A few years back, the Washington Post printed an article which pondered the reluctance of Americans to read the instructions that come with new products. Too often, consumers struggle with (or even end up returning) items they can’t figure out how to use, or that they assume don’t work because they’re using the product incorrectly. […]

A saying among scientists who study the human brain is, “Use it before you lose it.” We have the power to help keep our brain fit and working well. I recently read where a well

According to the dictionary, despair is a loss of hope, which brings about a state of hopelessness. A loss of hope brings about discouragement. Discouragement brings about a loss of courage, hope, and ambition because of obstacles, frustrations and the problems of life.

Question 1: Must a person be baptized to be saved? Question 2: Can one lose his or her salvation? Question 3: Are the members of the church of Christ the only ones going to heaven? Question 4: If one loses their salvation, what do they have to do to get it back? Question 5: If […]

Our Lord was no stranger to difficult situations. The Pharisees and Sadducees would often present him with questions regarding various different aspects of the Old Law. Each time, our Lord answered with the utmost wisdom and absolute truth. Perhaps one of the most difficult (if not the most difficult) situations into which these enemies of […]

When we read the book of Job, we usually disparage Job’s three friends for their incorrect response as to why Job was suffering (cf. Job 4-5,8,15,18,20,22,25). Yet when they came to Job, they sat in silence beside him for 7 days before speaking (Job 2:11-13). As it turned out, those were the most eloquent moments […]

In Psalm 103:1,4-5, David declared, “Bless the LORD, O my soul….who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfieth thy mouth with good things.” According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary Of Old and New Testament Words, pg. 142-143, the Hebrew word, “hesed” means “loving-kindness; steadfast love; grace; mercy; faithfulness; goodness; devotion.” This word is used […]

Have you ever been manipulated by someone to such a degree that when the entire thing is over you feel like an old bath towel that has been hung out to dry, just kind of waving back and forth in the wind? I know that I have and I don’t really care to relive those […]

Have you ever planned a big event? Births, weddings, and graduations are big events in our lives. They require planning and are time-consuming. We plan to the very last detail. We expect the very best. Have you ever thought of reading God’s word as a big event? Really big?

The story is told of a small dog that was struck by a car. As it lay by the side of the road, a doctor drove by. He noticed that the dog was still alive, so he stopped his car, picked up the dog, and took him home with him. There he discovered that the […]

Throughout the New Testament, we read of individuals apostatizing from the faith, i.e., Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-10), Hymenaeus and Alexander (1 Timothy 1:19-20; 2 Timothy 4:14), Hymenaeus and Philetus (2 Timothy 2:17-18) and Demas (2 Timothy 4:10). These examples of apostasy should cause us to ask the following question: What precipitates apostasy? 1) Some […]

It seems that the commercialization of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays is more prominent today than ever before, with television ads displaying Christmas merchandise even before

Brother Richard Mansel, preacher of the gospel, and managing editor of Forthright Magazine, made the following statement and asked this question in The Fellowship Room yesterday regarding Revelation Chapter 6: “Revelation 6:12-14 are the most challenging passages. What do you think they mean?” The following is my response to his question:

The church is the spiritual kingdom of Christ on earth. The kingdom and the church have the same identifying marks. A study of the following scriptures reveals they are not separate institutions on the earth: 1) Used interchangeably – Kingdom (Matthew 16:19) – Church (Matthew 16:18). 2) Comprised of saints – Kingdom (Colossians 1:13) – […]

After mastering the Scriptures and sensing that God had spoken to him again and again through its inspired pages (2 Timothy 3:16), John Bunyan went on to be a preacher and an author of more than sixty books, including his classic allegory, “The Pilgrim’s Progress” (see review). Regarding Bible study, Bunyan once stated:

This writer grew up in a time (1940‘s and 1950‘s) when spanking was considered one of the standard methods for disciplining and correcting a child’s behavior. It was not considered abusive in any sense of the word. However, for the past twenty to thirty years, so-called child psychology “experts” have been telling us that spanking […]

Having just returned from a week’s vacation in which we drove approximately 1500 miles, I can attest to the fact that we would not have arrived at our intended destinations were it not for some kind of directions. Directions can be a set of instructions that you have that tell you where to go to […]

In Acts 17:2-7, the scripture states the following concerning Paul: “And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, […]

SUBJECT: Mosaic Law TITLE: On The Old Covenant PROPOSITION: In this lesson we will discuss three things concerning the Old Covenant 1) Its Application, 2) Its Aim, 3) Its End. OBJECTIVES: Each hearer should be able to state why we live under the new covenant and not the old covenant today and cite appropriate scripture […]

What does it mean when we become the Bride of Christ? Are we already a Bride when we believe and born again? Revelation speaks of Christ coming for His Bride? Please tell me more about Bride of Christ. Thanks for your good question. The idea of being the “bride of Christ” is *symbolic* of our […]