Baby Update

Baby Caroline arrived on Friday, August 20 weighing 7 lbs., 7 ozs. We are extremely happy and tired at the same time. I'm sorry it took me a while to update this on my blog, but I have posted more on Facebook than I have on here.

I also have some new sermons uploaded on here, as I've been a bit delinquent about adding them. We are currently studying the seven churches of Asia Minor on Sunday nights, so you will see these as the most recent sermons. I hope they will benefit you, as I know they have been beneficial for me.

Lunchtime Lunker

Some people spend their lunch breaks eating lunch, catching up with friends and various other things. I, however, prefer to spend mine chasing those brown fish of middle tennessee. I have spent my summer free time on the quest for a twenty inch smallmouth, and my appetite had increased after catching two smallies of eighteen inches and several others sixteen and seventeen inches. My lunch break on a Monday found me trying to accomplish the feat of catching one of those big smallies.

Having found a feeder creek into the Duck River, I was sweating like a dog on one of those sultery, Tennessee summer days trying to locate a trophy fish. After catching a few spots, a largemouth and a decent smallmouth, I decided to wade downstream in the river to make an attempt at landing another fish on the Zoom Super Fluke. I knew my time was about to come to a close, as I was needing to head back to the church office to finish up some study time in the book of Romans for my Bible class.

As I was walking along in the water having noticed a couple of good structures in the current, my eyes panned ahead to notice a long, black fish facing upstream at about a forty-five degree angle. I knew by the appearance it was a trophy smallmouth. I flung my fluke downstream past the fish, working it back toward the lunker who was lurking in the current. About the time my fluke reached the fish, it looked as if my bait would go unnoticed. What happened next was a different story.

Just as the bait got right over the fish, the predator changed positions, whirled around and attacked the artificial minnow with a vengeance! Struck with an incredible force, the fight was now on to see who would win. Even though I have caught many good smallmouth this summer, I have lost my share of fish on the fluke. As I was reeling in the monster, I had the thought of what disposition I would have if the hook just popped out of the fish's mouth.

Thankfully, I managed to land that big smallie, and the photographs ensued to verify my catch and provide more long-lasting memories. This was the biggest smallmouth I had ever landed, and the quest for the twenty inch smalljaw had come to an end. I now had a twenty-one inch trophy. This was a very rewarding angling experience.

The next time you're thinking about what you're going to eat for lunch, try a change of pace and wet your line in one of our middle Tennessee streams or rivers. You just might wind up with a prize fish that will make you forget about your appetite. Oh, by the way, do eat something as I don't want you to starve!

Hello Again!

Yes, it has been a while since I have posted anything, but I'm making a comeback that would rival even that of Bob Dylan's music! Oh, wait, there's not a comeback from Bob, so that means mine wins! Hah, I had to have a little fun today.

I have spent a lot of time fishing these past few weeks with my boys on the creek, and we have had a marvelous time. The pics of some of my fish are posted above for anyone to see. We have been up the creek without a paddle, loving every minute of it!

I plan to post some more of my sermons in the next little bit, so stay posted for some of those. I hope everyone is doing well. Just so you know, my blog has been on the fritz for the past little while, but now it's up and running fine. Thanks for being patient with me!

What did the gasoline pouring out of my car cost me?

We cry over many types of liquid that have been spilled or poured out of containers accidentally: spilled milk (as the saying goes), grape juice on carpets (why do you think we have crimson carpet in the church building?) and other types of mishaps of the liquidy kind. Most of these at worst only cost us a stain with which we must deal.

Recently I was pumping my gas as I always do. I started the pump by inserting my debit card, locked the handle of the pump and went inside to get a SunDrop while my car was being fueled. After talking to a few people I knew, I was about to pay for my drink when somebody said "that car just overflowed with gas." Fear set in as I realized it was my car. Never in my life have I had that happen, nor had I seen it happen. In embarassment, I rushed to the car, but thankfully someone had already stopped it for me. I looked at how much gas had been pumped, and let's just say it pumped out about another eight plus gallons onto the concrete pad at the gas pumps. That little mishap with the gasoline pouring out of my gas tank cost me about $25 more than I would have spent otherwise. Let's just say I'll not be leaving my car unattended at the gas pumps anymore as the sign does say "do not leave car unattended while fueling." This was like throwing away money in the trash can, though the price could have been a heftier penalty if someone hadn't been gracious enough to shut off my pump.

It reminds me of another time when precious fluid was poured out at a much higher cost than my gasoline. Jesus, when instituting the Lord's Supper, said "this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many" (Mk. 14:24). Paul said to the Ephesian elders that Christ purchased the church with His own blood (Acts 20:28). The Hebrews writer said "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Heb. 9:22). The picture in the original language is a pouring out of blood. Christ paid for our sins with the ultimate outpouring - His blood!

Thanks be to God that we can't put a quantitative price on the sacrifice that His Son gave for us. The outpouring of gas at the gas station was cleaned up with the oil spill and the rest evaporated from the heat. However, the blood of Jesus still continues the cleanse the child of God who walks in the light (1 Jn. 1:7). Do you need to take advantage of the blood of Christ?

Potpourri

I haven't blogged in a while, but I wanted to catch everyone up to speed on what was going on with me. Are you ready? Okay, here it comes!

• Turkey season is finally over, so now it's time to go catch some fish.
• I have had two very busy weeks, but they have been productively busy. Last Thursday a group from West 7th went to the Brushy community in Hickman county and worked on a house that had been hit hard by the flood. I will write an article about this in the church bulletin sometime soon.
• Last Friday I played in the golf challenge for the Tennessee Children's Home in Spring Hill, and our team came in second place. There is a story about me kissing a frog, and I think the pictures will show up on Facebook, but I enjoyed posing for the camera.
• Saturday I worked from 6:30 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. I pulled weeds, sprayed Roundup, moved boxwood bushes, planted double knockout rose bushes, spread three truck loads of mulch, conducted a funeral, mowed the yard and field, applied Preen to our mulchbed and that about sums up my day. That afternoon at the funeral, I almost pulled the lectern over on top of me. I must have put too much pressure on it with my hands when I was going to sit down, and I could hear gasps from the audience. As I turned around it was coming right toward me, and everybody got a big smile as I returned it to its upright position. That's the first time I've ever had that happen at a funeral, and I've conducted many of them over the last eight and a half years.
• Today we hosted the 3rd Monday Workshop at West 7th, and we finished up by eating lunch together at Farmers Family Restaurant. Next month we will travel to Hendersonville.

What Will Happen to Me in Return?

Have you ever wondered what would happen to you if you didn't comply with the census bureau by sending in your completed 2010 census? I have recently discovered that they will come to your house to ask you questions. Later, if you are still found as non-compliant, they can flag you and eventually charge you with jail time! Just as there are things which can happen to us in return in life, the same is true from a spiritual perspective. Jesus addresses some of these things in Matthew 7:1-12.

Be constrained in judgment (1-6)
Have you ever seen a bird dog in action? When they find that covey of quail they stop in their tracks, pointing out to the hunters where the birds are. Unfortunately, there are people like this religiously. They are constantly pointing out the faults of other people.

Jesus tells us to be constrained in our judgment of others. In regard to faultfinding, there are some principles to remember. Judging is not wrong (James 5:19-20; Gal. 6:1-2), but hypocritical judgment is wrong. Jesus says we need to perform some corrective surgery before we attempt to help someone else. These people have obvious sins in their life that will hinder the correction of others. Their sins are as plain as the nose on their face. It reminds me of Pinnochio when he was telling lies, and the Blue Fairy said "a lie keeps growing and growing until it is plain as the nose on your face." We need to do a self-examination before we pronounce others' condemnation. The judgment we use on others will be given back to us in the same measure on judgment day.

In regard to judging people as worthy candidates of the gospel, we need not to waste our time. Their are certain people in the world who don't appreciate the holy message of God. It seems these are the kinds of people the Lord was describing when He talked about the dogs and the swine. Don't force the gospel on those who don't want to hear it. This is a kind of judgment we need to make.

Jesus also tells us to be confident in prayer (7-11). Remember the Sure deoderant commercials? The people who didn't use Sure couldn't hold their hands very high. We don't need to be like this when we pray. Jesus employs words of action (ask, seek, knock). If we are confident in prayer, we will approach God with our petitions. However, Jesus does not tell us we'll receive everything for which we ask. He emphasizes needs to be met, hence the part about food. James 4:3 tells us that we don't receive certain things from our prayers because we ask with the wrong motives, for our own pleasures. If we are confident in prayer, the Lord will reward us.

Jesus tells us to be considerate of others (12). Some people don't get the golden rule. In an old episode of the Honeymooners, Ralph and Norton were having a conversation about Norton grabbing the bigger of two baked potatoes. Norton didn't ask Ralph which one he wanted, and Ralph got upset about it. Norton asked Ralph which potato would he haven taken, and Ralph replied the smaller one. Norton asked Ralph why he was complaining because he got the one he wanted. Jesus wants us to treat others the way we want to be treated. Parallel passages addressing loving our neighbor as ourself confirm the necessity of this in Mk. 12:28-31 and Gal. 5:14. If we want to be treated a certain way, make sure we treat others that way.

Before we act a certain way, we need to remember what will happen in return!

Conner's First Turkey Hunt

I told Conner this morning that we would go turkey hunting when I returned from work this afternoon. I decided to swing by my spot before I came home to see if there were any birds out in view, and sure enough there were some gobblers out strutting. I backed my vehicle up and headed to the house. After returning home, I was trying to get everything together and get Conner in his camo.

We were back on the road about ten minutes after four headed for the turkey woods, knowing the turkeys should still be there. After pulling up in the car where I had seen them last, they were still in the same spot, some fifty minutes after I saw them before I came home. I pulled the car back down out of sight, and we proceeded to slip up to a big red oak tree and catch a glimpse of the action.

There were three toms strutting, so I assumed there were some hens nearby. I couldn't see them, so I tried some action on the box call, but I couldn't get a response. I don't know how long we sat there, but it seemed like forever. The hens finally came our way, but they wouldn't come close enough for the gobblers to follow. They got out to about fifty yards behind some brush, and they turned around to follow the hens down the hill. I don't know how many times I had to tell Conner not to move, but those are teachable moments.

It was then I knew we had to go to plan B. That consisted of sneaking through the woods to try and cut them off where I knew they might be roosting. I knew it would be a challenge, especially having Conner with me, but we made our way through the forest, making all kinds of noise. We worked our way up to the rise overlooking the field where I could get a good view and shoot if they came our way. We saw the birds, but I was afraid they had seen us. I just knew we were going to get busted, but we didn't.

The birds eventually worked their way toward us, and they needed to stick their heads through an opening for me to get the best shot at one of the three gobblers. Wouldn't you know the gobblers came up just about to where they needed to be then they turned around. I thought, great, this cannot be happening. Looking through some brush, I knew I might be able to get a shot off if I shifted my gun to the right. It was a shot in the dark, but it just might work. I shifted around, and the turkeys didn't even see me. Let's just say I didn't give Conner time enough to put his fingers in his ears as he was laying just behind me to my left on his stomach. He truly had a "bird's eye view!"

He told me after I shot that it was awesome and I made a great shot. Great encouragement from a four-year old. This is a memory I will never forget. We had our turkey after chasing those birds for two hours and fifteen minutes. 6:45 p.m. was the time to hammer down tonight, and we had our bird. Congratulations, Conner. Patience and careful stalking pays off again, as my Dad, Foster Butt, would say!

In the Wake of Worldliness

If you've ever been to a big lake, envision backing your boat down into the water on the boat ramp. Once the boat is in the water, there is a stretch of water that is considered a "no wake" zone, hence signaled by the bouys that say "no wake" on them. If someone pays no attention to the warning and heads full throttle out to their fishing spot, it creates a wake or disturbance to a peaceful set of waters. Likewise, worldliness can create a wake in our lives if left unchecked. As Jesus continues in the sermon on the mount from Matthew chapter six, let's see what happens in the wake of worldliness.

Matthew 6:19-34

Worldliness causes unwise investments (19-21)
Those who invest make sure they have a wise plan for their money. Remember the commercial that's airing right now with the guy pulling his retirement goal on a string, and he comes up to the neighbor trimming his shrubs with his retirement number sitting on top, which happened to be a gazillion. He states that he throws money at it blindly and hopes something good happens. Unfortunately, people can make unwise spiritual investments. Jesus contrasts two types of investments we can make regarding the things we treasure.

Earthly treasures are the things which don't last (hence what Jesus says about moths and rust destroying and thieves breaking in and stealing). This is why you never see a hurse behinSpiritual treasures will last forever as they are reserved in Heaven for us (1 Pet. 1:4; 2 Tim. 4:8). Jesus says the things we treasure show our heart condition. Either we have a heart for God, resulting in godliness, or we have a heart for the world, resulting in worldliness. We need to make sure we are making wise investments in the right kinds of treasures which God has in store for us.

Worldliness causes ungodly service (22-24)
Imagine trying to work for two different bosses at the same time. I'm not talking about a day job and night job either. It's impossible to satisfy the demands of both bosses because it creates a conflict of interest, resulting in divided service. So it is with trying to serve God while serving things of this world at the same time. Jesus makes it clear that we cannot do this.

He uses two examples. First he talks about the eye as the organ of the body letting in light or darkness, but He does this in a spiritual application of light and darkness. There are good eyes and bad eyes. Good eyes are focused on God, while bad eyes might have a tendency to have one eye on the world, while having an eye on God at the same time. If someone is cross-eyed or has a lazy eye, it can appear that they are looking different directions at the same time. This can happen spiritually (Mt. 19:16-30). He also uses the example of trying to serve two masters. However, He points out that we'll hate one and love the other, or we'll hold to one and despise the other. We cannot serve God and riches. Don't let worldliness cause you to serve something ungodly.

Worldliness causes unnecessary anxiety (25-34)
Nod your head if you've ever experienced any of the following symptoms: fatigue, headaches, gastritis, insomnia, high blood pressure. These are all common things which can be caused by worry or anxiety. Jesus shows how caring so much about things of the world can cause anxiety to consume our lives. Some things worth noting about how anxiety or worry is unnecessary: He shows how there is more to life than the things about which we worry (25); He shows how it doesn't accomplish anything (27); He shows how God takes care of the things of this world which are of less importance than us (26,28,30).

Jesus says unnecessary anxiety comes from a lack of faith (30). Paul gave us a remedy for worry in Phil. 4:6-7. Jesus even gave his own remedy in verse 33 of our text. Are you seeking first the kingdom and righteousness of God, or are you letting worldliness cause all of these tragic things in your life? Make sure you are making the right spiritual investments. Make sure you are serving the right Master. Make sure you are avoiding unnecessary anxiety. Don't let the wake of worldliness shift your foundation from the rock of Jesus Christ to the shaky sand of the world.

Some things we need to ponder when we pray to God up yonder!

I'm sure all of us have had our moments. You know, when we speak before we think. I call it foot-in-mouth disease. Those moments where we open mouth and insert foot! Though we do that all to often in life as we communicate with others, our communication with God should not be like that. Some things we need to ponder when we pray to God up yonder.

We need to ponder the caution of prayer.
Many things in life have caused us to approach with caution. Whether it's a deer crossing sign on the highway while we're driving down the road of it's a caution light at a dangerous intersection, some things we have to be cautious of before approaching too carelessly. One of the things Jesus points out from the Gentiles is their use of vain or meaningless repetitions. You can find examples of these in 1 Kings 18:26 and Acts 19:34. It doesn't take many words to get our Father's attention, so we need to be cautious of these meaningless repetitions.

We need to ponder the content of prayer.
Sometimes people can say a whole lot about a lot of nothing. They might have used a whole lot of words, but they have used the content equivalent of a twinkie: not much to it inside! Jesus teaches a sample prayer where He uses the following content:
Adoration - praising God (Hallowed be your name)
Direction - God's will is to be done over ours (use Jesus as our example in Mt. 26:39-44)
Supplication - giving us our daily bread (God is the supplier of these needs)
Confession - asking forgiveness of our sins (implying we are sinful creatures in need of this)
Protection - God will protect us from the Devil (1 Cor. 10:13)
Content is very important as we communicate with our heavenly Father.

We need to ponder the contingency of prayer.
Have you ever heard the phrase everything hinges on this? It means if this doesn't happen, then other things will not occur. Jesus says our forgiveness from God is contingent on our forgiving others. Consider Matthew 18:21ff and Ephesians 4:32. We need to make sure that we're showing this to others if we want the same from God.

Not too long ago, Tiger Woods claimed he had committed transgressions. We need to ponder these things with our prayer life in order to receive the ultimate transgression protection!

Secret Service

We all have our mental images we associate with the term secret service. Whether you think about the men in suits protecting the President or something else, they have a job to do. The job was instituted to protect the President and combat financial fraud in our country. While that is a great role in our government, there is an even greater type of secret service in which we need to be involved.

Our Lord wants us to be enlisted in His secret service. In Matthew 6:1, Jesus says "beware of practicing your righteosness before men to be seen by them, otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven." He then proceeds to contrast the ways hypocrites (Pharisees) do good things with the motive of being seen by others with the way His followers should do these things in a secret fashion.

He addresses three areas of service that should be done secretly: giving in secret, praying in secret and fasting in secret. For a better description of what Jesus means by this, please listen to the sermon link titled "Secret Service." Jesus is very clear when He points out that Christianity is not a spectator sport! Are you enlisted in the Secret Service?

Tough Love

The date was June 28, 1997. Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson had gathered in Las Vegas for a heavyweight boxing match to see who was the best. This was their rematch, and it drew lots of attention. During the match, Tyson kept complaining because Holyfield was giving head butts which had given Tyson cuts, but the referee wasn't calling anything. Tyson resorted to biting Holyfield's ear. After a warning from the referee, the boxing continued with a still frustrated Tyson. Finally, he spit out his mouthpiece again and bit Holyfield on the other ear, this time removing part of his ear which he spit out on the boxing mat. Mayhem resulted from this action as people were watching all of this drama unfold. Do you think Holyfield was viewig Tyson as an enemy at that point?

Last week I preached on resisting the urge to retaliate from Matthew 5:38-42. Do you think Holyfield was thinking about the "eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth" scripture, or in his case, ear for an ear? In fact, I used this illustration to introduce the concept of tough love. Jesus made it clear that loving our enemies is tough, but we are called as followers of His to display the type of loving actions toward those who are in opposition to us. The duty of tough love demands loving action toward our enemies. The difficulty of tough love challenges us to rise above the standards of the world where it's easy to love those who are lovable, but it's difficult to love those who seem unlovable. The demonstration of tough love was already shown by our heavenly Father (Rom. 5:8), and it comes with the expectations that we are to show that kind of love in return (1 Jn. 4:11).

To whom do you need to show some tough love?

I Did It!

Last night I preached without notes, and I'm glad I did. I was able to maintain so much more eye contact with my audience, and it felt great to be able to present the lesson in that fashion. I am grateful to Marlin Connelly and Steven Guy who spoke about this last week.

The sermon last night was "Resist the Urge to Retaliate" from the Sermon on the Mount. In the sermon last night, I covered the following points from Jesus:
1) When others insult you
2) When others sue you
3) When others use you
4) When others cheat you

I hope you find it helpful, as I started off with a story of revenge of the noted Judge, Samson.

I'll Have to See It to Believe It!

You never know what you're going to see living in Maury County, Tennessee. Several years ago before Dianna and I were married, I was over at her house one particular day. She told me she had seen something cross the road in front of her on the way to work one morning. It looked like a deer, but not really. It hopped instead of running. It kind of looked like a kangaroo. I thought she was crazy. I would have to see it to believe it. Interestingly enough, her dad was sitting in the chair and said he hadn't told anybody, but he had seen something like that on the way to work in Nashville one day travelling north on Leipers Creek Road. I personally thought they were both crazy until a few years later, I heard about a deer hunter who had shot a kangaroo nearby. Go figure, huh?

The other day I was travelling north on Highway 31 having just crossed over Rutherford Creek when I looked to the right and saw a helicopter sitting on top of one of the powerline towers. I thought I was seeing things, but glancing again that seems to be what I saw. I avoided going back to see if that's truly what I had seen. I know that's what I saw. Later that evening I told Dianna what I saw. She said she had one word for me: KANGAROO!

There have been many people throughout the ages who have had to see things to believe them. There was a royal official who heard that Jesus was at Cana of Galilee, so he came from Capernaum to ask Him to come heal his sick son. Jesus replies "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe" (Jn. 4:48). Many people in life have that mentality. However, we are told that true faith is a blind faith, since we can't physically see what we believe (Heb. 11:1). Then again, the Hebrews writer tells us to fix our eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:2). How can we do that if we can't physically see Him? John writes "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 Jn. 5:13).

Thanks be to God that we have the written Word so we can see Jesus. We don't have to go through this life looking for something to believe in, because He's made it known to us. Do you believe?

Preaching Without Notes?

I just returned from a most excellent presentation delivered by Steven Guy and Marlin Connelly on the art of preaching without notes. Veterans of the pulpit, these helpful tactics of preparation and presentation made me realize this was the best preachers' luncheon I had ever attended. I appreciate these godly men for what they do in His kingdom, but also for what they delivered to us today. God help us to be as effective as possible when we deliver the Word of God every Sunday.
I also wanted you to note the latest sermon addition from Matthew 5:33-37 where Jesus talks about making oaths. I hope you'll take a listen and give me some feedback. To swear or not to swear; that is the question.
By the way, Brother Guy and Brother Connelly have challenged me to attempt this Sunday's preaching without notes, and I've only done it one other time. Pray for me!

Sermon audio

By the way, the audio link has been added from last night's sermon if you want to listen. One correction I will make, I quoted from Malachi 2:14, but it should have been Malachi 2:16. I wanted to correct that mistake.
I am really enjoying preaching this series from the sermon on the mount. If you get a chance to come worship with us at the Bridge in Columbia, we start at 6:00 Sunday nights. See you there!

Jesus Teaches on the Big "D"

Many things in life are better the second time around. Consider a pot of homemade chili. Man, that's making my mouth water as I write this. Chili is good when it comes hot off the stove, but it's even better when it has had time to season another day in the refrigerator, maybe even longer. Also, secondhand furniture, the kind that is handed down in your family, holds special significance when it was in your house growing up as a child, but now it is in your house while you're raising your children. When you look at the marks on the furniture, perhaps even marks you made as a child, the furniture is simply better the second time around.

Sadly though, in the world, many people view marriage as one of those things that is better the second, or third or fourth time around. Pairing Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5:31-32 with another one of His teachings in Matthew 19:1-12, we need to take a look at what the authority sets forth as His expectations for all of us. Looking at both of these passages, consider what the Lord teaches.

Jesus recalls the provision of divorce
The first mention of divorce since the woman was brought to man in the garden of eden is found in Deuteronomy 24:1-4. Marriage was meant to be a permanent institution, but with divorce being rampant at the time, this provision or allowance was given for the man to divorce his wife if he found some indecency in her. Even though this was allowed by God, it was not pleasing to Him. Malachi 2:16 says "God hates divorce."

Jesus redefines the permission of divorce
While under the Old Law a man could give his wife a certificate of divorce, Jesus now says the only reason for divorce should be adultery. As Jesus redefined the permission of divorce, I'm sure many were scratching their head wondering what this new teaching was. Another passage that helps to shed light on this is Matthew 19:1-12. As the Pharisees had come to test Jesus asking Him if a man could divorce his wife for any reason whatsoever, they wanted to see which side He would take. Two Jewish schools of thought were present in that day and time from rabbis Shammai and Hillel. Shammai held the conservative view of divorce being acceptable for some indecency in the woman, as Deut. 24 states, while Hillel held the liberal view of divorce being acceptable for any reason whatsoever; i.e. - burning the biscuits.

Jesus didn't side with either of them, and he actually transcended even what the Mosaic permission of Deut. 24 said by going back to the original intentions of marriage in the garden of Eden. God wanted it to be one husband, one wife for life and no man should untie that knot (Mt. 19:4-6).

Jesus reveals the position of divorce
After reestablishing God's original intentions for marriage, Jesus makes it clear that divorce followed by remarriage will find you on one side of the fence or the other. There are Scriptural remarriages and Unscriptural remarriages. Jesus said the only way to divorce and remarry is if you are the innocent party of adultery (Mt. 19:9). When Jesus said in Mt. 5:32 that whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery, He is talking about marrying someone who didn't have the right to remarry. Anyone who marries someone who didn't have the right to remarry commits adultery, as He makes clear. Sadly today, many people don't accept this.

However, Jesus addresses this in Mt. 19:11-12 to silence the critics. The disciples after hearing Jesus' new position on this think it might be better not even to marry, knowing that it would be misery if they would be stuck in some marriage relationship that wasn't pleasant without the right to remarry according to Jesus.

Just as Jesus explains, "not all men can accept this statement..." (Mt. 19:11). Likewise it is today; there are many people who don't agree with this and they find every way in the world to justify their actions of being in a relationship in which God does not approve. Let's make sure if we enter into marriage that we are doing it God's way and not our way. Our souls are at stake as we will all stand before the Lord in judgment (Heb. 9:27).

Remove the Stumbling Blocks

Contact your doctor immediately if:

• A wound does not heal or there are frequent sores in an area
• An area of your skin turns to blue or black
• There is a foul-smelling discharge from any wound on your body
• You have persistent, unexplained pain in an area
• You have persistent, unexplained fever (https://health.google.com)

Anybody who knows anything about gangrene knows that it must be removed before it spreads to the rest of the body. Just as gangrene can ravage the human body, Jesus addresses the removal of stumbling blocks which can ravage our spiritual lives.

I've posted the latest audio from last night's sermon which comes from the text of Matthew 5:27-30. Jesus tells us how to get rid of sexual and heart disease before they result in fire disease, which will last for eternity.

FHU Lectureship

No doubt several of you have either been in attendance or are presently at the annual Bible lectureship at Freed-Hardeman University this week. It's always a great time for hearing wonderful lessons from the Word of God and spending time with brothers and sisters in Christ. I hope that you have truly taken advantage of the blessing we have in that great institution. Some of us will be going back tomorrow, and we will be leaving at 6:00 a.m. so we can hear Mickey Bell at 8:30. Mickey is the pulpit preacher at the Jersey Village Church of Christ, and he is currently battling cancer. What a remarkable inspiration for other preachers to show how important this message is to the world. If you're interested in going with us, meet in the parking lot at the West 7th Church of Christ in Columbia, TN at 6:00 a.m. We'll plan on being back around 5:00 p.m.

I uploaded my recent sermon from Sunday night for any who are interested. Continuing in the Sermon on the Mount, the sermon was titled "Are You Angry?" Next week we'll deal with adultery and divorce as Jesus lays down some new idealogy preparing his hearers for the coming kingdom. Until next time!

Was the Old Law abolished or fulfilled?

Remember the Cash for Clunkers program that was set in motion by the Obama administration? If you participated in that program, you were getting rid of an older vehicle to make way for a new one. In fact, when you turned that old vehicle in, you knew what was going to happen to it. They would pour a mixture in the engine to make sure it would never run again. After the motor was destroyed, the vehicle was put through the compactor, destroying any resemblance to a motor vehicle. What was old in this program was destroyed.

When Jesus was giving His famous sermon on the mount, it seems as if the Jews listening to Him were thinking that Jesus was going to destroy the Law of Moses. Jesus plainly tells them that He did not come to abolish the Old Law, but to fulfill it. He would shortly thereafter make statements contrasting the commandments with the expectations under the new covenant which would take effect with the death of Christ on the cross. Jesus knew unless he prefaced this discussion with an explanation of His purpose that the Jews would be in a tizzy.

I've posted the latest sermon audio from Sunday night. I hope it is beneficial to you.

Salt and Light

According to a recent study, cutting down three grams or just over one teaspoon of our daily salt intake could prevent 32,000 strokes and 54,000 heart attacks a year; this comes from the University of California San Francisco while trying to understand the clinical benefits of salt reduction in diets (As seen on World News Tonight with Diane Sawyer).
Though a reduction of salt can be connected with saving more lives physically, Jesus says we are to be the salt of the earth in order to save souls for Him (Mt. 5:13). Along with adding taste, salt functions as a preservative. We are here as a life preserver for the lost souls around us each and every day.
Jesus also says we are to the the light of the world. We are to be visible and let our lights shine so that others may see our good works and glorify God in Heaven (Mt. 5:16). A light is meant to be put on the lampstand so that it would give light to all the house (Mt. 5:15)
Let's make sure that as the salt of the earth we don't lose our savor. Let's also make sure that as the light of the world we aren't hiding or suppressing our light. Don't be a flashlight for Jesus; rather, be an eternal lamp that never goes dark.
I've posted my audio from this sermon last night titled "Salt and Light"
Are you fulfilling God's expectations of being salt and light?

Close Call

Last night when I returned from the Bridge, I noticed there was another possum on the front porch eating the leftover cat food. This was the same possum that has been evading me for the last little bit. I have tried to shoot him with my bow and arrow (since he's been on the front porch; I can't see explaining shotgun damage to the house), but he has slipped away from me numerous times. When I rounded the corner with my bow last night, he was out in the yard where I could barely see him. I could have taken the shot, but it was a little too dark as he was away from the porch light. He'll be back, and I'll be ready!

New Sermon Series

Last night at the Bridge, I kicked off a sermon series centered around the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew chapters 5-7. What better place to start than where Jesus started with the Beatitudes. I must admit that I had never preached on this passage of Scripture until last night. I was hesitant about how to deal with it, but I decided to tackle all of the Beatitudes at once.

While this was not my typical sermon style, I think this went over very well. It will serve as a kickstart to the rest of Jesus' words in this noted sermon. I challenged the audience last night to think about their present attitudes. If their attitudes do not match up with what Jesus said we need to be, now is the time to make the change. Are you being these attitudes?

Next week the sermon will deal with Christians being the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Stay tuned!

Baptized believers praying the kingdom come?

The Lord's prayer; oh, what a great model used by so many people in the world even today. This prayer has been recited at worship, in funerals, parts of it used in public prayers across the ages. This is no doubt the most famous prayer lesson in Scripture. That's right, I said prayer lesson, not prayer. Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray when this was recorded for us; He was not actually praying to His Father (Mt. 6:9-13; Lk. 11:2-4).

Are you still with me? I hope so, because there's something else I want to bring to your attention. In His words to the disciples, included are the words, "your kingdom come" (Mt. 6:10). We shouldn't pray this today. What; what did you say preacher? I said you can't pray this today. Why not? Because the kingdom is already here. The kingdom is the church which was established the first Pentecost after the ascension of Christ as detailed in the book of Acts.

I recommend highly praying for the kingdom to flourish, grow, attain greater spiritual maturity, but the kingdom cannot come once it's already here. What we are waiting on is the kingdom of Heaven, which the faithful will not be able to enjoy until after Judgment.

The next time you lead a public prayer, and you want to pray "The Lord's Prayer," keep in mind that the kingdom is here. Those who have obeyed the gospel message haven been transferred into the kingdom (the church) by Christ Himself (Col. 1:13).

Are you part of the kingdom?

Long Time Coming

I feel as though I haven't posted anything in a while; oh, wait, I haven't! I'm going to use this time to ramble on a few things and catch you up to speed on what's been happening to me. This may take a little while. Consider this a potpourri post!

The kids have been sick over Christmas. Conner and Chandler both caught some viral bug, but Conner had the tougher route. He wound up being admitted into the hospital on Monday, December 21. His oxygen levels were not what they needed to be as he has asthma, so he had to have oxygen for a while in the hospital. In fact, he didn't get to come home until Christmas morning. To make a long story short, both of the boys are better, and everybody's fine now.

I am delayed on posting some sermons, and I posted two today: The Sin Leading to Death and The Handwriting on the Wall. Check them out if you get a chance, and I've got one more from this previous Sunday I need to add when I get around to it. We've had some short weeks in the church office, so my time has been limited on getting around to these. I have had some other areas needing more urgent attention.

Chris Lockhart and I did a little squirrel hunting on New Year's Day, but we only managed to bag a couple of those tree-hanging rodents. Chris was shooting a Stevens 12 gauge that nearly made me come unglued; I don't know that I've ever heard a 12 gauge that was as loud as his. Anyway, it was fun. I've squeezed in a little deer hunting as well, the latest being yesterday evening. However, I haven't done any good as nothing moved last night while I was there. I'm going for the last time tomorrow evening when we are supposed to get a few inches of snow, so it may be really interesting. I'm trying to decide whether to go squirrel hunting again or bowhunting for deer. I'll figure that out tomorrow.

Turkey season will be right around the corner. Craig Evans, a friend of mine, recently accepted the preaching position at the Spring Hill Church of Christ, and I'm looking forward to him coming down not only to work with that great congregation, but also so he can go turkey hunting with me. It's great being able to hunt with friends, especially turkey hunting. It's such an exciting time of year when you can hear those gobblers sounding out their thunderous calls.

One of the things I'm grateful for with my job is the ability to preach at the Bridge on Sunday evenings. They really look forward to the service on Sundays, and I'm uplifted by their spirits when I'm in their presence. They are truly a blessing to me. Not only does it give me the opportunity to preach, but it lets me spend time with them. Ray Garrett does a fantastic job leading us in singing, and I'm grateful he is there with us.

I told you this would be random.