Ironworks

All posts from the ironworks21 blog are being transferred to our new website www.ironworkspress.org . On this website, we will continue creating new content as time passes. This is a collaborative work of two faithful Gospel preachers. The purpose of Ironworks is to produce sound material for congregations and individuals alike to glean spiritual truths. It is our prayer that the writings and other materials presented on this site will be helpful to you and bring glory to God. We also have partnered with the Scattered Abroad Network on several podcasts https://scatteredabroad.org/. Conformed or Transformed: Issues Hindering the Church by R.D. Beavers and Matt McBrayer https://www.amazon.com/Conformed-Transformed-Issues-Hindering-Church/dp/B0B8RHW6P1/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.P9LQHMkdfZMy61BkcOsO-zxhIPy67BkbN37eayZML4aa4Y-Usr4EA66qo3Hudpprgw_byeSjJjwJypqtyJbVXdJFLmeheMyHxvQ90OgJOAkV2jjs_fiqhxMrxQGwNgcG.S6-6nTRLDhxV258e-UUqdFFBQp7pyaRoL1hzra...

    How can I rejoice in tribulation? It seems that tribulations would steal any possible joy for those undergoing them. Paul recorded these words, “ And not only so, but we also rejoice in our tribulations: knowing that tribulation worketh steadfastness; and steadfastness, approvedness; and approvedness, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). It takes a different perspective to be able to receive this word. The Reality of Tribulation Jesus explained to His disciples that tribulation would certainly come. However, He offered them something more, Jesus said, “ These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye may have peace. In the world ye have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).  There is assurance in the fact that Jesus told His disciples that the things which He spoke were given so that they might have peace. Why do we avoid the peace that is offered in the Word of God? We want something else to find peace. We tend to believe that a world ...

            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 p...

            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...

  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...

     The five previous weeks we have discussed how to become saved and stay saved. While this subject is fresh in our minds, let us reflect and seek to understand what forgiveness is. The need for forgiveness necessitates the perfect sacrifice of the Messiah, Jesus. Without forgiveness of sins, we remain in sin and hopeless. So with regard to forgiveness, how must we as Christians forgive those who have sinned against us? Some have attempted to look at Matthew 6:14-15 to justify forgiveness as a purely one-sided transaction. The text reads,  “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Does this mean that one forgives regardless of repentance or is forgiveness unconditional?  Repentance is Always a Prerequisite of Forgiveness There has been an error taught in the world including many denominational groups, that has begu...

Our next item that is up for dismantling is the false doctrine of Irresistible Grace. This, like every other element of Calvinism, is dependent upon the doctrine of Total Hereditary Depravity, which we have dismantled previously. I still want to present the case on why the doctrine of Irresistible Grace does not stand up to the test of the Scriptures.  What Is the Doctrine of Irresistible Grace? The Orthodox Presbyterian Confession of faith states,  "This effectual call is of God’s free and special grace alone, not from anything at all foreseen in man, who is altogether passive therein, until, being quickened and renewed by the Holy Spirit, he is thereby enabled to answer this call, and to embrace the grace offered and conveyed in it." What is the Logical Conclusion of this Doctrine?  The advocates of the doctrine of Irresistible grace contend that because man is so depraved that he cannot do anything good whatsoever, he must be kidnapped and forced into salvation with Go...

       “I am so busy,” I said. I have this habit of letting life push me around with the various things that have to be done. Then I remembered that God has called busy men throughout all of time. I remembered that busyness nor tasks are an excuse to the Lord God.  “Now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the back of the wilderness, and came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb” (Ex. 3:1)      God called Moses, who was busy with the flocks of his father in law. It sure would have been easier to keep his eyes to the ground, keep his eyes on only the sheep and not the burning bush.  He could have said, “No, too busy.” However, he looked and listened and the children of Abraham received a great prophet.  “And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send a...

“And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” 1 John 4:16-18 Are you ever afraid? I think we all have answered yes during certain seasons of our lives. Fear is certainly one of the most effective tools of Satan. He uses fear to control men. He uses fear to propagandize men. He uses fear to keep Christians from being faithful. Fear realistically disables our ability to love God, and we find ourselves in a vicious cycle of living in fear rather than living in Christ’s love.  Fear is the antithesis of love. The ideas stand over and against each other like David and Goliath facing off before battle (1 Sam. 17). David was a young man stan...

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned.Mark 16:16  The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  2 Peter 3:9   But God commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8  Is Your Name in the Bible?      When you read these passages, what do you think about first? I imagine that you would consider the magnificent grace of the Lord which He extends to you. I suppose you would have feelings of appreciation for the patience that God extends to you. To do all these things would be to make an assumption that each of these verses applies to you. You are not wrong in...

But Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah”  Genesis 6:8 The fact of the worldwide flood is instrumental to our understanding of God’s desire to save man. We learn this story from our parents, we discuss it in our Bible classes, and occasionally we hear a sermon mentioning it. Have you considered that this is but one example of how grace, faith, and obedient works are critical in salvation?  Grace  When we look at Genesis 6:8, we see that Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah. The Hebrew word ḥên is translated here as favor but is accurately translated as grace as well. God made an observation that the wickedness of men had caused every thought they had to be evil continually. It was so bad that the Lord changed His mind (repented) that He had made man, and it grieved Him. This is a far cry from the description of the creation being described as good. The choice of sin by each individual disfigures the goodness in which we are all created.  We fully employ ourse...

“Surely at the commandment of Jehovah came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did, and also for the innocent blood that he shed; for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood: and Jehovah would not pardon.”  2 Kings 24:3-4 Jehoiakim king of Judah was the son of Jehoahaz who chose to do evil and die in Egypt a slave of Pharoah-Necoh. Jehoiakim did not learn from this, and he chose to do evil in his own right (cf. 2 Kings 23:37). He, for a time, subjugated himself to Nebuchadnezzar but turned and rebelled against him (cf. 2 Kings 24:1). Nebuchadnezzar was not the only problem for Jehoiakim. Due to his rebellion, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Ammonites, and Moabites all came after him, and God said it would happen.  Jehoiakim chose this, God allowed the Punishment The sin of Judah was nothing new. It was an ongoing practice that was carried out by the king and his people. God was true to His Word, and, despite the warnin...

“We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. “   Galatians 2:15-17             Justification by faith and not by works of human laws is the principal theme of both the epistles to the Romans and the churches of Galatia. I recently began a textual sermon series over Galatians, and we have been exploring how quickly a congregation can find itself in danger. One of the chief threats came from the Judaizing teachers who had made their way down to Galatia at that point and were trying to bind the wo...

         For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all . James 2:10 A recent headline said that the baseball team awaiting the results of an investigation is possibly not as guilty as the other team that was already found guilty. Not as guilty ; what does that even mean?   Not as guilty still implies that there is guilt. For if there was no guilt, then that would be innocence. That would mean complete exoneration. This would certainly be my preference for anyone accused falsely and never to be deemed "not as guilty." When James wrote to the early church, some were trying to bind parts of the Old Covenant on Christians. Several Judaizers in the early church wanted to bind parts of the Law of Moses on new converts of the Gentile persuasion. Paul wrote,  “ Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage...