Getting Started: the apostle John had heard, seen and touched Jesus while He was on the earth (1John 1.1-2), and John’s knowledge of Jesus was the basis of his teaching: “that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship... Continue Reading →

Getting started: It is Scriptural to say that we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2.38). Not only is it Scriptural to say we receive the Spirit, but receiving the Spirit is the culmination of God’s plan to redeem man! We who were created in the image of God (Genesis 1.26-27) can now,... Continue Reading →

We’ve noted the Scriptural truth that God’s Presence (i.e. the Holy Spirit) and the Word are tied together. The Holy Spirit revealed the Word of God to the apostles (John 14.26-27; 16.13) and when we follow the Word we receive the Spirit (Acts 2.38; 2John 9). We still have more to discuss and learn about... Continue Reading →

By Steve Patton | May 2025 The role of miraculous spiritual gifts in church history is more extensive than many realize. Among these gifts—prophecy, healing, and tongue speaking—the latter has perhaps seen the widest and most persistent belief across centuries. This article offers a cursory examination of the historical presence of tongue speaking, while occasionally... Continue Reading →

Christians, those who have been baptized for the remission of their sins, have received the promised Spirit; we’ve been born of both water and Spirit (Ezekiel 36.25-27; John 3.5; Acts 2.38). We should have no problem saying that because the New Testament Scriptures make it abundantly clear that the Spirit does in fact dwell in... Continue Reading →

God’s people are always formed by His Spirit. That was true in the beginning when “the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2.7). And it was true when God made Israel into His special... Continue Reading →

As we previously noted, being created in God’s image has moral implications, for just as God is holy, righteous, faithful, etc., so was man who was created in His image. Thus, everything God created was “very good” (Gen. 1:31). Yet, as we know man did not remain very good. Because of his sin, unholy man... Continue Reading →

It cannot be stressed enough just how wretched each of us become. Even if our sins seem trivial or relatively minor compared to the horrific things that take place in our world, our sinful conduct corrupts our very nature (Eph. 2:1-3). What God created as holy, we make unholy. What God made as living and... Continue Reading →

Getting Started: why were you baptized (or why should you be)? What did baptism accomplish? The book of Exodus not only describes how Israel became a great nation, but how they were figuratively born as God’s people. First, they were rescued from Egyptian bondage and brought to God so that they could be “my treasured... Continue Reading →

Getting started: in Ephesians 2.3 the apostle Paul declared that when we “lived in the passions of our flesh” we “were by nature children of wrath”. What do you think Paul meant by that? When reviewing some of my old sermons on the Holy Spirit, I concluded that they weren’t very good. They weren’t unScriptural,... Continue Reading →