Sermon & Class Notes

Notes for sermons and classes have been prepared to facilitate additional study, including references to useful resources and additional observations. Many of the following lessons were posted to the web site of the Southwind Church of Christ in Memphis, TN (no longer active). They are posted here to encourage study of the Scriptures, and may be used and cited with appropriate documentation.

Click on a lesson title to view that lesson.

"The Fullness of Time"
Survey of Intertestmental History

A study of the history of Israel between the testaments, the Second Temple Era, explains the origin of New Testament ideas not found in the Old Testament, provides important context for the New Testament, and helps one become a better student of the New Testament. This brief series introduces these reasons and resources, surveys the major historical periods during the era, and reflects on how the Second Temple Era contributed to what Paul called "the fullness of time" (Galatians 4:4).

1 - Resources and Reasons
2 - Origins, Persian, and Greek [Part 1]
3 - Greek Rule & Rebellion

Some Things We Should Believe

A collection of short series that review major ideas related to some fundamental themes of the Christian faith. Each series was designed to introduce and review some of the main ideas on each topic, not be exhaustive studies of the themes.

Theme Lessons
1 - "Things We Should Believe"
2 - Looking at the Word "With Eyes Wide Open"

Back-to-the-Bible: Principles
1 - Simply Christians: Seeking God's Ideal Today (Luke 8:11)
2 - How To Have a Restoration (Nehemiah 8:13-18)
3 - "The Traditions That You Were Taught" (2 Thessalonians 2:15)

Existence of God
1 - Where All Is New and Doubt Reigns Supreme (Acts 17:16-34)
2 - God Is: The Challenge of Science (Romans 1:19-20)
3 - God Is: An Answer to Our Greatest Fear (Hebrews 2:5-18)
4 - God Is: What People Do By Nature (Romans 2:14-15)

Introducing Jesus
1 - God Is: The Greatest Clue of All (John 14:7-9)
2 - The Good News of Jesus (Acts 10:34-43)
3 - The Way of Jesus: Discipleship in Luke

A Covenant Religion
1 - A Covenant Religion (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
2 - It's Bigger Than All of Us (Implications of Being Abraham's Heirs)
3 - Christ and Covenant (Hebrews 9, 10)
4 - Of Course There Are Conditions (Exodus 19; Ephesians 2, 4)
5 - A Church on Purpose (Acts 2:36-47)

Baptism
1 - Some Fundamentals About Baptism
2 - Jesus and Baptism (Galatians 3:21-29)
3 - Baptism and New Life (Romans 6:1-14)
4 - Baptism and Sin (Acts 2:36-39)
5 - Is That What We're Saying? Some Questions About Baptism
6 - Baptism: Some Questions of Practice
7 - Baptism: What About the Children?
8 - Baptism: The Problem of Accountability

Miscellaneous: Sermons & Classes

1 - Holy Scriptures: What's So Special About the Bible? (2 Timothy 3:14-17)? - Class presented at the Harding University Lectureship, September 2016
2 - Living "By the Waters of Babylon" (Psalm 137; Jeremiah 29; Daniel 1, 9) - This class lesson was presented when I was asked to fill in during another's Wednesday class series on the book of Daniel.
3 - Serving with Wisdom - Summer Series lesson presented at the Covington, TN church of Christ; series theme: "Make Me a Servant"
4 - Keep Standing for Jesus (1 John 1:1-3) - To readers who had experienced deserters leaving the community and challenges to the core teaching about Jesus, John pressed on in defending and declaring what he had known "from the beginning."
5 - Rock-Solid Faith: Sustained by the First-Important Things (1 Corinthians 15) - At a time when push-back against the faith seems to be increasing, returning to 1 Corinthians 15 and the first-important things will help us to [a] be reminded and/or [b] review these things to reassure others. First-important things therefore help sustain our faith. (A 2018 Summer Series lesson presented at the Germantown, TN church of Christ.)
6 - Intent on the Things of God (Mark 8:27-9:1) - In Jesus' surprising announcement of his suffering death, we are reminded of his different values, the way he leads to glory, and the necessity that we die to self. (A 2018 Summer Series lesson presented at the Great Oaks [Memphis] church of Christ.)
7 - Fanning the Flame of God's Gift (2 Timothy 1:6-14) - Facing the reality of his departure, Paul told his associate Timothy how to pass on the faith. Crucial to his work would be whether he fanned into flame the gift God had given him. In this exposition of the text, we notice three things necessary for a flaming ministry. (A 2018 Summer Series lesson presented at the church of Christ in Snellville, GA.)
8 - Does the New Testament Forbid Mechanical Instruments in New Testament Worship? - A presentation of an argument in favor of only a cappella music in the church's worship gatherings. (A 2018 Summer Series lesson presented at the Covington, TN church of Christ.)
9 - A Healing That Led to Trouble: Sons, Signs, and Sabbath (John 5:1-18) - A class handout for a lesson on Jesus healing the lame man on the Sabbath, with background information about John's purpose and use of signs in his Gospel.
10 - What They Learned Made the Difference (Ephesians 4:17-24) - A class handout for a study of Paul's beginning of the practical morality teaching in Ephesians, focusing on the importance of right thinking (worldview) for holy living.
11 - Grace! Motivation for the Faithful (Ephesians 2:1-10) - A class handout for a study of Paul's teaching that it is by grace that God transforms us from spiritual death to glorious life.
12 - Otherwise Our Faith Is Meaningless - Text of the presentation slides for a study of the New Testament's resurrection-focused preaching, the importance of emphasizing the history of the event, and introduction of historical events that must be sufficiently explained.
13 - Learning to See (Like) Jesus (John 9:1-41) - A class study of Jesus' healing of a blind man, demonstrating that he was "the light of the world" (9:5).
14 - A Spiritual Roadmap for a Family Trip - "As a Church Family, we're all headed to Heaven (young, middle age, & old). How do we work together to get there?" Using Paul's epistle to the Ephesians, we examine the connection between heaven, eternal life, and growth, and then identify two core points of emphasis that sustain all of us in our walk. (A 2019 Summer Series lesson presented at the Millington, TN church of Christ.)
15 - Growing in Humility (Matthew 5-7; 11:29-30; Luke 18:9-14) - That humility is important is evident from the fact that Jesus said it is necessary for justification. This lesson defines humility as submission to God and stresses that growth in humility results when we are committed to accepting and obeying Jesus' teaching. (A 2019 Summer Series lesson presented at the Covington, TN church of Christ.)
16 - Giving God the Glory In Bearing Fruit (John 15:1-17) - To glorify the Father and Son is to live so as to enhance the divine reputation. To bear fruit is to internalize and show the divine character. Building on those ideas, this lesson explores principles from John's text that teach us how we can bear fruit and glorify God. (A 2019 Summer Series lesson presented at the Snellville, GA church of Christ.)

Two Lessons on Christian Evidences -As part of the summer series in the Wednesday evening campus class at the College church (Searcy), I was invited to prepare two lessons on "Christian Evidences." In light of the need to deal with broad themes, I elected to do an introduction on the need for Apologetics followed by an overview of a case for Christ.
1 - A Case for a Christian Apology
2 - A Case for God: In Person, In History

The Bible's One Story-A two-lesson introduction to the inseparable connection of the Old and New Testaments as the complete development of God's story. Particular attention is given to the theme of God's blessing for all peoples/nations.
1 - The New Testament's Assumption - After addressing various reasons for studying the Old Testament, we turn attention to the need to study the two testaments together and to selections from Luke as an example of how the New Testament writings assume they are continuing the great story left incomplete at the end of the Old Testament.
2 - Preparing a Light for the Nations - A cursory survey of the development of the story through the Bible with emphasis on God's plan for all the nations.

Resurrection 101

ounder was raised from the dead. In fact, Paul declared that Jesus' resurrection validated his ministry, is the basis for justification, and the ground of ultimate hope. He also said that, if Jesus was not raised, Christians are misrepresenting God, presenting an empty message, have a futile faith, and are not forgiven. This series introduces the reasons we can confidently believe in the reality of the resurrection. (The following are the class handouts from an abbreviated version of the series.)

1 - Resurrection: History and Faith
2 - A Matter of Public Record
3 - Thinking About Evidence and Testimony
4 - Some Things That Must Be Explained
5 - "He Is Not Here" -- What Happened to the Body?
6 - We Have Witnesses / Declaration and Validation (double handout)

Facing Trials and Troubles

In a fallen world, the question is not if we will experience trials, but when they will occur (see James 1:2). Scripture is realistic about this characteristic of the world. And while the questions are often complex and not easily resolved, the Bible also gives direction for coping with our trials when they occur. The following lessons-more a collection of studies than a series-are designed to help us do the thinking that prepares us to face our trials and trouble.

1 - Growing Our Perspective on Life and Trouble
2 - Why Them and Not Us? When the Answer to a Prayer Is "No"

Transformed Living: Romans 12

Paul called believers who have been justified by grace to no longer "be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind" (Rom 12:2). This lesson series briefly introduces the aim and teaching of Romans and then looks at specific areas where transformation should occur from chapter 12.

1 - A Letter of Introduction: What Romans Aims To Do
2 - Paul Explains the Gospel: What Romans Aims To Teach
3 - It's Always Time for Change (Romans 12:1-2)
4 - Transformed Esteem (Romans 12:3)
5 - Transformed Identity (Romans 12:4-5)
6 - Transformed Gifts (Romans 12:6-8)
7 - Transformed Speaking (Romans 12:6-8)
8 - Transformed Service (1) (Romans 12:7-8)
9 - Transformed Service (2) (Romans 12:8)
10 - Transformed Society (Romans 12:9-21)
11 - Transformed Love (Romans 12:9-10)
12 - Transformed Commitment (Romans 12:11-13)
13 - Transformed Resistance (Romans 12:14-13:14)
14 - Transformed Empathy (Romans 12:15-16)
15 - Transformed Retaliation (1) (Romans 12:14, 17-18)
16 - Transformed Retaliation (2) (Romans 12:19-21)

Shaping Faith In Our Children

While nurturing children "in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4) is hard work, especially in a culture that consistently pushes a radically different agenda, it can be done. This series offers reflections on biblically-grounded principles that will help us in our effort to raise heavenly citizens (Philippians 3:20).

1 - Parenting Among the Pagans: Faith-Shaping in a Pluralistic Society (Ephesians 6:1-4)
2 - Kids with Minds of Their Own: Shaping a Faith That Lasts
3 - "What Do These Stones Mean?" The Importance of Intentional, Focused Teaching
4 - Making Disciples: Remember the Children (1) (Deuteronomy 6:1-25)
5 - Making Disciples: Remember the Children (2) (Deuteronomy 6:1-25)
6 - Supplement: Slowing the Pace — Calmer
Children in a Stressful World

Double-Minded No More: James

The epistle of James - practical, direct, and demanding - calls God's people to make an unwavering, decisive choice for God.

1 - Do This and Do That (A Tour of James)
2 - Humbly Influential (James 1:1)
3 - Always Steadfast (James 1:2-25)
4 - Is He Serious? (James 1:2-4)
5 - On Course for Victory (James 1:5-12)
6 - The Trouble with Me Is . . . (James 1:12-18)
7 - "God Is Great, God Is Good" (James 1:12-18)
8 - Take a Breath (James 1:19-21)
9 - So You Say You Believe the Bible? (James 1:22-25)
10 - "Blessed Are the Poor" (Background Study)
11 - So You Think You're Religious? (James 1:26-27)
12 - So You Say You Love Your Neighbor? (James 2:1-13)
13 - So You Say You Have Faith? (James 2:14-26)
14 - Real Faith (Thoughts from Paul and James)
15 - I Wish He Hadn't Said That (James 3:1-4:12)
16 - Let's Talk About Words (James 3:1-12)
17 - A Command Taken Too Seriously? (James 3:1-2)
18 - "Where Is the One Who Is Wise?" (Background Study)
19 - He Is Our Wisdom (Background Study)
20 - Wisdom: A Matter of Control (James 3:13)
21 - Wisdom: Check Your Heart (James 3:14-16)
22 - Submitting to Wisdom (James 3:17-18)
23 - Peacemakers (James 3:18)
24 - What's Your Pleasure? (James 4:1-6)
25 - How To Beat the Devil (James 4:7-10)
26 - When Christians Play God (James 4:11-12)
27 - Giving Rumors a Rest
28 - Putting a Kink in the Grapevine
29 - Those Who Trust - and Some Who Don't (James 4:13-5:11)
30 - Who's In Charge Here? (James 4:13-17)
31 - You Better Enjoy It Now (James 5:1-16)
32 - "Waiting for the Light to Shine" (James 5:7-11)
33 - "Lord, Give Me Patience" (James 5:9-11)
34 - Living in the Last Days (James 5:7-11)
35 - He Stands Just Outside the Door (James 5:7-8)
36 - Yes or No Should Do (James 5:12)
37 - "Let Us Pray" (James 5:13)
38 - Sickness and the Prayer of Faith (James 5:14-15)
39 - Elders Anointing While They Pray (James 5:14)
40 - Confession: Good for the Soul (James 5:16)
41 - Confession: Good for the Church (James 5:16)
42 - Letting Prayer Go to Work (James 5:16-18)
43 - Keeping the Saved Saved (James 5:19-20)
44 - Reflecting on James

Religion That Honors God
Life-Focus from James

The short letter of James is known for its practicality and uncompromising demands. Behind the practicality and expectations, however, is a developed understanding of God and a call to choose Him only. This brief series shows the importance of the idea of God in this epistle and illustrates how James’s understanding applies to life’s priority and our behaviors. Lessons include the following:

1 - God As He Is, Or As We Want Him? - James's urgent call to serious Christian living rests on his developed understanding of God.
2 - God: Real in the World We Live In - James applies God's nature as creator, promise-keeper, and provider to life's practicalities.
3 - Worthless Religion: Lessons from Sacred History - James's call to avoid worthless religion is rooted in the Old Testament's warnings against idolatrous religion.
4 - Worthless Religion: Practices That Lead Nowhere - The five other NT texts that use the word "worthless" illuminate other examples of empty religion.

Paul's Perseverance in Corinth

This short lesson series reviews Paul's interactions with the Corinthian church over time, as revealed in his correspondence with that church. Despite their troubles and sharp criticisms of him, he continued to see them as "a church of God" (see 1 Cor. 1:2; etc.) and stuck with them. No doubt, his anxiety for them was greater than for his other churches (2 Cor. 11:28). Nevertheless, he persevered in the interest of their growth.

1 - Persevering in the Corinthian Context - an overview of the founding and Paul's correspondence with the church in Corinth.
2 - Paul's Intense Defense - We take a closer look at 2 Corinthians 10-13 where, after things appeared to have been resolved with the Corinthians, Paul very personally, intensely, and at times even sarcastically defended himself and his ministry.
3 - Perseverance: A Different Look - Building on lessons 1 and 2, we now look specifically at Paul's list of trials (2 Cor. 11:23-28) with the goal of learning from his example for our own quest to persevere.
4 - Paul's Perseverance in Corinth - a one-lesson summary of the above ideas, with particular focus on 2 Corinthians 11:16-33, and specific application to deriving strength for perseverance from Paul's example of living Jesus' way of the cross.

Doing the Will of Jesus

Lessons from the Mountainside: the big ideas of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 4:12-7:27)

1 - Reform, and Follow the King (4:12-25)
2 - Let Your Blessings Show (5:1-16)
3 - Make Relationships Righteous (5:17-32)
4 - Do Right By Difficult People (5:33-48)
5 - Do Right Religion (6:1-18)
6 - A Prayer for All Time (6:9-13)
7 - God's Reign First: Focus (6:19-24)
8 - God's Reign First: Trust (6:25-34)
9 - "Don't Judge" - Not Ever? (7:1-5)
10 - Take Care of God's Pearls (7:1-11)
11 - It's a Little More Than Kindness (7:12)
12 - Practicing Jesus: Just Do It (7:13-27)

The God of All Comfort

The chapters beginning in Isaiah 40 depict one of Judah's darkest times. Conquered by Babylon; Jerusalem destroyed; the majority of them deported. Where had God gone? How could mighty Babylon be overcome? What would become of them? Isaiah's message, announced well in advance of the events, was that God had been with them all along, was sovereign, would be with them in their exile, and see them through their despair. The prophet's focus on God and messages of hope are as helpful when we face despair as for Judah centuries ago.

1 - "Behold Your God!" (Isaiah 40:9)
2 - The Invincible Voice of Comfort (Isaiah 40:1-11)
3 - Comforting, But Not Comfortable (Isaiah 40:12-31)
4 - "Be Not Dismayed, for I Am Your God" (Isaiah 41:1-20)
5 - We Follow Because He Can (Isaiah 41:21-29)
6 - A Servant's Mission (Isaiah 42:1-7)
7 - Redeemed from the Depths (Isaiah 42:18-43:7)
8 - Why Can't We Extend the Season? (Isaiah 42:1-9)
9 - Giving as a Declaration of Praise (Isaiah 43:16-24)
10 - Equipped for God's Purpose (Isaiah 44:24-45:7)
11 - A Faith that Profits Nothing (Isaiah 44:6-22)
12 - Malleable Clay (Isaiah 45:9-13, 22-25)

From Glory and Back

As we seek to grow in grace and knowledge, we benefit from occasional reminders of foundational ideas. Nothing is more foundational than that we are to know God, understand how we have failed God, and be reconciled to God through Jesus. This series aims to remember and refresh our commitment to these truths.

God: Seeing the Glory
1 - God Revealed - Seeking to ensure that our Bible study aims for the purpose God intended.
2 - The Day God Looked Larger - When we ask questions about God in light of life's events, we discover things that make him look bigger - and increase our faith.
3 - Seeing God's Glory As We Worship - reminds us that, as we worship, we focus on God's glory and grow in our knowledge of him.

Sin: Falling from Glory
4 - Where It All Went Wrong - Our lives, and the world, are the way they are because of sin.
5 - Sin Is a Big Deal - Sin's pervasive nature demands that we have help to overcome it, help that comes when we submit in faith to God's way through Christ.
6 - "Woe Is Me! I Am Ruined!" - To be liberated from sin and restored to glory, we need a clearer view of ourselves and a more complete view of God.

Jesus: Reconciled to Glory
7 - The Gospel of God - The story of the gospel is the story of God working through the ages to keep promises of hope that culminated in the resurrection of Jesus.
8 - Seven Weeks After Easter Morning - Peter's sermon in Acts 2 presents the essence of our faith. We focus on God's plan, God's way, and God's welcome to all.
9 - He Came! - In just four verses (Galatians 4:4-7), Paul reminds us of the entirety of Jesus' story and its significance.

From Glory & Back Supplemental ~ Additional "Foundational" Lessons

Additional lessons that were developed to introduce and review basic Bible teaching about God, Sin, Jesus, as well as lessons on the New Life and Ministry that follows from being reconciled to Jesus.

God
A - The Glory of the Lord of Hosts: Seeing That Keeps Us Serving (Isaiah 6:1-13) - To what can we turn to sustain us when we face the difficulties of long-term service in a world that consistently and firmly resists God? We find the answer in the call of Isaiah who, before he was called to serve, was granted a magnificent vision of the glory of the Lord.
B - What's the Point? (John 17:3) - How do we define "eternal life"? Jesus defined as it as knowing God and Jesus Christ whom the Father sent. This lesson focuses on that theme as revealed throughout Scripture and considers a few implications of that truth for life.
C - Daniel After the Lions (Daniel 9:1-19) - Daniel's prayer holds back little in the way of praise to God, is almost uncomfortably direct in admitting and identifying in solidarity with Israel's sins, and is one of the boldest of approaches into the presence of God. From it, we learn three great lessons about genuine faith.

Sin
D - When Good Men Sin (Luke 7:36-50) - "Everyone," including the host, knew that the woman who interrupted the Pharisee Simon's dinner party for Jesus was a "sinner." She needed, and received, forgiveness. The relatively good man, Simon, needed the same.
E - Just What We Need (Romans 5:1-11) - In a world where some see things wildly out of control and wonder whether God will help, we need Paul's reminder that, despite our sin, He gives us peace and access through the saving work of Jesus. (This lesson serves as a transition from the subjects of "Sin" to "Jesus.")

Jesus
F - He Made God Known (John 1:9-18) - As translated by The Message, John 1:14 reveals that, in the person of Jesus, the Word who was God "moved into the neighborhood." This lesson reminds us about that wonderful revelation and what John also recorded about our reception of Him.

New Life & Service
G - "Living to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:1-14) - Despair and Death have been overcome by the good news that Jesus died for us and was raised. Romans 6 reminds us that, once we have followed the Lord through death and resurrection, Paul goes on to show what it means for us to be "living to God in Christ Jesus."
H - Power for the Journey (Romans 8:1-39) - Life in a fallen world includes evil, suffering, devastation, and (often) confusion. The power of the resurrection enables us to experience deliverance for godly living and glorious living in the face of trouble.
I - "Who Will Go for Us?" (Isaiah 6:8-13) - What difference are God's people to make in the world? Isaiah's mission orders, grounded in his vision of the Lord and reception of God's grace, show us who we need to be.

How We Got Our Bible

The New Testament Canon
Politics or Providence?

An introduction to the basics of the process whereby the church settled on the twenty-seven books in the New Testament as the authorized canon of new covenant Scriptures. This series is designed as a primer on the subject for church audiences with little, if any, knowledge of the story of the canon's development and selection.

1 - From Oral to Written - A brief introduction of important questions and an overview of how the apostles' teaching became the New Testament writings.
2 - Collecting the Canon - A survey of the process from beginning collections to the finalizing of our list of twenty-seven books.
3 - Why These Twenty-Seven Writings? - Introducing the criteria used in the selection and rejection of candidates for canonicity.

Called to Be Holy

Christians are called to share God’s holiness (Hebrews 12:10; 1 Peter 1:15-16). This series explores what that means and calls for a recommitment to holiness.

1 - Called to Holiness (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1)
2 - Considering the Why and How (1 Corinthians 2:6-13)
3 - Be as He Is, Do As He Does (1 Peter 1:15-16)
4 - Holiness Among Us
5 - Three Things We Must Remember (1) (Deuteronomy 10:12-11:32)
6 - Three Things We Must Remember (2) (Ephesians 4:1-5:20)