Category: Bible
Subject: Bible
Sermon: Those Noble Bereans
The Bereans were noble because they kept OPEN minds, OPEN Bibles and OPEN Schedules. We need to emulate them.
Wisdom Cries Out!
“Does not wisdom cry out, And understanding lift up her voice? 2 She takes her stand on the top of the high hill, beside the way, where the paths meet. 3 She cries out by the gates, at the entry of the city, at the entrance of the doors: 4 ‘To you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of men.’” (Proverbs 8:1-4).
There is so much foolishness in the world today as infidels and skeptics are heard on every corner. The cacophony of voices, each touting their own philosophy, makes it difficult to know what is true and right. However, true wisdom’s call is present among the voices, and she can be heard, if we apply the correct filter. That filter is the word of God.
“But we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:23-25).
Our text states that wisdom proclaims things that are prudent, excellent, right, true and righteous. There is nothing crooked or perverse in them. And, “They are all plain to him who understands, and right to those who find knowledge” (5-9). Look for it in the right place (God’s word), and true wisdom can be found!
The Patternists: Let No One Deceive Himself
“Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, ‘He catches the wise in their own craftiness’; and again, ‘The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.’” (1 Corinthians 3:18-20).
Any man who presumes to speak where God has not is foolish. To boldly claim that God is pleased with actions that are not authorized in scripture is to be self-deceived.
“For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God” (1 Corinthians 2:11-12).
The only way to know God’s will is to study what He has revealed to us. The only safe way is the way that is revealed in the Bible.
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Sermon: Desiring to Know the Will of God
In spiritual matters, we must be moved by faith’s constant desire to know God’s will. We must be true disciples (learners) of Jesus Christ.
Sermon: Thoughts about the Word of God
Sermon preached by Josh Cox
The sermon is an examination of 1 Peter 1:22-2:5, with applications.
Depending Upon the Word of God
There are consequences to men who do not understand their place in relation to God. Too often men seek their own counsel, and pay no respect to the One who made them. “Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, and their works are in the dark; they say, ‘Who sees us?’ and, ‘Who knows us?’ Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; for shall the thing made say of him who made it, ‘He did not make me’? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?” (Isaiah, 29:15-16).
Sermon: The Word of God is Not Chained!
God’s Word, His will for man remains relevant, powerful, sufficient and suitable as a standard of judgment for men. If we receive that word, and believe it, we will be blessed beyond comprehension.
Sermon: Revive Me O Lord!
The Psalm indicates for us that God is able to revive us through His word, His judgments, and His lovingkindness.
Reading a Lump of Coal
Bible believers have long defended the text of Scripture against the attacks of skeptics. For a long while this defense, specifically regarding the text of the Old Testament, was made more difficult by relatively recent manuscript evidence that formed the basis of the Hebrew text.
Video Transcript: 6 Traits of a “Dateworthy” Man
Relationships are hard. Lots of women are looking for love. Hopefully, Christian women are searching for a man who is worthy of a possible lifetime commitment.
While some care about whether a man is athletic, good looking, funny or educated, hopefully a Christian woman is more interested in finding a man who will represent, (as closely as possible), the ideal for a potential future husband and father.
Continue reading “Video Transcript: 6 Traits of a “Dateworthy” Man”
The Patternists: Ignorance is Dangerous!
I read an opinion piece recently that sought to explain Donald Trump’s popularity with Evangelicals. It seems peculiar since his lifestyle and morals are so alien to Bible teaching. The article posited that many identify as Evangelicals even though they seldom go to church, and have little familiarity with what the Bible actually teaches. In other words those who self-identify as evangelical consider it more a political identity than a religious one. Perhaps this is true.
Why is it that there are so few who claim to be disciples of Christ that are familiar with, or even interested in studying the Bible? Scripture teaches the importance of knowing God’s will, and that such knowledge is attained solely through the study of His word. Peter wrote, “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as new born babes, desire the pure mild of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious” (1 Peter 2:1-3). This is what being a disciple is all about. A disciple is one who learns and adopts the ethics of his teacher.
You can’t successfully claim to be a disciple of Christ unless you know and submit to His will!
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The Patternists: How Can a “Christian” Do It?
Last week I wrote a lengthy article titled “An illogical attitude toward the Bible.“
The article was in response to another article titled “Evangelicals are Losing the Battle for the Bible. And They’re Just Fine With That.”
Consider the ramifications of that title. Evangelicals as a group have always contended that the Bible is inspired of God and inerrant. A new generation of Evanglicals are disavowing that position. The article states that the issues leading to this change in thinking revolve mainly around social issues. The Bible condemns homosexuality, contends for specific and different gender roles for men and women, and contends that the Bible was created by the fiat of God in seven days. These positions are rejected by society today. Young evangelicals, swayed by current mores, are accepting the wisdom of men, and rejecting what they perceive to be foolishness contained in God’s word.
In so doing, they deny the words of Paul, “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, ‘He catches the wise in their own craftiness’; and again, ‘The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.’ Therefore let no one boast in men“ (1 Corinthians 3:19-21).
Those who reject the Lord’s words are rejecting the Lord Himself! Jesus said, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him — the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day” (John 12:48).
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An illogical attitude toward the Bible
This past week I read an extended article from the Los Angeles Review of Books website, titled “Evangelicals Are Losing the Battle for the Bible. And They’re Just Fine With That”, by Jim Finch. The article is rather lengthy, and notes a trend among evangelicals, (a group which has historically contended for the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible), toward a more modernistic view of scripture. Today, many who consider themselves evangelicals no longer regard the Bible as “inerrant, dictated by God, historically accurate in all of its claims or even internally consistent with itself.”
It is not surprising to note that many reject the inspiration of scripture. Modernists, secularists, and proponents of other religions have always done so. However, it is a far different matter when individuals who claim to be respectful of the Bible reject the same. This is a highly illogical and intellectually unsustainable position.
