As we open the Bible on October 1st, we see the story of the birth of Jesus in our “Doing It by the Book”. In both accounts, the one in Matthew and the one in Luke, we see a common phrase. Matthew 1:20 says, “But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the… Read More »

The Old Testament is filled with declarations which seem harsh to us. We, New Testament Christians, enjoy focusing on God’s love. Even so, it is dangerous to teach a cheap grace. God does love us and is a gracious God. He will, however, not tolerate rebellion and requires repentance. As we read today (September 1st),… Read More »

On August 1st, 2021, Pleasant View Baptist Church has committed to read 2 Kings 20-21. This is part of the reading schedule we do called “Doing It by the Book”. There have been a few times when we read about prayer changing things. Not one of those times is any more significant than this one.… Read More »

Among the names of kings in the Bible, there is a name we often forget. He was king of Israel only for a year or two. Ahaziah was his name and his story isn’t much more than a chapter in the Bible which isn’t much for a king. Why is his story so short? Because… Read More »

I often ask people what the Bible is. The quickest answer from believers is, “The Bible is God’s Word.” This is true. Billy Graham once said, “The Bible is more on time than the daily newspaper.” In days long ago, people would wait until morning to read the news which happened the day before. The… Read More »

As we awake on the morning of May 1st, our Bible reading to start the day is a “Good and Pleasant” passage. We are reading Psalm 133. In the midst of reading several chapters a day, I decided we needed a nice little break. Today, we read one Psalm. And, it is one of the… Read More »

People are forgetful. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve known some people who were not forgetful. They had a great memory. One such person was Charles Coke. He could remember details from long ago. He would remember names and numbers. Still, when it comes to remembering God, human beings are generally very forgetful. Judges 8:34 … Read More »

We have been reading most of this year from the books which Moses wrote. We did read Job because he was probably a contemporary of Abraham and lived long before Moses. Some of you might be saying, “Some of what we read was kind of entertaining or fun reading, but some of Leviticus and Numbers… Read More »

Friends, Over the past eleven months, the world has experienced many things. Because of COVID-19, civil unrest, financial hardships and personal health crises, much of what we have experienced would be considered bad. However, this last eleven months combined has helped us see God’s hand in all things, even some of the worst of circumstances.… Read More »

Every person I know is glad to put the year 2020 in our rearview mirror. We learned a new kind of flexibility which we didn’t even know existed before. We learned to be fluid, not just flexible. I hope sometime soon I can leave my masks behind. I hope I can leave some social distancing… Read More »