Nov 9, 2023 | Wednesday
As James concludes his epistle, he exhorts us to “pray for one another.” Coming in chapter 5 instead of chapter 1, should we conclude that this is some sort of afterthought? Is this: “Oh, by the way I think it would be good if you prayed for one another?” As taught by...
Nov 6, 2023 | Sunday Evening
Let’s say that you and your neighbor are chatting one day. He knows that you are a Christian. You have shared your testimony with him on several occasions and invited him to church. But, as he has said that “he is satisfied with his religion.” You know that he was...
Nov 5, 2023 | Sunday Morning
I plan to use both messages today to consider the subject of “the law.” My subject is not the United States Constitution or the 200,000 pages of the Code of Federal regulations. There is a message in those two documents, but as I say, that is not my theme. I will...
Nov 3, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
On this day in 1855 William Bagby was born. He was born again under the ministry of the pioneer Texas Baptist, Rufus Burleson, and he was educated under the ministry of B.H. Carroll. In January 1881, Brother Bagby and his wife sailed from Baltimore toward the Bay of...
Oct 30, 2023 | Sunday Evening
John 17 is one of the Bible’s holiest chapters. It rivals or surpasses any of the Psalms. That is because we get to overhear a conversation within the Godhead – the Son speaking to the Father. This is not the prayer of a godly saved person, like David, speaking with...
Oct 28, 2023 | Timothy Parrow
Dear Pastor and Brethren: More Visitors Natasha, who is studying veterinary medicine at OSU, and Jeff, from California, an old friend of Bro. Gaches, and Ally, the lady friend of Bro. Hunter Northern all came at least once this month to visit with us. Of them all,...
Oct 26, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
William Harris most likely would not be called “a great preacher.” He wasn’t an orator, or filled with lots of education, or even blessed with a good imagination. But he was always close to his Saviour, and he was blessed with the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Brother...
Oct 26, 2023 | Wednesday
Let’s pretend you wake up one spring morning, feeling a slight itch on your right forearm. Looking down you see a small spot and think that while working in the garden the day before, you got poked by a raspberry or rose bush, or maybe it is a bug bite. Six months...
Oct 22, 2023 | Sunday Evening
I’m going to come very close to breaking one of my personal, homiletical rules. “Homiletics,” by the way, is a fancy word for sermon preparation and preaching. I really dislike it when I hear preachers read a scripture to begin a sermon and then never return to it. I...
Oct 20, 2023 | Timothy Parrow
Dear Pastor and Brethren: More Visitors Natasha, who is studying veterinary medicine at OSU, and Jeff, from California, an old friend of Bro. Gaches, and Ally, the lady friend of Bro. Hunter Northern all came at least once this month to visit with us. Of...
Oct 19, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
The Lord blessed the United States in the late 18th century with souls saved and multitudes turning directly to the Bible for their spiritual direction rather than listening to their Protestant preachers. In New England hundreds, if not thousands, of members of...
Oct 19, 2023 | Wednesday
I was talking to our missionary Tim Parrow the other day when he mentioned that one of their church people hasn’t been in the services for several weeks – it may have been as many as six weeks. There hasn’t been any problem with the church. It appears that the...
Oct 16, 2023 | Sunday Evening
Last Sunday, Brother Haug gave us a heart-warming rendition of Augustus Toplady’s hymn “Rock of Ages.” Some people claim that “Rock of Ages” is the number one best and most popular hymn in Christendom. Some make it equal to “Amazing Grace” – which has far less of a...
Oct 15, 2023 | Sunday Morning
When I was child, my parents, like thousands others, were terrified by an epidemic which was sweeping world. COVID hadn’t been invented yet, and the Spanish flu had run its course, but this was just as frightening. I remember, shortly after moving to Denver, my sister...
Oct 12, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
On this day in 1774, Benjamin Cole became the second, full-time pastor of the Hopewell Baptist Church in western New Jersey. Its earliest preachers were all itinerant visitors, but God blessed, souls were saved and a church was established. In fact, Hopewell was one...
Oct 12, 2023 | Wednesday
I need to remind myself from time to time that our primary Wednesday night purpose is prayer and worship. And then there is the fact that some of us have come from work; we are tired and perhaps a little tried. Of course, there are always things we need to hear again,...
Oct 9, 2023 | Sunday Evening
I have no idea how I came up with this outline, but I have had it for years. And it is obvious to me that it is not an Oldfield original, although I’ve adopted and adapted it. I prefer to preach textual messages, drawing out and applying the meaning of a particular...
Oct 8, 2023 | Sunday Morning
You might soon be thinking that I am wasting my time this morning. You may think that I am preaching to the choir. But as you can see we don’t have a choir. I have something to teach which you may think is unnecessary, because you already firmly believe it. My theme...
Oct 5, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
On this day in 1664, the Baptist pastor, Benjamin Keach was found guilty and sentenced to a fortnight in jail and a day in a public pillory for what he wrote and published in a children’s book, entitled, “The Child’s Instructor.” The charge against Keach stated, “Thou...
Oct 5, 2023 | Wednesday
Every time I have read this Psalm over the last three weeks, I have seen new things. We must never think that we have intellectually conquered any portion of the infinite Word of God. Perhaps one of our occupations in Heaven will be mastering new material from the...
Oct 2, 2023 | Sunday Evening
Let’s think about attitudes this evening; particularly the attitude of discontentment – dissatisfaction. As we begin, some people may be thinking that this is going to be a negative message. Certainly some aspects of discontentedness are sinfully evil. But at...
Oct 1, 2023 | Sunday Morning
The words of this scripture can be made into a pretty good homiletical outline – but I won’t use it today. Paul prayed for wisdom to understand the will of God in three areas: The hope of our Heavenly calling – verse 18. The riches of the glory of His inheritance...
Sep 28, 2023 | This Sunday in Baptist History
In about the year 1808 the first Baptists immigrated into southern Alabama. Holcombe, one of the earliest Baptist historians tells us that the meeting houses were more like wigwams than anything else, and the preachers often preferred to stand outside under the trees...
Sep 28, 2023 | Wednesday
John Bunyan, the Baptist preacher, wrote more than one book – several of which became immensely popular. His 1666 autobiography, “Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners,” is well worth reading. He also wrote more than one extended allegory, including “The Holy War.”...
Sep 27, 2023 | Timothy Parrow
Dear Pastor and Brethren: Three New Visitors! Since the educational systems are starting their fall schedules here in the Stillwater area, we were blessed with three college-age visitors the last Sunday in August. Rhiaynn, Jacob, and Logan were seated in the...
Sep 24, 2023 | Sunday Morning
Theologians argue with non-theological evangelists whether prayer is a part of the “formula” for salvation. The Bible says such things as: “For by grace are ye saved through FAITH; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: it is the gift of God, not of works...
Sep 21, 2023 | Wednesday
It has been said that Baptists don’t, or didn’t, believe in an educated ministry. While there have been a small minority bearing the Baptist name who believed that ministers should rely on the Holy Spirit alone, to the exclusion of teachers and reference books, and...
Sep 21, 2023 | Wednesday
Most of you know my inclination to comment, from time to time, on the hymns that we sing. Sometimes there is a bit of criticism; sometimes I simple raise a question; sometimes it is to highlight something that I think is good. I rarely interrupt our singing to make...
Sep 17, 2023 | Sunday Evening
I would like to piggy-back off Bro. Fulton’s message last Sunday night. If you’ll remember it was titled: “How to Watch.” Hopefully I wont be contradicting anything Austin said, but I’d like to take his message a step farther, emphasizing for what things we should be...
Sep 17, 2023 | Sunday Morning
I read the story of a gospel minister whose sister lived with him and his family. The woman loved the Lord and would often go out in the evenings to listen to various people preach the Word. One night, when she came home, her brother asked, “Did you hear a good sermon...
