PathLight: Recent Episodes
Dr. T.D. Worthington
PathLight is a ministry broadcast of Pathway Baptist Church in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Join Dr. T.D. Worthington each and every week as he opens the Scriptures to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Dr. Worthington can also be heard on GoMix Christian Radio, based out of Snow Hill, North Carolina, each Sunday morning at 10:30 am EST. Listen live to GoMix Christian Radio 24 hours a day at www.gomixradio.org. For correspondence, write to:Attn: PathLight, Pathway Ministries, PO Box 1895, Goldsboro, N.C. 27533
There are men and women that I have studied that lift me up from within, when I think of their faith and courage. We have read of them. We know of their names. We are familiar with their stories.
Yet, comparatively little is said of the ordinary saints whose prayers, lives, and instruction shaped these men and women so mightily used of God. We admire the flowers and forget the roots. Mothers often play a formative role in the lives of great men: Hannah stands behind Samuel, Elizabeth behind John the Baptist, Eunice behind Timothy, and on and on. Their praying, weeping, and pleading gave birth to lions for the kingdom of God. But, then, so do fathers.
In this week’s edition of PathLight, we will be reminded that although God may not call us to accomplish mighty works, He may allow us to train someone who will. This week’s program is entitled “Knowing Your Father’s God.”
Near the start of Jesus’ public ministry, He says these words: “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:34).As Jesus ministry continued it becomes evident that the work of the Father is wrapped up with His death on the cross.
In John’s Gospel particularly the chief reason that Jesus completes this work is because it will bring glory to the Father: “for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name” (John 12:27-28); “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” (John 17:1). And, of course, the agony of Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane brings out the same concern for His Father: “Not my will but thine be done” (Luke 22:42).
I always find it moving to see those times in the Gospels when Jesus resolutely sets out to Jerusalem knowing what awaited Him. And it is easy to focus on the fact that He is motivated to do that by love for me. But a true reflection of the New Testament will ALSO have in mind that He is motivated by a desire to obey, please, and glorify the Father that He loves.
For this year’s PathLight Father’s Day message you are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington as he discusses the Love our Lord had for His Father
There is something in the American air today that most of us have never smelled before. For example, just a few years ago, almost everyone understood that males use the men’s room, females the women’s. Now, confusion is in the air. An evil conspiracy is afloat, as those with questionable morals breathe together a noxious odor; yet finding it enjoyable.
Today, facts are no longer important; narrative is all the rage. Subjective narrative replaces the hard truth of reality. At one time, the society was able to recognize truth. We knew when something didn’t smell just right. Today, we are blind to truth. God continues to reveal it, but we are insensible to that revelation. It would appear we are no longer able to sniff out the truth. The modern press sure seems incapable of discovering truth.
Perhaps that is because truth is no longer defined by our Creator. We have created a new world, a world free of facts, morals, and free of God Himself. As people suppress the truth of God’s existence, they also reject the hard facts of the reality, He has created.
In this week’s edition of PathLight, we will be reminded that God’s people have one-book, so it should be easy to speak with one-voice, but apparently it is not. This book tells us how to be wise in a foolish world. This book tells us what should smell noxious to us. This is the standard, and when applied, it will keep us from smelling bad and looking dumb in the eyes of the righteous.
We live in a hedonistic society. This is defined as a society where most people spend most of their time seeking their own pleasure and satisfaction. They may not always find the pleasure and satisfaction they seek, but it is always at the forefront of their minds. It is usually pictured as a bad thing.
We might think of Las Vegas as being a hedonistic city. In a sense, Disney World is that way. Actually, our vacation may might be termed a bit hedonistic according to the general definition. I might could say that I am hedonistic about coming to church, because I find it satisfying and pleasureful. So, the negative or positive nature of the term, depends a lot on the character of the individual.
For the unsaved, I know you are seeking for pleasure, for there is none that on their own seek after God. I do hope you will allow the Holy Spirit to convince you that you will find the pleasure you seek in Christ and Christ alone.
But for Christians, I don’t believe you are to seek for pleasure. You and I seek to obey God and seek first the Kingdom. Indeed, we seek His pleasure, not ours. Yet, in so doing, we will secure for ourselves the greatest pleasure and satisfaction available to man.
A smart phone can be a valuable tool. So is your tablet, laptop, or desktop. It is a phone, a watch, map, camera, and dozens of other things that help us in our daily lives. Of course, it is also a toy. I can use it to play games, enjoy pictures, videos, or music, engage in hours of useless and trivial conversations or internet searches. But, it can also be an idol; something that leads us away from better things, robs us of our time, and sometimes leads us down dark roads, best not traveled.
In this week’s PathLight program, Dr. Worthington will remind us to beware. As precious time can be wasted and spiritual decline may set in. Relationship problems might arise in the home, the church, and the place of work – all because the respectable cell phone, tablet, or computer has been turned into an idol—masquerading as a tool…or even an innocent toy.
Never has a society been more offended or insulted by other people’s ideas than in this modern era. People, including many Christians, are always mad at someone because of some offense.
Of course, there is a modern-day innocence to it all. We don’t usually go out into the streets and have a shoot-out—at least in most cases. Yet, there is something deeper and dangerous going on with all the offense being taken.
Choosing to allow ourselves to be offended is a double-edged sword, one that cuts both internally and externally. The outside is the easiest to see, especially now that social media has given us a front row seat to so many people’s wrath. But, beneath the outward disdain is a dangerously unrealistic internal assumption that warps our ability to view others correctly.
Are you easily offended or are others walking on eggshells around you? If so, the offense you are taking is a trap that may destroy your testimony, your friendships, and maybe even your closest relationships. It is also going to hurt your walk with God. In this week’s PathLight, we will be reminded to keep a humble, realistic view of our own ideas, motivations and opinions.
It is easy to see how children sin against their parents. Sometimes it is a little more clouded about how parents might sin again their children. In this week’s edition of PathLight we are reminded of the story of Joseph. At one point in the story, Reuben rebuked his brothers for their mistreatment of Joseph some 22 years earlier. He said, "Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required" (Genesis 42:22). The concept of "sinning against the child" should catch our attention. There are many ways parents can be guilty of sinning against their children. Of course, some are pretty obvious.
Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that our children are a sacred inheritance from the Lord. As with any stewardship, we must be faithful to the Lord with that which has been entrusted to us. Failure to do this will cost us severely, not only throughout eternity, but even in this life. The wise man wrote, "A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother (Proverbs 10:1) . . . He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy" (Proverbs 17:21). To guard ourselves from this earthly sorrow, let us not "sin against the child.”
Unlike what most people assume, being nice and being kind are two different things. They may share a few common attributes, but not many. Being nice involves doing something that is pleasing or agreeable. On the other hand, kindness is doing something that is helpful to others. It comes from a place of genuine concern and benevolence. Therefore, as strange as it may seem, you can be kind without always being nice. A person who is really kind sometimes will not nice, because the truly kind response won’t always be pleasing to the other person. In many situations, being nice is not necessarily kind at all. Niceness can be dangerous for the Christian. When we pretend not to see the sin or error, then before long we tend to stop seeing altogether; we don’t have to pretend anymore. Niceness can fold a gentle cloth over our eyes so we no longer see sin clearly. We become all things to all people, not to win them to Christ, but just because we want to be accepted. Of course, eventually you will begin to assume that everyone else is as fake as you are. In this week's PathLight, we will be reminded that if our relationships are just nice, no one will tell us the truth, and therefore no one can really be trusted. Niceness lures us in with the promise of being liked, maybe even loved, then leaves us with hollow relationships, that lack authenticity. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's program.
In our world there are many reports that are fake news, and because of that, there are many who also discount true news. By the same token, there are reports that some label conspiracies that turn out to be true. Just as there are “so-called true” reports that turn out to be false. In short, since the world fell by believing Satan’s Lie, we have lived in a world of lies, half-truths, conspiracies, and fake news. And in that world, the people of the truth must learn not just how to tell the truth, but how to spot a lie.
Christians certainly know that it is a sin to go around telling lies, but not so many know that it is also a sin to believe a lie. Of from time-to-time we are all guilty of this, and for me, the lies we were told about COVID proves just how vulnerable we are to accept falsehood. In this week’s PathLight, we will be reminded that discerning truth from error in the things we hear, believe, and pass on, is a Christian virtue we might need to brush up on. Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's program.
Have you noticed that God seldom gives you the whole plan at one time? There are a lot of things that God wants you to figure out as you go along. Perhaps we couldn’t handle it all at one time. Perhaps we have to gradually prepare ourselves for what is coming. Perhaps God is teaching us the virtues of faith, patience, dependence, and maybe even the art of improvision.
Since the life we are living seldom has all the answers, it appears that as we learn to trust in the Lord we may also need to learn to improvise. In this week’s PathLight we will see that improvising is not a free-for-all or a care-less attitude. Actually, it involves deep listening, looking for new pathways, drawing from history, experience, and the examples of others. It involves holing your life open so God can write His own story. Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message.
Every step to the cross Jesus echoed the words: “My Father is of infinite worth. His will, His pleasure, His holiness, and His justice are the reality of life.” And every hammer blow driving the nails into His hands and feet on the cross echoed through the universe: “My Father is of infinite value. What He has purposed, is all that matters.” The Father delighted in His Son. His Son delighted in Him. And the Son, and the Father delighted in us out of mere grace.
The Easter Season represents greatness and power to me. The greatest forgiveness was given, the greatest love was displayed (Son to the Father), the greatest sacrifice was made (blood of Christ), and the greatest worship was given. We worship God when we sacrifice, thus the greatest act of worship would have to be linked to the greatest sacrifice. (We might also say that it was the greatest defeat, the greatest debt was paid, greatest victory, etc.)
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. This week, you will be reminded how God was pleased to give His Son to die in our place and how glorious God is in His love and grace.
There really is no middle ground. Either Jesus was the Jewish Messiah, or He wasn’t. If He was, how is it that the Jewish people by and large didn’t recognize him when He came 2000 years ago? Our text in Isaiah 53 tells us that almost no one believed what He had to say.
Jesus came as the Messiah, but Israel wanted nothing to do with Him. We know that for a time Jesus had a powerful and growing ministry, especially in Galilee. Thousands flocked to hear Him speak and watch Him heal the sick. Yet, in the end they concluded that Jesus simply could not be the Messiah. In this week’s PathLight we are reminded that you can be wrong about many things and still go to heaven, but you can’t be wrong about Jesus. That’s the reality of unbelief then and now.
Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that Jesus died for sinners. Are you a sinner? Then come near to the cross of Jesus. Look upon the Saviour. See His arms outstretched in love for you. Look, and believe, and receive the free gift of eternal life. To those who receive Him He gives the right to become the children of God. What will you do with Jesus?
There is a direct connection between the resurrection of Jesus and our future hope. There is also a direct connection between the resurrection of Jesus and our present rest and security. This is hope that can stand in the middle of the deepest difficulties of life; hope that won’t fade in the face of disappointment and discouragement; hope that doesn’t die in the face of pain and loss and it is only found at the empty tomb of the Lord Jesus Christ. There we find our future hope; there we find our present rest; He is our future; He is our King; He is risen, and His name is Jesus.
In this week's PathLight, we are reminded that Jesus is defeating one enemy after another right now. He is empowering you to defeat every enemy that comes against you. Yet, He is saving the enemy of death for last. Why? Because death poses no real threat for you and I. Death has no sting and the grave has no victory. We want Jesus to destroy that enemy now, but in His wisdom, He knows you have bigger enemies than death to overcome. That’s why…death…can wait.
We all walk closer to the edge than we think. There is a thin line between disaster and prosperity, joy and sorrow, laughter and tears, life and death.
Let a car pull out in front of you. Let a tiny switch malfunction and the whole plane crashes. Let the train jump the tracks. Let the brakes give away. Let a tiny virus enter our system. Let the lightning flash and in just a moment we are gone.
So much teaches us that we’re not in control of our own destiny. Who can understand the mysteries of the universe? Why are you alive today and someone else is dead? Why have we been to many funerals and no one has been to ours–yet!
That leads me to make the following point: As bad as things are, if it weren’t for God, things would be much worse. That seems obvious, and perhaps it is, but we need to hear it again. If it weren’t for God, no matter how bad things are in your life right now, they would be much worse without the Lord. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. Our message is entitled “Astonishing Gratefulness.”
If you are not actively fighting against it, you are a self-centered person; and so am I! The human nature, due to the corruption of the original sin, is deeply curved in on itself. Self comes first! Sometimes it is so bent that we can even become prideful about the gifts of God.
Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that when you are curved inward, your happiness will depend on people and circumstances. Cynicism, hopelessness, grumbling, complaining, self-pity, apathy, cowardice, jealousy, all show that your allegiance is too much toward yourself and the things of earth. These things cannot exist in a heart consumed with the love of God and the love of others; one attitude will necessarily displace the other.
In this week’s PathLight broadcast, you will be asked if you are you joyful? You will be asked if you are content? Questions like this will help you determine if you are bent inward rather than upward and outward.
Do you ever talk to yourself? Sure, we all do.So, what do you say to yourself when you talk to yourself? I'm talking about the ongoing self-talk, the stuff that you say to yourself over and over and over again in your mind. If you're like a lot of people, unfortunately, you get stuck in what you might call a negative loop.
A negative mindset is easy to acquire, but it is not always easy to get rid of. Actually, you will probably need a little supernatural help from God and a little intentional work on your end. But the effort will be worth it, because it really matters. Your thoughts are more powerful than you can imagine, BUT you have more power over your thoughts than you think you do.
In this week’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that it is time to find strength, not in our own power, not in our own positive thinking, but in the power of a life-changing presence of God.
All of us, one time or another, have prayed and asked God for something and have had to wait…and wait. Waiting is perhaps one of life's most difficult tasks. We hate the fact that we have to wait for something. We have become a society where delays are not accepted or tolerated. We have become a society of impatient people and now it is pouring over into the church.
If you have been a Christian for very long, you have experienced God’s delays. David experienced them. He wrote, “I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.” (Psalms 69:3).
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. We will be reminded that when God brings delays into our lives, we must learn to trust Him more fully and to submit more thoroughly to His lordship over our lives.
The message is entitled “Delayed Deliverance.”
Are you open-minded or narrow-minded? The modern world says that if you are open-minded, you are accepting, tolerant, unbiased and understanding; you are just a wonderful person. But if you are narrow-minded, you are bigoted, conservative, opinionated, reactionary and intolerant; you are some kind of jerk. So, we know what the answer is supposed to be. Let’s all be open-minded.
But is that always a good idea? When I hire someone one to do a job for me, I want him to be pretty narrow-minded. I want him to do the job as I have asked him to do it. Narrow mindedness in lesser matters is good, but many condemn it in matters of faith and morals.
Let’s face it. Christians are supposed to be narrow-minded about God’s truth. We believe God has spoken in his Word and that his Word is settled and is to be is to be obeyed, not debated.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. The message is entitled “Open-Minded Christianity.”
“Don’t sweat the small stuff,” we’re told. While it is important not to major on the minors, we still know that small things have the power to influence the direction of a day—or a life. A set of lost car keys can put the whole household in an uproar. A leak under the sink can lead to a huge mess. In a positive way, a dandelion from a child can be a treasured gift. Little things matter.
The small decisions that we make this year will shape the direction of our lives. Dr. T. D. Worthington invites you to join him in pursuing something great this year, one small decision at a time. So many Christians are so close to greatness. So close to being a champion, but their soft choices to take the easy way, the lazy way, robs them of victory. They will never defeat Goliath because they cannot be counted on, nor are they willing, to deliver the cheese.
In this week’s PathLight, we will be reminded to avoid the misconception that when we shine for God, it has to be big. Often it is the little things that make the largest statements. It’s in the mundane, everyday moments that we have such opportunities to serve and share Jesus with the world.
Marriage is one of the most powerful relationships that we can participate in, as human beings. The first book of the Bible establishes marriage as the foundation for human connection. Families are produced, homes are situated, and cultures extend from the central point of marriage. While marriage is an important institution, it also challenges both husband and wife to go beyond their limitations to connect with each other. As we gain a deeper understanding of God’s design for marriage, we can invest in our marriages with purpose and intention.
We cherish our marriage relationships, and we don’t want anyone or anything to come between our love for one another. To do this, we must be committed to ask God to maintain a “Hedge of Protection” around our marriage, to preserve the integrity of our relationship.
However, our Lord also expects us to do all we can, as empowered by the Holy Spirit, to protect our marriage. When you have a picture taken as a couple, an experienced photographer may ask you to assume several poses. In this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington challenges us to pose for three distinct pictures as we embrace what it means to be a couple.
When I was a little boy, I was blessed with a vivid imagination. I guess most kids are. I could be a cowboy, a soldier, a fireman; all in the same day whatever I wanted to be. And it was my imagination that made it all real. A stick with a rope tied to it became a horse and two old boards nailed together with a rusty nail became an airplane. Of course, as you grow older, if you are not careful, your imagination can turn into lustful fantasies or other sinful things.
When I became a Christian, I would learn that in my fight to advance the Kingdom, in my struggle to serve Christ, and in my battle against temptation, I also needed to visualize success. I needed imagination. Imagination gave me a picture for my faith to hold on to.
In today’s edition of PathLight, we will learn that imagination, when rightly used, is one of the most powerful tools God gives us to put off the old nature and to walk in the new. Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for his message entitled “Imagination.”
There are a lot of powerful and famous people that did not get to where they are without some powerful help. In making that statement, I am not just referring to help from wealthy or influential friends or family. And for this message, I am not referring to God. I am referring to the devil.
The Bible does depict the devil as a dealmaker. In the book of Job, for instance, Satan proposes a kind of wager with God. Later, the devil attempts to make a deal with Jesus at the end of His forty days of fasting in the wilderness. After showing Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them” (Matthew 4:9),Satan offers them all to Jesus if the Lord will bow down and worship him.
Of course, Jesus sends Satan away with a rebuke. But what if that same offer was made to someone else? Satan is the god of this world, so he has the authority to make such an offer. Perhaps this is the same offer he will make to the Anti-Christ. Perhaps he has offered smaller deals with others.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for the message “A Devilish Dealmaker” in this week’s edition of PathLight.
Have you made some resolutions for the New Year? If so, by default it would mean you must have some regrets. And now those regrets must be strong enough for you to ask God to empower you to become a person of resolution. Now, there is a difference in a person with a resolution and a person of resolution.
A resolved person has made a mental determination, a man of resolve has a firmness to actually do it. Resolutions are powerless in the hands of a person without resolve. Benjamin Franklin defined being a man of resolve as: “Resolve to perform what you ought. Then perform without fail what you resolve.”
In this week’s edition of PathLight we will be reminded that being a man of resolve is the key to many of the other virtues. Regardless, if your goal is to achieve patience, to be more faithful at church, to pray more, to be more dependable, none of these can be accomplished without the resolve to perform what you ought.
Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this informative study.
Atheists think that Christians are foolish for believing in God. Christians think that atheists are blind for not seeing the overwhelming evidence for a divine Creator. But in reality, both sides of this argument are represented by highly intelligent people. So, how is it that two intelligent people, presented with the same evidence can reach totally opposite conclusions?
Have you ever wondered why it is that two children reared in the same Christian home can have such drastically different responses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ? One child enthusiastically embraces the message of salvation, the other rebels against it.
As we will see in this week’s PathLight, the message of the cross, that seems so foolish to so many, is really the greatest of wisdom, it's God's wisdom. But, it will only seem like wisdom if God opens your eyes, and you allow your eyes to be opened. Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message entitled, “The Wisdom of God.”
Recently I heard a politician state that his goal was to end racism in America. Assuming the best, in that most rational people really would like to end racism, I want to be honest and tell you that it cannot be done. I am sure that many people calling for an end of racism really want to make this world a better place. But, the truth is, they are powerless in spite of their best intentions. It would be the same as saying you are going to “stop lust” or “stop envy.” Man, on his own accord is powerless to accomplish this feat. Of course, it is also quite obvious that most politicians really don’t want to end racism anyway. It gives them greater power if we are divided.
Ending racism is a noble idea, but I am not sure anyone really believes it can be done. Many well meaning people have been trying to stop it for all recorded history—yet, to no avail. Politicians can change laws, but they cannot stop sin, and racism is sin, and a world enslaved to sin cannot overcome sin on its own. Even if we could build the most powerful totalitarian regime, with the authority to severely punish those who might not yield to ending racism, it still could not force anyone to love what he ought to love and hate what he ought to hate. The change the world groans after, even on its best days, belongs to the very God the world despises and rejects. He alone has the power to change hearts, thus He alone has the power to end racism.
On this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington will remind us that the racism-free world all good men yearn for is quickly approaching. Racism will end soon, sooner than most people of all races will actually want. You see, racism will end as all men stand on equal ground shoulder to shoulder when our King finally comes to reign. And not only will racism, and every other sin, be thrown into the lake of fire, but His people will be unified in ways we can only now imagine. One people, one family, one nation...under Christ.
Have you considered the possibility that the most important message you receive at work may not come from your boss. It may not come from a co-worker, client, or customer. It may come from the Lord. Now, that does not mean we are to sit around and goof off waiting for some revelation from glory, but it does mean we should work with expectancy.
In this week’s edition of PathLight you will be encouraged to renew your attitude regarding your job. You will be reminded that unless you are engaged in some evil and sinful profession, your labor is a part of your ministry for the Lord.
Be the best worker you can be. Your hard work and diligence are not really for your employer but for the Lord. He sees your diligence and hard work and although maybe you don’t get adequately rewarded in your workplace, you may get a special reward by a personal word from our Lord.
So, how do you feel about the seemingly insignificant duties delegated to you? Work with expectancy! Labor with the understanding that God may speak to you today as you perform your duties, even if you are called upon to work the night shift.
You can’t miss Christmas, because it is everywhere. But it is possible to walk through the Christmas season, and miss the real reason we celebrate. We can lose track of what all the festivities are supposed to be about. We aren’t going to miss Christmas, because it’s out there. It’s unavoidable. But it is possible that we miss Jesus, whose birthday we are celebrating.
One of the reasons we miss Jesus is because our lives are filled up with family, parties, shopping, cooking, gifts, and all kinds of different Christmas events and before we know it, there just isn’t any room left for Jesus. It’s very common these days to look at a calendar and look ahead to Christmas and just feel completely overwhelmed and flustered rather than excited to celebrate our Saviour’s birth.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. This seasonal message is entitled, “Too Busy for Jesus.”
Did you grow up in a place outsiders might call “Nowhere”? Jesus grew up in “Nowhere” also. Did you know that the Old Testament never even mentions Nazareth? Think of all the genealogies and historical accounts in the Old Testament, and you will often find a lot of attention paid to land, geography, and places. Yet, you will not find one single mention of Nazareth. This small speck on the map was an uncelebrated, forgotten town, off the beaten path, even for Galilee. When guileless Nathanael questioned a friend about Jesus, he expressed the common Jewish sentiment in the first century (John 1:46):“Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”
During his earthly life, so far as we know, Jesus never self-identified as “Jesus of Nazareth.” Only rarely did His followers call him that. Typically, it was crowds unfamiliar with Him, or His enemies: demons, false witnesses, and the soldiers who came with the traitor to arrest Him. And while many despised Him for his hometown, even His fellow Nazarenes soon rejected Him, drove Him out of town, and threatened to throw Him off the cliff (Luke 4:28–30).
But Nazareth’s story did not end in dishonor. Our Father saw fit not only to redeem a fallen race, but also to redeem a stigmatized town, when He raised the Nazarene from the dead. Now the risen Christ is indeed “Jesus of Nazareth,” not in shame but unparalleled glory.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message entitled: “Jesus of Nazareth.”
Wouldn’t it be odd for a child to behold their bounty of gifts and say: “I deserve all of this…and maybe even more?” The child would be totally missing the point. The people they should be thanking are the parents because they bought the gifts. You see, the parents were not trying to show her how much the child deserved; they are trying to show the child how much they were loved. The child should know that without the parents they would have nothing.
This is exactly how it is with our heavenly Father and His children. We would have nothing to receive or give if it wasn’t for Him. Therefore, we shouldn’t boast about the gifts but rather about the Giver.
As you join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight we will learn about giving and receiving. We will be reminded how humans try to glorify themselves by pushing others down. God brings Himself glory by raising people up. He didn’t raise us up so we could modestly sit in the corner as dull and dim little flickering lights. No, He raised us to shimmer brightly for the glory of Christ.
We might dismiss the marriage of Adam and Eve as being too extraordinary to be of any practical help for you and I. How could any ordinary sinful husband or wife today relate to those truly innocent newlyweds, with their perfect home in a perfect paradise? They enjoyed a fullness of peace and security and intimacy that’s now impossible to experience on earth today. As an often-failing husband myself, I find my imagination stirred by the only sinless husband in history, sacrificing all on the altar of sin and compromise.
The more years I’m married, the more easily I can put myself in Adam’s fig leaves. His sins are unique for being the first, but they’re not all that different in kind or consequence. As it turns out, it’s a lot easier to be a crummy spouse than a good one, even if you live in paradise. In this week’s edition of PathLight we will discuss what might we learn from the first husband and wife. Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for his message, "Easy to be a Crummy Spouse."
“It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). The words of Jesus, quoted in the book of Acts, are some of the most famous in the Bible. They celebrate the goodness and blessing of generosity. But, we need to remember during this Thanksgiving season that the Christian virtue of generosity first involves receiving. You can’t give what you don’t have. We might also need to be reminded that both receiving and giving can be corrupted.
This week’s message about Christian Generosity reminds us that we are to gratefully receive in order to generously give. This frees us to gladly receive more in the future. Our hope is ultimately in God, not in our wealth. What we take hold of is not the fleeting pleasures of this life, but the eternal pleasures of the life to come.
Please join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's edition of PathLight.
“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Proverbs 23:7
Did you know if you think you are dumb, scientist have discovered that your brain is going to allow things to enter in, that will seem to validate that you are dumb? If you think you are bad at something, you probably will be, because your brain will reinforce that belief whether it’s true or not.
It would appear that the unconscious mind determines what is truth by the choices we consistently make with our conscience minds. When we focus on worldly, sinful things with our minds, we are training our ourselves to subconsciously allow more unholiness into our lives.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as we will be reminded to consciously focus on good things. As we do this, we will be training ourselves to subconsciously let more good things into our lives.
Our Lord desires for you and I to be good interpreters of the present time. Because the interpretation we give the present time has direct consequences for ourselves and those around us. I know that most people will not listen to our assessment of the news, but we should at least be able to share it.
Yet, even as Christians we outsource discernment to others: news reporters, politicians, law-enforcement officers, social media, and conspiracy theorists, they are the ones telling us what happened and why it happened and what we need to do about it. Trouble is, their assessment is often clouded by fear, prejudice, indifference, personal interest, or political agendas. Most of them certainly don’t have the discernment that comes from the Lord, from the very mind of Christ. What might it take for you and I to reclaim and accept our responsibility to discern and judge what is right?
Discerning the present time may just be some of the most important and life-giving work we can do for our country, for one another, and for our children. This is not someone else’s work to do. On one occasion Jesus would ask: “Yea, and why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?” (Luke 12:57) No one else can do our work for us, and when we let them do it, we are doing our country a dis-service.
In today's PathLight we reminded of our responsibility to interpret the present time. Are you looking for the deeper problems and solutions? The world needs your interpretation, and they need to know how to properly respond—don’t push that responsibility off on someone else.
Most of us know what’s happening in the world. We can hear it on the news every day. But it is not enough to simply know what is happening. We must interpret and discern what is really going on in what is happening.
Our Lord desires for you and I to be good interpreters of the present time. Interpretation is when you address the disease and not just the symptoms. Even as Christians we are prone to outsource discernment to others: news reporters, politicians, law-enforcement officers, social media, and conspiracy theorists. They are the ones telling us what happened and why it happened and what we need to do about it. Trouble is, their assessment is often clouded by fear, prejudice, indifference, personal interest, or political agendas. Most of them certainly don’t have the discernment that comes from the Lord, from the very mind of Christ.
Discerning the present time may just be some of the most important and life-giving work we can do for our country, for one another, and for our children. After a tragedy everyone is talking about it—shouldn’t you—as a believer—be able to give them the proper interpretation? Should they get it from CNN or MSNBC?
In this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that this is not someone else’s work to do. This is our work. Our two cents are important. The world needs our interpretation, and they need to know how to properly respond. We dare not push this responsibility off on someone else.
The Bible is a perfect book. It teaches me how to govern my life in a way that will be pleasing to God. America also has a book, although it is not perfect like the Bible, it is still a good book. It has served us well. I am referring to our Constitution.
However, just like the perfect Bible, our imperfect Constitution doesn’t seem to be working. Has it grown to old and out of date to work in the modern world? How can America be going so wrong when the Constitution seems to guide us to the right path? The trouble is not in the Constitution, just like the trouble is not with the Bible. The trouble is that men will not follow it, especially our leaders.
There has been for many years a disturbing trend among politicians and other elected officials to take the words of their oaths as a mere formality. But every president, governor, legislator, every cabinet member and most law enforcement officers swear an oath to support the constitution of the United States. It’s not just liberals — who have always disdained the limits the constitution puts on their dreams of ever-larger government — but it is conservatives also.
In this week’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that as we go to the polls, we must vote for leaders who will honestly defend and protect the Constitution of the United States.
Who Picks Up The Check?
“He that laboureth laboureth for himself; for his mouth craveth it of him.” (Proverbs 16:26)
This verse means that the threat of hunger keeps us working, even when we may not want to work. Our appetite for food and shelter works for us by urging us on to work.
But, what happens when people who are able to work can get food, shelter, and clothing without working? They become lazy, spending their time on gossip, quarrels, games, and trouble. The Apostle Paul warned the new Church in Thessalonica not to feed people who were able, yet would not work (II Thessalonians 3:10-12).”
In this week's PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that welfare, whether from family, church, or civil government, that does not urgently encourage work, or that is structured so as to make it irrational to earn more money, sabotages the connection God made between work and eating. It keeps a person’s appetite from working for him.
In your interactions with other believers there is a good chance that somewhere along the line, you are going to be disappointed; even hurt. In this week’s PathLight, we learn that during such seasons of pain, it is important to remember that you are a disciple of One who was betrayed, who was hurt, and you and I are no better than our Lord.
Joseph escaped being a victim and became a victor by naming God, not as the author of evil, but the One who caused it to work together for good. Paul was not bitter against the Jews. He would pray for them, say that he would even give his life for them even though they had often sought his harm.
Yet, each of these men had to endure a Gethsemane moment. This is the moment when you respond to the pain you have received from others. It is the turning point, when you will either go forward as the walking wounded, destined to carry the burden for years to come, or you will accept the trial as coming from God, and open your life to Him.
This week, Dr. T. D. Worthington encourages you to pick up your cross, take off your crown, and surrender to His will at your Gethsemane. Drink from “The Bitter Cup of Victory.” If all that sounds like defeat to you, then you’ve missed the whole point—for in these things we find victory.
Most Americans make false assumptions about most everything simply because the liberal philosophy seldom asks “why.” It only asks “what.” One can take almost any issue. Take the issue of drugs. Few in the liberal establishment are asking “why.” Most of them only ask “what.” What can we do about this problem? So, we dispense free needles to try to clean up the mess. No one asks “why” we are having unwanted pregnancies; they only ask “what” we can do about it. The answer they come up with is abortion. We are asking “what” when we should be asking “why” about these major moral issues of life.
In this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington poses the question of what might happen if the people, the politicians, and the pastors of the United States would stand up and stop asking “what?” Rather than asking what new laws and regulations we need to fix a problem; but rather ask, “why” did this happen in the first place. “Why are we having problems we didn’t used to have?” Maybe then we could find the prescription needed for our land.
This week’s PathLight speaks to the subject of greatness, and my desire for you to be great before it is too late, because one day it will be too late. The Scripture says that in a great house there are vessels of honor and vessels of dishonor. So, being in a great house does not make you great, it does not even ensure that you will become great. It's one thing to have great parents, but that doesn't make you great. It's one thing to work for a great company, or a ministry that's great, but that doesn't mean you're great because you are surrounded by such greatness. You're either adding to the greatness of that entity or you're diminishing it.
Becoming a vessel of honor is a great gift you can give God, your family, your nation, and yourself. But time is running out. Life is running out. Opportunities are running out. People who need your help are dying every day. Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for his encouragement for you to determine to be great, before it’s “Too Late to Be Great.”
Do you know where the word “ruthless” comes from? The word “ruth” originally meant “compassion” or “pity,” especially toward the needy. To have “ruth” meant you grieved over the suffering of others. Therefore, to be “ruthless” means you go through life thinking only of yourself. You see the pain of others, and it doesn’t move you at all.
I know that on occasion we hurt people because they are so easily offended, it’s hard not to hurt them. But, let’s face it we also hurt people when we’re angry. We hurt them because we think they deserve to be treated that way. Sometimes we do it out of selfishness or pride. Sometimes we offend others without even thinking about it. And sometimes we are so insensitive we hurt people and don’t even know it. And tragically, we often do it to people we really love most. Parents hurt their kids, and kids hurt their parents. Friends hurt friends. Husbands hurt wives and wives hurt their husbands.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. His message is entitled “Ruthless Christians.”
In the book of Jeremiah, we read of a cowardly king by the name of Zedekiah. This king didn’t care about the people, he only cared for himself. He was a king without courage.
There is always a price to pay for making decisions in your own best interests instead of making decisions that will bring honor and glory to God. There is always a price to pay for living outside of God’s will. There is also a price a nation will pay when it has a king without courage.
Godly leadership is important because godly leadership impacts and influences everyone under their watch. Therefore, leaders in our church, in our communities, and in our nation must be men of courage. Spineless and cowardly leaders will only seek to protect themselves and not those under their charge. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight message; “A King Without Courage.”
Liberals have reason to celebrate. The cumulative effect of years of deliberately destructive, anti-American decisions has brought us to a perilous moment in history. It’s not Russia or China taking us down — we’re doing it to ourselves. Tragically, many Americans seem unable to grasp the danger. The myth of all things being on the right track is propped up by the mainstream media, the educational system, and much of corporate America. So, the celebration continues.
In Daniel 5 we read of the story of a king who threw a big celebration. All over the city people were excited because the king was throwing a massive party. He was giving away stuff! The party was the king’s way of diverting attention from his crummy leadership that had brought the once great empire down to its knees. It was a morale-booster, meant to lift the spirits of the entire city.
In this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington issues a challenge for America to turn back to God before it is too late. As Christians we must pray for our land, make wise decisions regarding those we elect, learn our constitution and the principles that made America great, and do our best to educate others. Soon, the party will be over—and that day is nearer than we think.
Do you know what helps me stay within the boundaries and do what I do? It is not so much my faith, as it is others faith in me. I love you and I respect you, so I don’t want to let you down. So, I do my best to obey the Scriptures, do what is right, and look for new ways of serving Christ, because I don’t want to let you down. It is my responsibility to you, and I take it very seriously.
So, with that simple thought in mind, what if Abraham’s motivation was not just his faith in God, but also his knowing that God had faith in him? I do a lot of things, not because I have faith in people, but because I know that people have faith in me; they are counting on me, and I cannot let them down.
I love God, He has faith in me, and I cannot let Him down. I love Sherry, she has faith in me, and I cannot let her down. It is a “Bi-Directional Faith” that helps keep me on the straight and narrow. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight.
Where are you stuck in your life today? I think we all have times in our lives when we feel stuck. The man at the pool of Bethesda is stuck. For thirty-eight years he has been stuck. Every day is the same. He sits on his mat. He waits and watches for the water in the pool to be stirred up.
Does any of that sound familiar? When have you experienced those things? In what ways do they describe your life today? What is the “as-soon-as-something moves” in your life? I wonder how many times we have used our external circumstances as an excuse to stay internally stuck?
You are invited to join us for this week’s edition of PathLight as Dr. T. D. Worthington assures us that quite often “Nothing Really Has to Move.”
As we have been reminded recently, humans now have the power to destroy the world. We are threatened by the nuclear storehouses in Russia and China—and our own. The nuclear arsenals of the world’s powers, we are told, could easily destroy civilization. Of course, it is now apparent that man is also cultivating viruses and diseases that could get out of control and might also wipe out civilization as we know it. Then we have the promoters of global warming that are constantly giving us deadlines of our impending doom and destruction. So, that brings up an interesting question: Do human technologies threaten God’s sovereign reign?
God says that one day He is going to send judgment and destroy the world. What if we do it first? Some of the prophecies in Revelation, we might be able to pull off on our own. Is God threatened over our abilities?
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. The message is entitled: “Because He Is God.”
People from other cultures usually stand out. It may be their clothing, their appearance, their skin color, their language, it could be a number of things, but usually they look different. Not better, nor worse; but different. Aliens stand out.
As Christians we are strangers and aliens, however, we are not set off by a specific style of dress. Christians should dress modestly; but we don’t wear uniforms with a big cross on the front. We don’t have our own language or distinct way of talking. Hopefully, we have put away gossip and evil speaking, but Christians usually speak their native language. We don’t belong to a specific class, nationality, or race. We may associate people from certain parts of the world with a certain religion, but Christians live all over the world. We don’t all live in or hail from a specific geographical area. We don’t have specific dietary laws that distinguish us from others. Actually, we are not defined or distinguished by any of the things that normally mark off one people from another.
So, what is it that makes Christians to be peculiar and strange wherever we go? You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's edition of PathLight. We will be discussing the subject of "What Defines You?"
As we have been reminded recently, humans now have the power to destroy the world. The nuclear arsenals of the world’s powers, we are told, could easily destroy civilization. Of course, it is now apparent that man is also cultivating viruses and diseases that could get out of control and might also wipe out civilization as we know it. Then we have the promoters of global warming that are constantly giving us deadlines of our impending doom and destruction. So, that brings up an interesting question: Do human technologies threaten God’s sovereign reign?
God says that one day He is going to send judgment and destroy the world. What if we do it first? Some of the prophecies in Revelation, we might be able to pull off on our own. Is God threatened over our abilities?
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington as he shares a message entitled “Because He Is God” on this week’s edition of PathLight.
The word victim is one of the most abused terms in today’s world. Everybody, it would seem is a victim of something or someone. Lawyers run ads on the television recruiting victims to enhance their bank accounts. Counselors, even Christian counselors, are abusing the term, by convincing more and more people of their permanent victimhood status. Certainly, there is a place for the word; but it is never a good title to perpetually give yourself.
The Scriptures give lots of room to victimhood. The calls to justice are many, which means God saw the plight of people in a sin-clouded world. Many were getting beat up without having done any one thing to deserve it.
In this week’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us of the danger of clinging to perpetual victimhood. Those who render themselves victims often make excuses, refuse responsibility, and constantly seek attention and sympathy for the rest of their lives. We don’t become virtuous just because we are victims. Remember, being sinned against is not a choice, but being a victim is.
Although we all do dumb things on occasion, but if you are a Christian, God has already spoken words of wisdom to you—and you listened to those words-- because you didn't come to Christ on your own. That was the Spirit of God speaking wisdom in your heart; and you listened—and you were saved. Now, that should make it easy for you to believe that God is continuing to speak words of wisdom to you.
I have preached many messages on Proverbs 31. I have spoken on the Proverbs 31 woman. I have even spoken on the Proverbs 31 man. It takes a special man to be married to a Proverbs 31 woman; the kind of man who would deserve and appreciate such a treasure. Yet, since this passage is often preached on Mother’s Day, we often stop short of sharing its deeper meaning. You see, this Scripture is about so much more than the ideal wife.
Lady Wisdom doesn’t only show young men the value of being wise, but her perfection also foreshadows our wisdom available to us from our Lord. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight.
Treason is a term reserved for people who willfully disobey the orders of a king or government. It describes someone who sabotages the mission of the kingdom. It is for people like Judas Iscariot and Benedict Arnold, not for someone like me and not for someone like you! Yet, in Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus begins with a statement of His authority. He describes who He is and by what authority He has to tell us what to do. He establishes that ALL authority that could ever be had has now been given over to Him. And He is bringing the rule and authority of God from heaven down into every crack and crevice of this earth.
If Jesus is in charge, then I am not! If He is reigning, then how could I ever challenge Him? If Jesus is in charge, then the things He said matter, and I must obey them!
The very first command that Jesus gave, after stepping into His unlimited authority, was for all of us to make disciples. If it were just a suggestion, I don’t think He would have qualified it by authority. I don’t think He intended it to be a side mission that we do some of the time; I think Jesus meant for all of us to make disciples. Therefore, to ignore this command is treason!
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. The message is entitled “Treason Against the King.”
When the United States was founded, people had no problem with the concept that you worked to make it through life. Such was life. Every person depended on their own strengths and skills to earn their way through life. There were a few beggars, usually they were handicapped in some fashion. People worked, and this is the way it was and the way it should be. But today, it is so different. Many people consider themselves too good to actually work. They rely on some government handout that allows them to stay at home. So, they beg. They beg the government for more handouts. After all, it is much easier to collect paycheck without actually working for it. They have embraced socialism.
Socialism tries to narrow the economic gap by taking away from the most productive and spreading that wealth around to others that did not earn it under the guise of fairness or equality. This is not only foolish, but unscriptural. Jesus teaches us in Matthew 25:14-29 to invest in producers. Of course, if you teach this today you would be accused of being a selfish racist. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message entitled “A Nation of Beggars.”
Many Bible scholars do not believe the United States is mentioned in the Bible. If America is not referenced, I assume it is either because America no longer exists or because America is irrelevant in world affairs. Either way it’s kind of sad. With all the problems in America, we are still a great nation, sometimes I think we may forget, just how important we really are. I don’t know how much longer we will have a free republic, but I do know that God has us here for a reason; at least for now.
Let’s assume for a moment that the United States has just disappeared. A lot of people around the world might rejoice. Tragically, a lot of liberal-socialist in America might be happy also. But, in reality what might really happen? What changes might we expect in a world without America?
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. Our message is entitled “A World Without America.”
Why is the Bible So Violent? Why would God put such examples of bloodshed and wickedness in the Scriptures? You can rest assured that God’s presentation of these things in the inspired Scripture is no mistake. He presents the world, as it really is, in divine, context-laden, interpretive words. Words, not pictures. Not lurid videos of the blood and gore that you might see in the movies or on the news, but words, inspired words. Words, so that you might have word-built images in your mind. Verbal descriptions with divine explanations are not the same as worldly depictions for entertainment or education with no ultimate divine meaning or eternal benefit.
We live in a very soft, easily offended, emotionally fragile culture that makes it almost impossible to grasp what most of history has been like, and what most of the world is still like. Perhaps God gave us the Bible the way it is, with all the horrors, partly because He knew the day would come when we would be so spoiled, so cocooned, so overprotected, so coddled that we would not have the emotional and mental capacities to grasp the utterly crucial realities in the world. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for a discussion on Biblical Violence in this week’s edition of PathLight.
Our Lord has given everything in His creation a specific habitat where it can flourish and fulfill the purpose He originally intended. According to the Bible, even the stars have a specific dwelling place ordained by God.
This is also true of man. For lack of a better term, I will call this Divine Positioning. This is when God implants you in a select environment to accomplish His greater will. This is the place where you can experience the most fulfillment, success, productivity, and joy. This is the place of your destiny. This is the slot you were perfectly designed to fill. This is also the one and only place where you will have the greatest authority over the enemy, for this is where God has given you jurisdiction. The further away one is from his Divine Positioning, the further he will be from experiencing life as intended by his Creator.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as he encourages us to find the true place of our higher calling.
One of the signs of the last days will be a world hungry for leadership. The antichrist will use this void to propel himself into great power. However, God’s people can utilize this leadership vacuum to provide guidance to those seeking honest answers. So many of the burdening problems we face in our nation, businesses, families and churches will never be addressed without effective, visionary leadership.
Could one of those leaders, be you? Are you willing to be used of God? Will you make yourself prepared and available to leave your mark on this generation? Are you willing to shine? You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for his Father’s Day message on this week’s edition of PathLight. The message is entitled “How Big Is Your World?”
Are you aware that there is a mission attached to your marriage? There's more to it than just making love. There's more to it than just living together. There's more to it than living in the same house and raising kids, there is a mission that God has for your marriage.
Priscilla and Aquila, show us a remarkable example of what our marriages are supposed to be. A common mission together. It is apparent that God puts couples together on purpose and for a purpose. We're joined together in ministry. Sometimes it will be the husband helping the wife in her ministry, sometimes it will be the wife helping the husband in his ministry. Sometimes you will be co-laborers in the same ministry. That’s just how it works.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. In the message “Christian Power Couples” we will be reminded that marriage isn't a duet, it's a trio. It's man, it's woman, and it's Jesus Christ intertwined as the glue holding the two together, making the two one.
The facts don't set you free; the truth does, and Jesus is the truth, even when the facts speak against you. The facts are not always final! He who began a good work in you will see it through until the end. One word from Jesus can overturn any hopeless situation. In this week’s PathLight message, you will be reminded to stop putting more faith in the perceived facts than you do in God.
The facts aren't final. We are believers. Don't be afraid. Believe, and keep believing. Join us as Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that regardless of how many facts you have to back up your hopeless situation; with God facts are not always final.
Does everything in life happen the way you want? Do people treat you the way you hope to be treated? Are all your prayers answered exactly the way you want them to be answered? I am confident that we would all answer these questions the same way, with a resounding NO! And I would add to that, that the longer we live on this planet, the harder and more challenging life seems to be…life just doesn’t get easier. But what if I told you that it doesn’t have to be as hard as we make it? What if I told you that while we will always face difficulties and challenges, and unexpected hardships in life, it doesn’t have to be as hard as we make it.
In so many ways, we can be our own worst enemies. We fight for control of our futures, and our families, and so many different things in life and the reality is, there are many things that we simply cannot control. When we walk through life frustrated and miserable because it doesn’t look like we thought it would, if we aren’t careful, we miss it. We will miss the gift that life is, the gift of this short time on this planet that God gave us to enjoy on our way to Heaven.
In this week’s PathLight program, Dr. T. D. Worthington speaks on the priceless benefit of viewing life from the perspective that Jesus had. In so doing, we may find that we are “Making Life Harder Than It Has To Be.”
Of all the things that weigh us down, perhaps no burden is greater than the silence of God. A great many believers struggle with the issue of unanswered prayer. If God really does answer prayer, why doesn’t he answer my prayers?
For those who are in pain, it may not be enough to simply say, “God always answers prayer. Sometimes he says yes, sometimes he says no, and sometimes he says wait awhile.” We say this a lot. I’ve said it myself. But it honestly sounds kind of empty when someone cries out to God from the pit of despair, and the heavens are as brass, and the answer never comes.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. Our message is entitled “Prayers Unanswered.”
I don’t think there is any sadder story in the world than the third chapter of Genesis. While the facts of the fall of man are contained in just a few verses, what we read is the origin of all human sorrow, death, disease, and heartache.
As Eve took the forbidden fruit, do you think she understood the total impact of her decision? No, she didn’t, and that is why she could be deceived. In this week’s edition of PathLight, all ladies will be challenged to not play the role of the first Eve to the first Adam, but instead take up the part of the second Eve to the Second Adam.
The Second Adam laid down His life for His deceived bride. He took our penalty, and through His death and resurrection has brought us life. And today, through our joyful embracing of our roles, we can find a new paradise. There is nothing little about our obedience now, just as there was nothing little about Eve’s disobedience then.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message “The Second Eve.”
The Jewish New Year occurs 163 days after Passover. It is called Rosh Hashanah, the Feast of Trumpets. The Jews blow the shofar 100 times on each day of the celebration. These blasts of trumpets have been described as typifying many things, but one of those is the weeping of a mother. Yet, despite the myriad of examples of mothers crying, when the Jews blow the shofar, the model of wailing they chose is not that of Rachel or even Sarah. Instead, they chose the cries of a woman who is never even named and, in her only reference; she is known only in relation to her son. Her son was Sisera, a mighty Canaanite (Palestinian) warrior and hated enemy of the God’s people. Tradition says she sobs 101 times.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. We will be sharing a special Mother’s Day message entitled “A Mother’s Tears.”
Have you ever felt angry with God? Maybe you didn’t want to call it anger, perhaps frustration was a more palatable word. Although I would never suggest that anger at God might be something to actually strive for, there are some examples in the Bible of men, many we would even call godly men, who appeared to be angry with the Lord.
We are God’s children. As our Father, He sees the big picture and He knows what is best for us. We may get angry and upset, and if we do, He can take it because He knows we just don’t understand. He sees it as the anger of ignorance rather than anger of malice. God would rather have us come to Him in anger than run from Him in anger.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for his message “The Anger of Ignorance” on this week’s edition of PathLight.
Have you ever prayed a prayer such as this? “Please, God, if I ever slip into compromise or fall into transgression, put me under the godly reproof of a preacher who isn’t afraid to expose sin.”
I believe one of God’s greatest gifts of mercy to his church is his faithful ministers, men who will lovingly reprove us of our sins. I thank God for such “Nathan preachers,” men who do not wish to offend, men filled with love and compassion, yet men who aren’t afraid to offend elders, deacons, or wealthy and powerful church members. They stand face to face with anyone, to expose their iniquities in tenderness and love.
Of course, not everyone wants such reproof. I know that as a loving shepherd, I have to be careful of my tone. But I can’t apologize for preaching convicting truth. I ask you, what happens to the church when pastors no longer show people their iniquities? Where would David have ended up, if he hadn’t had Nathan to show him his wickedness?
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for week’s edition of PathLight. The message is entitled “Hard Preaching.”
Each spring, millions of people around the world acknowledge, in some fashion or another, that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead some twenty centuries ago. Modern society calls it “Easter.”
We are glad that multitudes—usually caught up in worldly pursuits—will take at least some time for reflection upon the event of the Savior’s resurrection. It is entirely appropriate that Christians take advantage of this circumstance; we should be both willing and able to explain to our friends—at least those who have some reverence for Christianity—the significance of the Lord’s resurrection.
The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the foundation of the of our faith. This being the case, just what is the significance of Jesus’ resurrection? Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as he shares a few thoughts on the Resurrection of our Lord.
I love my country. But, what I don’t love is when my country violates its values and ideals and behaves badly. I don’t love it when my country acts out of greed and only for power, or with blatant hypocrisy, or like an empire. The gospel has never lived easily with empire. Christians have a special calling, in whatever nation they live, to lift up the values of the kingdom of God and call nations to honor their best values in light of those principles.
The eroding American culture is having a negative effect upon our faith. Someone once said, “As go the churches…so goes the nation.” However, with the compromising position many churches are in, a better assessment today might be “as goes the nation, so go the churches.” In this week’s PathLight program Dr. T. D. Worthington discusses a few things that should concern us all regarding American Christianity.
Something that amazes me, is how many people I come across in certain positions of care, that really don't care! There are school teachers, medical staff, civil servants, even pastors, that make it pretty clear they really don't care about people. We take into account that people in these positions can have a bad day now and then, but I'm talking about those who have shown a pattern of not caring.
On occasion, we all been guilty of this. In our sinful nature, we naturally care about ourselves first. Sometimes we're the only one we do care about. And just because we get saved that doesn't mean we won't be tempted not to care for others. We need to identify the ways we don't care. We also need to identify with the things that perhaps we care too much about.
Sometimes it's not that we don't care, it's that we care too much about lesser things. Sometimes, we really do care, but due to a lack of knowledge or training, we just have trouble showing it.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. Our message is entitled “Teach Me to Care.”
Over the next few weeks, we are going to experience a time of great change in our world, I am speaking of the change of seasons. People are going to begin coming out of their shell and be alive. They will be found taking their trips to the beach. Lawn mowers and weed eaters begin to fire up. Flowers begin to bloom. Butterflies will grace our gardens and the fireflies make our evenings sparkle with their magic. People used to call it “Spring Fever.”
Can you imagine the spring fever that Noah and his family must have had? They had been penned down in the dark dampness of the ark for over a year. You might enjoy visiting the zoo, but most of us would not want to camp out in a floating barn for a solid year! You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington this week’s edition of PathLight. He will be sharing a few thoughts on the subject of “Spring Fever.”
Imagine the scene; your automobile suddenly sputters and stalls while driving down a busy highway. You try and try to get the car started however all of your efforts fail. You get out and raise the hood, but not being a mechanic, you don’t know where to begin. Suddenly a man pulls up in a truck and introduces himself as a mechanic from a nearby garage. He certainly looks the part. He has the name of the garage painted on the side of his truck and he is wearing the clothing of a mechanic. He even has grease on his clothes and a tool box in his hand. But, is he a mechanic? Chances are, he is exactly who he says he is. Chances are, he is your best opportunity to get your car repaired. However, if you do not believe he is a mechanic you will send him upon his way and you may remain by the side of the road.
Herein lies a principle of life: Most people do not become what they really are to you until you confess you believe it. The physician cannot help you until you believe he really is a physician. You will not let the plumber fix your leaking faucet until you become convinced, he is really a plumber.
Did you know our Lord has many names and titles? On this week’s PathLight we will consider just a few of God’s names which might help you in your Christian walk. The message from Dr. T. D. Worthington is entitled "Name Recognition".
It’s interesting that in most of our prayers, we pray for the poor, the hungry, the persecuted, and yet, Jesus says they are blessed. Shouldn’t we pray more for the “Woe Crowd”? Those to whom Jesus says, “Woe unto you?” Why don’t we pray for those guys? According to the Scripture, they appear to need it more.
If you are a believer, you are not a part of the “Woe Crowd” although you will cycle through some “Woe Moments” as the days go by. Just remember, regardless of the ever-evolving circumstances, you are blessed—because you are a child of God—a recipient of His perfect virtue.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight Program. Our message is entitled “Praying For The Woe Crowd.”
We love antiques and pay high prices for old pots and furniture that grandma threw out years ago. We love everything old, except ourselves. We only like ourselves young.
Yet, as you get older you arrive at the apex of life. You have arrived at the top of the mountain where you can breathe the rare atmosphere of a long life of experience, knowledge, honor, and you’ll have an excellent view that none of those below you have ever seen. You have crossed many bridges, passed many crossroads, but you are still here—and you are here for a reason. The wrinkles in your face are marks of distinction that show character traits, laugh lines, and hardship. Your tomorrows may be in short supply, but you can dream dreams of yesteryear, and rejoice in the life you have lived, and in the days that remain.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight Program entitled “Fat and Flourishing.”
What would it be like if you had to qualify for marriage? What if being a husband or wife was like meeting the qualifications for an important job or applying for a loan? I know it’s silly, and nothing like that would ever happen, but it is something to ponder.
It’s a general assumption that you know how to be a husband and father if you’re a male. And if you’re a female, you know how to be a wife and mother. It comes naturally! That’s obviously not true.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. Our discussion will ask the question: Are You Qualified to be Married?
The modern trend in the church today is to hold multiple services for different segments of the congregation. Certainly, if the crowd is overflowing, and while you are awaiting the completion of a bigger facility, this may be the only alternative a local congregation has. Also, if a majority of your members are shift workers who cannot attend at one specific hour, it is understandable that accommodations should be made to minister to the whole flock. Perhaps there are other valid reasons. However, to have two distinct services because you are compelled to have two distinct formats, one to minister to contemporary worshippers and another for traditional members, seems to be imprudent. It may even deviate from the Biblical plan of assembly. Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as he shares the message “One Church.”
Valentine's Day isn't what it used to be. Originally, it was associated with the union of lovers by God under conditions of stress. Later it was celebrated by the exchange of romantic messages called valentines. The Catholic church was not impressed with the observance, because in 1969 Saint Valentine's feast was dropped from their calendar.
So, Valentine's Day began as a commemoration of spiritual love, later became a celebration of committed interpersonal love, and today has become a commercialized carnival of romantic love. I don’t personally have anything against romantic love, actually I am rather fond of it. But it is not a sufficient foundation for a strong marriage.
Please join us for this week’s PathLight program Dr. T. D. Worthington discusses the differing forms and types of love.
While Adam slept, God was doing something marvelous and wonderful. God was creating him a helpmate so that the man would not be alone.
Adam could not help but love Eve, for she was created by God especially for him. She was the ideal for him, the perfect match, and the perfect compliment. Now, the spark of love that a man can only have for a wife was kindled for the first time.
Perhaps, for a time, Adam had enjoyed the companionship of a puppy or some other pet, but now all that assumed its rightful position far down on his list of priorities.
Adam enjoyed a perfect love, in a perfect environment, with a perfect mate, unlike any man has experienced since. For his love was not marred by a history of human sin, failure, and compromise.
Now, the drama of the ages begins to unfold, as a story of love evolves into a beautiful portrait of self-sacrifice. Join Dr. T. D. Worthington, as he shares a message about mankind's first love story straight from the inspired Word of God!
Many of the problems that plague us as Christians begin with misplaced identity. We forget who we are as chosen, purchased, and commissioned children of God, and think of ourselves primarily through the lens of something else — success at work, the well-being of our children, the fruitfulness of our ministry, our feelings of fulfillment, or our ability to achieve our goals and dreams. We may even see ourselves defined by our greatest temptation, struggle, or through our suffering.
When you were brought from darkness into God’s magnificent light, you were given marvelous power for a great task: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8). You are a witness of excellence to a watching and dying world.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this weeks "PathLight Program". You will be encouraged to know who you are not, and live, in the power of the Spirit, in light of who you are in Christ — chosen, anointed, holy, loved, and sent.
It is likely that we will face many challenges in this coming year. This week I would like to give you a “pep talk” of encouragement and motivation. One of the best examples is found in Joshua, chapter 1. In this chapter, Joshua has taken over for Moses. Moses had just died and was buried in Moab, without ever setting foot into the Promised Land.
Joshua was going to be the new leader of this group of people that had just spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness. Joshua must have felt overwhelmed as Israel’s new leader. Joshua was not only put in charge, but he was immediately given the responsibility of moving into the Promised Land while overcoming the enemies that awaited their arrival.
Joshua’s team definitely needed a good “pep talk.” You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight.
Are you entering this new year feeling like your life may be haunted by memories of the past? Does it ever feel like something unresolved is wandering the hallways of your heart and mind? Something that you know is out of place in your Christian life? Maybe it’s a secret, known only to you; and perhaps that’s best. It needs to go away, and you know it, but it won’t; and it has perhaps been there for years.
At the end of the day, your self-perception often defines your narrative. What kind of life are you going to live if you think your deepest part is ugly? You may fight it, you may regret it and try to correct it, but your negative self-image will continuously tug at you and drag you down.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. You will be reminded that although your past is a part of who you are, you should not allow those old memories or new resurrected fantasies haunt the life you now have in Christ.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. In this study, we are going to discuss the fact that Jesus was the Son of David, and we’re going to take a look at how the kingship and kingdom of Jesus are related to David. Not just from the genealogy, but as a working model of our Lord’s eternal kingship.
To know Jesus as the Scripture presents Him, requires a growing knowledge of David. Luke identifies Christ with David dozens of times in his gospel and in the book of Acts. The Bible gives us several features of the Davidic kingship, which identify closely with the kingship of Christ. David’s kingship was unlike any other the world had ever seen, so will be the kingship of Christ. Join us as we study together “The Son of David.”
At this time of the year, believers all over the world celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. His birth is one of the greatest miracles that has ever occurred, for it was a moment when God Almighty laid aside His glory and appeared on earth as a man. How wonderful, to think that God would temporarily shed His divine appearance and actually take on the flesh of man! Yet this is precisely what happened the day Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
When Paul explains the text on God becoming a man, he started by saying, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). You see, God wants us to have the same mind or attitude that was demonstrated in Jesus Christ. Just as Jesus was willing to go this incredible distance to reach us, to love us, and to redeem us, we should desire to do the same for others!
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight Program as he discusses one of the primary messages of Christmas: We should be willing to divest ourselves of our privileges, such as the convenience and comfort of self-consumed living, and do whatever we can to reach out and help people. This is what Jesus did for us, so shouldn’t we do the same for others?
When I was a kid, I used to countdown the days before Christmas. Every year around the first of October the Christmas sales brochures would start arriving and I would start counting down the days. Now that I am much older, I have started a new Christmas countdown. You see I am now 71 years old, so I realize that I may not have a lot of Christmases left. Please don’t misunderstand, I am not on some death watch, it is just that statistically I know my Christmases are running out.
Please join me this week as we receive an encouraging word about letting our light shine over the Christmas Season. The clouds that lie over the sunset, though in themselves they are nothing but vapor, when smitten by the radiance of the sun, they preach volumes about the glory of God. So, it is with us. Our life is but a vapor, but when Christ comes to be our light, the beauty of His glory can be dramatically displayed.
As you countdown the days before Christmas, or as you countdown the number of Christmases you have left, please determine to let the glorious light of Christ shine. Yes, it may shine through your window, but make sure it also shines in your life year-round.
When I was a kid, I did a lot of stupid things. It’s almost amazing I lived through childhood. Sometimes I was just plain dumb. So, I wonder when I get to heaven if I will look back and say “I sure was a dumb Christian?” That might just happen to all of us. Why didn’t I pray more instead of griping? Why was I not more faithful in reading God’s word? Why was I not more faithful to church; I sure was a dumb Christian.
Now, Isaiah 65 says that we will not remember the former things, but in my opinion this verse does not mean there are no memories at all in heaven and in the age to come. Please join us for this week’s PathLight Program as we will study this interesting subject.
God delights in helping us grow in the priceless grace of thanksgiving and gratitude. Sometimes we go through difficult seasons, and when we do, the Bible instructs us to still praise our Lord—maybe not for the problems, but certainly in the problems. Just as Paul would learn to glory in his infirmities, many of us have been assigned the same lesson. However, more often than not, I have discovered that God uses blessing and pleasure to provoke us to a spirit of thanksgiving.
Learning to trace every blessing back to its source reveals the truth about God’s goodness. Sometimes as the river flows downstream toward the sea, it may get muddy and polluted, but if you trace it back and taste the sweet pure water at the fountainhead of the stream you will see the true nature of the water. If I take a thin piece of aluminum, I will be able to easily bend it in any direction I choose. But, sometimes events in my life are not like pliable aluminum, they are more like hardened steel. They cannot be easily bent. In such cases, I may need the wise counsel of a Christian friend to help me bend it toward God. Such is the nature of the victorious Christian life. We are to bend every blessing, every pleasure, back to God. This was part of the original function of church steeples, to constantly point us toward God.
Dr. T. D. Worthington invites you to join us for this week’s edition of PathLight. We will be reminded that it is God’s nature to draw gratitude out of us with blessings; blessings that to achieve their full potential, must be traced back, bent back to God.
For many years America had a unique blend of wealth and worship that puzzled the rest of the world. Moslem nations had the worship, but failed to achieve the wealth. Countries that were Buddhist also had the worship, but they to lacked the wealth. Predominately Catholic nations celebrated their worship, but failed to attain the wealth. Atheist nations worshipped the state, but they also lacked the wealth. What was it about America? Were wealth and worship linked in some way?
How did we prosper in a nation of wealth and worship? It looks like we are now losing both. Science promised to unleash us from the burden of worship while leading us into greater wealth. Did that happen? We have indeed lost our spirit of worship, but it also appears we are losing our wealth. Was it because of science? We must admit that religion has lost its halo effect in the past three decades, but it was not because science drove God from the public square.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as we discuss “Wealth and Worship.”
What comes out of your mouth, when you do not get your way, reveals your theology of suffering and theology of God, which shows your Christian maturity. Jesus was correct when He said that what comes out of our mouths explains what is happening in our hearts (Luke 6:45). There is a strong temptation in all of us to grumble and complain about life events.
What about you? How do you respond to trials? There are some things you can count on, and personal suffering is one of those things. It is part of the package that comes with the gift of life.
On this week’s PathLight program, Dr. T. D. Worthington poses the question…How often do you whine? Your answer might be a good indicator of your maturity in Christ.
I know I am behind the times, but I love my paper Bible. I understand that with each passing month, the world is becoming more digital, and I suspect that sticking with my paper Bible might be a bit backward. Actually, I’ve tried my hand at reading the Bible on a computer or laptop. The digital media offered quick clicks to study notes and commentaries, as well as the ability to copy and paste for other uses.
But these devices seemed to wear on me over time. Whether it was eyes or my brain or just the feel of paper, I felt like I was missing something with pixels. My soul didn’t seem quite as settled, quite as calm and at peace. I was also more easily distracted on those devices. Somehow or other, I kept making my way back to my old paper Bible. It’s like the Bible itself is holy…not just the words. It’s hard to look at a computer as being holy.
Now, if you’re happy with your screen, and not falling into the pitfalls of digital distraction and shortened attention span, well and good. I am not making a new law. There is no Scripture that forbids it, and I know it has a place. It can be a very useful resource. But, perhaps you are missing more than you might have first considered.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight Program as he discusses “My Paper Bible.”
We live in a day in which understatement is an endangered species. There is no shortage of embellishment and exaggeration. Every advertisement you see or hear will likely tell you their product or service is better than that of any other. Think about political ads. Each candidate will quickly tell you how much better they are than any other candidate. Apparently, everything is bigger and better than the last.
When Christ is our security, we learn to be content with our lives being more dramatic in the living of them, than in our telling of them. Rather than making subtle, and sometimes shameless, efforts to have others think we’re more impressive than we really are, we’re happy to have them underestimate what otherwise might amaze.
Ultimately, it is the bigness and unsurpassed beauty of Christ, who is “the brightness of his glory” (Hebrews 1:3) that frees us from exaggeration and inspires us to understate self. As we’re increasingly impressed with Him, we lose our need to be impressed with ourselves. Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message on PathLight.
When Martin Luther was summoned to the Diet of Worms in 1521 and asked to recant his teaching, he replied: “Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason, my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience would be neither right nor safe. God help me. Here I stand, I can do no other.”
Luther said, my conscience is captive to the word of God. What is the condition of your conscience? Paul tells us that it we should always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man. The conscience, as empowered by the Holy Spirit, is the God-given faculty that each of us possesses to distinguish right from wrong according to the will of God.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight as he encourages us to listen to our Lord as He will often speak to us through our conscience.
I had many teachers when I was a kid including; my parents, my grandparents, school teachers, Sunday School teachers, neighbors I looked up to, the parents of my friends, and even my bosses. The interesting thing was that they all basically taught me the same things. I am not saying that my Sunday School teachers taught me the exact same lessons as my school teachers, I am just saying that the fundamentals were the same.
My basic training that was consistent across all aspects of my life included; Tell the truth, be respectful, work hard, be dependable, pay your debts, treat people fairly, honor God, your parents, your elders, your country, your word, and your family name. I am not saying I always observed these noble attributes without fail, I am just saying most everyone I knew confirmed these things as being proper.
The point is, I had a lot of good teachers. Tragically, your kids probably don’t have that. So, there is a lot of things you will need to teach them. I would like to focus on one of these things in this week’s PathLight program. Join us as we discuss the importance of teaching your children the truth about marriage.
“And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;” (Genesis 3:17-18)
“For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” (Romans 8:22)
Whenever some guy comes along and says he wants to explain to you why God did something in a certain way, you are right to be suspicious. “God’s ways are not our ways.” But, on this week’s edition of PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington walks gingerly walk upon the hallowed ground and explains, at least in part, why God may have acted the way He did; Why God allows good grief.
Why was the ground cursed? Why is the world in such as mess? Why did death enter the world? Why does the lion no longer lay down in peace with the lamb? Why do we have sickness, disease, hurricanes, and storms? Why does the whole creation groan? These is some of the questions we hope to address this week.
One of Jesus’s most repeated sayings in the Gospels is some version of this: “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear” (Mark 4:23). If we’re wise, we’ll listen carefully to whatever Jesus says, especially what He says repeatedly. According to Mark 4:22-25, the extent to which we listen, is the extent to which more will be added to us. For to the one who listens, more insight will be given, but from the one who refuses to listen, even what insight he has will be taken away.
Do you understand what Jesus is saying? The fact that this warning itself is somewhat difficult to understand illustrates the point: listen and ponder the word of God carefully, it is the only way to understand. But, if you refuse to listen carefully you will not understand, and if you do not understand, you will lose whatever capacity to understand you originally had. In other words, you’ll get dumber by the moment! Listen or be dumb!
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight.
The waste of time—especially when you are young—seldom causes concern. So much in fact that great periods of it can pass away unseen, un-noticed, and as silent as death itself. I submit to you that time, one of the greatest of all our treasures, is often wasted, and most of us seem to give it no thought at all.
What makes time so easy to waste is that many of us experience a staggering disconnect, in that what we know about time is not the same as what we feel about time. We know it is precious; we know it is fleeting…yet, we feel as if we have plenty of it. Thus, we take it for granted. Even older folks, who know they are running out of it—still feel as if they have a lot of time left.
Considering the brevity of life and the value of time will not, in itself, cause reform. King Hezekiah, after God spared his life, still did not always conduct himself as he should. All of us have made resolutions to do better in dozens of things—only to grow lax as our commitment fades away. So, God Himself must instruct us (and keep instructing us) as to the value of each day and the preciousness of time on earth.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight. We will be reminded to ask God to do what only He can: Teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.
“Jesus came into his own country.” He’s has now left the place where he healed Jairus’ daughter and the hemorrhaging women and has returned to Nazareth. It’s the place where he grew up and spent the first thirty years of his life. He’s come home, back to His hometown.
I have often spoke about the little town I grew up in. I knew most everyone there. I had the same friends year after year after year. I graduated high school with many of the same kids I had known since first grade. I knew everyone and everyone knew me. There’s was a closeness. We had a history; a common bond. I wonder what your hometown experience was like.
But today I want to talk about more than a geographical location. More than old memories from a scrap book. This hometown I speak of tonight isn’t something outside of us, it’s within us. It’s the place we form our routines and habits, attitudes, beliefs, opinions, prejudices, assumptions, and values. This hometown is a lens through which we see the world, one another, and ourselves. This is our internal hometown and it shapes who we are and how we live. It’s our place of comfort and familiarity. It is that place inside your own skin where you feel you belong; your internal hometown.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's message "My Hometown."
Most young children like to build sand castles when they are at the beach. Kids quickly learn that the easiest place to build a sand castle is closer to the water where the damp, smooth, hard-packed sand is easier to shape and form. It offers a better foundation and is easier to build upon.
Sometimes you might find the parents helping them, but more often, the parents are sitting back watching or reading a book. I believe in part this is because adults do not like meaningless work. Adults know that soon when the tide starts coming in, the water will destroy the castle. Within hours, there will be no sign the castle ever existed.
Sometimes our lives can feel the same way, we wonder if it is all just sand castles awaiting destruction. In this week’s PathLight program, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us that every task is an invitation to labor as God’s workmanship appointed to that very task—even if it all seems like meaningless sand castles on the shore. We will be reminded that every task is an opportunity to leverage all we do for the glory of God (Colossians 3:17).
Have you noticed that no one trusts anyone anymore? Do you trust the President or the government in general? Do you think we are getting an honest report on everything from election integrity, to global warming, to inflation, to Afghanistan, and even COVID-19? Probably not.
But it is not just leaders we cannot trust. Do you trust telemarketers? Is the money you are giving to support hungry people or neglected animals really going where it is supposed to? It is hard to find a trustworthy contractor, plumber, electrician, or mechanic. Many church members would be wise in not giving trust to their pastor, and should think twice before sending their kids to certain untrustworthy Christian colleges.
I think, that is one of the biggest problems of our modern society; you can’t trust anyone. Why is that? Why is it even hard to trust some Christian employees to show up on time and work hard giving their best? I’ll tell you why; it is a matter of faithfulness. People, including many believers are simply unfaithful.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight program. As you accept this message on faithfulness, you just might begin to hear the first whispers of “Well done, thou good and faithful servant”. Our faithfulness here, even in little, is no little matter. In the unremarkable moments of life, God is shaping his fickle children into the image of his Faithful Son.
We all like to be treated fair, so if fair is a good thing, then God must be fair. But actually, He’s not. You see, being justis better than beingfair, but as humans, being fair is about the best we can hope for. I can’t be totally just because I don’t have all the information necessary to be just. Two men each steal a loaf of bread from my store. One is stealing because his children are hungry, the other is stealing because he is financing a drug habit. Stealing is always wrong, both deserve a penalty, but should the penalty be the same? Being fair can get a little sticky. Jesus taught that God does not operate according to our notion of what is fair. He is just…because He knows all the intricate details behind our sin…details that we just wouldn’t know.
In this week’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us why forgiven people should find it easy to forgive people. Because of the cross, we find the strength to believe that we have no room to demand fairness. We can remember that an unfair exchange saved our souls. And in response, we can extend unmerited grace to those around us. We may even learn to praise God that He is not fair.
Have you ever been betrayed? I would guess many of us have in one way or another. It is one of the most bitter experiences of life. Someone you loved pulled out a knife when you weren’t looking and stabbed you right in the back. Betrayal rips apart your heart like nothing else, as anger and grief course through you, leaving you feeling used, cheated, and helpless. Betrayal can change your outlook on life permanently, especially if it is at the hands of an individual that is close to you.
It is likely that many times in life you will find yourself betrayed. It is important to learn to deal with it in a godly fashion. You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as he encourages us to seek God’s grace as we face the treachery of the betrayer.
If you are a follower of Christ, God intends for you to be a force for good in this world. He intends for you not only to rejoice in Jesus’s good work for you, but to be a force yourself for amazing good in your various spheres of life.
Now, to be clear, no one earns God’s favor by doing good. The call to be a force for good is not some man-centered, works-based gospel. On the contrary, being a force for good is God’s intended result for those who know very well that they are not good, but that God has been good to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight Program. You will be challenged to be a force for good, for the rest of your life, in every area of your life, every day of your life. And this vision isn’t opposed to the grace that gave you salvation without works; no, it’s the beautiful fulfillment of his grace working in and through you.
Few things bring more fulfillment to life than a sense of accomplishment. Whether it is the housewife who has prepared a great meal for her family or the workman who has just completed a major project. In This week’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington addresses a few of the things that can severely limit our accomplishments.
God has made a tremendous investment in each of us. How can we be indifferent in our commitment to Him? Your life shouldn’t be the same anymore—you have been called to live according to the will of God. That is the only way you will have a life of accomplishment.
Do you really want to be free? If so, exactly how free do you want to be? What kind of freedom do you want? The prisoner would have no trouble in identifying the kind of freedom he would desire. The invalid man would define his idea of freedom as a release from his paralysis. I suppose the citizen stuck living under an oppressive government could give ample reasons for his desire for freedom. The wife or child stuck in an abusive relationship could identify their freedom as being released from their oppressor. Of course, then there are other folks who are in some form of spiritual, mental or emotional bondage. They too would seek for freedom.
On this week’s PathLight program, Dr. T. D. Worthington encourages us to do whatever it takes to experience the full freedom God has for us.
What did Jesus mean in Matthew 18:10 when he said, “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.”? He meant: Let the beauty and radiance of every unimpressive Christian’s protective angels, quickly put to silence our scorn and ridicule. This reverses all human concepts of greatness.
We are to hold every Christian in the highest esteem. Let his angelic entourage remind you whose son he is. Put your hand over your critical mouth, and show great esteem to all ordinary, childlike disciples. If the fact that this humble disciple is a child of God doesn’t change your attitude about them, then let the terrifying power and rank of their angelic guards’ wake you from your stupor.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington, the President of Pathway Ministries and Christian Bible College for this week’s message “The Unseen Glory”.
I was looking through some old pictures the other day; pictures of my childhood, pictures of relatives and friends, many who are no longer here with us. Sitting alone in my study, I found myself verbalizing those memories. “Wow, that sure was a great cowboy suit.” I said looking at one Christmas photo. “I remember that old car dad used to drive.” The past can be relived, at least to some degree, through memories. And memories can be relived through pictures. Looking at old pictures from your past takes you back to that exact moment. Perfectly captured forever in space and time. Your mind wonders off and slowly but surely you disappear into the stories of your mind. Childhood, adolescence, stories about, love, happiness, friendship, heartache, lost. Sometimes too painful to relive, sometimes you don’t want to leave. Sadness, nostalgia, melancholy. And all of that relived through pictures.
Has looking at a picture ever made you verbalize a memory about someone? “I sure do miss you dad.” I’ve said that before. “I think you would be proud of your children.” I’ve said things like that before. But, was I wrong to do that? Did I cross a line?
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as we take a look at this interesting study.
Everyone seems to think they know the “the way, the truth, and the life.” Not just about getting to the Father, but about everything. We might call it elitism, and elitism is at the core of many problems we face today. Competing groups have their views on the “the way, the truth, and the life.” But, because sin penetrates all human contrived perspectives, anyone’s best plans can take radical turns to deform those good intentions into something evil (Romans 5:12).
Just like all most all powerful people, the modern politician is often an elitist. He desires to always have an underclass so he can feel superior. The Bible warns Christians against the sin of feeling you are better than others.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight program as he discusses “Elitism.”
They tell us that America is more divided than it has ever been. Of course, it is divided and that division is more noticeable when the liberals are on the warpath because they own the media, and their views are typically the loudest and most violent.
Yet, regarding racism, it does seem as if the polarization is getting a lot worse. Legal progress has been made, but emotions and feelings seem to be heading in the wrong direction. We thought the days of unrest in the streets, demolishing private property, and broadcasting anger through the media were over.
It is important to note that any form of negative rebellion is usually destructive over the long term. For example, constant violent protests, riots, or revolts can destroy a country. Such nations, nor the citizens within these nations, can prosper in such an environment. The same is true of a culture. A culture that is inherently rebellious is not sustainable, even for its own people. Eventually, the rest of a civilized society will distance itself from the rebellious culture.
Romans 13 lays out guidelines for the Christian’s relationship with authority. By giving these verses some careful thought, and allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal biblical truth, the believer can form a godly view concerning his or her responsibility to government.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as we discuss “Unity in America.”
I recently came to a new realization. It is something I probably could not have understood when I was young, but now it is clear as day. As I was lamenting over the fact that, most likely in the future, I would not have the strength or the energy to serve Him as effectively as I did in my youth. The steps of faith I took and the ministries I undertook in my younger days, were probably not in my future.
Actually, as our ability to accomplish marvelous feats for the Lord diminishes, He gives us older folks a new ministry. Why does God allow us to get weak in the first place? Why does old age rob us of the vitality we once had? I have determined it is a gift! It doesn’t look like a gift. It certainly doesn’t always feel like a gift, but it is.
By design, God gives many of us the privilege of growing old; the privilege of growing weak, of being wounded, afflicted and fragile. Why does He do that? He does that to give us a new “latter-day” ministry. This ministry will clearly demonstrate that the power that I have to praise Him, to serve Him, to be at peace, and to be joyful, does not originate from my flesh. My hurting flesh will have no reason to celebrate. So, in my antiquity, when I celebrate, it is all Him!
Please check out this week ‘s edition of PathLight as Dr. T. D. Worthington shares his message on “Clay People”.
There is a crisis in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 19.7 million children live without a father in the home. That’s more than one out of every four children. Research shows that when a child is raised in a fatherless home, he or she is affected in many ways.
Being a dad has never been easy. In our Scripture today we learn of two Godly men, great men, men who loved the Lord and served Him in so many ways…but they were not good fathers. They would have bravely stood up against most any enemy for the Lord, but they would not stand up to their own children. Thus, we have the sad ending of Hophni and Phineus—and of Joel and Abijah.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s PathLight message entitled “Fatherhood.”
There are two essential connections that most people do not have today. The first is a connection with God. Most people do not have a real connection with our Lord. Either they are not saved, or they are walking carnally.
The second connection most people do not have is a connection to their real selves. Somewhere deep down within your being is the real you. This real you may even be someone you have never met. It is important to come in contact with the greater aspect of yourself, the part of you that could be called the real you.
On this week’s PathLight Program, Dr. T. D. Worthington reminds us of our true nature and offers encouragement to reconnect with this wonderful truth. After all, it’s pretty crummy to be what you are not!
Sometimes you need to be a preacher. You might say, “but that is something God has not called me to do.” Perhaps, that’s true! But you don’t have to have any special credentials to preach a sermon to yourself! A self-sermon is a way to remind yourself of the truth about you, and about your relationship in Christ. Self-sermons help us lay down a tailor-made list of specific lies that we may have embraced over time; lies that may be hindering our walk with God.
You may say that such a thing would be silly and childish, but I submit, that it is not. Do you realize that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?
On this week’s PathLight Program, Dr. T. D. Worthington gives us four sample sermons that you might use as examples to preach to yourself. Maybe the sermon you need is something different from these. It will likely be something unique for you. The Holy Spirit will give you the words of the sermon, the self-sermon that you need to preach to yourself. Why not give it a try? Because it is extremely likely that the sermon you most need right now might not come from me…it very well could come for you!
Who do you think is the most powerful Christian on earth? I honestly have no idea, but I am sure it is not me. But, could it be me? Could it be you? I do know this, the same power that it in the best Christian on earth is also in you and I (if you are a believer). I have also come to understand that having power is different from acting based on the power you have.
The Bible says in Romans 8:9 “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” In other words, as long as you are a believer, you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you. He is the One who seals you and empowers as a Christian. God is the ultimate source of power. All power comes from Him and is subject to Him, but as His children, God has endued us with the power to live a victorious life as we undertake His will.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s edition of PathLight as we discuss “The Powerful Christian.”
What is the most negative thing about your reputation? Are you Susie the undependable, Teddy the tardy, are you Gladys the gossip? Thomas was more, much more, than a doubter, but unfortunately that is how he is often identified. Rahab was more than a harlot, but that is how she is usually portrayed. Are you Patricia the impatient or Harry the hot head? The Foolishness You Embrace May Very Well Become the Legacy You Leave.
Do you give much thought to the kind of legacy you'll be leaving for those who come after you? The older I get, the more this thought occupies my mind. I don't want to leave a legacy of foolishness. I want to leave a legacy of faith, but the legacy I leave and the legacy you leave will be determined by what we choose to embrace today.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week's lesson entitled "A Legacy of Foolishness" on the PathLight Program.
What makes a woman beautiful? This question has very different answers when you compare our current culture, and its answer, with the Word of God, and God’s answer. The definition for beauty has been so skewed, that I believe it has caused many a Christian lady to get caught up in seeking after worldly beauty, to the determent of seeking after Biblical, or Christlike beauty.
It is not hard to decipher what our world thinks is beautiful. Turn on your TV, scroll through social media and you will see what kind of pictures people post, and the world’s definition of beauty will become apparent.
For the Christian we need to be careful that we do not get confused as to what real beauty looks like. God makes it very plain to us in His Word what He views as genuine beauty. And so, it is important to ask the question, “What does God find beautiful in a woman?”
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for the Mother’s Day edition of PathLight.
What is a husband? The English language tells us. A husband is a man who practices husbandry, or cultivation. He is caretaker. Like a master gardener, his job is to so nurture, tend, and care, for his wife that she brings forth fruit. She becomes a beautiful garden.
The Bible commands earthly husbands to imitate the Lord in nurturing our wives into greater degrees of splendor, by practicing Christlike husbandry. Therefore, whenever we find a wife in full bloom, we would be wise to look at her husband and see if we might learn something from him.
Many Christian men dream of having a Proverbs 31 wife. So, if you want a Proverbs 31 wife; a good place to start would be to do your best with God’s help to become a Proverbs 31 man.
You are invited to join Dr. T. D. Worthington for this week’s message “The Proverbs 31 Man”.
Were you counted in the last census? I am not talking about the one held last year, I am referring to the one held on back in November, on Election Day.
How is the United States such a world superpower, and yet Americans seem to be so stupid? On election day millions of Americans walked into voting booths and voted for socialist politicians intent on destroying our republic. Of course, even before that low point, evidence of American stupidity has been in abundance for decades. How do people even end up like this? Why over the past few decades has America been breeding these people?
We like to think of idiots as lovable characters who make us laugh and entertain us, but the biblical truth is that foolishness isn’t a laughing matter. Idiots are on a self-destructive path, and the sad part is they don’t even realize it. Fools can not only hurt themselves, but they usually hurt others in the process. Idiots have even destroyed countries in the past, and if left unchecked, they will destroy America.
Join Dr. T. D. Worthington this week as he looks at the original meaning of the word “idiot” and compares it with the Scriptural concept of foolish behavior.
What I am about to say may sound strange coming from a fellow who, by virtue of age, is a lot closer to heaven than most of you…but here it is: “I like it here.” I like living on earth. Sure, sometimes having a new body would be nice, and this old sinful world does get a bit depressing on occasion, but this is a great place to live. I like the meadows and the hills. I like to flowers and the trees. I like to hear the birds sing…and I am also rather fond of butterflies and doughnuts. Why should I like all this stuff? I am a born-again child of God. Why does all this physical stuff appeal to someone who should be walking in the spirit?
If I could eliminate one belief about heaven, it would be the heresy that the physical world is an enemy of God’s redemptive plan. Actually, the redeemed physical world is a central part of God’s plan. I invite you to join me for this weeks edition ofPathLight.
In our study today we find that it’s one week after the resurrection and the disciples are in the same place they were on resurrection night. They are in the same room behind the same locked doors. (John 20:24-29)
So, if the resurrection is such a big deal, such a life changing event, why are they still stuck in the same place? What difference—in a whole week-- has the empty tomb made? How has it changed them? Has it let them see themselves and their world differently? Has it done anything for them? It doesn’t look as if it’s made much difference at all.
Actually, we all know that Christ’s resurrection was a big deal. The empty tomb was a life changing event. The resurrection does make a difference in our lives; but it also takes time. Once the Holy Spirit is given it will take less time, but it will still take time.
On today’s PathLight Dr. T. D. Worthington teaches us that the power of the resurrection is something we have to grow into.
When Christ appeared to the disciples as they hid behind the closed doors it was not the first time Peter had seen Him after His resurrection. There was a private appearance to Peter. The gospels are completely silent as to the details of this meeting.
Luke merely wrote:
“. . . the Lord has risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.”
Luke 24:34
Somewhere along the way on that first day of the week, even before the Lord met the Emmaus Road disciples, even before the Lord appeared to the others behind the closed doors, He had already appeared to Peter.
On the day that changed the world, Jesus took time to personally appear to Simon Peter.
I can't help but wonder how this encounter between Jesus and Peter occurred. Maybe Peter was haunted by the things that had happened.
On today’s PathLight, Dr. T. D. Worthington shares a powerful message of how Jesus’ resurrection brought about a restoration in the life of His disciple and how it is still doing this today!
Please don't forget you can catch Dr. Worthington's Pathlight Program live on the GoMix Christian Radio network, heard locally at 10:30am every Sunday here in Eastern NC on 88.7 and 91.1.
As always, you can also stream the message online Sunday at 10:30am by clicking "listen now" at www.gomixradio.org!
You're also welcome to visit our mini-website for this week’s message and listen to "Resurrection And Restoration" there, download the "audio-only" version to check out later, or even follow the links at the bottom to listen to GoMix live anytime!