John 3:16 is one of the most well-known verses in the Bible. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” This passage has been used by many to downplay the importance of baptism and obedience all together. Is belief all that is needed to be…

What an amazing Vacation Bible School we had this year! Our Lord was certainly glorified by this incredible event. While this is certainly true every year, something felt extra great. It was the Christians that made it happen. So many hands played vital roles in making VBS special this year. Whether we are talking about the planning team, the decorators, the kitchen…

We are learning how to understand the Bible. In this series, we have been looking at the way God authorizes in the Scriptures. God gives us direct commands and He gives us implied commands. But, there is one more way in which God authorizes. Throughout the sixty-six books of the Bible, God gives us a tremendous amount of examples of how men…

In Part 1 of this series, we learned that in order to understand the Bible, you need to know some principles of interpretation. The first principle is that God speaks with direct commands. However, this is not the only way God gives us commands. The next principle is implied commands. These are directives that God gives us that logically follow from the…

How do you know you’re interpreting the Bible accurately? Do you need a preacher’s opinion? Do you need a traditional interpretation? Or do you need a single elected man in a seat of authority to give a definitive answer? Now, there is definitely great value in asking a trusted Bible teacher for help. In Acts 8:30-31, when Philip asked the Ethiopian eunuch…

One of my favorite songs we sing in worship is “Humble Yourselves.” It is extremely simple, focusing solely on a single phrase in each verse. As we join together to sing, we admonish one another to know our place in the presence of the Almighty God. You may already be aware that the lyrics to “Humble Yourselves” comes directly from Scripture. In…

We’ve seen it more times than we can count. A great public tragedy will strike our nation, and we don’t know what to say but we want others to know that we care. Often, we fall back on a phrase that is tried and true: “Thoughts and prayers.” In an instant, we communicate our sympathy and faith that God is watching over…

If you had siblings like me, there may have been a time or two when you got in trouble and shouted, “My brother made me do it!” Quickly, we found out that was not an excuse, even if our brother egged us on. We are responsible for our actions. The Book of Ezekiel tells of Israel’s impending punishment. Because they did not…