June 11, 2014

Why Do We Meet on Sunday Evening?

Empty church building

I recently read an article about the declining number of churches having a second worship service on Sunday evening (Whatever Happened to Sunday Evening Services?). The article mentioned several possible reasons for the decline – too demanding for busy families, too difficult for “pastors” to prepare two sermons each week, lack of attendance/interest by the members, etc.

Though the article was written from a denominational perspective, the discussion of this trend is also helpful for us in the Lord’s church. Often, God’s people follow the trends of the religious world around them. Even if we ignore current trends of eliminating the Sunday evening service, it is generally true that attendance is lower on Sunday evening than on Sunday morning in the majority of local churches. The reasons why Sunday evening services are in decline among the denominational world are often the same reasons why churches quit meeting on Sunday evening or why Christians simply choose not to attend the evening service. So in this article, I want to briefly discuss seven reasons why we assemble on Sunday evenings.
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February 25, 2014

Bringing Up Children in the Lord (Part 3): Parents As Role Models

Bringing Up Children in the Lord

“A righteous man who walks in his integrity—how blessed are his sons after him” (Proverbs 20:7).

When we think about raising children, we might immediately think of training them. This is done through instruction and discipline. We will consider this more in the next lesson. However, what we will deal with in this lesson is necessary to lay the foundation for the next. Parents must teach by example – walking in integrity (Proverbs 20:7) – so that their children can see the way of righteousness in practice. If parents fail to do this, children will eventually come to see them as hypocrites, thus making the parents’ instruction seem to be irrelevant. Parents must “practice what they preach.” Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). We must let our lights shine, especially to our children.
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September 25, 2013

The Head Covering

The issue over the head covering has been controversial at times among brethren. It is something about which people are often curious. I regularly receive questions on a wide range of Bible topics. The head covering is easily one of the more asked about subjects. The main part of the passage discussing the covering is this:

“But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ. Every man who has something on his head while praying and prophesying disgraces his head. But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces her head, for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head” (1 Corinthians 11:3-6).

Is the head covering discussed by Paul an artificial covering or does it refer to a woman’s hair? Is it just a matter of culture or does it apply to all Christian women of all time? These are some questions people have when they study this passage. In this article, we will examine what Paul wrote in this chapter about the head covering.
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September 18, 2013

Not Getting Anything Out of the Assembly

Worship

“I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord’” (Psalm 122:1).

David expressed the attitude that we must have when it comes to assembling to worship the Lord – gladness. The assembly of the saints ought to be something to which we look forward.

Unfortunately, many do not look forward to this time. But rather than acknowledging their own poor attitude and making efforts to change their mindset, they often attempt to shift the blame to others. They will say, “I’m not getting anything out of the assembly!” In their minds, this provides justification for them to complain, become sporadic in their attendance, or quit assembling altogether.

In this article, we will focus on the attitude of one who claims to be getting nothing out of the assembly of the church. It is a dangerous attitude and we must guard ourselves against it.
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December 8, 2011

Sounding Forth the Word

Tin can phone

The local church is God’s “missionary society” – the organization through which we work to spread the gospel. Though man has concocted many different schemes and systems since the time when Jesus established His church, the Lord’s design is for His message to be proclaimed through the work of individuals and local churches. Paul mentioned the church in Thessalonica as an example of how this simple arrangement can be successful.

“For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything” (1 Thessalonians 1:8).

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June 4, 2011

Reporting Back to Antioch

Paul's First Missionary Journey

Following the preaching trip that took them through such places as Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe, Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch. Luke wrote, “When they had arrived and gathered the church together, they began to report all things that God had done with them and how He had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles” (Acts 14:27).

It is important to notice what happened here, particularly today as churches may support preachers who work in other locations. The church in Antioch “sent” Paul and Barnabas on this trip to preach the gospel in various places (Acts 13:3). That sending does not imply a command for them to go – that was given by the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:2, 4). Instead, the implication is that the church supported (financially) these men in their work.

When Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch, they did not just meet with the elders of the church or with a few other individuals. The account of their work did not take place during a common meal or other casual setting. Rather, they “gathered the church together.” This shows us that it is perfectly acceptable for a congregation to invite a preacher to come and give a report on the work that they helped to support. More than this, we can be reminded of the benefits of such reports.
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April 19, 2011

Placing Membership with a Local Church

Saul at Jerusalem

The New Testament stresses the importance of Christians being part of a local congregation. But how does one join or place membership with a local church? At what point does one become a part of a congregation of God’s people? If we look at Saul’s effort to join the church in Jerusalem, we will see that there are two steps necessary for one to place membership with a local church.
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