Posts by Burleson Church of Christ (Page 14)

Here in northwest Alabama there are a number of fine religious folk who practice foot washing as a religious ordinance, or at least profess to do so. Shortly after I moved to this area, and not being particularly familiar with this group, I inquired of one their preachers concerning the doctrines that set them apart from other groups of the same general persuasion. He told me they believed in foot washing, but he couldn’t remember the last time his church…

In John 12:32 Jesus said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” There is one word in this text that I find particularly intriguing and important, namely the word “draw.” This word generally means to take in hand (as a sword -John 18:10), to gather a net of fish (cf John 21:6, 11), to drag against one’s will (cf Acts 16:19; 21:30), or to compel (James 2:6). But there is also…

There are two verses people often hear or use from this text. The first is John 11:35, “Jesus wept,” the shortest verse in the English Bible. The second is Jesus’ in verse 25, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die. He shall live.” Few verses are cited more often in funerals than this one. But there are many other lessons to be gleaned from this text. Consider these: God has a…

My failings as a parent were many. But I can honestly say that all I did (or didn’t do) for my kids was an honest attempt for them to have an abundant life then and even now that they are grown and on their own. In John 10:10, Jesus declared, “I have come that they might have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” It is my personal conviction that the abundant life Jesus came to bring is…

A common error concerning God’s grace is to equate it with salvation. Grace is not salvation. Grace is God providing a plan to render to man what man can never hope to accomplish on his own, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared unto all men, teaching us…” (Titus 2:12). God grace is manifest an appropriated in the following fashion: 1) God’s GRACE provides to man 2) God’s LAW, which man 3) by FAITH OBEYS, thereby receiving…

“Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceits” (Prov 26:4-5). What appears to be contradictory is not. There is a time to answer a fool and a time not to answer a fool. Today’s reading illustrates how Jesus practiced both principles. An illustration of the former principle of answering fools is seen in verses 41-47, wherein the Jews…

We live in a post truth age. By “post truth age” I mean that in Western societies people are more likely to accept or reject an argument based on their emotions and personal beliefs rather than upon objective facts and truth. This makes our work in carrying out the Great Commission even more difficult. Lest we lament that no others have ever endured such obstacles, we should be reminded that the Lord faced such attitudes concerning the nature of the…

What did Jesus mean when He said we must eat His flesh and drink His blood? After Jesus crossed to Capernaum, those who had been fed came looking for Him, asking, “Rabbi, why did you come here?” (v 25). We start getting to the heart of the matter when Jesus said, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you” (v 27). The Jews…

The burdens of Rome and the local sectarian religious hierarchy made life difficult for Israel. There had been no word from the Lord, no prophet, and no miracles for more than four hundred years. The Maccabean rebellion two centuries earlier delivered Israel from the Greek empire, but it didn’t provide permanent freedom for God’s people, primarily because such was never God’s intent. Subsequent rebellions were squashed with the insurrectionists reduced to memories of failure (Mark 15:7; Acts 5:36-37). But when…

Given the current religious climate, I borrowed some thoughts from Wendell Winkler on the matter of worship. One of his “signature sermons” was based on a single verse found in today’s reading. In John 4:24, we have a single sentence that speaks volumes about worship: “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.” From our text we can learn the following: God is the author of worship. Man has never been at liberty…