From tssullivan at charter.net Fri May 20 11:07:00 2011 From: tssullivan at charter.net (T. Sean Sullivan) Date: Fri, 20 May 2011 11:07:00 -0500 Subject: [Biblemat] The Messenger Vol 006 Iss 021 Message-ID: <61393069663249FDBF04BEC46C557290@seansdesk> The Messenger 2011 Published Weekly by Main Street Church of Christ 306 West Main Street, Newbern, TN 38059 mainstreetcofc.com Bulletin Editor: T. Sean Sullivan VOLUME 006: ISSUE 021: May 22, 2011 Focused Commitment Introduction: We are over-committed these days. In our busy life we begin to live all of those old clich?s like: "Too many irons in the fire", "Too much on our plate", "We are burning the candle at both ends". With this busyness we can find very little time for the important things in life like family, friends, and relaxation; not to mention, the most important of all time occupiers-preparing our soul to meet its Creator (2 Corinthians 5:10). If we have too many different things occupying our time for God, we are going to busy ourselves right away from His promises. The Psalmist uses two words together, five times in chapter 119, that sum up his personal commitment to God. In verses 2, 10, 34, 58, 69, and 145, he uses the words "whole heart". No less than this is enough (Mark 12:30). We all need to reach heaven; we will not reach it without focus. Let's consider the focus that this goal requires We Must Focus Our Energy There are so many things in this life that claim to be important. "Things" that are more than willing to consume our time and energy; if we allow those things to distract us from the truly important issues of life we will be choked out and unable to succeed (Luke 8:14). Let's do some time management by reconsider our priorities. The question we must ask is, "What is truly important?" First and foremost, God is important. Our Creator is important: Without Him we would not exist. He has created us He maintains our world (Psalm 19:1-6). Religion is also important-searching for, and serving, our Creator is of absolute importance (Acts 17:24-31). We must seek to properly serve Him and glorify Him in our life (Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:17-24)-obeying His will (Matthew 7:21; James 1:17-25). Your soul is important! You are responsible for seek your own soul's salvation (Philippians 2:12). You, alone, will answer for the things you have done in this life, and results will be eternal (Matthew 25:31-46). All the rest you must figure out for yourself, not forgetting family, relaxation time, friends, etc. We Must Focus Our Commitment Your commitment to Christ will affect every part of your life. True happiness and contentment is not found in a partial commitment. Unless we are fully committed, we are missing out on the benefits. The benefits are clear. Think about the direction, which we desperately need (John 14:6). God provides direction in all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). We also are benefitted by support from our God who cares (1 Peter 5:7). God takes care of those who love Him (Proverbs 18:10; Romans 8:31-39). We also should not forget that when we all seek God's will we will receive support from brethren who care (Romans 12:1-15). What type of commitment does God require? Complete commitment! Paul is a good example when he depicts his commitment this way, "No longer I who live, but Christ lives in me" (Galatians 2:20). We must set our mind on this goal. James says the double-minded is unstable in all his ways (James 1:8) and then he says that the double-minded must be purified (James 4:8). If we set our mind on the goal of Heaven, we will succeed. Will today be the day in which you fully commit you life to God? We must put Him first (Matthew 6:33) and we must do His will (Matthew 7:21-23). Then committing, we must remain faithful to Him all the way (Hebrews 10:35-39). We Must Stop Procrastinating There are some very big battles in this life. Some of the most difficult to conquer are the quiet ones like procrastination. How many people know what the Bible says, believe it to be truth and still are not willing to apply the words to their life? So often, I have heard comments like, "I know I should, but.", "I know I shouldn't, but.", "I wish I could, but." We must know that excuses will not get us to our goal. Success is only found through application ("Give yourself entirely to it" 1 Timothy 4:15). Consider the record of Felix the Governor of Judea from Acts 24:24-25. Paul reasoned with him concerning righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come (He shared with Him the hope of the gospel). We learn that for "fear", not disbelief, Felix would not apply the words. Also consider King Agrippa, who heard the gospel and even though he knew, he would not apply the words (Acts 26:26-29). We learn from this that almost a Christian is not a Christian at all. The success s found in the admonition of James; we are told to "hear and do" the word (James 1:22-25). Do not continue to gamble with time-obey today. Conclusion: The psalmist speaks of happiness and contentment in the context of giving your whole heart to God. We must get rid of distractions. We must focus on our commitment to God. We must stop putting off fro later what we know we should do now. We are all busy with any number of things, how busy are we with the Lord's expectations? The time to reprioritize is right now, simply put God first and let everything else fall into line behind, you life will be better. Our goal of achieving Heaven requires focused commitment, is that what you have been giving it? Now is the time to do what you know is right. ~tss -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110520/116ca5a7/attachment-0001.html -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/gif Size: 7221 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110520/116ca5a7/attachment-0001.gif -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: The Messenger Email Bulletin 006 021.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 109939 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110520/116ca5a7/attachment-0001.pdf From thornhill1 at frontiernet.net Fri May 20 11:11:02 2011 From: thornhill1 at frontiernet.net (Thomas Thornhill) Date: Fri, 20 May 2011 11:11:02 -0500 Subject: [Biblemat] The Buckhorn Teacher - 5-22-11 Message-ID: <4DD69296.5000400@frontiernet.net> THE BUCKHORN TEACHER Published bi-weekly as a work of the *Buckhorn church of Christ *meeting at*13675 Hwy 341 Randolph MS 38864-9117*. /"Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching"/ *2.Tim.4:2*. Thomas Thornhill -- evangelist and editor -- 13675 Hwy 341, Randolph MS 38864-9117. Tel. 662-568-2960; Cell 662-419-5378. E-mail > The TV program "Speaking as the oracles of God" can be found on the internet<*w07bn.com>* *_Times of public worship services at Buckhorn_*. *Sunday Services: Bible Study -- *9 am. *Morning Worship *-- 10 am. *Evening worship *-- 6 pm. *Wednesday Service:* *Midweek Bible Study* - 7 pm. All are welcome to any and all services. *Vol.9May 22, 2011No.26* ** The dangers of Islam -No.2 ** It would be profitable to review the last issue of this paper for continuity on this subject. As seen in the previous article Muslims believe that Islam as revealed in the Qur'am (Koran) should be the universal theocratic religion of the world. So they seek to supplant every other religion. Muslims realized years ago that they would not be able to conquer the Western countries militarily and politically, but because of indifference the people would allow themselves to be infiltrated and perhaps conquered through "freedom of religion." We can see this happening at the present time all over Europe and America. Even though the majority of people in the Western countries still profess a belief in God and Jesus Christ they have very little knowledge and conviction about what they believe or why. While they "have a form (fluff without substance) of godliness they are denying its power (ability)" *2.Tim.3:5*. It hasn't changed their lives or their conduct. They do not allow God's word to transform and motivate them to practice Christianity. As Paul put it, /"they profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient and disqualified for every good work"/ *Tit.1:16*. Muslims use this lack of conviction and tolerance under the guise of "freedom of religion" to make great gains among the peoples of the Western world. They know that people who possess such little conviction of faith that they do not practice it can be easily persuaded to accept almost anything that pretends a semblance of religious belief in a higher being. Because of widespread unbelief, ignorance and indifference among nominal Christians for true Christian values some have formed an unholy alliance with Muslims termed "Chrislam." This movement seeks to unite so called Christians who profess to believe in God, Christ and the Bible with Muslims who believe in Allah, Mohammed and the Qur'am. But this cannot be. Jesus left no room for compromise. With Him it is an either or choice, one or the other, it cannot be both. He said, /"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad"/ *Matt.12:30*. Later Paul clearly condemned any compromise between true Christianity and any false religion, including Islam. He wrote: /"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols"/ *2.Cor.6:14-16*? " Because of people's tendency to compromise their faith, as in "Chrislam," Islam is making great inroads in America. Note the following quote I copied a few years ago from a Muslim paper. "Islam will become the predominant religion, although it may not become the only religion. We expect differences to exist for as long as the earth exists. Only Allah will settle the matter ... Although it is said that Christians are still in the majority I do not believe it. *They will have to prove it to me*. Right here in America we do not have a majority ofChristians, we havea minority of Christians. They just wear the Christian names they got from their fore- parents, but *they are not trueChristians* ... It iswonderful to know that we (Muslims) are the best religion and that we are in the majority." /Bilalian News/4/1/77. This statement should wake up Christians to the necessity of living the proper life and setting the right example. If the spread of Islam is to be stopped it must be done by people who not only talk the talk, but walk the walk. Christians must fight Islam as they do any false religion. Islam is a religion that denies the divinity of Jesus Christ and the inspiration of the Holy Bible. Any religion that denies the deity of Christ and the inerrancy of the word of God cannot be of God. But, even if we prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is truly God, manifested to man in the flesh, and the word of God is God's final, completed revelation to us, it will not refute Islam or any other false religion if those who claim to believe it do not live the life. Don't just say it, live it. Remember, /"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved and gave Himself for me"/ *Gal.2:20*. In my way of thinking one of the most dangerous tenants, if not the most dangerous one, of Islam is the denial of the deity of Christ. Christ's deity is the foundation for the whole of Christianity. This is evidenced by what occurred when Jesus asked His disciples; /"Who do you say that I am?"/ Peter answered for all by saying /"You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."/ Jesus then replied, /"Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" /*Matt.16:15-18.* We understand the rock to be the statement Peter made /"You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."/ Muslims know this is the foundation (bed rock) upon which Christianity rests so they attack the deity of Christ, not with a frontal attack, (a complete denial of Jesus Christ) but through compromise. They know it cannot be denied that Jesus lived, so they simply try to make Him into "a messenger" of God. They deny that He possessed the nature of deity while on earth, and never made the claim to be "The Son Of God," that He was simply "a servant and apostle of God" in the same sense as other prophets who lived before Him such as Moses. That is why Islam in an "antichrist" as we shall see in the next lesson. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110520/5dc28931/attachment-0001.html From J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com Sat May 21 03:57:00 2011 From: J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com (J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com) Date: Sat, 21 May 2011 04:57:00 EDT Subject: [Biblemat] A) GOD HAS SPOKEN Message-ID: <48912.4119bacd.3b08d85c@wmconnect.com> Brethren and Frfiends, Jim Sasser here. A very good Saturday morn- ing to each and everyone. May God bless you and yours. I will be away from my computer for a few days. I hope you miss me. Here is an article from my recent files. GOD HAS SPOKEN The Church Of Christ Is A Unique Body. It is ONE BODY made up of those saved by the blood of Christ (Acts 20:28; Eph. 5:23-27). CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS have been given in the New Testament as to how to become a member of that body (Gal. 3: 26,27; 1 Cor. 12:13. CHRIST is the Head of the church (Col. 1: 18), and He guides and directs it be the CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS of His teaching. Many religious people, along with many irrelig- ious people, foolishly charge God with a lack of wisdom by de- claring that He gave us a body of teaching that we cannot under- stand. God's instructions in righteousness is clear, furnishing the people of God completely unto every good work (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). FOR EXAMPLE: The baptism of the great commission, ad-\\ ministered by the teachers of the Word of Christ (Matt. 28:19,20) is water baptism (Acts 8:38; 10:47), and is "for the remission of sins" (Actys 2:38). It is by definition and illustration a burial in water (Rom. 6:3,4; Col. 2:12). "Newness of life," being "a new creature," FOLLOWS baptism (Rom. 6:4; 2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 3:26, 27). We cannot blame God for our failure to accept what He has CLEARLY stated. Instruction in worship for Christians toward God is also CLEARLY taught in the New Testament. Have you ever heard anyone say that local churches of Christ are sinning when they sing in their assemblies, pray to God in their assemblies, teach and edify in their assemblies, observe the Lord's Supper on the frist day of the week and give into the treasury of the local church on the first day of the week? The CLEAR INSTRUCTION of the New Testament places those who seek to please God under the complete authority of Jesus Christ. He is "Head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fulness of Him Who fills all in all" (Eph. 1:22,23). To act without His authority is to VIOLATE His authority (2 Jno.9) We "abide" in Him by abiding in His teaching (Jno. 15:1-8). Isn't tht CLEAR? --------- Gilbert Alexander. From J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com Sat May 21 03:57:02 2011 From: J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com (J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com) Date: Sat, 21 May 2011 04:57:02 EDT Subject: [Biblemat] S) HOLDING ON TO THE ETERNAL (3) Message-ID: <48914.25214ed1.3b08d85e@wmconnect.com> Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here. Here is the third installment of this particular study. Use to the glory of God. HOLDING ON TO THE ETERNAL (3) Our Faith Is Unshakable: -- We are "saved by grace, through faith" (Eph. 2:8). And it is through faith tht we "stand" in the grace of God (Rom. 5:1,2). But God's Word is the source of our faith: "So faith comes from hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ" (Rom. 10:17). Being human, we may fail that Word. But God's Word will never fail us. Being rooted in His Word, our faith is unshakable. As the psalmist said: "Thy Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee" (Psa. 119:11). During an era of great persecution against Christians, an old man by the name of Polycarp, 86 years old, stood by the side of a boiling vat of oil and was told that if he would deny Jesus, he could live. He replied: "Since I was a lad of fourteen, I have ser- ved my Lord. He has never denied me, why should I deny Him now?" So they burned him to death. But, like Abel (Heb. 11:4), "He being dead yet speaketh." They could not overcome his faith. His example still inspires men today, who say, "I wish I had so much to live for, and so much to die for." The world has forgotten those who killed Polycarp. But he is not forgotten. As John wrote: "This is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith" (1 Jno. 5:4). Ours is an unshakable faith that will see us through to victory. Our Hope Is Unshakable: -- Hope is "an anchor of the soul" (Heb. 6:19), that keeps us focused on eternity when the trials of Satan seem to engulf us. The sinner dies without hope. The Christian dies in the fulness of hope (1 Thes. 4:13). The theme of the 8th chapter of Romans is that, by faith, the Christian has hope that transcends all difficulties of this life: "There is there- fore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and death" (Rom. 8:1,2). Later in this chapter, the in- spired apostle tells us the Holy Spirit intercedes to the Father for us. And John says that Jesus is at the right hand of the Father to make intercession for us (1 Jno. 2:1,2). Hear his conclusion: "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered HIm up for us all, how shall He not also with Him freely give us all things?" (Rom. 8:31,32). Job trusted in God, in spite of the terrible things that came upon him. And when his "friends" tried to convince him that his suffering was not really worth it all, he said: "And after my skin, even this body, is destroyed, then without my flesh shall I see God. Whom I, even I, shall see, on my side" (Job 19:26,27). Our hope cannot be "shaken," when we believe God. (The last installment of this particular study will be posted immediately following this posting, because I will be away from my computer for several days, JWS). From J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com Sat May 21 03:57:03 2011 From: J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com (J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com) Date: Sat, 21 May 2011 04:57:03 EDT Subject: [Biblemat] S) HOLDING ON TO THE ETERNAL (4) Message-ID: <48917.227814ab.3b08d85f@wmconnect.com> Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here. Here is the fourth and final installment on this particular subject. Use to the glory of God. HOLDING ON TO THE ETERNAL (4) The Church Cannot Be Shaken: -- Since the church is the king- dom, and the kingdom is the church (Matt. 16:18,19), then the church cannot be shaken, or destroyed. This was promised by the Lord when He said: "I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" (Matt 16:18). The word "pre- vail" means "to overcome," Satan tries, but he cannot prevail against the chruch which Jesus built. Even though members of the church die, other members rise up and remian to carry on the work of the Lord in His church. So, from generation to generation, the church lives and thrives. The apostle Paul shows the victory of the faithful Christian. He says: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall trib- ulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Even as it is written: 'For Thy sake we are killed all the day long. We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us and gave Himself up for us" (Rom. 8:35-37). With all that Satan does, he, may think he has won. But note Paul's rebuttal to that idea: He says: "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any othr creature, shall be aboe to separate us form the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 8:38,39). If we have been "delivered out of the power of darkness, and trans- lated into the kingdom of the Son of His love" (Col. 1:13), that kingdom cannot be shaken. Nor can we, as long as we are in it. In this world of transition, much of it bad, we sometimes won- der if the prize is worth the struggle. But God assures us that it is. With the assurance that we are "Laying up for ourselves trea- sures in heaven" (Matt. 6:20), we press on. The Bible, the Word of God, that lives in my heart and yours, is indestructible. God's kingdom cannot be shaken, nor can the faith and hope of His people. Nobody can destroy your faith, because it is yours. That faith assures us that there is a Jesus, that He is our Savior. And it reveals to us that we shall see Him face to face. And with all of that, you know that life is beautiful because we have hope of eternal life with God and Christ and all the redeemed of all the ages. Do you have these five indestructible things in your life? Things that cannot be shaken, nor destroyed nor take away from you? Somebody paid a price for you to have them -- FREE! You cannot buy them, or can anyone take them away from you. You could not make them for yourself, nor improve upon them in any way. Jesus said: "I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one cometh unto the Father, but by Me" (Jno. 14:6). And to show the value of that, He said just before, "Let not your heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you; for i go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also" (Jno. 14:1-3). His promise is also "unshakable." Rely on it, live for it, and heaven will be your home. ------------ Clem Thurman in Gospel Minutes, Vol. 60, No. 11, March 18, 2011. From crxtra at gmail.com Sun May 22 08:36:58 2011 From: crxtra at gmail.com (Steven C. Harper) Date: Sun, 22 May 2011 06:36:58 -0700 Subject: [Biblemat] A> Goal-Seekers [3] Message-ID: <000e01cc1885$62ee4080$28cac180$@com> Goal-Seekers [3] For the past couple of weeks, we have considered the difference between churches whose elders and teachers set and worked towards goals for their congregations, and churches who had elders and teachers without any goals. As was illustrated in these examples, the difference is usually visible and notable, yet many who lead and teach in congregations often fail to see that they can make a definitive difference in the church and in the lives of those they lead and/or teach based on whether or not they set and strive for these goals. But there are others within the church who can also make an impact on just how effective a church can be. Preachers. In many churches, the man who is the preacher/evangelist is likely one of the most visible members of the congregation and, therefore, one of the most influential, by virtue of his words and deeds. What he does and says can go a long way in setting the tone for the whole congregation, if he has any influence on the members. If he is a hard worker who produces results, or if his teaching and preaching effectively reaches the listeners and are relevant to the congregation's needs, he can have a great and positive impact on how strong the congregation can be. On the other hand, the preacher is only one man - he cannot do it all. Sometimes, even the hardest working and most exemplary evangelist will make no difference on the congregation where he is simply because he happens to be a part of a congregation where the members have become lukewarm in their service to the Lord or are mostly immune to the truths that he teaches. Their hearts have become so hardened to the truth, they have become so lackadaisical towards their duties, and they have become so indifferent to the convicting words he speaks that it really doesn't matter what he says or does, they are not willing to change. So they do not change. As with the elders and teachers, though, the evangelist has been given the responsibility by Christ to "equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ" (Eph. 4:11, 12). It doesn't matter if the people are listening or not or responding or not [see God's charge to Ezekiel in Ezek. 2:1-7], he still must preach the word of God to them because it is what will equip them for every good work (2nd Tim. 3:16, 17). Paul's admonition to the evangelist Timothy was that he "set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" (1st Tim. 4:12), and that he "Persist in this" (v. 16). This command was not conditional upon whether or not the people heeded what he was saying or followed his example or not. In an ideal congregation, his words will be heeded and his example will be noted and followed, but we would be hard-pressed to find a congregation where every member was doing that. But, again, since we are talking about goal-seekers, let us once again compare and contrast a church whose preacher sets and strives to achieve goals, versus a church whose preacher does not. The church with a preacher who sets goals is one where there is a determined effort - a clear goal - to declare to the congregation "the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27) and to not withhold "anything that was profitable" (v. 20). This man will review his past lessons from time to time to ensure he is not spending too much time on any one subject or portion of Scripture in his lessons, and that he is not neglecting any other subjects or Scripture. He will also have a goal of getting to know each of the members so he will know their strengths and weaknesses and be able to provide for each one what he or she lacks. He knows that to be successful in equipping the saints, he must give them all the equipment they need and not expect that just because each individual will have to answer for himself, that he doesn't also have a responsibility to equip them. He knows not everyone will always listen, but that is not his concern; his goal is to preach "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth." He also knows that, to do that, he must have a daily goal of spending time in the word. He knows that he cannot preach what he does not know so he - like every disciple - must have the goal of growing "in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2nd Pet. 3:18); especially for him, he must know God's word thoroughly that he may be able to impart to others some helpful information from God's word about what He expects and how they should live. For him to accomplish this, he puts a great deal of effort into each lesson because his goal for each lesson is to impart some useful knowledge to the hearers so they may able to take something home with them that will help them become stronger, help them to live more godly, and to help them teach others, also. This man will also work closely with the elders, who also know each member personally and the congregation as a whole, and they will help each other to plan for the needs of the congregation and work together to figure out how to achieve those goals. The preacher does not try to be "the pastor" but allows the leaders to lead - and regularly exhorts them to do so - so he can devote time to his duty of equipping the saints through the preaching of the word. On the other hand, let's consider a congregation where the preacher has no goals. In this congregation, the lessons are often confusing or unclear as to the message, and are more often rambling, and repetitive. He is not shy to preach a lesson over and over, especially if he thinks they didn't listen the first four times he preached it. He takes no thought for the members of the congregation, but preaches whatever is on his mind, or whatever he could glean from the Internet on a Saturday night. His lessons lack conviction because he lacks conviction, and few who hear him would be convicted, either. This man will have no plans or goals for what he will preach, will spend little time in the word, and he will have little positive effect on the congregation. Since he has no goals, he follows the line of thinking that if they don't like it, the problem is with the audience and never himself; it's always "take it or leave it" when he preaches and, after awhile, even the strongest members begin to leave - and go elsewhere - because they are not being fed spiritually. His response to those who leave is a shrug of the shoulders, and a resumption of the aimless path he was traveling. Because he has no goals, there are none ever urged upon the congregation, either. Because he does not assume and acknowledge his responsibility to equip them, whatever faults they have are their own, and not his concern. Whatever lack of knowledge exists, he believes, is because "they aren't studying enough" and he doesn't see that he is partly responsible, too. Lessons are shallow, uninformative, dull, and lack any conviction or controversy. If there were any goal in his mind, it would be to simply hang on to his "job" as a preacher as long as possible. The church where the preacher/evangelist has goals will be one with members eager to fulfill God's word and who eagerly take it to others because they have been given the equipment and properly instructed how to use it. The church with a preacher/evangelist who has no goals will be wandering about aimlessly, unsure of what God would have them do, and unsure of even their salvation. Next week: All members. -- Steven Harper -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110522/6e3c2d9b/attachment-0001.html From crxtra at gmail.com Sun May 22 08:37:31 2011 From: crxtra at gmail.com (Steven C. Harper) Date: Sun, 22 May 2011 06:37:31 -0700 Subject: [Biblemat] A> Goal-Seekers [4] Message-ID: <001c01cc1885$685e9dd0$391bd970$@com> Goal-Seekers [4] For the past few weeks, we have considered the difference between churches whose elders, teachers, and preachers set and worked towards goals for their congregations, and churches who had elders, teachers, and preachers without any goals. As has been shown by these examples, the difference is usually visible and notable, yet many who lead and teach in congregations often fail to see that they can make a definitive difference in the church and in the lives of those they lead and/or teach based on whether or not they set and strive for these goals. As we consider the difference these named individuals may make, let us also consider the difference when every member sets and works toward spiritual goals. Every Member in the Church. I believe we all understand that the "ideal" or "perfect" church simply does not exist. That is not an expression of a defeatist attitude and it is not negativism run wild; it is simply a statement of the reality of the world in which we live. Just a brief look at the churches mentioned within the inspired Scriptures tells us that even the earliest churches had problems and/or shortcomings. That will most certainly always be the case because churches are made up of fallible - imperfect - people. It is when we start thinking we are "perfect" or "have need of nothing" (cf. Rev. 3:17) that we should start worrying. Charles H. Spurgeon once said, "The day we find the perfect church, it becomes imperfect the moment we join it." The imperfection in a church is not in the design or in the plan for its work, but in the people who comprise it. There is no church where all the members are perfect, where the preaching and teaching is perfect, and where the leadership is perfect; but there are many churches where these imperfect members are striving to be like their Lord and striving to keep His word simply because they love the Lord and are eternally grateful for what the Father and Son have done in making salvation possible to such imperfect people as they recognize they are. That said, we do not have to resign ourselves to failure simply because we are not perfect, or faultless. The fact that all men "have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23) did not prevent us from obeying the gospel and striving for the eternal reward, so our failures and shortcomings once we are a part of the Lord's church should not keep us from trying our best to be the church we should be, either. What will make the difference? If you have been reading these articles for the past few weeks, you should know the answer: goals. The greatest difference in the success and work of any church is going to rest on whether or not the members are setting and striving for goals. That may sound like a stretch, but let's once again consider the difference between churches with goals and those without goals. The church with members who set goals is one where there is a clear goal for every member, whether set by the individual or suggested by the leadership. It is only when every member realizes he or she is an integral part of the body that the body will accomplish the most it can accomplish. Such a church will be made of disciples whose desire is to always do their best and so they are constantly examining self (2nd Cor. 13:5) and constantly making sure there is no fault in self before looking to others (cf. Matt. 7:1-5). When faults or shortcomings are found - and it doesn't matter who points them out - they move quickly to resolve and eliminate the problems and to put in place a strategy for ensuring it does not happen again. As Paul used the analogy of the body in describing the church and its various functions carried out by the individual members, he taught that God had "arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as He chose" (1st Cor. 12:18). In the context, he was speaking of how God had specifically given spiritual [miraculous] gifts to the members to be used for a particular purpose. Since we do not have the same spiritual [miraculous] gifts, it is up to us to discover what our place in the church is, and then get firmly within our minds how we might best serve the Lord in that capacity. The church whose members set and strive for goals keep this ever in their minds, but also strive to expand their abilities and the ways they might serve the Lord and their fellow man. At no time do these members come to believe they have reached their "peak performance" but believe, like Paul that they are still "straining forward to what lies ahead" and pressing on toward the goal of eternal life in heaven (Phlp. 3:13, 14). On the other hand, we have the church whose members do not set goals. What is this church like? We have considered already such churches where the leadership, teachers, and preachers do not set goals, but what difference does it make if the other, less visible and less influential, members do not set goals? Unfortunately, some believe that goal-setting is for someone else, particularly the leadership; if they set the goals, then they don't have to. And it shows. Such a church will have Bible classes where there are few comments and little discussion because no one studies God's word during the week to prepare for the Bible class. If comments are made, it is usually just a regurgitation of something they've said a hundred times before, or something they heard or read someone else say. The class is uninspiring and certainly not edifying because nothing is offered that would actually build one up in the faith. Class time is more of a time-wasting ritual than it is an exercise in furthering one's spiritual education. In the goal-less church, the worship assembly is dry, dull, and without emotion. The members come more out of habit than out of desire, and the children of the members see that emotional detachment and eventually begin to wonder - out loud sometimes - why they even bother to come. Many times, the parents do not have an answer because they do not know why they come. Songs are sung by memorization because they have been sung so often without thought as to the words being sung and the only consideration by the members is if the song leader led too fast or was on the right pitch. Prayers are merely words offered from the lips, but seldom from the heart. Contributions are afterthoughts, not conscious decisions. What is heard from the pulpit is quickly forgotten and, outside the walls of the meeting house, few people even know the members are believers. In the past few weeks, we have considered the difference between churches with goals, and those without. Let's go back to our original illustration of the various sports where there is a clearly-defined goal: What if you went to a professional football game where neither team had a goal in mind? What if they just ran around on the field with the ball, never seeming to want to cross the goal line or score? Wouldn't you quickly see that something was not right, and wonder why you bothered to pay to see such nonsense? Now, think about how foolish we look when we, as a church or as an individual disciple, are doing the same thing spiritually! Are we merely biding our time on earth, refusing to set and strive for spiritual goals? If so, what is our spiritual purpose, then? And what do we expect to happen when we stand before Christ to give an account for what we have done? -- Steven Harper -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110522/acba07c1/attachment.html From tssullivan at charter.net Thu May 26 16:58:34 2011 From: tssullivan at charter.net (T. Sean Sullivan) Date: Thu, 26 May 2011 16:58:34 -0500 Subject: [Biblemat] The Messenger Vol 006 Iss 022 Message-ID: The Messenger 2011 Published Weekly by Main Street Church of Christ 306 West Main Street, Newbern, TN 38059 mainstreetcofc.com Bulletin Editor: T. Sean Sullivan VOLUME 006: ISSUE 022: May 29, 2011 The Fisherman, Who Caught Himself Introduction: The popularity of Jesus was increasing constantly according to Luke 5:1. It is in this passage that we find Jesus by the Sea of Galilee; being pressed by the crowds who have come to hear Him. He was preaching the point of advice: "Repent for the kingdom is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). We know from the scripture record that in the long run His advice was accepted by some, but rejected by most. After teaching the people, Jesus told Peter to launch out further into the deeper water. Jesus also told Peter to let down his nets for a catch (v. 4). It is right here, at this point, that we find our lesson. Peter's first reaction to the Lord's request is much like the one seen in the lives of many who encounter the Lord's advice. Yes, the first thing Peter did was begin to argue (v. 5a). We might, for a moment, understand why. He had been a fisherman his whole life and his family would have been in that trade for generations. Peter spoke these words of arguments and he must have thought, "I know better than."-but then he caught himself (v. 5b). Peter came to the realization of who was talking and then he did exactly what Jesus said. When he did what he was told, he received an incredible blessing (vs. 6-7). Let's consider three points of advice that Jesus offers us. To make sure we keep ourselves from arguing with the Lord and knowing that we will receive a great catch of blessings. Jesus offers advice toward peace Peace of mind is a confident view of life and a constant sense of hope. The pursuit of true, enduring, peace is a constant competition between the narrow way and the broad way (Matthew 7:13-14). On one hand, we have those on the broad way who constantly advertise the promise of peace in their products and pursuits; all too often, the ease of thinking one is "independent of the rules" and "carefree", is mistaken as peace. On the other hand are the rules of God along the narrow way. The truth of this matter is that true peace begins within the heart of man and the directions of God lead us to a proper heart. (One secret of true peace is being able to live with yourself, first-this is where Jesus provides the help). The problem of arguing with Jesus' advice on peace is the fact that you cannot run away from the problems within self. These problems; only Jesus can enable us to solve Jesus offers: freedom from guilt, through forgiveness (Acts 2:38-39); freedom from anxiety, through trust (Romans 8:31-39); freedom from want, through contentment (Matthew 6:25-33; 1 Timothy 6:6); and freedom from fear, through instruction (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11). All these points of confidence within self are found through obedience to His advice that encourage us to go to Him (Matthew 11:28); to listen to His words (John 6:68; 2 John 9); and to walk His way (John 14:6). If we stop arguing with Jesus, we will find the prosperity of peace. Jesus offers advice toward happiness It is absolutely proven, through the scriptures, that Jesus wants us to be happy. True happiness is found through the Lord's instructions. Three times in the gospel of John, Jesus gives us advice to find the fullness of our joy. Jesus advises us, "Keep My Father's commandments" for the fullness of joy in John 15:11. A little later He tells us to remember that He will come back into to remain joyful (John 16:22). Then, Jesus advises us, to seek Him for our needs to find them and be joyful (John 16:24). We also learn that John, in his first epistle, says that the hope of our "joy" being "full" is to walk in the light of God (1 John 1:4-10). There is a better way to live; a way that results in happiness-true joy. Jesus relates this to us in the gospel of John (John 3:16-21). This is one of those areas when people excuse themselves from Jesus' advice. All too often, people have their own plan for "happiness". We must learn; if our plan does not include: keeping God's commandments, remembering to prepare for the Lord's return, and continuing to seek the Light and walk in it-we will not succeed. All the things that Jesus advises us to do, lead us to happiness that will last. The beauty of Jesus' way is that the measure of happiness it affords is so bountiful that our nets will strain to carry it. His happiness will be with us though this life and beyond (Matthew 25:21 ".Enter into the joy of your lord."). Do not refuse the advice of Jesus, He does offer the hope of happiness. Jesus offers advice toward eternal life The Bible's instruction on salvation is clear. There are simple statements and complex statement but they all add up to the advice of Jesus toward our goal of eternal life. Jesus has provided a way for us to be reunited with God (Romans 5:6-10). Jesus also provides a plan, by which we follow the examples and instructions of the scriptures completely (John 8:31-32). It is in the scriptures, where we are instructed in truth and the way in which to become true disciples. We must recognize that the entirety of the New Testament is God's word, through His Son, Jesus (Hebrews 1:1-2). Therefore the plan of salvation, from the New Testament, is the advice of Jesus. Even with that being said, some argue that they only accept what they know Jesus, Himself, said. So let's answer that argument with the information that Jesus did speak, while He was on the earth. Jesus instructed the necessity of: Faith (John 8:24); Repentance (Luke 13:3, 5); Confession (Matthew 10:32-33); Baptism (John 3:3-5; Mark 16:16); and remaining faithful to God (John 15:16; Revelation 2:10). More than any other area of advice, this advice about salvation is argued with. Why do people refuse to believe Jesus when it comes to salvation? Because we want everything to be someone else's fault; because we want consolation without commitment; and because we are always looking for loopholes or shortcuts. If we stop arguing with Jesus and say what Peter said, ".At Your word, I will." We will obey Him and find the bountiful blessing of eternal life with Him. Conclusion: We began with Jesus teaching by the shore of Galilee. Many in that audience refused His advice. We know that, besides the Apostles, only 120 people followed Him, by time of His death (Acts 1:12-15). The advice of Jesus is always for our betterment. Jesus wants you to be at peace, to be happy, and to be saved. If you catch yourself arguing with the Lord's advice, stop and remember what Peter said, "At Your word, I will". Today, do you accept the advice of Jesus? ~tss -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110526/dfa58e6b/attachment-0001.html -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/gif Size: 7221 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110526/dfa58e6b/attachment-0001.gif -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: The Messenger Email Bulletin 006 022.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 112585 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110526/dfa58e6b/attachment-0001.pdf From gharmon at idworld.net Fri May 27 16:53:39 2011 From: gharmon at idworld.net (Gary H. Harmon, Jr.) Date: Fri, 27 May 2011 16:53:39 -0500 Subject: [Biblemat] Need PC Study Bible Software Message-ID: <01c901cc1cb8$8a13dee0$9e3b9ca0$@idworld.net> Does anyone have a version of PC Study Bible software they don't need? Thanks. Vr, Gary H. Harmon, Jr. - K5JWK 6003 Archwood San Antonio, TX 78239-1504 210.657.1549h / 210.884.6926c "Retirement means every day is a Saturday except Sunday" -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110527/23e3575b/attachment-0001.html From btwoof at aol.com Fri May 27 19:57:59 2011 From: btwoof at aol.com (btwoof at aol.com) Date: Fri, 27 May 2011 20:57:59 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Biblemat] (no subject) Message-ID: <8CDEAE96C3BD515-6AC-46035@webmail-m041.sysops.aol.com> http://www.boato.org//PhilipMurphy63.html From J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com Sat May 28 05:06:45 2011 From: J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com (J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com) Date: Sat, 28 May 2011 06:06:45 EDT Subject: [Biblemat] S) PRAYING FOR THE UNSEEN Message-ID: <364da.6decdf84.3b122335@wmconnect.com> Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here. Here is an article from my files: Use to the glory of God. PRAYING FOR THE UNSEEN So much of what we pray for had to do with what we see with our eyes. We ask God to help us with car problems, finan- cial difficulties, plumbing troubles, or anything else we think we need. It is certainly OK to pray for physical things that we have trouble with. But when Paul talked to God about the Christians in Ephesus, he didn't mention their physical needs, instead, he asked that they would be able to see and understand God's truth mor clearly. Look more closely: He said: "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance, in the saints. And what is the surpassing great- mess of His power toward us who believe. These are in accord- ance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His Own right hand in the heavenly places" (Eph. 1:18-20). Paul was asking the Lord to give the Ephesians spiritual wisdom and understanding in three areas: 1) knowing the hope to which they had been called, 2) what are the riches of their spiritual inheritance, and 3) what is the surpassing greatness of His power towards us who believe. These unseen elements are significant because the better we can see with our eyes of faith into the unseen, spiritual realm of God, the better we will see the visible world for what it really is ...temporary and perishing! Understanding our hope of eternal life and realizing the wealth of our riches in Jesus Christ will enable us to maintain a proper perspective of this visible world. It will also keep us from being too focused on all the world has to offer. ------- Shane Williams in The Lilbourn Light, Vol. 12, No. 11, April, 2011. From J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com Sat May 28 05:06:44 2011 From: J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com (J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com) Date: Sat, 28 May 2011 06:06:44 EDT Subject: [Biblemat] A) GOD HAS SPOKEN Message-ID: <364d6.f2fc799.3b122334@wmconnect.com> Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here. It is good to be back with you after being away at my family reunion t his week. I was privileged to be with my children and their families, including grand children and two great grandchildren. What great love and devotion ware indicated among each and everyone. God has blessed me with 5 children, 22 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren. But it is good to be back doing what I love to do so very much, that is trying to teach the gospel by means of the internet. May God bless you and yours. Here is an article from my recent files: GOD HAS SPOKEN Do you believe in God? If your answer is "Yes," WHY do you believe in Him? Do you believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God? If so, WHY do you so believe? The Scriptures say, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1). "So then faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" (Rom. 10:17). God does not send mixed signals that con- fuse, create doubt, and destroy confidence in His Word. God has spoken to us by Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:1-4). Christ has spoken to us through the recorded Word of His teaching (Jno. 14:26; 15:26; 16:13), in the books of the gospel account and in the inspired teaching of His apostles and prophets in the Book of Acts and in the other Epistles. Faith is defined, and the innate character of saving faith is taught by BOTH Christ AND His inspired writers of the New Testament. One cannot rightly claim to believe what PAUL said, and reject wht JAMES said about faith. ROMANS begins and ends with a declaration that the revelation of Christ and the work of the apostles was (unto) OBEDIENCE OF FAITH (Rom. 1:1-7; 16:25-27). JAMES declares that faith without works is dead and that faith that justifies is completed by obedience (Jas. 2:20-27). The writer of HEBREWS devotes almost a whole chapter (11) to illustrations of salvation or justification by OBEDIENT FAITH. What is the point made in Heb. 11? Paul said that: "in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avild anything, but faith working through love" (Gal. 5:6). Faith works by our doing the Will of the Father Who is in hea- ven (Matt. 7:21). It is God's Will that people REPENT OF THEIR SINS in order to gain spiritual life (Lk. 13:3; Acts 11:18). It is God's Will that people CONFESS their faith in Christ in order to be saved (Rom. 10:10; Matt. 10:32,33). It is God's Will that all peo- ple, who repent and confess that Jesus is the Son of God, be baptized in water for the remission of their sins (Acts 2:38), and thereby be saved from their past sins (Mk. 16:15,16). It is God's Will that those who do this become children of God, (Gal. 3:26, 27) and are added by Him to His church, (Acts 2:47). Then, they are to live holy and godly lives as OBEDIENT children, under- standing that Jesus saves, those who OBEY Him (Heb. 5:8,9). We are told that: "God is not the Author of confusion, but of truth" (1 Cor. 14:33). ----- Adapted from an article from the pen of Gilbert Alexander. From crxtra at gmail.com Sat May 28 10:31:05 2011 From: crxtra at gmail.com (Steven C. Harper) Date: Sat, 28 May 2011 08:31:05 -0700 Subject: [Biblemat] A> Stagnant Message-ID: <000001cc1d4c$447ec360$cd7c4a20$@com> Stagnant Water that has become stagnant is no longer flowing or moving. Because it is no longer moving, it becomes foul and stale, and scum begins to form on the surface, making the water undesirable and unpleasant to the senses. Stagnant water can also become a breeding ground for bacteria and mosquitoes, which carry malaria and the West Nile Virus - a health hazard, to say the least. Stagnant Christians are not really any better. Stagnant Christians are no longer moving or working and they have become unpleasant to the Lord to the point He would rather spew them out (cf. Rev. 3:15, 16). Stagnant Christians can also become the source of unpleasant attitudes and undesirable behavior, and can often be the cause for spiritual weakness and lack of movement in others because their lack of movement often hinders others from moving and acting as they should. Spiritual stagnation is hopefully something we seek to avoid, but the problem is that we do not always recognize when we have come to a standstill. Let's take a few minutes today and consider some ways we become spiritually stagnant, then examine ourselves to see if these things describe us and, if so, let us make the necessary changes. Directional Stagnation. It may be that we become stagnant simply because we have no clear purpose and no goals for which we strive. We reason among ourselves that we are "OK" because we aren't regressing into the world, but the fact is, we aren't moving forward, either; we are at a standstill. Far too often, we are content to simply keep the status quo and as long as nothing drastic happens and no great changes are made - either bad or good - then we are satisfied that things are as they should be. When we have lost our direction, if we never really understood our direction, or if we never had a clear goal for which we were striving, then it is likely that our actions have become merely aimless motion, without purpose, and we are not growing spiritually. Someone has likened such to a rocking chair: You may be making a lot of movement, but you're not really going anywhere. Christians of all levels of spiritual maturity should never be content with things as they are, but we should all be "straining forward to what lies ahead" (Phlp. 3:13), and at no time should we think we have progressed enough, but should be ever striving to "excel still more" (1st Thess. 4:1) lest we be that church that had "the reputation of being alive, but [were] dead" (Rev. 3:1). Where are we headed? Do we know? What are we striving for? To what do we look forward? The leaders of this congregation should be leading us, and leading us in such a way that all members know where we are headed and how we reach that destination. No member should be left out of the effort, no member should be overlooked or ignored, and each member must have a part. Every member, too, must have personal spiritual goals and must have a part in moving this church in the direction it should be going. And if the leadership isn't leading as they should, you still must set your spiritual direction and make some obvious spiritual progress towards spiritual maturity and the eternal goal of heaven. Do you know your part in this church? Do you know where you're going? Intellectual Stagnation. It is no better when we fail to move forward in our knowledge of God's word, either. When we rely on what we learned in past studies and keep repeating the information we learned in the Bible study we did in the beginning of our faith, we have not progressed in our knowledge; we are stagnant. When we answer questions about spiritual matters by merely repeating what others have written, we have ceased seeking a deeper understanding of God's word and have ceased looking to improve our spiritual understanding of God's word; we are stagnant. When we fail to grow in our knowledge and application of God's word, we remain babes in Christ and we do not become the teachers we should be (cf. Heb. 5:12-14); we have become stagnant. If, as teachers, we do not - or cannot - get any deeper than a simple understanding of a passage or we don't seek a deeper understanding of a passage, then we have ceased growing intellectually; we have become stagnant. If we no longer "like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up" (1st Pet. 2:2), we have become stagnant. If we, as a church, are not constantly challenging ourselves to make sure what we believe is true to God's word, then we may get into the habit of answering questions by saying, "That's what we've always done," or simply giving no answer at all for what we believe and practice. When we cannot answer why we believe or what we believe, it will not be long before someone comes along who is very convincing and who leads us astray - and we will not even know it. Relationship Stagnation. A church whose members know very little about one another and who spend little time with one another is going to be one that is soon stagnant because none of the members will want to do anything with the others for the simple fact they don't know each other well enough to know what to expect. Face it: If a stranger comes up to you and urges you to join with him in the work of the Lord, wouldn't you be hesitant to join with him unless and until you knew more about him? Most people would, and it is because they cannot be sure you are both of the same mind and believe the same thing. It would be confusing to join with someone, only to find that they do not believe the same thing. The only way we may eliminate that hesitation is to get to know one another better, but that will not happen if we are stuck in the same phase of our relationship with our brethren as when we first met them. To illustrate the point, let's ask some basic questions: Do you know the person on the pew behind you well enough to tell me what their favorite color is? Do you know how many brothers or sisters they have? Are their parents still living? Where does this person live? Could you get there? Do they know where you live? Do they know anything about you? We must come to the point of knowing one another that we are willing to demonstrate it by our actions. John reminds us, "By this we know love, that He laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers" (1st John 3:16). Are we willing to lay down our lives for our brethren? If not, why not? Could it be that we really don't know one another as well as what we claim? What will we do about it, if not? Let's take an honest look at ourselves and see where we really stand in regards to these things. Do we have a clear spiritual direction, both individually and as a church? Have our leaders laid out for us the spiritual goals of this congregation? Do we each know our part in the accomplishment of those goals? Have we set our personal spiritual goals, and are we diligently working towards them? Are we learning more about God's word and how it applies to us personally? Are we challenging ourselves and one another to a greater and deeper understanding? Do we know one another well enough to feel comfortable working with them in the Lord's work? Are we making an effort to get closer to one another? Ask, and then answer, these questions. Let's do all we can. -- Steven Harper -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20110528/5e6b8ff0/attachment-0001.html