Satan: Our Adversary

What immediately comes to your mind when you hear the name, “Satan“? Some of us may imagine a human like being with horns, dressed in red, wearing a cape, and carrying a pitchfork. That’s the Hollywood version of Satan. How does the Bible describe Satan? That is what I want to focus on with this article.

Fighting False Information

I have the privilege of studying the Word of God tonight with our high school students during AWANA at Southern Calvert Baptist Church. The theme for tonight is fighting falsehoods. In the Greek language, the word that is used for false is the same word that we get pseudo from that we use in the English language. When something is pseudo, I remember from by days of studying 10th grade biology, it seems like the real thing but it is not. When it comes to Biblical teaching, there are many false teachings that seem genuine but, upon a deeper dive, it becomes evident that the false teaching is not the same thing as the genuine teaching.

The Beauty of the Word of God

This Sunday completes our first unit in our new quarter of curriculum for our Connect Groups. This unit is about how the Lord teaches us His ways through His Word. The depth and wisdom of the Word of God has not end. No matter how deeply we dig into the Word of God, we will never reach the bottom. There is no such thing as “enough Bible study” or “too much Bible study“. Our focus this week is the beauty of the Word of God. I cannot wait to teach this lesson.

Jesus: Our Lord and Savior

I have the honor of meeting with our elementary aged kids this week during our AWANA program at Southern Calvert Baptist Church. The kids have been learning about Jesus over this past quarter. Tonight will be a review where we put several passages together and get a clear view of who Jesus is. Many people in the Western world grow up hearing something about Jesus. Some of what they hear comes from the Bible while other aspects come from popular culture. I have ministered to a tribe in Myanmar where the majority of the people had never heard the name Jesus.

Born again to holiness

I am so excited about this week’s lesson in our Connect Groups at Southern Calvert Baptist Church! In our three year journey through the Bible from cover to cover, we are finishing up Israel’s time in the wilderness before entering the Promised Land. This was a very difficult period in the history of Israel. The children of Israel were battling their sin nature just like we battle our sin nature every day of our lives. It is easy to look at them on the pages of the Old Testament and ask, “why were they like that“? Are we not the same today? I am excited about this lesson because we are going to talk about being born again. It’s a phrase that we do not use as often as we should in the Protestant world. We talk about getting “saved” but we do not mention what we are saved from, how we are saved, what it means to be saved in a literal sense. I think we try to keep it vague on purpose because when we get specific, we become accountable. When we use the phrase “born again” explanation is needed and that is a good thing. The Apostle Peter really liked the phrase “born again” and he used it often in his writings.

Difficult Days are here

I was encouraged by our lesson on the Apostle Paul’s second epistle to his best disciple, Timothy. It was a sobering lesson because of the nature of it. I believe that it is a necessary lesson for our modern world. Our time was spent studying chapter three of the epistle. Chapter three has a shocking beginning.

Our New identity in Christ

I am so excited about teaching from Colossians 3 this weekend in our Connect Groups at Southern Calvert Baptist Church. Our goal has been to teach through the entire Bible over a three year period and we are finishing up our third year on this journey. We have discovered that the red thread that flows through the entire Bible is the Promise of the Chosen One who will deal with mankind’s sin problem, the working out of that plan, and finally, the fruition of that plan in the person of Jesus Christ. Now, we are learning how to live in the light of the appearance of Christ. Jesus does not just save us for eternity, He also saves us from ourselves, especially focusing on our sin nature. As followers of Christ, we receive a new life and a new lifestyle. The Apostle Paul focuses on this aspect in his epistle to the Colossian church. Are you a follower of Christ? Has that decision to follow Christ changed your daily lifestyle? If it has, then this lesson is for you. If your lifestyle has not changed, this lesson is also for you.

Walking with the Son in 2021

The famous year, 2020, is finally coming to an end. On one hand, it seems like this year has lasted a decade, yet on the other hand, this year has flown by. As we walk into 2021, the Apostle Peter reminds us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling as followers of Jesus Christ.

Overcoming difficult circumstances

How are you doing? 2020 has been a very difficult year for all of us. Many have given up, choosing to end it all instead of facing these difficult times. Others have fallen into depression and need someone to rescue them. This pandemic has led to some very difficult days. About 2,000 years ago, when the Apostle Peter was living out the Great Commission, the days were similarly difficult as they are today. Through Peter, God gives us advice to overcome these difficult times in which we live. As we examine I Peter chapters 1 and 2, we are going to discover how to cling to Christ during these difficult days.

Ungodly Mocking

If you have been paying attention to our culture over the past two or three decades, you may have noticed that the animosity aimed at God and His Word has grown tremendously. It seems that way but, in reality, it has not. Animosity toward God and His Holy Word has been around since Satan fell from heaven. His first attack on God’s perfect creation was to get the man and woman to doubt God and His Word. Read Genesis 3. Did God really say . . . . , that is his strategy. During the days of the Apostle Peter’s life, things were no different. Things had not changed much in 4,000 years. They have not changed much in the last 2,000 years. Peter has much to teach us on this subject. Although written 2,000 years ago, the teachings are relevant to the 21st Century person.