Pastor Chris Scripture Reference: Matthew 6:19-24

(It is true that some people of deep faith are very aware of spiritual realities and celebrate Halloween while consciously avoiding costumes and decorations that are pagan, paranormal, or occult, Amity Shales secular piece does make a great point. Our society, as a whole, has made the public display or discussion of Western religion, most especially Christianity, so politically incorrect, that most avoid it like the plague.  Yet to talk about demons, witches (both real spiritual entities), vampires, and zombies (both fictional entities in alternate ways of dealing with the quest for eternal life) is acceptable and popular. For some […]

  James W. Hood—bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church during the Civil War—was the first black man in America to publish a book of sermons. Having spent most of his life in Pennsylvania, he moved to North Carolina near the end of the war to minister to freed slaves. Tensions ran high in the region, and he even received some death threats from slavery enthusiasts. As the following excerpt from his sermon, “Personal Consecration,” shows, this did nothing to rob him of his joy in serving the Lord. His infectious words apply most directly to those involved in Church […]

In 2003, an Alabama judge was censured for placing a Ten Commandments monument in his court house entryway, and the academic elite were prominent among his critics.1 However, if they were clear thinking, they would ask that the granite block be moved to campus and turned so that all could read the Eighth Commandment, “Thou shall not steal.”

Pastor John Scripture Reference: I Kings 4-10; 8:22-30, 54-61

  Mark Coppenger NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) — Since 9/11, we’ve all been in school, studying up on Islam. But we’ve been to two different schools. In a nutshell, one says that Islam is a great religion with awesome accomplishments, now wounded by misfortune and embarrassed by extremists who’ve perverted its basically wholesome message.

  William Wilberforce, wealthy and eloquent rising star of the British Parliament, paced nervously around a square near John Newton’s home before knocking at the door. The politician had recently become a Christian and was unsure whether he should retire from public life. Wilberforce sent a sealed letter to Newton asking to see him and requested that he not tell anyone of their planned rendezvous. When he finally plucked up the courage in December 1785 to see the pastor/hymn-writer, he did so with “ten thousand doubts,” and with great secrecy and subterfuge.1

  Gilbert Meilaender1 is professor of Christian ethics at Valparaiso University, Indiana, and was a member of the President’s Council on Bioethics. In a personal statement appended to the July 2002 report, Human Cloning and Human Dignity: An Ethical Inquiry,2 Professor Meilaender raises the important issue of protecting human life in its most vulnerable stage:

  The First Baptist Church of Perryville will offer two days of prayer for international missions on December 2 & 3. Prayer guides will be available for your use.

Mr. Richard Coss Scripture Reference: Hebrews 13:11-14