PV Bible Alive

What is the primary job of the Church in this world?  It is to seek lost sheep.  If you were to look at the activities of the modern American church, you might be confused about that.  Activities in the church range from Entertainment to Charity, from Education to Socials.   In fact, most modern American churches seem to be centered on one primary activity; getting more seats in the seats.  But th...

The Lord described the church as a flock of sheep, and in that analogy, we can find the three purposes of the church; Fix your eyes on the Great Shepherd, Listen to the Word from the Undershepherd, and seek lost sheep.

It's hard to believe that I've pastored in this church for 20 years.  In this message, I take a look back over my history with the church, and ask the question; What will the next 20 years bring?

Jesus' final prayer for His disciples was that they be one, as the Father and Son are One.  And Paul chooses to address the factions in the church at Corinth first, above all of their other problems.   Why is unity in Christ's church given such importance?  Because, regardless of the other problems we have, if we are not united under the leadership and Lordship of Christ, no other proble...

Of all the ways that the church should be united, "United around our understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit" has to rank in the top.  So, in this study, we discover how the Holy Spirit works so that we can recognize it.  He proclaims Christ crucified, reveals God's wisdom, and speaks through the Scripture.

Many people look at the Christian Church and disdain it.  And they have many accusations to raise by which they justify their hatred of the Church.  Among the top accusations has to do with all the divisions in the Church.  Not only are there thousands of doctrinal divisions among those who call themselves Christian, there are also local churches that are plagued by infighting and divisions.   But...

Paul chastises the church at Corinth because they were dividing into factions.  As we consider the unity that God desires for the church, they are to be united in their understanding of wisdom, their understanding of the Cross of Christ, and their understanding of greatness. In this message, we consider our unity around the Cross of Christ.

Of all the problems that a church can have, the most important to address is unity.   But it is not the kind of unity that the world calls for; superficial.  The unity of the Church should come from a devotion to The One Truth, an ever-growing understanding of the One Truth, and an application of that One Truth to their lives.   In short, we are to unite around the Word of God and the Cross of Chr...

What is the church's biggest problem today?  We are studying the 1st letter of Paul to the Corinthian church, and they had many problems like we have today in the church.  Divisions, sexual immorality, marriage confusion, self-exaltation, and doctrine.  But what was their biggest problem?   It was none of those.  Their biggest problem was that they forgot that Christ was their Master, and the...

A New Year's Resolution for the Tired Everybody begins the new year by talking about New Year's resolutions.  They resolve to lose weight, quit smoking, or get in shape.  It is a time of year when optimism abounds in regard to making big changes in your life. But there are many people who hear all of the commentaries at new year's regarding making resolutions, and they say, "Ba...

We continue with our study of Paul's letter to the church in Corinth.  And it reminds us of what it means to be a Christian.  To be a Christian means that something happened to me in the past, something continues to happen in the present, and I look forward to something happening in the future.  

Regardless of the circumstances of a Christians life, there are three things they can be thankful for; being chosen, being a saint, having the grace and peace of God.

This message is the introduction to the study of Paul's epistle to the Corinthians.  I entitled this series of sermons; Jesus is Lord of your life; now act like it.   I gave it that title because the church at Corinth had a sin problem.  There were divisions in the church, marriage issues, sexual immorality, lawsuits, worship problems, false doctrine, and idolatry.   And this message is quite...

This is the final sermon in the series, "Lord, Send a Revival, and let it begin in me."  The passage of Scripture we are considering today is about a riot that ensues in response to the revival that happened in Ephesus.   There are two points that I want to emphasize.  First, real revival will be opposed by the world.  And second, even the violent opposition to the gospel demonstrates th...

This is part 4 of this series of sermons from Acts 19.  We've been studying the revival that happened in Ephesus in the first century.  And that revival can be classified as genuine or real.  It wasn't just emotionalism or a crowd's attraction to a good show.   Real revival comes when the Holy Spirit of God does supernatural work in a person or a group of people.  When that happens,...

This is part 4 of this series of sermons from Acts 19.  We've been studying the revival that happened in Ephesus in the first century.  And that revival can be classified as genuine or real.  It wasn't just emotionalism or a crowd's attraction to a good show.   Real revival comes when the Holy Spirit of God does supernatural work in a person or a group of people.  When that happens,...

Sometimes when we sing, "Lord, Send a Revival, and let it begin in me,"  I don't think we understand what we are asking for.    We want our world to magically go back to a simpler time when churches were full, prayer was practiced in school, and we naively believed that those who worked in Washington D.C. were "public servants." But real revival is like what happened in Ep...

When Christians talk about revival, they are often thinking about a sudden move of God that results in large numbers of people coming to Christ or returning to Christ. But if we look at Acts 19, and the ensuing revival that broke out in Asia Minor,  the revival wasn't sudden, and it wasn't simple, or easy. 

We often ask God to send revival, but most of us don't know what that will mean in our lives.  Real revival from God will be rigorous, rewarding, rapturous, revolutionary, and riotous.   

There is a lot of teaching about the Holy Spirit in Christian churches, literature, and media today.  And unfortunately, I believe the majority of it is at best murky, and at worst destructive. And chief among those destructive teachings is the doctrine that states that those who are already Christians have to seek the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as a second gift from God.   In this sermon, we a...

What does it mean to be a Christian?  Is everyone a Christian who calls himself one?  If they say all the right words, does that make them a Christian?  In this passage of Scripture Paul encounters 12 men who are called disciples and he references when they believed .  On might assume from those two words that these 12 were already Christians when they met Paul.  But as the story unfolds, we disco...

There are a great number of ordinary people in the Bible who live ordinary lives in service to the Lord, but never get recognition for it.  They are the unsung heroes of Scripture.   There are also those who get a measure of notoriety for a brief moment but then pass into history with little fanfare.  They are the unsung heroes of Scripture. In my next two messages, we will look at three such peop...

It seems like every day we hear about some craziness that's happening in the world, in our country, or even next door to us.   And if we are Christians, it gets easier and easier to want to give up on being a "light in the darkness."   This message addresses that thought; the desire to give up.  In Acts 18:18-23, we continue with the story of Paul, taking the good news of salvation...

Part 2 of this sermon It seems like every day we hear about some craziness that's happening in the world, in our country, or even next door to us.   And if we are Christians, it gets easier and easier to want to give up on being a "light in the darkness."   This message addresses that thought; the desire to give up.  In Acts 18:18-23, we continue with the story of Paul, taking the g...

From July 18th until August 2nd 2022, Kansans will be given the opportunity to vote on the "Value Them Both" amendment.  As pastor of Parkview Baptist Church, I can't dictate to the congregation how they should vote.  But I can give my own opinion.  And I believe that you should vote "yes" on this amendment.   In this short message, I explain why.  This message is not inte...