Category Archives: Uncategorized

May 25, 2023 · 9:30 pm

Avoid Hypocrisy

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?

Matthew 7:3-4

Here is the heart of the matter about this passage in Matthew 7. Jesus’ main point is characterized in these two verses. His main point is don’t be a hypocrite.

We must deal with our own issues before we can help others. We must remove the plank (hyperbole) from our own eye before we can remove the speck from the eye of others.

Hypocrisy (pretending to be something you are not) is very offensive to Jesus. It was one of Christ’s main criticisms of the religious leaders of His day. Very little seemed to raise the ire of Christ more than hypocrisy.

“Lord, help us to be authentic and gracious in our dealings with all. Help us to discern with purity and righteousness. Grant us the wisdom to be who you have created us to be in Christ Jesus!”

Tony French

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May 22, 2023 · 9:00 am

False Teachers

But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.

2 Peter 2:1-3

False teaching is a constant danger that Christians face in our day. Often times, the false preacher sounds right and orthodox and his message can be very appealing. Nevertheless, once the student of the Bible digs deeper into the teaching of certain “teachers” they find that the doctrine of these false prophets is wrong and filled with error.

How can we know who to trust in times like these? Peter gives two signs to watch for that often mark the teaching of false prophets.

**False teachers deny the divinity and power of Jesus. False teaching often portrays Jesus as merely a prophet or teacher. However, He is the Son of God, the second Person of the Trinity, the Messiah, and our only Hope and Savior. To teach anything less than the robust proclamation of Jesus found in Scripture is to teach a false Jesus.

**False prophets deny and disbelieve the Bible. They will ignore certain Scriptural teachings or even have the temerity to claim that what the Bible plainly says is not true. False teachers often have their own statements, books, and writings as their authority and not the Holy Bible.

Be careful, dear Christian. Study the Word of God so you will know the truth. Know the Bible so you can refute the error that pervades our society.

Tony French

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May 18, 2023 · 9:00 pm

Be Careful

For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

Matthew 7:2

The directive of our Savior is—be careful how you judge. Christians ought to make judgements based on the truth of God’s Word and not by their opinions. Believers should also examine themselves and remove any hypocrisy from their evaluations.

Let’s reiterate what Jesus is teaching. If we judge, we will be judged in return. When we judge, we will be judged by the same standard that we use for others.

Careful examination of ourselves is needed to help others.  This careful evaluation reminds us to be cautious about judging the motives of the hearts and minds of others. When we judge, we will be judged in return.

Tony French

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May 15, 2023 · 9:00 am

Shine The Light

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.  Matthew 5:16

Shine the light. Christian, shine the light of Jesus. Shine it so that others may see and glorify God. Shine the light so that others may know the truth. Shine the light so that others may be saved.

Shine the light by loving others. Shine the light by loving the least of these. Shine it by loving and caring for those who need Jesus. Wherever you go, shine the light!

And He said to him,” ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ “This is the great and foremost commandment. “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” 

Matthew 22:37-40

Shine the light by serving others. Let us find tangible ways to serve our neighbors and our communities. Serve the Lord with gladness by serving others.

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

Mark 10:42-45

Shine the light by pointing others to the truth. Shine the light so that others may sin their sinfulness and be drawn to the Savior. Shine the light so that others may know.

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 

Ephesians 4:15

Tony French

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May 11, 2023 · 9:00 pm

Judge Not

“Judge not, that you be not judged.

Matthew 7:1

Jesus uses an important literary technique of hyperbole in order to emphasize his teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. Hyperbole is exaggerations (sometimes extreme exaggerations) that are meant to underscore a point. They are not necessarily to be understood as doctrinal truth but they illustrate and demonstrate didactic truth. Christ uses hyperbole in this passage that we need to identify so that we can understand the truth being taught here.

Matthew 7:1 is the world’s favorite Bible verse. Many interpret this verse to mean that Christians are never to offer any judgement about matters of right or wrong and matters of morality or immorality. But is this honestly what Jesus means? 

No. In Scripture, we are commanded to test the spirits, (1 John 4:1) to be wise as serpents, (Matthew 10:16) and to be on the alert for the lies of the devil. (1 Peter 5:8)   In other words we are called to make judgements about truth and about lies. That can’t be what Jesus is saying.

Instead, let’s understand that Jesus uses hyperbole here to remind us to be careful about judging others. If we judge, we will be judged in return. When we judge, we will be judged by the same standard that we use for others.

We must make judgements and evaluations about right and wrong from time to time. We should be very careful about judging the hearts and minds of others because we don’t always know the whole story and we are sinners ourselves.

Tony French

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May 8, 2023 · 9:00 am

Grace

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9

God’s grace is undeserved. God has saved and transformed us not because we were worthy. We were certainly unworthy. Christ died for us out of His great love—a love that is undeserved in every way. 

God’s grace is unearned. No amount of human effort can merit God’s grace. Salvation is not of works and there is no boasting.

God’s grace is unyielding. God’s grace saves us, supplies us, and secures us forever. His grace never ends.

Grace. No wonder they call it amazing!

Tony French

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May 4, 2023 · 9:00 pm

Seek First

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Matthew 6:33-34

The end of this teaching forms one of the more famous passages in all of Scripture. Seek first God’s kingdom. When we do that, all that we need will be added to us.

Let us cease our worrying about the future. We cannot change the past and we don’t know the future. We have enough to worry about for today.

What does it practically mean to seek the Kingdom of God? How can we follow Jesus’ commands? The following list may help. This list is not exhaustive but can be a guide to help us.

Seek God’s Kingdom through prayer

  • Seek to be obedient to God’s Word
  • Be a part of a local church
  • Seek God’s Kingdom through prayer
  • Learn to serve others through the church and in your daily life
  • Be aware of God’s work in your life through the day as He guides, provides, and protects

Worry saps our spiritual strength and keeps us from having power with God. May we choose the alternative and live by trusting that God will meet our needs by His power.

Tony French

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May 1, 2023 · 9:00 am

Grace

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9

God’s grace is undeserved. God has saved and transformed us not because we were worthy. We were certainly unworthy. Christ died for us out of His great love—a love that is undeserved in every way. 

God’s grace is unearned. No amount of human effort can merit God’s grace. Salvation is not of works and there is no boasting.

God’s grace is unyielding. God’s grace saves us, supplies us, and secures us forever. His grace never ends.

Grace. No wonder they call it amazing!

Tony French

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April 27, 2023 · 9:00 pm

Our Supply

So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.Matthew 6:28-32God provides for us bountifully. He clothes the flowers as He clothed Solomon. He dresses the grass of the fields and He will provide for us in the same way. Jesus’ words reverberate throughout this passage once again. Don’t worry about what to eat, what to drink, or what to wear. Why? Our heavenly father knows what we need even before we ask it. He knows what we need and He will provide.We can trust the Lord. We can believe the Lord. And we can serve Him knowing all that we need, we will have. Tony French

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April 24, 2023 · 9:00 am

Mystery of Mysteries

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18-20

The Trinity is a mystery beyond mysteries. God is three and yet God is one. A doctrine such as this is complex and beyond us in many ways.

Nevertheless, the Bible does teach that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are the same in essence, power, and glory. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are declared as God, given worship, and given glory in the Holy Scriptures. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are shown to us a Creator and Sustainer in Holy Writ. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are co-eternal, co-equal, and co-powerful. These few points are sureties we can hold to in all of life. 

Hallelujah! The Lord God Almighty reigns. He is able and worthy!

Tony French

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