My Tongue Is A Pen

Posted on 2013/07/11 by Shawn Thomas

In Psalm 45, the writer says in :1, “My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” This is how it is when one is in love; they gush about the object of their love. This is why love is the source of so much poetry; the enthralled heart must express itself, and constant meditation on the one loved gives rise to many such expressed thoughts. Your tongue is ready to sing the praises of the one you love.
I believe that this explains the failure of many professed Christians to witness about the Lord.

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That Missing Something

Posted on 2013/07/10 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 45:7 says: “You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God has anointed You with the oil of joy above Your fellows.” Hebrews 1:9 quotes this verse as referring to Jesus, and it certainly does. He loved righteousness and hated sin like no man ever did, and as a result God did indeed anoint Him with the Holy Spirit in an incomparable way: “above Your fellows.” But we would be remiss not to find application for ourselves in the verse as well. Continue reading →

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We Do Not Yet See

Posted on 2013/07/09 by Shawn Thomas

Hebrews 2:8 says: “But now we do not yet see all things subjected to Him.” This verse follows a whole section of the first part of the book, which proclaims the superiority of Christ, and how God has “put all things in subjection under His feet” (:7). That Jesus is Lord of all, and that “every knee will bow” to Him is basic to the Christian confession. But the writer follows this assertion with the interjection of :8, “but now we do not yet see all things subjected to Him.” The fact is, those words, or some just like them, could have been spoken by any thoughtful, observant Christian.

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Year After Year?

Posted on 2013/07/08 by Shawn Thomas

I Samuel 1 tells how Elkanah’s wife Hannah was tormented by her in-home rival, Elkanah’s other wife Peninnah, because Hannah had not borne a son. Verse 7 says: “It happened year after year, as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she would provoke her.” That phrase, “year after year,” is a touching one. It must have seemed to Hannah like this provocation would never end – but as we see in the rest of the chapter, it DID! When Hannah called out to the Lord in humility and despair, God heard her cry, and :20 tells us that she gave birth to a son.
This is a good reminder to us. Continue reading →

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Think About It!

Posted on 2013/07/03 by Shawn Thomas

Verses 5 and 11 of Psalm 39 both end with the exact same assertion: “surely every man is a mere breath.” It is also of note that following each of these verses is the Hebrew word, “Selah.” While the exact translation of this word is uncertain, many believe it to mean a contemplative pause — an opportunity to think about what has just been said. Continue reading →

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What Should I Preach On This Sunday?

Posted on 2013/07/02 by Shawn Thomas

If this sounds like an odd title for a blog post, let me explain its origin: WordPress blog statistics show you what internet searches have brought people to your blog. For example, on a given day, my stats might indicate that people have searched for “what does it mean to delight in the Lord” or “What is the meaning of the drink offering” (which access two of my most-read sermons on my blog). But from time to time, I have also had “hits” from those searching for: “What should I preach on this Sunday?” I am not sure which of my posts or messages have been accessed with this search question, but since I have seen this question hit my blog repeatedly, I thought it might be beneficial to write an article that directly addressed the topic.

This is indeed a crucial issue, as the selection of the text or message for Sunday’s sermon is one of the most important responsibilities a pastor has, and it should not be taken lightly. I pray that the following will be helpful:

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Scripture’s Indispensable Qualities of a Leader

Posted on 2013/07/02 by Shawn Thomas

In Exodus 19:21 Jethro told Moses: “You shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens.” From the very beginning of what may be considered one of the Bible’s first emphases on discipleship, the character of the leader was regarded as vital. Continue reading →

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Little Condo on the Prairie

Posted on 2013/07/01 by Shawn Thomas

GRANDPARENTING BLISS
One afternoon while rocking Corley, Cheryl looked down at her and said softly: “It IS fun having a baby — one that you can just hand back over!”

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Psalm 119:57-64 On Obedience

Posted on 2013/07/01 by Shawn Thomas

Several of the sections of Psalm 119 (which is an acrostic in Hebrew) seem to have a unifying theme. Psalm 119:57-64 is the “Heth” section, which means that each of the 8 verses in this grouping begins with the Hebrew letter Heth (roughly equivalent to the English letter “H.”) This section is also one of those in Psalm 119 in which one can identify a unifying theme. In this case, it makes several points concerning our obedience to God: Continue reading →

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Make an Altar in Bethel

Posted on 2013/06/30 by Shawn Thomas

Genesis 35:1 says: “Then God said to Jacob, ‘Arise, go up to Bethel and live there, and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.'” God commanded Jacob to move, and when he moved, he was to build an altar to God in his new location. Although we are not today under the Old Testament Law, and do not build literal “altars”, there is yet an application for us here:

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