Posts by Needmore Road Church of Christ (Page 7)

What is your understanding of personal evangelism? When we consider this topic, we are dealing with a subject absolutely essential to the health and growth of the Lord’s church in every community. So, what is it? Simply put, personal evangelism is taking the work of sowing and watering the seed of the kingdom personally, so that God may give the increase (1 Cor. 3:6). It is a command that every Christian should be doing (Mark 16:15). Therefore, let’s consider some…

One of life’s most difficult challenges, is dealing with difficult challenges. How do we cope with tragedy, cancer, war, or dozens of other issues we encounter in life? The painful reality is that many of life’s challenges are simply beyond our control. Neither you nor I have any bearing on the ultimate outcome of the war in Ukraine. We cannot dictate economic policy in Washington, and we cannot prevent a fatality accident caused by a drunk driver. As much as…

James, author of the New Testament book bearing his name, wrote, “But if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5). The words, “God who giveth” in the Greek text are in this order: tou didontos Theou, literally, THE GIVING GOD! So characteristic of God to give, and so much a part of his nature is giving that he is identified to…

Today is the annual holiday called by many “Easter Sunday.” Millions celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on this date. Many consider “Easter” the most holy of all religious holidays. Strangely, for some, it marks the only time they attend a worship assembly. Did you realize that the first century church did not observe a yearly celebration of the Lord’s resurrection? The word “Easter” is found only once in the King James Version of the Bible (Acts 12:4). The word, pascha,…

When the Lord said, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23), He obviously is not talking about that large muscle in our chests. The Bible uses the word “heart” over 800 times and almost always, if not actually always, refers to that inner part of our being. When the Lord discussed the greatest commandment, He spoke of loving God will all our heart, soul, and mind. That inner part of…

It is my belief that most Christians wish to make their lives as effective for the Lord and His cause as possible. We are not satisfied with the ordinary, just being mediocre, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might” (Eccl. 9:10). We want to give God our full measure, using to the greatest possible potential the talents He has given us. What will help us please Him in this way? One, the Christian must have “God…

Ever so often we need to give ourselves a “check up from the neck up.” This means we must deal with our attitudes. The attitudes we have, and show to the world and the church have a profound effect on all with whom we meet or speak. God speaks specifically concerning various attitudes in His Word. For instance: “Do everything without complaining or arguing . . .” (Philippians 2:14). He lists grumbling with a lust for evil things, idolatry, sexual…

This is a true story. I know personally the parties involved. Love dwindled, unhappiness and dissatisfaction grew, daily fussing and fighting characterized the relationship of the husband and wife, and, ultimately a divorce wrecked the home, leaving two bewildered, emotionally scarred children in its wake. The father gained custody and the mother went her own way, doing her own thing. The children loved their mother. Strange thing about love—it’s so often blind to the faults of those we love. Months…

There is a mistaken notion that Christianity is an adult’s religion, that the Lord’s work is reserved for those in their majority. Because of this misconception, many young people feel disenfranchised – that there is nothing for them to do- that they might as well wait until they are grown to obey the gospel and begin serving the Lord. Such is exactly what Satan would have them to do. In contrast with the above, Solomon, the wise sage of Israel,…

In the midst of confusing and conflicting confessions, where fancies and feelings are given expression to many and varied convictions, where men are confessing themselves instead of Christ, it is refreshing to tum again to the Bible and see what God has to say on the subject. The apostle Paul stresses confession in this way: “And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:11). Indeed, it is heartening to…

There are those who believe that if anything has become conventional or standard, it must be rejected in favor of the “original”. Evidently whatever is normal for the mainstream of society is put off, and pains are taken to express individuality in bold strokes that are sometimes shocking. Conformity and nonconformity are neither good nor bad inherently. What determines the acceptability of these terms is the standard either rejected or embraced. The apostle Paul said that we are not to…

The writer of Hebrews could so easily see the dangers faced by those Jewish Christians. The nation that killed God’s Son turned its wrath on the church almost from the day it began. Jesus had warned them about the trials that were coming. Obviously, they persecuted those Gentiles who had become followers of Jesus, but their persecution was even more fierce on the Christians addressed in this epistle. They had begun their walk with Jesus and faced many trials which…