Charles Spurgeon began a sermon on Matthew 6:33 by saying, “There is just as much need of this exhortation today as there was when our Savior first uttered it.” These words fell from the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ more than 2,000 years ago. Yet they are as relevant as the latest “Breaking News.” Matthew 6:25 says, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.” “Anxious” means care or concern. It can refer to legitimate concern or sinful anxiety. Legitimate concerns become sinful anxieties when they produce a divided mind.  One thought uplifts. Another thought discourages. ...

Titus begins with an elaborate salutation in verses 1-4. Then Paul gets down to business. Verses 5-16 begin the main body of this letter. This extended passage is divided into two sections.  Verses 5-9 explain the nature of Christian leadership.  Verses 10-16 explain the necessity of Christian leadership.  In this message, we’ll focus on the qualifications for elders in verses 5-9. These qualifications parallel the list in 1 Timothy 3:1-7. But Paul did not cut-and-paste the same list and send it to Timothy in Ephesus and Titus in Crete. The two lists have similarities and differences that make them unique. That’s true in terms of their content and their contexts. In 1 Timothy, Paul addresses the importance of teaching and defending sound doctrine first. Then he lists the qualifications for elders in the...

There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament. Twenty-one are Epistles. Thirteen of those letters were written by Paul. Within those Epistles of Paul, there is a subgenre called the Pastoral Epistles. 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus were written to individuals, not churches. Although Philemon was also written to an individual, it is categorized as a Prison Epistle. The Pastoral Epistles were written to men who pastored churches.  Timothy led the church at Ephesus.  Titus led the churches in Crete.  Titus 1:5 states the occasion of this letter: “This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained in order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you.” Paul visited Crete during his third missionary journey. Churches were planted. When Paul continued his travels, he...

Matthew 7:12 is the most famous statement of Jesus in the Bible. In search of the “Historical Jesus,” liberal scholars exclude many words and works of Jesus as inauthentic. No one questions the words attributed to Jesus in Matthew 7:12: “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Like many statements of Jesus, Matthew 7:12 is well-known but misunderstood.  What was Jesus addressing?  What did Jesus actually mean?  How are we to live this out?  Christians and non-Christians quote this verse without asking or answering any of these core questions. It is like the “Terms of Agreement” on downloaded software. We click the box so that we can use this verse....

In the early days of my first pastorate, the deacons would lead devotion, go outside to smoke cigarettes, then rejoin the service when the sermon began. I told my aunt about my plans to put an end to it. She gave me good and wise reasons why I should leave the matter alone for now. I was undeterred and determined to ban leaders from smoking. My aunt advised me that I may have the right to tell the deacons not to smoke on church premises, but I could not tell them what to do at home. “That’s the problem,” I...

Participating in public and corporate worship is essential for assurance of salvation and the perseverance of the saints. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”  Apparently, persecution tempted these at-risk Jewish Christians to turn away from the faith and return to Judaism. Their wavering faith was evidenced by their non-attendance or sporadic attendance at the church’s gatherings for worship. The author of Hebrews...

The Lord punished Israel’s stubborn rebellion by permitting their enemies to overtake them. The Babylonian Captivity lasted for seventy years. Then the Lord raised up Cyrus of Persia to defeat the Babylonians, set the Israelites free to return to their home, and order the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem.  Fast-forward approximately one hundred years. Thousands of Jews have returned to the promised land. The temple has been rebuilt. Priests have resumed the offering of sacrifices. The city walls have been restored. The people are enjoying relative peace. Things could be better. Israel had not gained its independence from Persia. And Israel faced ongoing economic challenges. Yet, if you interviewed the man...

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne committed adultery while her husband was away. Her sin was exposed when she gave birth to her daughter, Pearl. As punishment, Hester was forced to stand on a scaffold, so all could see her shame. She was also made to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her clothes. At the same time, the local minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, became low sick. No one but Hester’s secretly returned husband made the connection. In the climax, Dimmesdale regains his strength and preaches his best sermon ever. Then he climbed the scaffold, confessed his sins, and died in Hester Prynne’s arms. Unconfirmed...

Bill Sands grew up in a well-to-do home. His father was a respected judge. His mother was a popular socialite. At the age of twelve, however, Bill’s life came crashing down when his parents divorced. His mother used him as a weapon against his father, cutting off contact. She physically abused him in terrible ways. By the time Bill was twenty, his name became a number – 66836 – as he served a life sentence in San Quentin penitentiary. When a new inmate threatened his father, Bill nearly killed him before guards intervened. Bill spent months in solitary confinement until...

In the church I grew up in, the offering was received at the end of worship services. The congregation would walk around to bring their offering. Some members walked forward, placed their offering in the plate, and walked out. The minister would encourage members to remain until the end of the service. His reason was simple: “There’s a blessing in the benediction.”  As a young pastor, I issued the same exhortation and rationale. Then I became curious. What is the blessing in the benediction? I discovered the benediction is a blessing. That is what the word means. It is the pastor’s privilege and duty to announce the...

As a young pastor in my first church, a theological crisis erupted. Someone began distributing copies of Benny Hinn’s Good Morning, Holy Spirit. Charismatic phenomena, like speaking in tongues and being “slain in the Spirit,” broke out in this traditional Baptist church. These events divided the congregation and left members looking to their young pastor for answers – answers that I did not have.  Thumbing through a magazine, I saw an ad for a new book, Charismatic Chaos. This was my introduction to the John F. MacArthur Jr. I drove to Logos Bookstore in Westwood (CA) to get a copy, and quickly devoured...

Fueled by envy, hatred, and malice, King Saul named David Israel’s “public enemy number one.” David fled to Philistia, thinking Saul’s assassins would not follow him into enemy territory. David went to Gath, the hometown of Goliath, seeking asylum. The people immediately recognized David as the one who slew the giant. They even remembered the song the women sang about David’s exploits. It didn’t help that David came to town carrying Goliath’s sword. Terrified, David played crazy. He scribbled on the wall and drooled all over himself. Achish, King of Gath (whose dynastic name was “Abimelech”) rebuked his men for wasting his time with this madman. David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. That strange incident – recorded in 1 Samuel 21:1-15 – is...