For those of you who are members here at North Second Street, this may seem to be a misleading title for a bulletin article. If the majority of your life has been spent among churches of Christ, and you are visiting with us, you may be concerned as to whether you are at the right… Read More »
Celebrating The Truth About Jesus (During a season of myth)
When Christ came into the world, the world did not love him. Jesus was mocked by family members, beaten and abused by the religious leaders of his day, and crucified by a government given the charge to, “punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.”-I Peter 2:14. Jesus certainly was, “persecuted… Read More »
God From Three Verses
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.”-Genesis 1:1-3 I was reading a… Read More »
Why Am I Forsaken?
“from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’”-Matthew 27:45-36 While studying for today’s morning sermon, I kept running across this… Read More »
Jesus, “Who Is He?”
“I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”-John 8:24 We know we must believe in Jesus, but what must we believe? It’s not quite as simple as you might imagine. The best answer comes from two Scriptures. In Matthew… Read More »
Nets, Hooks, And Jesus
“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”-Matthew 4:19 The word of God has much to say about the humble profession of the fisherman. Our Lord’s first four apostles were harvesters of the sea. When Jesus called Andrew and Peter, he told them he would make them fishers of men. For the Jews… Read More »
Why Study Genesis?
For many, the Bible really starts with the first verse of Matthew chapter one. Any time we study from the Old Testament, someone will come up to me and say some version of this, “I hope we don’t stay in this long. We need to hear about Jesus.” They will complain the Old Testament isn’t… Read More »
Is It Worth The Warm And Fuzzies?
It is all so grand. The Christmas play, the Nativity scene, the midnight mass, Linus, and all the talk about the “Christ child.” It allows us to tut-tut a little public morality about how commercialism has made all those worldly, sinners forget “Jesus is the reason for the season.” In fact, why don’t we have… Read More »
Confusing And Confusinger
Allow me to offer a gentle reminder as we begin: “The word of God says what it says.” As we examine I Peter 3:18-20, we may vary on the meaning of the passage, but we are bound to agree on the words. What does this section of Scripture actually say? “For Christ…being put to death… Read More »
Beginnings and Endings
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”-Matthew 1:1 I wish my memory would allow me to name the person who first suggested a study of the opening and closing verses of Bible books to me. It has been a most profitable tip for studying God’s word. … Read More »