Came across an old highlight while reading this morning. It’s a wonderful reminder of what biblical balance looks like. “The Paul of Romans 1 who speaks of the sad state of society is still able to love and connect with that society in Acts 17.” In sum, Paul directly engages the current culture. He does … Continue reading Paul’s Biblical Balance →

I made a ChatGPT using the freely available documents of his blog posts (created by Bryan Mistele and found here1). You can try it out at https://chat.openai.com/g/g-urVhrFxWs-the-michael-s-heiser-archive. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/zJHpxvaix4ndbsiX/?mibextid=K35XfP ↩

It’s that time of year again where I read a familiar passage and try to imagine what it must have been like. My Bible reading plan does not always finish with as many checkmarks as I would like, but towards the end of Genesis, chapter 45 gets me every time. (Trying out an English Septuagint … Continue reading Is your family a train wreck? →

At the judgment seat of Christ, little acts of love, kindness, and concern will be manifest for what they truly were—infinite acts of love that flowed from the heart of God through weak human vessels to other eternal souls. So don't discount the importance of closet prayer, personal encouragement, discreet charity, and brief gospel discussions… … Continue reading Little is Much →

December 17, 2023 Adult SS Class Introduction Example from school. Some places have very clear requirements that they may not even follow. Other places may have very vague requirements that do not help. God’s requirements in this passage are very clear… What does God require Verses 1–5 We are servants that belong to God because … Continue reading 1 Corinthians 4: The Service and Servants of God →

What would it look like if one single-focused person gave their entire life for a group of people in a small part of the world, driven by love and God’s glory, not seeking attention, speaking in a way the regular people would listen to, striking up conversations with the forgotten and the outcasts, not caring … Continue reading A nobody in nowhere →

If there are times in your life, Christian, where you cry out to God, "Why, why, why, why, why" and he doesn't answer but only silently listens with love and without judgment… It might be to prepare you for a time years later when another Christian asks you, "why, why, why, why, why" and you'll … Continue reading I Know How You Feel →

When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he didn’t jump right on their faults. He didn’t go straight to their fornication or misuse of spiritual gifts. He didn’t run to the cultural offerings of their day, and he didn’t start the letter with the Lord’s Supper or even the future resurrection… When Paul wrote to a … Continue reading Compassion for Corinth →

December 10, 2023Adult SS Class Introduction Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? How many of you have heard those questions before? There’s a good reason and a not so good reason to hear why over and over again. Connection Perhaps you have heard a child or teenager ask why, you answer, and they ask why again. … Continue reading 1 Corinthians 3: A Better Way to Build →

If you saw their eyes dry would you know they’re really crying If you saw them struggling would you say they really weren’t trying If their life was falling apart would you quietly listen Or would you quickly tell them a quick way to fix it If they kept going on and on would you … Continue reading If →

December 3, 2023Adult SS Class Impact Capture their attention. When is the last time you looked at your high school yearbook? What would be the top few things, without even looking, that you know we would find if we were to open one up this morning? Crazy hairstyles? Strange clothing styles? There would be no … Continue reading 1 Corinthians 2: The Wisdom of Christ Crucified →

Paul's Pattern of Thanksgiving: a summary of Paul's introductions. This is a sermon I preached on Sunday night at Gethsemane Baptist Temple on November 26, 2023. I looked at how Paul began each of his church letters, and then I showed that the way he departed from that pattern in Galatians shows what he is … Continue reading Got to Preach this Weekend →

The greatest rivalry is not Carolina vs. Clemson or Ohio St. vs. Michigan. It's not the Lakers vs. the Celtics in the 80s or the Pacers vs. Knicks in the 90s. The greatest rivalry is in the Christian's heart, where there's a daily (who'm I kidding, an hourly and minute by minute) battle of our … Continue reading O wretched man that I am! →

Sunday, November 26, 2023Adult SS Class Introduction Capture their attention. As men, we should be willing to admit that our wives know more than we do. I recently overheard my wife teaching Emma-Faith about a math subject. She was talking about “solving for x.” I took one look at it and realized that after being … Continue reading 1 Corinthians 1: The Solution for Division →

Sunday, November 19, 2023 Adult SS Class Impact This week Jimbo Fisher was fired and will get paid almost $27,000 a day to not coach. Over 70 million dollars. A while back, he and Nick Saban got into a spat regarding recruiting ethics. With all of that turmoil, it was surprising this week to read … Continue reading Introduction to Corinthians →

Christian, Since God sustained you last night and woke you this morning, he has a plan for you today. You might get to the end of the day and be able to see some dramatic way he used you. And then with gratitude, mingled with a hint of pride, you'll thank him. Better, he might … Continue reading Is God using our lives? →

”I think the wall we’ve made between the physical world and the spiritual world is a lot thinner than we realize.” In November 2021, I had another lunch with someone who knows the Bible as well as anyone I have ever met personally (Dr. Channing Crisler at Anderson University). During our conversation, he said one … Continue reading The Birthday Gift that Keeps on Giving →

The grass ain't greener on the other side Whatever you do don't believe his lies Cause he’ll only show what pleases the eyes So remember the grass ain't greener on the other side

Amen. Romans 8:28 is better experienced than explained. Only God can do that. And since we live by faith, he might not even explain it to us. Believing Christians have a hard time believing God is good when they are experiencing so many bad things. Physical illness, family p 83 dysfunction, emotional distress, natural disaster, … Continue reading “The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor’s Heart” by Harold L. Senkbeil →

Christian, don’t only associate, read, learn from, and listen to those you completely agree with. Doing so, you miss out on God helping you (a crooked stick) see straight lines drawn with other crooked sticks. Two decades ago, I had to agree with nearly everything in a book before I would read it (which is … Continue reading “The Beauty of the Mystery” →