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.
-
Top Posts & Pages
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 17:1-13, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Glory," for 3/22/26
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- "The Message of the Cross" (I Cor. 1:18-24 sermon)
- Teacher's Preview of Matthew 16:13-26, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson: "Following Jesus" for 3/15/26
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "God's Purpose For Your Life" (I Peter 2:4-5 sermon)
- "The Lord Our Provider" (Philippians 4:15-23 sermon)
- "The World, The Flesh, and the Devil" (James 3:15 sermon)
- "The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "Inviting Jesus Into Your Home" (Luke 10:38-42 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
Category Archives: Devotions/Bible Studies
He Loved Us First: The Difference That Makes
“We love, because He first loved us.” (I John 4:19) John tells us in this brief verse God loved us first. This is significant, and makes such a difference in our understanding of our relationship with Him:
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged God's love, grace, I John 4:19, love, merit, performance trap, relationship with God, Romans 5:8, salvation, saved by grace
1 Comment
Our Confidence In Judgment
“By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” (I John 4:17) The Day of Judgment is coming for all … Continue reading
Empty Words Won’t Save You
“Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” (I John 4:15) Despite the apparent simplicity of this verse, one should be careful not to take it in a woodenly literal fashion, … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged assurance, assurance of salvation, confession, demons, I John 4:15, Mark 5, Matthew 7:21, salvation, test of salvation
1 Comment
Seeing God In Us
“No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” (I John 4:12) “No one has seen God at any time.” Not God in His fullness … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged brotherly love, God, I John 4:12, love, witness
Leave a comment
Feed The Sheep, Not The Goats
“We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” (I John 4:5-6) It is … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged church, compromise, I John 4:5-6, ministry, preaching, teaching, worldliness
1 Comment
Why Some Churches “Succeed”
“They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.” (I John 4:5) It’s not all about numbers in the work of God’s Kingdom — although judging “success” merely on the basis … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged church, compromise, doctrine, false teachings, I John 4:5
Leave a comment
Test The Spirits
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (I John 4;1) Here John addresses what has become one of the weaknesses … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged discernment, doctrine, false teachers, heresy, I John 4:1, theology
Leave a comment
Assurance For The Doubter
“Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in whatever our heart condemns us, … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged assurance of salvation, doubts, Ephesians 2:8-9, faith, feelings, I John 3:18-20, works
Leave a comment
What Is Love?
“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (I John 3:16) Everyone has some idea of what love is: songs and poems have been … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged brotherly love, feelings, giving, I John 3:16, John 3:16, love, sacrifice, true love
Leave a comment
Walking As He Walked?
“By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.” (I John 2:5b-6) Many people in America today claim to be Christians, … Continue reading
shawnethomas 