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Would You Tell Jesus To Leave?

Posted on 2015/10/08 by Shawn Thomas

“And they began to implore Him to leave their region.” (Mark 5:17)

Seriously? What kind of people would ask Jesus to leave their midst? Actually it might be much more common than we might first think! Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged Jesus, Mark 5:17, religion, status quo, tradition | Leave a comment

“Prosperity Gospel”?

Posted on 2015/10/07 by Shawn Thomas

“To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless” (I Corinthians 4:11)

Verses like this assure us that the Apostle Paul (as well as other New Testament writers) would not recognize the “gospel” that the purveyors of today’s “prosperity gospel” are selling. Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Doctrine/Theology | Tagged prosperity gospel, theology | Leave a comment

When You Must Judge

Posted on 2015/10/06 by Shawn Thomas

“For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present.” (I Corinthians 5:3)

It should be instructive to us that Paul says here that he has “already judged him.” (Context tells us that this man was living in immorality with his father’s wife.) Obviously Paul didn’t “get the memo” from Jesus that we are not to judge, right? Or perhaps that is not what Jesus meant?! Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged church, do not judge, I Corinthians 4:5, I Corinthians 5:3, immorality, judge not, judging, judgment, Matthew 7:1, sin | Leave a comment

“This Is My Story: Cornelius The Centurion” (Acts 10 Sermon)

Posted on 2015/10/05 by Shawn Thomas

When we were serving in Louisiana, our church sent a mission team to Suriname, South America, where one of our members was a missionary. The first team we sent went to teach Bible stories in a local school, and they also built a playground for the village. When they finished it, they posted above the playground a sign, written in the native language, which read: “Jesus loves ALL the children”!

And that is true! Jesus does love all of the children — and not only all the children, but all people of our world: from every tribe, tongue, people and nation. Our “story” for today reminds us of that. It is the story of Cornelius the Centurion. His story reminds us that Jesus loves everyone, whatever their background, and that each of us can have a salvation story if we come to God not by works, but by faith in Jesus Christ alone. Continue reading →

Posted in "This Is My Story" sermon series, Sermons | Tagged Acts10 sermon, Cornelius, evangelism, faith, gospel, salvation, story, testimony, works | 7 Comments

Chosen To Die

Posted on 2015/10/05 by Shawn Thomas

“For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.” (I Corinthians 4:9)

To be chosen by God is not to be chosen to “greatness” as many people in this world conceive it. Conversely, it often means that one suffers greatly in being used by Him in some way. Here Paul, reflecting on his, and the apostles’ special “position”, says that they were assigned to death in their choice as apostles. That would indeed be almost universally true, as virtually all of the apostles were martyred. God’s choice was less about privilege than cost. Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Discipleship | Tagged apostles, Christianity, discipleship, I Corinthians 4:9, Matthew 20:20-22, persecution, prosperity gospel, suffering | 1 Comment

Why We Can’t Judge Someone’s Ministry

Posted on 2015/10/02 by Shawn Thomas

I Corinthian 4:5 is a great reminder of why you & I are not to judge someone’s ministry too early. The verse reads:

“Therefore do not go on judging before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.”

Importantly, Paul is NOT saying that we can’t make judgments about clear-cut sin. He does that himself in the very next chapter, saying that he had “already judged” a man who was living in blatant immorality. Rather, in context he is speaking about making judgments about God’s servants, like himself and Apollos. This scripture points out two important reasons why we are not capable of rendering final judgment about them: Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged do not judge, heart, I Corinthians 4:5, Jeremiah 17:10, judging, judgment, mind, motives, Psalm 139:12, secret, service | 1 Comment

What Kind Of Minister?

Posted on 2015/10/01 by Shawn Thomas

Many pastors and other ministers in churches today are noted for their “creativity”, or for their authoritarian nature. But how does this line up with scripture? In I Corinthians 4:1, the Apostle Paul wrote: “Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” Paul highlighted two essential qualities of authentic Christian ministers in this verse: Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry | Tagged creativity, faithfulness, I Corinthians 4:1, I Peter 5:3, ministers, ministry, pastorate, pastors, servants, stewards, stewardship | 1 Comment

Your Conscience Is Not Your Guide

Posted on 2015/09/30 by Shawn Thomas

“For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the One who examines me is the Lord.” (I Corinthians 4:4)

There is an old expression: “Let your conscience be your guide.” But Paul shows us here that the old adage is insufficient. He asserted that in regard to the situation in the church at Corinth, “I am conscious of nothing against myself.” But significantly, he went on to say that his own conscience was NOT an adequate guide. Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged "let your conscience be your guide", Bible, conscience, God's word, I Corinthians 4:4, judgment, scripture | 1 Comment

Your Response Matters

Posted on 2015/09/29 by Shawn Thomas

Isaiah 22 shares Isaiah’s oracle concerning the Valley of Vision. In it he relates the coming destruction of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians. When the Judeans heard of the impending invasion, they made every earthly preparation — but neglected to seek God, as verses 8-11 describe.

But their emotional response to the calamity that awaited them was equally detestable in the eyes of God. He says in :12 “Therefore in that day the Lord GOD of hosts called you to weeping, to wailing, to shaving the head and to wearing sackcloth.” They should have mourned and wept and sought God. But notice what they did instead: Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged apathy, attitude, Ecclesiastes 3:4, Isaiah 22, mourning, repentance, Valley of Vision | Leave a comment

“This Is My Story: The Woman At The Well” (John 4:1-42 sermon)

Posted on 2015/09/28 by Shawn Thomas

Several summers ago, a father and his son were out for a walk in a farmer’s field in northern England. The son had brought a metal detector with him, and all of the sudden, it started to squeal. They decided to dig up whatever was buried, and what they brought out of the ground was a metal bowl, that turned out to be over 1000 years old, buried by Vikings, and it was filled with over 600 gold and silver coins! They thought they were just out for a normal afternoon walk – but they ended up finding a great treasure that day.

Our “story” for today is very similar. It is the tale of a woman who went out on a normal day’s activity – to get some water from the well — and yet she found more than she ever expected. More than just some silver and gold coins, this woman found eternal life. In the same way, perhaps you have thought that today would be just a “normal” church day – but God may have something more in mind for you. Maybe this is the day that you, like the woman in this story, will find eternal life through Jesus Christ. Let’s look together at the story of The Woman At The Well from John 4:1+ Continue reading →

Posted in "This Is My Story" sermon series, Sermons | Tagged chair illustration, eternal life, evangelism, faith, forgiveness, grace, Isaiah 59:2, Jesus Christ, John 4 sermon, John 4:1-42, John Bunyan, love, love of God, Peter Ackroyd Shakespeare biography, salvation, sin, The Woman at the Well | 5 Comments