Author: Stan Cox
“The Day of the Lord”
The phrase “the day of the Lord” is typically used in scripture to reference a judgment of God. For example, in Joel 2:1-2, the prophet proclaims, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord is coming, for it is at hand: A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, like the morning clouds spread over the mountains…”
Joel was one of the prophets sent by God to seek to bring a rebellious nation to repentance. This particular judgment of God upon Israel took the form of a natural calamity — a plague of locusts devastating the land.
Consider the appropriate response to God’s judgment upon the land. “Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm” (Joel 2:12-13).
Whenever trial and tribulation occurs in our lives, whether individually or collectively, this should be considered. It is not that we know such tribulation comes from God’s judgment. But whether that be so, or if it simply be natural happenstance, we should always seek to examine our standing with God. Remember, the final day of judgment is coming, and it will come “as a thief in the night.” Now is the time for any needed repentance. Tomorrow may be too late.
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Sermon: What Repentance is NOT!
It is important to properly define repentance, so that all will be confident that they have fulfilled this requirement, given by God for our redemption.
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Sermon: Why Lament?
People will only understand the severity of the problem of sin if we look at it from God’s eyes. The Old Testament prophets Elijah and Jeremiah help us to do so.
The Patternists: Jeroboam’s Folly
In recent weeks, I have had several conversations with those who claim men are so reasonable, that any obvious demonstration of God’s power would convince them of His existence and their need to follow Him. Their view mirrors that of the rich man of Luke 16, who begged Abraham to send Lazarus to his five brothers so that they wouldn’t lose their souls as well. Abraham answered in part, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead” (31).
The truth is, most men are sufficiently self-willed to reject truths of every type, no matter how obvious they may be. We see it everyday in politics, medicine and daily life. (Note: We can be guilty of the same, and need to be careful ourselves).
Poisoning Minds
In Acts 14, we are told that Paul and Barnabas were in Iconium, preaching in the synagogue. Their preaching was effective among Jews and Gentiles. But, the unbelieving Jews “stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren” (14:3). Many believed, but the opposition was strong and active, and they eventually had to flee for their lives.
We will always emphasize the need for defending the faith, and the capability of truth to stand and convict men of sin. But, we also realize that it is possible for the minds of men to be poisoned. And, when it happens there is often nothing that can be done.
When men call light darkness and darkness light, they can poison the minds of some. When they state with extreme conviction and flattering words a false doctrine that has appeal to the masses, they can poison the minds of some. When they make false accusations about the faithful, characterizing their faith as extreme or irrelevant, they can poison the minds of some.
Such poison minds can make life more difficult for the servant of God. Not only does such opposition confuse the innocent, it emboldens the enemies of the cross to persecute the faithful. What do we do in response?
“I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ” … “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:1a,2).
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Sermon: The Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus Christ
A discussion of the rudimentary points of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as stated by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8.
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Sermon: Why Job and Why Me?
When experiencing tribulation, a typical question we ask, “God, why me?” It is a similar question that Job had regarding his state after great suffering. The lesson discusses the answers supplied to this question, and establishes the proper way to look at Job’s story.
The Christians Identified in Paul’s Letter to the Colossians
It is sometimes interesting to learn about the names we read of in the Bible. I was looking through the list of names in Paul’s closing comments in his letter to the Colossians, and it occurred to me that lessons are to be learned here.
So, here is the list, with comments included:
First in the list is Timothy. He is mentioned in (1:1), and was a close associate to Paul. Because of his relationship with the apostle, and the letters Paul wrote to him, we know much about Timothy. His mother and grandmother were Jewish, and taught him the scriptures. His father was a Gentile. Paul had Timothy circumcised to avoid any unnecessary conflict (Acts 16:3), and considered him to be a “son in the faith” (1 Timothy 1:2). Interestingly, Titus was considered the same by Paul (cf. Titus 1:4). The young evangelist Timothy was perhaps Paul’s closest and most beloved companion.
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The Patternists: A Lifetime of Faithfulness
Solomon was a wise man. God greatly blessed his reign over Israel. He wrote Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. His advice to his son in the book of Proverbs serves as a guidebook to successfully navigating around the pitfalls of immorality and foolishness.
And yet, in the end, Solomon failed God. Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. The Lord had warned him not to intermarry with these foreign women, but he ignored God. The text of 1 Kings 11 records his mistake. “Solomon clung to these in love” (2). “…his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lords, as did his father David” (3b-6).
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Thanking God Without Ceasing
Paul’s prayer life is worthy of emulation. On numerous occasions he expressed his habit of praying for his brethren. There is one example in particular that is worthy of notice:
“For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
What makes you thankful? Is it the physical provisions you enjoy? – house, food, health? Is it family? For Paul, these things were relatively unimportant. As a bachelor, he fully gave himself over to the things of God. He learned, “in whatever state I am, to be content” (Philippians 4:11).
What brought him joy, satisfaction, and a feeling of thankfulness, was the faithfulness of his brethren. Not only was he thankful, he made his gratitude known to God, “without ceasing.” The relative value of the word of God working effectively in the lives of men is worth the emphasis Paul gave it.
Are you grateful for God’s word? Are you mindful of the faithfulness of your brethren? Do you make it a frequent habit to give God thanks for both?
“Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men… For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior” (1 Timothy 2:1, 3).
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Sermon: Types of Fools
A list of five types of individuals who are identified as fools in scripture are discussed: The athiest, the disobedient, those who prate, those who meddle, and those who are careless.
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Sermon: Who Then Are We?
The lesson deals with the Corinthian’s carnal tendencies, and the call to preach to the lost.
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Facebook Live Video of Sermon (Note: About 6 minutes of video was lost due to streaming glitches. For full lesson, please listen to the audio).
The Patternists: Profanity
I am aware that many Christians are confronted by extreme profanity nearly every day. It has become a common part of communication for many. Where once in our society it was considered inappropriate to use profanity in public situations, this is no longer so. As a preacher I am thankful that I hear it less often than others.
But, there are a couple of recent events that have brought the pervasiveness of profanity in our culture to my attention. The first is personal. While golfing with Josh last week, a man drove past us, asking for our permission to play through and join the foursome ahead. He explained that his friend had to leave, and rather than finishing the last few holes on his own, he wanted to join up with the group ahead.
How Great is Your Concern?
Anyone who has read the letters of Paul know that he was a passionate man. He was open in expressing anger, sorrow, joy and concern. One example of this is an expression of concern for the Christians in Thessalonica. Note his words:
“Therefore, when we could no longer endure it, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone, and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith, that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this… (5) For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain” (1 Thessalonians 3:1-3, 5).
So, twice in five verses, Paul expressed the degree of his concern for those in Thessalonica, “when I could no longer endure it…” They were suffering affliction and tribulation. While it would be understandable to worry about them physically, Paul (as seen in verse 5) was concerned about their spiritual welfare.
A simple question occurs. How intensely do you care for the spiritual welfare of your brethren? Has there been a time when you could endure silence or inaction no longer? A time when you were compelled to speak or act? This is the test of love. “Love the brotherhood”! (1 Peter 2:17).
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Sermon: The Scarlet Thread of Redemption
God’s plan for redeeming man runs throughout the entirety of the Bible, tying all of the books from Genesis to Revelation together. An overview of that plan is discussed.
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