Lord’s Supper as a Part of a Larger Meal–Right or Wrong?

  Should the Lord’s Supper be incorporated as a part of a larger meal in the worship of God in the Christian religion? Some are today arguing for such a practice. All any of us can know about what we should or should not do is found in the Bible, at least that has been the traditional view of conservatives. Today there is a liberal element in Christianity who feels they no longer need Bible authority for what they do. That being the case they feel…

• Is Denominational Baptism Scriptural?

  was the idea that he could sprinkle men and call it baptism and put his man made invention on an equal plain with the baptism of the Great Commission.  Man can try it and use that procedure and pay for his error in the end.  God never gave man the authority to change the meaning of his inspired word or to add to it.  “These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches.” (1 Cor. 2:13 NKJV) The wo…

• Lincoln’s Tomb and Jesus’ Tomb

  it will not be that long until you too will lie there or in a similar place. We love life.  Very few people have a desire to die save for perhaps those few whose physical condition is such as to make life nearly unbearable.  God gave us life.  We did not volunteer to come into the world but having arrived here we enjoy what we have found even if we are poor and lack what many others have.  God gave us an innate desire for life.  Why do we desire…

• God’s Plea–On Christ’s Behalf be Reconciled to God

  tears to have seen her son at her bedside, just one time, as she passed from this world into the next.  However, that was not to be. When I came to know the mother and dad they were devout church members.  I am sure faith in God is all that allowed them to live all those many years from middle age on into old age.  The one who suffers the least in these family breakups is the alienated.  They feel justified, maybe a sense of getting even, I will…

• God the Father, Christ, and the Holy Spirit

  Does God Really Care? Things God Cannot Do Jesus as the Bread of Life Jesus and the Furnace of Fire Behold the Judge is Standing at the Door The Need to Preach on Sin What Does the Phrase “My Name” Mean in the Bible? Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Wonderful Jesus Who Is Jesus? Born To Die The Appearance of Jesus All Spiritual Blessings Are in Christ Enemies of Christ The Holy Spirit (Part I) The Holy Spirit (Part II) The Holy Sp…

• Did Christ Rise From the Dead or is Faith Folly?

  5:16-17 NKJV)  If Christ did not rise from the dead what hope do we have as we grow old and face the inevitable?  Are we but animals? The evolutionist would say yes we are only animals and talk like it is absurd to think of a God in heaven yet they talk about life evolving from non-life as if it just kind of popped out on its own from dead matter–dead matter evolving into living matter.  Now that is a scholarly concept for you is it not but…

• Ashamed of Jesus and His Words

  hat is generally true. We do not speak because we do not want to be embarrassed or shamed by the world that ridicules faith in Jesus thus are more concerned about receiving honor from men rather than the honor that comes from God alone.  We do not speak because we do not want to contend earnestly for the faith (Jude 3).  We do not speak because we do not want to wield “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Eph. 6:17 NAS…

• Religious Titles Forbidden in Christianity

  e not specifically forbidden from using the word Rabbi as a title.  He never considers the second reason Jesus gave for forbidding the use of the title—”you are all brethren.”  We all stand on equal footing before God.  No one is special, no one gets a pass, and no one gets to exalt himself above the rest of the brethren. The reader might find it interesting to note that you will not find the word Rabbi in the Old Testament.  The Bibl…

• Repentance

  Jesus Defines Repentance Repentance–How Can I Be Sure? Repent–How Hard It Is To Do Peter’s Second Gospel Sermon Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? More on Willful Sin–Can Anyone be Saved? The Chastening of the Lord The Blessing of Affliction and the Goodness of God …

• Why Men Today Cannot Be Saved Like The Thief On The Cross?

  “that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” (Luke 24:46-47 ESV) This gives us a beginning point of both time and place of the gospel message God has for us today.  Those desiring to be saved the way the thief on the cross was saved (by faith without baptism) go back too far, past Jerusalem, past the beginning, and in doing so end up with another gospel. The only …

• Salvation (Becoming a Christian)

  Peter’s Second Gospel Sermon Peter’s Preaching and the Apostle’s Preaching Jesus as the Bread of Life Must a Man Seek God? Jesus and the Furnace of Fire Whatcha Gonna Do When They Come For You? Indifference – The Great Destroyer God’s Plea–On Christ’s Behalf be Reconciled to God Why You Cannot be Saved like the Thief on the Cross Bible Contradictions on Salvation How Was Noah Saved Through Water? How Doe…

• Baptism

  Baptism has been a hot topic down through the ages–who should be baptized, why, for what purpose, are there any prerequisites, what is accomplished in it, does it matter, is it essential for salvation or have anything at all to do with it, what is baptism (is it sprinkling, pouring, immersion, or take your choice?).  So many questions but are there no answers?  Was God such a poor communicator that he could not make the subject clear?  Wha…

• Assorted

  gs Christianity, Homosexuality, and Gay Marriage When Did Obedience Become Legalism? Healing For the Brokenhearted Better to Have Never Been Born Though He Slay Me The Fragrance of Christ Deeper Spiritual Understanding Things God Cannot Do Without Natural Affection and Covenant Breakers The Christian, Politics, and the Government Why Men Do Not Believe Did Christ Rise From the Dead or is Faith Folly? Denominationalism’s Sin Against Peter Wh…

• Gospel Obedience at Corinth

  ans that cause some people trouble on the subject of baptism–1 Cor. 1:14.  Paul preached baptism, personally baptized some, was baptized himself, and yet here he says, in writing to the church at Corinth, “I thank God that I baptized none of you, except Crispus and Gaius.” (NAS)  What gives?  That is a good question deserving a response.  We know Paul preached baptism at Corinth.  How do we know?  In Acts 18:8 we find the result…

• Christ Did Not Send Paul to Baptize

  to not hold his peace but to speak up in preaching the gospel (verse 9).  Paul spent 18 months in Corinth preaching (verse 11). In 1 Cor. 6:11 Paul, after speaking of sins that will prohibit one from inheriting the kingdom of God (verses 9 and 10), says to the Corinthians, “And such were some of you.  But you were washed … .” (NKJV)  Now what kind of washing would it be that would make a difference in one’s salvation (as this on…

• I Can Do All Things Through Christ

  do to keep from crying.  Night after night at bedtime I would go back and the two of us, my son and I, would set there and talk about this verse and it seemed to calm his fears after a while as we would talk.  Is that the way God strengthens us?  I have little doubt that there is strength in the word of God–power to strengthen not only a babe but people of all ages.  If we will only hear the word and believe it with conviction of heart we w…

• Was Cornelius Saved Before Baptism? (Cornelius’ Conversion)

  he same subject.  Why do so?  Because there is absolutely no possibility that Holy Spirit inspired men, some apostles, could have gotten it wrong.  The case of Cornelius is unique in the respect that he appears to have been a godly man even prior to his conversion.  In Acts 10:2 the Bible says of him that he was “a devout man, and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people, and prayed to God continual…

• Word of God

  Are Paul’s Writings as Authoritative as Jesus’ Words? Are the New Testament Scriptures Alone a Sufficient Guide to Heaven? The Need to Preach on Sin I Can Do All Things Through Christ If Miracles Have Ceased–the Implications Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) What a Preacher Must Preach The Power of the Word of God to Change Lives False Standards of Authority What the Word of God is Like Some Great Bible Questions …

• Faith

  Paul’s Conversion–Justified by Faith Faith Comes by Hearing the Word of God–the Implications Who is the Believer in John 3:16? What is it a Man Must Believe in Order to be Saved? Faith is Not Just What You Believe Obedience of Faith and Justification by Faith–Opposing Doctrines? Disobedience to Jesus The Faithfulness of Jesus to God the Father I Can Do All Things Through Christ If Miracles Have Ceased–the Implicatio…

• Faith and Baptism in Paul’s Preaching

  t of Lydia. The story of Lydia’s conversion is so short we can quote all scripture has to say about it here:  “And a certain woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.  And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, com…

• Baptized For the Dead

  ons in the church at Corinth.  To show the brethren the error they were following in dividing up into followers of men he says, “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name.” (1 Cor. 1:13-15 NKJV) This does not mean that only a few of those whom Paul converted in Corinth were bapt…

• Faith Based On Deception–Gen. 37:31-33

  14-15 NKJV) Satan quoted scripture to Jesus while tempting him after his baptism. False teachers can quote scripture. We today are gullible. We believe about anything that is called Christian, whether in doctrine or works, is God approved. We just accept it and go on and assume it is fine with God and in accord with New Testament teaching. We need to beware. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of Go…

• Children of Israel

  Israel’s Rebellion at the Red Sea Moses, the Waters of Marah, and a Lesson for Today Faith, Manna, and Grumbling Against God Sin in the Desert–Testing God at Massah and Meribah Mt. Sinai and the Day of Judgment Canaan and Heaven–How God Gives The Chastening of the Lord …

• Born Again At The Point Of Faith – John 1:12-13

  John 1:12-13 from the New American Standard Version:  “(12) But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in his name:  (13) who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will on man, but of God.” [verse numbers added by me for clarification—DS] Many believe that they are born again (become Christians) at the moment they come to believe in Jesus as t…

• The Fragrance of Christ

  The apostle Paul made the following statement in 2 Cor. 2:15-16, “For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.  To the one we are the aroma of death to death, and to the other the aroma of life to life.  And who is sufficient for these things?” (NKJV) I like the phrase “the fragrance of Christ.”  When I think of the word fragrance I think of that which has a pleasant smell–a f…

• Prayer

  Acceptable Prayer Pray For Others Lest You Sin Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) The Disciples Prayer …

• Parables

  The Parable of the 10 Virgins–7 Lessons Parable of the Tares–No Middle Ground The Parable of the Talents–the Sin of Fear The Prodigal Son–When He Came to Himself   …

• The Conversion of the Philippian Jailer

  …8220;what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30 NAS)  There is a lot of information that can be gleaned from those few words.  First, it can be fairly inferred that the jailer was convinced that Paul and Silas were men of God who knew God’s will.  Perhaps their reputation had proceeded them as not long before this they had converted Lydia (Acts 16:14-15) and also had cast out a spirit of divination from a slave girl, a spirit that was t…

• The New Birth and Water

  Having written on the subject of the new birth before I was surprised, although I doubt I should have been, to have gotten some comments back to the effect that the water mentioned in John 3:5 where Jesus says, “most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (NKJV) had reference not to baptism but to the water of childbirth.  Probably shows what a sheltered life I have led to be surp…

• Receiving the Gospel (Acts 2:41)

  …for the remission of sins.”  (Acts 2:38 KJV)  They do not believe what Peter spoke, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to be true.  They are not willing to receive his words.  Be all of that as it may do not be misled.  God is able to say what he means to say.  He is able to communicate clearly.  If you gladly receive the word Peter preached (I ask again did he preach the gospel?) you will do what he by the Holy Spirit told you to do.   Ple…

• New Birth

  Born Again at the Point of Faith – John 1:12-13 Paul’s Conversion (Justified by Faith) What Does the Phrase “Born of Water and the Spirit” Mean? The Kingdom of God and The New Birth The New Birth and Water A New Creation in Christ The Truth So Called Christians Will Not Accept Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Born Again When One Obeys the Gospel Things That Happen With Gospel Obedience Why I Am a Christian Keeping The C…

• The Church

  Things People Do Not Know About the Church How Does One Get Into the Church Christ Built? Saved by Jesus Outside the Church Jesus the Foundation of and Builder of the Church One Church–A Thing Hard to Accept Which Denomination Did Jesus Build? The Church as the Family of God–Things Found in It The Church Christ Built–Marks of Identification Can One be Just a Christian in Christ’s Church Without being in a Denomination? Ch…

• The Kingdom of God

  The Kingdom of God and The New Birth   Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) The Seed of the Kingdom …

• Philip Preaching the Gospel in Samaria

  “But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike.” (Acts 8:12 NAS) It would be good to read an earlier article on this web site from an earlier time in the book of Acts, an article entitled, “Receiving the Gospel–Acts 2:41,” as Acts 8:12 is pretty much a parallel passage teaching the same thing as Acts 2:41.  …

• Worship

  The Lord’s Supper as a Part of a Larger Meal–Right or Wrong? Praying to God to Bless the Bread The Need to Sing in Worship Instrumental Music in Christian Worship–Is It God’s Will? Singing and Playing in Christian Worship Confirmation Sunday–No Bibles Required Bible Authority, Foot Washing, the Holy Kiss, and Head Coverings King Saul–As Long as it Glorifies God Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) The Lord’s…

• Old Testament Studies

  Abuse of the Old Testament The Book of Ecclesiastes King Saul–As Long as it Glorifies God Canaan and Heaven–How God Gives Must the Christian Keep the Sabbath? Spiritual Mirages  (a lesson from Jeremiah) Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Moses–The Fork in the Road When Your Walking Stick Comes Home The Valley of Dry Bones The Weaver’s Shuttle Remove Not the Ancient Landmarks On to Canaan But He Lingered The Day of Decision …

• Grace

  Misunderstanding the Grace of God For by Grace You Have Been Saved by Faith Alone The Grace of God and the Parable of the Laborers How Was Noah Saved Through Water   Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) How God’s Grace Works The Gospel of the Grace of God Noah Found Grace …

• DennySmith.Net

  Welcome to my website, DennySmith.Net.  DennySmith.Net is a repository for my personal writings on God’s word, Christian articles if you will, and the audio sermons of Waymon Swain of Bastrop, Louisiana.  Waymon is a gospel preacher I have known since childhood, a man who has been preaching for approximately 60 years now.  In addition I have also listed under the “Resource Sites” link at the top of each page links to other webs…

• Waymon Swain’s Audio Sermons

  …rmons as well:  Bob Swain’s Audio Sermons Authority  (1 sermon) Baptism  (4 sermons) Bible Characters  (1 sermon) Bible Conversions  (5 sermons) Christian Living  (26 sermons) Faith  (7 sermons) Forgiveness  (6 sermons) God the Father, Christ, and the Holy Spirit  (10 sermons) Grace  (3 sermons) Miscellaneous  (22 sermons) New Birth  (7 sermons) Old Testament Studies  (13 sermons) Prayer  (1 sermon) Salvation  (26 sermons) Sin  (21 sermons)…

• The Heart

  The Heart of Man from a Biblical Perspective A Heart Right With God (Test Your Heart) Keep Your Heart With All Diligence The Hardening of the Human Heart God’s Hardening of the Human Heart He Went Away Grieved Healing For the Brokenhearted Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Blessed Are the Pure in Heart (Part I) Blessed Are the Pure in Heart (Part II) Love Motives …

• Bible Characters

  Mary of Bethany–Doing What You Can Demas Has Forsaken Me Diotrephes Loves to Have the Preeminence The Mysterious Eloquent Evangelist Never Give Up (Moses and David) Regrets He Feared (Peter) Honestly Deceived (the young prophet and Eve) He Went Away Grieved (the rich young ruler) King Saul–As Long as it Glorifies God They Loved the Praise of Men Audio Sermons (by Waymon Swain) Moses–The Fork in the Road …

• Bible Conversions

  sion of Lydia The Conversion of the Philippian Jailer Gospel Obedience at Corinth   Audio Sermons  (by Waymon Swain) The Ethiopian Eunuch The Conversion of Saul Philip Preaches the Gospel The Seed of the Kingdom Promises God Has Not Made …

• The Two Covenants

  The Kingdom of God and The New Birth Abuse of the Old Testament Must the Christian Keep the Sabbath? …

• Preaching Jesus Means Preaching Baptism–The Conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch

  said on the Day of Pentecost baptism is for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38) without which one cannot be saved. When Philip preached in the city of Samaria the Bible says he preached “the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 8:12 NAS) with the result being that men and women “were being baptized” (Acts 8:12 NAS).  Here in Acts 8:35-36 he has an audience of only one man and in a different …