Church of Christ at Oshkosh

Enough cowering! Enough hiding out and social distancing from getting things done because of the virus! Paul said that there would be "in season" and "out of season" times for preaching the gospel (II Timothy 4:2) and for growing the kingdom. He did not mean that sometimes we work and serve, and at other times we should stop because it is inconvenient or dangerous. I believe he was exhorting the church to stay busy even when it was inconvenient and/or dangerous as it has been here for the last month or so with the COVID-19. What a bonanza for the devil! The church waiting around until things get better so it can get busy again building the kingdom. What if things get worse? What if the quarantine lasts until December? We need to realize that the evil one never takes a break in attacking the church and consequently the Lord's body should always be in the fight: no let-up, no retreat and no furlough in the spiritual battle. This Coronavirus crisis and the resultin

One of the more recent issues in American society is the notion of tolerance for individuals, which like most things seems like a reasonable request. You should be able to as an adult tolerate someone else’s behavior meaning you do not have to like or appreciate what is happening, but just the sort of allowing them to do their own thing. The more common definition of word meaning the allowable deviation from a standard.  The real problem is the tolerance factor quickly shifted from allowing to accepting the deviation as it were. Suddenly it is no longer encouraged to promote Christian values, but to embrace those people and ideas that would oppose being a Christian. I would take it as one step further already and say that we are encouraged to embrace and promote sin versus living as a Christian. Before I go any further, I want to clarify Christians are commanded to love one another as stated in several passages of the Bible including John 15:12. There is no commandment to hate or harm

When you are thinking about the Lord’s Supper, what thoughts cross your mind, are you thinking about the Lord or what you are going to do after Church services. Do you think about what kind of sacrifice was made for you or the notification that just came in on your cell phone. I am going to make a suggestion, think about your covenant, your agreement with God.  Do you remember when you became a Christian, and you promised God you would honor Him by living as a Christian should?   The agreement was fairly simple, He agreed to be your God.  You agreed to be His child.  The Lord’s Supper is a meal you partake of, that also reflects your covenant with God, do this in remembrance of me.  1 Corinthians 11:24. The Lord’s Supper is a great time to examine our lives.  Am I keeping my end of the agreement?  The supper can be a moment of great resolve, to be all that we can be for the Lord. A time specifically set aside once a week to reflect on our relationship. Think about the body of the Lord.

Why me? Is one of the most commonly asked questions, and can often be grouped in two different scenarios: times of despair or unfavorable situations. Instead of it being an actual question meriting a response, it is generally a plea to other individuals or to God that they are facing a scenario or situation that they do not want to deal with. A quick web search of the question why me, will yield over a billion different search results. Notably on the first page of results will also include references to why me is not the correct question that you should be asking yourself. Most of the responses deal with the hardship factor or the reality factor of worldly views.  The real problem with the question why me is that its people do not want to take the time to reflect on their relationship with Christ and their involvement with his Church. Instead of the why me it should be a moment in time where you pause to understand what is going on and put your trust in the Lord.  People that are exper

In I Peter 5:8, the Apostle Peter warns his readers concerning the devil. He says that the devil prowls like a roaring lion seeking to devour and he seeks and knows where to find us in order to devour us. For example, the devil found Samson in the arms of pagan and immoral women. He found Judas where power and money were traded. He found Jesus hungry and tired in the desert alone and struggling in the garden. He always knows where to look in order to find and devour you. He finds you online because there is stuff there you should not see; in your car in heavy traffic when you are in a hurry and least patient; when you are broke and would compromise honesty and generosity to get what you want; after a fight, insult or offense when revenge is planned. He knows exactly where to find you in order to devour you and draw you into sin. Of course, there are places where he cannot find you, places where his power cannot overcome you. This is when you are in the Word and prayer; worshipping, fel

 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. 25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, - Ephesians 4:24-26 Paul is encouraging the church to grow in Christian maturity and grace. One sign of that new maturity, that new balance, that new person is that a person learns to deal with his/her anger in a proper way. In the old life, the sinful, unbelieving life, anger was dealt with and used in a variety of ways: A vent to spew out our frustrations An excuse for violence or unreasonable conduct (I was angry so I…) A way to intimidate or manipulate others (…don't get him mad…) When one becomes a Christian however, the old man of sin dies, is buried in the water of baptism and a new man emerges. And this new man emerges with new ways of thinking and new ways of actin

The Christian religion is based on faith. Faith in God; belief in Christ; faithful living, etc. So many lessons and sermons encourage people to have faith, keep on believing but many times neglect to explain how one is to have or cultivate faith. In other words, how do you go from not believing to actually having faith? Well there are three natural steps that take a person from zero to faith as a Christian. Step #1 - Believing as true the facts and conclusions that have been presented to you in the Bible. And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. - Hebrews 11:6 That is what a Bible study is all about. Reading and processing the information about God and how He has worked throughout history to bring Jesus to earth as a man! It is understanding and making a decision on whether you accept as true the teachings of the Bible about Jesus' life, death, and resurrection and His offer of

In a given year the faithful Christian will hear approximately 250 to 300 Bible lessons when you count regular attendance, devotionals, weddings, funerals and other occasions where the Bible is preached or taught. That's a lot of attention to one source, a lot of time spent learning about a single book. Of course we think that it's time well spent since we believe that the Bible is God's word. We usually study what's in the Bible, what it says, but tonight and next week I want to talk about the Bible itself: How it came to be How we know that it's from God Why we can be assured that our Bible is reliable and worthy of all the time we invest in studying it. Since the Bible is a book, we'll begin with the history of writing and writing materials used in making ancient books. History of Writing Many people believed for a long time that early man was ignorant and rejected the idea that ancient civilizations used writing or writing materials. This was their main argu

1. Do only Christians have access to God in prayer? "We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him." John 9:31 "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him." Hebrews 11:6 God created all things, knows and hears all things, even sends rain and sunshine on all men, but sinners and unbelievers have no access to His throne of grace through prayer. That is why, we believers in Jesus Christ, those who have access to God in prayer, we must pray for others. No one else has the privilege that we have. 2. Do our prayers make a difference? James says, "15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effectiv

Most of our sins are little ones and rarely get us on the 10:00 o'clock news. Few of us are ever convicted of robbery, murder, or rape. The majority of Christians manage to avoid the big "whopping" sins most of the time. That's why when a Christian does break the law, it's news. No, our sins are the grinding day-to-day violations that repeat themselves over and over again and bore little holes in our souls that eventually bleed us of all faith and spiritual energy. Big sins are like dynamite that can blow up the house in one tremendous bang. Little sins are like termites that slowly eat through everything and cause the house to collapse in on itself. Either way, the house is destroyed. The apostle Paul puts it this way, "The wage of sin is death." Romans 3:23 - he never qualifies if it's big or little sins. The point I'm getting to here is that whether it's big sins or little ones, we need to break the sin habit if we are to grow in Christ, r

When you look back at your life you can usually see the line it took by plotting out the choices you made along the way. Christian life is like this as well. Jesus tells all of His would-be disciples that their lives will eventually bring them to 3 choices and what they choose will determine the direction of their spiritual lives. #1 - Peace or Conflict 34 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. 37 "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. - Matthew 10:34-37 Being a Christian will always bring the disciple into conflict with one's surroundings. Christianity goes against the grain of this world - its ideas, actions, desires. Even the

It seems that there are three elements that help identify the "modern" church. One is a focus on music in worship. Orchestras, choirs, even drama with music are a must if a church is to appeal to today's church goer. Another is the preoccupation with the miraculous. People want to go to a place where God reveals Himself to the congregation through healings, tongues, and a sure vision and knowledge of when the end times are coming. Of course the modern church would not be complete without the presence of women in leadership roles as pastors and evangelists. This reflects the status of women in the secular world and is usually the final proof that a church is truly a contemporary one keeping up with modern society. As members of a New Testament churches these changes may seem a little discouraging because we believe that the Bible teaches us to only use vocal praise in public worship (Eph. 5:18-19); the end of miraculous gifts at the close of the Apostolic era (I Cor. 13:8-

When speaking of His eventual return to judge the world and transport the church to heaven, Jesus had only one question expressed in Luke 8:8, "…when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" When applied in personal terms this question becomes, "When Jesus returns, will He find you faithful?" The Bible teaches us that the return of Christ and the end of the world will come suddenly and without any warning (Luke 12:40; Rev. 3:3). When this happens it won't be those who… used to be faithful sometimes faithful going to be faithful like to be faithful should have been faithful… that are going to be saved, It's those who are faithful who will be invited to join Him in the heavenly kingdom. Now the only way to be faithful when He comes in the future is to be faithful today because He might come today! Ask yourself the question, "Am I faithful today?" If you can answer yes then you're ready for Him; if you answer no or can't be sure

Our desire is to be pleasing to God in our worship, in our families, in our work-place and in our community. We are called to be holy, which is wholly devoted to God 24/7.  As stated in Romans 12:2 NIV "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Our goal is to become more like Christ as we love God with our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love and minister to others.  2nd Timothy 4:2-5 NIV  "Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your he