Life After Death?
If you ever lost a loved one, faced a serious operation, or flown in an airplane, chances are you have thought about dying. Some people have no fear of death, others do fear death. But, whether you fear death or not, you can’t help but wonder if there is life after death. Is this all…
Romans 1, Homosexuality, and the Judgment of God
In my current preaching series through Romans, our church family had to join with me in navigating the ethical high wire act Romans 1:24-32—the New Testament passage that most clearly and thoroughly discusses the sin of homosexuality. This article is an “edited for reading” version of my two sermon manuscripts on that passage. It is…
Have I Become Complacent?
Have I Become Complacent? As camp director of Camp Good News, I had the honor and pleasure to work alongside some very fine young people. We had great fellowship and joy ministering the Gospel together in the vibrant summer ministry. Since leaving the ministry of Camp Good News, I have kept in contact with…
How To Win A Spiritual Battle
Spiritual Warfare: How to Win How to win a spiritual battle To human reasoning, it seems impossible for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ to accomplish great spiritual feat. To the Jew, the cross is a stumbling block. To the Greek, the cross is foolishness. But to God, it is powerful to rescue His saints…
Jesus and Mack Trucks – Part Four
If you haven’t already, it may help to read the first three installments of this post. You can find them here and here and here. What then are we to do? How are we to apply this in our lives? These questions bring it all back to the original premise of this series of blog…
Jesus and Mack Trucks – Part Three
If you haven’t already, it may help to read the first two installments of this post. You can find them here and here. How does our understanding of Gospel-impact align with what the Bible teaches? Our understanding needs to recognize change coming from a heart affected by the Gospel is done on the inside and…
Jesus and Mack Trucks – Part Two
Jesus and Mack Trucks – Part 2 If you haven’t already, it may help to read the first installment of this post. You can find it here. What does a Christian look like if they are truly a Christian? In other words, how are they different from the rest of the people in the world?…
Jesus and Mack Trucks
The Gospel accounts in the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are evidence about the person and ministry of Jesus Christ. They are historical record and they present theological truth. As John says in his Gospel, these things have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God;…
The Outspoken Richard Dawkins
The Outspoken Overspoken Richard Dawkins Many people, from brilliant scientists to those with childlike faith, have viewed the wonder of Creation and concluded that there is a Creator. Scientific evidence supporting God as the Creator abounds. The Bible says this about atheists, “that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it…
“Gay Marriage” – Why Government Shouldn’t be in the Wedding Business
We should have never let the government get into the marriage business! Marriage is not the government’s business. Marriage was originally an institution of religion, accepted from the beginning of time by virtually every society and culture known to man (and virtually every religion as well). While it was accepted by society (and its…
We are Christ’s body, and individually members of it
We are Christ’s body, and individually members of it As part of our ABF, “Life in the Body of Christ,” we read 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 and made observations about the passage. The observations help us understand how we are to interact with one another as members of the body of Christ. In the same way…
CCC Book Recommendations
In the “Life in the Body of Christ” book we are reading for ABF, there is a section discussing how it is helpful for us as Christians to build a private library. The following is a list of book recommendations from members of the body here at CCC. Everyone was asked to send one or…
Why Read the Bible Every Day
Why Read the Bible Every Day – My Daily Bread During ABF, I mentioned that I like to read the Bible every day. In talking about this, I said my personal policy is, “No read, no feed.” This means, unless I have read the Bible, I don’t put food in my mouth. Let me share…
Assurance of Salvation
What is Assurance of Salvation? We are Responsible for Our Own Salvation What is assurance of salvation? As we study the book, “Life in the Body of Christ” together during ABF, we learn that we are responsible for our own salvation. In other words, our pastor, our parents, our friends, or our spouse will not…
A Cry For Hope
A Cry for Hope It is public confession time. Let me level with you. In the past six months, I have been downcast. I’ve complained about people. I have grumbled about things. I have murmured, whined, nagged, and criticized in my heart. I have let little things bother me. I lost hope; more accurately, I…
What is God Doing about Evil?
What is God doing about Evil? Isn’t that the question everyone asks? How should we answer? There are a number of ways to answer this question. My reply to the question of evil is simple, “read the Bible.” Perhaps the subtitle on the cover of every Bible should be, Jesus Christ Overcomes Evil. The entire Bible…
Welcome to the Priesthood!
The priests in the Tabernacle, and later the Temple, operated under the Levitical commands of the Mosaic Covenant. Their daily sacrifices and offerings were required so God’s people were able to commune with Him and be led by His grace and mercy (click here to read a post about OT sacrifices). The sweet aromas of…
God’s Will in Christ Jesus and the Perseverance of the Saints
God’s Will in Christ Jesus & Perseverance of the Saints The Apostle Paul told the Colossians a specific prayer he had for their church. The prayer was they “may be filled with the knowledge of His (God’s) will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding …” (Colossians 1:9). God’s will is the summing up of all…
A Good Reason to Sing, guest blogger Paul Biebel
Lately I have been meditating on the subject of our “calling.” I’m not sure why I seem stalled out on this subject but after spending several weeks on it in my devotions, I can do nothing but conclude that being called unto Christ is the highest blessing that can be poured upon a mortal…
Doctrine of Food – Food Provides Understanding of Spiritual Truths
It is impossible for me to love God with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength without considering my relationship to food. My diet, taste buds, appetite, cravings, and digestive process were all created by God and originally declared “good” by Him. He made all this for a purpose; therefore, it behooves me…
Stress – A Practical Way to Respond
What to do in a stressful situation The following is a way to put stress reducing principles into practice when you encounter a stressful situation. Be a “HOPE-COP.” Memorize the acronym and the words it represents. Hope + Others + Prioritize + Endgame –(breathe) + control + obey + pray. The “word”…
Stress – A Biblical Perspective (part five)
This is part 5 of a 5 part series. This series was written for my friends in the cardiac-rehab program at Valley Regional Hospital. The Principle of Submission Is God in control of your life? Are you submissive and in obedience to God all the time? Do you know God’s commandments? Do you always…
Stress – A Biblical Perspective (part four)
This is part 4 of a 5 part series. This series was written for my friends in the cardiac-rehab program at Valley Regional Hospital. The Principle of Prayer Praying to God for help is similar to a child asking a parent for help. The child struggles and struggles while the parent watches patiently,…
Stress – A Biblical Perspective (part three)
This is part 3 of a 5 part series. This series was written for my friends in the cardiac-rehab program at Valley Regional Hospital. The Principle of Self-denial Closely related to the one-another principle is the principle of self-denial. Human beings are basically selfish. We spend our day seeking to satisfy our self. Some ways in…
Stress – A Biblical Perspective (part two)
This is part 2 of a 5 part series. This series was written for my friends in the cardiac-rehab program at Valley Regional Hospital. We are taught by God to love one another. The Principle of “One Another” It is calculated over 50% of our stress is relationship related. God is very…
Stress – A Biblical Perspective (part one)
This is part 1 of a 5 part series. This series was written for my friends in the cardiac-rehab program at Valley Regional Hospital. What is stress? Stress is force, pressure, or tension being applied to an object. The outside force is called a stressor. People experience stress as a physiological reaction when…
A Biblical Theology of War, part 3
Jesus, the Warrior King? Do the ethics of Jesus (“turn the other cheek,” “love your neighbor,” and “do unto others”) demand that we must always oppose every war? Some Christians (and non-Christians) believe so. Is that what the Bible teaches? In our last post we examined the unavoidable truth that “our unchanging God condones and…
A Biblical Theology of War, part 2
God, the Commander and Chief? In the last post I suggested that the Bible contains one consistent and harmonious message whenever it speaks to any subject-even on the subject of war. I am convinced that God speaks on this subject with enough clarity to be understood, and in a manner that is completely consistent with…
A Biblical Theology of War, part 1
As promised in Adult Bible Fellowship last Sunday, I am posting my articles on what the Bible teaches about War. It is a controversial topic that I attempted to think through biblically a number of years ago. No doubt the subject is one about which godly Christians will disagree. Let me begin by sharing some…
Square Dance – the big debate!
Here we go…..a few current and former candidates for public office debate the all-important topic: “Should I go to the square dance on Saturday night?” My answer is, “You betcha!” A Worthy Debate Topic – Square Dance? by briansayers on GoAnimate Animation Software – Powered by GoAnimate.
Did Spurgeon need a psychiatrist, or a Savior?
The great British preacher of a century ago, Charles Spurgeon, went through five years as a child feeling intense guilt before he was saved. He goes on for a whole chapter in his autobiography describing the agony of those years. Here is a brief excerpt: When but young in years, I felt with much sorrow…
Establishment of a Christ Community Church Adoption Fund
God loves the orphans of this world. The Bible is very clear about this. Deuteronomy says God executes justice for the orphans. Psalm 10 recognizes God is the helper of the orphan. God instructed the people of Israel to leave a portion of their harvest for the orphans to gather, and to give alms to…
Caring For Your Wife – A Humorous Look
Ok, the last post on marriage illustrated the beauty of marital love and commitment from a positive point of view. Here is a humorous look at how marital love and commitment can sadly evolve (devolve?) into carelessness. This little illustration was in the Saturday Evening Post many years ago, and I first heard it in…
A Marriage that Illustrates the Commitment Marriage Requires
In Sunday’s message I made these statements: “Marriage is a sacred covenant before God, and one that, when defined and pursued in accordance with His design, is ratified by Him through the establishing a sacred spiritual union. It is first and foremost a commitment to one another. A sound, healthy, and God-honoring marriage MUST…
Rightly Dividing (accurately handling) the Word of Truth
John Piper…heard at T4G…my paraphrase… “30 to 40 years ago, feminists trying to undermine the biblical basis for gender roles in church and society were misusing Galatians 3:28 [“there is neither male nor female”]. I objected to using this verse out of context, declaring that to use the verse this way was one step…
Doctrine of Food – Food Choice Revealed Our Sin
Genesis 2:15-17 Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall…
Medication and Spiritual Weakness; What to Think?
I have lost count of how many times I have been asked about the proper use and perspective on medications for problems that the Bible describes (anxiety, depression, etc.). The position of the elders has been OFTEN misrepresented by others. So, having received a link to some very excellent treatments of this controversial issue, I…
Doctrine of Food – Food Teaches Us to Remember and Celebrate
Food Teaches Us to Remember and Celebrate Exodus 12:14 ‘Now this day will be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance. Luke 22:19And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it,…
Doctrine of Food – Food Demonstrates the Goodness of God
Food Demonstrates the Goodness of God Genesis 2:9 And out of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food … Thank you, God, that food tastes good. Food is delicious, scrumptious, tasty, yummy, and mouthwatering. Everything God made is good. Food is very good.…
More Questions on Healing and Faith
Last week’s sermon on Matthew 17:14-21, entitled “How to Exercise Faith,” raised some good questions from a couple of folks. I thought I would try to answer them here. I have answered some other questions about healing before, and you can read those by clicking this link to the previous article. The first question relates…
Doctrine of Food – Introduction
Doctrine of Food – Introduction In God’s creation, there are no accidents and no surprises (for God there are no surprises, we are a bit surprised on occasion). We can be certain that all that God does is wise and has an ultimate purpose. All things contribute to His overall plan of having Christ have…
Do We Need Revival?
A good friend recently sent a devotion written by Spurgeon that talks about revival. In reading it, I was reminded of more writing from Spurgeon on the topic. My heart has been stirred. What do we think of when we say, “We need revival?” What picture comes to mind? When we look at a prosperous…
Spurgeon on Islam
We discussed some weeks back how Jesus did not condone the use of force in promoting Christianity (sermon is here). As well, we have been studying the doctrines and beliefs of Islam with the teens on Sunday night. I found this quote from Charles Spurgeon, preached in 1857, to be surprisingly relevant to the intersection…
The pattern for discipleship at work
For those of you who don’t get the links through the facebook group, here is a video that exemplifies the principles we were promoting at the annual meeting in June. It is discipleship 101. Notice how the men at the end say, “We’ve never met Dr. Libby, but are thankful for the impact he has…
Declaration of Thanksgiving
Over the years I have made it a habit to read the presidential proclamation which set aside the last Thursday of October as a day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens,” as it was declared by Abraham Lincoln 148 years ago. I trust you will be blessed as…
What did the Old Testament Sacrifices Accomplish?
Sunday in our Old Testament Survey class we asked the question, “What did the Old Testament sacrifices really accomplish?” I gave a brief answer, but here is more information and a lot of relevant Scripture passages to explain and clarify the issues. This is taken from my teaching notes on the book of Leviticus, which…
Loving God with our very all
The greatest command is to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. Therefore, the greatest sin is to not love God with all our heard, soul, mind and strength. What does that mean to love God in this way? I have found the commentary by Adam Clarke on loving God with…
10 Observations of Paul’s Prayer
10 Observations of Colossians 1 that instruct our praying Paul prays the day he learned of the Saints at Colossae! Imagine, the same day you hear of the conversion of people you begin offering up prayers for their spiritual maturity. We need to ask God that we would have the same joy and compassion and…