Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Hearing The Gospel

______________________QUESTION

Hi Ronnie: question for you and no super need of urgency in your response: In your opinion, can a lost person become saved through any means other than by HEARING the SPOKEN word of God? (caps because cant italicize on a smart phone). If that statement is true, it would mean a lost person is unable to be reached for salvation by reading a post on the Internet, listening to a song, reading a Christian book, or even by reading the Bible. Could get saved listening to a sermon on YouTube, however. If untrue, back up your reply with proof from scripture. thx.

______________________ ANSWER 


Ronnie Wolfe

Well, that has always been a difficult thing to debate or discuss. I have very close friends who believe that the Gospel must be heard with the ears.

But I have a small problem with that, since a mission to get the word to the deaf would be useless. Then, if you say that sign language is a kind of hearing, you have admitted that hearing does not mean hearing only with the ears.

I am persuaded, then, that a person's hearing the Gospel has to do with hearing it in the mind and heart, not with the ears. Of course, I have no scriptures for that (therein is the rub).

However, I do see that God heard the voice of Cain's blood from the ground, which was not literally hearing a sound.

Also, in Luke 16:31 we read of "hearing Moses," which could mean literal hearing, but it cannot literally mean "hearing Moses."

Jesus said in John 10:27, "My sheep hear my voice." They do not literally hear Jesus' voice, although you might argue that they heard "about" Jesus, which is not the same, thus it cannot be completely literal.

Jesus also says in John 18:37, "Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." They are not literally hearing Jesus' voice.

Again, see Revelation 3:20.

The only other thing I can give as an argument for "my case" is Galatians 3:2, 5 concerning the "hearing of faith." I know that an argument can be made that this is "hearing about faith," but it seems to me that Paul is speaking of the "perception" of faith, although he does use the word hearing.

I believe that I have witnessed personally the receiving of faith in Christ by those who cannot hear with the ear; therefore, I must believe that they can be saved without literally "hearing" the Gospel but must hear the Gospel in their hearts.

I do, however, believe that it is necessary for the Gospel to be preached (whether by voice or by sign language, or some other way I cannot comprehend) in order for a person to be saved.

Thanks for stimulating my little brain today. God bless.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Our Sin

By Dr. Ronnie Wolfe - Nov. 19, 2013

    Oh, our sin! How deep and shameful it is! How strong and willing to bring us down to the pit! Oh, how lonely it makes our emotions, and, oh, how it surprises us when it awakes suddenly in our minds when we least expect it!

    Oh, our sin! Deep as the abyss of hell, long as eternity, and dark as a deep, dark cave! How present is its curse! How unrelenting its force! Oh, how it leads us into temptation, feeds us with its food of folly, leaves us broken-hearted, and needs us for its ever-hungry appetite!

    What desperate want we have! What longing to leave it! What hate to have it! How impossible to leave it, for it is our inherent curse, our ever-present visitor, who refuses to depart!

    Oh, if we could simply pray for its departure! If we could push it aside! If we could only leave it at the curbside, hide it in a closet, or throw it into the ditch! 

    Oh, if there were only one who could come and succor our deep depravity! If someone could by hard or easy effort vanquish this canker, this cancer!

    If there were or could be someone who could for our sin be a pure satisfaction, willing and able to take this burden; then how thankful would we be!

    Oh, how I sought it, and I found it! I heard of a man from a place from where comes no good, and yet he came, the good Shepherd! He called my name through his word, and I heard him and followed him! I understood his work promised from timeless eternity! I saw in spirit the death he died and the life he claimed from the dead!

    This man, Jesus, took sin, my sin! He personally carried it to a cross, was hung between heaven and earth, was punished in my place, and paid for my sin. This debt of sin I owed to his Father, and his Father took his death and life as payment, and upon my surrender in faith to this Christ, my heart was relieved, and my sin is gone; and he leads me in the paths of righteousness.

    Oh great release! Oh, great love! Oh, desired dedication to him! I can ask no more, but there is more! Past sin is gone! Present sin is forgiven! Future sin is under the blood; and my heart’s desire is that I sin not. But when I do sin, I have a great Lawyer, who will plead my case before the great Judge and win my case against my sin. Then one day, it may be soon, I will be released from this inherent depravity and be made free from this old sinful body to live eternally with my good Shepherd and my Lord, Jesus.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

A Letter To A Close Friend

Dear Friend,

I often wonder how close to death each of us is. Whether we are close enough to see the door creaking open, or whether we are so far from it that it is hidden in the fog of wonder, death is our portion upon which the Lord has cast his sovereign will due to our sin.

But now that sin has taken its journey into the depths of the sea, and now that sin has been sown up in a little bag, and since God remembers them no more, death does not seem to be so mysterious, because God has revealed much of it to us in his word. Death does not seem so lonesome, since we know that, though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we need fear no evil, for he is with us. Death does not seem so fearful, for he has cast away our fear of it, not the fact of it, but the result of it. Even the Lord feared at his death, but he looked for the joy that was beyond it. We, too, shall fear in death, no doubt; but we joy in the result of it.

Heaven is waiting; the Devil is defeated; Christ is ready in his own time to literally "bring us to God." We shall see him as he is, and I think we shall not only be blessed and honored to see him face to face, but we shall also be somewhat surprised at his beauty, his glory, and his majesty.

I am not sure that it is very Scriptural to desire that the Lord will come quickly, but sometimes a weak body and a longing soul can hardly do otherwise. Pain and weakness are pushing me in that direction often in these senior days. 


May God give you and your family grace for whatever he has for you. We love you and pray for you often. To God be the glory!

Pastor Dr. Ronnie Wolfe - November 5, 2013
To my friend, Bro. Glenn Archer

Friday, October 11, 2013

The Value Of Nothingness

By Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe
10-11-2013

There Was Never Just Nothing 

We know that God has always existed. His essence requires it; his nature compels it; his name demands it. There has never been only nothing. There has always been God.

The Earth Hangs Upon Nothing

When God created the heavens and the earth, he had to hang it up in space; and because there was only one thing to hang it on, he hung it on nothing. So this "nothing" has great value.

The Inhabitants Of Earth Are As Nothing

Daniel 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

So, that means that the only value that man has is God himself through his Son, Jesus Christ and his work on Calvary.

Notice also:  Isa 40:17 All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.

Satan Has Nothing In Christ

John 14:30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

Satan never did have anything in Christ, he now has nothing in Christ, and he never will have anything in Christ. As Satan has much in us, this nothingness in Christ is a valued characteristic. Satan can do nothing to hinder the work of Christ, for Christ has nothing in him, and Satan has nothing in Christ.

Nothing of Righteousness In Us

There is nothing of righteousness in us, for the Bible says in Rom. 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

The only righteousness that we have is that which is imputed or credited to us by God through Jesus Christ:  2 Cor. 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

We Have Nothing To Glory In

1 Cor. 9:16 For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!

The value of this "nothing" is that we have only one Gospel to preach, only one Jesus to trust, and only one word to study. There is nothing else. We do not have a "choice" as to what to believe or preach or what to practice. All glory goes to God, so we preach, not another Gospel or another Jesus, but the Christ, the one and only true God.

Oh, so many more "nothings" that have value, but this sampling should give us pause to think of our great responsibility to preach the word, witness the truth, and have our faith in the one true God and his Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Football

   Ronnie W. Wolfe

    You know, I don’t like football.  First, I am not too fond of feet; I mean, who sits around thinking about feet? Someone did, because they thought about it so long and hard that they decided to start using a foot to kick things; thus, the invention of kicking.
    Then there is the ball. I like balls, those little (or big) round things that roll and sometimes bounce. One can throw a ball, catch a ball, use a ball for a pillow, exercise with a ball, rolling over it and falling off. One can decorate with balls to make pretty, colored decor for a birthday party or a stage play. I like balls.
    But this thing they call a football is not really a ball. It isn’t even a sphere. It’s just a thing that seems to have come from someone’s nightmare. I understand it is hard to throw (unless one goes to university to get a degree in that). It is also very hard to catch, they tell me. It is very interesting when someone twirls it around in a circle in a spinning direction and leaves it there to spin for a while–that I do like about a football.
    I am not sure who designed this “ball,” but it looks like someone put their hands into one of those hand warmers (you know, like the English use), then pulled their hands out and brought out the inside of the warmer in the shape of two points, then went home and designed a “ball” like that. How it ever caught on I can never tell.
    Then someone played with this football long enough that he made it a game. Now every game needs rules, I suppose; so some people got together and made rules. In order to make rules, they had to have players in the game to do different things in order to fit the rules; so they made a quarter this, a half that and a full something else, a tight this and a tail that, a line this, and a corner that. Well, that is just confusing. I don’t really know how long it took to make all of these rules, but I asked my son once to sit down with me to watch a game and tell me about all the maneuvers, the rules, and the scoring of this game. After an hour of watching kicking, scrambling, falling, butting, rolling, and getting hurt, I was tired of my son’s telling me that every move they made had a rule to it. It’s sort of like Ezekiah’s dry bones: this rule connected to that rule, which overrules another rule, that offsets another rule.
    By the time one team got from the center of this playground that was built just for this game to the end of the playground, the players were not the only ones who were exhausted. I was pretty much given out myself.
    You know, I cannot play football, and I am pretty much glad for that; because I don’t have to get together with a bunch of ruffians who are bent on killing one another, put on what is the equivalent of three snow suits, a helmet on my head, and a cage on my face and pretend that everything is normal and we are having fun. I could just as soon join the army, go to battle, and fight the enemy. At least I would be doing it for a just cause; but what is the just cause in football?
    My birthday is on Monday; and if you would like to really tee me off (I think that’s from golf) instead of wish me a happy birthday, just buy me a football. You may experience a defensive tackle and come to a defensive end.
   
   

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

I Am Me

You know what? I am me. I don't intend to be anything else but me. I like being me. I like being me, because God made me, and I am not angry about that. Some people forgot that God made them, and they are very unhappy. God makes me happy, because he introduced me to his Son, Jesus, through the Gospel. When he did, I believed every word of it. My faith is in him; my life is in him; my love is in him; my hope is in him. I just wish I had a Bible verse to express what I am saying.

Oh, yeah: Acts 17:28 "For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring." You know what? I am happy about that. I wish everybody were.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

The Benefit of Christ #1 - Grace of Christ

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe – Beginning 9/11/2013
Wednesday Messages

LESSON ONE – THE GRACE OF CHRIST
_______________________________________________

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him
                     that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
______________________________________________

I.    WE ARE CALLED INTO THE GRACE OF CHRIST

    A.    You and I do not choose the grace of Christ. It is beyond our nature to do so.
    B.    John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
    C.    Matt 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
    D.    First God calls us by the Gospel. This is the General Call of God
        1.    Rom. 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
        2.    Matt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
        3.    Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
            a.    We are to preach the Gospel to every creature, every human being, no matter what their background or religious persuasion.
            b.    God takes this Gospel when he sees fit and brings power to be upon people, for we find in Rom. 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
            c.    This power is what makes the difference in this General Call and our next point, The Effectual Call.
        4.    In our text, these folks had been called by the General Call of God. We know this, because they were removed from the true Gospel to another Gospel.
    E.    Then God calls us out of darkness into his glorious light – This is the Effectual Call
        1.    1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
        2.    In the General Call, God calls everyone who hears the Gospel, and many reject
        3.    In this call, he actually calls them effectually out of darkness into his marvelous light.
        4.    This is the work of God, for we read in 2 Cor 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
        5.    God calls us out of darkness by shining in our hearts the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
        6.    This effectual call is also shown in 2 Thess 2:14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
            a.    Here we are called by the Gospel to the obtaining (or receiving) the glory of Jesus Christ.
            b.    God effectually calls us into his kingdom (1 Thess. 2:12)
        7.    1 Peter 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

II.    HOW WAS CHRIST’S GRACE MANIFESTED?
    A.    He Became poor
        1.    2 Cor. 8:9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
        2.    Phil. 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
        3.    Phil 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
        4.    Phil. 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
    B.    Through The Gift of Righteousness
        1.    Rom 5:17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
    C.    It Is God’s Grace, But Given By Jesus Christ
        1.    1 Cor 1:4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
        2.    So we know by this that we cannot receive the grace of God any other way except through Jesus Christ.
        3.    Eph 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
III.    THE JOY OF CHRIST’S GRACE
    A.    Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
    B.    This grace in our hearts is from God. It is saving grace, growing grace, sustaining grace, knowing grace, loving grace, Christ’s grace.

IV.    GOD’S GRACE AND CHRIST’S GRACE ARE THE SAME
    A.    2 Thess 1:12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
    B.  The use of the word "and" here is the ascensive use and can be translated "even."

V.    THE GRACE OF CHRIST IS ABUNDANT
    A.    1 Tim. 1:14 And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
    B.    We Are To Be Strong In The Grace of Christ
        1.    2 Tim. 2:1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

VI.    SOME WILL DENY THE GRACE OF JESUS CHRIST
    A.    Jude 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
        1.    To deny means to prove to oneself that something is not true or that a thing or person does not exist.
        2.    But to deny that something exists is self-contradictory. You cannot prove that something isn’t. The only way to do that is to have complete universal knowledge of everything, and no human being has that, of course.
        3.    The only way to logically deny Christ is to put something in his place. Therefore Galatians speaks of “another gospel,” (See our text) and Gal. 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
        4.    Or another Jesus – 2 Cor. 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
        5.    So the only way to deny Jesus Christ in this way is to pervert him.
            a.    That is, to make Jesus something that he is not.
            b.    Some say, as we have recently noticed, that Jesus casts out devils in the name of Beelzebub.
            c.    Others say he is no king “We have no king but Caesar” John 19:15.
            d.    They say he is simply human and not God – Matt. 13:55  Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?  56  And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?
        6.    But Jesus is the “only Lord God.” Jude 1:4
    B.    The Fate Of Those Who Deny Him -- Matt 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
    C.    But we are to deny ourselves – Matt 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Monday, September 2, 2013

The Unpardonable Sin

Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe – Matthew 12:31-32 – September 1, 2013 PM

I.    WRONG DEFINITIONS FOR THIS SIN
    A.    See also Mark 3:29
    B.    Ritschl teaches that any sin that comes short of rejection of Christ is ignorance rather than sin.
        1.    This makes the sin against the Holy Spirit the only real sin.
        2.    It also makes the sin against the Holy Spirit to be the rejection of Christ, which it is not.
    C.    A. H. Strong teaches that “There is much incipient hardening of the heart that precedes the sin of final obduracy. . . . a result of continuance in wrong doing, with consequent hardening of the whole moral nature.”
        1.    Strong goes so far as to say that the “heart is radically and finally set against God that no power which God can consistently use will ever save it . . . .  This sin, therefore, can be only the culmination of a long course of self-hardening and self-depraving."
        2.    Depravity is already total, so man needs no “self-depraving.”
        3.    Strong goes on and says, “The sin against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven, simply because the soul that has committed it has ceased to be receptive of divine influences, even when those influences are exerted in the utmost strength, which God has seen fit to employ in his spiritual administration.” (Pg. 651).
        4.    Strong uses expressions such as
            a.    Loss of spiritual sight
            b.    Loss of religious sensibility
            c.    Loss of sensitiveness
            d.    Loss of power to will the good
        5.    But we have already lost all of this, else salvation is not by grace.
    D.    Weismann in his “Heredity” says, “If a man should put out his eyes, he could not see; nothing could make him see. So if a man should by obstinate wickedness destroy his power to believe in God’s forgiveness, he would be in a hopeless state. Though God would still be gracious, the man could not see it, and so he could not take God’s forgiveness to himself.”
        1.    If this were true, then the more a man sins, the more likely it is that he will not receive forgiveness.
        2.    The sins of Saul of Tarsus teach us that this is not true, for he called himself the chief of sinners.

II.    CORRECT DEFINITION FOR THIS SIN
    A.    John Gill on Matthew 12:31 – “by which is meant, not every ignorant denial of, and opposition to his deity and personality; nor all resistance of him in the external ministry of the word; nor every sin that is knowingly and willfully committed; but it is a despitefull usage of the Spirit of grace, an opposing, contradicting, and denying the operations wrought, or doctrines revealed by him, against a man's own light and conscience, out of willful and obstinate malice, on purpose to lessen the glory of God, and gratify his own lusts: such was the sin of the Scribes and Pharisees; who, though they knew the miracles of Christ were wrought by the Spirit of God, yet maliciously and obstinately imputed them to the devil, with a view to obscure the glory of Christ, and indulge their own wicked passions and resentments against him; which sin was unpardonable at that present time, as well as under that dispensation then to come, when the Spirit of God was poured down in a more plenteous manner.”
    B.    Dr. J. P. Thompson has an imperfect definition when he says, as quoted by A. H. Strong (pg. 651), “The unpardonable sin is the knowing, willful, persistent, contemptuous, malignant spurning of divine truth and grace, as manifested to the soul by the convincing and illuminating power of the Holy Ghost.”
        1.    I say it is imperfect, because it implies that, when a person is convinced by the Holy Spirit of his sin, he can resist God’s grace.
        2.    But the Bible teaches us that the grace of God in salvation is so loving, so gracious, so irresistible and so binding and convincing that no one could nor would he resist it, since the will of the person receiving the divine grace is relieved and grateful for that grace that draws him away from the clutches of his own sin and acquiesces to that grace with ultimate pleasure and willingness.
        3.  Just as if you were drowning in the ocean and going down for the last time, and someone throws you a lifeline. Your instincts tell you, without casual and determinate deliberation in your mind, and without resistance, that you must take hold of the lifeline to be saved. So, when the grace of God comes upon a person, he reaches out to God's salvation with desperation, knowing that, without it, he will die in his sins. There is no resisting of God's grace here.

III.    EXPLANATION OF THIS SIN
    A.    It Is A Sin Against Only The Holy Spirit.
        1.    Against Jesus – Matt 12:32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
        2.    All manner of sin – Matt 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
    B.    It Is An Active Sin
        1.    This is not a sin of ignorance or a sin of omission; it is a very positive, active, and purposeful sin.
        2.    This is a sin that is committed out of hate and jealousy.
    C.    It Is A Jewish Sin
        1.    This was a part of finishing the Jewish transgression – Daniel 9:24  Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression,
        2.    “The transgression” is Israel's complete rejection of Jesus as Messiah.
        3.    The final stroke of that transgression was the crucifixion of Jesus on the cross.
        4.    Part of this rejection was to misrepresent the Messiah.
        5.    To know that he was the Messiah by every logical proof, to know his Messiah-ship by the reading of the Jewish Scriptures, to understand by his signs, wonders, and his fulfillment of prophecy and then to credit the devil with the work that Jesus did is part of the great transgression in its completion.
        6.    Perhaps David was speaking of this sin when he wrote in Psalm 19:13 Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. John Gill thinks so, and so do I.
        7.    John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own (people) received him not.
    D.    It Is A Sin For A Special Time
        1.    This is a sin that could be committed only when Jesus was on the earth, for he was being manifested at that time as the Messiah of God, the Savior of men, and as the King of the Jews.
        2.    During the manifestation of Jesus as the Messiah, he did many miracles. Among them was the miracle of casting out devils.
            a.    Matt 12:22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
        3.    Jesus was rejected at the time he was showing himself to the world as the Son of God, the Servant of God, the Savior of man, and as the Son of Man.
    E.    It Is A Sin Committed By A Group, Not An Individual
        1.    Notice that it was the body of the Pharisees and the scribes who gave credit to Satan for the work of the Holy Spirit, thus blaspheming and sinning directly against the work of the Holy Spirit.
        2.    The Pharisees rejected him as the Messiah and credited Satan for casting out the devils.
            a.    Matt 12:24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
        3.    The scribes did the same.
            a.    Mark 3:22 And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.
        4.    However, the condemnation is to everyone in that group who commits that sin.
            a.    Mark 3:29-30  But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:  30  Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit.
    F.    It Is The Only Sin That Has No Forgiveness
        1.    We have already noticed, Matt 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
        2.    It shall not be forgiven in this life nor the life to come.
        3.    The last part of Matt. 12:32 says, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
        4.    All sin is forgiven in his world. There are no second chances in the world to come.
        5.    The world to come is mentioned due to the fact that some religions allow for that possibility.
        6.    So, if this sin is not forgiven in this world, then we know that it cannot be forgiven in the world to come–that is logical and scriptural
        7.    Rev 22:11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
    G.    It Is A Sin Of Unforgiveness By God's Prerogative
        1.    Notice that it does not say that the sin CANNOT be forgiven in this world nor the world to come, but that it SHALL NOT be forgiven in this world nor the world to come.
        2.    That means that God has willfully purposed that he will not forgive this sin; it is not that he cannot but that he will not. It is his prerogative.

IV.    IMPLICATION OF THIS SIN
    A.    The question is most usually asked, “Can anyone commit this sin today?”
        1.    This sin, as already described, was for the time of the revealing of Jesus as the Messiah, upon his casting out devils by God’s authority, and by the Jews as they finished their great transgression.
        2.    Therefore, no one commits this sin today.
    B.    Therefore, all sins today can be forgiven.
    C.    How are sins forgiven?
        1.    By Grace – Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
        2.    By Repentance  –
            a.    Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
            b.    Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
        3.    By Faith – Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Friday, August 9, 2013

A Man Like This

For Funeral of Charlie Kinnett – 8-3-2013
By Pastor Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

Charlie Kinnet was a special man
With a smile on his face and a mint in his hand.
He approached each person with a generous smile,
And handed them candy to last them a while.

A second piece? no, cannot do,
There’s none for others if I give it to you.
Children’s faces lit up when Charlie came in.
They reached out their hands for candy again.

But Charlie was more than a candy man;
He was serious about his work at hand.
He was a servant with only one Master
And never thought anything was a disaster.

He was faithful each Sunday in counting the flock;
He counted the money that belongs to the Rock.
He felt so unworthy to sing in the choir,
But he listened intently,  enjoyed every hour.

So suddenly taken, our hearts deeply sad;
We must understand it’s not wholly bad
That Charlie so left here for us to bemoan,
And went on out yonder to his final home.

He went with the Lord, his soul saved by grace,
For Jesus has suffered, taking his place;
Jesus condemned and put on a tree,
Giving salvation to folks just like me.

Charlie would have me invite you today
To trust in the Lord, put transgressions away,
And come to a place where saints will be singing
And we will see Charlie God’s anthems still ringing.

Charlie is meeting and greeting his friends,
Enjoying a place that has no ends.
He is blessed to be sharing Heaven’s fine bliss,
And Heaven is blessed with a man like this.

Monday, July 15, 2013

Brother, Lie Down

By Ronnie W.  Wolfe – July 15, 2013

My brother, the oldest in this little clan,
Hard for us all to quite understand.
Opinions he had, as all people do,
But loving and kind and hard working, too.

We loved him as best as all of us could
And weeded the bad and collected the good.
We’d travel and travel ‘till tiredness was found,
And then in the field we’d lay our heads down.

Through shadows and valleys he traveled with strength,
And trusted and prayed for great mercy at length.
While prostrate in prayer again on the ground,
He felt the great urge again to lie down.

He knew of his soon and certain demise
And knew that his God was infinitely wise.
The grace of his God he has already found
And heard the Death Angel say, “Brother, lie down.”

Brother, lie down to go straight to that place
Where there will be seen Christ’s glorious face
And see the wonderful pleasures of grace,
Where all the believers will end their great race.

Brother, lie down so angels can come
And take you away to your Heavenly home,
Where God will caress you and welcome you in
To a place where no one is guilty of sin.

Brother, lie down so the time will go by
For my time to come with a lingering sigh,
And I, too, will join in that Heavenly sound,
When the angels will say to me, “Brother, lie down.”

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Jesus Under Man's Will

By Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

As I was reading the arrest, trial, and crucifixion of our Lord, Jesus Christ, today, I realized a thing that I had known for some time but had never stopped to give it serious consideration until today. While reading Luke Chapter 23, I came upon verse 25, which states at the end of the verse . . .but he delivered Jesus to their will.

The necessity of this acquiescence is divine, for the prophet, Isaiah, defends this with his words through the Holy Spirit of God when he resounds "He is despised and rejected of men," "He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities," "He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation?" ". . . he made his grave with the wicked," ". . . and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."

It was for my sins that he put himself under the power of men and that he succumbed to their will. It was God who gave him over to this homicidal crowd, not Pilate. It was God who, in keeping with his eternal plan and purpose, in order that not one jot nor title of the law would be unfulfilled, that he gave his Son over to the will of these religious bigots and judicial monsters. God allowed the political aspirations of Pilate and the arrogant pronouncements of Herod to play into this phenomenon.

Men have long desired to be in the place of God, have wanted to rid the human race of God's authority, and have even wanted to lord it over God and be his boss so that God himself would of necessity surrender to man's wicked and transient will.

But we shall not waver our faith in God, for all of the time that God delivered Jesus to their will, his will was at all times sovereign to theirs. He knew what they would do. He knew their thoughts and intentions. He let them "play the field" and allowed them to believe they were completely in charge, that Jesus was completely under their care, but no man should ever be fooled with that plan; because God is always sovereign.

God's sovereignty does not slip nor sleep. Notice what seems to be an oxymoron in Acts 2:23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:  All the time these men thought they were handling Jesus to their own intents, they did not realize that they were carrying out the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God.

God cannot and will not be fooled, and he will share his glory with no one. We cannot close without quoting this very famous verse in Daniel 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? What a great God we have, who never changes, never lies, and never gives in to the will of man except to fulfill his own will and purpose! Even when it seems that God's will is in the hands of man, he does not relinquish one iota of his will but continues with steady faithfulness to execute his plan perfectly.


Thursday, June 27, 2013

This Is Your Hour

By Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

Luke 22:53 When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.

The Lord is in complete control of time, and there are appointed times (hours) for things that God has in his own power. He speaks of the time's being fulfilled in Mark 1:15.  He also speaks of his time's being at hand in Matthew 26:18.  He speaks in John 7:6 and 8 to his brothers that his time is not yet come. He says to his own mother in John 2:4 . . . Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.

But when Jesus faces the great multitude at his arrest, he has full understanding, through his communication with his Father, that his hour is come for suffering, bleeding, and dying, drinking his cup given to him by his Father.  He surrendered to this great multitude of priests, elders, etc. on his own accord. They, no doubt, thought that they would have to capture him as a fugitive, but he surprised them by his immediate and complete surrender to them. He had settled this with God the Father in Gethsemane when he feared, but now he is not afraid, for he has complete submission and surrender to his Father's will.

When he surrendered to this company of police, he told the men of the Sanhedrin in Luke 22:53 When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.  Jesus' hour was spent in Gethsemane. Now it is their hour, their hour to execute their mean plots, their lying plans, and their deceitful justice.

Their hour was a dark hour. Matt. 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.   Did we not all sit in darkness before we met the Light of the world? This evening was physically dark, but it was also in deep spiritual darkness as this wicked plan was executed.

This was their hour, the hour (or time) for these Jewish rebels to execute their plan and purpose for this so-called King of the Jews, this Messiah, this destroyer of the Law and the Temple. This was their hour to fill up their sin to the full. It was their hour to lie, deceive, and connive evil justice and nefarious jurisdiction.

But their hour would not be long, and their victory would be futile. We read in  Acts 3:14-15  But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; 15  And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

This is your hour. If you are in the darkness, that hour of darkness is very lonely and gloomy and treacherous. It leads to eternal death in the darkness of hell; but repentance from dead works and faith in Jesus Christ brings one to the Light and eternal life and light in Christ, Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. (1 Tim. 6:16), for . . . now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

Monday, June 24, 2013

Doctrine of Sin #5 - Sin Is A Religion

By Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

I spoke Sunday evening on the fifth lesson concerning the doctrine of sin. Everyone thinks he knows what sin is, and I am sure we all do essentially; but there is much involved in the doctrine of sin called Hamartiology--the study of sin.

In the first four lessons I tried to explain that there can be no sin without (1) God, without (2) law, without (3) conscience, and without (4) a sinner.  Sunday evening I taught a lesson on sin as a religion.

First, I spoke of the existence of God and compared it with atheism, that atheism is a destructive doctrine and that it has a sad presence. Then I made the statement, "If it is foolishness NOT to believe in God, then it would be wisdom to believe in him." See Proverbs 9:10.

Sin, then, is nonconformity to divine law and is manifested in three ways shown from 1 John 2:16.

1.  The lust of the flesh (sensuousness or wantonness).
2.  The lust of the eyes (human weakness)
3.  The pride of life (selfishness, self-centeredness).

When these three things have grown to maturity, then it brings forth death, as James tells us in James 1:15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

We are reminded of the passage in Romans 6:23, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

In our selfishness, we desire earthly things rather than heavenly things. We are all sinners (Romans 3), and we were at one time all children of wrath (Eph. 2:3).   Sin brings only death, and all of our works before regeneration are sin, for ...  without faith it is impossible to please him: (Heb. 11:6).

My final statement in the message was "You sin because you love the world and worship the world and all that is in it, but true worship goes to God; and the only way to worship him is to be born again."

Ephesians 2:8-10  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:  9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.  10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Friday, June 21, 2013

First Day of Summer

By Ronnie W. Wolfe

The first day of summer of an exciting day for many people. These people look forward to the many things they can do in the sun, or in the shade, or even inside. Today will be the day with the longest stretch of daylight throughout the entire year. What will we do with that daylight?

Well, I can think of a biblical reference or two that may help us decide.  The Bible says in John 9:4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. This should be a striking warning for each of us to redeem the time (Eph. 5:16; Col. 4:5). Evil days are upon us, and this is the time that we should use God's time wisely. We should prepare ourselves with Bible reading and prayer, attend the Lord's house at every scheduled service, and witness to as many people as God gives us opportunity to do so.

We should also be aware of what Job says in  Job 14:1 Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.  Life is not fair, and life is hard; this is a fact that every child is taught by parents. Life is also short, and we it is incumbent upon each of us to struggle through life expecting that things will not go smoothly.

May God give each of us wisdom to be vigilant in our work for him. To him be the glory!

Thursday, June 20, 2013

The Prodigal's Father

By Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

Much is said, and much theology is entertained, about the prodigal son in Luke Chapter 15. This should be so in the main, but should we not also give some attention to the prodigal son's father? He is mentioned and made reference to in most sermons, but it seems to me that there is not enough emphasis given on him in most sermons. So in my thoughts today may we give a little more attention to him?

Notice, first, that he is the father of two boys, and these boys were of separate natures. One was a home body, an obedient and stable child of his father. The other son was a rebellious and wanton child with aspirations of grandeur and lofty and lively living.

As a result, the father was in a position in which he needed to deal with each son in a different way. One was much easier to train than the other. One needed little attention; the other needed much attention. Although most of us would censure the father's giving the prodigal his inheritance, we must realize that this father did just that.

Next we must realize that the father loved both of his sons. We might even name them Pride and Joy, since that is what they were to him.  He was blessed, he knew, to have these two sons even though one was a rebel. Rebellion comes with a sinful nature, and we see rebellion in both sons by the end of this story. God has a very special love for all of his children (his sons). He loves them with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3).

The third thing we notice about the father is that he allowed each son to do according to his own will. He did not try to force the one son to go away, nor did he try to force his prodigal son to stay home. God in his mercy has given us a free will, and this free will is limited by our own sinful nature; so we are going to do as we please within the perimeters of our nature. We are all selfish in our own nature, so we should not judge that the son who stayed home was pure of evil thoughts. We see later in the story that he was not.

Then we learn in the story that the father, evidently (by implication) was continually awaiting his son's return. He knew that his son would return. His fast love for his son determined the conclusion of this story, and we read of our own case in 1 Peter 2:25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. God's fast love for his people guarantees that they will all come to him, and he will not cast them out (John 6:37).

The father also received his son back from his wantonness. How loving is a father who, when confronted with the return of a rebellious and beaten-down son, wreaking of the world's love with evidence of the wear and tear of the world upon him, receive him back into the family? God does just that with sinners, who wreak of the world, are destitute of spiritual understanding, and are beaten down by sin. He receives us upon our return to him in repentance and faith.

Finally, we notice that the father accepts him, not as a hireling, but as a son. His love has not changed, and now the love is mutual. Our love for our Heavenly Father is based upon the concept that he received us unto himself despite our sin and weakness. Rom. 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Several more things could be said, but the comments are becoming too lengthy.

Would you not love to have a Father like that?  




Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Our Prayer Life

By Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

To keep up a constant, sincere, and (may I say) a successful prayer life, one must first develop a dependent spirit about himself. He must realize that without God nothing is possible, and we humans are a dependent sort; we need God's presence and power to go through even one small bit of time in our lives, because he is the source of all our blessings. He sustains us on a constant basis through his loving kindness and mercy.

The Bible teaches us that we should have fervent prayer. James says in  5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.  In fervent prayer much can be accomplished. The Greek word for "availeth" is ISCHUO  and has the basic meaning of strength or power or energy. In other words, effectual, fervent prayer gives power for us to accomplish God's purpose in our lives.

Missionaries need this power of purpose; pastors need this power of purpose; deacons need this power of purpose; actually, everyone who is a believer needs this power of purpose. If a believer is fervent in prayer; that is, he is powerful in prayer, working with energy to keep up his praying practice, much will be accomplished.  The Greek word for "fervent" is ENERGEO and is implicit and explicit of power or work.  We must work at praying; it does not come automatically by any means.

But we must beware of our praying. Stephen Charnock said, "Prayer is often most fervent when it is least godly." This can be very true, especially if we pray out of mere repetition and physical practice or when we pray to consume things upon our own lusts -- James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Charnock calls this practical atheism, and it is so that we believers in Christ can sometimes act in an atheistic way when we pray out of mere practice rather than being sincere and heart-rent in prayer.

Paul was not being casual or pithy when he said, "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thess. 5:17).  Keep up the practice, the work of prayer. Do not relax or turn away from this practice. We must be fervent in our praying, but not only fervent but also sincere, having our hearts sprinkled -- Heb. 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

What's New Today?

By Ronnie W. Wolfe

When I awoke this morning, I went into the bathroom as usual and looked into the mirror. I was wondering what was different today than yesterday. As I looked and pondered, I realized that it is not what is new that is important but what is STILL.

I noticed that I am still alive. That is a miracle from God, since the Scripture says in Acts 17:28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. This is a fascinating fact. It is comforting to know that I am still alive.

I also noticed that I can still see. I have friends who are blind; some were born blind, and some were brought to blindness later in life. Now I see myself in the mirror and realize that God has sustained my sight throughout the night.

I am not much for singing, but I sang a note or two and realized that I can still make sounds with my mouth. What a wonderful realization! Living in muteness must be a stressful existence. God has been good to me to allow me to still be able to speak.

Then I noticed the dog scratching on my bedroom door, anxious for me to come out. That made me realize that I can still hear. Isn't that a wonder that God would retain my hearing through the night and throughout the years that I have been alive?

Although I have severe arthritis in my arms and shoulders, I realized that I am still able to move my arms and can get around well enough to visit homes and hospitals and attend church regularly. I can preach without much effort physically.  This is such a wonder!

In HIM we live and move and have our being!  Those are profound words from the Scriptures. I can do no less than bow my head and thank God for my existence and my health from day to day; and if it all ended tomorrow and the rest of my life were to be spent in a wheelchair or in a nursing home, I would be supremely blessed even above measure!

The normalcy, then, of life is not so normal after all; it is a wonder of God! HIS name is Wonderful!

Monday, June 17, 2013

The Light That Lights Every Man

     In the Gospel of John Chapter One and verse nine, we read of the "Light that ligheth every man that cometh into the world." We have no doubt that this Light is Jesus Christ, for he is the Word who was in the beginning, who created all things, without which nothing was created, and who became flesh and dwelt among us.
     John admitted that he was not that Light but had come to bear witness of the Light, Jesus Christ. John was the forerunner of Jesus Christ, the one crying in the wilderness (Isaiah 40:3). John was simply the messenger; Jesus was the Message, the Word, the Son of God, the Messiah, the King.
     Jesus has lit every person who has come into the world. This means that Jesus gave human, natural understanding, logic, and a mind that is higher than animal species. Man was made in the image of God with intelligence and reason that no other animal has. By this Light that lights every man who comes into the world, we can know that God exists; we can understand the higher moral order of humans over animals; we can reason between right and wrong; we can understand (without comprehending) that God is real and that God is the great Creator, since matter cannot be created from itself, and matter is not eternal.
     God is the Great First Cause; outside of him there is no other cause that could bring about so complex an order as we see in our universe. With the Light that God (Jesus Christ) has given to each of us, every person becomes guilty before God:  Romans  3:19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
     This chapter goes on to say that he came unto his own (neuter) "his own things," and his own (masculine) "his own people" received him not; but I am happy that the verse ends like this:  "but as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God."
     If you are still in your sins and have never turned from them, repented and turned to Jesus, seeing him die on the cross to pay for all of your sins, and trusting him with your whole heart, I pray that God will shed more light upon your soul and show you your need of a Savior and open your heart and mind to the good news of the Gospel of God so that, believing in him alone, you may become a son of God and receive eternal life.
     This new and granted light given by grace is a Light that is above man's comprehension.  Notice 1 Tim. 6:16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. This is why we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. This Light we cannot approach, but it may be given to us, and that is done by God himself through faith in his Son. He is the perfect Light. Through him the word of God becomes a lamp to our feet and a light unto our path.

Precious Word Divine
Shine into my inward part
To make me wholly Thine
Through grace within my heart.

Precious, holy Light
Bring salvation to my soul.
Give me radiant sight
And make me whole.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Sunset On The Flower



By Pastor Dr. Ronnie Wolfe
For Aunt Nellie (Maddox) Drury Garrison
May 14, 2013 
________________________________
Each day of Spring brings welcomed flowers,
Soothing breeze, and flushing bowers.
Anxious plants anticipate
Their foliage green and buds not late.

Then pushing through the warm, moist soil
Come daffodils with stressing toil.
They grow as tall as Spring allows
And hope for safety from the plows,

Reminding me of a lady fair
Like a whisper in the air.
The Spring grows weary as time flies,
And Summer comes with brightened eyes.

This lady, like a flower, goes on
And cares for husband, child, and home.
Her private duty goes un-praised
Like hanging flowers on porches raised.

But as the Summer stretches out,
The flower dries; there is no doubt.
Then Autumn brings its golden hue,
The lady starts to come in view.

The Spring’s dear brightness is gone by.
The Autumn shuns the Summer sigh.
The Autumn daylight fades the brown,
But it brightens as the sun goes down

So the lady comes from Spring’s bright show,
Through Summer’s harshly sunlit glow.
In Autumn’s coolness here she stands
‘Fore winter’s coldest shadow lands;

The lady fair sits warm with grace,
Happy countenance on her face.
So stands she firm on God’s good earth
And gives God glory in mounting mirth.

Spring and Summer have gone by;
Autumn’s here, and with a sigh,
She stands here firm at every hour;
Enjoy the sunset on the flower.

The flower has beauty through the day,
As in her life she’d live and play.
But there is no beauty for this hour
Like the golden sunset on the flower.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Miracle Of The Bank Check


This miracle is not so little.  I once gave my son $450.00 to pay his rent, or he would be evicted. He had lost is job and had no money to pay his rent, and with a small child, it was beyond me to allow that to happen.  This made my budget very tight.

The next day I came to the office, and my secretary had laid the mail on my desk, as he usually does. In that mail was an envelope that was opened, and a long form was sticking out that looked somewhat like a check.  I looked at the check and noticed that it was a bank check, a certified check.  The note said it was from an anonymous person, so I cannot thank that person, which makes me feel really bad.

The total amount of the check of $500.00.  This was a real miracle.  If this has never happened to you, then you don't realize how God can bless.  Also, I am sure many miracles, both small a great, have happened in your life; but most of us do not think of them so much.

We think of these things as coincidences, but they are actually miracles from God.  Be sure to count your blessings every day and notice the miracles.


Sunday, April 28, 2013

Miracle of The Phone Reminder

I was driving home from Warren, Michigan, and I knew that I had already used my last blood-pressure pill. I needrf to stop at K Mart Pharmacy in Harrison, Ohio, and get the already-filled prescription for my blood pressure medicine.  I thought, "That will be the first thing I will do when I get to Harrison."

I arrived at Harrison, Ohio, at about 1:30 PM. I had completely forgotten by that time that I was to stop at K Mart and get my prescription. However, as I was on the exit ramp to Harrison, my phone rang with a reminder. It was from K Mart reminding me that I needed to pick up a prescription. Thank the Lord for small miracles.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Small Miracles 01

The Broken Fingernail

Some time had gone by since I had clipped my fingernails, due mainly to the fact that "someone" borrowed my fingernail clippers and did not return them.  They could not be found.

So I decided, finally, to purchase a new pair of fingernail clippers. On one Sunday morning before church I went to a Walgreens store and picked out a nice, expensive, quality pair of clippers. I took them to the checkout line and paid for them. Then I carried them to the car. I opened the car door and dropped the new fingernail clippers in the passenger sear.

As I pulled my hand in the car as I was sitting down, I raised my hand and caught it on something (I cannot figure what) and ripped my fingernail down to the quick.  This is a small miracle, because I had brand new fingernail clippers in a shopping bag sitting right beside me. 

I took the clippers out of the box and immediately went to work to clip and file my ripped fingernail. Then I just went ahead and clipped the rest of the nails. That is a small miracle, don't you think?

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

After This

By Ronnie W. Wolfe — April 17, 2013

A FUNERAL POEM

After this life eternity comes,
And God will add the totals and sums.
After this life no sorrows will shine,
But only God’s bread and eternal wine.

After this our dreams will come true;
We’ll leave stress behind and all will be new.
Our hearts are in tune with the heavenly choir;
Our voices will blend with them hour after hour.

After this we’ll stand by the shore
And with confidence praise our Lord evermore.
We’ll greet all our friends in that wonderful place,
And our favorite Friend we’ll see face to face.

Departing this life gives no lasting sorrow.
I’ll stay with my Lord for a lasting tomorrow.
I’ll leave with you memories for each lonely heart,
Give thanks to my Savior for taking my part.

So look to the heavens, expect a quick day
When all of your hurts will be taken away,
And look for a time of a Heavenly bliss.
It all will come true when we leave after this.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

No Title

I never did give a title to this poem, but I wrote it as an introduction to a sermon on 6/27/2010.

Sometime when all life's lessons have been learned,
And suns and stars forevermore have set,
And things which our work judgments here have spurned,
The things o'er which we grieved with lashes wet

Will flash before us through our life's dark night,
As stars shine most in deepest tints of blue:
And we shall see how all God's plans were right,
And most that seemed reproof was love most true.

And if sometimes comingled with life's wine
We find the wormwood and rebel and shrink,
Be sure a wiser hand than yours or mine
Pours out this portion for our lips to drink.

And if some friend we love is lying low,
Where human kisses cannot reach his face,
O, do not blame the loving Father so,
But wear your sorrow with obedient grace,

And you shall shortly know that lengthened breath
Is not the sweetest gift God sends his friend
And that sometimes the sable pall of death
Conceals the fairest boon his love can spend,

If we could push ajar the gates of life,
And stand within, and all God's working see,
We would interpret all this doubt and strife,
And for such faint a mystery find a key.

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie Wolfe
6-27-2010

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Talking In My Sleep

I don't suppose you have ever talked in your sleep.  If we do, none of us wants to remember it or express it publicly. Last night I spoke out in my sleep. This has not happened to me very often, but it does once in a great while.

I was dreaming that I was at a house, not my own, and children were there with costumes on along with masks. They were running around playing. I crawled under the porch in an area where it was dark. While I was there, a small girl came over to the area and looked into the space where I was, but she could not see me, because it was dark.  Just for fun, I was going to growl to scare her a little.  I began to make a louder and louder noise to scare this little girl, but she was not scared. She kept coming closer and closer to me and was almost up against my face while I was yelling in a low-voice growl. 

Then I woke up. I think the noise of my growl woke me up, because I was actually growling for real.  I looked around and saw my son at my bedroom door, and he said, "Are you all right?"  I said, yes, smiling a little.  I said, "I was just dreaming."  He thought I was having a heart attack.  I told him I was sorry.  I really did not mean to seriously frighten anyone.  Now it is funny.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Stand Against The Wiles of the Devil

By Clarance Walker (with the Lord)
Pastor of Ashland Avenue Baptist Church, Lexington, Kentucky, for 50 years.

"What can I do for you?" asked the night manager at the Baltimore telegraph office.

"Open the cash drawer and give me all your money," replied the man as he pulled out his gun.

"I will not do it," replied the manager firmly.

"There are nine slugs in this gun," said the man, "and I'm going to shoot you if you don't. You won't lose anything since the money is insured."

"I'm not going to do it," said the manager again. The gunman glared at the manager, and the manager glared right back at him. Suddenly, the gunman turned and fled without firing a shot. So, you see it pays to resist wicked people--sometimes. Reminds us of the Scripture which says, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).

This enemy of our souls comes to us with his subtle suggestions to do something wrong, or with a wrong motive, and we need to be on guard constantly. He may threaten to try to coax us to do something wrong, but; if you say "no" to him a few times and really mean it, he will flee from you even as the gunman fled. Try it and see for yourself.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

40 Years Of Murdering Babies

Father and Sovereign over everything in heaven and earth, the One true and living God, and Creator of all things, without which nothing would be, I am sorry for being so passive about the murder of so many innocent lives through abortion. I cringe at the thought of what you must think of this nation, a nation so full of information, intentions, self-aggrandizement, and arrogance. We (and I must say "we," since I am a citizen of this country) have declared war against a myriad of innocent lives who have never seen the light of day, never smelled a rose, never spoken a word, and especially have never robbed a bank nor murdered another person. This is a war in darkness where we pretend we cannot see, and yet technology has made us see their beautiful hands and feet, their perfectly formed hearts and heads, and even their countenances. Reveal to us believers what we can do to stop this encroachment upon our unborn children, gifts of God that would make our quiver full, and yet we make it empty, ones that would make us laugh and bring energy into our homes, and yet we shun that precious possibility. Teach us, Lord, to pray for those who are engaged in this wicked crime; open their hearts to their sin and grant repentance in their hearts. Then perhaps we as a nation can learn more of your morals instead of ours, more of your thoughts, which are greater than our thoughts, more of your mind, which is greater than our minds, and more of your grace, of which we have none until you give it.

40 Years of Murdering Babies -- January 22, 2013 -- Legalized by our nation in 1973.

Monday, January 21, 2013

My Prayer For Today

Father in Heaven, your name is holy, and we know that your grace will be sufficient to us through your Son, Jesus Christ. Sometimes, however, we miss the mark and shun access to your grace as believers. We bicker and argue and become both angry and complacent concerning the things that are going wrong in our country. We have just seen another president swear his allegiance to the constitution. We know our constitution is just a human document and that your word is a divine one. We all love our constitution. I pray that we will love your word more. I pray for our newly sworn-in president that you will work in his life to give him the wisdom he needs to lead our country. He is only human, but you are divine. He is subject to all kinds of error, but you are perfect. Give each of us as blessed citizens of this great country grace to have the right attitude toward all of our national leaders, and please be our shield and buckler. Please forgive us of our sinfulness as your children and help us to receive your chastisement with honor, learning from your rod and staff. We love you as much as we can; help us to love you more, and help our unbelief. Amen.

Celebrating Life or Death?

By Tom Ross
Pastor of Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church, Chesapeake, Ohio

    On January 20th, our church celebrated the sanctity of human life.  We rejoiced as we read and studied the inspired Scriptures that prove God is the giver of all life, physical, spiritual, and eternal (Romans 6:23).  We were blessed to learn that human life begins at conception, the very moment when the 23 paternal and 23 maternal chromosomes come together to form an individual in the protective womb of a mother.  Our heart's were thrilled to know that children are a blessing and an heritage of the Lord (Psalm 127:3), to be nurtured, cherished, and trained in the ways of truth and godliness (Proverbs 22:6).  We celebrated the sacred gift of life that is created and sustained by our gracious God.  Acts 17:24-29 declares: "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth...seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things...For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspringForasmuch then as we are the offspring of God..."
    
     Unfortunately, we also had to examine the origins of the culture of death that persists in our society.  On January 22, 1973 the United States Supreme Court defied the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and decreed by judicial fiat that a woman could choose to abort or terminate the life of the child in her womb.  In the 40 years since that infamous decision over 50 million babies have been aborted in the United States of America, according to the Centers of Disease Control.  To put it into a statistical perspective it means that as a society we average 1.25 million abortions per year or 3,424 deaths per day.  All of the American casualties in wars from the Revolution to the present day total 1.3 million.  Hitler's atrocities in the Holocaust resulted in the murder of 6 million Jews, a number that pales in comparison to the 50 million innocent children that have been sacrificed on the "pro-choice" altar of the abortionist's surgical table.

     The tragedy of the Connecticut shooting where 20 precious children lost their lives at the wicked hands of a madman still lingers in our minds.  I can't help but think that this horrific event and others like it are the result of the culture of death that has been promoted in our society.  Over the past 50 plus years our taxpayer funded government schools have been mandated to teach  our children that there is no God, no Creator, and no moral law they are accountable to obey.  I heard President Obama say that it is our responsibility as a culture to protect the most vulnerable in our society, namely our children.  When President Obama was an Illinois state senator he voted to continue the atrocity of partial birth abortion.  The most vulnerable children in all the world are those who are in the protected womb of their mother.  Statistically, 3,424 children were aborted on the very same day of the Newtown murders.  Yet there was no outrage by the media as the remains of aborted children were thrown away in cities across our land.  Our politicians did not call for an immediate ban of abortionist scalpels and other instruments of torture used to terminate the lives of children in the womb.  Progressives and Feminists have successfully changed the language that people use to describe a babe in the womb to that of an embryo, fetus, or tissue.  However, they cannot explain away the violence against children that has contributed to the culture of death.  Included in the list of things that God hates and considers to be an abomination are: "A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood" (Proverbs 6:17).  May God be pleased to turn our nation back to one that celebrates life instead of death.