Is it really possible to know the state of the flocks by an occasional five-minute conversation at the end of the regular scheduled meetings? “Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.” (Prov. 27:23) The Old Testament Scriptures were written to a people who were primarily agricultural […]
The greatest danger facing modern assemblies is a lack of concern for true spirituality, giving emphasis to form over substance. Paul’s charge to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:28-38 contains words of warning. There were perils that the elders needed to be aware of and to which they had to respond. In particular, there were […]
The Lord Jesus, who had compassion for the people “because they were as sheep without a shepherd,” set the example. Elders are men who love and serve the Lord Jesus and His church. They probably have the most difficult and the most important work in the world. They certainly face some of the strongest spiritual […]
Counter-current exchangers appear to be designed, or engineered solutions to the specific physiological challenges faced by some animals but not others. Swimsuit-clad men, determined to qualify as U.S. Navy Seals, sit in the cool ocean water off Coronado Island near San Diego, California. Their body temperature gets lower and lower until they become hypothermic and […]
In our comfortable day, where toil and suffering are quickly becoming foreign concepts, it is essential that Mark be preached. The Gospel of Mark has received much attention in the last century from scholars and Bible critics, but less from those who use God’s Word for preaching. This problem is not new. Historians tell us […]
The roaring lion stalks the flock. They need to be defended! What are the duties and role of the elders in a local church? W.E. Vine defines an elder in this way: “those who being raised up and qualified by the work of the Holy Spirit, were appointed to have spiritual care of, and to […]
“And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” (2 Timothy 2:2) During the tenure of Nehemiah, the threat of attack was so intense that laborers had to repair the Jerusalem wall with one hand and hold a weapon […]
“Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood.” (Acts 20:28). There are many lessons in this verse: 1. The Christian worker must not neglect his own soul. He must […]
In July 28, 2006, my mother, Vivian Carol Horn, died in her sleep and, according to the promise of 2 Corinthians 5:1-8, immediately entered the presence of the Lord. The obituary she prepared years in advance of her death read like this: At the age of 16, she came to realize that she was a […]