Luke 7 makes for a good study of how Jesus treated lost people. In vs. 34 the Lord sites some of the charges spoken against him. The basis for such criticism was his association with people who were “sinners,” being outside the inner sanctum of pharisaic fellowship. Jesus was neither a glutton nor a social […]
BC. Goodpasture used to tell of the time when James A. Harding held a gospel meeting in Clark County, Kentucky. The year was 1877. When an elder of the church was asked about it he said, “It was not much of a meeting. Oh, brother Harding did his usually powerful preaching, the attendance was fair, […]
In January 2011, I began preaching a series of sermons based on 2 Corinthians. I titled the series, “Authentic Christianity.” That series taught me some things about how a preacher relates to a troubled congregation, such as the one at Corinth. So deeply has this impression been made upon me that I wish 2 Corinthians […]
Dan Chambers says that we live in a “three dimensional Christian world” – Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox.[i] He says, “For those who profess to be Christians, the world asks, ‘Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox?’ And if the answer is ‘Protestant,’ the next question is ‘Which denomination?’” The church of Jesus Christ in the New Testament was […]
(A Ministry of the Mabelvale Church) On March 11, 2013, seventeen ladies from the Mabelvale congregation met at a local Applebee’s to discuss ways to enhance the benevolent program at Mabelvale, and to utilize their skills to become more involved in the work of the church. After three hours of dinner and discussion, several ideas […]
“If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that” (1 Jn. 5:16). This verse has always […]
A few weeks ago I ran part one of this article designed to explore ways in which evangelists and elders, pastors and preachers might work more harmoniously together in God’s kingdom and in the local church. I continue that theme with this article in the second part. A better relationship is well within the reach […]
In Bible study and sermon preparation I sometimes encounter topics scarcely addressed by writers both in and out of the Lord’s church. This conclusion is based upon the sources for study that I have at my disposal, and in thirty-five years of preaching I’d like to think those sources fairly adequate. For example, in trying […]
I guess I am in the situation which my friend Jim Faughn described, when he said, “As a preacher, I had been as close to being an elder as one could possibly be for all those years without actually being one” (Gospel Advocate, August 2008, p. 21). A preacher assumes a leadership role, but elders […]
with Phil Sanders (June 3-6) Seven years ago we hosted Phil Sanders for a gospel meeting, and now the time has come to welcome him back to the Mabelvale congregation for another such effort. The theme this year is “Preaching Jesus.” I appreciate Phil for choosing this theme, since this is what gospel preaching is […]