Ironworks

How do I get close to God? Have you ever wondered this? What is the reason that we contemplate this question? The society in which we live has further distanced itself from the Creator as the years go by. Many have attempted to substitute science, philosophy, or even psychology to fill the hole that sin leaves each in (cf. Rom. 3:23). Those studies have value and do help us understand much in this world, however, there is nothing that can fulfill our need to know and be in fellowship with our Creator. Science has failed to adequately explain our origin. Philosophy, try as it might, has failed to show us the best way to live a complete life. Psychology has failed to fully explain the mind of man. We do not need the scientist, philosopher, or psychologist to tell us who we truly are; we need the Creator. So if we perceive we have a need to get close to God, let us draw near. The Hebrew writer recorded these words, “Let us draw near with a true heart in fullness of faith, having our heart...

  In the last couple of weeks, I became aware of a young woman who made a video on a social media platform venting about a potential employee mocking her for asking for accommodations for her “time blindness.” Time blindness is defined by the Cleveland Clinic as, the inability to recognize when time has passed or to estimate how long something will take. In plain language, a person who is perpetually late to events with scheduled times (i.e. work). As you can imagine, many in the safe confines of the comments section had a field day with this preposterous notion. I realize this might be offensive to those who contend that being late is a medical issue. However, it is noted in the very same article, “Everybody has time blindness at times,” Dr. Manos says. “We all can get caught up in something and get ‘in the zone.’  There are many in this world that suffer from a condition I will call Bible blindness. On occasion, I engage religious people of the “faith-only” system. These...

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned.  Mark 16:16  Diagram           Mark 16:16 is one of many passages that confirm that baptism is one of the five steps in the Gospel Plan of Salvation that is applicable to all men. Some observations in the verse include the fact that both belief and baptism are coequals to be saved. The diagram below shows their correlation as well as the order of both belief and immersion for the purpose of salvation. Belief is an absolute prerequisite of baptism, and this is very well explained in the second section of the verse, for it is by disbelief that one is condemned. As noted before, it certainly takes more to be saved than to be condemned.  He____________________________________________________/shall be saved That______________________    /believeth                       ...

I have written about abortion in the past, and I will still write about it again for the rest of my physical life. However, this week I would like to draw your attention to the sanctity of life in a deeper focus. If a New Testament Christian will appreciate the sanctity of our lives they will consider how they live. Live Separately “Wherefore Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, And touch no unclean thing; And I will receive you,” (2 Cor 6:17) If my life is sacred, then I must come out and be separate from the paths that lead to destruction. I must be separate. To do this we must consider the types of places we go, the things we practice, the words that come out of our mouths, and the things that we watch. What we tolerate in our homes, and friendships can have eternal consequences. The danger of not being separate is becoming like the world. If we are not separate from evildoers, we find ourselves to be desensitized to evil. This is not to say that we...