For students in my Wednesday night class on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Handouts and Notes for Ephesians Chapter 1 are now available online. Lord willing we will begin covering this text during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
For students in my Wednesday night class on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Handouts and Notes for Acts Chapter 20:17-38 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this text during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
For students in my Wednesday night class on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Handouts and Notes for Acts Chapter 19:21-41 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this text during class tonight at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
By Timothy Agee
Do we choose what we desire?
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (I Corinthians 10:13, ESV – emphasis added)
There is no doubt that the biblical view of homosexual lifestyle is increasingly under attack in our culture. Within the past couple of weeks, I have read columns written by members of the mainstream media that called our viewpoint “completely and totally stupid” and “hateful bigotry.” While this is distressing to Christians, it should not be surprising. We must remember that our message is “foolishness” to the world:
“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Corinthians 1:18, ESV)
One thing about this discussion that is surprising to me, is that when faced with this topic, many Christians will first argue that homosexual desire must be a choice rather than a true yearning that occurs within an individual. Going down this road will immediately illicit a strong response from anyone who supports a homosexual lifestyle, and the rest of our message will most likely be lost on them. I agree that the practice of homosexuality is a choice, which is contrary to God’s will:
“For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.” (Romans 1:26-27, ESV – emphasis added)
For students in my Wednesday night class on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Handouts and Notes for Acts Chapter 19:1-20 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this text during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
For students in my Wednesday night class on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Handouts and Notes for Acts Chapter 18:18-28 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this text during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
by Olivia Agee
From the March/April 2013 issue of Christian Woman magazine…reprinted by permission.
Imagine two young men are at your door, tracts in hand, attempting to share their faith. When you ask why you should believe as they do, they respond, “Because the book of Mormon says so.”
Would this statement alone convince you to abandon your current beliefs and join the Mormon faith? Of course not, and neither would the words “the Quran tells me so” or “the writings of Buddha tell me so.” Yet many times we expect the mere words “because the Bible says so” to convert our non-Christian friends. Now, “the Bible tells me so” is extremely important in matters of doctrine and Christian living, but to non-Christians, those words are not convincing as a reason to accept the Bible as truth.
First Peter 3:15 commands us to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (NIV84). Is this something we know how to do? The evidence is on our side; there are a lot of good reasons to believe that what the Bible says is true. But could we explain them to someone else? With these questions in mind, the following is a short summary of evidence that I personally find most convincing.
Problems With Darwinian Evolution
First, I do not find the evidence for life apart from a Creator to be compelling. Darwinian evolution is full of holes, the most notable being the lack of evidence for life originating from non-life (i.e., abiogenesis); for species evolving into other species; and for the human body developing its systems gradually by natural selection (i.e., irreducible complexity), which was Darwin’s own criteria for the failure of his theory.
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 16 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this final chapter during class on Wednesday night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
by Timothy Agee
From the May 2013 issue of Gospel Advocate magazine…reprinted by permission.
In the midst of a culture filled with smart phones, social media, streaming video and on demand TV shows, churches of Christ across the country are struggling with how to attract and retain young adults within their congregations. In this context, the church is sometimes viewed as a relic that has trouble relating to the younger generation.
In response to this issue, some churches have embraced a strategy that has watered down the message of the gospel and that relies heavily on entertainment and social interaction to appeal to young adults. They emphasize the “experience” without the religion. They try to make the church “cool” by changing it to look more like the world. But if we do not take the time to teach them the Bible, can this approach possibly lead to an authentic relationship with Christ and His Word? Will they find answers to the deepest questions about their faith and be prepared to face the world with all of its dangers? Will they ever be motivated to take ownership of their faith?
When facing this challenge, we must realize that the church, as established on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2), is still relevant today without our intervention. When we attempt to make it more relevant for today’s young adults, we may actually make it less relevant by taking the focus off the most important things, thereby compounding the problem.
Young adults are smart enough to see through things that are superficial. If we try to use entertainment, they will move on to something else once they find a better alternative. If we try to make the church appear more like the culture, they will quickly see it as a cheap imitation. If we present them with only a shallow representation of the Word, they will look for something else to fill the void and will quickly be “devoured,” “scorched” or “choked” by the influence of the world:
And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them (Matthew 13:4-7 ESV, emphasis added).
It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.
― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory, and Other Addresses
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 15 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this great chapter during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said…
Love this picture tweeted out earlier today by @darrenrovell
Romans Chapter 14 Handouts and Notes are Now Online
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 14 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this great chapter during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
We gather to worship the glory of God, and we scatter to reflect the
glory of God.
Romans Chapter 13 Handouts and Notes are Now Online
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 13 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this great chapter during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
So proud of Olivia Agee for her article “Why I Believe,” which was published in the March / April issue of Christian Woman magazine.
You can read the article online at their website
I’m obviously biased, but it is definitely worth taking a moment to read.
Romans Chapter 12 Handouts and Notes are Now Online
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 12 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this great chapter during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!
Romans Chapter 11 Handouts and Notes are Now Online
For students in my Wednesday night class on Romans: Handouts and Notes for Romans Chapter 11 are now available online. Lord willing we will cover this great chapter during class tomorrow night at 7pm at Bellevue Church of Christ!