I'm a retired Southern Baptist pastor of almost 40 years. My wife Cheryl & I moved to Norman, OK in March of 2025. I share a weekly overview for Sunday School teachers of the weekly Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson, as well as texts of my sermons and other articles.
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Top Posts & Pages
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 12:1-14, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Rejecting Legalism," for 2/15/26.
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Judgment Coming," for 2/22/26.
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 11:1-6, 16-24, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Confronting Doubts, for 2/08/26
- "The Greatest Verse in the Bible?" (John 3:16 sermon)
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "God's Purpose For Your Life" (I Peter 2:4-5 sermon)
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- "The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "The Church That Left Their First Love" (Revelation 2:1-7 sermon)
Categories
- "The Disciple's Character" series (Beatitudes Mt. 5:3-12)
- "The Disciplines of Disciples" series
- "This Is My Story" sermon series
- Beatitudes Series 2020 FBCA
- Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like
- COVID-19 crisis assorted messages
- Current Events
- Devotions/Bible Studies
- Discipleship
- Discovering FBCA Membership class lessons
- Doctrine/Theology
- Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
- Explore the Bible Sunday School lessons
- Habakkuk "Find Us Faithful" series messages
- History
- Home & Family Life
- I Peter sermons
- India Mission Trip 2011
- Isaiah 53 sermon series Suffering Servant Glorious King
- John 3:16 sermon series
- Luke 10:38-42 Mary & Martha series
- Luke 2 Christmas series
- Matthew sermons
- Ministry
- missions
- Music
- Philippians sermons
- POTS (dysautonomia) articles
- Psalms studies and messages
- Revelation sermon series
- Reviews
- Sermon Illustrations
- Sermons
- The Model Prayer Series
- The Model Prayer series (FBCA 2020)
- This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog)
- Travel
- Uncategorized
- worship
Author Archives: Shawn Thomas
Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Acts 2:41-47, “United”
And overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Acts 2:41-47, for Sunday, June 16, 2024, with the title, “United.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: INTRO: … Continue reading
Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
Tagged Acts, Acts 2, Acts 2:41-47, apostolic teaching, At Arm's Length, baptism, believer's baptism, Bible, Bill Elliff, Book of Acts, church in Acts, Dan Emmitt, Early Church, Explore the Bible, fellowship, house of prayer, infant baptism, Jack Tillery, kidney transplant, koinonia, lesson overview, lesson plan, Lifeway, love, marks of the church, prayer, Simply Prayer, sprinkling baptism, Sunday School, Sunday school help, Sunday School teacher, unity, word of God
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“What Real Faith Looks Like: The Blame Game” (James 1:13-16 sermon)
On our trip to see our grand daughters baptized, Cheryl & I stopped to see a couple of Presidential libraries, including Jimmy Carter’s in Atlanta. I had to chuckle when we stopped there, because we have an ongoing joke in … Continue reading
Posted in Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like, Sermons
Tagged A.T. Robertson, ABCs of salvation, accountability, Adam & Eve, alpha privative, blame, blame God, blaming God, Book of James, born this way, C.S. Lewis, Calvinism, Charles Guiteau, Clint Hill, David and Bathsheba, Dwight D. Eisenhower, excuses, first step to salvation, free will, Gary Powers, genetic predisposition, God, God author of sin, Greek grammar, habits, homosexuality, how to be saved, James, James 1, James 1:13-16 sermon, James sermons, Jesus, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, King David, lust, Mere Christianity, peirazo, President Eisenhower, Psalm 51, responsibility, Ronald Reagan, salvation, sin, temptation, temptations, The Blame Game, trials, trials vs temptations, Westminister Confession, What Real Faith Looks Like
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Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Acts 2:5-16, 36-38, “Empowered”
An overview for Sunday school teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Acts 2, for Sunday, June 9, 2024, with the title, “Empowered.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: INTRO … Continue reading
Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
Tagged Acts, Acts 2, Acts 2 Sunday school lesson, cheap grace, Day of Pentecost, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, evangelism, Explore the Bible, Feast of Weeks, first fruits, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, kerygma, Lifeway, Pentecost, repent, repentance, The Cost of Discipleship, tongues, witnessing
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“What Real Faith Looks Like: Perseverance” (James 1:12 sermon)
We’ve got one of my very favorite family pictures to put up on the screen: In 1998, I ran the Tulsa Run road race with Paul, David & Libby, our three oldest kids. Cheryl took this picture of the four of us at my … Continue reading
Posted in Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like
Tagged A.T. Bobertson, acid test, acid test gold, approval, approved, assurance, assurance of salvation, Book of James, crown of life, dokimos, eternal security, family, gold, gold test, I Corinthians 13, I Peter 1:6-7, if saved always saved, James, James 1:12, love, Matthew 13, once saved always saved, Parable of the Sower, perseverance, perseverance of the saints, Romans 16:10, seal of approval, stephanos, tested like gold, tests, trials, Tulsa Run, What Real Faith Looks Like
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Teacher’s Overview: Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Genesis 50:15-26, “Revenge” for May 26, 2024
An overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” Sunday school lesson for teachers and Bible study leaders. This week’s lesson is for Sunday, May 26, 2024, and is based on Genesis 50:15-26, with the title, “Revenge?” A video version of this … Continue reading
Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
Tagged Ackroyd Dickens, Am I in God's place?, anxiety, bear a grudge, Book of Genesis, brothers, burial, Charles DIckens, Ephraim, example, Explore the Bible, faith, family, forgiveness, Forward in Faith, funeral, Genesis, Genesis 50, Genesis 50:15-26, God causes all to work together, God's sovereignty, grandchldren, grudges, guilt, Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith, Israel, John Milton Paradise Lost, Joseph, Joseph and his brothers, Joseph example, Joseph faith, Lifeway, man's responsibility, Manasseh, perspective, revenge, revenge at first though sweet, revenge dig two graves, revenge is a circle, revenge is a grenade, Richard Osman, Richard Osman The Man Who Died Twice, Romans 12:17-21, Romans 8:28, sovereignty and responsibility, Sunday School, Sunday school lesson, teacher help, Vengeance, Vengeance is mine says the Lord, What if game, What If?, work together for good
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“Comforting the Afflicted & Afflicting the Comfortable” (James 1:9-11 sermon)
In the early 1900’s, humorist Finley Peter Dunne said that “The newspaper does everything for us. It runs the police force and the banks, commands the militia, controls the legislature, baptizes the young, marries the foolish, comforts the afflicted and … Continue reading
Posted in Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like
Tagged Alexander, Bible, Book of James, church poor, comforting the afflicted, death sudden, faith, Finley Peter Dunne, Hamlet, humility, identity, Imperious Caesar, Isaiah 40:6-7, James 2:5, James sermons, Jesus, love of money, Luke 12:13-21, materialism, Matthew 19:23, money, poor, poor in spirit, poverty, Prince William inheritance, real faith, Revelation 2:9, rich, riches, salvation, saving faith, self-image, Smyrna, Sylvester Stallone, temporal values, wealth, Yorick
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Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Genesis 45:1-15, “Reconcile” for 5/19/24
An overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Genesis 45:1-15 for Sunday, May 19, 2024, with the title, “Reconcile.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: INTRO: … Continue reading
Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
Tagged "Reconcile", all things work together, Bible, Divine Providence, divine purpose, Egypt, Explore the Bible, family reunion, forgiveness, Genesis 45, Genesis 45:1-15, God, God sovereign, God's purpose, God-centered, gospel, grace, grief, Jesus, John Rahm, Joseph, League of Nations, Lifeway, loss of loved one, Pharaoh, providence, Providence of God, Psalm 119:71, purpose, reunion, revenge, Romans 8:28, salvatiion, sovereignty, Sunday School, Sunday school lesson, Sunday School teacher, teacher help, trials, Woodrow Wilson
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shawnethomas 