Author Archives: Shawn Thomas

About Shawn Thomas

My blog, shawnethomas.com, features the text of my sermons, book reviews, family life experiences -- as well as a brief overview of the Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson for Southern Baptist Sunday School teachers.

“Swimming Upstream” (Luke 1:57-66 sermon)

Posted on 2023/07/17 by Shawn Thomas

I was in a river canoeing one time, and it was shallow, and the current was pretty strong, so just for fun I decided to get out and see how far I could swim against the current. So I jumped … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, Sermons | Tagged burden, church, commitment, convention, discipleship, following Jesus, freedom, giving church, glorifying God, glory God, God obedience, going against the current, John the Baptist birth, Luke 1:57-66 sermon, obedience, obey God, obeying God, Romans 12:2, salvation, song trust and obey, standard procedure, swimming upstream, tithe, tithing, trust and obey, Zecharias and Elizabeth | 1 Comment

Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson: Jeremiah 31:23-34, “Redeems”

Posted on 2023/07/15 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 31:23-34, for Sunday, July 23, 2023, with the title, “Redeems.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged 1948 presidential election, accountability, Bible covenant, blame game, broke covenant, comeback, comeback OU Texas, covenant, covenant meaning, Dewey defeats Truman, Explore the Bible, Explore the Bible lesson Jeremiah 31, God is in the restoration business, God remember sin, Jeremiah 31, Jeremiah 31:23-34, Jeremiah 31:31, Jeremiah restore, Jesus blood, Jesus covenant, Lifeway, Lifeway lesson help, Matthew 26:27-28 blood of the covenant, neighborhood covenant, new covenant, personal responsibility, presidential pardon, Redeem, restoration tv show, restore, Romans 3:23, sin, sour grapes children's teeth, Sunday school lesson, Sunday school lesson help, Sunday school teacher help, victim mentality | 21 Comments

“Come Away & Rest” (Mark 6:30-31 sermon)

Posted on 2023/07/10 by Shawn Thomas

In the 1860’s, Mark Twain took a steamboat tour of Europe and the Holy Land. In his book, The Innocents Abroad, one of my favorite books, Twain wrote about his stop in Rome: “Afterward we walked up and down one … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, Sermons | Tagged busy-ness, daily Bible reading, daily quiet time, day off, devotion time, Ephesians 2:8-9, eternal rest, Eugene Peterson, faith, grace, Innocents Abroad, Jehovah's Witness, Jesus rest, Mark 1:35, Mark Twain, Mark Twain Innocents Abroad, minister day off, ministry, ministry rest, prayer, prayer time, rest, rest in peace, Romans 10:2, Sabbath, sabbath rest, sabbatical, salvation, vacation, work, work a holic, work-a-holic | 1 Comment

Teacher’s Overview: Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 29:4-14, “Present”

Posted on 2023/07/08 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson on Jeremiah 29:4-14, for Sunday, July 16, 2023, with the title, “Present.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged America providence, Babylonian exile, Benjamin Franklin, divination, dreams, Explore the Bible, Explore the Bible Jeremiah 29:4-14, false prophets, false teachers, God's message, God's plan, God's sovereignty, God's word, Jeremiah, Jeremiah 23:28-29, Jeremiah 29:11, Jeremiah the prophet, Lifeway, prosperity preachers, prosperity teaching, providence, Providence of God, Same sex marriage, seek God, seek the welfare, seeking God, shalom, sovereignty, SS teacher help, Sunday school lesson help, Sunday school lesson Jeremiah 29:4-14, Sunday school teacher help, visions | 17 Comments

Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 23:1-12, “Rules”

Posted on 2023/07/01 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 23:1-2, with the tithe, “Rules,” for Sunday, July 9, 2023. A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged Babylonian Captivity, Benjamin Franklin, Branch, declares the Lord, deeds, Explore the Bible, good works, Isaiah 64:6, Israel, Jeremiah 23:1-12, Jeremiah 23:6, Jimmy Carter integrity, Jonathan Alter Jimmy Carter, judgment, leaders, Lifeway, Messiah, my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness, names of God, political leaders, pride, righteousness, Romans 3:10, Rules, shepherds, Solid Rock song, Sunday school lesson help, Sunday school teacher help Jeremiah 23, teacher help, The Lord Our Righteousness, Walter Isaacson, word of God, works, world religions, Yahweh Tzedeknu | 7 Comments

Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson: Jeremiah 18:1-12, “Shapes”

Posted on 2023/06/24 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 18:1-12, with the title, “Shapes,” for Sunday, July 2, 2023. A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged Bible study, Calvinism, clay, Explore the Bible, Explore the Bible lesson help, faith, gender, gender confusion, gender identity, gospel, Have Thine Own Way, Jeremiah, Jeremiah 18, Jeremiah 18:1-12, kiln, Lifeway, obedience, potter, predestination, repent, repentance, Romans 8:28-29, Sunday school lesson, Sunday school lesson help Jeremiah 18, teacher lesson help | 12 Comments

“The Church That Made God Sick” (Revelation 3:14-22 sermon)

Posted on 2023/06/19 by Shawn Thomas

Someone once did a survey of his church group, and he asked them: On a scale of 1-10, “1” meaning that you are very cold-hearted towards God, and “10” meaning that you are really “on fire” for Him — what … Continue reading →

Posted in Revelation sermon series | Tagged admit need, Bach JJ, Church at Laodicea, deeds, hot or cold, I Need Thee Every Hour, I stand at the door and knock, Jesus invitation, Jimmy Carter Revelation 3:20, Johann Sebastian Bach Jesu Juva, LBJ, lukewarm, lukewarm deeds, lukewarmness, Lyndon Johnson, Lyndon Johnson need help, Matthew 5:3, ministry, need, poor in spirit, revelation, Revelation 3, Revelation 3:14-22, Revelation 3:20, Revelation sermon, Revelation sermon series, Robert Caro Lyndon Johnson, salvation, service, The Church That Made God Sick, William Holman Hunt Jesus painting, works, wretched meaning | 1 Comment

Teacher’s Overview: Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 12:1-13, “Exclusive”

Posted on 2023/06/15 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 12:1-13 for Sunday, June 25, 2023, with the title, “Exclusive.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: INTRO ??? Can you share a time … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged ask God why, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Boss Tweed, gay wedding cake, God, hang on, Hosea 11, How can I give you up, Jeremiah, Jeremiah 12:1-13, Jeremiah 12:1-13 Bible Study, Jeremiah 12:1-13 Sunday school lesson, Jesus why have You forsaken Me, judgment, Lifeway Explore the Bible, love, Matthew 15:8, Prodigal Son, Psalm 43:2 why, Psalm 73, run with footmen, stick to it, Sunday school teacher help, Sweet Cakes By Melissa, theodicy, wicked prosper | 17 Comments

“The Church With An Open Door” (Revelation 3:7-13 sermon)

Posted on 2023/06/12 by Shawn Thomas

When Cheryl & I first began dating, she had been on “Cloud 9” for weeks. She had told everyone at her job at Jack’s Service Company in Oklahoma City about this great guy she was now with. They all said they … Continue reading →

Posted in Revelation sermon series, Sermons | Tagged Acts 16 Macedonia, atheism, Caesar is Lord, church at Philadelphia, church open door, Church With An Open Door, closed doors open doors, evangelism, faithful, faithfulness, gospel, Jeremiah 1, Jesus, Jesus is Lord, Jesus to the churches, Lord of the open door, ministry, mission, Open Door, opportunity, peer pressure, people of the open door, persecution, philadelphia, pressure, rainbow, Revelation 3:7-13, Revelation 3:7-13 sermon | 1 Comment

Teacher’s Overview of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson: Jeremiah 7:1-15, “Personal”

Posted on 2023/06/10 by Shawn Thomas

A brief overview for Sunday school teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Jeremiah 7:1-15, for Sunday, June 18, 2023, with the title, “Personal.” (A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at: … Continue reading →

Posted in Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews | Tagged amend your deeds, America judgment, Ananias and Sapphira, baseball superstitions, change your ways, David McCullough, deeds, Explore the Bible, false trust, gospel, Jeremiah 7 Sunday school lesson, Jeremiah 7:1-15, Jeremiah Temple Sermon, judgment, King David, Lifeway, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson Jeremiah 7:1-15, Paris, Planet of the Apes, repent, repentance, Samson, Shiloh, Sunday school teacher help Jeremiah 7:1-15, Ten Commandments, The Greater Journey, The Temple of the Lord, Yahweh, YHWH | 12 Comments