Category Archives: Pastor’s Desk

Scripture Reference: Luke 24 Lost for an Explanation They found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. . . . They were greatly perplexed about this (Luke 24:2-4). … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Luke 24 That first day of the week, the three women, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, who was the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod’s household, Mary, the mother of James and other women with them rushed to the … Continue reading →

“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them” (Ephesians 5:6-7). False teachers had begun infiltrating the early church, … Continue reading →

Scripture References: Joshua 21:43-45; Act 13:26-33 From Last Lesson: God had spoken through Jesus and intended to continue doing so. God had promised the Messiah . . . God made good on the promise. We have the promise of God’s … Continue reading →

Scripture References: Joshua 21:43-45; Act 13:26-33 I have been concerned (and that is being polite), as many of my fundamental peers are, for some time at how in contemporary American Protestant preaching and, in particular, the high-profile media preaching, that … Continue reading →

Scripture References: Joshua 21:43-45; Act 13:26-33 From Last Lesson: The Lord is speaking to Joshua with these instructions: “Arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel. … Continue reading →

Scripture References: Joshua 21:43-45; Act 13:26-33 The issue is one of trust. Can we trust God? We live in a world that makes us ask that question, and asking it does not brand us as either disobedient or sinful. In … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Romans 1:16; 1 Timothy 1:8-14 Hope There’s a final reason why we can have confidence in the Christian faith. It provides us with a hope that will not die. The hope is expressed in two ways. First, we … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Romans 1:16; 1 Timothy 1:8-14 Needs There is a second reason why we don’t need to be ashamed of the Christian faith. It fulfills our most basic human needs. Though you could list a variety of “basic needs,” … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Romans 1:16; 1 Timothy 1:8-14 Promises – Continued The second important thing the Christian faith promises to do is to put you in a right relationship to others. The Christian church is an amazing institution, isn’t it? Our … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Romans 1:16; 1 Timothy 1:8-14 Promises To begin with, we can be proud of the Christian faith because it does not disappoint. By nature and experience we tend to be a suspicious people. For the most part, we … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Romans 1:16; 1 Timothy 1:8-14 “I am not ashamed of the gospel,” shouted the apostle Paul. He might not have been, but sadly, the truth is, most of us are. At school? At work? Or, the bridge party? … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Matthew 9:35-38 II. The Necessity of Enlisting the Layperson – Continued Satan’s strategy in our world today is to convince the laypeople of the church that Christianity is complicated, winning people to Christ is too complex, and only … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Matthew 9:35-38 I. The Waiting Harvest – Continued A Christlike Commission From Last Lesson: The five operations on the crippled boy were performed, and some two years later, the boy came back into the gymnasium. Sangster spoke to … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Matthew 9:35-38 I. The Waiting Harvest – Continued A Christlike Compassion When Jesus saw Matthew, He did not see a conniving, cheating, and thieving politician. Rather, He saw the writer of the first Gospel. When Jesus met Simon … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: Matthew 9:35-38 “No one cares for me” is the statement that many people in our world are saying. Hundreds of years ago, the psalmist wrote, “For there is no one who acknowledges me . . . No one … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 When it comes down to it, the cross was, after all, not an event outside the realm of politics. The largest, best-organized, and relatively most just empire in world history was executing a nonviolent Teacher … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 Some of the alternative understandings of what the cross is about are quite right in their place; others are more questionable. Yet none of them is appropriate if understood as a replacement, rather than a … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 The gospel of Christ is not obscure and deceitful. It does not ask for blind faith, faith without a reason, but it does ask for confession. It does not spare us the decision to recognize … Continue reading →

Scripture Reference: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 The cross of Christ later comes to have other meanings as well as the ones we covered in the previous part. It may be spoken about as penalty, as sacrifice, or as victory. But all … Continue reading →