Gospel Dynamite with J. Allen Mashburn

How to Recognize a Missionary | Romans 15:18-21 | J. Allen Mashburn

We have already seen from this chapter that Paul was a soul winner. He had a heart for the lost and did all he could to reach them for Jesus. In ths passage, Paul portrays himself as a missionary. There is a sense in which these words are interchangeable. However, there is another sense in which they are not. In this second sense, a soul winner is someone who reaches out to the lost where he lives, in his community, in his family, at his place of work. A missionary, on the other hand, is someone who has been sent by the Lord to another place or another country to share the Gospel message.
Now, for a church to be considered a real, New Testament church, that church must be engaged in the business of carrying out the Great Commission. 
This involves our witnessing where we are and from there, reaching out into the whole world. We are to have a program of evangelism where we are, and we are to have a plan that encompasses the entire world in its scope. This is the mandate of the Lord Jesus, Acts 1:8.
So, whether we are at home, at work, or on the foreign field, we are to be soul winner/missionaries all the time. This was Paul's heart and it is the heart that should be within each of our bosoms this evening. I want to take a few minutes to look at this passage and tell you How To Recognize A Missionary. 

How to Recognize a Soul-winner | Romans 15:14-17 | J. Allen Mashburn

We are entering the final section of the book of Romans.  Throughout this great book, Paul has been dealing with the great doctrinal themes of the Christian faith.  He has struck a note so clear and so powerful that there is no disputing his logic, or doubting his conclusions.  Now, as he nears the end of his letter to the Roman Christians, he begins to speak of things that are personal in nature.  Before he closes, Paul wants to share his heart and his motives for service with the believers in Rome.
One of the great things that becomes clear about this man from this passage is the fact that he has a heart for the lost.  Paul was a great preacher, of that there is no doubt.  Paul was a prolific writer.  After all, his pen gave us 14 of the 27 books of the New Testament.  Paul was a pioneer missionary.  
He traveled from place to place starting churches and feeding the sheep of the Lord.  Yet, running through all of this was the fact that Paul had a deep, burning desire to see men saved.  Everywhere this man journeyed, he told men about Jesus.  When he was chained as a prisoner of Rome, Paul was telling men about Jesus.  When he stood before kings and world rulers, he told them about Jesus.  When he encountered a group of women praying by a river, Acts 16, he told them about Jesus.  Paul’s heart was aflame with the message of the Gospel.  He wanted men to know the same Jesus he himself knew so well.
In the verses we have read this evening, Paul’s heart becomes as a soul winner becomes very clear.  As he shares his personal thoughts with us, he also paints a portrait of what a soul winner is. 

Who is the Antichrist and When Will He Appear on the World Scene?

It would appear that there is much confusion about the man of sin, who is to be the final human enemy of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He will be wicked to the core and infused with power by Satan, himself.  The English language does not afford the adequate adjectives to describe the wickedness this man will possess and wield during the Tribulation.  
It is our prayer that by the Word, we can point out truths about this man, his identity during this time of wrath, and his characteristics.  Join us for this study.

The Gospel According to Nebuchadnezzar | Daniel 4:34-37 | J. Allen Mashburn

For over two decades a defiant, cocky man by the name of Napoleon created turmoil in Europe. Despite his small stature, 5 feet 2 inches, he caused great trouble for all the people around him. In a bid to regain some of the power he had lost due to a forced exile, Napoleon led his armies in a swath of devastation across the battlefields of Europe. On June 18, 1815, Napoleon and his armies faced the allied armies of England, Prussia, Russia, Austria, Belgium and The Netherlands, led by the Duke of Wellington.
Before the battle commenced Napoleon, speaking to of his commanding officer, said "We will put the infantry here, the calvary over there, and the artillery in that spot. At the end of the day, England will be at the feet of France, and Wellington will be the prisoner of Napoleon."
The officer responded, "But, we must not forget that man proposes and God disposes."
With his typical arrogance, Napoleon stood as straight and as tall as his 5-foot-two-inch frame would allow ans replied, "I want you to understand, sir, that Napoleon proposes and Napoleon disposes!"
Victor Hugo, the writer, penned these words concerning that battle, "From that moment Waterloo was lost, for God sent rain and hail so that the troops of Napoleon could not maneuver as he had planned, and on the night of the battle it was Napoleon who was prisoner of Wellington, and France who was at the feet of England."
Pride is a ruthless taskmaster! It will convince us that we have all the answers and that we know better than even God. The passage we have read today gives us the testimony of a man who has learned a harsh lesson about the sin and pride that was in his own heart. In these verses, and in several others that precede them, we are given the details of Nebuchadnezzar's journey from sin to salvation. Join us in our study of The Gospel According to Nebuchadnezzar.

The Abundant Life | Romans 15:8-13 | J. Allen Mashburn

I read a story of two mountain villages.  One of these villages got its water from a mountain spring.  In the summer months when the weather was dry, that spring would dwindle down until there was barely a trickle of water coming into that little village.  There is just barely enough water to keep the village alive until wetter weather comes in.
In the center of the other village, there is a fountain that is always flowing with a seemingly endless supple of thirst-quenching, life-sustaining water.  It is an artesian well that continues to gush regardless of how dry the summer months may become.  This village always has an abundance of water for its own needs and for the needs of others.
These two towns stand as a parable for you and I.  They picture to two kinds of Christian life that are available to each of us.  Some believers live a life that is like a dwindling, trickling little stream that barely gives evidence of its existence.  Others live a life that is overflowing with the spiritual blessings of the redeemed: peace, joy and power.  When Jesus was here on this earth, He said that He came to give us “abundant life”, John 10:10.  This is a life that is overflowing with all the blessings of the Spirit of God.  He tells us that when we trust Him, we will be like that artesian well.  Our life will literally gush with the overflow of His work within us, John 4:14. 

The Tolerant Christian | Romans 15:1-7 | J. Allen Mashburn

Beginning with Romans chapter 13, Paul has been talking about we should relate to the believers around us.  We have learned that, as believers, we are to love one another, help one another and accept one another.  This section serves as the climax of those thoughts.  Here, we learn that we are to have a spirit of toleration toward our brothers and sisters in Christ.
You see, I don’t know whether you have noticed it or not, but we are all different.  We are here from different places, with different backgrounds and different types of upbringing.  If we aren’t careful, we can allow the differences we have become a problem in the fellowship.  We can look at a brother or sister who has some different ideas that we do and we can conclude that we just won’t fellowship with them because they are just plain weird.  However, it is our differences that make the church possible.  
If we were all the same, this would be a dull and boring place, but the fact that we are different allows the church to be a place where unique personalities meet and produce a dynamic that can be found no where else in the world.
Take a band for instance.  In that band there are all types of instruments, they sound different, they look different and they are all played differently.  You also have all types of musicians, who have all kinds of playing habits.  Yet, when all of this comes together, and all follow the leader and stay together, they can produce some beautiful music.
This is the Lord’s desire for His church.  When we allow the Spirit of the Lord to operate in the church, we will love, respect and tolerate one another and produce a symphony of harmony that the world cannot duplicate.  When we all love the Lord, as we should.  When He is allowed to lead, as He should.  There will be peace, harmony and power in the church!
There is a lot of talk in the world today about tolerance.  They mean that we are to affirm other people regardless of what they do in life.  For instance, if a person is openly homosexual, then the rest of the world is supposed to honor that person and encourage their lifestyle.  That is what the world means by tolerance.  Well, friends, there are some things that we just can’t tolerate! 
What we are exploring here is an attitude within the church that accepts the personal differences of our brother or sister in Christ.  An attitude that loves them just like they are, even when we disagree, or even when they are wrong!  We might not be able to support their view, but we can still practice love for them; this is the theme of this passage.

O, What a Morning! | Luke 24:1-12 | J. Allen Mashburn

Our Bibles are filled with statements about the morning. We are told that our Savior prayed early in the morning. Joshua, in the Old Testament, is pictured as a man who rose up early in the morning. Think of that morning in Gen. 22 when Abraham rose up early and took Isaac to Mt. Moriah to sacrifice him. What a morning it was for Jacob when he awakened from sleep in the morning and set up a pillar of stones in honor of God at Bethel. It must have been a glorious morning for Daniel when the first rays of sunshine lit up the city of Babylon after that night in the lions den. Imagine how beautiful was the morning for the disciples after they spent that terrible night on the Sea of Galilee in that storm. Yes, all of these were great mornings. However none of them can compare to the morning that is discussed in the passage we have read this morning.
I would like for us to spend some time today looking at that great morning when our Lord, Jesus Christ, conquered death, Hell and the grave forever. There has never been a morning like that before, nor shall there ever be one like it hereafter. Oh what a morning it was when Jesus rose again! Oh what a morning it was when He pulled the stinger from death and gave life eternal to all those who will place their faith in Him. Oh, what a morning that was! Now, please understand that the resurrection of the Lord Jesus has effects that reach down to this very day. You see: HE IS ALIVE this morning! Please join me for a few minutes as we journey through these verses and think on the thought: Oh, What A Morning!

Relationships with Fellow-Believers | Romans 14:1-12 | J. Allen Mashburn

The church of Jesus Christ is made up of individuals at every possible level of spirituality.  There are those who are fully aware of the freedom and the liberty that they enjoy in Jesus and they live accordingly.  On the other end of the spectrum are those who walk in fear of becoming defiled with the contamination of the world and they live accordingly.  If that were the end of it, there would be no problem.  However, those who realize and enjoy their liberty in Jesus are constantly being judged by those who think they live too loose of a life.  While those who are strict in their application of biblical standards are constantly being criticized by those who have adopted a looser standard.  One group is called liberal and compromisers, while the other group is legalistic and harsh.
Paul here discusses the proper attitude Christians should have toward each other in debatable areas of conduct (things that are not clearly stated to be wrong).  He says that we are not to judge one another in such matter because God has received, both the weaker and stronger believer (vv. 1-3), because we can differ in good conscience (vv.4-6) and because we shall all be judged by the Lord (vv. 7-12).  You see, there are some things in life that are crystal clear!  The Bible is plain when it tells us that we should not drink, use drugs, curse, commit adultery, kill, steal, lie, etc.  These things are beyond debate and people who practice such things are sinners.  That is not my judgment, but that is a clear statement of the Word of God.
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