Compared with all other literary productions, the Bible stands singularly and peculiarly alone. The earliest part of it is the old-history. It traces that history back to the very beginning, and develops it from the religious standpoint, throwing a divine light upon it all. As a whole it bears the impress of inspiration, by which its authors were divinely guided to tell the Divine shaping of events

 There are some who believe that once a person obeys the Lord and becomes a child of God that he can never lose his salvation, even if he resorts to murder, adultery, or any other sins. This teaching is sometimes referred to as "once saved, always saved." That may be a comforting doctrine, but it is a false comfort, for there is no teaching in Scripture that supports it.

 The religion of Jesus Christ is a religion to be lived every day. It is not a Sunday religion only. Fuller, a Theologian, said, “Measure not men by their Sundays, without observing what they are all the week after.” This is good advice, for many do not live through the weekdays like they appear to live on Sunday. The Christ like personality must be reflected in the Christian each day that he lives.

Yes, it is that time of year. A time of joy for youngsters who leave behind the rigors of academia and embrace the carefree days of summer. Oh, to be a youngster again! But there is a question those youngsters need to answer:  What have you learned? It would be foolish to brush off this question without caring. For time spent in study should count for something, or else it is time wasted. 

I personally think that memorials are a good thing, because it helps us to remember the past events and it can help us to remember to look to future events. May I, at this time, point out that man did not come up with the concept of memorials, God did.

 Who are those who stand with Christ?

What are the Lord’s requirements for this companionship?

 If there is one emotion that has gotten people in trouble, it is anger. Have you ever been angry and did something you later regretted? Prisons are filled with folks, who in the heat of the moment, lashed out in violence against someone else. Sometimes, it can only take a few seconds to permanently hurt others as well as yourself. The wise man writes that anger can be a "snare for your soul" (Proverbs 22:24,25). Being lulled into this trap can ruin your life. 

May we pray: “God, help us never to be too busy for our mothers. If your Son could take time and great effort while on the cross in his hour of death to show his love for his earthly mother, help us to love our mothers while we have her in our life!”

 I remember where I was when I learned my very first memory verse. It was in Wednesday night Bible class. Over the years I have never forgotten this verse, as it is special to me being the first verse of God's word that I memorized. From the King James Version, it is: Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven (Matthew 7:21). Not only has this verse become special to me, but also Wednesday night Bible classes.

 We may not understand any particular reason for preaching, for hearing, for believing, for repenting of sins, for confessing Christ before men, for being baptized into Christ, except God commanded these acts.

 There may be sometimes when you are pulled into a religious discussion with your non-Christian coworkers, friends, or relatives. They may ask you what you think about certain matters, such as heaven and hell, marital conflicts, the nature of God, etc. Because they know you are religious, they want to know what you think. You need to understand that this is a great opportunity, not to tell them what you think, but what God has said about such matters.

 The real short cut to success is down the trail marked “HARD WORK,” . . . To an improvident relative, Abraham Lincoln wrote in a letter to John D. Johnston, November 4, 1851, “If you intend to go to work, there is no better place than right where you are; if you do not intend to go to work, you cannot get along anywhere. Squirming and crawling about from place to place can do no good. . . . Part with the land you have, and my life upon it, you will never after own a spot big enough to bury you in . . . .Your thousand pretenses for not getting along better are all nonsense; they deceive nobody but yourself. Go to work is the only cure for your case.”

There is an enemy that we all have in common. It is powerful and has rarely lost a fight. It has already vanquished and taken away some of our loved ones, and one day it will do the same to us, if the Lord tarries. This enemy is dreadful, and no amount of pleading or crying will avert its force. 

We ought not to busy ourselves so exclusively with the matters that are temporal as to let pass by in neglect things which are eternal. “Acquaint now thyself with God, and be at peace with Him.” The Master taught “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Our Lord came into this world to save sinners, of whom Paul wrote, he was chief (1 Timothy 1:15). Yes even Paul had a past that he believed made him "unworthy to be called an apostle" (1 Corinthians 15:9). But by the grace of God I am what I am (1 Corinthians 15:10a), Paul wrote. When God forgives us, He remembers our sins no more (Hebrews 10:17).

The word, "birthday," is mentioned three times in the Bible (Genesis 40:20; Matthew 14:6; Mark 6:21), and in those occurrences, a celebration was made. It certainly should be a time of joy when a child is brought into the world (cf. John 16:21), and hopefully, we still find joy in our own birthdays. Webster's dictionary defines "birthday" as "the day of a person's birth; an anniversary of a birth.”

In Jesus' day, there were some who greatly desired to follow him, but for the wrong reason. Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him” (John 6:26,27 NKJV). They followed Jesus because they were hungry for another good meal. But Jesus points them to something higher that will truly satisfy the soul, which is Jesus himself. Sadly, many were not hungry for the bread of life (John 6:66).

This beautiful vision came to Jacob at Bethel. Not only was it an encouragement to the lonely pilgrim; but also, a forecast of far-reaching consequence. Near the beginning of his ministry, Jesus alludes to it. Unto Nathanael he said, “Verily, Verily, I say into you, Ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” (John 1:51).

“11 Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 12 What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good? 13 Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile. 14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it”. [Psa. 34:11-14].

We cannot allow the riches of this world be more delightful to us than serving the Lord and doing His will. The question is, what makes us full? If it is the cares, riches, and pleasures of this world, then how are we different than those chief priests who bribed the guards to keep quiet about what they saw? Are we too comfortable living without Christ as the preeminent factor in our lives? If we leave this world in such a state, that error cannot be overcome.