Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
In the introduction to a message a few weeks ago, I mentioned my first meeting with missionary Ken Johnson. I said that one of the first questions he asked me was what I understood Paul to be saying in Romans 5:12. What I didn’t tell you was that I fully...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Let’s start with a silly question: How many points of agreement do two things have to share before they are similar to one another? For example how similar are the giraffe and the ponderosa pine? In nearly every way they are very, very dissimilar. However, they...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Today has been proclaimed to be “Mother’s Day.” It joins a couple dozen other days of the year as being special – in some artificial sort of way. There are a great many people, mostly stingy men, who would like to do away with any and all...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
There is a thought in these verses which doesn’t make any sense outside of Biblical theology. If I murder a man, but then with remorse, I go to the man’s widow and promise to send her as much income as her husband would have given her if he was still...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
One of the sad realities of human society is the existence of various kinds of dictatorships. There are tribes, countries, families and churches where one man considers himself to be supreme, and he rules the roost with a rod of iron. Often in situations like these,...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
After the introduction to this Letter to the Romans, the rest of the first five chapters have been directed towards people who may still be in an unsaved condition. It is to be granted that this was written to a church, but it was a church with which Paul was not...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Baptism is something that Baptists have studied, preached and fought for throughout the centuries. When I say “fought for” I mean exactly that – they have fought and died for the truth about baptism. And that was almost from the very beginning of...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
As I’ve said before, the kind of study in which we are currently engaged gives us the opportunity to look at subjects that we might not otherwise study. Not only does the text take us to some themes which might be a little more obscure. But then if we permit...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
There is an ancient nursery rhyme which nearly all the kids in my generation heard a thousand times, and I’m sure that many of the kids who are here today have heard it as well. However. I suppose that some people say that “global warming” may some...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I’m going to start with a very dark image, but I promise to end up in the light, so bear with me. Isn’t it true that the older we get the more we think about death – and our own death in particular? Rarely do children, especially teens, ever think...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Being a stamp collector, I have been thrown into a circle with a great many other collectors. And quite often someone who collects one thing, also collects something else. For example, the man who delivers mail to our church, is a philatelist – a stamp...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
On May 26, a 101 years ago, a baby was born into the family of Clyde Morrison. Clyde and his wife decided to name the little boy Marion. Little Marion grew up and moved away from Iowa, eventually becoming a national hero. General Douglas MacArthur said that Marion...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
What is the definition of a “sinner?” What defines a “sinner?” I don’t particularly like the definition that my dictionary gives me: “One that does evil; transgresses.” Since the Bible says that all sin is against God, then...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
The English Language is lots of fun. There simply are so many things that you can do with it. I suppose that is true of every kind of language, but only one that I can read or speak is English. With language we can fly to, and then describe, other worlds. Science is...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I’ve used this illustration before, but it takes us to an important point, so please bear with me. During the summers of my last two years in high school, I worked in Wyoming for a uranium company. My job was to survey mining claims or to carry the posts which...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Judy forwarded an e-mail to me, which some of you have probably seen before. “The Hillbilly’s Ten Commandments:” Just one God. Honor yer Ma & Pa. No tellin’ tales or gossipin’. Git yourself to Sunday meetin’. Put nothin’...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
This is a controversial passage of scripture. In fact, there are a great many controversial sections of Romans from here to chapter 12. It is my plan, at this point, to do my best not to bog down in the squabbles and contentions, unless it is absolutely necessary....
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I readily admit that this study of ours is basically doctrinal – it is theological. It is an attempt at a literal exposition of the Word of God. There are a lot of churches and a lot of pastors, whose preaching begins with a problem, or with an everyday...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
We begin today to look at one of the greatest chapters in the Word of God. This is not necessarily the most important chapter, the most profound chapter, or the most Heavenly. It may not even be the most important in the Book of Romans. Chapter 5 may exceed chapter 8...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I don’t intend to look at this chapter in 39 segments. That would take us until approximately the end of the year. But we do have to take another single verse before we move on with a little more alacrity. Verse 1 sets the tone and character for the rest of the...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
So this is your favorite chapter in God’s Word. You did say that didn’t you, or was that just me? Is this one of your favorite chapters because it is so deep and theological? Most people would much rather have a chapter of encouragement than a chapter of...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I read a statement years ago that I thought was cute – as well as true. I have referred to it several times, and I’ll probably continue to use it once in a while. There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who divide the world into two kinds of...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Perhaps the greatest blessing of this great chapter of blessings is found in the assurance of salvation. Everyone has different needs, so some might not agree, but this has to be close to the top of the list. The child of God IS a child of God, never to be disowned,...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I would like to take our message from last Sunday night, and skew it just a little bit, to give us a different perspective of these verses. Don’t forget, or ignore, what we said last week. Let’s just come at the subject of spiritual-mindedness from a...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
The only time that most of us think about cloth is when someone comes along wearing a new kind of clothing. I know that some of you ladies think about it for sewing and other things, but men in particular hardly ever give it a thought. And yet, for thousands of years...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Do we have anyone here who is unfamiliar with the subject of debt? You may THINK that you know what the debt is in this chapter, but debt in the 21st Century is different from debt in the 1st Century. The Lord Jesus lived in a kinder and gentler society than in the...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Let’s pretend that you are young and deeply in love. You have found the person with whom you’d like to spend the rest of your life. You two seem perfectly matched and compatible in every possible way. You have the same kind of faith and the same Saviour...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
I would like to take the message from this morning a small step forward. For a couple of weeks now, I have mentioned the relationship between the members of the God-head. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one – and yet three. They act in unison and...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
Just about every day, grand-daughter Sahalie goes for a walk down to the river. There are at least two parks in our neighborhood and several other little beach areas. And of course, Jackie, Sahalie and Judy are not usually the only people there. Quite often there are...
Jan 16, 2015 | Romans
If I said, “I will give you a thousand dollars, if………………,” you might want me to finish the rest of the sentence. If I said, “You will live a long and healthy life, if you will make just one change in your...
