Along the Way w/ Bro. Ryan

"Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near."   - Revelation 1:3 If you've been in church for any length of time, you've probably heard a sermon or two where the preacher exclaimed, "The time is near!" or "Jesus could come at any time!" or "The Lord could come tonight!"  We've been told that the End could happen tomorrow, in the next seconds, today....but nothing has happened.  Even in the early church days, the Apostles faced the same issue and arguments: "...you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.  They will say, 'Where is the promise of His coming?  For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were f

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." -Philippians 2:3-4 We live in a time where our kids are being taught that they are #1 in everything.  In today's society, there are no losers, only winners.  There is no second place, only first.  There are no rewards or trophies for hard work and simply being better, but rather we have replaced these achievements with participation ribbons and rewards based on any level of effort given.  Everyone is king in his/her own universe.  My goodness is this mindset so contrary to Scripture! Self esteem is one thing.  We should never bully or mistreat people but rather build each other up.  We should also love our enemies.   However, the point here with what the Apostle Paul was inspired to write to the Philippians goes along the line of Christian humility.  As Christi

"Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem.  Then Paul answered, 'What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart?  For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the Name of the Lord Jesus.'"  - Acts 21:12-13 Here's the situation: The Apostle Paul had his heart set on getting to Jerusalem and sharing the Gospel with his fellow Jewish brethren; he had continually had his heart set on going there.  He gets the opportunity to set sail, make a few stops along the way, and then finally arrive at the city.  Paul and his shipmates arrive at a place called Caesarea and he runs into a fellow believer named Philip the evangelist (one of the original 7 chosen back in Acts 6) and he stays with him several days.  Sometime during his stay, Paul is approached by a prophet from Judea named Agabus.  Agabus shares with Paul a prophecy that wasn't something to get excited about: the

"Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when we are absent, such we will also be in deed when we are present."   - 2 Corinthians 10:11 In the Roman world, much like in our culture today, if you were a gifted, eloquent speaker, you were placed on a pedestal.  More times than not, if you could speak well, you could win over any crowd (we see this a lot today in the media, political events, etc.).  Facts don't necessarily even need to be present as long as the speaker is compelling enough to turn the crowd, sway their thinking, and win them over.  False apostles were infiltrating the early church and they were doing so in different ways.  The situation Paul was addressing here in 2 Corinthians was one where his own integrity and ability to lead was being attacked.  The false apostles, referring to themselves even as "super-apostles," were setting themselves up as the true leaders of the church, preaching false doctrines and attempt

"And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.....And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." -1 Corinthians 2:1, 4 Do you ever worry about what you'll say when witnessing to someone?  Maybe you have a desire to tell others about Jesus, you know its what He's called all believers to do, but you're fearful of sounding like a fool or stumbling over your words or not being able to answer someone's questions? We all have that fear; I have that fear at times.  When those fears come, remember what Paul said here: "I didn't come with excellence of speech or wisdom..."  Paul made it clear that he didn't share the Gospel with people with some amazing presentation or elaborate witnessing method.  He didn

"After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly , for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus... "  -John 19:38 If you're a believer, a " disciple of Jesus ," how are you living and representing Christ?  Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy member of the Jewish governing council known as the Sanhedrin, had come to faith in Christ during His earthly ministry.  However, due to his " fear of the Jews ," likely being afraid of loss of social status, mistreatment and even persecution for his new-found faith, he lived " secretly ," something John wrote about in a negative light. Even before this, John wrote about other believers who were in prominent positions in Jewish circles but who decided to live their faith secretly: "Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in Him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue

 We all know the hymn.... "Standing, standing,  Standing on the promises of God my Savior. Standing, standing...... I'm standing on the promises of God!" These promises of God, found in the Scriptures, are what help us to maintain hope in this dark world.  The great and many promises of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son are what help to keep us going as believers.  But, do we fully believe them all?  Do we sometimes doubt them? Here's a small example of the trustworthiness of the words of Christ: When Jesus was in Bethany at Simon the leper’s house, a woman named Mary came and anointed Him with expensive oil, to which Jesus said was to prepare His body for His upcoming burial after His crucifixion. It’s interesting to note what Jesus says after Mary does this: “Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this Gospel is preached in the world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” (Matt. 26:13) This is a great display of Jesus

"The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!'  For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you...For as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day....as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man...Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot...I tell you, in that night there will be two people in one bed: one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding together: the one will be taken and the other left.  Two men will be in the field: the one will be take and the other left."   - Luke 17 This life is so busy.  Its so easy to get caught up in the daily 'hustle and bustle' of living life.  We have appointments, jobs, meetings, events, families, friends, etc.  There's so much calling for a piece of our time and energy that at the end of a normal day, it seems

Sanctification is a fancy-pants Bible word that means the process of making one holy.  Far too often, even though it's really been just a handful of times for me personally, I've heard fellow believers who claim that preaching sanctification and teaching that believers should be striving for holiness and living Godly lives is legalistic and not biblical.  The claim is that God is love, we are now under His mercy and grace (which all are true) and that since our sins are completely forgiven in Christ it doesn't really matter how we live or if we go to war with our old sinful desires because grace and mercy will abound and overcome in the End. Is this attitude biblical? The Apostle Paul gave the Ephesians some practical evidence in Eph. 4:25-32 to show if sanctification was taking place in their lives. Paul, led by the Spirit, writes things like, "put away lying" (v.25), "be angry and do not sin" (v.26), "let him who steals steal no longer&qu

"Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, 'Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?'  But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.  Philip answered Him, 'Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little."   - John 6:6-7 This is the well-known gospel account of Jesus feeding the 5,000 (could have been around 20,000 total, counting women and children).  The story goes that the disciples find a boy with a lunch containing 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, hardly enough to feed that many thousands of people.  The miracle worked by Christ that day was the fourth "sign" displayed by Christ (of the "7 Signs" recorded in John's Gospel) proving His Deity (that Jesus was God; not just a good teacher or rabbi).  It's interesting to note that of all the signs recorded in the 4 Gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark, Luke

"You've heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."   ( Matthew 5:27-30 ) To some, Jesus' teaching here can be puzzling.  Is Jesus seriously advocating self-mutilation?  What's the teaching here?  What's the underlying principle?  Simply put, the principle Jesus is teaching here is one that's far too often neglected or ignored by Christians - our sin and the snares to fall into those sins need to be taken with the utmost seriousness

If you're a believer, chances are you've asked this question in some form or fashion multiple times during your life: "God, why do the 'bad people' seem to get away with stuff and prosper in life while the 'good people' get trampled on and can never seem to get ahead?"  The Israelites asked the same question of God, as is recorded in Malachi 3:13-15 : " You have spoken arrogantly against Me,” says the Lord . “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against You?’ “You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out His requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.’” Notice God's opening remark about these questions: "You have spoken arrogantly against Me."   Despite the seemingly unfair circumstances, circumstances we all witness in life, the Israelites, their

Nehemiah 8:1-9 describes an interesting scene that would be quite foreign, and even rejected, in most American churches today. At the start of the worship service, "the people gathered together as one man (v.1)," a unified body of God's people who came to worship. There was a "platform of wood (v.4)," or great stage, built and Ezra the priest (or preacher) and 13 other worship leaders took the stage. So far, this seems pretty typical of our average church services. Ezra start ed preaching from God's Word, preaching expositionally, verse by verse, explaining the text. He and the other leaders preached and taught from the Word, "and they gave sense and helped the people understand the reading (v.8)." Not only did they preach and teach in this style, but they did it "from morning until midday (v.3)" while the people stood with "attentive ears (v.3, 5)." What we're talking about here is roughly a 6-hour prea

Have you ever heard this statement made before about the Church?  Christians?  The statement being that 'the Church' or 'Christians' are weird?  Maybe you've even thought that at one point or another.  The truth of the matter is, if the Church/Christians aren't seen as weird in our world, then something is wrong.  Christians and their local congregations are supposed to be weird in comparison to the culture, the lost, and the worldview of the day - it's downright biblical and, quite frankly, non-negotiable. What do I mean then by being "weird?"  This is not to say that Christians and local churches should purposefully act, talk and live in a strange manner for the sake of being 'in but not of the world', or however one would like to look at it.  What I mean by being weird, and more importantly, what the Bible means about Christians and the Church being "weird" in this world, is that we should be living for the Lord.  We should b

" A merry heart does good like a medicine: but a broken spirit dries the bones. "  - Proverbs 17:22 I was prompted to write about this topic after reading the Facebook status of a dear friend, mentor and pastor who shared of his continued suffering.  As a senior adult, he suffers from several health concerns, one of which is severe loss of eyesight.  As a pastor (and he continues to pastor well into his 80s), he has to preach from memory at this stage in his life, which is remarkable!  This pastor friend shared that he's been dealing with an issue that kept him from sleep.  The part that led me to ask the title question above and to write briefly was his statement that he had prayed for the Lord to bring relief so that he could sleep but the pain continued on through the night and into the following day.  He said he would continue to pray for the Lord's healing. Another story: My grandfather served as a pastor, missionary, and director of missions for decades.  A

"So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them." -Genesis 1:27 One of the biggest battles of our day, Christian or not, is the battle of identity. For the majority of people in our culture, identity is found in who others say we are. We are defined by others in a number of ways: hobbies, interests, jobs, relationships, accomplishments, mistakes, etc. So many people spend their entire lives trying to live up to o r live down an identity that was forced upon them by others or by the culture. Your true identity has already been defined and settled by God in the beginning and identity finds its fullest fulfillment in a relationship with Jesus Christ: "For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with..." -Romans 6:6 You are not your job. You are not your circumstances. You are not your handicaps. You are not your weaknesses. You

Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most, if not the most, misquoted and misrepresented verses in all of Scripture today. It was never meant to be read for individuals, speaking 'to me' as a promise 'to me,' but rather the context was to the Israelites who were going to endure Babylonian captivity via the judgment of God for their many ongoing sins. God promised them a future and a hope, guaranteed, even promising to "prosper" them as a nation, BUT not until after 70 years of heartache, pain, and captivity (read Jeremiah 29:10). Now, does God have "plans to prosper" and "thoughts of peace" toward His people today, the Church, even plans to "give us a future and a hope?" Certainly, it's the very thing Jesus guaranteed. But this promise is future and it is for the whole. This isn't a promise to be taken for me or for an individual person. The Christian life, more times than not, involves more suffering and hea

This is a thought that makes me shudder and, quite frankly, lose all hope - what if Jesus had not come to fulfill the will of God?  What if Jesus did come to earth but chose to go rogue somewhere in the middle of the plan?  The bottom line is - we would have no hope or prayer of escaping the judgment and wrath of God against our sins - if Jesus hadn't come... I'm currently reading through Ezekiel and I found myself in chapter 22 this morning.  Specifically, in Ezekiel 22:30-31 God said, "So I sought for a man among them (Israel) who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.  Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,' says the Lord God." The both chilling and revealing statement here is " but I found no one."   Israel had come under judgment for ignoring God

In the book of Ezekiel, the prophet is tasked with receiving visions of the destruction of the Israelite people at the allowance of God for their ongoing sin and refusal to repent.  God had given the people ample opportunity to repent and come back to Him before sure judgment and destruction came upon then, but they refused to listen and humble themselves.  Pride has a way of doing that... In the midst of all this, Ezekiel wondered if God was going to honor His promise of sustaining the people, even through the impending judgment via the Babylonian captivity.  God answered in the affirmative, however it would only be a 'remnant' (Webster's: 'a small remaining quantity').  The majority of the unfaithful Israelites would not make it out of this judgment alive. Ezekiel 11:16 is a small but significant verse in this narrative.  God states to Ezekiel, "Although I have cast them far off among the Gentiles, and although I have scattered them among the countries,

The letter to the Galatians is an interesting (and highly relevant) one for today.  In chapter 1, Paul shares his customary greeting however, he cuts it shorter than his usual introductory pre-chorus to exclaim his absolute and utter astonishment (complete shock!) that the churches in Galatia that he helped plant on his first missionary journey, Antioch Pisidia Church, Iconium Fellowship Church, The Church at Lystra, and Derbe Community Church (or whatever other modern titles you want to tack on to the original names), were " turning away " from not only the gospel but " from Him " (v.6), Jesus, who called them to begin with. What was going on here?  Literally, the Galatian believers in these churches were deserting Jesus and His Gospel of grace for the heretical/false teaching of the Judaizers; guys who were coming in and preaching that the OT Law must be followed for salvation - not Christ and certainly not through faith alone in Christ alone.  The Galatians app

Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them." "If our country had a biblical worldview, society would realize that there's only one race, the human race, started through Adam and Eve in Genesis. We all have 1 common set of parents " In the beginning ..." From that point on, different skin pigmentation formed through melanin in the skin, but color doesn't mean new "races" formed. We're the human race, created by God in His image."  This was part my Facebook status this morning but I felt the need to expound just a bit more on the issue.  As pastors, we have an obligation (dare I say a calling) to speak to the moral, cultural, and societal issues of our day and respond to those topics from a biblical worldview.  Perhaps the pulpit isn't the best place to broach certain things, but we still must speak to them as we are ministers of the Gospel and o

The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah was instructed by God to share all of the coming judgments He had set into place on Israel and all the inhabitants of the land for their continued sin and failure to repent after repeated warnings and opportunities.  God would use the uprising of the Babylonian Empire and King Nebuchadnezzar to exact this pronounced judgment. Before the captivity had completely overtaken Israel, God instructed Jeremiah to record on a scroll all the words He had spoken to Jeremiah so that they could be read in the presence of the people at the temple, at the palace, and finally in the presence of King Jehoiakim.  It happened, that after the scroll was read in the palace, the scroll was confiscated by a group of princes who then took the scroll and read it to the king.  The king's reaction to God's Word is recorded in Jeremiah 36:23 - "And it happened, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that the king cut it with the scribe's knife and cast i

The lost are of course 'not right' with God.  Until we repent and become regenerated by the Spirit through faith and adopted into the family of God, we are seen as His enemies.  Enemy = not right.  But this can apply to believers as well.  Although " nothing can separate us from the love of God " ( Rom.8:38-39 ) and we are eternally secure in our salvation ( Eph.1:13-14 ), even we as believers can get on the wrong side of God.  So, when that happens, how do we 'get right' with Him?  There's a record in the historical narrative of 2 Kings 22 which speaks of a young king in Judah, Josiah, who actually took the throne at age 8 (can you imagine??).  At the age of 26, 18 years into his reign, he had gotten things turned around.  He was a righteous king who brought his people back from the wickedness they had practiced and experienced under the reigns of Manasseh and Amon (idolatry and child sacrifice) and God blessed Josiah and those in Judah for it.  In 2 K

If you're a Christian, whether you've been one for a long time or if you just recently came to know Christ as your Lord and Savior, this thought has probably run through your head once or twice before: Why is the culture so hostile toward the Gospel?  This is the greatest news and the most loving, grace-filled message in human history yet more people seem to hate it and reject it than those who believe it and want it.  What gives? Acts 19:17-34 offers a situation in the beginnings of the early church where the Gospel was preached, lives were changed, and a riotous mob resulted.  Hold on...Gospel + lives changed = angry mob?  Yes indeed.  Paul had preached the Gospel to those in Ephesus and one of the results of his preaching and the miraculous things God was doing through him (healing, exorcism, etc.) brought many to repentance and faith.  Repentance involves changing one's mind about his/her sins and turning away from those things, which is what the people did here.  Man

You've seen it: Passionate orating, fiery rhetoric, and rhythmic tunes accompanying the action on stage as the "preacher" (term used very loosely here) darts back and forth shouting victory and hallelujah and all kinds of other "churchy" jargon that ignites hundreds (if not thousands) to shouts echoing the same.  Then, one by one, seemingly normal, educated, impassioned people enter the stage to be touched or spoken to in hopes of healing of their various ailments or troubles.  The individual involved in the "faith-healing," once touched or shouted at, begins to shake, maybe even convulse, accompanied often by a loud shout, and then hits the ground shivering.  This process is repeated until the program goes off the air at the top of the hour.  Hallelujah!  Praise Jesus!  Many were healed on this fine day! Err......not really. There's a story recorded in the history of the early church in Acts 19:11-20 involving miraculous signs and wonders, a G

I was recently tasked with a research assignment tied to a seminary professors' dissertation work regarding the spiritual growth and assimilation of new converts in the church.  The findings from the research were interesting as several new converts, individuals who had come to Christ within the past 1-3 years, shared their personal experiences and insights from being new believers in their local congregations of membership. What was most alarming probably than all of the data recorded was that several new converts could not articulate a biblical answer for the question, "If you were to stand before God and He asked you why should I let you into My heaven, what would you say?"  Many gave works-based answers to this question.  Coupled with these findings, new converts interviewed also shared that they could not identify an intentional discipleship training process or program in their churches.  Basically, once they became members, they were left to find what was next for

This is my first post as the new Pastor of Northside Baptist Church in Garland, TX.  A lot has changed since the last time I blogged - I was a young, inexperienced youth minister, still attending college at Texas Tech, when a series of events and the leading of the Lord led me into the ministry.  I haven't looked back since that day. Now, I sit at this keyboard typing my first post on the new (and improved) "Along the Way" blogspot - with almost 10 years of ministry experience under my belt!  My family always told me that time flies and it only gets faster as you get older...this has increasingly become more evident as being the truth.  The name for this blog is in honor of my late grandfather, "Papa" Don Collins.  He served the Baptist Missionary Association of America for 55 years in capacities of pastor, missionary, college dean, and director of missions.  Before his death, Papa wrote two books, the first being titled " Along the Way " followed by