[John 18:33-38]

INTRODUCTION

A.  In everything we do, we have a standard. If I go to the gas station to fill up my car with gas, I rely on the standard measure of liquids (in this case, a gallon) to know how much I have purchased. If I go to the store to buy a pound of meat, I rely on the standard measure of weight to be Continue reading

About forty years ago, archæologists who were digging at Masada [the final holdout of the Jews from the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70] found, among the skeletal remains of the refugees, some Judean date palm seeds. The seeds sat in a drawer for about 38 years after their discovery, but were recently planted by individuals at the Hadassah Medical Organization in Jerusalem as an experiment to see what Continue reading

INTRODUCTION

A.  In the church of the New Testament, Christ is the head - without a doubt. There is no individual within the Lord’s church who has authority to change what or how things are carried out or what is taught. BUT, the Lord has given the responsibility of the oversight of the local assemblies of Christians to certain qualified individuals. The Bible calls these qualified men elders. These Continue reading

For those of you who are not diehard auto racing fans [and I'll overlook that for now], the 24 Hours of Le Mans is an annual auto race in the northwest region of France, usually running the Father’s Day weekend. [What a convenient coincidence!] It is one of about five premier auto races in the world and just finishing is sometimes considered a ‘win’ because of all of the Continue reading

[1st Corinthians 4:1-21]

INTRODUCTION

A.  We now come to the end of this portion of the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians where he directly addresses the problem of the division that existed among them because of their spiritual immaturity. He began with a plea to be united “in the same mind and the same judgment” (1:10) and deplored the divisions that existed because of who had Continue reading

Are NT Examples Binding?

INTRODUCTION

A.  God has, through His Son and His apostles, given His will for us to follow. Within what we know as the New Testament of Jesus Christ, we find His will for us as His followers and as disciples of Jesus Christ. Jesus has told us in Matthew 7:21 that a prerequisite of entrance into the kingdom of heaven is doing “the Continue reading

It is being argued by some brethren that they have a ‘right’ to form a human organization that, for all intents and purposes, does some of the work God gave to the church and to individuals, and that anyone who disagrees with them is being contentious and is ‘on the fringe.’ The ’straw man’ arguments they are using to defend this are bad enough, but what is most troubling Continue reading

INTRODUCTION

A.  Most of us here today have lived long enough to have experienced a great deal in life - the ups and downs and ins and outs. We have all done some foolish things in our lives, we have all made mistakes, and we have all suffered because of those same mistakes. We have all made foolish choices and we have all done things we have regretted Continue reading

In the medical world, a ‘carrier’ is an individual who transmits diseases or germs to others without necessarily showing signs of the same disease or effects of the germ being carried; in most cases, the carrier is immune to the disease being carried but is a danger to others because he is spreading it to wherever he goes.

In the brotherhood of believers, we have carriers who are just as Continue reading

[Ephesians 6:11-18]

INTRODUCTION

A.  There is no greater and urgent duty of the disciple of Jesus Christ than the need for us to stand. In this context, the apostle Paul admonishes us to “Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” We need to put on this armor because we are in a battle and the Continue reading

INTRODUCTION

A.  Authority is essential - central - in every religious discussion and in every difference. “By what authority do we do things?” Or, “What is the authority for what we do?” It is inarguably important. Agreement can never be reached and unity can never be achieved unless we agree on some standard of authority.

B.  This concept is easily understood in the secular world. We have various Continue reading

Out here in the Great Southwest, we are well familiar with the adobe structures that remain from centuries past, reminding us of the time when the native civilizations lived in those simple structures. In southwestern Colorado, one of the largest concentrations of this type of house has survived and is preserved in the Mesa Verde National Park. Closer to home, we have several examples of the adobe houses Continue reading