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August 10th through August 16th.

This past week, the LORD has again blessed me with good health, safe travels, and another wonderful week!

With the LORD’s help, I have been able to continue my healthier eating plan and to walk 2 miles per day 6 days per week.

My total weight loss has just passed my first goal of 30 pounds.

10 more pounds and I will go into “maintenance mode.”

I was able this past week to meet with some Pastors and other friends whom I had not seen in a while; to drive to Quincy First Southern Baptist Church to get another photo for my, “Revival and Conference Churches” photo album; and to visit with my dear friend Dr. Tom Raines and his wife, Cathy. Tom has served as Pastor of that blessed Church for over 23 years!

(As I almost always do, I drove mostly through the country and really enjoyed the drive.)

Yesterday, I was able to attend the Morning Worship Service at Southern View Chapel in Springfield where my friend Dr. Gary Gilley has served as Senior Pastor for over 40 years. Gary’s son, Brian Gilley, is their Associate Pastor and he delivered an excellent sermon from Isaiah 5:1-7 entitled “No Excuses.”

You can watch videos from this great Church and read many of Dr. Gilley’s many helpful biblical articles at www.svchapel.org

I highly recommend it!

In the afternoon, I was blessed to watch the video of the Morning Worship service of the Atwood First Baptist Church and to hear my Pastor’s Sermon!

Later, I attended the 6PM Service at Galilee Baptist Church in Decatur as they celebrated the Ordination of their Pastor, Dr. Joey Krol.

All in all, a very good LORD’s Day and a very good week!

Thank You, Beloved Ones, for your prayers; and Thank YOU, LORD!

I was able to attend mid-week Prayer and Bible Study at Emmanuel Baptist in Decatur. It was a blessing to be in an actual “Live and In-Person” Wednesday Evening Service and to hear Dr. Scott’s message!

After my really, really, really long drive last Friday, I did the lawn and laundry on Saturday.

Today, I attended worship at the Faith Bible Church in Springfield where my friend of nearly twenty years, Dr. Curt Daniel, is the Pastor. He brought a great message on “The Twin Sins of Pride and Prejudice” and the Church was giving OUT copies of his newest book (and his ‘Magnum Opus’) to visitors!

Dr. Daniel is certainly the most gifted and accomplished biblical scholar in Central Illinois!

I did a bit of a round about drive through the country back to Decatur and then had the joy of watching the video of the morning service at Atwood First. It was great to see a very large crowd on hand and to hear my Pastor’s message on Acts 16.

All-in-all, this has been a great week!

Just as I knew it would, July 2020 has come… and gone!

In July of 2018, I decided that I would retire at the end of July, 2020 from my position of Pastor-Teacher of the First Baptist Church in Atwood, Illinois.

In June of 2019, I notified the Elders of my Church that (as the LORD allowed) I would retire at the end of July, 2020.

In July of 2019, I announced to the Church that (as the LORD allowed) I would retire at the end of July, 2020 and that we needed to begin the process of electing and training a “Will of God Discovery Committee.”

We elected the Committee, I trained the Committee, and by the Grace of God, they did discover the will of God for the man who would serve as our Senior Pastor; and now he is serving in that role!

July 2020 has come and gone.

Today, I begin a new day and a new week and a new schedule and a new life. Please pray with me that as HE allows the LORD will reveal HIS will for my place (or places) of ministry in the years ahead!

I look forward to once again, “Serving HIM by Serving HIS!”

What a joy this morning to worship with dear friends at the Hammond Missionary Baptist Church; to sing the songs of Zion; and, to hear a timely and thoroughly biblical sermon (as always) by my faithful friend Glenn Baker!

• Not to mention the fact that I was given a “Free” Book!

Thank you Church and thank you Pastor Glenn!

AND… what a joy to get home in time to watch the livestream of my Pastor’s sermon @ FBC Atwood!

Thank you Pastor Woody!

Here is the text of the Sermon I preached at my final Service as Pastor-Teacher of the First Baptist Church in Atwood, IL.

Thank you everyone who made this day so very special for me!

God Removes His workers, but He does not Remove His Work!

 Joshua 1:1-9

 These are the Words of the LORD.

 Thanks be to God for HIS Word.

 INTRODUCTION:

 I very much remember Sunday, April 22^nd, 2007. I had been your Interim Pastor twice: August 1999 to July 2000; and from October 2006 to April 2007.

 Of course, I remember the pure joy of coming to serve the LORD and you here and the excitement about what lay ahead.

 But I also remember thinking on my first Sunday here that every Pastor of every Church has BOTH a first Sunday and a last Sunday. And today, I have arrived – just as I predicted – at a last Sunday as your Pastor.

 I remember telling a group of Pastors who were discussing the idea of being an “Interim Pastor” that we are all “Interim Pastors.” And, we certainly are. It is an old joke among Pastors that we are all, “Next on a long line of former Pastors.”

 I remember when we had a former Pastor speak at the First Southern Baptist Church in Waukegan that one of the long-time members mentioned that particular Brother was, “his favorite former Pastor.” Thinking he should say something nice to me, he said, “Oh, Brother Lanny, you will be too.” He was right about that. On Sunday, May 29^th, 1994, at the end of services, I became their most recent, “Former Pastor.”

 I am the 50^th man in the 128-year history of this Church to have the title of “Pastor.” Woody White is #51 on that list. E.E. Gere, Wayne Brackett, Charles Robinson, and I are the only four men to serve here for seven years. E.E. Gere and I are the only two men to serve here for eight years. (He was here from 1910-1918)  I am the only man to serve here for more than eight years. This time, I have been here for 13 years, 4 months, and 4 days.

I am praying that Woody White surpasses us all!

 EXPOSITION: Joshua 1:1-9

Since this is the first time I have ever preached from the King James Version Thompson Chain Reference Study Bible that I was given at my Ordination on November 15th, 1987, (while I usually use the English Standard Version) my scriptures today are quoted from that Bible.

(1:1-2a) God does Remove His workers!

 ¹ “Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, ² Moses my servant is dead…”

 *God’s people, (even the godliest of God’s people) are not exempt from the realities of life and death!

 *They had not just lost a leader, they lost Moses!

• Israel lost their leader!
• Zipporah lost her husband!
• Gershom and Eliezer lost their father!

*Moses was a great leader because he was a great servant!

 (1:2b-9) God never Removes His work!

 (2b-6) God’s Promises to them had not changed!

 “now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. ³ Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. ⁴ From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. ⁵ There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. ⁶ Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.”

(7) God’s Proclamation to them had not changed!

⁷ “Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.”

(8) God’s Provision for their success had not changed!

⁸ “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”

 (9) God’s Presence with them had not changed!

 ⁹ “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

Take Careful note of this: I am leaving; God is not.

Amen.

GOOD MORNING BELOVED CHURCH!

Today TUESDAY, March 19^th, 2019.

Today is the 78^th Day of 2019.

There are 287 days left in 2019 and only 281 days left until CHRISTMAS!

It’s TUESDAY, but SUNDAY is coming!

AS THE LORD ALLOWS, this coming Sunday, 3/24, I will begin a 5-Sermon Series called, “Countdown to Calvary” since we are five weeks away from Easter!

These sermons will be from (and part of my study of) the Gospel of John, but instead of following the biblical order, I will move ahead to Chapter 18-21 as we look at the biblical record of the events of what Christians call “Holy Week” or “Passion Week.” Over these coming 5 weeks, I will move around in John as we cover the specific events surrounding the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

The first Sermon – this coming Sunday – will cover the betrayal, arrest, and trial of Jesus!

After Easter, I will go back and cover the parts of John’s Gospel over which I am moving for the next five weeks…

WEDNESDAYS @ 6:30 – 8pm: “IGNITE!” Children’s Ministry!

THURSDAYS @ 6 – 7:30pm: “Thursday Night Theology”

TODAY IS COOPER SHOEMAKER’S BIRTHDAY!

ON THIS DAY IN 1730, Phillip Doddridge was ordained. He would become a faithful and godly Pastor whose writings would influence William Wilberforce and others to accept Christ.  

(christianhistoryinstitute.org)

BORN ON THIS DAY:

1589, William Bradford, Puritan Pastor and Governor of Plymouth Colony for 30 years. Vevalee Smith was a very proud descendant of this man.

1813: Missionary Explorer David Livingstone

1848: Wyatt Erp, frontier lawman

1860: William Jennings Bryan, world famous orator and three-time Presidential Candidate.

1883: Army Four-Star General “Vinegar” Joe Stillwell, Hero of WW2.

(onthisday.com)

DIED ON THIS DAY:

1711: Thomas Ken, faithful pastor who authored the words of the “Doxology.”

(christianhistoryinstitute.org)

1930: Arthur Balfour, former Prime Minister of England and author of the Balfour Declaration which gave the Jews the right to return to and settle Israel following WW1.

2008: Arthur C. Clark, author of “2001: A Space Odyssey” and other sci-fi books.

(onthisday.com)

DEVOTION FOR TODAY – Why do Baptists insist that immersion is the only legitimate method of baptism?

Answer, “Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, the believer’s death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord’s Supper.” (Baptist Faith and Message 2000)

First, the very word translated “baptize” is “bapto” which means to “dip” or “to make fully wet” or “whelm over” which we say today as “overwhelm.”

Second, immersion is the only model seen in the New Testament…

Mark 1:9-10

⁹ “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
¹⁰ And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.”

John 3:22-23

²² “After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing.
²³ John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized.”

If John the Baptist was not immersing people, why would he need to go to a place where “water was plentiful?”

Acts 8:38-39

³⁸ “And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
³⁹ And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.”

Finally, only immersion fulfills the theological picture portrayed in baptism, that is of being “buried” and “raised” with Christ!

Romans 6:3-4

³ “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
⁴ We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

THEOLOGICAL NOTE: Baptism in water does not save, but God commands every believer be baptized!

Acts 2:38

“And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

If you have professed faith in Christ but you have not submitted to baptism after you were saved, you are (either intentionally or unintentionally) living in disobedience to this clear command of God.

Luke 6:46

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPJEJtUTe7E

1^st Corinthians 16:13

“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”

Soli Deo Gloria!

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST

Good Morning Loving Church,

Today is Friday, June 24th, 2016. Today is the 176^th Day of 2016.

There are only 190 days left in this year; and, there ONLY 23 DAYS left until VBS BEGINS; and, only 184 days left until CHRISTMAS…

Today is Patrick Curry’s Birthday

Today is Katie Kilber’s Birthday

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST IN THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

Matthew 5:17-19

Jesus and the Law of God

¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
¹⁸ For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
¹⁹ Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

If the only thing Jesus did was die for our sins, that would not get us into heaven. Jesus had to also live a sinless life – the life that Adam failed to live – in order to establish a perfect righteousness (which is also “accounted” to us when we repent and believe in HIM) because without righteousness, or, “holiness” no one can see God. (Hebrews 12:14)

If we were sinless, but not holy, we would be where Adam and Eve were before they sinned in the Garden.

Jesus did not come to abolish the Law of God; HE came to fulfill it. HE came to keep it; and, HE did.

We cannot be sinless so Jesus died for our sins. We cannot be holy so Jesus lived for our righteousness.

An “iota” is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet and the “dot” (‘yod) is the smallest part of a letter. The point is that nothing will be lost from the Law of God until all that God decrees will come to pass.

Now we come to “antinomianism”. This means to be “against the Law of God”

It means to teach others that since we are saved that we can basically live any way in which we like.

Jesus clearly points out that this is a serious error.

We do not keep God’s moral Law (specifically, the Ten Commandments) to “get” saved; we keep God’s Law because we “are” saved.

Christians do not keep the “Ceremonial” Laws from the Old Testament which were pictures of how to worship God and were used to teach about Christ. Once Jesus came, there is no further need of them.

Christians do not have to keep the “Civil” Laws from the Old Testament because we are not an earthly Kingdom as was Israel.

But, we do keep the moral Law, the Ten Commandments, because this is how we demonstrate the holiness which God has planted in our spirit to show our love and devotion to HIM.

Jesus said that those who keep the Moral Law of God and teach others to keep them will, “be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

The Midweek Bible Study Lesson for next Wednesday, 6/29, is “The Judgment Seat of Christ”.

Each Wednesday will feature a stand-alone lesson, so even if you can’t make them all; be sure you catch as many of these lessons as you can.

Carpe Diem!

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST

Good Morning Loving Church,

Today is Thursday, June 23rd, 2016. Today is the 175^th Day of 2016.

There are only 191 days left in this year; and, there ONLY 24 DAYS left until VBS BEGINS; and, only 185 days left until CHRISTMAS…

Today is my sister Donna’s 70^th Birthday

ON THIS DAY IN 1914: “J. Gresham Machen, Presbyterian educator and defender of orthodoxy is ordained at Plainsboro, N.J.”

Machen’s writings, especially “Christianity vs. Liberalism” are among the best and most important theological books of the 20^th Century.

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST IN THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

Matthew 5:16

Glorifying the Father

¹⁶ “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

This is an amazing sentence.

Believers are commanded to let OUR light shine before others, so that they may see OUR good works… yet, we must do this in such a way that they will… “give glory to your Father Who is in heaven.”

We do the work; God gets the glory. Simple.

Not really.

Pride is one of the greatest of sins and one of the most potent foes faced by the believer. When we do “good works” it is all too easy for US to accept the praise brought by them.

We must humbly do our good works “before men” but we must do them in such a way as to give all of the glory to GOD.

Sometimes that is as easy as doing these things quietly and anonymously. When that is not possible, we need to be quick to explain that our changed life through Jesus is the source of any human “goodness” that we appear to have.

So, we do the works and God gets the glory.

One of the ways I have found to begin a gospel conversation – or at least attempt to – is to give the glory to God whenever I do something honorable that surprises a person.

For example: I have had occasion to return money to a person who gave me too much change. I sometimes remember to tell them, “Don’t thank me; thank Jesus. If HE had not changed my life, I would be more than happy to take advantage of people.”

That way I am not the hero… Jesus is.

That is the point of this passage.

The Midweek Bible Study Lesson for next Wednesday, 6/29, is “The Judgment Seat of Christ”.

Each Wednesday will feature a stand-alone lesson, so even if you can’t make them all; be sure you catch as many of these lessons as you can.

Carpe Diem!

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST

Good Morning Loving Church,

Today is Wednesday, June 22^nd, 2016. Today is the 174^th Day of 2016.

There are only 192 days left in this year; and, there ONLY 25 DAYS left until VBS BEGINS; and, only 186 days left until CHRISTMAS…

On this day in 1750:

“Jonathan Edwards is dismissed from his pulpit in Northampton, Massachusetts because he has rejected the “halfway covenant” which allows individuals who have made no confession of salvation to baptize their children. His calls for holiness do not sit well with his congregation either. One hundred and fifty years later, Northampton Church will erect a monument to Edwards.”

For the next several years, Edwards (the greatest Theologian-Pastor ever to live in North America) would spend his time teaching a handful of Native Americans.

However… in HIS benevolent providence, God gave him this time to write several of the most important theological books ever published.

Later, Edwards was elected President of Princeton but died within days of that after taking a smallpox vaccination and contracting the disease.

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST IN THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

Matthew 5:14-16

The Light of the World
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
¹⁵ Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

John 3:19-21
¹⁹ “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.
²⁰ For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
²¹ But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

The greatest heart-break in my life today is watching the certain coming of another “Dark Age.” The light of the gospel is going out in North America and only God knows when (if ever) HE will bring it back again.

Lost people “love darkness” because their deeds are evil.

Western civilization, which was built on the light of God’s Word, has passed into night in Western Europe and now Canada is surely slipping away.

The United States is not far behind.

Here is our challenge! WE are THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. At least, we are supposed to be. If the Light of the World is dim, how great will be the darkness.

Salt; and Light. God’s people.

Here is a haunting limerick for us…

How much light would this world see; if every Believer lived just like me?

The solution? Simple.

^{16 “}In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

The Midweek Bible Study Lesson for THIS EVENING is “THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH”.

Each Wednesday will feature a stand-alone lesson, so even if you can’t make them all; be sure you catch as many of these lessons as you can.

Carpe Diem!

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST

Good Morning Loving Church,

Today is Tuesday, June 21^st, 2016. Today is the 173^rd Day of 2016.

There are only 193 days left in this year; and, there ONLY 26 DAYS left until VBS BEGINS; and, only 187 days left until CHRISTMAS…

Today is Hunter Priest’s Birthday!

On this Day in 1834: Cyrus McCormick, a Christian inventor and businessman, patents the world’s first truly workable reaper. He will make a fortune from it, much of which will go to charity.

ENCOUNTERING CHRIST IN THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

Matthew 5:13-16
¹³ “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
¹⁵ Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Salt and Light!

There are not many passages from the New Testament that are better known among Christians than this.

As you have heard many times, Jesus uses this double metaphor to describe our life and the impact we should have on the world around us…

Salt was mostly used to add flavor to a bland world. A world without Christ and HIS people would be dull and deadly.

The Presence of Christ in the life of HIS people should bring joy and happiness and a way of living (even in the hard times) that is a marked contrast from those who do not know HIM.

“Salt” was commonly used as the primary preservative of things that perish; especially for the storage of meat.

The presence of Christians in a culture act as a preservative by showing the culture a living illustration of how living in obedience to Jesus brings blessings and spiritual health to one’s life and family.

“Salt” that had been contaminated and could not be used to either season or preserve food was stored and used to melt snow. It was literally “trampled under people’s feet.”

And so it is with the soiled Christian. The dirtiness of sin in our life soils our life and the world around us knows it quite well.

So, the soiled “Salt” is put away and ignored and only brought out to be trampled under foot.

All Christians ought to passionately desire to bring spice and joy and happiness into their world. We ought to desire to serve God to preserve our culture and our Nation by being examples of how holiness brings blessing.

None of us want to be soiled and ignored.

We do not want to be someone deserving of being trampled under the feet of the world.

We have heard this numerous times: let us seek to be “Salty Saints!”

The lesson for TOMORROW EVENING, (June 22^nd) is “THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH”.

Each Wednesday will feature a stand-alone lesson, so even if you can’t make them all; be sure you catch as many of these lessons as you can.

Carpe Diem!