Posts from 2025 (Page 7)
Shadows of Hell: A Letter From Jim
Dear CCW family, Here is something I wrote many years ago that seems even more poignant today. Please take it to heart: Shadows of Hell: Fear and Emptiness Before Death This poignant note came to a faithful friend of mine who is suffering from life-threatening cancer. It concerns a woman in the nursing home who has been a “good church-goer only.” The note reads: It is sad beyond words to watch mom’s health failing and see her fear and anxiety…
Her Unchanging Place
This poem coveys many memories of our mother and the home she loved outside of Warren, Arkansas. It was written originally for my siblings — Sandy Smith, Tom Elliff and Bill Elliff. She loved that home and either lived there or returned there all her life. We cherished that home as well. Close to the end of her life, while suffering with Alzheimer’s, we took her back. Her sister was there and was able to care for her for a…
Outlines on The PRESERVATION and PERSEVERANCE of the Saints
Quote from John Bunyan: “To be saved is to be preserved in the faith to the end. ‘He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.’ (Mt. 24:13) Not that perseverance is an accident in Christianity, or a thing performed by human industry; they that are saved ‘are kept by the power of God, through faith unto salvation.’ (1 Pet. 1: 3-6) But perseverance is absolutely necessary to the complete saving of the soul….He that goeth to…
The Abiding Life is the True Christian Life
The abiding life is the true Christian life. Jesus said, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.” (John 15:6) John 15 gives us the pattern for spiritual growth and effectiveness as believers. In the passage, we are called branches, Christ is the vine, and the Father is the vinedresser. What are the characteristics of authentic branches?…
Evangelism: What it IS and IS NOT
Evangelism. Some churches have seminars and workshops about it. There are Christian organizations devoted to doing it and training people in it. Evangelists are supposed to be peculiarly gifted in it. All believers should care about it. Many Christians are intimidated by it. But with all that said, what is evangelism? Depending on our religious background, previous church life, and personal experiences, we carry ideas (for better or worse) of what we think evangelism is and what it should involve.…
Leaders, Did God Call You to Provide a Haven for Those Who Pretend to Follow Christ?
Leader, God did not call you to provide a haven for those who pretend to follow Christ. You don’t do that? Please think more carefully. If you have members on the rolls of your church who show by their behavior that they don’t love Christ, the family of God, and God’s word enough to even attend, you are surely complicit in making them feel comfortable and approved in their supposed status. For many of our churches only 35-40 percent of…
7 Questions for Purposeful Conversation with Believers
We’ve got to move dialogue with believers beyond a superficial level if we are going to really know and encourage one another. But where do we even start? Here are seven questions you might ask. They might be useful in a variety of settings, such as when you have someone (or a family) over for supper, when spending time at the park, when you’re on a long car ride together, or during a fellowship meal with your church. 1. When…
Answered Prayer, God’s Providence, Gospel Opportunities, and Hungry Believers: Encouraging Experiences in South Africa
My recent two-week trip to South Africa was full with dispensing of our goods, lots of opportunities to preach the gospel and teach the Bible, and numerous experiences of God answering prayer along the way. I spoke or led almost 20 individual sessions and meetings, which was physically tiring, but I sensed the Lord sustaining me and clearly assisting me at various times. Upon reflection, I wanted to highlight the following five encouraging experiences I had while in South Africa.…
The Unrepenting Repenter
The believer in Christ is a lifelong repenter. He begins with repentance and continues in repentance. (Rom. 8:12-13) David sinned giant sins but fell without a stone at the mere finger of the prophet because he was a repenter at heart (2 Sam. 12:7-13). Peter denied Christ three times but suffered three times the remorse until he repented with bitter tears (Mt. 26:75). Every Christian is called a repenter, but he must be a repenting repenter. The Bible assumes the…
Don’t Just Tweet Your Proverbs: Lessons from Solomon
I don’t quite understand it. Everyone knows that King Solomon was the wisest man in the Old Testament. Yet, he had the most precipitous moral freefall of all the kings. The early Solomon loved God. “Now Solomon loved the Lord” (1 Kings 3:3). But the later Solomon was out of control morally: “Now Solomon loved many foreign women.” “Solomon held fast to these in love” (1 Kings 11:1,2). What went wrong? In fact, the marital alliances he made with the…
Liam Loopert, Faithful to the End : A Letter from Jim
Dear CCW family, Greetings! Think about the following scenario: James, the student: How faithful does one have to be in order to be a true Christian? The wise Mr. Brockton: To church or to God? James: Doesn’t one imply the other? Mr. Brockton: Faithfulness has many drivers, which can be deceiving. But few differentiate. My story will illustrate. Liam Loopert was always there, since his childhood. He was an attender. And everyone in church expected as much since his parents…
When God Used a Stutterer
Must limitations and weaknesses keep us from effective ministry? And how should we think about others in the church who have glaring, limiting imperfections? James Alexander Stewart was experiencing enormous success as an evangelist. By the age of 20, he was so sought after that he was preaching four or five times a day. He also filled his hours with evangelism in the streets and in homes. This was too much for a young man to handle alone. Stewart commented:…
Bread Out of Heaven? Can You Believe John 6: 30-33?
In John 6:30-33 Jesus does not say that the children of Israel were given bread or manna from heaven by Moses. Jesus also does not say that the bread or manna that fell on the ground from heaven came from his own Father, even though the inquirers said correctly, “Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it has been written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” However, he does say that bread came from heaven. Confusing?…
The Way to Grow a Church Numerically
The early church grew in numbers. “ . . . there were added that day about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41). “And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved” (2:47). “And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women” (5:14). “ . . . and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem…” (6:7) “ . . . (the church) multiplied” (9:31). Thinking about increased numbers is acceptable if…
The Believer’s NEW Relationship with Sin: Q & A from Romans 6:1-14
Romans 6:1-14 contains encouraging realities concerning who we are as believers in Christ and what we have experienced in union with him. These truths have significant implications for how we think about and relate to sin in our lives. It is the passage that I return to and prayerfully recall regularly to renew my mind and help me in the battle against temptation and sin. This portion of Scripture also contains dense logic. It requires time and careful thinking to…