By
Shelby G. Floyd
Sleep” is used in several different ways as a metaphor to illustrate the Christian life and death. It sometimes refers to “the sleep” of death: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). Continue reading “WAKE UP”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
Jesus Christ is the best example of being a servant. He did not ask his disciples to do that which he refused to do himself: “And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:27-28). There is great joy and satisfaction in learning to serve others in a cause that is greater than us. The cause of Christ demands that we learn to be a servant. Continue reading “SEVEN SERVANTS”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
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”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
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”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
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”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
God has created mankind with the power to choose between good and evil. From the beginning, that choice must be made. Our world is made up of both good and evil. For the most part, good predominates over evil. Whether good wins over evil in our personal life depends upon how we make our choices.
Paul in writing to the Thessalonians urged them to make the right choice: “Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22). We observe three things from this statement:
(1) Test everything;
(2) Hold on to the good; and,
(3) Avoid every kind of evil. Continue reading “TEST EVERYTHING”
By
Shelby G. Floyd
“7 For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one” (1 John 5:7-8).
The Bible teaches that there is just one God or Godhead, but this one Godhead involves three distinct persons. In a discussion with a Jewish scribe, Jesus referred to the Old Testament Scriptures which taught that God is one Lord. The scribe had asked, “Which is the first commandment of all?” Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one” (Mark 12:29). Jesus here referred to the statement of Moses as found in Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Continue reading “THE GODHEAD”