August 26, 2022
Carroll Kakac, 93, has been preaching for more than seven decades. His hearing isn’t great, he said, and neither is his eyesight. But it’s good enough. “As long as my health will permit me to do it, I’m going to do it,” said Kakac, who serves as minister of McLeansboro (Ill.) Christian Church. . . .
May 23, 2022
The subject matter of the parables was prayer, but the context concerned the faith and humility necessary for always being ready for the return of the king.
May 9, 2022
From this parable, what do you learn about how we should effectively and productively wait for Jesus’ return?
April 25, 2022
This parable began in reality, for there really was a road that went from Jerusalem to Jericho referred to as “The Bloody Way.” But for a Samaritan to help a Jew on that road? That was the point at which the true-to-life parable veered into fictional analogy. . . .
April 25, 2022
The expert in the law tried to justify himself before Jesus. Why is that a bad idea?
June 22, 2019
By Mel McGowan Story forms who we are, and story has the ability to transform who we can become. Story is at the core of the human condition. From the earliest cavemen to a contemporary campfire, each generation passes on collective and individual meaning through story. Story defines who we are, why we are, where we come from, and where we could go. Without narratives connecting the dots of our experience, we can exist only as schizophrenic creatures reacting to immediate stimuli. In indigenous Australian culture, narrative “songlines” are not just rhymes to entertain children or creation myths for spiritual
April 1, 2019
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 4 (weeks 13-16; March 31–April 21, 2019) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ Lesson Aim: Listen thoughtfully to Christ’s teaching and respond with growing faith. ______ Jesus really was a master teacher. Of course, it was his identity as the Son of God that made his words most important. But also outstanding was the variety of his supporting material. In the preaching of Jesus
July 23, 2018
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 7 (weeks 25–28; July 22—August 12, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott Eating is a form of thanksgiving and table fellowship is sacred. Jewish table grace went something like this: “Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” When we eat we are acknowledging that God has provided for our needs. When
July 16, 2018
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 7 (weeks 25–28; July 22—August 12, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott God is sovereign over his kingdom. He decides who gets in and who is put out. Still he invites, entices, and pleads with people to accept the invitation into his kingdom. It is his good pleasure to give his people the kingdom (Luke 12:32). But those who are invited must
July 9, 2018
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 6 (weeks 25–28; June 24—July 15, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott A deacon’s meeting had gotten out of sorts. Tempers flared, temperatures rose, and words got ugly. One deacon tried to calm the group by saying, “I think we should just stop and pray.” Another deacon said, “Has it come to that?” Why is prayer often a last resort as opposed
June 25, 2018
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 6 (weeks 25–28; June 24—July 15, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott “God is just” was the accent of last month’s lessons. “Jesus calls for justice and mercy” is the accent of this month’s lessons. Therefore our texts will come from the Gospels—two from Matthew and three from Luke. Matthew 18 is Jesus’ fourth discourse in the Gospel. The theme of the
June 4, 2018
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 5 (weeks 21–24; May 27—June 17, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott Parables are true-to-life comparisons that break forth into fictional analogies that seem upside down to us and often deceive us into truth by opening up the government of God. This is a homemade definition of parables, with the exception of the phrase “deceiving into truth,” which can be attributed to
April 28, 2017
By Mark Atteberry Some of Jesus” parables are epic in scope, like one about the prodigal son. Others are quite short, like this one about a farmer and his two sons: “There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, “˜Son, go and work today in the vineyard.” “˜I will not,” he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, “˜I will, sir,” but he did not go” (Matthew 21:28-30). The kingdom of God is hindered by people
April 18, 2016
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri, and has held preaching ministries in Missouri, Illinois, and Colorado. This lesson treatment is published in the April 17 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott This parable is the most familiar of Jesus” 40 parables. Jesus” teaching on discipleship ended with the words, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear” (Luke 14:35). The most unlikely people, namely tax collectors and sinners, drew near to hear him (15:1). To justify
April 4, 2016
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri, and has held preaching ministries in Missouri, Illinois, and Colorado. This lesson treatment is published in the April 3 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott Love and forgiveness are inextricably linked. The reason that God forgives so well is because his love is ginormous. Love without forgiveness is only academic. Forgiveness without love is hypocritical. In Luke 7 we move from the amazing faith of the centurion (vv. 1-10) to
February 5, 2016
By Jennifer Johnson As a professor of Greek and New Testament at Milligan College in Tennessee, Lee Magness taught about the exegesis and theology of the parable of the prodigal son for decades. But a few years ago he taught a class on “Jesus and the Arts” with his wife, Patricia Magness, and began noticing the great works of art this parable has inspired through the years. “It sparked an idea””to teach a course that approached the parable from both an exegetical and artistic perspective,” he says. “I also added in some work on the sociological background of the story
October 9, 2014
By Tim Hartman Even though I was a Bible major at Milligan College during the early 1980s, I was convinced my future would include some unforeseeable role in what I liked to call the Christian arts. Whatever that is. I thought it was imperative to find some way to integrate my faith with my artistic skill set. Milligan College didn”t really have a theater program when I was a student there, but the kids who loved performing had plenty of opportunities. The problem we had in college, though, is the same problem I have had to deal with for the
June 21, 2014
By Casey Tygrett I remember walking through the double doors onto the well-worn rose carpet of our church”s foyer. There were smiling people wearing suits and ties, or at least dress shirts, and the smell of perfume was strong enough to cause numbness if you inhaled too deeply. Two handle-free, faux-walnut doors swung open into a wood and white sanctuary. Inside, we sang familiar melodies with well-worn lyrics: “This is my story, this is my song.” “I heard an old, old story, how a Savior came from glory.” Then we heard about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And Jesus, who stepped
January 12, 2011
By Joni Sullivan Baker Christmas decorations are down, second semester is underway, and snow is on the ground. It”s January. For those involved in children”s ministry that means only one thing””it”s time to start planning Vacation Bible School. Every summer, Standard Publishing puts its brand-new, unpublished VBS curriculum to the test by asking a local church to actually try it. Christ”s Church at Mason (Ohio) tested the new VBS last June. VBS 2011 is called “Inside Out & Upside Down on Main Street: Where Jesus Makes a Difference Every Day!” The children in the field test learned about five of
June 21, 2009
 By Larry W. Bailey  The talented, courageous king had sinned against God and his neighbors. He had committed adultery and schemed to assure the death of his lover”s husband who was serving in the king”s army. King David needed to be confronted, and a prophet of God was assigned the task. Nathan did not shout at the king, cite the commandments David had violated, or detail the error of his ways. Rather, he told David a simple story that included a person of power, a humble servant, and a lamb. There were two men in a certain town,
April 7, 2026
John B. Penrose Jr
April 7, 2026
David Faust
March 27, 2026
Rick Cherok