Bradleyville, MO church of Christ

In John 4, Jesus introduced the twin principles of true worship - spirit & truth. What do these principles mean and how do we practice them? Let's see…

Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness - What a beautiful thought! What is worship? God teaches us how He wants us to worship Him in His word. When we follow His pattern, it is the beauty of holiness!

The grace of God is so big and glorious we may struggle to put into words that we can understand. How do we make God's grace practical in our daily lives? Titus 2:11-14 helps us see how God's grace can manifest itself in our daily lives on a practical level.

What does the word, “Amen” mean? What does it mean when we say it, and when God says it? The Bible helps us understand that “Amen” reminds us that God keeps His promises.

If you wrestle with questions about death and the return of Jesus, you are not alone. Paul wanted the Thessalonians to have hope in the face of death. His message of the resurrection gives us hope as well. Jesus is coming again!

What would you like to be remembered for? Paul remembered the Thessalonian church for its work of faith, labor of love and patience of hope. Let's see how we can manifest these virtues in our lives in a memorable way.

The church in Philippi gives us fascinating insight into the birth and spiritual growth of the body of Christ. How does a small group of women gathering at the riverside for prayer grow into a mature congregation with bishops and deacons? This joyful church shows us how.

In many ways, the church in Antioch stands out among Jesus “candlesticks”. It was doing things and being blessed by God in ways no other church was at the time. What can we learn from this magnificent family of disciples? Let's see…

Let's return to our study of the church by looking at some examples of the 1st century church. If we do what they did, we will be what they were, starting with the church in Jerusalem.

With the graduation season approaching, it's important that we send our graduates into the next phase of their lives with hope and encouragement. There are three gardens in the Scriptures that can teach our young people importance life lessons and help make them successful in this life and the next.

Wouldn't it be comforting to know what God intended for our lives each and every minute, what His will for us is each day? The Bible says we can “prove” it. How we go about proving the will of God is the focus of our lesson.

Do you have a favorite spot you like to go to and be at peace? There's a place called Zion which has stood for many years as a stronghold and a place of peace. But, the Bible teaches us that places like Zion don't just represent a spot on the map. They represent a place in our hearts and minds, a place where God dwells. Let's travel to Zion together.

The Passover was a very important memorial to the Israelites. But to one in particular, it was not just a memorial; it was a foreshadow of the purpose of His life. What did the Passover mean to Jesus, and how did it impact His life? Let's see…

When you think of couples from the Bible, who comes to mind? Adam & Eve, Abraham & Sarah, Joseph & Mary. How about Aquila & Priscilla? We can learn a lot about what makes a marriage strong by looking at this Christian couple.

Many people like to study God's word, but they don't know HOW to study. Let's discuss some principles that help us rightly divide God's word.

From the beginning, SIN has plagued mankind and driven a wedge between him and his God. What is SIN & how do we overcome it? It starts & ends with Jesus.

Last week, we discussed what it means to teach Christ. It's equally important to“practice what we preach.” What does living Christ look like on a practical level? Let's see…

As we drill down into how we are to make disciples, we remember Jesus commanded to teach them. Where would you start to teach an unbeliever or even a new disciples? Let's identify a few basic principles each should know.

When we search the New Testament, we find several "one another" instructions for the church. As we strive to become the church that Christ built and fulfill His mission, these "one another" principles become vitally important. What does "one another" look like in our church family?

As we focus on fulfilling Jesus' mission of making disciples, we may wonder where to start. We start by emulating Jesus: We build relationships based on love, truth and trust - A family!

Prosperity, self-esteem, social justice, morality, Bible knowledge, heaven - All of these and more are missions of man-made religions. But, what is Jesus' mission for His church. In short, it is making more disciples that look like Him!

What did Jesus have in mind when He planned His church? A business that attracted thousands of consumers? Or a close-knit family of disciples? We see a glimpse of His true intentions in John chapter 6.

Almost two millennia ago, Jesus promised to build His church. But, is the church today what He promised to build? Have you ever caught yourself wondering, “Shouldn't church be more?” Maybe it should…

We love the birth of Jesus! God's word gives us a wonderful picture of His birth. But, there is a lot it doesn't say. What doctrine & liberty does the church & Christians individually have regarding Jesus' birth? Let's see…

After Jesus' death, His disciples wrestled with their expectations of Him versus the reality of Jesus. Sometimes, we may be disappointed when Jesus doesn't meet our expectations, too. When that happens, what do we do. Maybe we need to change our expectation of Jesus. We see an example of this on the Road to Emmaus.

Last week, we looked at some principles of providing comfort to the needy. This week, let's dig into the details to see what it looks like when we use God's spirit of power, love & a sound mind to provide effective comfort to those in need.

One of the greatest ways we can minister to others is to comfort them in a time of need. But, do we always bring comfort, or are we “miserable comforters”? Job's friends can show us how we should and shouldn't provide comfort to someone who is hurting.

Have you ever been afraid, felt alone or even depressed. YOU ARE NOT ALONE! God is with us and gives us tools to overcome the chaos of fear: Power, Love & a Sound Mind! Let's see why this is so important when we feel afraid.

Paul mentions the laying on of hands as an elementary principle of Christ. What is this and how is it elementary to the spiritual foundation of a Christian? That's what we will learn from God's word this week.

We continue our foundational sermons with the next elementary principle of Christ: Baptism. What are the baptisms mentioned in the Bible, and what is Jesus doctrine on these baptisms? That's what we are after as we build a strong spiritual foundation.

You have been fearfully & wonderfully made. Do you understand that? What if your mother viewed you as a choice rather than a fearfully & wonderfully made baby? Let's see what makes all people wonderful creations of God.

God gave Moses a pattern for the Tabernacle of the Old Testament. What did it look like? But, more importantly, what did it foreshadow in the New Testament Tabernacle of God? Let's see…

We've reviewed the origin & organization statements of the Bradleyville church of Christ. The third paragraph of our founding document was our commitment statement. What did we commit to God and each other? Namely, that we were Christians faithful to God & His Son's church. But, what does that mean? Let's see how people became Christians in the New Testament, and how people become Christians today.

Last week, we reviewed the origin statement of founding document. Our origin goes back to Jesus' promise to build His church (Mt. 16:18) and fulfilled it on Pentecost (Acts 2). Today, our organizational statement looks back to the way the New Testament church was organized: Christ as it's head, the local elders as its overseers & shepherds, deacons as its servants and members working to praise God and edify each other.

Four years ago, on the first Sunday in September, we started meeting in the side room of the filling station. Two weeks later, we organized ourselves as a congregation of the Lord's church in Bradleyville. What has happened over the past year? Let's review our year, as well as the statement we made in our organizational document related to the origin of the church.

Strong foundations are a part of our lives. Our houses require strong foundations. Our children require a strong educational foundation. Foundations require the right Materials & Methods for construction. Our spiritual lives require strong foundations as well. The Bible gives us the materials & methods to build the proper Christian foundation. Let's discover what those materials & methods are.

The Old Rugged Cross can create various images in our minds. To the unbeliever it means certain things. To Jesus, it means something completely different. When you think about that Old Rugged Cross, what images come to mind?

Mirrors play an important role in our lives. They reveal the truth, unless they are distorted or twisted. In many ways, God's word resembles a mirror. Let's look at three mirrors from the Bible.

Our nation's independence was founded on a belief that our Creator endowed us with certain “unalienable rights”: Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness. What exactly DID our Creator endow us with, and are they truly unalienable rights or blessings contingent upon certain things?

With all that is going on around us, sometimes we need a good dose of perspective. We wrap up our personal evangelism study with a summary of our evangelism study journey and a reminder that the gospel is still God's power unto salvation…even in 2021!

Our conversion story can be a compelling tool for personal evangelism. But, we have first have to believe that story ourselves. I share how and why I obeyed the gospel.

If you were challenged to prove the truth of Jesus Christ, what would you use as evidence? Just as we've studied evidences of God, let's investigate some evidences of the reality and identity of God in the flesh.

The first three extra-biblical evidences of God we discussed las week we're that Creation demands a Creator, Effect demands a Cause and Design demands a Designer. Let's examine five more evidences of the True & Living God.

Last week, we thought about how to share God with people unfamiliar with Him. During those times, we may need to share evidences outside of the Bible to prove His existence. Let's begin this two-part study by examining three extra-biblical evidences of the existence of God.

Sometimes we may encounter folks who don't know God. How would we introduce them to the Almighty Creator of the universe. Paul shows us an example in Acts 17. Let's see how he preached the unknown God.

Acts 8:5 says that Philip “preached Christ” to the Samaritans. Acts 8:35 says he “preached Jesus” to the eunuch. The Holy Spirit didn’t record either of these sermons for us. But, can we recreate them from a study of the context and God’s word? And, can we use this knowledge to help us be better evangelists as well?

Philip was the first to be referred to as an “evangelist”. What made him effective at spreading the good news? Let’s see!

Distractions are a part of life, but what happens when they overcome us? Can God’s people get in the way of His mission to spread the gospel? Like the Jews of Haggai’s day, we can become distracted from building the Lord’s house, and, in effect, get in the way of the Lord’s business.

Does the word “eager” describe our evangelistic habit? Isaiah’s calling may help us build eagerness when it comes to sharing God’s message of salvation. What did he see and understand that made him say, “Here am I! Send me.” Let’s find out.

Good news is something that people just naturally want to share. But, what happens when good news isn’t shared? We miss the blessings of God when we fail to share the good news of Jesus. Let’s look at an example of four lepers who experienced a day of good news!

What does the resurrection of Jesus Christ mean to you and me? We understand that the resurrection is essential to the gospel but it may be a stumbling block to some. Can we prove that the resurrection is an historic fact? Let’s see...