Deity of Christ (Philippians 2:5-11)
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- May 18, 2025Deity of Christ (Philippians 2:5-11)Deity of Christ (Philippians 2:5-11)
- May 18, 2025Soul Winning Words: Evangelize (Acts 8:1-4)Soul Winning Words: Evangelize (Acts 8:1-4)Some years ago, I came across an interesting trend in the corporate world, especially among technology companies. Companies were hiring people to promote their brand or products and referring to them as “evangelists.” I grew up in church, and until then, I had never heard anyone other than a traveling preacher referred to as an “evangelist.” You can imagine my shock when that label was applied to someone selling something like photo editing software.Our English word “evangelize” is a transliteration of a Greek word that means “to bring good news, to announce glad tidings.” In the book of Acts, the word “preach” is often a translation of this word. Because of the Bible, “evangelizing” came to be associated almost exclusively with sharing the good news of the Gospel.But it would seem that the world is now trying to retake the term for their own purposes, because the world has figured out something that some Christians seem to have overlooked. If you have good news to share, you should share it with others. Don’t keep it to yourself. The corporate world does this to turn a profit and grow its businesses. We should do it to glorify God and save people from death in hell.What the world needs is a message that will benefit them eternally. They need the gospel. The gospel is not just good news; it is the best news, because it is the news of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection for our sin. When a person believes the gospel, they are saved from their sin and given eternal life. It is up to those of us who have the good news of the gospel to evangelize the lost, sharing that good news with the world.
- Apr 13, 2025Betraying Jesus (Luke 22:3-6)Betraying Jesus (Luke 22:3-6)
- Apr 13, 2025Cultural Christians (Matthew 27:20)Cultural Christians (Matthew 27:20)Most people don’t like to stand out from the crowd. Something in our nature urges us to go along with what appears to be the popular opinion of the moment. Perhaps it is our desire to be accepted or to feel validated, but whatever the cause, we are all susceptible to being swept along with the culture's current.
Nowhere is this more vividly illustrated than in the rapid change in the public opinion of Jesus the week before His crucifixion. He rode into town at the beginning of the week to shouts of “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.” (Matthew 21:9) The week ended with those same crowds screaming, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him,” and “We have no king but Caesar.” (John 19:15)
What changed? Certain agitators, the chief priests and elders, took advantage of the fickleness of human nature and the propensity of people to follow the crowd and turned the people against Jesus. “But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.” (Matthew 27:20)
Many of the people who proclaimed Jesus’ praise one day demanded his punishment seven days later. They were not true followers of Jesus. They were cultural Christians. Sadly, many “Christians” today are no different. They will identify with Jesus as long as it is popular, but when the mood around them shifts, they abandon Him. They call themselves Christian because their family is Christian or their community is predominately Christian, but in their heart, they are following the crowd, not Christ. When it is no longer convenient to follow Christ, they walk away. Don’t be a “Cultural Christian.” Be a committed Christian who follows Christ no matter what the crowd does. - Apr 6, 2025God’s Coworkers (I Corinthians 3:9)God’s Coworkers (I Corinthians 3:9)God expects His people to cooperate. The job He has given us is too big for any of us to do alone. It requires the participation of every member of His body, each individual doing their part to contribute to the success of the whole.
Unfortunately, our sinful pride often inhibits our cooperation. We get jealous of others who are more successful or receive more recognition. We argue and fight with those who disagree with us. We avoid the people we don’t like, creating divisions where there should be unity. So, instead of working together, we often work alone or in small cliques. This division of the body reduces its effectiveness and limits what we accomplish for God.The solution to the problem is to humble ourselves and refocus our hearts and minds on God. 1 Corinthians 3:9 says, “We are labourers together with God.” We must see ourselves as God’s coworkers. If I am working with God and you are working with God, we will naturally be working together. The cure for strife and division is not to work out our differences among ourselves. It is for each of us to humble ourselves before God. At the end of everything, God is working in and through us, and He should get all the glory from us. - Mar 9, 2025A Heart Consumed With Idolatry (I Kings 21:1)A Heart Consumed With Idolatry (I Kings 21:1)
- Mar 9, 2025Soul Winning Word: Exhort (Acts 2:37-40)Soul Winning Word: Exhort (Acts 2:37-40)Soul-winning is more than handing out a tract or sharing a brief gospel presentation at someone’s doorstep. Those are good and right, but there is much more involved in the process that we must not overlook. The Bible uses many different words to describe how the gospel was given out and how the lost were urged to accept Christ as their Savior.For instance, Acts 2:40 describes Peter’s evangelistic preaching this way: “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.” To testify is to share what you have seen. It is what a witness does when they are sharing the facts about what they say.To “exhort” is to summon or to invite someone to come to where you are. Peter exhorted those listening to him with a direct appeal to them to believe the truth that he had shared with them. He was sharing the gospel with a definite goal in mind. He wanted people to repent, believe the gospel, and be saved. Therefore, he invited them to make a decision about what they heard.In our soul-winning efforts, we must always be working toward bringing people to the point of decision. If all we do is share the facts of the gospel and never invite them to believe it for themselves, we have not finished the job. For people to be saved, they must receive the gift of salvation by grace through faith, and we should invite them to do just that. We must “exhort” people to be saved.
- Feb 23, 2025The Severity of Sin (I Corinthians 11:27-30)The Severity of Sin (I Corinthians 11:27-30)
- Feb 23, 2025A Parent’s Priority (Job 1:1)A Parent’s Priority (Job 1:1)In Job 1:1, we are told that Job “was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.” He was a godly man who had been blessed by God in many ways, including the blessing of ten children. One of the pieces of evidence of Job’s godliness and personal walk with the Lord is the way that Job cared for the spiritual well-being of his children.
At the time of the events in Job 1-2, Job’s children were adults with homes of their own, and yet Job still felt a responsibility to them. Job cared for the spiritual needs of his children. His care for them was a priority. He set aside a specific time, early in the morning, to go to God on their behalf and to offer sacrifices for them.
His care for them was personal and individual. He did not treat them as a collective, but offered individual sacrifices, one for each of his ten children. There was no favoritism in the way that he cared for them.
His care for them was pious. His biggest concern was not their wealth or their physical health. His biggest concern was the condition of their hearts.
He knew that if they gained the whole world but their souls were lost, then all of his efforts as a father would be wasted. There may be many things about Job’s story that we would not like to copy in our lives.
However, this aspect is one that every Christian parent should imitate. No matter the age of your children, if you are a parent, then you, too, must prioritize your children's spiritual health as a part of your walk with God.
February 23, 2025 at Philadelphia Baptist Church in Rutledge, GA.
Livestream CCLI Streaming License 22309027 - Feb 16, 2025An Aaron’s Heart (Exodus 4:14)An Aaron’s Heart (Exodus 4:14)When your arms grow weak,
And it’s hard to speak;
We will do our part,
With an Aaron’s Heart.We’ll bear your burdens
and will show God’s love.
We will hold your hands
with strength from Above.When your heart cries out,
To grieve or rejoice,
But words will not come,
We will be your voice.If your arms are weak,
And it’s hard to speak,
Let us do our part,
With an Aaron’s heart. - Feb 9, 2025Keep Thy Heart (Proverbs 4:23)Keep Thy Heart (Proverbs 4:23)It has been rightly said, “The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart.” The output and the outcome of our lives are not determined by external causes, such as our environment or upbringing. They are not determined by physical causes, such as diseases and disorders. Those things certainly influence our lives but do not ultimately determine what we think, say, or do. What we think, say, and do are determined by the condition of our hearts. If our heart is right, our life will be right. If our heart is wrong, our life will be wrong.While we tend to focus on undesirable external behaviors as being the problem, the bigger problem is what happened in the heart that brought about that behavior. If our heart is ruled by sinful attitudes and affections, then sinful actions will result. If our heart is ruled by holy attitudes and affection, then righteous actions will result.To correct your sinful behavior, you must correct the heart condition that caused it. This requires repentance and renewing of the heart. To prevent sinful behavior, you must guard your heart against external sinful influences and internal sinful tendencies. To ensure righteous behavior, you must enthrone God in your heart and keep His word “in the midst of thine heart.” (Proverbs 4:21)
- Jan 26, 2025Joseph And Jesus Christ (Genesis 50:20)Joseph And Jesus Christ (Genesis 50:20)Genesis 50:20
“But as for you, ye thought evil against me;
but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass,
as it is this day, to save much people alive. “Joseph is one of the Old Testament's most well-known Bible characters, partly because of his coat of many colors and partly because he is an outstanding example of Godly character in the face of adversity. Joseph was not perfect, but none of the sinful deeds of Joseph are recorded in scripture, which is very rare indeed.
As you look closely at the life of Joseph, you realize that there are many similarities between Joseph's story and the story of the Lord Jesus Christ. What God did in and through Joseph's life is a wonderful illustration of what God has done through Jesus. Both were loved by their fathers but hated and rejected by their brethren. Both were sold for the price of a slave, falsely accused, and arrested. Both saved many by unusual means and were subsequently honored by their brethren.
There are many similarities, but the most important is this: like Joseph was a savior to his world during the seven years of famine, Jesus is the Savior of the world today. Joseph’s is a great story, but if you miss the picture of the gospel found in it, you have missed the most important part. - Jan 26, 2025Strongholds (II Corinthians 10:3)Strongholds (II Corinthians 10:3)
- Jan 19, 2025Abraham and the Gospel (Genesis 15:6)Abraham and the Gospel (Genesis 15:6)No character in history other than Jesus Christ has had more influence in the world than the man Abraham. Three major world religions have come from his family line: Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. His story is a journey of faith in the unbreakable promises of God. His faith in God led him to do things that, to the natural man, seem irrational, but because of that faith, he saw God do extraordinary things.The key verse repeated multiple times to summarize Abraham’s legacy is Genesis 15:6, which says, “And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” The core of the gospel is found in those words. The gospel is the good news that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again to offer us eternal life. All who believe in Him are saved from their sin and made righteous in the eyes of God. Salvation is by grace through faith and not by works.Abraham did not earn righteousness through his extraordinary accomplishments. Abraham believed in God’s promises, and God “counted it to him for righteousness.” The same truth that applied to him also applies to you. To be saved from your sin and made righteous, you must have faith in God alone. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” (Acts 16:31)
- Jan 12, 2025The Blessing of Forgiveness (Psalms 32:1-2)The Blessing of Forgiveness (Psalms 32:1-2)“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.” (Psalms 32:1-2)There is a lot of misery in the world. Not many people are truly and consistently happy. What happiness people experience is short-lived because it is the pleasure of sin that is just for a season. Sin is a transgression against God’s law. It is when we fail to live up to God’s standard and fall short of his perfection.Our iniquities and transgressions may bring momentary pleasure, but after sin comes guilt and shame. Though we don’t often think of them this way, guilt and shame are gracious gifts from God, designed to bring us to a point of repentance. They are the result of God actively working in our lives to make us uncomfortable with the sin that separates us from Him.When we repent and confess our sin, we experience the blessing of God’s forgiveness. Forgiveness brings us into a right relationship with God. It replaces guilt and shame with peace and joy. We need “forever” forgiveness for our sin to be saved and receive eternal life in heaven. After that, we need frequent, ongoing forgiveness as we are sanctified day by day.Forgiveness is a blessing because by it God turns our misery into a celebration. When we are feeling the miser of conviction, we must acknowledge and confess our sin, and then we will experience the blessing of forgiveness.
