By Jim Mettenbrink
Last week, we were considering the standard by which man lives hoping to live eternally. We cited the PEW poll revealing that 65% (40% in 2002) of Americans believe they can be “moral and have good values” without believing in God. Although 90% of those who did not consider organized religion important believed that they could be moral and have good values. Morality and values were not defined in the poll. Just what is moral and what are values? Paramount is, what is “good?”
By Jim Mettenbrink
The great irony of mankind is that each person wants to live on and on, even eternally in heaven, yet, he wants to be his own god and set his own conditions by which he lives in the here and now, and self-deceptively for eternity. The record of when that malady began is found in Genesis chapter three when Adam and Eve decided to do it their way. Result? Death and separation from God – no fellowship with Him at all because of eating one little prohibited fruit. God gave disobedience a huge three-letter word – SIN!
By Jim Mettenbrink
The tendency of mankind is to make God into a good ole boy, who overlooks our wretchedness. And thereby fostering an easy road to heaven. How often do we hear that salvation is via the sinner’s prayer by popular figures who believe Jesus is God? “Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life.”? And by that, you are saved? During a Bible study with a man about 10 years ago, showed me that prayer he had written in his Bible at the behest of a man who believed that was all there was to be saved.
By Jim Mettenbrink
Last week, we saw that Saul (later to be the apostle Paul) was commanded to “Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). So did the water wash away his sins? Many have that misunderstanding among others.
Some folks believe that the mere ritual of baptism saves them. So what would be the difference in that and diving into a pool? One might argue that it is the words stated by the one baptizing them that makes the difference between being saved and lost. Some, like the Corinthians Christians, might think the difference is who baptizes them (1 Cor 1:12-17). All of those notions are wrong.
Good Monday Morning –
By David Phillips
Well, here we go again. Are these Mondays coming around quicker than they used to or is it just me?
The morning sermon yesterday focused on the topic, Perilous Times, and we discussed the text of 2 Timothy 3:1-9. There are many people who read this passage and think it is telling us what to expect near the end of the world. However, that is not the intent of the passage at all. The “last days” is a Bible term meaning the division of time which began at the resurrection of Christ, and continues until the end of time, sometimes called the Christian Age. The things listed by Paul are things that have been going on for that whole time, and getting progressively worse. “Perilous times” are not the days just before the second coming of Christ.
Good Monday Morning –
By David Phillips
I hope your week is off to a good start. If you are reading this, it means there are many things that are working right, and that is something to be thankful for on a Monday morning.
Brother Mitch Henry was with us yesterday for the Sunday school hour and morning worship service, and he delivered two good lessons. It was refreshing to have Faulkner’s President request to come speak to us, and the two Bible students he brought with him made good impressions too.
In the evening service, we continued our study in the theme of Connections, and specifically looked at another lesson on Strengthening Our Connection to God the Father. As previously noted, becoming a Christian by obeying the Gospel of Christ is the initial step in coming to God. As Christians, we all must be seeking out ways to strengthen our connection to God, as per James 4:8 – Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
By Jim Mettenbrink
In the last article, we reviewed statements by protestant reformation leaders Calvin and Luther who acknowledged that baptism in the early church was immersion. However, the churches that follow the teachings and innovations of these men sprinkle or pour water on people rather than immerse them. Has the meaning of the first-century Greek word (original language of the New Testament) bapto (transliterated into English as “baptize”) changed?
By Jim Mettenbrink
In the past several articles we have shown from the Greek language and from the New Testament that baptism is only immersion in water. The question is, why did man opt to sprinkle and pour rather than obey God? Why transliterate the word baptizo rather than translate it? What does church history tell us about the mode of baptism?
Good Monday Morning!
In the morning worship hour yesterday, we studied a lesson entitled The Simple Truth. We noted the tendency toward elaborate terminology and wise-seeming words, somewhat like those of Paul’s day in Corinth. We began at 1 Cor.2:1-5, where Paul encouraged his readers to rest their faith not on worldly wisdom but on the power of God. We noted these 4 points in our simple study:
Good Monday Morning (3/27/2023) –
At Redland Road yesterday morning we studied a lesson entitled If the Foundations Be Destroyed based on texts from Psalm 2 and Psalm 11. We started out by observing how discouraging and frustrating current conditions are in our nation, in the realms of politics, culture, patriotism and morality. From the first three verses of Psalm 11, we noted 4 terms that set the stage for our further discussion: Refuge (the Lord), the wicked (those who are against God), shoot in the dark (ambush), and foundations (righteousness and justice, Ps.97:2). Then we turned our attention to Psalm 2, observing 4 voices that are indicated there.