Ironworks

Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. Psalm 112:1 The LORD is mighty; He is great; He is above all things. With His mighty voice, He spoke the Heavens and the Earth into existence. There is none like Jehovah. He formed man out of the dust, in His image, and He breathed life into him. The LORD is Holy, He is righteous, He is just. The Psalmist wrote blessed is the God-fearing man . This is not like the fear of encountering something dangerous, like when you are walking in tall grass in the summer, and you might be petrified of a snake.   When the Psalmist wrote these words, he was not thinking of creepy crawly things that might hurt or kill based on a perceived threat. He used fear as an adjective to describe the status of the way a God-fearing man will live.   In fact, that state of being, coupled with delighting in God's commandments, is not a source of worry, but of blessing. Unfortunately, ...

Last Sunday morning, I preached on the subject of alcohol. It was presented to show that no bit of alcohol is safe, social, or condoned by the Bible. I felt it necessary to share a few more answers that are often cited as possible contradictions to God’s command regarding alcohol consumption. In 1 Tim. 3:3 some of the qualifications of Bishops (Elders) are given. It is written that the elder is not to be given to wine. Yet, in verse 8, we find that for a deacon to be qualified, he must be not given to much wine (cf. 1 Tim 3:8). This presents a potential problem for many who are confused. Yet, if we remember, a warning against excess does not approve the action in and of itself. Consider Ephesians 4:26. Paul writes, “ Do not let the sun go down on your wrath.”  Does that mean that wrath is okay to be practiced before sundown? By the logic of the social drinking proponent, it must. If we go a little further in the same passage, we find a description of the Godly wife of a deaco...

In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  John 1:4-5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.  1 John 1:5 In Him . Do you realize the significance of this phrase? In Him, the Christian finds all that they are. In Him, the lost find life. In Him, the Lord has chosen who will be saved (cf. Gal 1:4). Not in an individual sense, but that all those who are in Christ Jesus will be saved by the status of being in Christ Jesus.   Paul wrote in Galatians 3:26-27, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” One important facet of being in Christ is being in the light. This is Christ defined. His light shineth in the darkness, while yet the darkness could not understand it. Despite the darkness, we who are in ...

But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. Mark 13:32-33            No one knows the day nor the time. In a moment's notice, the Lord could very well return. At the time you are reading this, are you ready? If you have obeyed the Gospel, that is great; there is nothing like the assurance that we have fought the good fight and remained faithful unto death, quenching fiery darts of the devil (cf. 2 Tim 4:7; Rev. 2:10; Eph. 6:16). There are so many things that we can do to be ready: we can study, we can sing, and we can teach others. But, Jesus reminds us of two other critical elements of our preparation for the coming of the Lord. Take ye heed, watch and pray.            Watching carries the idea of anticipation. God desires that we will watch...

For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.  1 Cor. 9:19-22 What are you willing to give? That will be the question that is posed repeatedly in the new sermon series. It has been laid out last month that God is the great provider, Jehovah Jireh, who has lavished us with a grace that can cover all of our sins. Considering that, how can we give and be better givers? The first thing we can do is give up. I know that is not the most common of encouraging phrases, but it is truly per...