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The sermon recounts a missionary's struggle to communicate the gospel to an unreached tribe, highlighting the progression from linguistic barriers to spiritual opposition and finally to cultural skepticism. The speaker describes how demonic forces blinded the minds of the listeners, preventing them from accepting the truth despite the missionary's fluency in their language. This impasse was broken not by human argument, but by God's intervention through miraculous signs, including a man rising from the dead and visions that confirmed the missionary's testimony. These events served as divine validation, overcoming the tribe's disbelief and leading to genuine conversions that endured for decades. The narrative challenges the theological assumption that such sign gifts are limited to the early church, asserting instead that God uses them in any era when there is a need to establish the truth among unreached people.

Anchored in the Word Morning Reflection: Season 5 Episode 201 God's Gracious Design: Blindness 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 #morningreflections #evangelism #discipleship #churchplanting #missions

Belshazzar's problem of pride blinded him from learning from (recent) history and exposed him to God's wrath. Sound familiar? God declared Belshazzar "wanting" or "deficient." That, too, should sound familiar. All of us, apart from the grace of God and faith in Jesus Christ are found to be deficient before the holy God!

This sermon explores the concept of Jesus as a mysterious leader by examining the middle section of Mark's Gospel, specifically the journey from Caesarea Philippi to Jerusalem. It identifies four distinct mysteries in Christ's leadership: his secrecy regarding his identity, his association with social outcasts, his obscured destination and mission, and his counter-cultural style of servant leadership. The message argues that disciples often experience spiritual blindness or confusion regarding these aspects of Jesus' work, much like the disciples in the text. To respond to this mystery, believers are called to admit their limited understanding, pray with childlike humility, and trust that Jesus loves to heal their spiritual sight. The sermon concludes by encouraging the audience to walk with Jesus in faith, trusting his sovereign will even when the details of his plan are not yet fully revealed.

Jesus healed the blind man in Mark chapter 8. But only after the man's friends brought him to Jesus. And only after Jesus took him by the hand and led him out of the city. The Great Commission is urgent and vital. We as Christians should be bringing people to Jesus. Only Jesus saves and brings us out of the dead state we were in. But Christians need to be pointing others to Christ. Hear Pastor Brian dive into this Biblical account to explain.

This sermon examines 2 Peter 1 as a call to progressive spiritual maturity, emphasizing that God's divine power supplies everything necessary for eternal life and godliness. The central message presents a 'chain' of virtues—faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love—that believers are to cultivate not through self-effort but by relying on God's grace. The preacher clarifies that this list is not legalism but a practical outworking of salvation, where the presence of these qualities confirms genuine faith and provides subjective assurance of election. By contrasting fruitful growth with the spiritual blindness of those who neglect these virtues, the sermon urges believers to diligently confirm their calling and secure their entrance into the eternal kingdom through daily dependence on Christ.

We are continuing on in our study of the Practice of Holy Christian Watchfulness in relation to our being ready for Christ's 2nd Coming, whether this is in relation to our own death; that is, that we would be better prepared to meet Christ face to face. And also, that we would be thinking forward to what it will mean when Christ returns, raises all the dead, and judges the world. If we are faithful we will be able to stand with Him on that glorious Day, radiant and unashamed. So concerning the times and the seasons, we do not need to be concerned about them too much, except to say, that we ought to be aware of what the Bible does specifically teach us, not only about the Destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., but also that there are times in this New Testament Age which are mentioned in the Book of Revelation which concern the Church's progress in her witness, in all generations. These things ought to be looked into, and thought about, as far as the Lord will enable us to understand them from reading all of the Bible, so that we will be watching and be sober in regard to the Lord's judgments, whether they are related to any time in the past, or what is yet to come.

This sermon explores the promise of the Holy Spirit as the 'Comforter' who abides with believers forever, addressing the disciples' need for aid in the face of Jesus' impending departure. It identifies the Spirit as the Helper and Spirit of Truth, emphasizing His permanence and indwelling presence which contrasts with the temporary physical presence of Christ. The message highlights that the world cannot receive the Spirit because it is spiritually blind, whereas believers know Him through His internal dwelling. It further explains that the Spirit provides assurance of salvation and the power for resurrection, while also enabling a deep fellowship with God through loving obedience and submission to His commands. The sermon concludes by challenging believers to examine their daily submission to the Spirit to experience the fullness of this divine abode.

This sermon explores the theological definition of faith as the substance and evidence of things not seen, using the siege of Jericho in Joshua 6 as a primary illustration. It contrasts the physical reality of fortified walls and closed gates with the spiritual reality of God's past-tense promise that the city has already been given to Joshua. The message emphasizes that biblical faith is not blind optimism or the denial of present circumstances, but a clear-sighted trust in the unchanging character of God and the eternal nature of His promises over the temporal nature of visible reality. This trust in the unseen foundation leads to steady, enduring obedience, exemplified by Joshua's unconventional march around the city. Ultimately, the sermon points to Jesus Christ as the greater Joshua, whose finished work on the cross provides the ultimate basis for the believer's confidence, righteousness, and hope in the face of life's obstacles.

Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, "Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant. 6 Now when they had gone through [b]the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, 7 who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) [c]withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9 Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, "O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord? 11 And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time."

This sermon explores the oracle against Egypt in Isaiah 19, illustrating how God strikes down human reliance on political alliances, economic stability, and worldly wisdom to reveal the futility of trusting in anything other than Him. The preacher argues that Judah's desire to ally with Egypt mirrors the human tendency to seek security in created things rather than the Creator, leading to societal collapse and spiritual blindness. However, the text culminates in a profound promise of healing, where God reconciles Egypt to Himself, demonstrating that His mercy extends to all nations, including Gentiles, who are brought into the covenant family through Christ. The central application challenges believers to recognize that their greatest problem is not external circumstance but their relationship with God, urging them to place their ultimate trust in His saving power rather than in fleeting worldly solutions. Ultimately, the sermon affirms that the same God who judges sin is the one who heals and restores, calling the church to witness to this grace without compromising its mission by seeking refuge in the world.

We are discussing the writings of Stephen Jay Gould in his book, "Rocks of Ages." In this devotional, we compare Gould's claims about Jesus, faith and the apostle known by many as "doubting Thomas". https://bbfohio.com

You prayed for the breakthrough. So why does the answer feel so hard? Pastor Ryan Haifley says the very thing we begged God for can become the thing we complain about. In this message, Pastor Ryan Haifley, head of school at Maranatha Christian Academy in Mattoon, Illinois, speaks at Quentin Road Baptist Church on being blinded by the process. Starting from Philippians 1:6, he follows Israel from the groaning in Egypt to the doorstep of Canaan and shows four blind spots that kept them from seeing what God was doing: they were frustrated with their freedom, forgetful of God's faithfulness, fatigued in their faith, and fearful of the fight ahead. Along the way he shares what God has taught him through five years of leading a Christian school, and he points us back to the God who will finish the good work He began in us. Don't let the wilderness blind you to the promise. Scripture referenced: Philippians 1:6; Exodus 2:23-25; Exodus 14:10-12; Exodus 16:1-3; Exodus 17:1-3; Matthew 6:25-26; Exodus 32:1-6; Isaiah 40:31; Hebrews 11:1; Numbers 14:2-4