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(An appreciation of those who have gone before us to pave the way for gospel preachers. This article was written by Winfred Clark, a faithful gospel preacher who passed on to his reward on August 11, 1997. His words are still encouraging gospel preachers to this day.) This is a statement made by the Lord to two of the disciples of John (John 1:35-39). He has just pointed them to the Christ saying: “behold the Lamb of God that taketh…

While no one ever wants to get sick, seven hundred miles from home is certainly not where you would choose for it to happen. But that is exactly what happened to Epaphroditus. And he wasn’t just sick – in fact, he almost died. He risked his life to complete the mission entrusted to him by his home church of Philippi. When he recovered, he began to worry – not about any residual effects from his sickness, but about the folks…

“No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear.” “I thought I could describe a state; make a map of sorrow. Sorrow, however, turns out to not be a state but a process.” – C.S. Lewis In moments of great despair, a deep breath, a good cup of tea, and a wandering novel often help pass the time that causes so much pain. But it is the moments in between – while making the tea, sitting down…

There’s more to being a Christian than talking about Jesus or rejoicing in being “saved.” Too often we emphasize our personal, “vertical” relationship with Jesus without thinking how that should affect our “horizontal” relationships with others, where life can be very complicated. Ephesians has some close-to-home application here, teaching that the reason for submitting to one another is “out of reverence for Christ.” Explaining Jesus’ command that we “love one another,” some have stated that “Where love reigns, there is…

Psalm 70 :4-5 – May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you! May those who love your salvation say evermore, “God is great!” But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay! We’ve gathered in the name of the God who is great, who rewards those who diligently seek him (Hebrews 11:6). He has made known to us the path of life; in…

Paul saw himself as a steward. Paul saw Timothy as his responsibility. You can see this in his encouragement to Timothy in chapter 1 and verse 18 and following. He urges Timothy to fight the battle well. He knows that Timothy must do that, but Paul sees it as something he should bring to Timothy’s mind, Paul is building Timothy up in the faith. Paul is using his role as the opportunity to tell the young preacher to keep fighting.…

The awesome responsibility of being a father has been laid upon countless men throughout the ages. Men continue to struggle, many becoming successful fathers, some not. One way that men can be sure that they’ll do the best job possible when it comes to leading the family is to include God and His instruction. Nothing is more important than a godly father. Those of us who were blessed to have fathers that feared and served God, can easily see the…

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers represented in our audience today. We certainly hope that you have a wonderful day and are able to be surrounded by family. As we gather to worship today, our morning lesson will focus on a mother from the New Testament that everyone should be able to learn from. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was not perfect by any means and certainly had her moments of struggle, but it is vital to remember the…

Come and let’s study the “grace of Christ” today! We have such an awesome privilege to serve the risen Lord. We have been called to live in His grace. We all look like Paul, who was also called to live in the grace of Christ. In our chapter examination we will find some obvious clues of what an incredible life he found in Christ Jesus. We will celebrate the life that the power of the grace of Christ can produce.…

“Because I said so…” “I am the parent, you are the child. Never forget that.” “If you don’t stop, I am going to lose it.” “I brought you into this world and I can take you out.” These are all phrases used in the Hollywood representation of parenthood. Sadly, I admit that most of these have been used in my house. It is a tough thing to be a parent! Remember that you are human and so are those children…

“I can’t get enough,” is a phrase we hear, or say occasionally, about certain things we are interested in. Someone might say, “I can’t get enough money,” “I can’t get enough land,” or “I can’t get enough of sports.” Do we ever use this phrase speaking about spiritual things? For example, have we ever said, “I can’t get enough of God’s word?” Knowledge of God is more important than knowledge of worldly things. Knowledge of God should be a priority…

Our house is our refuge. In some cases, it becomes like a medieval castle where we raise and lower the bridge for those that are invited into our highly protected area. We treat our houses as showpieces, as places of protection, and ultimately, as the most important physical part of our earthly life. Our financial situation testifies to that, as does our attention. However, within the physical structure of the house, there can be nightmarish homes. The emotional, mental, physical,…