It has been estimated that one third of the Roman population were slaves. Slavery was a common part of everyday life. If you went to the doctor, visited an accountant or bought goods in the markets, all of those jobs could’ve been done by slaves. There were slaves in every section of labor. Some worked in mines and quarries, in homes, farms,…

The song “Comfortably Numb” by the English band Pink Floyd was released in 1980 as a single with “Hey You” as the B Side. Roger Waters, the bassist for Pink Floyd, wrote the lyrics to the song in which he describes an event that took place at a concert in Philadelphia in 1977. He had a horrific stomachache due to nerves. A…

Oh, how much easier things are when you have examples.  When you are assembling something from Ikea for example.  You saw it in the store.  They had an example of a fully mocked-up room, and they showed you how the item could be used.  You buy it, take it home, and start the process of assembling the item.  The instructions are helpful,…

Have you ever sat and thought about the gospel of Jesus Christ? If you asked my grandfather what he did, he would say, “I am a gospel preacher.” He would say it with conviction and a smile. Here are some of his thoughts on the gospel of our Lord. The gospel means “good news.”  “I bring you good news of great joy…

The beatitudes are what introduce the Sermon on the Mount. They serve as a framework or a starting place for the hearers of the message. They also serve as a reminder of the basic characteristics of a follower of God. They teach us so much about faith. They teach us how faith begins poor in spirit, with mourning and meekness. They teach…

We are in a time where trust and acceptance of someone’s word is at a premium. It is difficult to find information that we know is true and won’t change. It should be obvious that God’s word can be a source of truth. In writing to Timothy and Titus, Paul included, “This is a faithful saying” before some of his inspired comments.…

What does it look like to be a Christian? Do I have to have special bumper stickers that go next to my kid’s honor roll announcement and my pollical affiliation sticker? How do I stand out from the sea of others that make claims of spirituality and general goodness? Before we get into what we look like, we must understand that a…

The letter to the church in Ephesus begins with a blessing. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3). Chapters one through three highlight some of those spiritual blessings, one of which involves our heritage in Christ. While most of us no longer…