Month: July 2024

Sunday, August 4, 2024

Sunday, August 4, 2024

The sermon is from Romans 10:14-17 – “The Message →The Messenger→The Means→Manumission”. “And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” – Romans 10:14

George Strait sings, “Preachers preach, farmers plow ….” And unknowingly, Mr. Strait highlights one of the most important means God uses for the salvation of his people. God, of course, also uses Christians as they share Christ with friends and family. But Christ and the Apostles place a special emphasis upon the importance of preachers in God’s saving purposes (Mark 1:38; Acts 5:42; 1 Corinthians 1:21-23; 2 Timothy 4:1-2). A famous catechism asks, “How is the Word made effectual to salvation?” And then, it gives the answer, “The Spirit of God makes the reading, but especially the preaching, of the Word, an effectual means of convincing and converting sinners, and of building them up in holiness and comfort, through faith, unto salvation.” So, pray for preachers; support and encourage them; and heed the word of the Gospel as they faithfully declare it week after week.

Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA

Sunday, July 28, 2024

Sunday, July 28, 2024

The sermon is from Romans 10:5-13 – “The Romans Road”. “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart …”  – Romans 10:8

Where can a person find Christ in the 21st Century? He is no longer present on earth physically. The Bible teaches that presently he is seated at God’s right hand (Acts 2:32-33; 5:30-32; Ephesians 1:20-21; Hebrews 1:1-4; 10:12). The Bible also teaches that he speaks to his people by his Spirit when the Word of God is opened, read, and preached (Romans 10:14-17). So, on the Lord’s Day, when your pastor opens God’s Word, reads it, explains it, and applies it, Christ is present by his Spirit speaking to his church on earth. Little wonder we read such a passage as Hebrews 10:24-25 which admonishes us to attend church on the Lord’s Day. Here, we learn to believe even though we have not seen him (John 20:29); here, we learn to hear Christ’s word, do it (Luke 8:19-21), and know of a relationship within the family of God. Who knows what might happen when one is “in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day?” (Rev. 1:10)

Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA

Sunday, July 21, 2024

Sunday, July 21, 2024

The sermon is from Romans 10:1-4 – “How to Stumble Over the Stumbling Stone”. “… they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.” – Romans 10:2

Sincerity and zeal in religious matters is in some ways commendable, but in other ways, it can be tragic. One need only to think of the Twin Towers in New York City on September 11th, 2001 or Jim Jones, The Peoples Temple, Jonestown, Guyana, and November 18th, 1978 to see the devastating consequences of false religions. Proverbs 19:2 states, “Desire without knowledge is not good, and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way.” Sincerity in religion that is not based upon the truth of God’s Word causes one to miss knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and knowing “the righteousness of God based on faith.” (Romans 10:6). One can be sincere in one’s religion and yet sincerely wrong. Paul’s Letter to the Romans explains the “gospel of God” (Romans 1:1). One is wise to understand its teachings and in view of God’s mercies offer oneself to him as a “living sacrifice.” (Romans 12:1)

Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA

Sunday, July 14, 2024

Sunday, July 14, 2024

The sermon is from Romans 9:30 -33 – “The Stone of Stumbling and the Rock of Offense”.  “They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, ….” – Romans 9:32

Have you ever ‘stumbled’ over something before? Many of us have tripped over objects in a dark room – maybe a chair, an ottoman, a box, or a shoe. Often the object is small, so we avoid a fall and the stumbling is inconsequential. Other times, however, when we stumble, we fall to the floor and the consequences are significant. We may even end up in an emergency room with bruises, lacerations, and broken bones. Paul uses this metaphor in Romans 9:32-33. In the 1st Century, Christ was a ‘stone of stumbling and rock of offense’ for many. Many refused his Messianic claims and suffered the consequences (Hebrews 10:26-31). The same dynamics are at work in the 21st Century. Many, unfortunately, “stumble over the stumbling stone.” They ignore Christ’s Messianic claims and his calls for them to repent and believe. But, to others, the stone is ‘precious’ (1 Peter 2:6); for them, he is the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:45). Is Christ ‘precious’ to you? Or is he a ‘stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense?’

Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA

Sunday, July 7, 2024

Sunday, July 7, 2024

The sermon is from Romans 9:25-29 -“Re-hitching” the Old and New Testaments. “… they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’” – Romans 9:26

The Old Testament prophets predicted a world-wide expansion of the kingdom God through Israel’s coming King and Messiah (Isaiah 54:1-3; Hosea 1:10-11; Joel 2:28-32). The book of Acts records the fulfillment of this prediction in the 1st Century A.D. Chapter one of Acts contains Christ’s memorable promise in verse 8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Christ has kept his promise; his kingdom currently extends to the ends of the earth; it includes both Jews and Gentiles. And amazingly, he calls citizens of his eternal kingdom “sons of the living God.” Are you a citizen of this kingdom? Are you a member of the family of God? Christ is a merciful king and receives all who come to him by faith.

Sunday Service Streamed Live at 11:00 AM – YouTube.com – Hickory Withe PCA