Shadyside Church of Christ

 As Christians who follow in Jesus' footsteps, we are to become like Him in all ways including our thinking and desires.  When it came to saving humanity, God went "all out" in sending His Son who gave up privileges and humbled Himself to the death of a cross.  This is the great demonstration of the Father's love for humanity.  He desires all people to be saved.  Are we on the...

 Much of the world is barely familiar with Jesus.  Some don't know of Him at all.  Much of the world sees Him as a good man and founder of the Christian religion.  Even many Christians fail to see the high standing and central position which Jesus has been given in regard to all the affairs on earth and the powers that be in heaven.  He is the focal point of the history of all that has happen...

Many young people start out in life wanting "to make a difference."  This is a commendable aspiration and should be pursued, but usually this involves big dreams like solving the homeless problem or finding a new source of clean energy.  Christians are called by the Lord to make a difference every day in the lives of others.  As "the salt of the earth" and "the light of th...

 Fellowship means to share in, to participate.  But this means much more than just getting together to talk and share a meal, although this is an aspect of fellowship.  This sharing together begins with faith in the same Lord Jesus Christ which makes us part of the body of Christ, the family of God.  This fellowship then extends to caring for our brothers and sisters in need, in working together t...

The Holy Spirit, His work, and how He goes about it are often misunderstood.  There is frequently too much speculation and too little application of the scriptures.  If we do some good study of relevant Bible passages, we can come to a good understanding of what the Holy Spirit does and how He goes about His task.  Christians need to know that He still works today to accomplish His work just as He...

With all of the "bad news" in the world and personal problems we experience, it really is easy to get "down" and walk around in doom and gloom with a grim look on our faces.  But we Christians need to counteract all of the bad by putting a smile on our hearts.  In Christ our Savior, we have complete forgiveness of sin; are without condemnation; have been given the power to over...

One of the recurring themes in the Bible is that people need help from God to do His will. Sarah received strength from God in her old age to conceive Isaac. Moses was given the power by God to perform miracles and stand before Pharaoh to lead Israel out of Egypt. There are numerous others. Paul was forced to rely upon God when he was given his "thorn in the flesh." When the Lord told hi...

God gave Jesus the name which is above every name because of His willingness to empty Himself, become a man and go to the cross. As such, the name Jesus (which stands for Him) has great power and brings great blessing. Only in the name of Jesus is there salvation, and believers are to be baptized in His name. Christians serve and teach in His name, and suffering in His name is considered an honor....

Choosing to follow Jesus means some things in our lives must go.  It means things could get dicey at times, and our own devotion to Him will be tested.  But we each will need to choose to be devoted to the Lord, no matter what.  We might be devoted to church, to Bible reading, to good works, etc., but if we're not devoted first of all to Jesus, everything will turn into ritual and empty obedi...

Truth is that which conforms to reality, be it material, abstract or of the spirit.  We want to explore two important questions in this lesson.  1)  What is it that makes truth so valuable?  In other words, what is that truth can provide or do which nothing else can?  2)  What, then, should be our response to truth when we encounter it?  The right response to truth will honor God who is the origin...

 When Jesus brought up the subject of "truth" before Pilate, the governor responded with this famous question:  What is truth?  That question has been around since the very beginning, and it continues to be a debated question today.  Just what is "truth?"  Is there such a thing as objective truth?  If so, what are its origins?  (Perhaps you never thought that truth had a source...

 Jesus asserted that no one was taking His life from Him, but that He would lay it down for the sheep, and that He would take it up again.  Paul affirmed that Jesus gave Himself up for us.  Although this is all language which fits with the language of sacrifice, events surrounding the crucifixion indicate that Jesus willingly yielded up His Spirit.  No one took His life.  And He endured all of thi...

The vine imagery is used several places in the Old Testament to refer to Israel, a vine which God planted but produced only worthless grapes.  Jesus says He is the "true vine", having been planted by His Father the vinedresser.  He affirms that the branches which are in Him will be cleaned and pruned to bear much fruit.  Those branches which do not remain in Him cannot bear fruit and wil...

All of us have sent out invitations and received invitations to special events: weddings, graduations, anniversary celebrations, etc.  It's most interesting that God, also, invites people to come to Him for life and all its goodness.  He does not coerce nor threaten but gives us freedom to choose.  He does encourage us to come and receive all of the blessings He wants to give.  He does warn o...

Friends are a great blessing, and a good friend is hard to find.  Jesus told His disciples that He would no longer call them slaves but friends.  As such, He was elevating the status of their relationship, and also informing them of the expectations He had for them.  He was doing all of this because of His love for them.  All of these are marks of true friendship which we today still need to obser...

 When Jesus' tomb was sealed, the disciples thought it was all over.  They went into hiding.  But God had other plans which had been in the works since the beginning.  He raised His Son from the dead.  A Man had come back from the grave!  The disciples couldn't believe it at first.  What did it mean?  Who was this Jesus of Nazareth?  What does the resurrection of Jesus affirm?  What does...

God and His people have always had enemies.  In the days of Jeremiah, many nations threatened Judah.  God, however, told His people to look at the gods behind these nations.  Statues made of wood, decorated with gold was all they were.  They were like "a scarecrow in a cucumber patch" unable to walk or talk.  "Do not fear them."  Today, Christians have enemies lurking in every...

When you buy a plane ticket to Paris, you expect the aircraft to take you to Paris.  The same logic holds true for our spiritual journey in life.  The way you choose to travel has only one destination.  Jesus says there are only two ways to travel in life and thus there are only two destinations.  Do you know what they are?  Do you know which one you are traveling on?

When Jesus was about to leave His disciples, He told them to love one another as He had loved them.  He said that by this kind of love all men would know they were His disciples.  But what does that kind of love look like?  Surely, it's more than just some kind of warm feeling because Jesus said that "all men" would be able to see this love in action and recognize that they were Jes...

In order to carry the gospel into the whole world and overcome evil's resistance to it, Jesus knew what the apostles would need.  First of all, they needed reassurances that He really was the Christ, the Son of God and that they would have divine help in their task.  Also, they needed to know how to bring a lost person into a saved condition, fully functioning in the kingdom of God.  And Jesu...

Every Christian has someone in their family or in their circle of friends whom they want to see obey the gospel and receive salvation.  They may have "tried everything," but the response has been minimal if anything at all.  We must all remember that the power to save and change hearts rests with God Himself and the gospel of Christ Jesus and not with us.  God works in us, through us and...

There are numerous "firsts" in the book of Genesis, from the creation of all things to the beginning of the Hebrew people.  The account of Cain's killing of his brother Abel yields several such firsts.  Usually it is pointed out that this was the first murder (which is true), but there are two much more important other firsts in this story.  The foundation for these two is laid here...

 In Israel and Judah's day, some neighboring nations sacrificed their children to their gods.  Despite God's commands and warnings, Israel and Judah were influenced by these surrounding nations and ended up doing the same thing.  Through the recent actions of numerous elected officials in the United States today, it's become apparent that people are now willing to sacrifice children...

 Israel served God in a tabernacle in the wilderness, and later Solomon built a temple modeled after it. In the tabernacle were various furnishings: an incense altar, lampstand, table with showbread. Also the ark of the covenant was in the Holy of Holies. Outside was the altar for sacrifices. The priests ministered there daily. Paul asserts that the church is "the temple of the living God&quo...

 Paul affirms in Romans (chapter 3) that God is God of Gentiles also. Why does he need to do this? Did God abandon the Gentiles when He called Abram and promised to make a great nation out of him? Were the nations considered second-rate people because God chose to bring the Messiah into the world through Israel? In the New Testament, we see that the Jews had rules which restricted interaction with...