Romans 4:25 tells us that Jesus was delivered for our offenses and raised again for our justification. Do we recognize that we have sin? Or do we justify ourselves when it comes to our sin. I would rather acknowledge that I do have sin, and trust in the Lord Jesus for my justification in spite of my being guilty. In this message, I look at the fact…

From the days of Isaac, when he asked his father Abraham, where was the Lamb, up until this very hour, the Lord will providentially make sure we are taken care of. This does not mean we should expect an easy life. But it does mean that the Lord is the Provider of all that we need eternally and in a timely way. In this message, Elder Tim Lawrence sp…

In the final message on Saturday, Elder Tim Lawrence, member of Bethel Primitive Baptist Church of Nashville, TN, preaches about the miraculous ways that the Lord manifests Himself even now. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/05.03.25.He_.Will_.Manifest.Himself.Tim_.Lawrence.mp3 05.03.25.He.Will.Manifest.Himself.Tim.Lawrence…

In the Saturday afternoon service, Brother Graham looks at Psalms 46 and observes how the Lord is our refuge. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/05.03.25.God_.is_.Our_.Refuge.Graham.Sims_.mp3 05.03.25.God.is.Our.Refuge.Graham.SimsBy Tim McCool

In the Saturday morning message of our recent May meeting, Elder Graham Sims, pastor of Wilson Creek PBC near Franklin, TN, preaches from the first chapter of Ephesians. As a prison epistle, Paul wrote this to the troubled church at Ephesus, who apparently was beginning to forget their first love. Paul’s first few lines seek to remind them and get …

What is something that could happen to you today that would make you happy? A new car, becoming debt free, running into an old friend, or maybe finding out you are the heir to a fortune? It is an endless list of things we may say. How many of us would say that being corrected makes us happy? From a worldly perspective, correction is something we us…

How do we assess our value? Is it through the number of likes we have online? Or is it through the amount of property and money we amass? In this message, Elder John Morgan Owens, of Zion PBC, preaches about the way we should find our value, our true worth. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/04.23.25.Where_.Do_.You_.Find_.Your_.…

In the final days of the Judges of Israel, the times were very dark. The ministry of that time was cruel. Worship was corrupt. The people were complacent, and families were dysfunctional. This led to there being no open vision from God. Although this sounds like a page out of the present culture, it was several thousand years ago when the Lord scri…

In a previous message from I Thessalonians, I looked at what a church should expect out of their preacher. Paul first described his manner as being like a gentle mother. In this message, I continue to look at Paul’s description of himself – as a loving father. These are important characteristics the people of God should expect in how the ministry i…

When was the last time you saw a modern-day prodigal son return? Chances are you haven’t. Why? They say that behind every good dish is a good recipe. Sometimes the recipes are passed down, and if we are not diligent in keeping up with a recipe, we forget the ingredients needed to make a good dish to eat. In this sermon, Brother Luke looks at the es…

Contentment and jealousy do not coexist very well. When one thrives the other does not. Being content with what we have is a wonderful feeling. Our contentment is disrupted when we begin looking at what others have. Jealousy creeps in and puts a stranglehold on our contentment. Instead of a peaceful sense of having enough, we become resentful at ot…

What should a congregation expect out of their preacher? How should he treat them? In the series on I Thessalonians, I move into chapter 2 and observe the way the Apostle Paul described himself. He writes to the church and recalls his manner among them. One way he described the way he handled them was like a gentle mother handles an infant. http://…

It is interesting how light affects our perception. Experiments have proven without any exposure to the sun we lose our sense of time, and our sleep cycles become altered, both of which are kept in check by exposure to sunlight. In the same way, when we remove ourselves from the Light of Christ our perception of what is true is altered. We may find…

Last week I began a series in I Thessalonians. We started with an important subject – the meaning of life for the child of God? I consider this next subject just as important. If we do not permit the unmasking of our personal idols through the preached word, then we will never truly be able to experience the meaning of life. This message is entitle…

What is the meaning of life? Can this question possibly be answered in a mere 30-minute sermon? It is a question pondered for ages and there are many opinions about it. But for the child of God, it has a simple answer. Paul addresses the true meaning of life for a born-again child of God in I Thessalonians. If we are searching for meaning in our li…

In this sermon Brother Luke looks at the progression of how a man healed of blindness viewed Jesus. The healed man initially calls Jesus just a man. Then as his understanding grows, he calls him a prophet, then a being from God, and ultimately, he recognizes and worships Jesus as a king. As we learn and grow in our belief and understanding of Jesus…

Being afraid can have a dramatic impact on our behavior. In this sermon Brother Luke looks at how the fear of death is a bondage that can cause us to compromise. The scripture tells us the fear of death is something the Lord came to deliver us from, and when we embrace His truth, we find great courage in times we might otherwise be tucking our tail…

The book of Ecclesiastes is dark and brooding, clearly from the mind of a depressed and jaded person. In this message, I look at the context of this book, when it was written, and by whom. When compared with the other writings of King Solomon, it presents an interesting and sad picture of the old, troubled king. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-conte…

Getting a report card at school was always scary. The report card summarized my performance at school. I especially feared the “conduct” part! Hebrews 11 speaks of a report card of faith. What kind of grade would we achieve in the school of faith? This is not a report card that we report on each other, but a report card that comes from the Lord abo…

The Bible says that a brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city. Oftentimes when someone offends us, we build walls, and it can be very difficult to repair a relationship. A mistake we as Christians make is to assume God deals with us in the way we deal with each other. While offending another person may bring lifelong separation rega…

We don’t really experience real physical famines today, but we can experience drought, or dry and difficult times, in our marriages, our friendships, our churches. How do we handle that? We are conditioned to cut loose and run. But leaving in times of famine is not always the right course of action. Plus, we will totally miss out on the day before …

Regardless of denomination, faith is one of the most common words heard among religious circles. However, you will find significant differences in an understanding of it. Some say it is a prerequisite to being born again while others say it is generated when one hears the gospel. When we look at the scripture, we see it is neither a prerequisite to…

Isaiah 53 has often been referred to as the “gospel of Isaiah.” In this message, I look at one of the themes of this incredible and tragic description of our Savior on the cross. As tragic as it is, we rejoice that his suffering was not pointless, but Jesus was interceding for us. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/02.23.25.Inte…

In the concluding message of the framework series, I look at the 4th activity the early church engaged in – prayer. Acts 2:42 says they continued in doctrine (teaching), fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers. As a church and as individuals, we should follow the framework of the first church, and continue in these simple activities. http://www.b…

On the eve of his crucifixion, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He took Peter, James and John with Him. Before he goes off to pray, he instructs them to watch. Three times he returns to find them sleeping. In this sermon Brother Luke looks at the definition of the word watch, to see exactly what the Lord wanted them to be doing and h…

Have you ever wondered what the early church did for activities? It was very simple. They engaged one another in 4 basic activities. Acts 2:42 says they continued in doctrine (teaching), fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers. In the 3rd message of the Framework series, I look at how the church engaged in the activity of the breaking of bread. h…

The activities described in the NT church are simple. In our present culture, we have complicated the church experience. From pre-K to the elderly, the idea of segregated activity for age-specific groups has taken over. But early church members of all ages and backgrounds, engaged in 4 basic activities. Acts 2:42 says they continued in doctrine (te…

We all deal with bondage to some extent, whether it is the bondage of fear, depression, disease, grief or countless other ways. Thankfully God specializes in rescuing us from bondage. Sometimes he does it in miraculous ways as he did with Peter, Paul, and Silas. But for most of us, it may not be a dramatic rescue from a prison, but measures of grac…

The Lord set up a simple framework for the church experience in the NT church. Worship has become complicated in our modern culture to the extent that it is often difficult to figure out where to fit in. But the early church engaged in 4 simple activities. Around this simple framework our worship life can still be experienced. In this message, I ta…

Living in the modern church culture, we often lose sight of a Biblical understanding of what a pastor is. In this message, Brother Luke preaches about the characteristics of a good pastor. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/01.26.25.A.Good_.Pastor.Luke_.Hagler.mp3 01.26.25.A.Good.Pastor.Luke.Hagler…

In the final justification sermon, Brother Luke looks at the most compelling type of justification. To be justified by works is when others declare us righteous, and justification by faith is when we experience it within based on our faith in Jesus’ work, it is only through grace that the Lord God Almighty declares us just. So, God according to his…

When it comes to the daily grind of life, we all need a reset button. To go back to the basic, back to the foundation, to reset ourselves back on the right path. That is exactly what the father of faith – Abraham – had to do. And it works for us as well. In this message, I look at how we can press our reset. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/u…

In a follow up message to ‘Justification by Works’, Brother Luke examines what it means to be justified by faith. Justification by works has to do with the opinions of those who see our works and, based on what they see, declare us righteous. But to be justified by faith means that we see ourselves as righteous based solely on the testimony of God-…

Living in the blessings of a free society, with very little threat of persecution for serving the Lord, we are often shocked by suffering. But the true experience of God’s children down through the years has involved much suffering. In this message, I look at how we should not be shocked when we suffer. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/upload…

Peter writes in several places that his intention is to stir up our minds by his writing. In this message Brother Luke looks at the reasons we stir our food when we are cooking and compares that to our spiritual minds. In the same way failing to stir our food can cause it to burn or stick, failing to stir up our spiritual minds can lead to us being…

To be justified means to be ‘declared just or righteous’. The Bible teaches 3 types of justification: by grace, by faith, and by works. So which one is it? The answer is – all of them. To understand how this works, we must look at each justification individually. In this sermon Brother Luke looks at justification by works. This occurs when others s…

We recognize common phrases like “you only live once”, or “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” When Paul wrote the Corinthians, there was a common phrase they were accustomed to hearing: “Meats for the belly.” Like a code phrase, the initiated knew the devious double meaning behind this phrase. In this message I look at the meaning behind this …

Many believe the parable of the Sower is given to show who is going to heaven or hell. In reality, the parable teaches that born again children of God are often at different stages. Personally, I have found myself in all 4 categories at times in my life. In this message, I look at one of the purposes of the parable – to direct us to examine our gro…

In this message, I revisit a subject related to the location of Jesus’ birth. The traditional nativity scene is in a barn, with all types of barnyard animals surrounding Christ in a hay-filled manger. But there may be another possibility of the where the Christ was born – in the tower of the flock… http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/202…

In his previous two sermons, Brother Luke has answered the questions of when and how we are saved and born again. Having established both are the sovereign work of God alone, in this sermon he addresses man’s role in discipleship. If God Himself alone saves us eternally and borns us again, how does discipleship work? http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-…

In a follow up message to Firstfruits, I look at what it means to be a living sacrifice. This is a mystery, as the meaning of sacrifice is to kill, or put to death. So how can we be living but dead sacrifices? In this message, I look at how this works. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/12.15.24.Living.Sacrifices.Tim_.McCool.mp3…

As a husband to my wife, a father to my children, a son to my mother – I am one person, but I have different roles. When it comes to our salvation, God is One, but He has different roles. In this message, I look at the roles of God in our salvation. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/12.11.24.Roles_.of_.God_.Tim_.McCool.mp3 12.1…

There are three important events in a child of God’s life – being saved, being born again, and discipleship. There is much confusion about when and how these events occur. In a follow-up message to the Chalkboard Message on 11/24/24, which answers the question when were you saved? – this message focuses on answering the question when and how were y…

Following Thanksgiving, I have often spoken about leftovers, which is something we all partake of after a big celebration. But in this message, instead of leftovers, I focus on the Biblical teaching of firstfruits, which is the other end of the spectrum from leftovers. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/12.01.24.Firstfruits.Tim_…

Around Thanksgiving, black Friday seems to cast a dark shadow over the time of celebrating freedom, family and being thankful. In this message, I look at what should be our focus not just on Thanksgiving, but every day. If we had a gauge to measure how thankful we are, where would the meter rest? At full? At empty? Somewhere in between? http://www.…

In this message, Brother Luke looks at the confusing and contradicting ideas that the religious world puts forth about eternal salvation. Then in a refreshing and simple way, he presents the simplicity of God’s truth on how we are saved. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/11.24.24.The_.Chalkboard.Message.Luke_.Hagler.mp3 11.24.2…

To have someone’s back means that you will support them and not let anyone sneak up on them. In an eternal sense, the Lord has our back. There is nothing that can sneak up on us and take away our eternal salvation. But He also has us here and now. The question to ask is – Do we have each other’s back? As born again believers, do we love and support…

We often feel like the Lord is not there for us, or that He is not doing something about our situation. In this message, I look at the mental process that David went through when he asked, “How Long, Lord?” Ultimately, David arrived at the right kind of thinking. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/11.13.24.How-long.Tim_.McCool.m…

Two of the most powerful words we can have in our vocabulary, are “I’m sorry.” In this message I look at how these two words are essential for navigating the ups and downs of relationships in this fallen, broken world. http://www.bethlehempbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/11.10.24.Im_.Sorry_.Tim_.McCool.mp3 11.10.24.Im.Sorry.Tim.McCool…

Broken fellowship, damaged relationships, severed ties – these are common experiences for us all. The Bible is filled with examples of this, from Adam in the garden to Peter with our Savior. Broken fellowship is a consequence of our broken world. But God in mercy shows the glorious path of restoration. In this message, Brother Luke looks at broken …