In his letter to the church in Colossae, Paul said, “The gospel…was proclaimed in all creation under heaven” (Colossians 1:23). When Jesus gave His apostles the Great Commission, He told them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15). Paul indicated that by the time he wrote to the Colossians, this had been done. How is that possible? Let us consider the record in the book of Acts.
Continue Reading
“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors; for He gives to His beloved even in his sleep” (Psalm 127:1-2).
The psalm was written by Solomon – king of Israel and builder of the temple. He understood the need to rely upon God in building God’s house, in protecting the city, and in his labor.
Continue Reading
The Pew Research Center has recently come out with some new information about how Americans search for a new congregation with which they can worship. The findings were interesting and I believe this information can be helpful as we seek to reach those in the community around us.
Continue Reading
The Lord’s church was established on the day of Pentecost following the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ (Acts 2). The Scriptures indicate that three thousand individuals responded to the preaching of the apostles on that day by obeying the gospel (Acts 2:41). As a result, God added them to the church (Acts 2:47).
There were many others in Jerusalem on this day than just the three thousand who obeyed the gospel – including many who would have heard but did not respond to the preaching done by Peter and the other apostles. What can we know about these “three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41) that contributed to their reception of the gospel? Let us consider six things we know about these individuals from the text:
Continue Reading
“For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26).
Continue Reading
Subscribe: iTunes | Stitcher | RSS
This episode discusses the characteristics that our preaching must have if we are to proclaim the gospel as God expects. There are five characteristics that must be true of our preaching.
Article: The Preaching Demanded by the Gospel
If you found this episode to be useful, please share it with others. Also, if you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. This also helps others hear about the podcast. Thanks.
“Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other” (1 Corinthians 4:6).
Paul had to address several problems in his first letter to Corinth. One had to do with the brethren elevating men and regarding them as more important than they were. The apostle used himself and Apollos as an example in order to teach them “not to exceed what is written.” His warning was for them to not go beyond the limits of what God’s word allows. This principle is found throughout the letter. In this article, we will consider some points that Paul addressed in this letter in order to teach us – or remind us – not to exceed what is written and go beyond the boundaries of God’s word.
Continue Reading
What does “propitiation” mean? How is “justification” connected to salvation? What does “sanctification” look like in our day-to-day lives? The Bible uses some powerful words to describe God’s plan to save mankind. However, these words are not always easy to understand, especially when they are not part of our everyday vocabulary. This book explores key Bible terms that unlock the message of the gospel.
Big Words in the Bible examines five important words – Propitiation, Reconciliation, Sanctification, Justification, and Resurrection – using plain language to see how the Scriptures describe these concepts and how the apostle Paul employs them in his letter to the Romans. This book also contains an appendix with eleven additional articles to explore these topics further.
Whether you are new to the Bible and want to grow in your understanding or want a simple way to explain these core gospel doctrines to others, this book will be helpful. With a focus on the Scriptures, Big Words in the Bible helps break down these fundamental topics to shed light on the life-changing message of the gospel and the salvation found in it.
Available in print and digital format.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
If you have further questions about using any of the material on this site, please contact me.