Many people today, including some Christians, have a view of the church that does not harmonize with the view that Christ had (and would have us to have) toward the church. The church is often viewed today as something that is “optional,” or as a “crutch” for those who are weak-minded, or as a “charitable organization” that takes donations, or as a…
Let's Go Back to the Bible
Let's Go Back to the Bible
Posts by David Sproule (Page 57)
In one of the lengthier psalms, David extolled all that the Lord had done for him. The Lord “saved” him (Psa. 18:3), “heard” him (18:6), “flew upon the wings of the wind” for him (18:10), “thundered from heaven” for him (18:13), “took” him (18:16), “drew” him out of danger (18:16), “delivered” him from the enemy (18:17, 43, 48, 50), “supported” him (18:18), “delighted”…
The word “worthy” means “having worth or value; of commendable excellence or merit; deserving attention, respect, admiration.” Read those words one more time. Then think about the words of Psalm 18:3 – “I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised.” Our Lord is WORTHY to be praised! There are many reasons for that, but note the ones that David emphasizes in…
As Jesus hung in agony on the cross, they offered Him “sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink” (Matt. 27:34). The word “tasted” there is not hard to figure out. It is the same word found in John 2:9, when the master of the feast “tasted the water that was made wine.” …
When faced with challenging situations in life, it is a good practice to ask, “What would Jesus do?” An even better practice is to ask, “What did Jesus do?” When considering what Jesus actually did, consider also what Jesus did not do. When Jesus was put on trial and even while He hung on the cross, Jesus was “mocked” (Matt. 27:29, 31, 41), “treated…with…
The epistle of First Peter was written to first-century Christians, who were dealing with pressures and persecutions from non-Christians. It was truly a “fiery trial” of their faith (1 Pet. 4:12) that they were facing. How could they deal with these “various trials” (1:6) and overcome them? The book is filled with imperatives, as Peter provides direction to defeat the devil’s efforts (5:8), but his…
We read about people being baptized in the New Testament and it creates within us a desire to also be baptized. We read about Jesus and the apostles teaching people to be baptized in the New Testament and it prompts us to want to be baptized. So, as long as I was baptized (i.e., fully immersed in water), does it really matter…
Imagine for a moment that there was a person living in the city of Philippi in the first century who decided to visit the church one Sunday. This person walked in and asked, “What kind of church is this?” If you were there in the first century and heard that question asked, would it strike you odd? Think about it. In the first century, there was…