Church Life
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Learning Leviticus [Video]
Okay, so most of us avoid the third book of the Bible unless we “have to” read it for our daily Bible reading. Leviticus is a difficult book to read, mostly because there are almost no stories. Instead, the book of Leviticus is filled with law after law after law. But there is more to the book than just a series of laws. If you are not familiar with The Bible Project on YouTube, I hope this video encourages you to check out what they are doing. In less than nine minutes, they share more helpful information about Leviticus than you may have ever seen before. Enjoy, then check out…
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Five Minutes with Bartimaeus
And they came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; He is calling you.” And throwing off his cloak, he sprand…
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What about Local Church Membership?
Many have asked the question, “Is the organization we have in the church today similar to the Biblical standard?” If we use the commands, examples, and inferences found in the New Testament, it certainly is. One of the side questions to this matter is that of local congregational membership. Some have said that there is no “placing membership” example. Others don’t see the need. But what does the Bible say about Christians and the church? 1. It tells us we are born into a family. “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free–and have all been made to drink into…
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A Cure for the Polly Pitiful Syndrome
A few of us are old enough and sophisticated enough remember that classic, very intellectual television show called “Hee-Haw.” For those who are not old enough to remember, “Hee-Haw” was neither class nor intellectual. One of the sets for the show was a corn field. That was most appropriate because the show was, indeed, very corny. If you do remember that show, you probably remember the recurring skit during which the following lyrics were sung: Gloom, despair, and agony on me Deep, dark depression, excessive misery If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all Gloom, despair, and agony on me. How often do you sing that song? If you’ve never…
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A Soul-Winning Strategy from an Election-Winning Politician
He surprised the pundits. He surprised his opponents. He surprised the pollsters. He won an election he was supposed to do well in, but not win. He won by a fairly substantial margin. That was not predicted. It was not supposed to happen. What was his secret? What new tool and/or strategy did he have that the others did not have? Yes, he had raised a lot of money, but so had his opponents. Yes, he had a well-organized team in place, but so did his opponents. What about modern technology? He had all of that in place, but so did his opponents. The citizens of the state got to “know” him as they saw him on television,…
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For All Lads to Leaders Participants
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Snapshots of Faith
When my mother was passing from this life, I sat by the bedside and made what I called “mental snapshots” of her. I looked intently at her face and her beautiful white hair. I stared at her hands thinking about all of the hard work they had done, and how tenderly they had cared for me. Recently, not long after the seventh anniversary of her passing, I began to look around our congregation and see some “snapshots of faith” that exist within our spiritual family there. I saw a woman named Bette slowly make her way into the building on her walker. She was dressed for warmth even though the temperature outside wasn’t…
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When a Church Family Struggles
Of all the descriptions found in the New Testament for the church, I suppose my favorite is that of a family. That image is the one I include in sermons more often than any other, and I think it is the easiest picture to relate to on the local, congregational level. The picture of the church as a family has many positive connotations. We think of times when we share memories. We think of laughing and crying together. We think of meals together and times when we just spend time together because we love each other deeply. It’s Not All Positive There is, however, another side of this image. Families…
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Do You Really Care what the Bible Says?
Sometimes reading the Bible is hard. Not because it is hard to understand. Not because it is hard to make the time. Not because it is hard to pay close attention. But because it is hard to care enough about what it says to change. Jesus once told a parable about a sower who went out to sow his seed. In the explanation of that parable, Jesus said very plainly that the seed was the word of God (Luke 8:11). The rest of the parable discusses how that seed was received. The seed never changed, but depending on where that seed landed there were differing results. Some soil rejected the seed.…
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Just Men Made Perfect
Hebrews 12:23 speaks of “…just men made perfect” (KJV). I am intrigued by the word “just.” Instead of that word, some translations use the word “righteous.” According to some of the information I have at my disposal, the Greek word that is used here can mean such things as “just,” “righteous,” “upright,” “virtuous,” etc. However, there is another use of the word “just” that comes to mind when I think of that verse. Often, we will use “just” in the sense of “merely.” We will excuse our behavior by saying, “I’m just human.” We may deflect some compliment by saying, “I was just doing what I was supposed to do.” Children of important or powerful people…
