Last week I had an article in the bulletin entitled, “Why the Catholic Church Ought Not Select A New Pope.” Biblical reasons were given as to why the papacy is an unscriptural arrangement in the New Testament model of organized church leadership. But as I mentioned, I’m not so na�ve as to think that the […]
On our recent trip to Maine, we had the opportunity to see several lighthouses. One we were able to visit up close as it was located within the boundaries of the national park and accessible by car. This particular lighthouse was not one of the tall, stately, and grand lighthouses that one is accustomed to […]
In 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, Paul gives some ordinances, customs, or signs of authority to women concerning their hair. Would you please explain this passage? There is perhaps no more difficult passage within the New Testament as this one discussed. In large part this is a difficult passage because in order to understand it, one needs […]
Last week we noted that an offence is when we cause someone to be upset or troubled through our actions or words whether justified or not. We also noted the following: 1) we ought to live lives void of offence to others; 2) it is impossible to live the Christian life without offending someone; 3) […]
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. (Psa 51:6 NKJ) One summer, a friend of mine and I went to Colorado to climb mountains. To get there, we drove all night from the very southeastern tip of Texas (near Beaumont) beginning Sunday […]
Would you explain the words “delivered over to Satan” as spoken by Paul of certain men in 1 Corinthians 5:5 and 1 Timothy 1:20? In 1 Corinthians 5:5 we read, “To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord […]
In 1 Corinthians 11:29, what is Paul making reference to when he says “if he does not judge the body rightly”? Which body is he speaking of? 1 Corinthians 11:29 reads, “For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord
We have all seen one version or another of the mobster shows where the “hit man” walks up to his good buddy who has had a contract put on his life and say, “Sorry, Rico. It’s not personal, it’s just business.” At which point, Rico’s left ventricle gets very personal with a 32-mag bullet. How […]
In Matthew 26, it talks about the Lord’s supper. However, it never says anything about taking of the Lord’s supper on Sunday (the Lord’s Day). Why do we partake on Sunday? Does the Bible say we should? We read in Matthew 26:25-29 “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake […]
The Birth of The King Vs. 18 – Matthew begins to describe how the birth of Jesus took place. He makes it clear that Mary and Joseph’s relationship was in the betrothal phase and that this was prior to any sexual activity (i.e. “before they came together”). Betrothal was similar to what we would consider […]
Are we to understand from Matthew 10:28 that the soul can be destroyed by God in hell or Gehenna? If so, is the word “destroy” used in the same way as we understand its meaning today? There are two questions here that need to be discussed. First, does the Bible teach that the souls of […]
One of the more curious appellations that we find in the scriptures is the name that Jesus gave to the brothers James and John–Boanerges. Mark records this moniker in 3:17 “And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder.” One does […]
It is possible to become deceived (Mark 13:5-6; 2 Peter 3:17). Repeated warnings were given to the early church to warn against a coming falling away (Acts 20:28-30; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 2 Timothy 4:3-4). Mark 13:5-6: “And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you: for many shall come in […]
In the Spring of 1994, I took a philosophy class titled, “Interpretation and Translation” in which I was exposed to a theory known as “Reader-Response Criticism.” This theory suggests that the meaning of any particular text is not so much what the author originally intended as much as what the reader personally experiences when reading […]
“LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? . . . He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.” (Psalm 15:1, 4) In the year 2000 I lost my job at EDS and began searching for employment. I picked up some part time work in the interim. […]
“It’s so easy to become narrow minded. So easy to become triumphalist in our own approach in our own religion that to be aware of the way that God expresses Himself in so many languages is essential to becoming Christian” – Preacher, The Church of Conscious Harmony I heard the above statement on an audio […]
The problem has been vexing me for the past two months. I thought about it while traveling, searching for a house, and even while eating Thanksgiving dinner. What am I going to write in the bulletin? What am I going to say on the last day? What words of spiritual support and advice can I […]
The picture showed multiple columns of smoke billowing into great clouds of flame, ash, and dust behind what would typically be considered a sprawling urban neighborhood with houses lined up one after another. In the distance a helicopter could be seen flying in front of the roiling tumult showing the magnitude of the raging fiery […]
In the late 1970s and early 1980s the bus ministry was a really strong work among churches of Christ. On many of the buses would be a sign that said, “J.O.Y.” It didn’t take long to learn that J.O.Y. stood for Jesus-Others-You. “Jesus first, others second, yourself last” was the popular mantra. It was a […]
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). To be in Christ is to be different from what we were before we were in Christ. What one was before being in Christ is “old” and what one […]