Welcome to the Biblical Hebrew (Self-Taught) Study Group. For those who want to learn Biblical Hebrew for the sake of knowledge without college tuition. "Study to shew yourselves approved unto God...”

Independent Baptist Church in Kennedale Texas

An uncompromising stand with the Jews' right to all the land in Israel.

What The Bible Says - Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

What The Bible Says Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

Circulated by Victory Baptist Press, Milton, FL 32572-0766

What The Bible Says Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

What The Bible Says Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

Giving Bible Reasons Why the believer can say in spite of circumstances, "It is well with my soul,", this message was preached on ...

Showing from the Bible reasons and power for persevering in God's work, this message was preached on Sunday evening, Dec.

Giving Biblical reasons why we should stir up ourselves to pray, this message was preached on Wednesday evening, Nov.

Giving seven reasons from the word of God why we should be thankful to the Lord, this message was preached on Sunday ...

II Timothy 2:15 Pastor Hafelin Sunday Evening Service October 8, 2023.

By John C. A. Manley Last summer, the modem supplied by my internet service provider broke down. So I ran it to the shop on...3 reasons I refuse to use WiFry (despite making a living working online)

Most pastors will tell you of the importance of small groups. Speaking from personal experience, I know that if someone is connected in a small group, there is a greater likelihood that they'll be involved in a wider mission and more involved within the local church's life. They also have a built-in support system to help them grow in Christ. A recent LifeWay study found what I already knew through personal experience—small groups are important. Scott McConnell summarized the study with these words:"Small groups and Sunday School classes provide the relational glue that allows a local congregation to be a place where people love one another. Groups and relationships that are centered on the Word of God unify a congregation and motivate people to work together on the mission of the church. Churches with few people participating in groups are not in a healthy position to make more disciples."? [1]We also know that, just as with Sunday morning attendance, there are more women than men in attendance—about 60-40. Why is it harder to get men to be actively involved in small groups? Do they not like going? Or are there other reasons?Before answering these questions, I should say that in my own experience, I have witnessed many men absolutely love going to small groups. If a man is engaged in other disciplines within the body of Christ, these "reasons" are usually not a big enough hurdle. And in my experience, many of the men who attend small groups say it's their favorite time of the weak. Nevertheless, it can be a tough hurdle for some to overcome. Here are some of those reasons: ? [1]? https://research.lifeway.com/2023/03/07/research-reveals-importance-of-small-groups-evangelism-assimilation-for-church-growth/Photo Courtesy:? ? Jantanee Rungpranomkorn from? Getty Images

? Temple Baptist Church - 4-10-2024John 15:1-11? Introduction:? A.? Last week, we saw the Prophecy of the True Vine.? Jesus Christ is the Root of the Vine and the Vine itself along with being the Branch.? This tells us several things about Christ: He was before all things, He made all things, He sustains all things, and He will be after all things.? B.? Tonight, we will look at the Purpose of the True Vine.? God does everything both Perfectly and with Purpose.? 1.? verse 1.? The Personality of the True vine.? a)? As the Root, Christ is the Anchor that holds the Vine.? He is the Chief Cornerstone of salvation.? He is the Rock of the believer.? As the Vine, Christ sustains the believer.? The Root supplies the nutrients along with the water necessary for spiritual growth and productivity through the Vine to the branches.? b)? As the Vine, Christ is Attributer that feeds the branches.? The sap flows through the vine to the branches.? The vines do not produce anything other than branches.? It is the branches that are responsible for bearing fruit.? c)? As the Branch, Christ is our Example of both life and fruit bearing.? 2.? Verse 2.? The Purpose of the True Vine.? Fruit!? Without fruit, the True Vine would have no reason to exist.? Jesus Christ has a reason for His being and we are that reason.? a) The Vine gives birth to the branches.? We are born again through the finished work of Jesus Christ.? b) The vine gives the necessities of fruit bearing to the branches.? c)? The Lord has and is doing His part because we are both saved and capable, as long as we abide in Him, of producing fruit.? C.? The Priority of the True Vine.? 1.? The Importance of Abiding in the Vine.? ? a)? These verses do not speak of being Attached to the True Vine.? Each of God's children get their live through Christ Jesus and are a part of the True Vine.? If you are saved, you are and always will be a branch.? b)? But not all branches continue to draw life from the vine for various reasons.? After a storm, we all find a lot of dead branches in our yards.? God uses storms and strong winds to prune trees and other plants.? Gardeners prune their plants to help the plant to produce maximum fruit.? 2.? How do we Abide in the True Vine.? ? a)? By drawing all that we need for life and godliness from the sap that flows from God to usward.? I use these verses often because of their importance to all of us that are saved.? 2 Peter 1:2-3? Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,? (3)? According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:? b)? God gives us everything that we need so it is Available.? 2 Peter 1:2-3? Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,? (3)? According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:? c)? There are two aspects of our spiritual drawing from God.? To ignore either of these will cause the believer to become unproductive.? 1)? The Word of God.? I cannot over emphasize the importance of our Bible!? I do not “major on a minor” as it is the “MAJOR!”? It is the “sap” that we draw from reading, studying, listening to, and rightly applying the Word of God.? God's people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.? 2)? The Spirit of God.? The second way that we draw “sap” from the True Vine is through the presence of and obedience to the Holy Spirit which indwells us.? He is our Teacher, Comforter, Guide, and Friend.? 3.? The branch that does not produce fruit is broken off by men and cast into the fire.? ? John 15:6? If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.? (Notice that it is still a branch and the men who break them off and burn them shows the chastening rod of God.? “And many sleep!”? D.? Verses 2-11.? The Product of the Abiding Branches.? We now understand that failure to abide in Christ causes lack of fruit and possibly physical death.? ? John 15:5? I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.? 1.? Verse 2, 4-5.? ? The Qualification of the Fruit.? The branch must be attached to the Vine!? ? If you are not in the Vine, then there is no way for you to share in the Vine's life. This is all about a vital union between the believer and the Lord Jesus Christ, the True Vine.? a.? The Purging of the Vine.? John 15:2-3? Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.? (3)? Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.? b.? We must have a close relationship with the Vine.? Prayer, Bible reading and study, self-denial.? c.? We must be available for use by the Vine.? Availability and dependability are the greatest abilities.? This in all God needs.? 2.? The Quality of the Fruit.? Fruit!? The grace extended is all the same.? The faith exercised is all the same.? The salvation given is all the same.? a.? The quality of the fruit is not necessarily the responsibility of the branch.? The quality of fruit depends upon the quality of the Vine.? ? b.? God reproduces His life through our lives.? As salt and light, the world sees our good works and glorify the Father in heaven.? c.? This has been called a “Liberating Truth!”? We are free from the consequences of their personal choice.? We cannot save, we can only give savor and light.? 3.? The Quantity Of Our Fruit.? ? a.? ? So many people whip themselves because of a lack of visible results but there are those who plant, those who water, and only God can give the increase.? This? is not the responsibility of the branch. Some will produce much; some will produce little.? b.? The fruit, more fruit, and much fruit depend upon the will of the Vine. I have known some of the godliest, best missionaries and pastor who have spent their lives with little seeable fruit.? ? 4.? The Quandary of the Branches.? ? John 15:5? I am the vine, ye are the branches:? He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.? a.? Not every branch is what God intended for it to be.? Our relationship to the Vine is what we make of it.? b.? This branch is still attached to the Vine but is not abiding in the Vine.? Let me explain.? ? 1)? It is the Husbandman who Purges the branches: to wash them through the Word of God.? 2)? It is the Husbandman who Prunes the branches by breaking the branches OFF from the Vine.? c.? Our duty is to abide in God and allow God to abide in us!? Conclusion:? Not abide in Christ:? a.? Loss of Fellowship – “cast out”? b.? Loss of Living – “withered”? c.? Loss of Reward – “burned'

The new dystopian thriller reminds viewers it's not just what we witness that matters, but how.There’s nothing more frightening than the sound of a camera shutter in the new film Civil War.Distributed by A24, the production company behind releases like Everything Everywhere All at Once and Past Lives, the movie depicts the remnants of a United States government battling the Western Forces, an alliance between Texas and California. If you’re looking for reasons—Why these factions? Why now?—you won’t find any answers. The film is frustratingly opaque on logistics, though we’re able to hypothesize based on a few offhand comments. (The unnamed president, played by Nick Offerman, is entering his third term and isn’t gun-shy about using air strikes against American citizens.) Even so, a California that cooperates with Texas seems far-fetched.For writer/director Alex Garland, our incredulity is the point. “I find it interesting that people would say, ‘These two states could never be together under any circumstances.’ Under any circumstances? Any? Are you sure?” he told The Atlantic. By asking us to accept his premise, Garland forces viewers to consider the ideological divisions we take for granted. Turns out, the why doesn’t matter all that much. Dystopia, no matter how it comes about, is still dystopia.What is clear, though, is that the war provides an opportunity for journalists, capitalized on by photojournalist Lee (Kirsten Dunst), her Reuters colleague Joel (Wagner Moura), and her mentor, New York Times reporter Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson). Their coverage of atrocities shapes our experience of this imagined future. Many of those chilling camera shutter sounds come from Lee, as she documents truly terrible scenes of domestic conflict with ...Continue reading...

Christian writers and artists need communities of like-minded creatives so we can best serve both the church and the world.I can remember the moment small literary magazines entered my life and established a subtle but dominating influence. I was talking with my dad about some classes I was taking at the end of my undergraduate years, and I shared an idea that had recently popped into my head: “I want to start a magazine. I’ll invite some friends who like to write and are into photography to feature their work. I’ll print 10 or 20 copies and see what happens.”Surprised, he pointed at a maroon-covered, finely printed journal lying on his desk, the word Image emblazoned across the top. Below the title, a description: Art. Faith. Mystery. As the dean of students at a Christian liberal arts university, he knew his way around a landscape that I was just beginning to roam.The direction of my life was permanently altered at that moment. I found a world that took seriously the things I loved: faith, books, imagination, the creation of culture, and the development of craft. It lit a fire in my chest.But ten years later, it feels like that world is crumbling—or is at least on quaking ground. In February, Image announced it was shuttering after 35 years of operation for financial reasons—and then, in March, joyfully reversed its announcement after an outpouring of support. Other small magazines and presses haven’t made the same comeback, and Christians in the Visual Arts announced it was disbanding last year.From my vantage, these closures don’t demonstrate a lack of energy, talent, or interest in arts and literature in the church. In some ways, the arts and faith movement—led by writers, painters, poets, and photographers who live by a drumbeat not usually highlighted in Christian community—seems ...Continue reading...