Millions of people are asking the question: “Who is Jesus Christ?” An untold number of people are in search of Jesus.” A lot of them do not find Him because they are looking in the wrong place. Some time ago, Bryant Gumbel interviewed Larry King on national television; and, at the close of the interview, he asked Larry King a question—a very pertinent question. He said, “Larry, if you could meet God and ask Him one question, what would it be?” Larry King replied, “I would ask Him if He has a Son.” Great question! When you see documentaries on television, they are couched like, “Jesus—who was He?” Well, that’s…

In this chapter the Apostle Paul is teaching us to live like we are dying. For example, in Philippians 1:20 Paul said, “Whether it be by life or by death.” Then, in verse 21, he said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” To live and to die: the two ultimate outcomes. In this first chapter of Philippians, the Apostle Paul gives us three incredible pictures of life. In verse 5, we note that he is thankful for the fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. The picture is of the Christian life as being a son sharing the fellowship of the…

We know the writer of this passage is none other than the Apostle Paul. He was writing to us about some of the circumstances of his life. It helps us to try to get into his shoes for a little while and see how he feels and experiences. His circumstances at this particular time were not exactly appealing. Things were not going well for Paul; he was a prisoner in a jail cell in Rome.  A variety of misfortunes had come his way. He had been victimized by an illegal trial. He had been arrested and placed on a ship to go to Rome. Along the way, there had been…

“This I pray.” Paul’s prayer is my prayer for us. Prayer is a vital part of the Christian life. If you have not come to understand that as a believer, I hope this chapter will encourage you to become a man or a woman of prayer. Prayer is the lifeline between us and heaven. It is the communication system which keeps us in contact with God in heaven. There are no Ph.D.’s in prayer. The disciples said to Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray.” That is an interesting statement. They didn’t say, “Lord, teach us to preach.” That’s certainly important. They didn’t say, “Lord, teach us to do miracles.” They…

The church of Philippi was greatly involved in the ministry of Paul because they loved him and they believed in what he was doing. Paul had begun this church ten years earlier. In return, Paul wrote this beautiful letter to them. It is obvious as you read this letter that this must be, indeed, his most beloved and favorite of all of the churches which he founded. As it has been indicated in earlier chapters, Paul wrote this from prison. You will notice in Philippians 1:7 that he talks about “my bonds,” and in Philippians 1:13 he says, “So that my bonds.” I don’t know about you, but if I…

The Apostle Paul is writing a letter to the members of the church in the city of Philippi. We found in Acts 16 how this church came into existence, and we saw that there was a nucleus of people he had won to Christ who formed that church. Now, it’s about 10 years after Paul founded the church, and he is writing a letter back to those believers. Paul is using the form of letter writing which was current in those days. We don’t write letters in this form today. When we write a letter, we first of all address it “Dear,” to whom we are writing. Then, we give…

I want to ask you a question. What would you say that these people have in common: a Jewish philosopher who hates Christ; a New Ager, who has been deep into the occult; a prison guard, whose heart is filled with malignity and hate against all humankind; a feminist, who, perhaps, never married, who has her own business? What would you say all of those people had in common? They were all members of the church at Philippi. The Jewish philosopher who got saved was the Apostle Paul. The New Ager was a demon-possessed girl who was saved by the Gospel of Christ. The jailer, the prison guard, was the…

The last chapter of the book of Acts has been called the last page of the first chapter of the history of the Christian church. It has also been pointed out that the book of Acts concludes with a rather interesting word. The word is not easily apparent within translations, but in the New American Standard Bible, it is the word, “unhindered.” It has often been noted that this is a rather unusual way to conclude a book. This is not how you would normally conclude a book and this has puzzled Bible teachers through the years. There are some who believe that Dr. Luke intended to write a third…

There are three kinds of people in this world: there are those who are alienated toward Jesus, there are those who are altogether for Jesus, and there are those who are almost to Jesus. There are those who are hardened toward him, there are those who have a heart for Him, and there are those who are halfway to Him. In Acts 26:24-30, we read: “While Paul was saying this in his defense, Festus said in a loud voice, ‘Paul, you are out of your mind. Your great learning is driving you mad.’ But Paul said, ‘I’m not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I utter words of…

I love the twenty-seventh chapter of the book of Acts. I love walking by the ocean. I love this wonderful story because it’s so graphic. As you open the Bible to this chapter you just feel the salt spray in your face. It’s a story that was written as an eyewitness account of a great shipwreck. I want you to use your imagination. If you do, you’ll taste the salt. You’ll feel the swell of this ship as it rises and falls on the billows. You’ll hear the winds as it moans, and groans, and screams, and whimpers. You’ll hear the booming claps of thunder. And, you’ll see the flashing…