Tri-Annual Singing!
June 20, 2026
7:00pm - 8:30pm
Month: February 2006
An Exegesis of Luke 18:28-30
This section of scripture in Luke 18 recounts a conversation recorded by the physician between Jesus and his disciples. The exchange is also recorded by Matthew (chapter 19), and Mark (chapter 10).
The conversation immediately followed Jesus’ encounter with the rich young man desiring to know, “what shall I do to inherit eternal life” (vs. 18). When Jesus revealed his covetousness (putting his riches before service to God), the young man went away sorrowful. Jesus told his disciples that it was extremely difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven, but “the things which are impossible with men are possible with God” (vs. 27). What is obviously established in this teaching is that nothing can come before God in our lives. This elicited a response from Peter contained in the text under consideration:
“Cruci-Fixin’s”
Muslims throughout the world are outraged at a set of cartoons published by a Danish newspaper (and later republished by a Norwegian paper), which depict the “prophet” Muhammad. As a general rule, the Muslim belief states that no images of Muhammad, or any other prophet, should be made. This is to help avoid idolatry. However, they were further outraged by the fact that Muhammad was demeaned in several of the cartoons; including one that showed Muhammad with a bomb for a turban. This outrage has ranged from silent discontent to the firebombing of Scandinavian embassies.
“Unity Events”
The way Wade Hodges sees it, a cappella churches of Christ and instrumental Christian Churches share too much in common not to treat each other like family.
But in Truitt Adair’s view, any attempt at unity that does not include an “honest discussion of the things that divide us” risks creating more division than reconciliation.
Such are the disparate views among church leaders 100 years after a 1906 federal religious census first reported the a cappella and instrumental churches as separate bodies…
An Exegesis of Matthew 19:1-9
The first nine verses of Matthew 19 make up as disputed a passage of scripture as any in our time. It is interesting to note that the conversation contained in the passage, a discourse between Jesus and some Pharisees who sought to “test” him, was likewise an outgrowth of great dispute among the Jews of that day.
There were two major schools of thought concerning divorce in the first century. One group, following the teaching of a rabbi named Hillel, contended that the law, (Deuteronomy 24:1-4), allowed a man to divorce his wife for any offense at all. The other main group, led by the teaching of a rabbi named Shammai, maintained (as reported by Albert Barnes in his commentary, page 194) “divorce was unlawful except in case of adultery.”
The Pharisees knew that whichever position Jesus took would bring objections from the “other” group. So, they asked Jesus, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?” (vs. 3).
Seahawks Gospel Takes Hold
First, praise the Lord. Then, “Go Seahawks!”
After morning services Sunday, many South Sound churches will throw huge Super Bowl parties.
They’ll show the game on mammoth projection televisions normally used for worship lyrics. They’ll eat pizza and drink soda pop. And they’ll shout for the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL.
Some congregations are even shifting or canceling Sunday night services to accommodate the home team’s first appearance in the Super Bowl.
Sacrilege on the Sabbath? Not so, pastors say. The Super Bowl is a chance for churches to reach out to nonmembers and members consumed by the Seahawks, they say.
An Exegesis of Matthew 5:31-32
The fifth through the seventh chapters of Matthew provide a record of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” in Galilee, early on in His ministry.
Jesus spoke on numerous subjects, establishing His will for mankind. Again and again He said, “I say unto you.” As such, His teaching on these matters is to be studied carefully.
After discussing the sins of adultery and lust, Jesus taught, “Furthermore it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery” (5:31-32). In this passage, Jesus preempted the teaching of the law in establishing his own will.
