Bible study
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Double-Edged Knots
Some knots are necessary. If you want to keep your boat at the dock, you need to tie a sturdy knot. On the other hand, some knots are annoying. Knots in your hair or a favorite necklace can make you run late. This type of knot isn’t the only one that can make a big difference based on where it is found. Sunday in Bible class, Michael Grooms, our preacher, pointed out that shifting a couple of “nots” in the Bible makes a big difference in eternity. In Genesis 2, God clearly told Adam that if he ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil he would “surely…
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Bitterness
I am going to try to introduce this without giving away the situation, because, when you write about bitterness, you don’t want to come across as…bitter! Here goes. A number of years ago, what was probably just randomness put me in a very difficult place, emotionally. For a stretch of time, due to those random circumstances (or, “perhaps,” God’s providence!), I had to be around a number of people who had truly caused me and my family pain. The pain had been emotional and, no doubt, had led to some spiritual struggles also. Now, unbeknownst to any of us, we would have to be around some of those who caused…
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Those Kids Need to be There…Always
Recently, I watched a sermon by a friend of mine who is a wonderful Gospel preacher. It was a sermon from a couple of years ago that I was interested in hearing all of, but, as often happens, there was one little statement that was made that just stuck in my mind. In this part of the sermon, he was talking about decisions that elders had to make during the early-to-earlyish days of the pandemic. As elderships were trying to think of the best ways to proceed, they had to balance all sorts of things. He mentioned the eldership where he attends talking through those issues, as I know our…
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“What Was the First Ever Church Called?”
The title of this post is taken from a portion of a podcast I listened to on September 15, 2023. The name of the podcast is The Briefing and its host is Dr. Albert Mohler. He is well known in some religious circles. This would be especially true among those identified as “evangelical.” In case you are not familiar with Dr. Mohler, the following information is from his website. The information is very basic. but what I’m reproducing here should help you to see how he identifies himself religiously. Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr. serves as president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary – the flagship school of the Southern…
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Is It “Self-Banned” in Your Home?
It’s so-called “Banned Books Week.” The propaganda machine is running hard again to let us know what books have been “banned” here in the United States–despite the fact that you can order any of those books from nearly any bookstore. It’s a publicity stunt, and I hope we see right through it. However, when I saw that this week was upcoming again, it made me think of the one Book that is often not allowed in many places–the Bible. Many of the libraries that are up in arms because a book about gender identity isn’t allowed in an elementary school would not dream of putting the Bible in that same…
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If, Then…
Cause and effect is something we work on quite a bit in elementary English and Language Arts. What may seem rather obvious to those of us who are older can sometimes trip up young readers. Because of the different construction options for these scenarios, they need to be reminded to always think about what happened first: the cause. For instance, “I studied hard and got good grades so I graduated” has the same meaning and cause as “I graduated because I studied hard and got good grades.” Even though they are said in reverse order, a careful reader understands which must happen first. Why do we know that in our…
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The Night Pronouns Mattered
Teens in the Word has become a real highlight for Central’s Youth Group. Each year, the group studies something different and the atmosphere is like nothing else this group does. For awhile, I was the “main” teacher (thankfully, Noah has taken that over and is doing a great job!) and came up with the theme for each year. So, for one year, we decided to handle some very tough subjects, but ones that these young people are facing from day-to-day. Among those subjects was transgenderism. We looked at it from a Biblical perspective as well as a practical, how-do-we-deal-with-it, perspective. At the end of the study, we built a list…
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Saul’s Horse (And Other Things Not in the Bible)
Those who are somewhat familiar with the Bible have heard sermons and lessons about the encounter that a man who then was known as Saul had with Jesus. The events are recorded in the ninth chapter of Acts. As you may remember, Saul (later known as Paul) was on his way to Damascus when a very bright light appeared. Some preachers (I suppose in an attempt to add some drama to the Biblical account) have informed their listeners that the light was so bright that it knocked Saul off of his horse and onto the ground. While the text says that Saul did indeed fall to the ground, there is…
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We’re Still Studying That
I cannot begin to remember all of the times I’ve heard somebody say, “We’re still studying that.” Those who know my background have probably already assumed (correctly) that this is usually said in a religious context. In other words, what is still being studied is what the Bible has to say about some doctrine, practice, etc. I am, in no way, opposed to the practice of studying the Bible. In fact, I firmly believe that all of us, including me, could benefit greatly from doing more of that. Many will remember this very positive description of people who lived in Berea and to whom the gospel had been preached: Now…
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The One Echo Chamber We Should Never Leave
The phrase “echo chamber” has become commonly used in our culture. Due to the multiplicity of ways we can receive news and information, people often just gravitate toward outlets that reaffirm what they already believe. Thus, an “echo chamber,” because it is just repeating what they already believe. People will just read or watch news from a channel that has a leaning toward their side. They will listen to podcasts that state what they already believe. They will watch YouTubers who reaffirm what they want to hear. And, scarcely if ever will they truly listen to the other side. In fact, the only thing they hear about the other side…