Christian Origins #27 - Corinthians

Why do you suppose that Israelites, so very long ago, lived about as long as we do today with all our advances in science? The answer is pretty straig...

Christian Origins #26 - Corinthians

The Bible is a very down-to-earth book. It is written for men and women who actually have to live every day in this world—who have to deal with human...

Christian Origins #25 - Corinthians

It has to come as a surprise to find a Christian church—a Gentile Christian church—observing the Passover. The Passover is a Jewish festival, right? T...

Shared Suffering

When someone we know is touched by the death of a loved one, we can do what we can to help. But to be honest, there isn't a lot we can do besides pray...

The War Against Freedom

What’s really going on in the world? And what is this War on Terror really about. When you get to the basics, what people call terrorism is actually a...

Christian Origins #24 - Corinthians

If there’s one thing that is clear when you study the New Testament with an eye to the origins of the Christian church, it is that the apostles were n...

Christian Origins #23 - Corinthians

If a man sets out to convince an audience of the truth of his message, why would he not give it his best shot? Wouldn’t you normally think a man would...

Christian Origins #22 - Corinthians

The last time the Christian church was perfectly joined together, of the same mind and of the same judgement was nearly 2,000 years ago on that Pentec...

Christian Origins #21 - Acts

It is astonishing, when you think about it, how much hatred can be generated by religious beliefs. From the earliest times, Jews persecuted Christians...

The Foundation of Freedom

When Israel settled into the Promised Land at first, they enjoyed a time of freedom the likes of which no people had ever enjoyed up until that time....

American Prophets

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to a...

Christian Origins #20 - Thessalonians

Everyone knows the end of the world is coming. The only questions left are when and how. Scientists tell us that in 3 to 4 billion years our sun will...

Christian Origins #19 - Thessalonians

Is it hard to be a Christian? I suppose it depends on where you are and what you are doing. There are people in the world, right now, who are being sh...

Above and Beyond

The Law of God is a great gift. The 119th Psalm, in a way, summarizes our attitude toward the Law and our gratitude for it. It's a lamp to our feet. I...

The Courageous Christian

I’m always grateful when the news media gives credit to people who have done very brave things. It is so good to see these people and to hear what the...

Christian Origins #18 - Galatians

I know sometimes it is a little hard to grasp, but the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees was a matter of power and control. When this conflict...

Christian Origins #17 - Galatians

I know this may seem obvious, but it must be said: Christianity and Judaism are two very different religions. I think Jews know this better than Chris...

Christian Origins #16 - Galatians

Sometimes we answer questions too quickly, when we would be far better off saying I don’t know and waiting until we do. Nowhere is this more true than...

Christian Origins #15 - Galatians

Visualize a horizontal line. That line represents perfection in keeping the law. Everything below that line is sin. Everything above that line is righ...

The Fatherhood of God

The religion of the Bible is, for better or for worse, a patriarchal religion. A patriarchy can be defined as a form of social organization in which t...

Love and Law

It is a quirk of human nature that we don’t like to do as we are told. I have heard it said that you can surround a kid with toys, but tell him there...

Christian Origins #14 - Galatians

It is odd, don’t you think, that man is so dissatisfied with God? Seriously, we seem to think that we can improve on what he has done. It is one thing...

Christian Origins #13 - Acts & Galatians

It is almost funny, in reading thorough the life of the apostle Paul, how often his friends had to get him out of town to save his neck. Paul was a fi...

The Wrath of God

The title of this sermon may not inspire a lot of people listen to it. The title is The Wrath of God. I think it is fair to say that a lot of people d...

The Ten Commandments #9

You may have heard of the Ten Commandments. The first four commandments have to do with man’s relationship with God. The last six commandments have to...

Christian Origins #12 - Acts

When you read the New Testament, you really want to see a group of people united in purpose, thoroughly converted, working together for the greater pu...

Christian Origins #11 - Acts

Imagine that you attend a small church of, say, 50 people. You have been meeting together for quite a long time. You have a common set of beliefs and...

Christian Origins #10 - Acts

The very first Christian missionaries in all history were a couple of men named Saul and Barnabas. (We know Saul better as the Apostle Paul.) They had...

Christian Origins #9 - Acts

The greatest missionary church in history was established by men whose names we do not even know. No, it wasn’t Jerusalem, in spite of everything that...

Your God Is Too Small

There is very little in the way of direct revelation of a world that exists alongside our world. We get little glimpses from time to time in the testi...

Christian Origins #8 - Acts

I would not like to suggest the apostles of Jesus were stubborn or blockheaded, because that would not be fair. The transition they were having to mak...

Christian Origins #7 - Acts

You have to wonder about a man like Saul of Tarsus. Here’s a man that we will come to know as the apostle Paul—probably the strongest intellectual fig...

Adopted or Born?

Jews and Christians

How should Christians think about Jews? For that matter, how should Jews think about Christians? The relationship between Jews and Christians has been...

The Inward Man

Christian Origins #6 - Acts

There is a great divide between Christianity and Judaism. And it goes back a lot further than most people realize. It goes back way beyond Paul, and w...

Christian Origins #5 - Acts

I think it is fair to say that God used the power of the Holy Spirit to jump start the early Christian church.
They started with 120 members, th...

Christian Holidays #9

Of all the Christian holidays, the one that surprises me the most is Pentecost. It surprises me that every Christian does not observe it. After all, i...

Christian Origins #4 - Acts

I remember my first experience with power. It was behind the wheel of a 1948 Chevrolet. Granted, by today’s standards, that is not a lot of power, but...

Christian Origins #3 - Acts

Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was car...