Do you know someone who knows all the answers even before he or she knows the question? If so, you are not alone. Solomon evidently knew some. His comment about them can be found in Proverbs 18:13. He said, “He who answers a matter before he hears it, It is folly and shame to him.” One area where this kind of person can be found is religion. These folks know how one is saved without bothering to read and learn what God has said on the matter. They “feel it in their heart,” or some pastor or reverend has told them to “just ask Jesus to come into your heart right now,” and they know the answer without examining the matter. Such, according to Solomon, act foolishly and shamefully. Men worship the way that “makes them feel good,” without any regard to what God has said pleases Him. Some know the answer about God’s attitude about homosexuality without hearing God on the matter. You should read some of the “hate mail” I get on this when I show what the Bible says. Surely, this is a terrible and dark shame on a religion or a nation who so thinks and acts. God calls it foolishness, foolishness that damns the soul, and all of the laws and wicked decisions of men do not change or make void God’s law. Where do you stand in such matters? Do you know the answer before hearing God in His Word?

There are two verses in the 8th chapter of Jeremiah that tell us something about the condition of Judah in that time period. In verse 5 the Lord asks: “Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding?” Verse 20 tells us of the condition of those of whom Jeremiah wrote. It states: “The harvest is past, The summer is ended, And we are not saved!” These people had experienced the special love of God. In the summer of God’s care for them they had on the whole committed spiritual adultery by worshiping other gods. When the time of harvest came they could bring nothing to the Lord of Harvest. Their terrible plight was that they were not saved, and the context of chapter 20 gives the reasons. As a result of their unfaithfulness and backsliding they were sent into captivity for seventy long years. Today, God has given us His wonderful and precious Word. By learning, obeying, and living by that Word we can have our sins remitted and have the hope of the eternal home. Yet, many, like the Jews of that day, are lost and seem so unconcerned. One day the summer will be gone; the time to obey (harvest) will pass; and many will awaken to the awful realization that they are not saved, and will meet their Maker in this condition. Are you saved—Saved according to the directions found in God’s Word?

One of the most beautiful sights that I have ever seen occurs in the early morning hours as the sun begins to peek its head above the horizon over a body of water. As the sun begins its daily journey, it at first appears as a bright red ball in the distance. I have seen the reflection of the early morning sun grow upon the water until it fills it with the glowing red that is the herald of a wonderful day to come. That is what I see, and that is what I think as I watch this breathtaking event of the nature that God has created. However, it is interesting to note the reaction to that same phenomenon by some Moabites: And it came to pass in the morning, about the time of offering the oblation, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water. Now when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered themselves together, all that were able to put on armor, and upward, and stood on the border. And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water over against them as red as blood: and they said, This is blood; the kings are surely destroyed, and they have smitten each man his fellow: now therefore, Moab, to the spoil. And when they came to the camp of Israel, …

You can file this one under bizarre. Reuters News Service reports Austrian authorities have discovered the body of a man who apparently died at home in bed 5 years ago. The corpse of Franz Riedl, thought to have been in his late 80’s when he died, went undetected for so long because his rent had been paid by automatic order from the bank account in which he had received his pension. Authorities, after getting a court order to enter the apartment, said his body appeared to have “mummified” and was well preserved. Neighbors said there was no strange smell coming from his apartment. One individual had noted that mail had always piled up outside his home, so no one thought anything about it. Most believed he had gone to an old person’s home. Police were not certain exactly when the man had died, but they found schilling notes in the apartment, the currency used by Austria before the introduction of the euro in 2002. What does this have to do with anything? How many people do you meet, do you know personally, who are dead? Obviously, not like this man in Austria, but dead spiritually, and no one knows, no one seems to care. Paul reminds us, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), but he means more than just physical death. He wrote to Timothy, “But she who gives herself to wanton pleasure is dead even while she lives” (1 Timothy 5:6). While it’s tragic this one left this existence with no one …

The term “disciple” is thrown around quite often in the world today, especially in religious circles. We find many programs and groups denoted “Discipleship Ministries.” We are familiar with a particular denomination which calls itself “Disciples of Christ.” Alexander Campbell, near the beginning of his movement to restore New Testament Christianity, resolved with his group to call themselves simply, “Disciples.” If asked, most of us would express some desire to be a disciple of Christ. However, we need to ask the question, “What is a disciple?” Or, more personally, “Who is a disciple?” A disciple is, by definition: A Learner – One of the primary definitions of disciple is to be one who is devoted to learning. One who has his mind shut to learning how he or she may improve his or her life cannot be a disciple of Christ. Jesus, in speaking to the Jews at the Feast of Tabernacles, told them that the key to knowing God’s will was dependant upon having a desire to know it (cf. John 7:17). If we will be disciples, we must open our eyes to our shortcomings, and open our hearts to learn how to correct them. A Follower – To be a disciple, is to be “a follower; and adherent to the doctrines of another.” To be a disciple, in the fullest sense of the word, is to be a follower. Notice that it isn’t a partial or part-time follower, but an adherent! To be an adherent is to be one …

Where has common sense gone? Yes, I am older now and because of my age I remember with fondness a time not too many years ago that common sense was common. Common sense means that a person has sound practical judgment with synonyms such as good sense and horse sense. It’s sad that so many people have found their way into very important leadership positions, politically or otherwise, without a lick of sound practical judgment. A higher educational achievement does not mean one has common sense. A good education coupled with sound practical common sense is a great asset. “Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” (C. E. Stowe) It is my personal view and judgment that many of our elected politicians are void of common sense. When solutions to problems are available and they sidestep the solution because of an agenda, we ask what has happened to common sense. According to all reports, we have within the boundaries of the USA vast amounts of untapped oil. Yet, our elected officials will not approve the drilling of known oil deposits. Now, that doesn’t make sense, but what if a common sense solution was recognized and rejected for something more costly and/or complicated? Leaders need backbone to seek out and accomplish their assigned duties with vigor. Two of my personal heroes of the WW2 era are Harry S. Truman (1884-1972) and Winston Churchill (1874-1965). What leaders and what strong personalities …

When I look out my office window, I see this stop sign in my yard right at the intersection. It is a constant reminder that this sign is important because it has been placed there by our city officials and for an express purpose. Even if a driver cannot read, the sign itself exclaims something when one recognizes it and that is, you need to stop your vehicle. It may be that some people do not understand the various signs along our highways and streets or even in the parking areas of the various shopping centers. For example, my wife and I were leaving a department store, and we were walking in a lane that was painted there for reason. There were signs on either side of this lane that read “Yield.” We felt relatively safe walking to our automobile. I say ‘relatively’ because you never know what a person may be thinking or doing while driving an automobile. I saw this car approaching us very slowly, and at the same time I saw the driver talking into her cell phone; yet, I felt rather sure that she would stop for us—but she didn’t. I pulled Virginia back and the car went right in front of us. The ‘red-necked’ side of me yelled out, “Can’t you read that yield sign?” She stopped her car a short distance from us and got out and shouted back to me, “It didn’t say stop!” I wanted to say, but I didn’t, “Here’s your sign.” You …

In Psalm 37, verses 1 through 9, we find some advice that sounds almost like what we might expect from Solomon or Christ. It is good advice for Christians today. Let us examine some elements of that advice. First, “Fret not thyself because of evil doers, neither be envious of them.” This is a great sin against ourselves, for it destroys our peace of mind, creates bitterness, harshness and faultfinding. It is a sin against others, for it robs them of happiness that might be theirs if we were not envious of them. It is a sin against God, for it is disobedience to his command and shows a lack of faith. It does not mean that we should not be concerned about what harm evil doers work in the world, and the end to which they will come. It has to do with the kind of fretfulness that is produced by worry and envy. For a Christian to be envious of evil men is about as silly as an eagle being envious of a worm, or an ocean being envious of a mud puddle. We should remember what Paul said in 1 Timothy 6:6-8, “But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, for neither can we carry anything out; but having food and covering we shall be therewith content.” The cure for that, and for various other ills, is found in the following verses. “Trust in the Lord and do good.” To be content and …

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. And whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17). Testifying to the churches in Asia Minor in the Book of Revelation, and to His churches in general, Jesus said, “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to each one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last” (Revelation 22:12-13). Reading further in verses 14 and 15 we find: “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.” Jesus stated His Being and inherent authority in verses 12-13 and 16. He is the Supreme One, especially to His church or assembly of followers, those devoted to Him. It is through His people that He appeals to those who are spiritually thirsting. The invitation to “take the water of life freely” is for “whoever desires.” There has to be a thirsting and a desiring for things spiritual. Without a hungering, thirsting and desiring, one could never be satisfied. The deep emptiness people experience in spite of great worldly possession arises from being spiritually dry and barren. Jesus is one with His bride, the church. He is the Spirit inherent in His bride. …

In our modern age of principally engaging in selfish interests, Christians must not neglect to revisit the theme pertaining to “the spirit of Christ” and adopt it on a far greater scale. Too many of us have forgotten what Jesus Christ is all about. We have allowed what is most important in the kingdom of heaven to lapse from our memories (cf. 1 Peter 4:1-2). Examining the life of our Lord during his public ministry, we observe the life of a Man who truly loved to serve and bless His fellowman. Jesus did not come to be petted, pampered and waited upon. He did not come to amass an impressive treasury. However, the “Son of man” did come “to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). Jesus cared and continues to care about the well-being of people (just like you and me), not the least of which are the fulfilling of man’s spiritual needs. Are we following in His steps? Reflect a moment upon a given day when Jesus, the pre-eminent spiritual leader of God’s people, entered the small town of Capernaum on the northern coast of the Sea of Galilee. There He was approached by a caring centurion who pleaded with Him on behalf of a personal servant who “…lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented” (Matthew 8:6). In Jesus’ typical spirit of willingness to go out of his way to bless, He kindly assured the officer: “I will come and heal him.” You and I …

Anytime one begins to teach that there is a true and living God who created our universe and all things therein, he will immediately be inundated with questions from those who do not believe in the existence of a Creator God to whom man is accountable. One of the first questions one will hear is: “If everything that exists needs a cause, what caused God?” This question is heard frequently, and those who ask it suppose they have proposed the question that cannot be answered. Actually, they ask this question, as well as many others, because they have not listened carefully to what has been said about cause and effect. No one has ever claimed that everything must have a cause; rather we have claimed that everything that has a beginning must have a cause. Only things that are both finite and contingent need a cause. God is neither finite nor contingent and as such had no beginning, so there was/is no cause for His existence. God is both infinite and necessary; the uncaused Cause of all things finite, or limited. If God needed a cause, we would have to search through an infinite regress of causes, and we would never arrive at His beginning. God is the first Cause; one cannot go back further than the first. A second question often heard is: “If God created all things, then how did he create Himself?” Again, we point out that only finite, contingent beings need a cause. Necessary infinite Being does not. It has …