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 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)
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- Teacher's Preview of Matthew 16:13-26, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson: "Following Jesus" for 3/15/26
- "God's Purpose For Your Life" (I Peter 2:4-5 sermon)
- "The Lord Our Provider" (Philippians 4:15-23 sermon)
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- "The World, The Flesh, and the Devil" (James 3:15 sermon)
- "The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 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: Uncategorized
Your Most Important Duty In The Church
“The elder to the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in truth;” (II John 1) The second and third epistles of John are generally much less appreciated and referenced than the first. Although I John is a penetrating … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged church, elder, II John 1, John, love, minister, ministry, responsibility, service
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Faith Is The Victory
“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith.” (I John 5:4) SO many evils and troubles exist in our world: sickness, persecution, pain, disappointment, death. How … Continue reading
Love & The Commandments
“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” (I John 5:3) There is a fallacy in the thinking of many people, that there is a distinction between the “love” of … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged commandments, dilemma, fallacy, I John 5:3, legalism, love, love vs. commandments
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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
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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
“The Fruit of Repentance” (Matt. 3:4-10 sermon)
It has been very interesting to say the least, to watch the first week of the Presidency of Donald Trump unfold. He has made appointments and issued executive orders which have pleased some, but have infuriated others. But there was, … Continue reading
Posted in Matthew sermons, Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged assurance of salvation, changed life, CNN, Donald Trump, fruit of repentance, garden, John the Baptist, judgment, Luke 19, Luke 3, Matthew 3:4-10, Matthew 7:21, Matthew sermon, repent, repentance, repenter, Rosaria Butterfield, salvation, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, Zaccheus
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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
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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
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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
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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
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