West Salem Baptist Church

  (Luke 2:1) “And it came to pass…” 396 times in scripture these exact words are used . The first is in (Genesis 4:8) as the line of Christ begins, and the last is in (Acts 28:17) with the Apostle Paul’s closing story concerning the Church. You see, the Bible promised man from the very beginning that God would send His Son into the world, born of a virgin in time, to save man from his sins, and the Bible has told the story very well. God kept his word when Jesus came, God kept his word when Jesus died and rose again for the dead, and God kept His Word when He sent His Holy Spirit to start His church upon the earth. All this “came to pass” as the scriptures foretold; but why is there no more “and it came to pass” after (Acts28:17) ? The answer, because the end has not yet come to pass . The Apostle John was commanded to write (Rev. 1:19) “ Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter ;” The things that are “hereaf...

(Isaiah 9:6)  “… and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor , The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” In the above verse it’s important to point out the definite article “The” before each of the last three names of Jesus; meaning that Jesus is therefore the only “mighty God, everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace,” for there is not, nor can there ever be another besides Him.  1) The Mighty God . For unto us God came, unto us a son was given who was and is “the only” Son of “The Most High God,” and although he is called a son, he is still God Almighty. ( Rev. 1:8) “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”   2) The Everlasting Father .” To this some will say, Well how can this be ? For naturally this would be impossible, but not with God. In the Bible Jesus Christ is shown to be God Himself in human flesh. He was and is “The living Word of God,”...

(Luke 6:46) “And why call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things that I say.”  If someone is Lord than they should have both the authority and the expectation of having their commands met and obeyed. To not obey Our Lord would be a rejection of both His authority and His will, and yet that is exactly what Christians do when they don’t listen to the counsel and commands of Jesus Christ and His Word. In (Isaiah 9:6) Jesus is called both “The Mighty God and Counselor .” Which means that as God he has supreme authority and the unquestionable ability to counsel men in his perfect wisdom. The problem in our world today is that man has increased so much in his knowledge and learning that in many cases he places more trust in what man thinks than in what God says in His Word. For example, just as you wouldn’t go to a Pastor for brain surgery, why then go to the world for spiritual advice and wisdom. The true and eternal wisdom of this world comes solely from God. We are so foolish when w...

(Isa. 9:6) "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."  Some of the greatest truths taught in the Bible about our Lord Jesus Christ are found in the names ascribed to him in the above verse. 1) His Name Is Wonderful .  ( Php. 2:10) "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;" 2) Counsellor .   He counsels man through His Spirit. (Isa.11:2) "And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;" 3) The Mighty God . (1Ch 29:11) "Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty:" 4. The Everlasting Father . He is a father forever . (Heb. 13...

(1Cor. 16:1) “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.”                1)  The Command of Giving – “as I have given order to the churches” 2)  The Time of Giving – “Upon the first day of the week”  (Sunday) 3)  The Purpose of Giving – “collection for the saints” (for missions and saints) 4)  The Participants of Giving – “let everyone of you”  “so do ye” 5)  The Amount of Giving – “as God hath prospered him”    (Pr. 3:9)  “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase :”    

(1Thess. 5:18) “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” It has been said that the happiest people in the world are those that are thankful. They are happy because they have learned the secret of trusting in the Lord in every circumstance of life. If we by faith come to the place where we believe that everything happens for a purpose (Rom. 8:28), then we will be able to thank the Lord even when the bad times come our way. For some reason, some believers have bought into the idea that if we are faithful then only good things will happen to us, but God wants us to know that both good and bad happen to all men alike. The difference between those who are thankful and those who are not, is simply in their ability to understand God’s Word, believe it, and trust in it no matter what. Thank God for all the good things that happen to us in this life, but also thank God that when the bad times do come we have the promises of God’s Word to comfort...

(Proverbs 29:18) “Where there is no vision, the people perish:…” In this verse it is apparent that having “no vision” causes people to perish. The vision implied here is “ hearing from God.” To hear from God in the Bible, two things are necessary. 1) A prophet . A man who was chosen by God to give man God’s message. 2) The message or vision itself . God only gave His visions to prophets who would share them correctly.  Not having God’s message not only causes the unsaved to die and go to Hell, but it also causes believers to fall away. The word “perish” means to “go back to a place of wasting.” When any man is neglected the hearing of  God’s Word, he will end up in a place of wasting, but the 2 nd half of the above verse is also true; “but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” 3) Obedience to God’s vision brings “happiness” or blessings . When any man hears God’s law (or vision) and obeys it, a blessing is promised to him. God’s blessing is only available to those w...

( Gen. 2:2-3) "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it:… This verse does not teach that God became tired and rested, nor does it teach that he created a Saturday Sabbath for all men. "…The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath…" (Mark 2:27).  Be careful when it comes to this teaching on the Sabbath that you don’t get the cart before the horse. Man was made after God taught about a day of rest for himself. In fact, a day of rest for man was not commanded by God until He gave it to Israel some 2400 yrs. later. On the 7th day God rested from His labor, giving man an example of the importance of resting both in God’s redemption and provision. (Heb 4:10)" For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his."   When  man decides to trust in  Jesus Christ, he enters ...

(Rom. 14:4) “I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean. But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.” In the above verse the Apostle Paul is very clear that not all Christians share the same convictions in life. We all should share the same black and white doctrines of the faith, but when it comes to certain things not specifically taught in scripture we ought to be graceful. Why?  Because not everyone is at the same maturity level with God. Growing in the knowledge of God’s Word takes time and learning to be graceful with all brethren does as well. So be careful to give one another the time to grow up into Christ. Just as we don’t expect little children to grasp the mature content of adulthood, neither should we expect instant maturity within the Church. The above grace describe...

(Rom. 12: 13-16)  “Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits .” Again as we look at the conduct of the Christian within the Church, the Apostle Paul continues his list of direct commands. First of all we are commanded to care for one another. It’s one thing to tithe to the church but it’s something else to be willing to financially help others. God never intended the church to be a welfare program, but He does desire us to have compassion on those in need. “Hospitality” means that we are to open up our lives to be gracious and serving to all men. Learning to “bless” those that attack us, rather than “curse” them in retaliation. Our lives need to be uplifting, “ rejoicing ” with others when things go right and ...

(Rom. 12:10-12) “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.” In the above verse the Apostle Paul begins by addressing the need for brotherly love within the body of Christ by using a long list of commands, separated by a series of semi-colons. Meaning that God’s type of brotherly love ought to include all of the above equally. The word “brotherly” refers to the type of fraternal love that brothers and sisters have within a normal family. Where although there may be disagreements at times, kindness and  affection overrules. Believers who care about one another learn to put selfish feelings aside for the “honor” or edification of those they serve with. They put God’s “business” first and are not “slothful” or apathetic toward it. Th...

(Rom. 12:1-2) “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God .” Is it possible to know the will of God for your life ?   In the above verse the Apostle Paul says we can. 1) By Presenting your body back to God . God just doesn’t want our bodies, He wants them given back to Him of our own free will, as a sacrifice presented in the old testament. He wants our sacrifice to be holy and acceptable, but also surrendered unto God and His perfect will. 2) Transforming your mind .  Jesus told his disciples that they could only serve one master, and so in order to serve God they needed to choose God over this world. For you to know the will of God for your life, we must turn your mind and heart away fro...

(Rom. 11:7-8) “What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.”  There are some that believe that Israel as a people have been cursed and rejected by God, and that they have no hope of  restoration; but is that what the Bible teaches ?  Israel as a nation has been set aside temporarily because of their unbelief of Christ as a nation, but individually they can be saved if they place their faith in Jesus Christ, just like anyone else. The only difference between a Gentile and a Jew is that God has placed upon Israel a judgment of spiritual blindness. The word “blindness” means: ”to render insensitive to or to be not interested in.” Why did this happen, because they have chose to trust in their religion more than in God’s Word, causing a blindne...

(Rom. 13:1)  “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.” In the above verse the words “powers that be” refer to the gift of government to mankind. God’s intention for government officials are to rule for Him. Unfortunately, in this world all governments are not the same, and that’s precisely why we as American’s should be thankful for our form of government that is patterned after God’s ideology and not this world’s. Our Constitution, Amendments, and Declaration of Independence were all written by our founding fathers with the will of our Bible’s God in mind, as well as a personal dream of having a free country where every man has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as he sees fit. As Americans we have a tremendous heritage to remember and never forget. A heritage not only patterned after God’s Word, but a heritage that has been handed down to us by faithful men to protect and ...

(Rom. 9:11,13) “For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth; As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” Because of the above verses, many a scholar have concluded falsely that God choses some men to be saved and others to be damned; Just as He chose Jacob in the above verse over Esau in the book of Genesis, and Israel over Egypt. What a sad commentary to believe that we are nothing more than pawns in the chess game of God, where we have no choice of salvation, nor any choice in changing or determining our future and eternity.  Oh listen, the above verses teach us that God is sovereign and that He can do what He wants, but He is also bound by His Word. God would not teach here that the fate of some is set by God’s unchanging will and then tease man later in scripture and say we do have a choice or freewill in the matter. No, His Word...

  (Deut. 6:5-7) “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children…” Before Israel went in to posses the Promised Land, the Lord warned Israel’s leadership of the importance of the above commandments. 1) To Love God first above all . God wanted the Fathers of Israel to give first place in the hearts to Him. Why?  Because He knew how quickly they would forget Him if they didn’t. If the fathers forget so will the family; therefore God commanded them to make God the Lord of their heart, soul, and might. 2) To Know the Word of God .  How can a father teach to his family that which he knows not himself? How sad it is when the leadership of the home does not know or study what they are to live and teach. Therefore, God expects fathers to study the Word so that the Word directs the home and not t...

  (Rom. 8:28) “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” It takes a certain type of Christian to praise the Lord in all things, because that would mean that he/she would have to praise God for the bad as well as the good. The above verse however only works for those that love God , for if someone does not love and trust God in every situation, that person will become discouraged and even bitter in life. God wants all His children to believe in Him, but to also know that no matter what happens to them in this life, He has promises that we will see it turned for good if they will just love and trust Him. Too often God’s people think that God owes us an easy life, but just the opposite is taught in scripture. (John 16:33) “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation : but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” You see, even th...

(Rom. 8:17) “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together” One of the greatest truths of Romans Chapter 8 is that we who are saved are promised the blessing of God now, and in eternity. 1) We have the promise of an “heirship” with Christ. Meaning that all that Christ inherits from his Father in eternity, will be ours as well. Why, because of our salvation we have been adopted into His family and are now “the sons of God.” 2) We have the promise of His Holy Sprit’s help. Once saved, God’s Holy Spirit not only indwells the believer forever, but also guides and comforts him as he travels life’s journey. He is our intercessor with God. Not only does He pray constantly for us (26,) but he also possesses and reveals to us the perfect will and way of God. And if we as believers communicate with God’s Spirit, we will glory in the perfect will of God. 3) We have the promise of his purpose ...

(Rom. 8:17) “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together” One of the greatest truths of Romans Chapter 8 is that we who are saved are promised the blessing of God now, and in eternity. 1) We have the promise of an “heirship” with Christ. Meaning that all that Christ inherits from his Father in eternity, will be ours as well. Why, because of our salvation we have been adopted into His family and are now “the sons of God.” 2) We have the promise of His Holy Sprit’s help. Once saved, God’s Holy Spirit not only indwells the believer forever, but also guides and comforts him as he travels life’s journey. He is our intercessor with God. Not only does He pray constantly for us (26,) but he also possesses and reveals to us the perfect will and way of God. And if we as believers communicate with God’s Spirit, we will glory in the perfect will of God. 3) We have the promise of his purpose ...

It’s amazing how differently “Baptism” is viewed by the many Christian religions of our world. In our KJ Bible, the word "baptism" is translated from the original Greek word "baptizo" which means, "to dip, immerse, or submerge." Nowhere else in scripture is another word used for baptism . The words which mean to "pour" or "sprinkle" are never found in association with term baptism anywhere in the original texts either! So, the term “baptism” symbolically must illustrate a complete submersion under water. In (Rom. 6:3-6 ) we are taught that "baptism" is a symbol of our Lord's death, burial, and resurrection. In other words, it’s a picture of being buried together with Christ in his death, and then being raised again a new in the likeness of his resurrection. This symbolic picture is at the very heart of the gospel message even though baptism itself has no part in the salvation process. According to the scriptures,...

  (1Cor. 15:49) “And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.” So, w hat is so important about the resurrection of Jesus Christ? 1) It is important to the dead . In that after death man now knows that because Jesus lives, he too can live again forever. In the above verse God’s promise to the saved is that after death he/she will have a new image or (bodily form) in heaven that is heavenly. Since our earthly bodies are cursed because of sin they must die, remain here, and wait until Jesus Christ returns to be resurrected (15:23). At which time our bodies will be raised from the dust incorruptible and made like the glorious body of Jesus Christ (Php.3:21). But now after death man is given a temporary body fashioned by God that pretty much looks and functions like our old earthly body, no matter if he go...

“And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death. And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.” Three men died the day of Jesus’s crucifixion . ( 1 st ) Was Jesus .  Beaten, humiliated, and unjustly convicted, Jesus Christ the Son of God in human flesh, gave his life and shed his blood as a payment for the sin debt of the entire world. There will never be a more important event in human history than the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. As a lamb sacrificed for sin upon the altar of the OT saints, Jesus willingly laid down his life and shed his innocent blood for the sins of all men upon a cross. And whether or not a man believes in Jesus Christ, his offering has made it possible for any man to be saved by simply trusting in Jesus, but unfortunately not all men will. (2 nd ) Unrepentant thief . Though dying himself he chose to die in his sin...

"For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." Religion is good, but it does not save. Works of righteousness are commendable, but they too fall short of God's righteousness. In fact, according to scripture nothing that man can do, or has done will ever be able to save his soul. Even faith apart from God's revealed will and word is empty. So then why does the scripture above say that Abraham was able to receive God's righteousness by just simply believing God. In Abraham's day there was no Bible written, no law of Moses, nor was there Jesus Christ yet, and yet Abraham was able to receive God's righteousness apart from all the above. How was it possible?  Simply because God spoke, and Abraham trusted in His Word. He believed God and His Word, and so God imparted or imputed to him His saving righteousness apart from religion, works, commandments, and even Christ. You see people in the OT were sa...

(Rom. 3:23) "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Have you ever asked yourself what this verse means ? Well it means that if you are a human being no matter how good or righteous you are, because of your sin, your righteousness and glory can never equal or be good enough to get you into heaven. Why, because you fall short of the standard that God has set up, and that standard is the righteousness and glory of Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament, God gave the world the ten commandments not to save, but to explain to us why and how it is that we fall short. (3:20) "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." And that is why God sent Jesus, for man from birth is under the condemnation or judgment of God. We therefore need God's help to cover our sin to stand righteous before God. Therefore, to be justified and free from the condemnation for  sin, God sent Jes...

(Rom. 14:11-12) “For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” One day all men will stand in judgment before God, but there will be a special “great white throne judgment” (Rev. 20:11-15) set aside for the unsaved where God himself will explain to the unsaved that salvation apart from trusting in Jesus Christ is impossible. Different types of arguments and excuses will be given there : 1) Arguments by the Heathen Man . He believes that because he has never heard of Jesus he has an excuse, but God will show him that he once had the truth but rejected it. For all men came off  Noah’s Ark, unfortunately those that forsook God damned the next generations to follow by replacing God with the idols and the lies of men. So, no matter where man is found on earth he is guilty of rejecting God’s way of salvation for his own. That’s why Missions is so important t...

( Rom. 1:16)  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”  The gospel of Jesus Christ is not just the biblical account of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, but it’s also the power behind our salvation, our walk, and service for the Lord. 1) God’s gospel calls all men to salvation . All men , meaning e ven those who do not believe Him. God so loved man that He sent His prophets to preach salvation to man long before He came himself in Christ to show man the way. And so, from the very beginning of time God has been calling men to repent of sin and trust in Him and His Word. 2) God’s gospel call is to  “whosoever wil l.” It’s not just limited to the Jew, but it’s also available to anyone who desires forgiveness and peace with God. Unfortunately, although all men are called only a few answer back and find salvation. 3) God’s gospel calls every Christian t...

(Hosea 4:16) “For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer:” The term “backslider” was not invented by man, but rather God to describe a believer who has slipped back into his/her old ways of carnality. In other words, this person once walked with God, but for some reason now they are filled with the flesh and walk in their old ways. (Prov. 14:14) “A backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways.” The most dangerous place to be as a Christian is in a selfish self-centered place, filled with your own ways. You see, when a Christian is back-sliden they are hard to reach, hard to talk to, and even harder toward God’s will, for every backslider thinks they have a good reason for remaining in their condition. Usually it’s an offense, or a discouragement, or a trial that caused them to quit, but thank God that He has a plan to bring the backslider back. 1) Repent of all known sin . All disobedience is sin. 2) Renew your thinking . Stop complaining to God and start trusting in...