Daily Devotional

  Blessed Assurance, Jesus Is Mine? Can we be sure that Jesus is ours? A wonderful book written in the 17 th  century by a Scottish minister called The Marrow of Modern Divinity has helped me over the last several years in wrapping my mind around that subject. It’s written in the form of a play (much like Pilgrim’s Progress). The conversations of the characters deal with the nature of God, Jesus Christ, sin, salvation, the Church, and other subjects about the Christian faith. The last section deals with application of these truths, and one of these conversations happens between Evangelista and Neophytus. For our purposes, we’ll call them Pastor and Newbie (short for new believer – I sort of updated the language, but it still sounds like an old conversation. If you can, read in a Scottish accent!).   *** Pastor : How are you, Brother Newbie? You seem to be deep in your thoughts.   Newbie : Pastor, I was thinking of that place of the Bible, where the apos...

Does God Speak “New” Truth Today?   A few weeks ago, I preached a sermon from 1 John 2:7-11 called “The ‘New’ Commandment.” ( Link to sermon ) One of the main points of the passage is that the commandment is both old and new. It has been with the Church from the beginning, and we are to continue following it through the grace of our Lord Jesus! The Bible is an ancient book and far from new to us; so, anytime we hear the word “new” when related to the Bible or the will of God, that should jump out at us as something worth our concern. Why? Because if anyone believes God has moved him to a new or different interpretation or perspective about who He is or what His Word means, and no one else in the history of Christendom ever held that perspective or interpretation, he must be warned in love that he’s WRONG! Many Bible teachers, though, do not agree, and are claiming to hear and receive “new” truth in this generation, and it’s been happening for a long time. It’s a doctrine calle...

I’m Saved Like the Criminal on the Cross I’ve spent a decent amount of time recently dwelling on the cross of Christ, His seven final words/phrases quoted in the four Gospels. Here’s the traditional order: 1.     1.  “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) 2.   2.  [the subject of this post] 3.   3.   “Woman, behold thy son, behold thy mother.” (John 19:26-27) 4.   4.  “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46; quoted from Psalm 22:1) 5.   5.   “I thirst.” (John 19:28) 6.   6.   “It is finished.” (John 19:30) 7.   7.   “Into Thy hands I commend My spirit.” (Luke 23:46; quoted from Psalm 31:5) The words I want to focus on in this post are the words said to the penitent thief on the cross next to Jesus. The Bible talks about a thief hanging on either side of Him. Unlike Christ, though, these thieves were guilty of the crime(s) that...

  Sermon from March 23 Morning Worship service "Among Us But Not of Us" - 1 John 2:18-21 First Baptist Church, Carney, OK Pastor Dan Calkins Here's the link:  March 23, 2025 Sermon Link  

   Sermon from March 16 Morning Worship service "Do You Love This World?" - 1 John 2:15-17 First Baptist Church, Carney, OK Pastor Dan Calkins Here's the link:  March 16, 2025 Sermon Link  

   Sermon from March 9 Morning Worship service "How to Know You're Growing" - 1 John 2:12-14 First Baptist Church, Carney, OK Pastor Dan Calkins Here's the link:  March 9, 2025 Sermon Link