Tag: Prayer

THE SCHOOL OF LIFE

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Shelby G. Floyd

psalm143-10

This is the time of the year when young people begin to think about going back to school. Let us capitalize on this thought and apply it to the Christian life.

From the beginning to the end the Christian life is like a school. In the great commission Jesus commanded his people to go out and “make disciples” of all the nations (Matthew 28:18-20). “Make disciples” is from (matheteuo-μαθητευω) and means “to make a disciple; to teach, instruct” (J. H. Thayer, p.386). Therefore, we are to be teachers and pupils under the master-teacher Jesus Christ.

The secret of learning in this school as in all schools is to teach much, ask much, remember much and do much!

The School of Life perhaps is best summarized by the statement of David,

Psalms 143:10
Teach me to do Your will,
For you are my God;
Your Spirit is good.
Lead me in the land of uprightness
NKJV

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RUN THE RACE

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Shelby G. Floyd

Run the Race

When Paul was completing his third evangelistic journey by ship, at every stop the Holy Spirit warned him of impending hardship and suffering when he would arrive at Jerusalem. But Paul made up his mind to go there because he also was compelled by the Spirit to do so:

“And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” (Acts 20:22-24).

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THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST

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Shelby G. Floyd

isaiah-7-14-scroll
The above title is a specific and accurate description of how God brought Christ into the world to be our Savior. Jesus Christ is both divine and human, “regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:3-4).

Jesus Christ Was Human and Divine

From the divine standpoint, he has always existed and always will. Late in the first century, the apostle John spoke of the preexistence of Christ in these words: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God” (John 1:1-2). Then, later in the chapter, John described the human nature of Christ when he said, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1: 14). This is definitely a reference to the virgin birth of Christ. Continue reading “THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST” →

MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS

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Shelby G. Floyd

MYOB

The apostle Paul exhorted the Christians at Thessalonica to increase their brotherly love more and more: “But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another” (1 Thessalonians 4:9; Matthew 22:39).

Then he points out some practical ways brotherly love can be accomplished: “that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing” (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12). Continue reading “MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS” →

Enthusiastic Evangelism

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Shelby G. Floyd

1 Cor 15-58

There is plenty of work in the congregation for each one of us to do if we will do it. Solomon sagely advises people to work while we can: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Life is short and we only live here once. Whatever we can accomplish for the Lord must be done now. We cannot come back and take care of lost opportunities. Continue reading “Enthusiastic Evangelism” →

THE SOUL GOAL

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Shelby G. Floyd

Soul Goal

The sole goal of most people today is how much profit they can accumulate of this world’s goods and riches.

The Worth of the Soul
Jesus taught that we should value our soul over everything else in this world: “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul’” (Matthew 16:26 NKJV)? According to Christ there is no profit if one could gain the whole world (which is impossible), and then end up losing one’s soul. Continue reading “THE SOUL GOAL” →

A DIFFERENT GOSPEL

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Shelby G. Floyd

The members of the churches in Galatia were fickle and disloyal to the gospel of Christ by which they had been saved. They were easily led astray by “false brethren” and “false teachers.”

Astonished

In this context Paul addressed them in his opening remarks: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ” (Galatians 1:6-7). It is amazing how quickly some people can change their belief. It is because many people do not have a strong conviction of their faith. The Galatians appear to be “anybody’s dog who would hunt with them!” Continue reading “A DIFFERENT GOSPEL” →

CALLED BY GOD’S GRACE

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Shelby G. Floyd

grace-of-god-5

In Paul’s letter to the churches of Galatia, we have a statement that has some difficulty in being understood clearly: “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood…” (Galatians 1:15-16 NKJV.) Continue reading “CALLED BY GOD’S GRACE” →

RUNNING THE RACE OF FAITH

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Shelby G. Floyd

8

How many of you have participated in the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon? How many of you would like to? How many of you plan to run some day? That would be a great challenge would it not? In order to run in that race it would require a lot of training in order to be in good shape to finish the race.

I was involved in track when I was in high school. I ran the 220 yards, 440 yards, and 880 yards race, which was a half-mile. I remember that I was always able to finish the race. Sometimes I won the blue ribbon, sometimes the red ribbon, and sometimes not so good. But I always finished the race.

Today I speak to you about “Running the Race of Faith.” This is a good time at the first of the year to consider a subject like that. Everybody loves sports. Many times we talk about sports fanatics. The word sports “fan” came from the word “fanatics.” A fanatic is someone who does unreasonable things in regards to sports. But a fan is someone who does reasonable things in support of his favorite team. Therefore it is a good thing to be a fan and support the team that we love. Continue reading “RUNNING THE RACE OF FAITH” →

FIRST THINGS FIRST

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Shelby G. Floyd

First Things First

In order to have a successful life, every person must have some priorities. Near the end of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus taught his disciples that God demands first place in their lives. There is not one person that gives God first place in every area of his life. Therefore in order to pursue this goal, we must grow spiritually and do our very best to give Christ top priority every day.

In Matthew’s account of the gospel Jesus said to his disciples, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6: 33). When we analyze this statement there are several things that are very obvious: Continue reading “FIRST THINGS FIRST” →