Sound Teaching

There are so many different philosophies of life, with different values and priorities, it seems it would be difficult to determine the most important attribute an individual might have. In fact, the Holy Spirit has revealed that attribute in a very interesting way in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.”

Love is most important. If love is not present, inspiration, knowledge, faith and sacrifice are all vain. That is not to say that such are not important, or even necessary. It is to simply say that they are not supreme. As Paul concluded the chapter, “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love“ (vs. 13).

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In 1 Corinthians 14:33, the apostle Paul wrote, “For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” These words were written at the end of Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians for their failure to conduct an acceptable worship assembly.

In verse 26 he commanded, “Let all things be done for edification.” When teaching is done one person speaks and the others listen, resulting in edification. In the early church, the acts of prophesy and tongue speaking was to bring edification, and the same pattern was to be followed. One person speaks, the others listen, that they may be edified. A cacaphony of voices produces confusion, a lone voice speaking the word of God brings growth.

Many denominations, pursuing emotional gratification, equate spontaneous and multiple eruptions with edification. In this text Paul reveals the two are antithetical to one another. As he concluded, “If anyone think himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant” (vs. 37-38).

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Sermon by Armando Vera

God is holy, and as sanctified individuals, Christians must live their lives in a holy way before Him.

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Sermon by Bob Ward

In 1 Peter 2:13-17, the Apostle Peter indicated that we are to “Honor the King.” The lesson discusses the appropriateness of Christians involving themselves in the political process, and the issues of the day.

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Recently, in doing some reading about evangelism, I came across a sermon outline by Mark Copeland titled “Perspectives for Success in Evangelism”. The lesson pointed out that even diligent Christians can reach a point where they become discouraged or apathetic with regard to teaching the lost. As this is an important duty for the child of God, it is important to avoid that trap. Mark points out certain perspectives that will help a person maintain enthusiasm and persistence in seeking opportunities to teach others. I want to share and discuss them in this short post.

Continue reading “How to Succeed in Sharing the Gospel” →

Upon Paul’s imprisonment in Rome, the church in Philippi, concerned about him, determined to send help to him. They sent a man named Epaphroditus, who was faithful to his task, and arrived in Rome with their gifts for the beloved apostle.

His trip to Rome was an eventful one. He had become ill, “almost to death”, causing great concern not only for Paul, but also for the church in Philippi who had heard of his sickness. But, he recovered, and Paul sent him back to his brethren in Philippi, that they might rejoice at seeing him alive and healthy.

Paul had great respect for Epaphroditus, and wrote of him in glowing terms. Of him, Paul wrote, “my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need” (Philippians 2:25).

Continue reading “Praise your brothers and sisters!” →

The apostle Paul knew of the tendencies of men to depend upon their own ideas and opinions to guide them in life. He also knew that such leads to ruin. He wrote, “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1:27).

While men seek their own way, that they might receive praise from others, the wise man seeks God’s way to be accepted by Him. This is where Christ comes in, “you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God – and righteousness and sanctification and redemption – that, as it is written, He who glories, let him glory in the Lord” (vs. 30-31).

This is why it is necessary to study, heed and obey the word of God. It is God’s way, the way to true wisdom and eternal life.

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“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever” (Psalm 111:10).

The world equates wisdom with the accumulation of technological insight, and the continual progression of moral change. People today are smarter, and less encumbered by outmoded superstitions and prejudices – so they say.

Oh really? Are we to equate political corruption, amoral lifestyle, extreme self-indulgence and a rejection of absolute values to some modern version of deep thought? If so, I choose to remain out of style and out of step.

As Paul wrote, “…the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:25).

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The Psalmist in Psalm 96 proclaims praise to our great God in Heaven for what He has done, who He is, and what He will one day do. We too should lift our voices in praise to Jehovah.

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Powerpoint Slides

The lesson discusses the great joy that we have from fellowship with God, and our brethren in Christ. Some practical suggestions are made showing how to cultivate and rejoice in our love and affection for each other.

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Powerpoint Slides

Invitation delivered by: Stan Cox

In James 4:13-ff, James admonishes the arrogance of the man who believes that he has control of his life. He does not, and is dependent upon God’s will to continue on the earth. As such, we must recognize that today is the day for our salvation!

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As is true with just about every other spiritual matter, people have their own unique concept of heaven. A little child asks their mother, “What is heaven like?” The response is, “Well sweetheart, to me heaven is…”

No wonder that atheists ridicule the Christian faith. To them the eternal concepts of heaven and hell seem to emanate from man’s imagination. “I like to think of heaven as a place where the flowers are always blooming!” Well, you might want to think that, but hopeful thinking is a far cry from reality. And so, the skeptic lumps Christianity in with the myriad false religions that had their origin in the imaginations of men.

Continue reading “Heaven” →

In George Orwell’s classic novel 1984 , the government sought to limit freedoms, and influence thought, by introducing a variation of English called “Newspeak.” The idea was for the government to establish words with specific meanings, and to eliminate words that contained thoughts that were possibly antagonistic to the government’s purposes.

I find it interesting in our day that something similar is occurring. Definitions of words are being changed as a means of promoting new ideas and values while at the same time discouraging values that society no longer considers acceptable. Since those unacceptable values are often held by Christians, those who hold their faith dear are being marginalized by society. Let me supply a few examples:

Continue reading “Cultural Newspeak” →

“Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Peter 2:11-12).

• Sojourners (a foreigner or stranger), and pilgrims (a resident foreigner) describe the Christian’s presence on earth. Your citizenship is elsewhere, though you labor on this earth for a short while before going to the eternal kingdom to which you rightly belong.
• This world is characterized by ungodliness. This ungodliness is destructive to the eternal soul, and should be avoided. As a Christian, you are in the world, but you are not to be of the world.
• By living righteously, you serve as a wonderful influence to those who are not Christians. While enemies of the cross will speak evil of you and your faith, a righteous life will win many converts to God’s way. Jesus said you are to be “the light of the world.” “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14,16).

Like Timothy, you are to take heed to God’s will for you. As you live righteously before Him, you will be able to “save both yourself and those who hear you” (1 Timothy 4:16).

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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