Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church Sermon Podcast: Recent Episodes
Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church Sermon Podcast
As we set our goals for a new year, our greatest pursuit should be to fall in love more fervently with Jesus Christ. If our hearts or minds have become cold or complacent, we need to pray for God to renew our love of Christ with all our heart, soul, and mind. We need to […]
Paul was chosen and called as the primary apostle of the Gentiles. Despite his burden for his kindred among the Jews, Paul sacrificed for the Gentiles and the hope of the gospel. He viewed himself as less than the least of all the saints of God. He showed the example that humility is the first […]
The Lord has chosen out his people and ordained them to bring forth much fruit for God’s glory. The primary fruit we bring forth is loving one another. We were chosen by God to love one another. We are called to love one another the same way that Christ has loved us and God is […]
As we consider the birth of Christ this month, we should meditate on the beautiful prophetic titles taken by Christ – Emanuel, Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace.
Elder Paul Blair considers the statements from Jesus Christ about why he came into this world. Christ came into this world to save his people from their sins. He came to fulfill the law, not to destroy. He came to send judgment in the world. He came to bring division and a sword to have […]
The Lord gives us a picture of the church as the house of God. The house of God is built on the chief cornerstone Jesus Christ and the foundation of the scriptures written by the apostles and prophets. The house is built up of lively stones unified together by the Holy Spirit. And then, inside […]
Jesus Christ is the True Vine and his children are his branches. The Lord planted his vineyard to bring forth much fruit for his glory. The only way we can do anything or bring forth any fruit is by abiding in Christ. We abide in Christ by abiding in his word, by abiding in love, […]
Adam’s sin in the garden plunged mankind into a broken relationship with God with no ability to reconcile ourselves back to the Lord. Jesus Christ came to reconcile us back to fellowship with God by his death on the cross. Now, the veil of the temple has been opened up by Christ to where we […]
We consider another picture of regeneration in Eph. 2, the work of God in the soul as a new creation. When Christ comes to inhabit our soul in regeneration, we are remade into a new creature – old things are passed away and behold all things are made new. Our nature as a new spiritual […]
In response to the troubled hearts of the disciples as Jesus was going away, Jesus Christ promised that he would send another Comforter, the Holy Spirit, unto his people. The God of all comfort sends the Holy Comforter unto his people to comfort, encourage, and strengthen our troubled hearts.
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder Ben Cordes reminds us of an overlooked cornerstone of the church – forgiveness. The original disciples thought that God had to give them more faith to be obedient to Jesus’ command to forgive so freely, but instead, we are required to forgive and if we do forgive, at our best, we […]
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder John Morgan Owens exhorts the church to not live in the supposed good old days and diminish God’s blessings today. We should be thankful for God’s blessings today and expect the Lord will bless the church even more in the future than any blessings we have seen in the past, if […]
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder Ben Cordes points us towards the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our tribulation. One primary way that the Lod comforts us is through our brethren, through fellowship of the saints, like Paul was comforted and refreshed by the coming of Titus. We need to be prepared to […]
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder John Morgan Owens lifts our gaze and revives our hope to lay hold on the hope that is an anchor to our soul. When we view the brokenness of this world, we need to have a renewed vision of hope to be reminded this world is not our home and we […]
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder John Morgan Owens reminds of the somewhat uncomfortable truth that before God we are as dead dogs. No one would ever expect a dead dog to come unto them, and God does not expect us as dead dogs to come unto him to receive life. For those dogs that have received […]
2024 Annual Meeting. Elder Ben Cordes considers Christ’s perfect fulfillment of the ten commandments, particularly the fulfillment of the Sabbath. Christ finished the work of salvation, and then rested from his work, sitting down in satisfaction of what he had accomplished. Now, we need to enter into our Sabbath rest by resting in Christ’s finished […]
Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father, the only way to heaven. Most of Christians would say that the gospel is the only way to heaven, or belief, baptism or a good life is the way to heaven, in addition to Jesus. Instead, Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, with no […]
We are saved to heaven by grace alone, but it is “through faith” that we have greater access to the fullness of the grace in which we already stand. Faith is the doorway through which we have access into the grace that Christ has given us. Let us lay hold on eternal life and feel […]
In the midst of our fallen condition by nature, God intervened to show his mercy and grace to undeserving sinners. God’s children were not quickened by any works that we perform, let man should boast. But we were quickened by the unmerited favor and grace of God. Then, it is through faith that we are […]
Trouble is inevitable in the world around us but it can be a great challenge sometimes to not let our hearts be troubled by the external trouble. Jesus gives us some remedies to keep our hearts free of this world’s trouble. We need to have faith in Christ, believe and trust Him. We need to […]
The first and most basic principle in our eternal salvation from sins is that we were dead in trespasses and sins. We had no life or ability to do anything that would be accepted before God to gain eternal life. God’s original law in the garden of Eden was that sin would result in death […]
Jesus Christ set the standard of a new commandment of love for his children that we should love each other the same way that Christ has loved us. The way that the true disciples of Christ are identified in this world are by the way we love one another in the church of the Lord. […]
It is a great mystery that we can never fully comprehend this side of heaven, Christ in you the hope of glory. The power of Christ resides inside of us, but also works in and through us. Our challenge on a daily basis is to allow the power of Christ to walk in and through […]
The Apostle Paul shows a pastor’s heart of prayer for the sheep. The pastor, as the undershepherd of the Lord’s sheep, is charged with the spiritual health of the church he is called to serve. The pastor is called to pray for the sheep to grow in knowledge of Jesus Christ, for the eyes of […]
If we follow the example of Jesus Christ in humbling ourselves to bown down and wash the saints’ feet, we have been promised blessed happiness by the Lord. What is vitally important is maintaining a humble posture of the heart to follow Christ in being a servant of others, rather than being served by other […]
For the child of God that has heard the gospel of their salvation, when they believe and trust in the Lord, there is a special sealing of the Holy Spirit of promise in their heart. Instead of conviction and burden and yoke of bondage, the gospel provides peace, liberty, and comfort through the powerful effects […]
There have been many children of God that have not had access and knowledge to the fullness of God’s will in choosing, predestinating, and redeeming his people from their sins. Now, in the New Testament kingdom, God has fully revealed his will for us to know what he has done for us, that we would […]
Adam’s breaking of the law plunged all of mankind into condemnation under penalty of the law of sin and death. We were all cast into captivity and bondage to death. Christ came to redeem us from the bondage of death and liberated us from that captivity by his own death and shedding of his blood. […]
We can certainly learn from the example of the zealous Greeks who came to Jerusalem seeking to see Jesus Christ. They made the sacrifice to seek Jesus, whereas other chief rulers did not confess Christ publicly because they loved the praise of men, more than the praise of God. When we lose our life in […]
Why did God elect and predestinate his people? So that his children would praise and glorify God for his grace. We were created for the purpose of the glory of God. Even if God gave us no providential blessings, just election and predestination and salvation are worthy of us glorifying God all the time for […]
God has predetermined that his children would be legally adopted into the family of the Lord. We consider the Roman law of adoption to glean the spiritual lessons that the Ephesians would have received from hearing adoption. God’s children can never be removed from his family, and when the Lord returns he shall complete the […]
When considering predestination, it is helpful to view things through the eyes and perspective of Jesus Christ. When Christ chose to love his bride, the church, before the world began, he saw his bride in her final, perfect state at the marriage supper of the Lamb, holy and without blemish before him in love. There […]
In Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem five days before the passover, we see the Son of God entering meekly into the city on a donkey. We first learn the importance of simple acts of obedience by the owner of that donkey, giving up his animal for the Lord had need of him. Then, we see […]
As we turn our hearts towards glorification and the resurrection, we see the vision of Christ of his bride before the world began. Christ saw his bride in her ultimate perfection even before the foundation of the world, even through there was a lot that had to happen for that bride to be in perfection […]
We consider the example of Mary who just before Jesus’ death anointed his body for the burying with an immeasurably valuable ointment. Mary chose that good part down at the feet of Jesus that would not be taken away from her. She did what she could – she gave the Lord the best she had […]
While the doctrine of election is much disparaged in Christianity today, we consider together the beautiful truth of God’s unconditionally choosing a people to save before the foundation of the world. When we see the totally depraved condition man was in by nature, dead corpses, dead babies, and broken vessels, our only response should be […]
In the beginning verses of Ephesians – as well as the beginning of many New Testament epistles – we find the first and pinnacle spiritual blessing we have in Christ, which is election. Election has been pushed to the backburner in Christianity today and has been overlooked by telling people that it doesn’t apply to […]
From the resurrection of Lazarus, we see a real-life example to teach the spiritual lesson of regeneration and then subsequent conversion and discipleship. Jesus did not ask the dead man to come unto him, but Lazarus was quickened and drawn forth out of the grave solely by the voice of the Son of God. However, […]
Visiting minister Elder Kenneth Nowell encourages us to invest in the kingdom of God, to lay up treasures in heaven, not on the earth. We are prone to pursue accumulating wealth in a worldly sense, but true riches are in the kingdom of heaven, when we sacrifice the comforts of this world for the Lord […]
One generation after the amazing establishment of the Ephesian church, the church had left its first love and was in danger of loosing their candlestick. In a historical background of the Ephesian church, we examine the early days of the church and what a church in its first love doing the first works looks like […]
Before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he declared I am the resurrection and the life. Jesus is the source of all life, of all revival, of any resurrection. There might be circumstances in our lives that we feel are dead and past any ability to be revived – a dead relationship, a dead marriage, […]
In beginning to examine the Ephesian church, we look at the establishment of the church and what a church in its first love looks like. Just one generation after the start of the Ephesian church, they had left their first love and were called to repent and return to the first works. We examine the […]
On this Father’s Day, we think about the depth of love between God the Father and Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God. The love of God towards his Son is truly indescribable. God the Father was even willing to bruise the Son he loved so much for his people, the bride of […]
It is sometimes very confusing when God seems to wait in answering prayers, or even if it’s not in accordance with his will to answer our prayers in the way we expect. Many people were perplexed that Jesus waited when his beloved friend Lazarus was sick and ultimately died. However, even though it did not […]
The kingdom of God is the pearl of great price that is worthy of selling all that we have to possess that pearl. This parable presents a merchant man who is well versed in beautiful jewels, but he’s still seeking something better than what he has. What is it about our church that will convince […]
When we find the treasure hidden in a field in the kingdom of heaven, we have to buy the whole field to possess the treasure. This field is not a beautiful, smooth, green meadow with a trickling brook. Instead, this field of the kingdom usually has some stumps, stones, and holes that need to be […]
We expound on the words of Jesus and the rule of Bible interpretation that he taught, that scripture cannot be broken. We approach scripture with a bedrock foundational rule of interpretation that scipture is perfectly true, no errors or inconsistencies, and cannot be broken. Then, we have a lifetime study of God’s word, line upon […]
Visiting minister Elder John Morgan Owens encourages us from the story of Elisha and his servant to look with spiritual eyes upon the great angelic host that fight on behalf of God’s people that are much greater than any enemies that might surround us in this world.
Applying some lessons on leadership to the church, we see some vital lessons that we can apply in the workplace, in any position of leadership, and how we can function better in the church as well.
All of the Lord’s sheep hear and know the voice of the Good Shepherd. While not all sheep know in depth knowledge of the name or identity of the Shepherd, all of the sheep know the Shepherd’s voice in regeneration. Also, all of the sheep will follow the Shepherd in discipleship, even if through a […]
Visiting minister Elder Mike Rodgers brings us back to the central message of the gospel and the church – Jesus Christ and his crucifixion and his subsequent resurrection. This was the central theme of the Apostle Paul’s ministry and preaching in Corinth and is also the central theme of the gospel message of the church […]
On Mother’s Day, we consider the depth of a mother’s love that goes down all the way to the soul. The tenderness and love of mothers to their children is arguably the greatest love this side of heaven. If the love from mothers is so great and deep, how much more so is the love […]
God has instilled inside the heart of his children an expectant looking towards the second coming of Jesus Christ. While we might get busy and not be in tune with that, there is a hope inside of every child of God that expectantly desires and looks forward to Christ’s return. Living in expectation of Christ’s […]
Jesus Christ is the good Shepherd and guides his sheep into the good pasture of the abundant life. The way we lay hold on the abundant life is by following the pattern of the good Shepherd and laying down our life for the sheep. The greatest abundant life is not indulging our own convenience, but […]
In a summary message on how we can conquer fear, we consider what should be our first response when fear creeps in, which is to pray unto Jesus Christ. When we are overwhelmed and consumed with the fears of this world, let’s cast our cares upon Christ and take up his easy yoke and light […]
Jesus Christ chose to heal a blind man who had been blind from birth in John 9. We see the beautiful example of the testimony of this man – I once was blind, but now I see. We all have a testimony similar to this man – this is who I was, this is who […]
Even when we walk by faith, there are always seeds of doubt that remain in our minds. The real challenge is what do we do with that doubt? If doubt is allowed to grow, doubt will create fear, and fear will diminish our faith, leading to little faith or maybe even no faith in our […]
Arguably Satan’s greatest battleground is our mind, to blind and deceive our minds and lead us to fear. Therefore, we have to display self-control over our thoughts to not let Satan deceive our minds that leads us to sin in our actions. Instead of us being captive to our fleshly minds, we must bring our […]
Jesus Christ points the scoffing Jews back to their supposed father, Abraham, who saw the day of Christ and rejoiced in it. In a special way, Abraham was able to see a prefigure of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, upon Mount Moriah as the ram took the place of his son, Isaac, on the […]
All of God’s children struggle with the warfare between the flesh and the Spirit that we have described to us in depth in Romans 7. Many days we feel like we are losing the daily battles in that warfare and might be prone to feel condemned. God gives us beautiful truths in Romans 8 that […]
Jesus Christ is the perfect expression of love, and our greatest remedy to conquer fear is likely the perfect love of Christ that drives out fear. If we are in the torment of fear, we are not made perfect in love. We need to strive to obey better the greatest commandment to love God with […]
We many times don’t understand or forget the true power that resides inside of every child of God. The power of Christ resides in our soul, Christ in you the hope of glory. The perfect faith and perfect love of Christ resides inside of us, and our calling is to work out that perfect faith […]
Who has the capacity and ability to hear God’s words? Jesus answers this question definitively for us in John 8 – only those who are “of God” hear God’s words. We do not have the ability to just choose to hear the words of God to be born again. Rather, those who hear God’s words […]
These are only 2 types of fear in this world: 1) the fear of God, 2) the spirit of fear. The primary remedy to conquer the spirit of fear is the fear of God. A reverential love and respect for God as our Heavenly Father will lead us to obey his commandments and depart from […]
Satan desires to put God’s people in bondage through the fear of death. If we walk around every day in fear for our lives, then inevitably we will not be very profitable in the kingdom of God. Through Christ’s resurrection, we have been liberated from the bondage of the fear of death and can joyfully […]
This world and Satan attempts to put us into bondage, but the truth of Jesus Christ gives us freedom and liberty. Whether it be lying or a false gospel, many of God’s children walk around with a yoke of bondage around their neck. When we rest and trust in the truth of Christ, we are […]
Visiting minister Elder Jackie Smith exhorts us to remain faithful in the midst of suffering and tribulation. No one has arguably suffered more than Job, and he remained faithful even in the midst of his sufferings. God will not forsake us in the midst of the tribulation, but he will make a way of escape […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Kenneth Nowell draws us back to the new and second commandment – to love one another as Christ has loved us. We let our light shine to a dark world for God’s glory as we show love one to another. All men should identify us as the disciples of Christ by […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder David Wise considers Jesus Christ as the source of our living water and rivers in the wilderness of this world. Just as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness of Sin, we wander in the wilderness of this world and despite our complaints and sin still send us refreshing and cleansing water […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Dwayne Dubard considers gluttony, jealousy, and the necessity to control our desires that can often lead us to sin.
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Darren Owens considers the last judgment of separating Christ’s sheep from the goats. God has not predestinated anyone to hell – as is a commonly thought misperception. Instead, hell was only made for the devil and his angels, and anyone not chosen in Christ will be justly condemned by their own […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Paul Blair examines Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. This woman was in desperate need of the refreshing fountain of living water springing up in her soul. Jesus must needs go through Samaria and this lady partaking of Christ’s living water also led others around […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Chris McCool looks at the type of Boaz pointing towards Jesus Christ as our greater Boaz. Christ is our mighty man of wealth that takes care and provision for his bride by allowing us to glean among the sheaves and dropping handfuls of purpose for his dearly beloved church in our […]
2024 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Jonathan Wise considers four references to “last” in 1 Cor. 15. Paul was the last witness of Christ’s resurrection. Christ destroyed the last enemy of death. The last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Finally, we are all anticipating the last trump for Christ to return and ever be with our […]
The fear of man is a snare. If we allow the fear of man to be the primary factor dictating our decisions – instead of the fear of God – then we will inevitably fall into sin. We have to be God pleasers first, not man pleasers. We have to be comfortable being alone standing […]
Sometimes the pressures, burdens, and the stress of tribulations in our lives seem to be more than we can bear. We are afraid that the weight of those burdens will crush us. Then, when we are overwhelmed, it should lead us to prayer and lead us to the rock that is higher than I. We […]
We are all prone to have excessive worry, fear, and anxiety about what “might” happen. We fear the unknown of the future, and that can cause great painful uneasiness in our mind and heart. The remedy for the fear of the unknown is faith, to trust that God will keep his word. We trust that […]
When a woman caught in adultery is brought to Jesus, despite all her sins, Christ condemns her accusers and offers no condemnation to this lady. Because of Christ’s great forgiveness of her, she is called to go and sin no more. Some people might incorrectly see salvation by grace a license to sin, but instead […]
There are really only 2 types of fear: the fear of God and then the spirit of fear from the world. The spirit of fear does not come from the Lord. We cannot let the fear of man or another other natural fear be the primary decision-making authority in our lives. Instead, man was made […]
Fear is a natural emotion to help protect us from danger, but the spirit of fear left uncontrolled can be debilitating, creating bondage and torment for the child of God. The Lord has given us remedies to conquer fear, the power of Christ, perfect love, a sound mind, prayer, and faith. We all struggle with […]
When a child of God believes in Jesus Christ, there is a special giving of the Holy Ghost that comes in the heart of the child of God as the sealing of the Holy Spirit of promise. After Jesus went up to heaven, on the Day of Pentecost, the baptism of the Holy Ghost came […]
When Abram was struggling with fear and discontentment, God gave him encouragement that God was his exceeding great reward. The material blessings that we receive are not our reward, but God himself is our reward. The knowledge of Jesus Christ is the fullness of life eternal, growing in greater fullness of our exceeding great reward. […]
As we begin a new year, it is very important that we are disciplined and purposeful to commit to serving the Lord because our natural tendencies will lead us to drift away from God. Therefore, here are 7 simple commands to focus on as a goal each day as we serve the Lord in the […]
While the world may imply that any judgment is wrong, actually God calls upon his people to exercise righteous judgment. We should not condemn others because we are prone to the same sins as others. We should not judge according to appearance or with hypocrisy or with partiality, but we judge based on the word […]
Jesus Christ has perfect knowledge and is perfectly obedient to God the Father, but yet as the Son of man he learned obedience through suffering, setting an example for his people to follow. Suffering is a beneficial class where we can learn humility, obedience, and submission to God’s will. We can fellowship with Christ in […]
With the minister setting the example for the whole church, we find that the end of our conversation – our entire manner of life – should be anchored in the immutable nature of God – Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. The stabilizing truth of Christ’s immutable nature is a bedrock in the […]
Jesus affirmed during his message on the doctrines of grace that it’s the Spirit that quickens, the flesh can have not involvement or profit in the means of regeneration. Many times today in Christianity we hear people calling upon the man to perform some action to be saved. However, since our flesh profits nothing, is […]
In the midst of a dark and cold spiritual environment, the children of light should gravitate to fellowship together. The Lord takes special note when those who fear his name speak often one to another and think on his name. When we fellowship together with fellow believers who fear the Lord, then we have fellowship […]
Examining the lukewarm, pretense of religion in Nehemiah’s latter day, we see an irreverent religious culture that saw no problem with giving God the leftovers and scraps instead of the best they had. The irreverent generation of that day closely resembles Christianity in our time as well. We need to be fervent to give God […]
In John 6, Jesus Christ simply and plainly preaches the doctrines of grace, of God’s sovereignty in salvation. We find two contrasting responses to the beautiful truths of God’s sovereignty in salvation. One group of carnal disciples were offended by these truths and went away from following Christ. The disciples, instead, viewed these beautiful truths […]
In this Thanksgiving season, we should thank the Lord when we have prayed prayers of affliction and the Lord blessed in a special way. Looking at the account of Hannah and the subsequent birth of Samuel, we see both the prayer of affliction and then the prayer of thanksgiving. But if our prayers are not […]
As we approach this annual Thanksgiving holiday, I hope we are reinvigorated to be more purposeful to give thanks unto God always and in every thing. Our thanksgiving is not “conditional” on the ease of circumstances in our lives. We have no right to be unthankful, murmur, and complain when times get hard. Instead, despite […]
2023 Fall Annual Meeting. Visiting minister Elder Bryce Lowrance preaches from the Psalms that we should not sit as silent statues in worship, but excitement and joy in worship should be expressed verbally. We should sing praise to God. We should affirm our belief in the truths of the preaching by responding and saying Amen. […]
2023 Fall Annual Meeting. Visiting minister Elder Neil Honea considers the account of Jesus walking on the water. In spite of the great calamity on the sea of Galilee, Jesus had not forsaken them. Jesus saw them toiling in the storm. Their suffering and toil in the storm was not overlooked but was seen by […]
2023 Fall Annual Meeting. Visiting minister Elder Neil Honea shows us the necessity of speaking truth and conveying vision to others from the truth of God’s word. Especially in our families and in our churches, we need to speak truth to the next generation to warn them of the outcomes of their actions. Just as […]
2023 Fall Annual Meeting. Visiting minister Elder Bryce Lowrance offers the sobering cautionary tale of the Pharisees and Sadducees who were more concerned about destroying their religious enemies than following Christ. They were so consumed with legalism and the form of religion, that they missed the Son of God right before their faces. Let us […]
2023 Fall Annual Meeting. Visiting minister Elder Bryce Lowrance encourages us to keep in memory the gospel of the resurrection that will save us from despair. It is inevitable in our lives that we will become discouraged and even despair, but it’s vital that we do not stay there. When we focus on the resurrection […]
In the aftermath of the feeding of 5,000, there some some carnal disciples who were following Jesus primarily because of natural food. Jesus points them to the true meat, the true sustainer of God’s children in this world which is Christ himself as the bread of life. We partake of Christ as the bread of […]
In Nehemiah’s latter days – that correspond to the prophecy of Malachi – we see a religious culture that is very similar to ours today. Irreverence, lukewarmness, disobedience bathed in self-justification, and a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. We need to learn from the mistake of Malachi’s generation and submit to truly […]
Unfortunately, God’s people seem to always seem to fall into the same mistakes and sins over and over and over again. After the revival in the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall, the people recommitted to the covenant of God. Then, only 12 years later in the absence of Nehemiah’s leadership, the people have once again […]
In Jesus’ walking on the water, we find the disciples letting fear and doubt creep in to quench their faith. They should have believed that Christ could do anything right in the aftermath of the feeding of 5,000 men, but instead they crumble during the storm of life. In like manner, we let doubt grow […]
God’s people throughout every generation seem to fall into the same cycle of blessings, peace, rest, and prosperity – then sin, disobedience, and judgment. Just like the Old Testament Jews, in spite of our repeated sins, God still shows great mercy unto his people today. Thankfully, the Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, […]
In the studying of God’s word after the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall, the Jews observed the command of the feast of tabernacles. The feast of tabernacles was to remind God’s people that they resided in temporary dwelling places and this world was not their home. When we go through trials in this world, what […]
One of Jesus’ most well-known miracles – actually the only miracle during his ministry recorded in all four gospels – is the feeding of the five thousand (men). We find the disciples’ initial unbelief in Christ’s ability to provide food for such a large number in the wilderness. Despite their unbelief, the Lord uses them […]
After the completion of the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall, all of Jerusalem met together in worship. They met in family-integrated worship, were active and engaged in worship with Amens and lifting hands. Multiple preachers stood up and read from the law, read distinctly from the word, gave the sense thereof, so God’s people could […]
In the aftermath of claiming and proving his co-equal nature with God the Father, Jesus Christ then gives multiple independent witnesses of his divinity. John the Baptist testified of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, as well as the testimony of God the Father at Jesus’ baptism. Jesus’ own works and miracles, and the […]
After the completion of the wall, they prepare a census and read the genealogy register from Zerubabbel’s return to Jerusalem. In that day, only 42,360 Jews returned from Babylon, a microscopic remnant from the heyday of Judah, and many Jews chose to not return and just remain in Babylon. The older men wept when they […]
With Nehemiah and the Jews nearing completion of the final gates of the Jerusalem wall, their enemies try final attempts to distract them from the work. They try to distract Nehemiah from the great work in an attempt to kill him, spreading slanderous rumors, and trying to get him to disobey God’s word. Nehemiah cuts […]
Jesus Christ affirms to the scoffing Jews several evidences of his equality with the Father and thus his divinity. Particularly, just as the Father quickened the dead back to life in the Old Testament, likewise the Son quickens whom he will by his voice. The children of God are quickened by the voice of the […]
Visiting minister Elder John Morgan Owens considers the stone at the graveyard that separates us from our loved ones. Jesus Christ is the only one with the power to roll the stone away from our soul in regeneration and born us again. Also, at the last day, Jesus Christ will return and resurrect all the […]
Satan’s attempts to stop the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall through external persecution, so he then tries his number one option – cause division and break unity among God’s people. The wives begin to complain that they can’t feed their families and can’t pay their debt or taxes. Despite fairly legitimate complaints and it being […]
As Satan galvanizes his forces to try to detract God’s people from rebuilding the wall, Nehemiah responds with measures to set watches and give swords for protection to all the builders. In a spiritual manner, as we build in the kingdom of God, we must be sure to have the sword of the Spirit, the […]
Jesus Christ healed the impotent man by the pool of Bethesda on the sabbath day, much to the dismay of the Pharisees. This impotent man shows the lame, with no power state of man apart from the healing of the Son of God. We cannot choose to come to God for healing, but Christ chooses […]
As the Lord was blessing his people to begin to rebuild the wall, Satan galvanized his forces to try to distract them from this great work. Beginning with ridicule and mocking and escalating to the threat of murder, Satan tried to instill fear in God’s people to stop them from this great work. However, they […]
In Jesus’ second miracle in Galilee, a nobleman comes to request Jesus to come and heal his son at the point of death. This nobleman initially limits Jesus that he most come to his home to heal his son in person. However, Jesus declares his soveriegnty and power by healing the son by just the […]
The Lord details the individuals and families that worked together over against their own homes to do a great collective work of rebuilding the wall. How was this great task accomplished? By individual families, devoted and committed to rebuilding the portion of the wall next to their own homes. In like manner, we must all […]
Nehemiah’s first step in returning to Jerusalem was to spend three days evaluating the true condition of the broken walls. In our lives, we need to honestly evaluate our spiritual condition and areas of our brokenness. However, it is very difficult to be able to accept our shortcomings. We have to be willing to accept […]
The Samaritan woman was so overflowing with joy and love having just met her Lord, that she dropped her waterpot and ran into town to tell men who despised her to come and see Christ. We should follow her pattern of evangelism and be so overjoyed with Christ to share the gospel with even those […]
Nehemiah is given an amazing open door and opportunity to offer the burdens of his heart to the king and make a request to return and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. The Lord tendered the king’s heart to graciously grant his request. Nehemiah saw the providential “good hand of God” moving in this situation, and […]
When Nehemiah was informed of the affliction in Jerusalem, that the walls were broken down and gates burned, he mourns, fasts, and prays for 4 months. Nehemiah’s prayer sets a great example of the type of prayer of confession and repentance that we should pray as well. We must confess our sins, acknowledge the righteousness […]
The Samaritan woman had a misunderstanding of true worship, similar to many in Christianity today. Jesus clarifies that God is actively seeking true worshippers who are committed to worship in Spirit and truth. We need zeal and the Spirit in worship, but it’s also vitally important to worship according to the truth of God’s word. […]
As we begin a study of the book of Nehemiah, we consider an overview of the broad themes and lessons of this book. Nehemiah is burdened by God to go home to Jerusalem to lead the people in rebuilding the broken down walls, and God providentially blesses him at each step of the way. We […]
On his journey returning to Galilee, Jesus took the direct route that most Jews avoided; he must needs go through Samaria. There was a woman living in sin who needed to taste the living waters of belief springing up into her soul unto everlasting life. After hearing and believing that Jesus Christ is the Son […]
The kingdom of God is a perpetual daily kingdom that should be active every single day. We examine all the things the early church did on a “daily” basis that we should also be engaged in each day as well. As a result of their “daily” devotion, the Lord also added to the church “daily”. […]
John the Baptist had an admirable “contentment” in his calling and ministry. He knew his primary role was not to be the center of attention, but to deflect attention away from himself, that Christ would be increased, and he would be decreased. We should all follow the pattern of John the Baptist, to exalt and […]
The original church was in perfect unity, in one accord, in one heart and soul. God has ordained diversity among the members of the body of Christ but yet those diverse parts must operate in unity under the direction of our Head, Jesus Christ. We must take heed to not let pride, gossip, and other […]
We cannot separate a passionate love for God from a passionate love for God’s word. As seen in the book of Acts, a church in its first love state will hunger for God’s word through personal study, excitement to hear the preaching of the gospel, and a desire to openly discuss God’s word with others. […]
The original church displayed its consistent commitment to prayer meetings, petitioning the Lord’s blessings during times of great need. We see and learn from their pattern of seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit through prayer meetings to discern the Lord’s will for our local churches. When we pray unto the Lord during times of […]
In considering the most well-known verse in all of Christianity, John 3:16, we look at the full context of this verse and examine Jesus’ intended meaning through the OT lesson of the brazen serpent. God’s chosen people in the OT (not all the inhabitants of the world) that had been bitten by serpents were offered […]
Pure religion and undefiled is supposed to be caring for the needs of the most disadvantaged in our communities, especially the widows and orphans. Ever since the Old Testament, the Lord has cared for the most desolate and destitute in this world, exemplified by his care and provision for both the widows and orphans. The […]
Jesus explains to Nicodemus by night the necessity of the new birth and the effects of the wind of new birth we see in children of God’s lives. God borns his people again from above, just as every good and perfect gift comes down from above. Jesus Christ declares his sovereignty in the new birth […]
One amazing attribute of the original church was the radical giving of material possessions to help others in need. We consider our attitude toward giving that extends far beyond our finances and the financial support of the church. Do we have a mindset of giving in every area of our lives? Giving in our finances, […]
Visiting minister Elder Mike Rodgers considers Psalm 23 and how it is a psalm for living, not just for death and funerals. The Lord is our precious Shephard who cares for his children. He leads us beside still, gentle waters, not raging rivers. He gives us hope for the mountaintop in the valley of the […]
The consistent message of the original church was to call men to repent and place their faith in Christ to press into the kingdom. The display of repentance and faith is the basic building block of the kingdom of God. When we see the Spirit move in a powerful way, we also see radical conversions. […]
In Jesus’ first public act after the announcement of his public ministry by his first miracle of turning water into wine, in Jerusalem, his first act was to cleanse the temple of filthy lucre. Jesus did the same thing three years later in his first act after his triumphal entry, he cleansed the temple again. […]
On this Mother’s Day message, we reflect on the godly, virtuous women in our lives. In particular, we look at Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her example of thoughtfulness and devotion. There was a faithful group of virtuous women who remained faithful even unto the end – even after the male disciples all fled […]
Despite all her shortcomings, it is absolutely astounding that Jesus Christ loved his bride, the church, enough to die for her sins. This bride is not beautiful but defiled, ugly, and wretched. Christ loved us in that state and covenanted to save us. Even more than that, on a daily basis the church is the […]
Jesus could have chosen any venue to perform his first miracle, but he chose the wedding feast of his friends to turn water into wine. The servants were obedient to obey Christ and filled the waterpots all the way up to the brim. Then Christ did his parts and miraculously transformed that water into wine. […]
The consistent message of the original church was repentance and faith. The apostles called upon those in their preaching to repent of their sins and place their faith in Jesus Christ and submit to believer’s baptism. Repentance and baptism is the entrance point into the kingdom of heaven. Also, repentance and faith do not end […]
Lic. Morgan Sims considers the consistent admonition in the psalms that continues into the New Testament that we are to make a joyful noise in worship unto our God. The Lord has done so much for us that it is our blessed privilege to present our bodies a living sacrifice back unto him in worship, […]
What do we fear? What fear is the primary determining factor that dictates our actions? The reverential awe and fear of Almighty God has to be the primary consideration in our actions. If we let the fear of man, the fear of failure, the fear of other people’s opinions, or any other fear control our […]
Jesus Christ affirmed to Nathaniel that he was the expression of Jacob’s ladder that we find back in Gen. 28. Jesus was the ladder upon which angels ascend and descend upon, the only connecting link between heaven and earth. Jacob had a profound experience with the Lord in what he called the house of God, […]
We consider the amazing testimony of the centurion at the death of Christ that “Truly this was the Son of God!” This centurion was in charge of the scourging, the mocking, and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. However, by the time Christ gave up the ghost and a great earthquake came, the attitude of this […]
One of the identifying attributes of the kingdom of God should be amazing signs, wonders, and spiritual healings that can only be performed by the power of God. The miraculous manifestation of spiritual gifts has now passed after the time of the apostles, but we should still see amazing movements of the Holy Spirit in […]
One inevitable effect of God growing his kingdom is some degree of persecution for Christ’s sake. When we are called to go through persecution for righteousness’ sake, we should rejoice that we are counted worthy to suffer shame for the name of Jesus Christ. We have a special fellowship with Jesus Christ that we simply […]
Nathanael was originally skeptical of Jesus Christ, especially since he was from Nazareth. When Jesus says he saw Nathanael under the fig tree, an intimate moment between just him and God, he immediately knows and confesses that Jesus was the Son of God. It is a blessed reminder that God sees us in every circumstance […]
Visiting minister Elder Robert Adam considers the parable of the good Samaritan as Jesus’ clarification of what it truly means to love your neighbor. Love is the end of all the law – first love to God and then love to others. If we show partiality in our love, then we dishonor God’s law of […]
We need to be willing to share God’s blessings in our lives with others we come in contact with that we may not know. Our joy of God’s grace in our lives should overflow to those we come in contact with. As the healed leper and dumb/deaf men, we should blaze abroad the blessings in […]
Jesus Christ set the pattern for a simple invitation and evangelism with the original disciples – Come and see! When Andrew inquired about Jesus, he told him to come and see where he dwelt. Andrew and Philip followed that pattern as well, inviting their brother and close friend to come and see the Christ. We […]
The primary way that God expands his kingdom is through personal, relationship evangelism. We are already natural evangelists. We already share good news that we are excited about with our family and close friends. Evangelism is just as simple as sharing God’s blessings in our life with our family and friends. We all have a […]
Many times our personal opinion and emotions can dictate our decisions. However, our emotions and experiences can deceive us. We have to set the standard in our mind that God’s word is true and reliable, even more so than our personal experiences. Even if our mind deceives us regarding , we must conclude that God’s […]
2023 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Buddy Abernathy considers how our hope can be lost and wane from time to time. Thankfully, God is gracious to revive our hope. We are saved by hope and begotten again to a lively hope as an anchor of our soul, sure and steadfast.
2023 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Larry Wise reminds us of the amazing love of God that was manifested towards us. God sent his only begotten Son to save us from our sins. Now, we are called to show that same love of Christ to others in our lives as well.
2023 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Joe Nettles takes the amazing victory of Gideon as an encouragement from fear. The dream of a loaf of bread gave Gideon the courage to defeat the Midianites. We see Jesus Christ as the bread of life that is broken for us. We can partake of Christ as the bread of […]
2023 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Ben Shettles reminds us of the necessity of our eye being single and focused on the kingdom of God. We do not lay up treasures for ourselves on earth that are corruptible, but instead we lay up true heavenly treasures in the kingdom of God that cannot be corrupted in this […]
2023 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Rusty Wise preaches from Psalm 1 about the necessity of discerning our company through the word of God. We need to be sure to forsake ungodly influences in our lives. It is by testing our close fellowship with others through the standard of the scriptures that we are kept from sin […]
The exclamation of John the Baptist on the Jordan River 2,000 years ago is the same message of all the Bible, of all eternity – Behold the Lamb! We see the theme of the Lamb all throughout the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. We see the Old Testament continually pointing towards the necessity of the […]
We see the pattern of evangelism of the original church – the rank and file members of the church went everywhere preaching the word. They shared their joy in the good news of Christ with everyone they came in contact with, and we should follow their example. The foundation of this evangelism is a godly […]
One of the chief identifying attributes of the kingdom of God is a body of believers that are excited and zealous to share God’s word with others. Sharing God’s word with others should be a natural expression and overflowing in our lives from our love of the gospel. Evangelism is just as simple as declaring […]
We see John the Baptist as the forerunner of Jesus Christ. He was called to challenge the religious elitism of the day that put men in bondage. To tear down the prideful mountains of the Pharisees and to exalt the downtrodden poor in spirit oppressed by them. As with all the ministry, John was called […]
One of the most important identifying attributes of the kingdom of God, is a full time, fully invested ministry. The pattern today is rarely for a full time minister to be fully supported by the church, but that should be the biblical pattern that we should strive towards. The ministry is not a part time, […]
One of the most vital mandates of the original church was a commitment and focus on preaching the gospel externally to people outside the church. God’s ordained means of growth and expansion of the kingdom is the preaching of the gospel. We need to recommit to an external focus on sharing God’s word with those […]
We see that the Word was made flesh and dwelt (tabernacled) among mortal men for some 33.5 years. When God became a man in Jesus Christ, he was full of grace and truth. Now, Christ bestows so much grace upon grace, abounding grace in our lives unto his people. Christ is so rich in grace, […]
In God’s growth in his kingdom, the first step is actually to wait. We must wait on the Holy Spirit to guide and direct and open the right doors at the right time. It is difficult to wait patiently on the Lord’s will, and not get impatient and make poor decisions. God is the only […]
In the latter half of the book of Acts, we see the amazing pattern for growth and expansion of the kingdom of God. Everywhere Paul went, he boldly preached the gospel publicly and then some were converted to believe the truth. We see the power of the Holy Spirit moving all throughout this book as […]
In the book of Acts, we see God’s pattern for the growth, advancement, and expansion of the kingdom of heaven. Amazing things happen in a thriving kingdom that we see lived out in the early first century church. Today we examine Acts 6-16, seeing how the Lord blessed his early disciples in amazing ways in […]
Do we have the power to become the sons of God by belief in Jesus Christ? Belief is the evidence, not the cause of eternal salvation. We “become” – we manifest and come onto the stage for public appearance – the sons of God in the eyes of those around us when we live out […]
In the book of Acts, we see the first chapter of the autobiography of the church. We see the amazing expansion and growth of the kingdom of heaven throughout the whole world. We begin to examine the attributes and identifying marks of the thriving kingdom of God in the original first century church. In Acts, […]
The very first group of people to receive the good news of the gospel from the angel after the birth of Christ is the shepherds. These shepherds were just doing their duty, lowly hard working men who kept the sheep, and God chose them to be first people to receive the gospel message. Then due […]
We see from the account of Jacob wrestling with a man all night before his possible deadly encounter with Esau the next day, that many times we struggle and wrestle with God in our lives. We do not rebel against God’s will or sovereignty, but God will oftentimes bring circumstances into our life to allow […]
Jesus Christ as the Word in natural creation spoke and darkness was vanished and overcome by light. Christ is the source of all life and light, both natural and spiritual. Jesus was the True Light that came into the world, in contrast to the false light and deception of Lucifer. As John the Baptist came […]
One of the identifying attributes of a Christ-honoring church is a constant seeking and pursuit of open doors. Jesus Christ has the key of David and opens doors that no man can shut, and shuts doors no man can open. God will open doors for a church who remains faithful and devoted to his word […]
If Jesus Christ wrote a letter to our church, what would his assessment of our church be? What does Christ consider to a healthy, God-honoring church? Looking at the letters to the 7 churches of Asia, Jesus’ assessment of the churches was most likely very surprising. The 3 churches that were the most prominent were […]
Visiting minister Elder Sammy Odom considers the parable of the good Samaritan from a personal perspective. We should all ask ourselves – how far would we really be willing to go for not just a friend, but even for our enemy? Jesus Christ set the example of the true Great Samaritan who was willing to […]
In the beginning of the Gospel of John, we are introduced to the Word. The Word was in the beginning with God and the Word was God. The amazing mystery of the incarnation is that the Word was made flesh in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. We sometimes take for granted the amazing mystery […]
David is described in scripture as a man after God’s own heart. We all desire to pursue unity with God’s own heart. How can we be pure in heart to have unity with God? What are the characteristics of God’s own heart? When all of God’s people are pursuing Christ with unity of heart the […]
God has ordained his people as kings and priests unto the Lord. We look at the pattern of Old Testament sacrifices by the priesthood to see the living sacrifices we are to offer in the temple of our bodies in honor to God. There are many specific sacrifices we should offer as priests back unto […]
We consider the last of the kingdom of heaven parables, the parable of the talents. All of God’s children have been given the gospel, the church, and even individual spiritual gifts for the benefit of the kingdom. What have we done to bring increase from what we have been entrusted with as a steward? There […]
2022 Annual Meeting. Elder Silas Ford considers the perspective of the Apostle Paul and thus the desire of all God-called pastors. What does your pastor want? Your pastor desires for your life to become and adorn and walk worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Your conversation and total manner of life should exhibit and […]
2022 Annual Meeting. Elder Jeremy Wise warns against the danger of compromising the gospel of grace alone. The Galatians had been bewitched to pervert the gospel of salvation by grace alone to add in works and circumcision. We need to learn from their example, and be diligent to not compromise the gospel of God’s sovereign […]
2022 Annual Meeting. Elder Silas Ford in the aftermath of Lazarus’ resurrection, a question is brought unto the wicked Pharisee leaders – what shall we do with this Jesus? That question is still relevant to us today as well. What do we do with Jesus? We cannot deny his power, miracles, and divinity. We must […]
2022 Annual Meeting. Elder Silas Ford looks at the different perspectives at the death and later resurrection of Lazarus. Christ suffered Lazarus to pass away for the glory of God that he would be healed and that the people would believe. Many times we cannot understand exactly how everything works in the moment from our […]
2022 Annual Meeting. Elder Jeremy Wise considers the commitment of Daniel and his young friends that despite the pressures from the wicked world around him to not defile themselves with the Babylonian king’s meat. In a spiritual sense today, we must also make a personal commitment in our heart to not defile ourselves with this […]
As we embark on an exposition of the gospel of John, we consider the overall them and structure of the book. John was written different than the other three synoptic gospels for a unique purpose. The Spirit wanted to expressly testify that Jesus was the Son of God so that we might believe on his […]
The life of God’s people should look radically different from the world. Especially our repentance should look radical to others. That is how we let our light shine in this world. In America, we have idolatry ingrained in almost every aspect of our culture, and we don’t even realize it – sports, music, hobbies. We […]
God offers forgiveness and healing of the land for his humble, prayerful, and repentant children. This humility and repentance is perfectly exhibited in King Josiah during the revival in his day. Josiah was trying to live godly and make changes, but was still lacking when he heard the word of God. He humbled himself and […]
In conclusion of the topical survey of 1st John, we examine godliness. God’s children are called to obey all of Christ’s commandments. We are called to walk even as Christ walked. Our manner of life should be reflective of our state of God’s children and the light of this world.
When we see spiritual drought, famine, or even locusts in the kingdom of God, it should lead us to consider our ways. God will send judgment upon his people when we do not place the kingdom of God first and foremost in our lives. God will send a famine of hearing the words of God, […]
Arguably the greatest danger for God’s people has always been excess prosperity. Dating all the way back to the Israelites entering Canaan, when God’s people encountered prosperity that they did not earn, we always get full, lazy, complacent, and ultimately sinful. When we sin, God will send spiritual drought, famine, locusts, and pestilence. Thankfully, God […]
In considering a topical survey of 1st John, we see the strong emphasis by the Apostle John on believing on Jesus Christ. Belief in Christ is the only public identifier by which we have biblical authority to offer assurance to children of God. Also, belief is a daily activity, not a one-time action when we […]
When we consider the spiritual condition of our churches and the kingdom as a whole, it would be hard to reach any other conclusion than we are in a spiritual drought and famine. If that is the case, if we are in a drought, that is evidence that in some area, we are disobedient to […]
When we consider God’s salvation of sinners, if we properly understand man’s dead in sins, totally depraved state then we can easily see that our only hope must be in God’s unmerited favor and grace. In our sinful natures, there is none good, none righteous, no not one. Man is not sick or drowning, but […]
In considering a topical survey of the gospel of John and then 1st John, we consider the prevalent theme of the new birth. How are men born again? Are men born again by their own will, by an action/work they perform? No, we are only born again by grace, by the immediate work of the […]
From time to time, we need to have a refresher to get back to basics in our discipleship. The foundation of all our service to God is based on Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. Our salvation by Jesus Christ on the cross, by grace alone, is the central theme of the entire church. When […]
Visiting minister Elder Mike Rodgers delivers a stirring message about the healing of the lame man at the temple in Acts 3. As we put ourselves into the sandals of the men in this story, it is amazing to think that Jesus most likely passed by this man many times going into the temple but […]
It is a very common struggle for God’s people to deal with discouragement, which can lead to depression, and even suicidal thoughts. God’s word gives us great instruction for how we can overcome these common challenges. We consider these struggles together to renew our hope in God and by God’s grace overcome these challenges and […]
We see from the New Testament scriptures that the pinnacle of Christian maturity and perfection is agape love, charity in action. We need to be growing towards a love like Jesus Christ, a sacrificial deference to others over ourselves. We are never more like Jesus Christ than when we show love to others who are […]
In light of the second coming of Jesus Christ, we can learn from the parable of the ten virgins. In waiting for the coming of the bridegroom, all ten of the virgins fell asleep being watchful. Five of those virgins were diligent in preparing oil for the long watch. Five foolish virgins did not bring […]
We see another parable of the kingdom of heaven of an invitation to the Son’s marriage feast that primarily rebukes the Jews who rejected and ultimately killed Jesus Christ and his apostles. Then, we see the Gentiles invited into the feast, and they joyfully come. There was one attendee who did not adorn the proper […]
If God is Love, then to follow after Christ, we must follow his example to love others as Jesus Christ has loved us. If we hate our brother, how can we truly say we are following Jesus Christ in sincere discipleship? The church is called to love one another as Christ has loved his bride, […]
Jesus gave us a parable of vineyard workers going out into the fields at different times of the day, but ultimately receiving the same compensation, according to the will of the master. We are prone to the same pride and superiority as the original Jews, to think we have more rights and privileges in the […]
With the different personalities and opinions in the kingdom of heaven, it is inevitable that offenses will come. Jesus Christ gave us the proper pattern for reconciling those interpersonal offenses in the church. When we consider the magnitude of the 10,000 talent debt that Christ has forgiven us from, it is incomprehensible that we would […]
Looking through the gospel of John, we consider the amazing beauty of God’s love towards his people. God is Love. God manifested that love towards his people by sending his only Son to die for our sins. In light of that radical sacrifice of love for us, now we are called as the disciples of […]
As we continue our examination of the kingdom of heaven parables, Jesus preaches to Peter a parable on forgiveness. Offenses are inevitable in this world, and offenses are inevitable among brothers and sisters in the church. In Matt. 18, Jesus gives us the proper pattern for dealing with personal offenses in the church. If we […]
God’s people must make a daily decision to “put on” the spiritual garments that are fitting for the elect. We must also make a conscious decision also to “put off” the works of the flesh and mortify our old man. We then must “put on” Jesus Christ and the attributes that adorn a righteous public […]
From the hymn “Hail, Sovereign Love” we see the command given by the voice of the Son of God at the moment of regeneration. The dead, alien sinner is “arrested” and overtaken by the power of Christ at the new birth. Regeneration is not an invitation where Christ is trying to entice the sinner to […]
Visiting minister Elder Luke Hagler teaches the importance of respecting and honoring the name of God with our actions. God’s name is reverend, high, and holy, and we should treat his name with due reverence. We can take the name of God in vain through much more than just our speech. We take a new […]
God is Light, and in him is no darkness at all. Praise God for the creative power of God to send light (both natural and spiritual) that always conquers darkness! Now, that we have been given light by Christ we are called to be the light of the world. We are called to walk in […]
In the kingdom of heaven parables, we find two significant parables given to the disciples, the parables of the treasure and the pearl. The treasure is hidden in a field, but for the joy thereof, we sell all that we have to possess that field. Not everyone can see and understand the treasure, and that […]
Jesus delivered 2 similar kingdom parables in Matt. 13 showing the expansive nature of the kingdom of God. The mustard seed starts out as small and not very impressive but will grow into the greatest of herbs. Then the nature of the leaven is to spread and grow and expand until it has consumed the […]
One of the greatest themes in the Gospel of John and in 1st John is “life”. Jesus Christ is the source of all life – physical life, spiritual life, and the abundant life too. It is through belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God that we can lay hold on eternal life that […]
As we conclude the parable of the sower and see the different and varying degrees of fruit borne by God’s children, we might be tempted to judge harshly those who are not living as godly as they ought. In the next parable after the sower, Jesus warns against this Pharisaical desire to judge others’ eternal […]
Elder Jonathan Wise considers the mysterious character of Melchisedec, the king of Salem and the priest of the most high God. Melchisedec appears for just a few verses to bless Abram and receive tithes of him. One more reference to the eternal priesthood of Melchisedec in Psalms, and then an exposition of his priesthood in […]
Lic. Morgan Sims lays the foundation for eternal salvation by God’s sovereign grace alone. But what do we do now that we have been saved? There is much work now to do in service to God. From Colossians 3, we consider the thankful lifestyle that should be exhibited by saved by grace Christians. There are […]
We love to sing the sweet song, Beulah Land, looking forward to our sweet home in heaven. We consider Isaiah 62:4, the only occurrence in scripture where we find Beulah Land, which literally means “Married” Land. Because of our sin, as the bride of Christ, we were Forsaken, but through Christ we have now Delight […]
After examining all the challenges of the unfruitful grounds, in the parable of the sower, we now arrive at the good ground. Even in the good ground, we still see a good bit of variability of fruitfulness, some 100-fold, some 60, and some 30. We must put the kingdom of God first in our lives. […]
As a pre-introduction to the Gospel of John, we consider a topical survey of the 1st epistle of John, which shows many similar topics and themes as the Gospel of John. The Apostle John shows his great “sons of thunder” zeal, even in his later years. Both John’s first epistle and his gospel were written […]
In our lives, we all have moments where God has delivered and blessed us in a mighty way. The proper response to those blessed times is not to just go our merry way, but to set up a stone of remembrance – a memorial Ebenezer stone to commemorate that blessing to remind yourself and teach […]
The verse in Jeremiah 29:11 is arguably one of the most well-known verses in Christianity. However, this is often used to teach prosperity, that God will only give you blessings and what you desire. We learn that the correct context deals with faithfulness in the midst of false teaching. In this world, we are in […]
Change and decay all around I see; O Thou who changest not, abide with me. In the midst of a world that is characterized by change, what a blessing to find stability and security in the Rock of Ages, in Jesus Christ, who cannot and will not change. We can rest that God’s love will […]
Thorns are inevitable in this fallen, cursed, sinful world. In our spiritual walk, if we are not diligent to fight them back, the thorns of this life will naturally grow to choke out our fruitfulness in the kingdom. The thorns of this life are: the care of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the pleasures […]
What is true “success” in service to God and in the ministry? We will find that success in God’s eyes and in the kingdom of God is measured much differently than in the world’s opinon. True success is being a good and faithful steward of what God has seen fit to trust us with. We […]
Elder Ben Shettles describes some of his experience in drifting away from the church but then conviction in returning to the Primitive Baptist Church. We are reminded by Brother Ben’s exhortation and life, that our walk of discipleship should reflect the gospel of Jesus Christ in all our actions. People around us should be able […]
As we continue through the soils of the parable of the sower, we see the stony ground Christian, who shoots up quickly, but they do not have deep enough roots to endure persecution. The stony ground will receive the gospel with joy and gladness; they have a great new, first love zeal for the church. […]
When we are attempting to discern the burdens of our hearts, we must test and try our hearts by the standard of God’s word and by godly counsel. Our hearts can be easily deceived to do what “we want”. We can be corrupted by the sensual desire and wisdom of this world. Therefore, we need […]
In the Parable of the Sower, we find the first group that hears the word of the kingdom – the way side. These born-again children of God have a problem – they hear the word, but they don’t “understand” it. Before they can understand it, the devil comes to confuse them before they press into […]
The parable of the sower teaches a very important lesson of time salvation that is a “key” to the kingdom that will unlock many spiritual truths in the scriptures. We can understand from this parable that there are different aspects of salvation taught in the scriptures and God’s children will have different responses to the […]
We cannot put our discipleship into auto-pilot. We must be purposeful and zealous and focused to press into the kingdom of heaven. There are many obstacles that can prevent us from pressing fervently into the kingdom as we ought. We must endure the tribulation and diligently press towards the King and closer fellowship with Jesus […]
We need to exercise great caution when following our heart. While the natural heart is deceitful and wicked, when God gives us a new heart in regeneration, we now have the ability to follow God’s guidance by His Spirit in our hearts. We might devise our own ways, but the Lord will providentially direct our […]
Jesus came that we might have eternal life, but he also came that we can lay hold on that eternal life now, that we can live the abundant life. For God’s children, there are two paths set before us – the strait gate and narrow way that leads to the abundant life; and then the […]
Satan is the accuser of the brethren, trying to get God’s children to doubt their eternal assurance in the blood of Jesus Christ. On the cross, Jesus Christ crushed the head of the wicked serpent. The sins of all of God’s people were paid by Christ on the cross and any accusation of the devil […]
The Israelites became very discouraged because of the Lord’s way in the wilderness, leading them to murmur against the Lord’s blessings. We are very prone to get discouraged in the narrow way of discipleship, to become weary in well doing. We need to encourage ourselves in the Lord when we get discouraged, taking courage from […]
God prophesied both to David and to Daniel that in the days of the Roman empire that the God of heaven would set up a kingdom. Jesus Christ set up his visible church kingdom in his ministry – declaring the kingdom of heaven is “at hand” – the kingdom is right here and right now. […]
Clear Springs PBC Meeting. Elder Buddy Abernathy continues examining the two kinds of people in this world, now focusing on the children of God who walk by the Spirit. We have an internal conflict – a warfare – each day and must make a deliberate decision to walk in the Spirit and live in the […]
Clear Springs PBC Meeting. Elder Buddy Abernathy distinguishes between the only two manner (or kinds) of people in this world – the elect who love God and the non-elect who do not love God. The non-elect have a wicked heart and cannot love or serve God. God has given his chosen elect a new heart […]
On the road to Emmaus, two disciples were discouraged because they had lost faith in Jesus Christ, that he failed in redeeming Israel. Then, Jesus preached to these 2 disciples the greatest sermon in the history of world, as he expounded all the scriptures in Moses and the prophets concerning him. They did not even […]
Jesus’ kingdom is not a natural, physical kingdom; it is not of this world. The primary experience and expression of God’s kingdom is experienced in the regenerated heart of God’s children. We can feel righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost in our souls and special communion with our King in the kingdom of […]
It is unfortunately very common advice in our humanistic culture today to tell you to “follow your heart”. Nothing could be more dangerous advice for God’s children. As Solomon and the Holy Spirit said, only a “fool” would trust and follow his own heart blindly. Our natural hearts are wicked, deceitful above all things, desperately […]
In the Old Testament natural nation of Israel, we see a picture and glimpse into the New Testament kingdom of heaven in the church. God chose a special people to bless in this world, redeemed them from bondage, gave them a blessed promised land, the tabernacle and priesthood, and finally a kingdom lead by a […]
The kingdom of heaven is at hand, right here and right now. There will be no kingdom set up on earth for 1,000 years. Jesus Christ has no further use for this earth other than to burn it up at his second coming. At the ascension of Christ, he assumed his scepter to rule his […]
When we are struggling in this world, there is no vision we need to see more clearly than the eternal joys of heaven. God predestinated all his children to enjoy the eternal bliss of heaven from before the world began. We have been translated into God’s kingdom by Jesus Christ’s sovereignty, and can now see […]
We see the amazing example of faith by the owners of the ass/colt used during Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. These owners were willing to give up their donkey for the kingdom solely by the command of the apostles that “The Lord hath need of him.” What are we willing to give up for the […]
As we begin to examine the kingdom of heaven, Jesus commanded that we must seek the kingdom of God first and foremost in our lives. God has called and translated us into the kingdom of heaven by the new birth. We can now see, experience, and enter into the kingdom of heaven. We must press […]
What a comforting thought to be reminded that our life is hidden with Christ in God! We are safely protected in the cleft of Jesus’ Rock, and there is nothing that can endanger us. We have been placed “in Christ” from before the world began, and there is nothing that can get us “out of […]
Many times we are unaware of how much we put God in a box and limit his powerful working in our lives. We need to be reminded that our Lord is the God of All Possibilities – truly, with God all things are possible! Unfortunately, when we do not believe God, we can limit the […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Pastor David Wise considers the necessity of suffering for close, intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, as a whole, the church is comfortable and at ease in Zion. However, we will not experience true, intimate fellowship with Christ during comfort and prosperity. As time marches on, there will only be more persecution […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Tim McCool focuses on the lukewarm nature of the Laodicean church, and by implication, the church in America today. We feel to be rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing. Instead, we need to see our sin, see our frailty, be zealous and repent, and open the door […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Charles Kitchens reminds us of the necessity of putting on the whole armor of God in our daily spiritual warfare. We are in a spiritual battle between Satan and the world every single day and we will be overcome in this battle if we don’t properly protect ourselves with God’s armor. […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Josh King describes the vanity and emptiness of indulging in this world particularly as lived out by Solomon. King Solomon indulged the fleshly desires in this world to the fullest degree possible and his verdict and conclusion was that it was empty and vain. Let us not follow in Solomon’s poor […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Elder John Staten emphasizes the necessity of preaching the gospel for the experiential salvation and deliverance of God’s children. The gospel gives hope to the poor, sets at liberty the captives, and binds up the oppressed and bruised. We need to be saved and delivered by God’s word. Let us not neglect […]
2022 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Neil Honea considers the account of Peter going fishing with the disciples. They toiled all night relying on their own might. All the while, Jesus was on the shore preparing coals and fish for their supper. When we toil out by ourselves out in the world, we will always come home […]
God designed the preaching of the gospel to deliver our souls and hearts from the bondage that we often face in our lives. The gospel is the powerful, explosive, dynamite effect in the life of God’s children when you hear, believe, and then apply God’s word in their daily lives. There are many people who […]
We see from scripture that Jesus Christ did not die for “good people”. No, Christ died for the ungodly, when we were dead in sins, without strength, and enemies towards God. It’s hard to believe that God could love and give his only begotten Son to die for the sins of such wretched people as […]
Jesus Christ many times used a small child as an example of humility for adults in the kingdom to emulate. We see children as being kind, unpretentious, and quick to forgive others, so much more than grown adults that should have learned better. As Jesus commanded, we all need to be converted and become as […]
It is our duty to forgive others as Christ has forgiven us. When we understand the great magnitude of sin that we have been graciously forgiven through the blood of Jesus, there is no offense that we cannot forgive others in the name of Jesus Christ. Let us look to the cross and see the […]
If we ever get discouraged and depressed in this world, there should be no greater remedy to lift our spirits than to be reminded that God chose and elected to love us before the world began. It is an indescribable, incomprehensible blessing to have been chosen and loved by Almighty God. Let us thank our […]
God gives spiritual life in the new birth sovereignly by his Holy Spirit. After we are born again, we can now live the abundant life in close fellowship with our Heavenly Father. However, if we choose to live in disobedience, we can experience the “death” of God’s judgment and chastisement of his children. We can […]
We find in scripture 3 violent malefactors condemned to death, leading a recent insurrection that led to murder. One of these malefactors, Barabbas, is released instead of Jesus Christ, the innocent Son of God. Jesus Christ literally steps into the shoes and bears the suffering that Barabbas deserved – scourging, suffering, crucifixion, and ultimately death. […]
The Psalmist prayed to be quickened (revived, made alive) according to God’s word. We need to be revived by God’s word. The scriptures give us light to save and protect us from many perils and judgments in this world. Let us pray along with the Psalmist that God would quicken and revive us according to […]
God has inspired and preserved his word for his people to protect us from peril and that our joy may be full. The word of God can convert our soul by protecting us from God’s judgment in sin. We should value God’s word as more valuable and more precious than great riches in this world […]
When Judas betrayed Jesus, he was given 30 pieces of silver. He then returned his bounty and the Pharisees used that money to purchase a potter’s field to bury strangers in. This unique event was actually prophesied hundreds of years before by Zechariah. Therefore, the blood of Jesus purchased a field full of broken vessels, […]
We need to rejoice in each day the Lord has graciously given us. However, our primary means of joy should be in the day of Jesus Christ when he was rejected for our sakes. Despite being despised and rejected by the Jews, Christ still was exalted to become the head cornerstone of his church and […]
It’s an unfortunate reality that the church has become lukewarm and cold. This has occurred because we have removed ourselves from close fellowship with Jesus Christ, our Consuming Fire. Just as on the Day of Pentecost, we need to pray for God to “immerse” and fully fill us up with the Holy Ghost and with […]
In every 50th year in Israel, there was a year of liberty, a year of jubilee where all lands were returned, servants and bondmen set free. This announcement of liberty was made on the Day of Atonement. We consider our spiritual year of jubilee when Jesus Christ purchased our liberty by his blood on the […]
As we conclude the book of Philemon, we see the beautiful doctrine of “reconciliation” displayed in these 3 main characters. This points us towards Jesus Christ who performed the work of reconciliation and brought us back into peace with God our Father. Now, preachers like Paul have been called to declare unto us the word […]
Probably all of us feel like we have not made great use of our time during the last year. We need to be mindful to redeem – to buy back – our time, to control our time instead of time controlling us. We have over 21 million waking seconds each year that we have to […]
In the aftermath of Jesus’ birth, during their first trip to the temple for an offering, we see an amazing account of Simeon taking up the child, Jesus Christ. Simeon was told by the Holy Spirit he would see the Christ before he died. Then, he was so in tune with the Holy Ghost, that […]
Visiting minister Lic. John Pyles considers how to properly work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. There are obstacles that can prevent us from boldly living out the gospel in our lives. We are warned to avoid these obstacles that can prevent us from our conversation and manner of life boldly proclaiming the […]
It is so easy to get consumed and distracted with this world to where we are not watching expectantly for Christ’s second coming. A vision of Christ and his second coming is arguably the greatest encouragement we can have in the midst of trial. We see God’s encouragement to the persecuted church – particularly in […]
We see in Philemon the Apostle Paul literally stepping into the shoes on Onesimus and committing to pay his debt in full. This teaches us the doctrine of “substitution”, that Christ came and stepped into our shoes as a substitute to pay our debt of sin before our loving offended Master. Christ came to pay […]
From the Gospel of Grace Radio Broadcast, Pastor David discusses the necessity of not forsaking the assembly of the church together. There are many people today who are willfully choosing to sit at home and forsake the church assembly. We consider the importance and severity of willfully neglecting God’s house and his worship. Attending worship […]
God has a people out of every “city”, nation, kindred, people, and tongue. God chose out his people before the world began. In every city, in our own local communities, there are God’s born again children who do not have the full knowledge of the gospel of Christ. Therefore, we are encouraged in our evangelism […]
When Paul was afraid and discouraged in Corinth, the Lord personally encouraged him that there were “much people” in this city that needed the gospel. We do not preach the gospel to “make” God’s people, but just like Paul, we preach to “inform” and to “identify” God’s chosen people that already have a grace-tendered heart. […]
Visiting minister Lic. John Morgan Owens considers just how big and great God’s grace really is. Going through the scriptures we find so many of God’s children who messed up big time, who committed egregious sins that God should have written them off forever. However, God’s grace is so big it covers all our sins. […]
We consider the example of Paul as a mediator to reconcile the offense between Philemon and Onesimus. This is a picture of Jesus Christ as the only mediator between God and his children. Jesus was both the Son of God and also the Son of man, being able to touch both parties and reconcile us […]
As we conclude our series on What is the Church, we consider further obligations that we have to other members of the body of Christ. We need to forgive one another, teach and lead one another, comfort one another, and exhort one another. We need to interact on a frequent, if possible even daily basis. […]
Paul beseeches Philemon to forgive and receive back the runaway slave, Onesimus, as a brother in Christ. He does not command or charge him to forgive. Instead, he begs him to forgive “for love’s sake”. We are reminded that we are just like Onesimus in our nature, unprofitable, rebellious, runaway slaves from our Master. However, […]
2021 Annual Meeting. Elder David Wise considers Mount Zion, the church kingdom, which is the joy of the whole earth. Our greatest joy in this world should be pressing into the kingdom of God. God has given us the New Jerusalem which is from above, coming down from heaven to earth. We can experience the […]
2021 Annual Meeting. Elder Ben Winslett rightly divides the difference between regeneration and conversion in scripture. Regeneration is solely by the power and work of the Holy Spirit upon the heart of the sinner apart from any means of man or the gospel. Our theology of regeneration must be the same for every single child […]
2021 Annual Meeting. Elder Ben Winslett cautions against our tendency to judge someone’s eternal state based on a small snapshot of their lives. We do not have all the information and are unqualified to judge definitively on anyone’s eternal state. We consider the example of King Manasseh. Throughout most of his life, he was the […]
2021 Annual Meeting. Elder Chris McCool considers the spiritual warfare of Daniel and the Hebrew young men in Babylonian captivity. Babylon (a picture of the world apart from God in scripture) attempts to corrupt the young people of God by separating from godly influences, controlling education and teaching their sinful customs, changing their names, and […]
2021 Annual Meeting. Elder Chris McCool gives us the real meaning of the word “dead” in sins. How dead is dead? There is no ability to participate, engage, act, or exercise the will in the realm to which one is dead. Therefore, if one is dead in trespasses and sins, there is absolutely no ability […]
Every member of the church has a responsibility to every other member of the body of Christ to put their needs before their own. We need to pray for one another. We need to confess our faults one to another. We need to bear one another’s burdens. We need to be engaged to help the […]
Visiting minister Elder Luke Laird shows us the necessity of bearing fruit by abiding in the true vine. We need to stand to bear fruit in our lives, regardless of the challenges that might come against us. Considering the example of the 3 Hebrew children, we need to bear fruit unto the Lord even in […]
Paul introduces his personal letter to Philemon by commending his great faith and love to all saints. He particularly commends Philemon for continually refreshing the bowels (the heart) of the saints. We need to follow the pattern of Philemon and refresh (offer rest, calm, and peace) to our fellow saints around us.
There is no eternal condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, saved by the blood of Christ on the cross. However, we can “feel condemned” in our lives if we choose to walk after the flesh and not walk after the Spirit. We consider the example of the woman caught in adultery and justly […]
Jesus describes how Abraham rejoiced to see his day; he saw it and was glad. How did Abraham see the day of Jesus 1,800 years before he was born? By faith, Abraham saw the Lamb of God offered as a substitutionary sacrifice for the elect on Mount Moriah as he was called to offer his […]
We begin to consider the small personal epistle to Philemon. Onesimus is a runaway slave indebted to Philemon who is converted in Rome by Paul and then Paul sends him back home to Colossae to be reconciled with his master. We consider the dynamics of the servant and master relationship in Bible times and learn […]
The greatest commandment that Jesus Christ gave for his church was to love one another. By our love for each other in the church is how all men will know that we are disciples of Christ. We manifest and show that love, not solely by words but by ministering to and serving other saints. The […]
We have considered the early church’s steadfast continuance in doctrine, fellowship, breaking bread, and prayers. Now, we see the 7 results or effects of the original church’s steadfast commitment to those activities. If we do not see these effects in our churches today, we must honestly evaluate how we are engaging in the 4 core […]
We can be saved by keeping in memory the word of God. This salvation by the scriptures is not to gain eternal life but to deliver the child of God’s heart from the perils of this world. We need to learn and memorize God’s word to protect our mind from the dangers of sin. Preached […]
In this message, we examine the two phrases, “Who am I?’ and “Here am I!” Using Moses as a starting point and other examples in scripture, we see that we must have a sense of our own unworthiness and God’s complete worthiness in order to be fit for service in His Kingdom. Preached at Zion […]
As we examine the early church in the Acts of the Apostles, we find the church was committed to praying without ceasing, both privately and publicly. They met together to pray during great times of need, but they also prayed together on a daily basis. We also consider examples of prayer meetings and great answers […]
God will not settle for “half-hearted” devotion to him. We are called to serve the Lord with “all thine heart”. We are to love God with all our heart. We are to believe in the Lord with all our heart. We are to trust in the Lord with all our heart. We are to repent […]
We consider the 3rd of the 4 core activities of the original church, the breaking of bread. The natural expression of fellowship in the church is by sharing a meal together, breaking bread one with another. As the body of Christ, we need to eat meals together and fellowship together because by doing so, we […]
We find that the original church continued steadfastly in fellowship with the saints. We fellowship with like minded believers because our fellowship ultimately is with Jesus Christ. We can feel the presence of Jesus Christ together with us when we fellowship with other members of the Lord’s church.
During Jesus’ first trip to Jerusalem, his first action after his first public miracle was to purge the temple from filthy lucre with a scourge. Jesus shows a jealousy over his bride and the purity of the church. Paul displayed a godly jealousy over the church desiring to present her as a chaste virgin to […]
We see the simplicity of the original church engaging in 4 main activities, steadfast commitment to uphold the apostles’ doctrine, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers. We will inevitably compromise other practices in the church if we attempt to supplement the original apostles’ doctrine in the word of God. We see that the apostles vehemently […]
The church ought to be engaged in public prayers together, especially when there is a great need in the church, such as sickness or imprisonment. The church is called to be a house of prayer. Also, God ordained that by the foolishness of preaching that God’s children would be saved to the knowledge of the […]
When we endure tribulation, it is not solely to grit our teeth and survive it, but God gives us those trials so that we can console and comfort others in their own troubles. We have peace that Jesus Christ is the God of all comfort, he has a never-ending supply of comfort and consolation for […]
God set up the worship in his church in a very simplistic way. We consider one of the 3 components of public worship, singing with grace in our hearts to the Lord. We sing to teach and admonish one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Singing is a great way to learn scripture and […]
God’s sovereignty and power is manifested in natural creation. God created man and all the heavens and earth according to his own will and pleasure and did not need man’s consent or approval to make him a living soul. In like manner, men are born again by the sovereign power of God, not by a […]
Jesus told us to pray for the Holy Spirit. This is not an invitation for God to born us again by the Holy Ghost, but a special communion with the Spirit in our lives. Every problem we have, every mistake we make is really a deficiency of the Holy Ghost. Therefore, let us pray for […]
God uses some very unlikely means to providentially bless his children. Considering Elijah, we can see that God used the unclean ravens to feed him and then sent him to a widow on her last meal, the last place we would think to be sustained in a drought. In like manner, God can use us […]
God has gifted men as pastors and teachers in his church to edify the body of Christ. Pastors are appointed by the Holy Ghost as a shepherd of a local flock. Pastors are given a special love for the local church that is as deep as a parent for a child, willing even to impart […]
Barnabas was so devoted to exhorting, consoling, and encouraging his brethren, the apostles gave him the name of the son of consolation. We see Barnabas’ encouraging nature, standing up for Paul and John Mark when it was very unpopular to put his arm around them. Then, Jesus Christ is the ultimate Son of Consolation, the […]
We consider the first 3 of 4 gifts of the gospel ministry. God called apostles and prophets for a specific purpose in the establishment of the early church, but those gifts are vacant today. We consider the pattern for the gift of an evangelist by following the life of Philip the Evangelist. Philip preached Jesus […]
We see from 1 Cor. 10:13 that God is faithful in all our temptations to strengthen us and make a way of escape to be able to bear it. God will oftentimes put more on us than we can bear in ourselves, but there is no trial too great that we cannot bear by looking […]
One of the primary purposes of Jesus Christ’s Church is to teach and make disciples. The gospel does not give one eternal life, but it simply manifests and illuminates the finished work of salvation by Jesus Christ on the cross. It is the responsibility and joyful privilege of every member of the Lord’s church to […]
Just like Hagar in the wilderness, sometimes we feel all alone and think that no one knows our sorrow or pain. Instead, that is when God manifests to us that does see us, he does hear our affliction. Jesus Christ sees everything, and he sees and knows the burdens and pain of our hearts. Then, […]
When we administer our spiritual gifts in the church, we must always remember to treat one another in charity, love in action. It doesn’t matter what great spiritual gifts we have or what supposed great things we might do for God, if we don’t do those things in charity, we are nothing. We must exhibit […]
After we are given the 7 spiritual gifts in the church, we then are given 21 exhortations for how we are to walk in unity among the diversity of spiritual gifts. We must show agape love without hypocrisy. We must prefer others above ourselves. We must rejoice in hope, continue instant in prayer, put on […]
We consider the great example of Zaccheus’ faith who had Jesus come into his house to commune with him. He had the blessing of feeling salvation personally in his home and the deliverance that comes from believing in Jesus Christ. We then look at other examples of deliverance and salvation coming into the homes of […]
Visiting speaker Brother Joe Ott considers the description of our walk of faith from Romans 12. We commanded to present our bodies a living sacrifice, proving the will of God. We ought to use our spiritual gifts to edify the entire body of Christ. We have to show agape and brotherly love to our kindred […]
Visiting minister Lic. Ben Shettles considers God’s great provision for Elijah the prophet. Elijah was sustained at the brook with ravens in the midst of the drought. Then, after the brook dried up, the Lord in his providence directed Elijah to a widow who was on her last meal. God used some very uncommon means […]
Visiting minister Elder Jackie Smith considers the elect as being heirs of God in Jesus Christ. It is a great blessing to be included in God’s inheritance and in God’s will. We have rights to the full heirs of all the riches of our Father’s house as chosen heirs of God in Jesus Christ.
When discussing some common objections to the doctrine of election, it is common to hear John 3:16 – that God loved the whole world – as a rebuttal for why God did not elect a people to salvation before the world began. We consider together the proper rightly dividing of John 3:16 in context and […]
In the face of blasphemous threats from the Assyrians to destroy their faith in God, Hezekiah remains faithful to the Lord and spreads the matter before the Lord in prayer. God delivers his people in a mighty way by slaying 185,000 Assyrians and slaying their blasphemous king. Today, in our spiritual warfare against Satan, we […]
We consider the last 3 of the 7 spiritual gifts given unto the church, which are giving, ruling, and showing mercy. Some in the church have been given a great aptitude to give of their money and time to help others. Other members have a gift of leadership and administration to organize tasks and accomplish […]
We consider the spiritual gifts in the church of teaching and exhortation. The church should have a dynamic teaching environment; parents teaching children; older members teaching younger members; teaching and admonishing one another through hymns and songs. Those with the gift of exhortation – such as Barnabas, the son of consolation – are great spiritual […]
We gain encouragement from God’s mighty deliverance of Jehoshaphat and Judah from their enemies. Against an enemy where they felt they had no might, and did not know what to do, their eyes were fixed on the Lord. The battle was not theirs, but the Lord’s. God destroyed their enemies in a mighty way and […]
Every single person has been given a spiritual gift (or multiple gifts) to edify the body of Christ. We need to cultivate our spiritual gifts to help other people in the church. Some have been given the spiritual gift of prophecy, a gift to preach or a gift of wise biblical counsel to others. Some […]
The church of Jesus Christ is presented in scripture as being a candlestick of the Lord. Each individual church is a candlestick that should be unified to shine forth to light this dark world to the glory of God. We ought not put our candlestick in a secret place or under a bushel, but shine […]
Lic. Morgan Sims goes through the book of Titus giving practical admonitions from these scriptures. We have eternal security of salvation because God that cannot lie promised eternal life before the world began. Therefore, we must be vigilant to hold steadfastly to sound doctrine, rejecting false teachers, and to maintain good works to honor the […]
Does the word of God command the sinner to pray a prayer to go to heaven? Actually, No. The Sinner’s Prayer to gain eternal life that is so common in Christianity today is not found in the word of God. However, we consider the True Sinner’s Prayer in the scriptures – “God be merciful to […]
We consider the Lord’s church as the vineyard of God. Jesus is the True Vine, God the Father is our Husbandman, and we are the Lord’s branches. God expects fruit from his branches, fruit from his vineyard. When we are not bringing forth fruit to the glory of God as we ought, God might see […]
During the oppression of King Saul’s reign, there were some who were distressed, in debt, and discontented who sought out a captain, who sought out the rightful king, David. For those who are distressed, indebted, and discontented in this world, this points us towards the Captain of our salvation, Jesus Christ, that we should flee […]
We see that the temple of God was ordained by the Lord to be a place of worship and sacrifice to glorify God. The Lord set up his Old Testament temple to be the place of worship and glory, but Israel forsook God and worshipped false gods. Now, God intends to be worshipped in the […]
The church of the Lord Jesus Christ is presented in scripture as the house of God. Jesus Christ is the chief corner stone and foundation of his house. The members of God’s church are now lively stones that are chosen to build up a spiritual house. We ought to strive to be vessels meet for […]
Visiting Minister Elder Sammy Odom considers various contrasting types in the scriptures. While we normally consider types to be similar to something, we now consider types that are contrasting opposites, such as the 3 accounts of sureties in the Bible and how they contrast with Jesus Christ as our eternal surety for sin.
This world is filled with trouble and tribulation on every side for the child of God. It is very easy to get discouraged in the middle of all that trouble. Instead, we need to turn our eyes to our eternal rest in Jesus Christ. There is rest for the weary, but our ultimate eternal rest […]
God is in sovereign control of the kingdoms of men and he gives authority over those kingdoms to whomever he sees fit. We see the amazing providence and sovereignty of God to move the heart of kings and to elevate unlikely characters to positions of power, particularly Mordecai, Daniel, and Joseph. We do not need […]
What does the body of Christ of the church look like in action? How does the body function with different members working together? Every single member of the body is vitally important. No single member is more important than the other either. There is diversity in the body, but the body must still function in […]
We consider the church as the body of Christ. We are literally bone of Jesus’ bone and flesh of Jesus’ flesh, one flesh, one body with Jesus Christ as the church, the bride of the Lord. We need to properly understand how a healthy body functions. A body cannot function for just a few hours […]
One of the most amazing and precise prophecies of Jesus Christ and the cross is found in Psalm 22. We find Jesus speaking in the first person describing his vantage point from the cross, as he was scourged, beaten, blasphemed, with nails driven through his hands and feet, prophesied by David hundreds of years before […]
It can be very easy to become in despair when things look bad around us and a bad situation seems to be coming in the future. There was arguably no worse situation that the Jews in the Persian empire thinking they were going to be slaughtered in 11 months. Even though many of those Jews […]
We consider the church from the perspective of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God has many dimensions in scripture, just like the church – the eternal heavenly kingdom, the kingdom in our hearts, and particularly the church kingdom. Jesus set up the church kingdom during his ministry, and now we called to “press […]
In the ministry of Jesus Christ, the visible manifestation of “his church” was established in this world. Jesus told Peter, upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Upon the rock of Jesus Christ, the revelation of God by Jesus Christ in the new birth, […]
We see the dramatic climax of Esther going in before the king to save her people from destruction. Not only does the king eventually hear and grant her petition, but Mordecai is exalted and Haman is eventually hanged on the same gallows he built for Mordecai. God’s providence can act fast, and we never know […]
God has set up his church to be the pillar and ground for his truth in this world. God has given us the truth in the word of God and in the witness of Jesus Christ. It is up to the disciples of Christ to defend God’s truth to a scoffing world. If the church […]
As we reach the climax in the book of Esther, Mordecai calls upon Esther to intercede with the king to save her people, the Jews. Mordecai believes that perhaps God has providentially put her in this position “for such a time as this”. In our own lives, God is guiding and preparing us for such […]
The primary purpose of the church is to glorify God. Probably the primary way we glorify God is obeying the greatest commandment to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind and to love others as Christ has loved us. We show love to God when we love others unconditionally, freely, and graciously, in […]
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Pastor David Wise discusses our fellowship in the church. When we have fellowship one with another in the church, we actually have fellowship with Jesus Christ himself when we meet together to fellowship under the name of the Lord.
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Lic. Morgan Sims rightly divides the new birth in scripture. Men are born again by the immediate, direct work of the Holy Spirit upon the heart of the dead, alien sinner. After that work of the new birth, when we believe the gospel, there is a special seal of approval that God […]
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Larry Wise considers the “much more’s” of the Bible. We have been given much more in Jesus Christ. Sin abounded in this world and in our lives, but grace did much more abound. We have been given grace in eternal salvation, but we also receive more grace here in our lives […]
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Lic. Ben Shettles considers Jesus Christ as the Rock of our salvation. Jesus did not offer salvation to the sinner, but Jesus Christ fully saved us on the cross. Now, we trust in Jesus for our protection from this world as our Rock and Defender.
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Elder David Pyles considers types of Jesus Christ in Moses and Joshua. Moses interceded for the people asking forgiveness for their sins to protect them from God’s consuming wrath. We see Joshua as a type of Jesus Christ and the destruction of Jericho by Joshua as a type of the end of […]
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Joe Nettles considers Moses and Joshua in the tabernacle in the aftermath of Israel’s sin with the golden calf. We can see Moses as the Law as insufficient to save man because of our failure to keep God’s law. But then we see Jesus in Joshua who departed not out of […]
2021 Fellowship Meeting. Elder Tony Lester gives an account of Jesus’ healing of the woman with the issue of blood and then of Jairus’ daughter. We need to trust in Jesus for our healing of diseases in this life and keep faith in Christ to help us in all our needs and distresses.
It is not easy to stand up for our convictions in an environment where ungodliness is accepted, to be the only one serving God in a given situation. We are called to stand out in a crowd by remaining devoted to God, regardless of how everyone around us might be caving to governmental or societal […]
Why did God call out the assembly of the church? What is the primary purpose of the Lord’s church? Our primary purpose is to glorify God in all we say and do. God chose out a people to salvation for the praise of the glory of his grace. Now that we have been saved by […]
As with many biblical topics, not every time we see “the church” in scripture is it describing the same thing. There are primarily 3 dimensions of the church presented in scripture. First, the global invisible elect family of God called out in the new birth. Second, the visible church militant of disciples who have followed […]
In the midst of a severe storm, we are prone to act like the disciples and get afraid and to question God and even to question if Jesus even cares for us. In the midst of the storms of this life, we have to remember the promise of God in faith. Jesus has promised us […]
As we begin a series examining the church, first we must understand what the church actually is. The church is not just some event we attend once a week and then go our separate way and then do it all again next week. The church is not something we do once a week, but the […]
Visiting minister Elder Tony Lester gives an encouraging message to hope in Jesus Christ. The basis of our hope is in God’s promise who cannot lie, who by two immutable things that God cannot lie, he confirmed his promise by an oath to Abraham. In like manner, we trust in the promise of God, knowing […]
Visiting speaker Lic. John Pyles examines a tale of two churches in the city of Philadelphia – the church of God in Philadelphia in contrast to the synagogue of Satan in the same city. Even in the midst of the hour of temptation, the Philadelphian church would still be kept as safe and sound because […]
Message delivered by Elder David Wise at Laodicea PBC in Thaxton, MS on 1/31/2021. The only source of glory for the child of God should be in the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross is the only means of our eternal salvation. We did not do anything to add to or take away from Jesus’ […]
We see a great example in the life of Esther of the virtuous woman who displays a meek and quiet spirit. Esther did not seek to try to bring attention to herself; on the contrary, she deflected the attention. God saw fit to exalt Esther for “such a time as this” due to her humble, […]