On the first day of each week, Christians have the awesome privilege, as the focal point of our worship assemblies, to spend time reflecting on what our Savior did on our behalf.  When He instituted the Lord’s Supper, Jesus gave these instructions—“Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19). Christians have used various “methods” over the years to help them focus their…

Flying up to the Freed-Hardeman Lectures and sitting next to a young couple, I could tell they were a “couple” (and not brother and sister) by the way they were acting and talking to each other.  It was only a 50-minute flight, but I learned a lot about this couple. Initially, I was uncertain if they were college age or high school…

Why do churches of Christ sing a cappella in their worship?  Is it because they have always done it that way and, rooted in their tradition, they are unwilling to change?  Or, is it because they are rooted in the teachings of Scripture? Why do churches of Christ require immersion in water of a penitent believer in order to accept someone is…

When the Mission Sunday contribution was displayed on the screen at the end of our worship, there was a collective gasp of overwhelming joy, mutual accomplishment and calming excitement.  In the tremendous financial stresses under which we are living, expectations about Mission Sunday were uncertain, to say the least.  As such, the contribution amount displayed much more than a number of dollars…

In response to the first temptation that the devil threw at Him, Jesus taught the premier truth that must ring in the ears of every Bible student.  “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). The instruction in this verse is both fundamental and comprehensive.  It does not get any…

The death penalty was enforced in the Old Testament for what we would consider “heinous crimes,” such as murder (Lev. 24:17); kidnapping (Ex. 21:16); killing unborn children (Ex. 21:22-23); bestiality (Ex. 22:19; Lev. 20:15-16); adultery (Lev. 20:10); homosexuality (Lev. 20:13); rape (Deut. 22:25); and witchcraft (Lev. 20:27). God also condemned to death some acts in the Old Testament that we might consider…

In our Sunday morning Bible class series on “What God Wants,” we had an insightful study this past Sunday on “God Wants Your Worship.” (I encourage you to go to our website, listen to the class and download the PowerPoint slides.)  While we always have good discussions, I thought the comments made by folks in the class this last Sunday were particularly…

When one reads the accounts provided of the life of Jesus in the New Testament, the knowledge and respect that He had for the Old Testament Scriptures ought to impress upon us the same urgent need to increase our own knowledge and respect for God’s Word. Jesus believed the words of the Bible. When He taught about the resurrection of the dead,…