Ironworks

            Does almost count? There are a good amount of people that would think so. If you have ever had employees that you have managed, you would be familiar with this idea first hand. Over the years, I had many employees that were almost on time. Perhaps the most telling was a young man who worked for me whom we will call Pete. Pete was one of my line cooks who was scheduled quite often to open. I enjoyed working with Pete, he was a hard worker, and fun to be around. When it came to opening, the company policy was that there must be at least two employees present to enter the building. Pete would not show up on time, but was consistently 5-10 minutes late. He would even at times say, “I almost made it on time.” I tried all sorts of approaches to getting him to show up on time, but he rarely was there at 8, if ever. Our conversations usually ended with “sure boss, I’ll try.” I suppose he was almost persuaded. However, does almost count? Why do so many people who sit by and hear

         Can a Christian celebrate a secular Christmas? This is a good question and one that deserves an honest answer. This week I read the following, “If you don’t talk about Jesus at Christmas time, you miss Jesus. If you do not sing those scriptural songs focusing on Jesus, you miss Jesus. You might have grown up in a church where “Christmas” was a “Jesus-free” day.” These were some accusations leveled against some brethren by a well-known preacher in our brotherhood. In this article, I wish to set the record straight on how it is rather simple to celebrate a secular Christmas and it not be a “Jesus-free” day. I contend that no day is “Jesus free” for a New Testament Christian.            First, this brother accuses the church “of not knowing what to do with Christmas. They celebrate it in their homes, but avoid it at all costs in church.” I contend that the preachers who preach the whole counsel of God know what to do with Christmas. Preachers must correct false notions, including

                  A brother once shared the results of a Swiss study on factors in children’s attendance of religious services. The study showed that two-thirds of all children will attend religious services at least sporadically if their father attends regularly. Two-thirds will not attend religious services if their father never attends. Why is this that a father has such a great influence? We cannot deny the results but perhaps we can better understand.            Have you ever looked at a child and said, “he looks like his dad.” it is pretty easy to tell if we can look at a man’s son and see the physical likeness? We might also notice the family resemblance in a child's mannerisms. Also, one tell-tale sign of a father is a child's attitude. Fathers love hearing about the good qualities that are seen in their children. It is a sense of great joy when the good is seen. One thing I know is that anyone who is in Christ has the best Father. We as His children can work everyday

            It is ironic when individuals who claim to be in resistance maintain the very thing they say they are so ardently against. Can you imagine if you say you are resisting, yet your behavior reflects the opposite? This is evident in the world, and it is no less hypocritical when Christians display this behavior.  Resist the Source of Wars (James 4:1-3) The average person finds it difficult to resist the source of their detriment. The source of wars/fights among the brethren has the same source. James writes that pleasures are the source of these missiles of treachery. The Greek word hēdonōn, where we get the word hedonism, signifies that the origin of troubles is simply a desire that is of a sensual nature. When we sin against the Lord and one another the origin is our desire for our pleasures and our motivations over the will of God. We lust, kill, covet, fight, and war and yet we cannot obtain the very thing we say we want. How is it possible to resist the source of wars if

  A true mirror does not lie. It is not a broken mirror that distorts the reflection of the one who gazes into it. It is not a fun house mirror that distorts our height or width. It is not a mirror that is to be looked at from diagonally above, which makes it seem like it has disappeared. A true mirror is intended for one to stand in front of and look into, reflecting a true image. The Bible is the truest of mirrors. James recorded, "For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a mirror: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But he that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing."  (James 1:23-25) The Bible is a mirror of the soul. When we look into the Bible, we each learn to look for the needs of our souls. When we look into the Wo

            Jesus said, And he that doth not take his cross and follow after me, is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10:38). Each must consider how costly this proposition truly is in light of the Scripture. Upon consideration, we understand that New Testament Christianity is an active religion abounding in commitment to the Christ. Shall we consider the cost of taking up our cross to follow Jesus? It will Cost Your Confession Leading up to this command, the Lord made statements to show the prerequisites of carrying the cross. He made it clear in Mathew 10:32-33 that one cost would be confession of Christ before men. The Greek word for confess used here is homologesei, which means to speak the same thing. When we speak the same thing as Christ, we will affirm His doctrine and those of His apostles We cannot devolve into synthetic sectarian doctrine, but rather we must speak the message of Christ and Him crucified (cf. 1 Cor 1:23). Failing to do so is to deny Him. The Greek word for deny

Great and Precious           Have you ever considered the promises of God? The promises of God are far greater than we perhaps recognize. His promises are greater than the promise of return on our earthly investments. His promises are greater than the record projection of our favorite sports team. His promises are greater than those of our employers. His promises are exceedingly great and precious.  Peter recorded,  “Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue; whereby he hath granted unto us his precious and exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust.” (2 Peter 1:2-4) God provides all we need to live faithful and godly lives. Through His wonderful promises and our obe

        A preacher should preach with power, but what is that power? How does one preach with power? Think about what our desire for preachers tends to be. If you were to look at a listing where a congregation was looking for a preacher you would see several qualifications.            Brethren like for their preachers to be dynamic. Maybe they have a nice smile and look good standing in the pulpit. Maybe they are young and have a beautiful wife and kids (I know I do!). When they get up to preach they say all of the right things with great words of wisdom. It could be that right now you are thinking, “That is exactly what I want in a preacher!” These thoughts coalesce to make the quintessential preacher (at least in the minds of many). Is this what powerful preaching looks like?           While there may be some ideals here, what does make a powerful preacher? Specifically, where does one get this power? Can it be attained? Does it come from the preacher? Let’s ask a few questions to fi

          One of my hobbies is watching sports, both collegiate and professional. On occasion, I enjoy watching an event in person. One thing that I have always noticed is that at times there are empty seats. If a team is not playing well their fans do not fill the stadium or arena. If their team is winning by a large margin they may leave early to try and beat the traffic. Regardless, empty seats teach us one thing, the person who should be occupying it is missing. An Empty Seat At Home This time of year when families gather, there might be an empty seat because a family member has died. We are comforted, if our loved one was in Christ, that we can see them again (cf. 2 Sam 12:22-23). When a loved one passes away, we can remember the assurance that Christ is victorious over death. Paul recorded, “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22).  An empty seat at home may persist throughout the year for good reasons. Our children grow and they ma

A very common question that is asked is, “Will we know each other in heaven?” This is a wonderful question that the Bible answers. To begin, it would be important to recognize that heaven will be the home for the church that belongs to Christ eternally. When we consider this, we think about our brethren who have lived faithfully (cf. Rev. 2:10; 1 John 1:7, Mark 13:13) and have died. We might miss them in this interim time, and thus hope to see them again. That is a wonderful thought, is it not? We spend our lives together with our Christian spouses, children, and brethren. We worship with, pray with, and serve with these individuals throughout our lives. Would it be wrong to want to have a continued fellowship with one another in eternity?  There is Comfort in God’s Word Concerning Heaven The Thessalonian Christians in the first century were concerned about those of their number who had passed. Listen to what the Spirit said,  “But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerni

“Faithful is the saying, and concerning these things I desire that thou affirm confidently, to the end that they who have believed God may be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men: but shun foolish questionings, and genealogies, and strifes, and fightings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain. A factious man after a first and second admonition refuse; knowing that such a one is perverted, and sinneth, being self-condemned.”  Titus 3:8-11 Profit and loss are two common things that we consider when it comes to enterprise. Many retailers look forward to a day that has been called “Black Friday.” That day is not as ominous as it sounds, unless perhaps you have worked in the retail business. Black Friday is called this, because many retailers hit the black (signifying profit) after this big business day. Before this day, many businesses could find themselves in the red (signifying loss) for part, if not all, of the year. The church that

          Every organization has a purpose. The purpose of a restaurant is to serve food to their customers. The purpose of the electric company is to keep the lights on. The purpose of the mechanic is to perform maintenance or repairs on their customers’ vehicles. The purpose of the Congress is to enact legislation. The purposes of the aforementioned organizations are described in perhaps their company bylaws with the latter being described in Article I of the United States Constitution.           The church is an organization of divine origin, thus it must have a divine purpose. The church is the only authorized institution in the New Testament; thus, every work that God has called men to do is worked out through the church's actions. We must go to the handbook and constitution for the church (The Bible) for the purpose of the church.  What is Not the Purpose of the Church?           The purpose of the church is not to bring glory to men. The church does not grant social prestige

Where is the White House? We might  be quick to answer that it is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington D.C. United States of America. That is relatively easy for many people. The White House was commissioned to be built at that location in the late 18th century and remains occupying its 18 acres despite being burnt by the British during the War of 1812.  The next question might be very difficult for some in this world. Where is the church of Christ? This one for some may be a much more difficult question to answer. There are 4500 denominations of Christendom. Can one of these be the church which Christ built? Jesus said,  “And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:18-19