December 2019, Vol. 38, No. 12 Archives

What is Your Gift to Him?

[182 words] The Christmas holidays are here upon us, and the world around us is filled with the noble notions of gift-giving. “What am I going to get my spouse?” “Will my kids like this gift?” “What can I do for my boss and co-workers?” Giving gifts is a godly behavior, and we should all…

How Bad Can I Be?

[445 words] With the winter holidays just around the corner, we will all be seeing items and hearing stories related to the season. As such, I just read about the fact that there is a website known as emailsanta.com where young ones may write an electronic letter to the North Pole. Several letters from these…

A Time to Rejoice

[301 words] Overheard at the Mall: “I just dread the Christmas season.” When I heard these words, I felt sorry for the one speaking them. To me, this time of year lifts my heart because of three nostalgic reasons. First, I remember how my parents (especially my mother) worked hard to make this season of…

Bible Blindness

[283 words] Several videos have been published online depicting colorblind individuals seeing color for the first time, with the help of a pair of special glasses. Valspar Paint partnered with scientists and ophthalmologists from a company called Enchroma to make the seemingly impossible become a reality for the colorblind. “Oh, look at that!” one man…

Without Restraint

[90 words] Near the end of the book of Hosea, the prophet delivers a message from God that relates to the time of the Messiah’s kingdom. That means it is a message for members of the church of the Lord. That’s you and me. Here’s the message: “I will heal their apostasy. I will love…

Reasons to Rejoice!

[329 words] The Bible speaks a number of times regarding rejoicing. David once stated, “This is the day which the Lord has made,” and then he added, “We will rejoice and be glad in it” (Ps. 118:24). Why isn’t that just as true today as the day David wrote it? A celebrated writer once wrote,…

What Does Humility Look Like?

[220 words] If you were to encounter a truly humble person (at work, school, on the street, etc.), what would they look like? C.S. Le wis wrote, “Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him” (Mere Christianity,…

The Christian’s Priorities

[240 words] Perhaps certain ones of us need to get our priorities straight. It may seem somewhat naive to some to say that if more professed Christians would “seek first the Kingdom of God,” fewer problems would exist in the Lord’s Church, but the statement is nevertheless true! The reason that early Christians were so…

Am I Being A Good Sibling?

[364 words] As the oldest in my family, I was held responsible for my younger siblings’ actions. There were times I would be put in charge. There were times I just happened to be with them when they got in trouble or hurt. Suddenly, it was my responsibility. I should have been watching them, I…

Through Him

[363 words] Christianity is all about our relationship with Jesus. He died for us and we are to live for Him. Upon obeying the gospel, we gain a lot of “prepositional aspects” having to do with ourselves and Jesus: we are in Him, with Him, and for Him. But there is another preposition that describes…

I-N-V-O-L-V-E-M-E-N-T Equals Church Growth

[540 words] The early church grew (Acts 2:41; 5:14; 6:1,7; 9:31; 11:24). As we read of this growth explosion, we see the key role member involvement played. Christians were spreading the word (8:4), involved in each other’s lives and in the lives of the lost around them. This is such a simple concept, but churches…

We Will Talk Face to Face

[261 words] A line like this can make us curious: “I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face” (3 John 13-14). We can’t know for sure what else John needed to say, but…

What Percentage is Enough?

[293 words] The Communications Division of Syncrude Canada Ltd. once did research on the danger of completing only 99.9% of some task. Of the many things they studied, their findings on money and the medical world will resonate with us the most (these are but a sample). If only 99.9% of the job is done……

It Isn’t Hard to Find the Flaws

[352 words] Take a moment to think about what happens in the course of a typical day. The coffee’s too hot (or not hot enough) or it tastes funny. The car in front of me is going too slow. The internet’s malfunctioning. The waitress has forgotten me. My coworker is lazy or undependable. My spouse…

I Don’t Get Anything Out of the Services

[406 words] Has worship become a lost art? I’m afraid that many of us go through the motions without ever really reaching out to God. Consequently, we tend to leave a service much as we came in. Before long there is the tendency to dismiss the whole concept of assembling for worship. At its best…

Pride

[183 words] Most of us know about a man named Haman. He was the villain of the book of Esther. Haman was a man of pride and his life shows us the truthfulness of God’s word. Proverbs 13:10 says, “By pride comes nothing but strife.” When Mordecai refused to bow down to Haman his pride…

What is a Friend?

[122 words] A friend is someone who knows us and loves us in spite of all our faults. It is someone we can depend on even when it takes great effort on their part (think “Jesus”). A friend is someone we trust, respect and depend on in times of need as well as in the…

Negative Attitudes

[169 words] Christians must not allow themselves to live with negative, faultfinding and critical attitudes. Decide to be positive and spiritual in both feelings and attitudes. Start acting the way you want to be and should be. When you take that first step, you will see major changes in your life. It is first the…

Wickedness

[245 words] There are over 200 verses in the Bible which contain the words “the wicked.” The wicked, of course, practice “wickedness” and there are 121 occurrences of this word. Synonyms for wickedness are also numerous in scripture: “evil” (533 times), “iniquity” (229), “sin” (1467), and “malice” (6). In addition to these words we read…

The Twig

[257 words] “Just as the twig is bent, the tree’s inclined.” — Alexander Pope, 1734. With all the education, all the psychoanalysis experts, and other so-called advancements in child raising, most of us parents still haven’t grasped what Alexander Pope was saying. If we want a straight growing tree, we make sure the tree is…

What Is Your Life?

[143 words] Life truly begins once you become more loving, proud and boastful of others, than you ever are of self. When you see the needs and desires of others as foremost and any of your own as an afterthought. When you recognize that any beauty in the mirror is pale in comparison to the…

Bible Quiz: Hebrews 9:1-5

[43 words] “Then indeed, even the first covenant had __ of divine service and the earthly sanctuary.”“For a __ was prepared…”Name three things in the sanctuary.Behind the second veil was the __ of All.Name three things that were in the Ark of the Covenant. Solution: ordinances; tabernacle; lampstand, table, showbread; Holiest; manna, Aaron’s rod, tablets…

Bible Quiz: Hebrews 9:6-10

[79 words] “The priests __ went into the first part of the tabernacle, performing the services.”How many times a year did the high priest go into the second part of the tabernacle?True or false: the high priest offered a blood sacrifice for both his and the people’s sin committed in ignorance.True or false: The sacrifice…

Bible Quiz: Hebrews 9:11-15

[55 words] “But __ came as High Priest of the good things to come…”True or False: The greater and more perfect tabernacle is not of this creation.How many times did Christ enter the Most Holy Place with His own blood?Jesus is the __ of the new covenant.The promise under the new covenant is an __…

Bible Quiz: Hebrews 9:16-22

[60 words] “For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the __ of the testator.”“For a testament is in force __ men are dead…”True or False: The first covenant was dedicated without blood. “For when Moses had spoken every __ to all the people according to the law…”True or False: Without shedding…

Bible Quiz: Hebrews 9:23-28

[89 words] “Therefore it was necessary that the __ of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.”True or False: Christ entered into heaven itself to appear in the presence of God for us.“…not that He should offer Himself __, as the high…

Quotes and Sayings (December 2019)

[214 words] “An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.” — Bill Vaughan “We meet today To thank Thee for the era done, And Thee for the opening one.” — John Greenleaf Whittier “Now there are more overweight people in…

On the Lighter Side (December 2019)

[132 words] Punny New Year A New Year’s resolution is something that does in one year and out the other. Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up for New Year Eve, middle age is when you’re forced to. My New Year’s resolution is to help all my friends gain ten pounds so I look…