Dec 17, 2015 | Wednesday
I remember as a child visiting a place where it appeared that everything was wacky and lopsided. It was in the Black Hills of western North Dakota – the first mountains we came to going west from Omaha. People walked as though they had weights on one side of their...
Dec 14, 2015 | Sunday Evening
Over the last couple of weeks the subject of “the bride of Christ” has come up in conversation. Now that we have finished our four-year study of Matthew, we don’t have a predetermined course to follow, so we can address some of the subjects which haven’t...
Dec 14, 2015 | Lessons on Bible Trivia
As generally used, a “vessel” might be (a small predatory animal; a ship; a container; a pot). Not a weasel In the Bible a “vessel” might be (a religious vestment; a container; a ship; a utensil). Utensil, container, shp In the Bible vessels...
Dec 13, 2015 | Sunday Morning
The building of the Golden Gate Bridge over the entrance into San Francisco Bay was not going very well. Workers had fallen from the scaffolding to their deaths, and construction had fallen badly behind schedule. Engineers and administrators could not find a solution...
Dec 11, 2015 | This Sunday in Baptist History
I don’t usually include “recent” Baptist history in these little vignettes, but today I’ll make an exception. On this day in 1870 Edward Pierce was born into a godly home in Gates County, North Carolina. At the age of sixteen, after the Lord saved him,...
Dec 10, 2015 | Wednesday
David is described as “a man after God’s own heart.” What does that mean? Can that description be applied to anyone? If so, how can it be applied to me? I’m not sure that I’m qualified to answer those questions. David was a man of prayer – more than most of us are –...
Dec 7, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Evening
Calvary Baptist is adamant in its understanding that Jesus Christ created the universe and everything in it. We do not accept the theories of atheistic evolution which are is commonly taught today. So while admitting that there are hundreds of breeds of dogs and new...
Dec 7, 2015 | Lessons on Bible Trivia
When the pastor refers to something in the Bible as a “type,” he is (speaking Biblically; pontificating theologically; talking Greek; wasting my time). The word “type” is most often used in a theological sense The word is taken from (the...
Dec 6, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Morning
My message for this morning would probably not be well-received by my teachers in Bible school. Most of them believed the things which their teachers had taught them – without much examination. And to be frank, that is what we, as students were expected to do, if we...
Dec 4, 2015 | This Sunday in Baptist History
Samuel Fletcher was born in Middlesex, Massachusetts in 1747. He was born again twenty years later, and in 1777, he began to preach the gospel of Christ whenever and wherever there was a need. He was ordained to the ministry on this day in 1781, and became the pastor...
Dec 3, 2015 | Wednesday
Paul had earlier told his friends in Thessalonica that he prays for them continually. Here he mentions a couple of specific things about which he prays. And among them, he beseeches the Lord for their sanctification and preservation. As we shall see, these things are...
Nov 30, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Evening
I gave thought to adding a point to my message this morning, but decided to save it for tonight. There are reasons to worship Christ contained within this so-called “Great Commission.” For example, Christ says, “All power is given unto me in heaven...
Nov 29, 2015 | Lessons on Bible Trivia
God’s saints are never depicted as trees (I didn’t know that; sure there are; what did you say?). Balaam spoke of Israel as (cedar; crab apple; lign aloes; oak) trees? Num. 24: 6 – cedar & aloes When God speaks of the “blessed man” as “like a...
Nov 29, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Morning
On the morning after His resurrection, Christ sent His disciples back to Galilee for short visit. Perhaps it was so that His men might gather up their families and belongings to move to the big city. After this trip home, Christ “commanded them that they should...
Nov 27, 2015 | This Sunday in Baptist History
The clerk of the Broadmead (Baptist) Church took his job very seriously, keeping an historical record of the ministry of the church along with the official records. He has told us that Pastors Thomas Ewins, Thomas Hardcastle and George Fownes were all imprisoned for...
Nov 26, 2015 | Timothy Parrow
Dear Pastor and Brethren, We thank the Lord for His goodness to us. I feel like I am getting a little stronger physically as I enter the ninth month after my heart attack. Most of the time Roxanne drives the car and accompanies me wherever I need to go. However,...
Nov 26, 2015 | Wednesday
In thinking about a message for this Thanksgiving-eve, I considered several Psalms. Many of the Psalms are great texts for Thanksgiving, because they voice praise in such poetical ways. Psalm 113, for example, along with so many others are happy and warm. They are the...
Nov 23, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Evening
The Lord willing, next Sunday night we will deal more directly with the questions raised in verse 18. In the mean time, how do YOU look at these commandments – this commission? In William Carey’s day it was common to think that these words belonged only to the...
Nov 23, 2015 | Lessons on Bible Trivia
Satan’s Names and Titles: Which comes closest to the number of Satan’s names and titles (1; 2; 3; 4) dozen? About two dozen The most common of Satan’s names or titles is (Satan; Lucifer; Devil; Apollyon)? Satan – 50+ times How often is that name mentioned in the Old...
Nov 22, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Morning
I admit that many of the messages in this series have been designed to explain some aspect of the text. This is one of the problems of this kind of study – but at the same time it can provide a long-term blessings. With that said, someone might think that to spend...
Nov 19, 2015 | Wednesday
I have lived in places where tornados frequently descend, but I’ve never been in a tornado. I have never lived in a place where hurricanes or typhoons destroy and kill. But all of us here tonight know what power even smallish winds can reveal. Some of us were without...
Nov 15, 2015 | This Sunday in Baptist History
In October 1822, Isaac McCoy, a Baptist missionary to the natives, entered the wild, wild west of what is now Michigan, preaching the Lord Jesus Christ. On this day in 1824 he baptized a number of Indian converts in the St. Joseph River. Soon, more and more whites...
Nov 15, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Evening
I feel somewhat foolish addressing these verses. I feel foolish because what we read here is foolish. How can we be serious about something so silly? And yet, this is the Word of God, so it is worthy of our consideration. Plus the implications and results of these...
Nov 15, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Morning
As we have seen, Mary, Mary and perhaps even another Mary, went to Jesus’ sepulchre very early on Sunday. They were surprised to find the door to the tomb wide open. They were even more surprised to be greeted by an angel of the Lord. He said, “Fear not ye, for...
Nov 12, 2015 | Wednesday
If the Bible is the revelation of God’s will, and we know this is true, then we’d better take heed to what it says. In Hebrews 12:14, the Bible says “Without (holiness) no man shall see the Lord.” And here in I Thessalonians, we are told that...
Nov 9, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Evening
We are going to take a slight step backward this evening after taking a step forward. Luke 24 describes one of the later meetings between Christ and His disciples. The ladies had delivered their exciting news, and the two from Emmaus had also returned. “As they...
Nov 9, 2015 | Lessons on Bible Trivia
Biblical Rivers: How important is water to life on earth (not important at all as long as there is coffee and cola to drink; essential; it’s important if you’re a fish or an alligator; it would be hard to shower without it). Essential Could the Creator have sustained...
Nov 8, 2015 | Matthew, Sunday Morning
Very early on Sunday morning, a group of ladies, led by Mary Magdalene, went to the tomb of Joseph. They had hopes of further anointing the body of the Lord Jesus. As they walked along, with pitchers and other containers of various spices and ointments, they...
Nov 6, 2015 | This Sunday in Baptist History
Every professing Christian should be made aware of the persecutions which have been brought upon God’s saints. They began during the days of the Book of Acts, and they have continued to various degrees and strengths ever since. There have been the persecutions of the...
Nov 5, 2015 | Wednesday
Have you ever gotten a drop of pond water and put it under a microscope? I don’t mean a clear mountain lake, but a stagnant, sluggish pond – the “bog” at certain times of the year. What do you suppose those poor little creatures are thinking as they looked back up at...
