Category: Weekly Thoughts

The sermon on Sunday, October 19, 2025, will be from Revelation 2:8-11 – Faithful Unto Death.  “I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, …” – Revelation 2:13

Post-modern men and women may struggle with the Bible’s assertion – there is a personal devil. Christians affirm this because Christ and the Apostles taught this truth. In Luke 10:18, Jesus said, “I saw Satan fall like lightening from heaven.” The Apostle Peter warned believers about their, “adversary the devil.” (1 Peter 5:8) The Apostle Paul called Satan, “… the prince of the power of the air.” (Ephesians 2:2) We could fill a large volume with citations from the Bible concerning Satan and his diabolical ways. If you do not believe in him, it is because you have been duped by him.

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

The sermon on Sunday, October 12, 2025, will be from Revelation 2:1-7, Do You Love Jesus ‘More than These? “… you have abandoned the love you had at first.” – Revelation 2:1-7

In 2 Corinthians 5:14, Paul states, “For the love of Christ controls us, …”, but does it?? We’ve all seen this occur and we have all allowed this to take place in our Christian lives. We drift away from an awareness of how much Christ loves us, and thus, our motivation for obedience in the Christian life turns to other things or persons. Instead, of the love of Christ, rules begin to control us; or religious rituals control us; or good deeds control us; or the opinions of others about us begin to control us. The list could go on forever. There is one answer to this all-too-common reality; Christ says, “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” (Rev. 2:5) Return to him Christian; his arms are open wide!

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

The sermon on Sunday, October 5, 2025, will be from Revelation 1:9-20, Look Ye Saints, the Sight is Glorious. “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.” – Revelation 1:17

The Apostle John as a young man ‘leaned back against Jesus’ at a meal (John 13:25). In Revelation Chapter 1 (possibly 60 years later), that same man, now probably 90 years old, “falls at the feet of ‘the son of man’ as though dead.” What explains the difference in John’s responses? During the time of Christ’s earthly ministry, he was in an estate of humiliation. After his resurrection and ascension, he entered an estate of exaltation. He is now ruling and reigning at God’s right hand. He is the ‘blessed and only Sovereign.’ Metaphorically speaking, fall at his feet today and worship him as the King of kings and Lord of lords.

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

The sermon on Sunday, September 28, 2025, will be from John 3:16 – The Greatest Love of All. “For God so loved the world …” – John 3:16

John 3:16 is always remembered for its simple, clear declaration that God loves men and women, boys and girls. The verse is used in children’s Sunday schools and ministries for young people world-wide. But John 3:16 is also very profound; it points to a covenant or an agreement between the persons of the Trinity. Before creation, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit covenanted together in love to save a people. Would you like to know more? Read the gospel of John, especially Chapter 17!

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

The sermon on Sunday, September 21, 2025, will be from Revelation 1:4-8, A Glorious Sight for Suffering Saints. “… and every eye will see him …” – Revelation 1:7

When one reads the Bible, he or she must remember that an infinite God is revealing himself to a finite human being. The immortal One is speaking to mortal men and women. So, if we are wise, we will approach the Bible with humility and with a realization that God speaks to us about astounding events in human history which defy human logic and comprehension. One of these events is the return of Christ at history’s end, when, ‘every eye will see him.’ The sight of Jesus Christ returning with clouds is in your future. Will you ‘wail’ when you see him? Or will you shed tears of joy as you see face-to-face the One who loved you and gave himself for you?

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

The sermon on Sunday, September 14, 2025, will be from Revelation 1:1-3, Apocalypse Soon . “… blessed are those who hear, …”  – Revelation 1:3

The Bible contains 66 ‘books,’ and untold blessings await those who read each of these books and hear them read. But the 66th ‘book’ of the Bible begins with a special beatitude, “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.” At Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church, we are about to embark on a journey through the book of Revelation which will end in the summer of 2026. Blessings are promised us. Come and join us!

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

The sermon on Sunday, September 7, 2025, will be from Revelation 1:1-3, The Revelation of Jesus Christ: An Introduction. “The revelation of Jesus Christ, …” – Revelation 1:1

A Southern Baptist New Testament scholar, Dr. Thomas Schreiner, states, “The book of Revelation is not a prophecy chart about the future but a call to be a disciple of Jesus. John tells us to be faithful and fruitful, and we should not give in to despair, for in the end, all will be well.” Have Christians in the 20th and 21st Centuries heeded Dr. Schreiner’s counsel? The Holy Spirit’s intent in these 22 chapters is to instill in Christian disciples increasing levels of Christian maturity, strength, and courage. The apostle John’s original audience probably faced the rage of the Roman emperor Domitian (A.D. 81-96). The Triune God reminded them of his absolute dominion and sovereignty; and he reminded them that the cross must come before the crown.

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

The sermon on Sunday, August 31, 2025, will be from Matthew 22:1-14, Your Personal Invitation to the Great Banquet. “… everything is ready …” – Matthew 22:4, 8

Wedding feasts were festive occasions in 1st Century Jewish culture. The celebration could last for a week and an invitation from a king to attend his son’s wedding feast was a coveted honor. In a spiritual sense, ‘God the Father Almighty’ is currently sending out an invitation to all of mankind – “Come to the marriage supper of my Son!” (Rev. 19:6-10) Guests, through faith, will feast on the best of breads … the bread of life (John 6:35). They will also, by faith, drink the finest of wines … the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-21). “Everything is ready!” God invites us to a feast, not a funeral, when the gospel of his Son is preached!

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

The sermon on Sunday, August 24, 2025, will be from Mark 12:28-34, An Encounter at the Edge of the Kingdom. “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” – Mark 12:34

Have you heard the phrase, “… so close, and yet, so far away?” 50 years ago, I needed 21 ‘merit badges’ to become an ‘Eagle Scout.’ I stopped at 19 ‘badges’ and have come to regret my unwise decision. Yet what about coming close, but missing the kingdom of God? An eternity of regret awaits those who miss Christ’s kingdom. The scribe in Mark 12:28-34 understood the demands of God’s moral law – it requires sinless perfection. But he did not understand his inability to keep the law and his need for Christ. What about you? Are you standing outside the door to God’s kingdom? Or have you entered through it? That door is Christ (John 10:1-10).

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

The sermon on Sunday, August 10, 2025, will be from 2 Corinthians 12:7-10- “… Through Thorny Ways Leads to a Joyful End …” “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.” -2 Corinthians 12:8

The Apostle Paul pled, and he pled three times, for the Lord to remove his ‘thorn in the flesh.’ Yet Christ responded, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Weakness and difficulty from our perspective inhibit us from realizing our personal plans and dreams for life. But, from Christ’s perspective, they open up new opportunities for spiritual growth and development. Through them, he teaches us not to rely on ourselves, but upon God who raises the dead (2 Cor. 1:8-9). We learn to embrace the thorn which once repelled us (12:9-10).

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