Gleanings From Grace

Introduction: There is a plague in an old English Church that reads, “In the year 1653 when all things sacred throughout the land were demolished or profaned, Sir Robert Shirley built this church, whose singular praise is this, to have done the best of things in the worst of times.” (more…)

TEXT: John 1:35-42

INTRODUCTION: An Ordinary Man That Was Extraordinary.  I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, but most of us would be classified as ordinary people. By that I mean, most of us have never been or never will be listed in the Bluebook of society or Who’s Who. Most of us are not even listed in Who’s Not.  There are few of us, if any, Phi Beta Kappa’s, Val Dictorian’s, All-American’s, or Miss America’s. I doubt there are any Nobel Peace Prize winners among us. Most of us were not born with a silver spoon in your mouth. Most are not from the aristocracy. Most of us would be like the fellow who said, ONE OLE BOY SAID “I wasn’t born in a log cabin like some of the great men of our country, but I want you to know that just as soon as my family could afford one, we bought it and moved in!”
Most of us are just plain, old, down-right, everyday ordinary people. But then, most everybody else is ordinary. Now if that is discouraging listen to what ILL. One Writer Said “Most of Christ’s followers must remain unknown to fame. They must live a simple life, a thing of routine. Few take notice of them. Thus they live day by day, not idly or unprofitably, indeed, but in a small place-until the end come. (more…)

TEXT: PS 34 :19 ALSO 1 Sam. 22:1-2

Introduction: One afternoon a man was walking down a busy city street. He was lost in his own thought and didnt see that a live high voltage wire had fallen and was lying directly in front of him. Another man, seeing this one about to walk on the wire, tried to yell at him and warn him of the danger, but his voice was lost in the commotion of the city. Knowing that he could never get to the man in time to save him, he picked up a large stone and threw it at the man, striking him in the chest. The impact of the stone caused great pain and forced the man to stop just one step short of placing his foot on that wire. Had it not been for the pain of the stone, the man would have died. (more…)

TEXT:DEUTERONOMY 30:19, 20

INTRODUCTION: ILL.A certain lady went from village to village peddling her wares. Frequently on her journeys she would come to a fork in the road and would have to decide which road to take. She had a strange method for making her decision. She would take a stick, toss it into the air, and follow whichever path the stick seemed to be pointing to after it hit the ground. On one such occasion, the lady was seen tossing the stick into the air repeatedly. A curious passerby asked what she was doing. She explained her process and said, “The stick keeps pointing to the left fork and I wish to go to the right.” She had a choice to make, thought she had a method for making that choice, but in the final analysis, wanted to go the way she wanted to go, stick or no stick. (more…)

Text: Matthew 14:22-33

Introduction: A very familiar story. “Walking on water” has become synonymous with perfection. Most of us have admired Peter’s courage. Just to step out of that boat took a great deal of something. Call it courage…faith…reckless abandon…whatever. But I want to look at Peter’s walk on the wild side from a little different angle, if I may. (more…)

TEXT:Jude 3

Introduction: The FAITH is that body of revealed truths in the Word of God OUTLINE OF THE CHAPTER

I. ACCLAIMATIONverses 1-2

II. THE ALARMverses 3-4

III. THE ARGUMENTverses 5-16

IV. THE ADMONITIONverses 17-25

1.THE CALL TO ARMS! (more…)

TEXT: Matthew 10:42

INTRODUCTION: The Rewards of Refreshing

And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward. A line in “The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner” says “He prayeth best who loveth best, all things great and small…”  It is easy to love the great things, the big things.  Our culture celebrates power, money,  influence, and  beauty.    But that same culture ignores the small and seemingly insignificant things.  The good mother, the faithful employee, the day laborer, the plain looking, the simply dressed, the common person…these are just faces in the crowd, extras on the movie set, non-essentials in the quest for perfection. (more…)

TEXT: (Luke 23:46 KJV) And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

INTRODUCTION: Having said this, he breathed his last breath. We are not really prepared to live unless you we prepared to die. Much of what goes on in this world is part of a continuous battle against death, but death wins in the end. Death is an appointment, not an accident, and only God knows the day and the hour when our life will end that’s whv it’s wonderful to be a Christian and know Jesus as your Savior, because Christians don’t have to be afraid of death. Jesus’ seventh statement from the cross tells us about death and how he died. Four characteristics of his death should encourage us and remove any fear of death that may lurk in our hearts. (more…)

READINGS: Matt. 27:33-50; 2 Cor. 5:17-21
SUBJECT: The Word of Anguish
TEXT: “…My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:46).

Introduction:  It is now midday. For three hours the body of Jesus has been exposed to the burning rays of the sun. The divine Sufferer has almost reached the point of exhaustion when a supernatural phenomenon takes place: darkness falls over the whole earth, and a cry is heard. ..”My God, My God, why has thou forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:46). This cry of anguish expresses: (more…)

READING: John 19:25-27

TEXT: “…Jesus. . .said to His mother, ‘Woman behold thy son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold your mother!’…” (19:26-27).

Introduction: A.Those Who Were Standing by the Cross (19:25) It is uncertain whether John mentions three women or four. If we compare the various accounts it would seem that the following is the case. Reference is made to the women at the cross here, in Matthew 27:56, and in Mark 15:40. Comparing the accounts we see that: (more…)