Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
I am not smart enough to either agree or disagree, but it is stated by some experts that with these verses Paul is beginning the conclusion of this epistle. We are a long way from being finished with our study of Romans, and I’m not convinced that those experts...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
What is the best way to start a new religion, or a new branch of Christendom? Three to four hundred years ago, there arose dozens of sects, like the Methodists and Nazarenes. Then in the last two hundred years, mostly in America, where Baptist blood had won religious...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
I know that most of you couldn’t possibly care any less, and none of us probably should, but there is a debate going on in the world of sports about who should, and who shouldn’t, go into the various sports “Halls of Fame.” For example, the...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
There are two kinds of military commanders – those who send their troops into battle & those who lead them. Similarly, there are two kinds of teachers – those who instruct and those who are examples. I suppose that the best kind of teacher is both an...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
Paul enjoyed boldly going where no Christian missionary had ever gone before. Despite working in some of the largest cities around the Mediterranean, he still enjoyed taking the gospel into those regions where unknown peoples lived and died without Christ. As we...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
My message in some ways parallels Pixar Animation’s movie “Toy Story.” In perhaps the most famous line in that movie, and one which has become synonymous with Pixar itself, Buzz Lightyear, the spaceman toy, shouts as he takes off, or falls off...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
Last Spring, the Little’s came to church one Sunday and in their pickup there were a number of scrawny, pie-cherry trees. We took a couple of them home, and one or two other families did as well. Under the direction of my girls, I planted our two in the back...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
Paul is writing from Corinth, sometime during his Third Missionary Journey. As we said a couple weeks ago, it could have been written during his long first stay in the city, or it might have come when he made a quick second stop in Corinth, after gathering a small...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
Let’s pretend that the Lord has laid on the preacher’s heart a message on the subject of tobacco. Let’s say he has heard that a couple of his young people are beginning to use chewing tobacco. So he reaches into his file of notes and pulls out a...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
If Albert Einstein approached you and asked for your opinion about some scientific matter, wouldn’t you feel honored? If Bill Gates asked you to loan him a hundred dollars, wouldn’t you be curious? If the President Obama called you and asked what you...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
I begin with an apology for jumping the gun – I should know better. I said last week that we were finishing our look at chapter 15 with last Sunday night’s message. But the Lord has brought me back to it once again. I think that this will be our last week...
Jan 15, 2015 | Romans
It appears that with these words we come to the conclusion of the Book of Romans – the letter to the Romans. These words are generally called “the benediction” – a prayer for the blessing of God upon the readers. Often these benedictions come...
Jan 14, 2015 | Romans
Baptist churches profess to pattern themselves after what they find in the Word of God. It is very common to hear them say, “We take the Bible as the grounds for our faith and practice.” First and foremost of course, they profess to take what they BELIEVE...
Jan 14, 2015 | Romans
As I have said several times, this letter was written while Paul was in Corinth. I think that in some ways, Paul’s most important ministry was in the city of Corinth. He was there about a year and a half. He began, as usual in the Jewish synagogue, but...
Jan 14, 2015 | Romans
I must confess that it is with fear and trepidation that I first thought about preaching from Romans 16. As you can see, we have here a long list of names – primarily of people of whom we know very little. Intellectually, I was thinking that I should be able to...
