Pastor Mel Brown

2012-02-18T10:25:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, February 18th. Things are heating up in the exchange between Iran and Israel with the U.S. carefully measuring and monitoring the situation. The issue is Iran's continuing development of Nukes. Yesterday in the UK's Guardian newspaper there was an extensive article about Israel's timetable to launch military action to take out Iran's nuclear sites with the conclusion that this fall would most likely be their time to strike. However, Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, was quoted in the Washington Post as saying that this spring was more likely. The U.S. has repeatedly warned Israel to stand down from any military action to give the imposed economic sanctions against Iran time to work. Israel is saying that there is a narrow window for them to act and if delayed too long it will lose its opportunity to take them out before they are activated. Israel and the U.S. also differ as to how far along Iran's nuclear development has come and when they would be able to produce a nuclear bomb. Israel claims they will be ready in weeks; the U.S. says months, even up to two years. Tensions are high among Israel's various leaders and between Israel and the U.S. over Israel's Prime Minister's threats to attack soon. The Guardian quotes U.S. officials in the Pentagon and State Department as saying they now believe that sanctions are ultimately doomed to fail but are currently serving two purposes: delaying Israel's military action and assuring the European nations that the U.S. will not act militarily until all other options are exhausted. The great concern is that any attack on Iran would involve us in another military conflict which could quickly escalate into an expanded and protracted war. Given the role Iran will play in future-fulfilled prophecy in Ezekiel 38-39, the current developments are being carefully observed by Bible scholars. We are monitoring the situation and will keep you well informed.
Tomorrow's sermon is from the book of Ephesians and is entitled, In The Heavenlies. I hope you can be there to hear it.
Mel Brown

2012-02-11T10:03:00.001-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, February 11th. I returned from Florida on Friday of last week where I visited my 97 year old mother-in-law (who is doing wonderfully well after some serious health setbacks) and afterward attended a pastor's conference in Jacksonville. It was a great getaway but I returned to a cache of nearly 800 e-mails waiting for me. I mention this only so that those of you who have contacted me by e-mail while I was gone will be patient in waiting for me to respond as I sort through them all.
During the last week the Capitol and rest of the country has been roiled by the controversy of the government forcing religious institutions except churches to pay for contraception for its employees. A firestorm of protest followed, especially among Catholics, because of the oppositional teaching of that denomination to this practice. Millions of Americans saw this issue as the government forcing religious organizations and its followers to act against their religious convictions. There was considerable concern that if the government could force Catholic organizations to go against their convictions, they could attempt to force any other to do the same. Contraception is not the ultimate issue here but rather government dictating religious practices. My personal conviction as a Christian and a Baptist is KEEP THE GOVERNMENT OUT OF THE AFFAIRS OF THE CHURCH. That has been a Baptist conviction from its inception, the separation of church and state. I have stood by this conviction all of my Christian life and have opposed all attempts of the government to intrude into church teachings and practices. If they can force the Catholics to go against their doctrine and convictions, they can force other churches to go against theirs INCLUDING OURS. This cannot and must not ever be allowed. Our future religious liberty is potentially at stake. We are carefully watching how this issue will play out and hope it will be resolved quickly in favor of religious liberty.
Tomorrow's sermon is from the book of Ephesians and is entitled, The Trinity's Trinity In Salvation. I hope to see you in the services tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2012-01-14T10:15:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 14th of January. Last night our family gathered for a very special event in our clan - Gotcha Day. Gotcha Day is a celebration of the day that we "got" each of our four adopted grandchildren. We usually have a meal together and enjoy the memories and blessings of each of our adopted grand kids. Each of them looks forward to this celebration in their behalf and we make sure they know how special they are to us and all the members of our family. I was thinking today of the meaning of the passage in Romans 8:15, "For you did not receive the bondage again unto fear, but you received the spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, Abba Father." Abba Father is expression involving warmth and closeness of a child to his parent. When we receive Christ as our savior, we become a close and special child of the Lord and enjoy a personal relationship with Him. We are a "birthed" into God's family as a born again child of God, but also enjoy a spirit of adoption which according to Romans 8:23 includes the redemption of our body. The Apostle Paul alludes to the first fruits of the Spirit which we enjoy as a kind of down payment of when the Spirit of God fulfills our redemption with our personal resurrection. I am so glad that I have a "Gotcha Day" with Jesus Christ and all that it means. What a day it will be when Christ returns with the sound of the trumpet and a personal shout and we all are caught up to meet the Lord - now that will be quite a "Gotcha Day" won't it?
Tomorrow's sermon is the final message about how to have a godly 2012. I hope you'll be able to attend.
Mel Brown

2012-01-07T11:03:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, January 7th. I hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. We sure did in the Brown household with all of our family being together for a prolonged holiday stay. I enjoyed time with my kids and grandkids which included seeing "Happy Feet 2" and "Kung Fu Panda 2," trips to fun local places, playing games together, and lots of personal conversations. We had 13 in our house much of the time and I think everyone had a good time. It was so much fun watching the little ones filled with such anticipation and glee as they opened their Christmas presents. My daughters arrived early this year to help Barb prepare our annual Christmas buffet on Christmas Eve and we had a lovely Christmas dinner on Christmas day. Cheryl and Tim had to return to Chicago to see patients and clients respectively, then returned to our house in time for New Years, but the grand kids stayed with us during the whole time. There is nothing like spending quality time with the people we love. But to be truthful it is also a blessing when things get back to normal without wall-to- wall people. From the time our first grandchild arrived, Barb and I vowed that we would try to ensure that we would spend time with our away grandchildren at least once a month and our local ones as often as possible. We have generally been able to fulfill that vow and are so pleased to have had the opportunity to play a large role in the lives of our grand kids. Scripture places a premium of importance on the role of grandparents in children's lives. The Bible regularly talks about our children and children's children. In Biblical days extended families (children, parents, and grandparents) frequently lived in the same house and regularly interacted with each other. Grandparents had significant influence on their grandchildren and their gray hair (representing age, wisdom, and life experience) was considered to be a source of honor. Here are some suggestions for being an influential grandparent.
(1) Be a godly spiritual example to your grandchildren
(2) Spend quality time with them
(3) Use teachable moments to impart character and wisdom to them
(4) Discuss and apply Biblical lessons to them whenever possible
(5) Love them unconditionally (let them know that you always love them even if you don't approve their behavior)
(6) Enjoy them - they will be grown before you know it
Tomorrow's sermon is about how to have a godly 2012; please plan on attending.
Mel Brown

2011-12-30T22:14:00.002-06:00

Pastor Brown's blog will resume after the holidays.

2011-12-17T11:16:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 17th. One week from today is Christmas Eve. This year Edgewood will feature two great services on Christmas Eve, one at 4:00 p.m. and the other at 6:00 p.m., and one on Christmas morning at 10:00 a.m. All of these services will be identical, making it convenient for you to attend the service which best fits your family's schedule. I would like to give you a preview of these services in today's blog. The service will be opened with a powerful Christmas video, will include the congregation singing several favorite Christmas songs, and a soloist singing one of the best known and loved Christmas hymns, will feature children reading the Christmas story, will include a brief drama to introduce the sermon, followed by a special Christmas message which will include a poignant video testimony from one of our Edgewood families about how their child asking one question about Christmas changed their lives. Communion will follow the message and lead into our closing song. The entire service will last one hour. I'm thrilled to hear many of you sharing how many family members and friends you have invited to attend this year's Christmas services with you. Christ will surely be honored with our many efforts on His behalf this Christmas. May all that we do glorify Him this Christmas and give us the best Christmas we have ever had at Edgewood!
I hope you will not miss these wonderful Christmas services as well as tomorrow's Christmas musical.

Mel Brown

2011-12-10T11:10:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 10th. Every Christmas season at my request, my daughters make an appointment to have a series of group pictures taken of all of my grandchildren. They carefully coordinate the colors of their outfits and head off to the photographers for a sitting. They then carefully review the many poses taken and select the ones they are going to purchase, including the large portrait they intend to give to me as a Christmas present. I then place one in my office at church and one in my office at home. All through the year I continually enjoy those pictures, periodically looking at them as I work at my desk or computer. I confess that the pictures flood my heart and mind with warm feelings and memories each time I look them over. During the Christmas season there are many pictures of our Savior to warm our hearts and minds. The ubiquitous manger scenes remind us of His birth in humble surroundings in a stable and being placed in a manger which was a feeding trough for the animals. The Christmas lights which adorn both the inside and outside of many homes remind us that Jesus is the light of the world who came to light the way of every man. The Christmas carols remind us of all aspects of His coming as we sing words about His birth to beautiful and familiar melodies. The Christmas bread pudding reminds us that He is the Bread of Life. The gifts which we give and receive remind us that He is God's greatest gift to man and through Him the gift of eternal life. The gathering of family and friends at Christmas reminds us that through faith in Him we will gather in joyous celebration in Heaven together never to be separated again. On and on we could go with these reminders, but unbelievable as it may seem, many people miss them all and make Christmas just another holiday. May that not be true of any of us and may we see Christ in ALL of the signs of Christmas this year.
Tomorrow's sermon is another on the Incredible Christ.
I hope you'll be there.
Reminder - we'll have three great Christmas services this year and all will be the same: 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve and 10:00 a.m. on Christmas morning. I can hardly wait as I think of what's coming..
Mel Brown

2011-12-03T11:53:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of December. Since Christmas is three weeks away, many folks are now in the thick of Christmas shopping. The Friday after Thanksgiving marks the official opening of the Christmas shopping season. Merchants flood newspapers with sale ads, the television with advertisements, and snail and email with special offers. The competition is keen among the many stores and companies to capture a large part of the billions of dollars shoppers will spend on gifts during the Christmas season. Christmas decorations adorn many houses throughout our neighborhoods, Christmas trees are lighted in front of windows everywhere, Christmas music is being played on many stereos, and our televisions are hosting a variety of Christmas programs and movies. All of these things make for a festive atmosphere each Christmas. But I am writing to remind all of us that these things are neither the meaning nor message of Christmas - we are celebrating a birthday, the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So Christmas is in reality a birthday party, remembering and honoring the greatest birth in human history - God becoming a man through His birth as a babe in Bethlehem. With all of the commercialism associated with Christmas, we as Christians need to keep our ultimate focus on the Christ of Christmas not the Christmas in Christ. Here are some suggestions to make this happen.
(1) Focus your Bible reading on the coming, person, and work of Jesus Christ
(2) Attend church regularly during this Christmas season. The sermons will be focusing upon the Christmas message now and through the end of December.
(3) Be sure to attend one of the three great Christmas services either on Christmas Eve at 4:00 or 6:00 p.m. or Christmas morning at 10:00 a.m.
(4) Invite and bring as many family members, friends, coworkers, and neighbors as you can to hear the gospel this Christmas. Remember the very purpose of Christ's coming was to "seek and save the lost." We are never better fulfilling the meaning and message of Christmas than when we are part of the process of bringing people to a personal relationship with Christ.
(5) Give a special gift to Christ. Remember it is His birthday we are celebrating. While we use it as an occasion to give gifts to our loved ones, should we not give a special gift to Him whom we are honoring?
(6) Fill your heart and mind with gratitude and appreciation to God for sending Christ for you, saving you, and all of your many blessings.
These things will help you have a Christ-centered merry Christmas.
Tomorrow's sermon will be Great Expectations - The Incredible Christ.
I hope you won't miss it.
Mel Brown

2011-11-26T11:11:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Thanksgiving weekend. Yesterday was Black Friday and as usual people hit the stores in-mass to claim the bargains offered by the various merchants. Black Friday is so designated because it marks the point where some stores get out of the red and into the black after paying all of their year's expenses. This year many stores opened on Thursday evening rather than early on Friday morning. This week's Black Friday shopping experience again brought out the worst in some people. One California woman used pepper spray to attack other shoppers so she could get a bargain Xbox and some of the video games while other shoppers tended to their burning eyes. There was mayhem in one store over shoppers' frenzied attempt to get a $2.00 waffle maker. Some shoppers who were shopping during the midnight shift were mugged in parking lots as they returned to their cars in the dark. Women turned to violence as they punched each other over who would get one of the yoga pants during a store promotion. One man collapsed in a store shortly after midnight and callous shoppers walked around him or stepped over him as he lay dying on the store floor. In previous years people have been killed when they fell to the floor as they were pushed by the frenzied crowd and were literally trampled to death as stampeding eager shoppers stepped on them as they rushed to get to their bargain items. Black Friday has now been extended to include the day after, now called Black Saturday. Cyber Monday concludes the extended shopping weekend. All of this brings to mind a number of Scriptural warnings about an excessive appetite for further goods and food which is often linked to selfishness and lack of self-control. James 4:1-2a says, "Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have... You fight and war." Proverbs 15:27a says, "He who is greedy for gain, troubles his own house." Proverbs 28:25 says, "He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the Lord will be prospered." Jesus added that it is what is within a man's heart that leads to his misdeeds including evil thoughts, covetousness, and foolishness. Galatians 5:23 names self-control as one of the fruits of the Spirit. If all people did their shopping under the influence of the Holy Spirit, these sordid incidents of Black Friday would be no more. Now wouldn't that be a refreshing change which would be pleasing to God and the shoppers who maintain self-control and seek to honor God in all things?
Tomorrow's sermon is another on how to get your prayers answered. I hope you will be there to hear it.
Mel Brown

2011-11-19T09:27:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, November, 19th. This Thursday is Thanksgiving, the special holiday set aside to give thanks. Here are a few facts about Thanksgiving followed by some Scriptural admonitions enjoining us to constantly give thanks.
(1) By the fall of 1621, when the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in Plymouth, Massachusetts, only half of those who had sailed across the Atlantic on the Mayflower were still alive. They gave thanks for their lives as well as the harvest.
(2) The original celebration lasted three days.
(3) Their cuisine was wild turkey and venison.
(4) The Wampanoag Indians had taught the Pilgrims to cultivate the land and were invited to join them for the Thanksgiving celebration. About 90 of them joined the Pilgrims for the celebration feast.
(5) The Pilgrims had survived many hardships including disease, a harsh winter, and loss of many loved ones and friends; yet they counted their blessings and gave thanks to God.
(6) The Pilgrims had come to this country seeking religious freedom and were also known as Puritans. Although they had endured many setbacks on their road to liberty, they now were free to worship and serve the Lord as they desired. This religious freedom was an integral part of their thanksgiving.
The Bible commands us to give thanks (Psalm 50:14). Jesus regularly practiced thanksgiving (Matt. 11:25, 26:27, John 11:41). We are to give thanks in both private and public worship (Dan. 6:10, Psalm 35:18). We are admonished to give thanks before we eat (John 6:11), for the successful completion of an undertaking (Neh. 12:31, 40), always (Eph. 1:16, 5:20), and in everything (1 Thess. 5:18). Thanksgiving should be accompanied by prayer (Phil. 4:6, Col. 4:2), praise (Psm. 92:1, Heb. 13:15), and intercession for others (1 Tim. 2:1, 2 Tim. 1:3). I challenge you to search through the Scriptures, especially the Psalms, for the many things for which we are to give thanks. You will be surprised at how long the list is and will undoubtedly realize that God wants our lives to literally be filled constantly with thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is not to be merely a one-day celebration, but rather a way of life practiced every day. Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Getting Your Prayers Answered. I'll look forward to seeing you there.
Mel Brown

2011-11-12T10:29:00.000-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 12th of November. If you are watching the news headlines, you are well aware of the financial crisis boiling over in Europe. Several European countries are broke, meaning they owe considerably more money than they are able to pay resulting in the threat of national bankruptcy. Greece has been the primary focus until the past week when Italy's financial problems reached full focus on the European financial radar screen. Italy is the third largest European nation economically behind Germany and France. Unlike Greece, which has a more modest budget, Italy's default would have a more massive impact upon all of the other European nations and banks. Added to the financial problems of Greece and Italy is the threat of default by Portugal and Spain which would compound Europe's financial problems and produce dire consequences. Simply speaking these nations have spent more than they have taken in for far too long and are now suffering the consequences of their irresponsible financial practices. If these nations default it would leave numbers of European banks and debt holders holding their bonds which would be worth pennies on the dollar - a financial haircut many investors want to avoid at all cost. The leaders of Germany and France have led efforts to rescue these nations from financial collapse but their efforts are becoming tiresome to their constituencies who are increasingly bulking at rewarding these nations for their irresponsible ways. Many are warning about throwing good money after bad. Some are demanding that these countries be removed from the Euro zone (nations which use the Euro as currency) and that the European Union be completely reorganized and realigned. All this means that Europe as we know it is and will be changing. That could have far-reaching consequences on the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy if it relates to the Antichrist and his future revived Roman Empire supporters. We'll keep you posted as these events unfold in Europe.
Tomorrow will be the final sermon in the My God Is Real series. The sermon will focus on remarkable answers to prayer. I'll look forward to seeing you in the services.
Mel Brown

2011-11-05T10:27:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of November. Tomorrow will mark my 43rd anniversary as pastor of the Edgewood Baptist Church. When I think of the changes which have taken place at Edgewood during those 43 years, I am amazed. A complete relocation, four building programs, multiple pastoral staff, more than 70 ministries, and technological advances allowing audio-visual additions to our ministry which have greatly enhanced our presentations beyond the days of flannel graph or an overhead projector are just a few. There is a popular article making the rounds which highlights the many changes which have taken place in our world in our more recent history. Most of the items focus on inventions and developments which have so greatly affected our lives such as radio, television, computers, airplanes, home appliances, electric lighting, etc. Indeed the changes are many and have radically affected the way we live. Imagine how different our lives would be without an automobile, telephone, television, appliances, and electricity. I, for one, would not want to go back to traveling by horseback, reading by kerosene lamps, washing clothes with a washboard and bar soap or preaching without a microphone. Most of these advances have made our lives better, easier and more enjoyable. But with all of these changes in our lives, God reminds us that some things ought never change - our faith and values should remain constant. The 10 Commandments are immutable as are all of the principles given in God's Word by which we are to live. And with all of the changes taking place around us, it is comforting to remember what is said about Jesus Christ, that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). When it comes to our faith and church, methods may change, but our message must never change! Edgewood is nearly 106 years old and the church has seen many changes over its lifespan, but its preaching of the gospel message has not changed one iota.
It is as rock solid in its message as it was in 1901 and has so remained in my 43 years as pastor. May it remain so until Jesus comes is my prayer.
Tomorrow's message is another in the My God Is Real series. I hope you will be there.
Mel Brown

2011-10-29T10:27:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of October. Today will be a special day for the widows of the Edgewood Baptist Church. The Bible admonishes us numerous times to take special care of the widows and orphans, e.g., Zech. 7:10; James 1:27. The book of Ruth in the Old Testament is a beautiful example of a daughter-in-law, Ruth, taking special care of her widowed mother-in-law, Naomi. Edgewood periodically has a widow's tea in which we invite all of the widows of the church to attend a luncheon in their honor. The pastoral staff members serve as waiters and hosts. Many Edgewood folks prepare a lovely lunch served with tea. Each widow will have her picture taken with staff members and a special program will be featured. It is always a memorable occasion for each of the ladies and all who participate. Edgewood has 60 widows but some are unable to attend because they are shut-ins or are in nursing homes. We make every effort for all who can to attend. Pastor Ed as Pastor of Pastoral Care does an excellent job of regularly looking after the needs of our widows, but the widow's tea is an occasion for the church and all the staff to show our love and appreciation. In a few minutes it will be time for me and the other pastors to begin escorting the ladies to their tables and don our waiter's aprons to serve them their lunches and tea. It will be both a privilege and a labor of love in honor of some of our finest.
Tomorrow's message is My God Is Real - Part 2. I can't wait to preach this message. I promise you that you will be blessed.
Mel Brown

2011-10-22T10:40:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 22nd. The geopolitical map of the some of the important Biblical nations of prophecy is rapidly changing. With this week's overthrow and death of Libyan dictator, Moammar Qaddafi, the death of Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud in Saudi Arabia, the dismantling of the longstanding Mubarak regime in Egypt, the political agitation in Yemen and Syria, and the foment in numerous other Middle Eastern countries, the landscape and alliances of power in these countries could become vastly different. Add to this mix yesterday's announcement that all U.S. troops will be leaving Iraq at the end of this year, and you have a blanket of uncertainty throughout the region. The key unanswered question is, what will the emerging governments in these countries be like? We know that in each case they will remain dominated by Muslim religion and politics, but we do not know the strictness, tolerance level, alliances, and attitudes of the new leadership in many of these nations. In many cases it is not yet evident who or what that leadership is going to be. But we do know that in Egypt the new regime is allowing increasing persecution of Christians and desecration of their churches. Iraq will likely see increasing hostility between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims with Christians caught in the middle. It appears that Iraq with its majority Shiite population will be much cozier with Iran. If history is any indication, the new regimes may turn out to be worse than the old. They may be more radical, more militant, and more determined to impose their will and religion on others. Our advice is to keep your Bible in one hand and your newspaper in the other; they many be more closely aligned than at any time in recent memory.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, My God Is Real, and will feature God's amazing work and faith-filled answers to prayer. If you are not there, I promise you, you will miss a blessing.
Mel Brown

2011-10-15T09:35:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 15th. Tomorrow is Mission's Emphasis Sunday. Each year we set aside a Sunday to emphasize the commandment of Christ in the Great Commission to take the gospel throughout the whole world. Missions is the strong right arm of the Edgewood Baptist Church. Edgewood supports nearly 100 missionaries both at home and abroad, has helped start new churches throughout the United States, built feeding centers and orphanages in many many countries, helped provide over 1,000,000 meals to hungry people world-wide, supported native pastors who have reached the unreached for Christ, built church buildings in numerous places and helped in various other types of missions projects throughout the years. Additionally, we will take on our 15th missionary intern when the Derek Glynn's arrive in town in early November. Many millions of dollars have been channeled throughout the years by our church in obedience to these words of instruction by our Lord found in the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20). "And you shall love the LORD you God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these" (Mark 12:30-31). We are proud of our record in putting these commandments into action at Edgewood and look forward to greater things for Christ in the future. Thank you for caring with us about the things that Christ cares about most.
Mel Brown

2011-10-08T09:24:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 8th of October. Recently the Edgewood Baptist Church purchased the nearly three acres of property adjoining our south parking lot. It was an answer to prayer for which we are especially thankful. The property formerly was home to Platt's Nursery, and Wallace's Garden Center. It was then purchased by Genesis Medical Center. Genesis had purchased the property with the intention to build a medical clinic but later decided not to build on the location. Since Edgewood was landlocked and the city had refused to permit any additional buildings on our site, the vacant property was perfect for Edgewood's plans for the future. When Genesis decided to sell the property, Edgewood had the opportunity to buy it and the congregation voted unanimously to to do so. The property not only provides for opportunity for future expansion, but also provides valuable green space (which he have been lacking because of adding additional parking over the years) which will be utilized by many of our ministries for activities, gatherings, programs, and recreation. We are now in the process of paying for the property and look forward to having it paid off. I have often said that the future of Edgewood is as bright as the promises of God, and the purchase of this property ensures that our future expansion needs will be met. We thank God for His blessings and provisions.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, God's Sowing and Reaping Principle.
I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2011-10-01T15:40:00.001-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of October. Some things are just made to go together. Orange and duck, mint and lamb, lemon and fish are foods which provide a wonderful complement to each other. Each makes the other better and complete. The Old and New Testaments in the Bible are perfect when considered together. There is an old saying which goes, "The New Testament is in the Old contained and the Old Testament is in the New explained." The Old Testament looks forward to the coming of Christ and the New Testament looks back to Christ's coming. The center of both Testaments is Jesus Christ as Lord, Savior, and Messiah. Christ is revealed in each of the 66 books of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and is ultimately the theme of each division. It is an exciting adventure to look for Christ in every book and story in Scripture, e.g., Genesis (Creator and Seed of Woman), Exodus (Lamb for Sinner's Slain), Leviticus (High Priest), Numbers (Star of Jacob), Deuteronomy (Prophet Like unto Moses), etc. Likewise check the verses of the Bible looking for Jesus such as in Genesis 1:1: In the beginning (Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End), God (Jesus is God, He who has seen me has seen the Father), created (Jesus is the Creator, by Him all things were made which were made), the heavens and the earth (Jesus is Lord of Heaven and earth). My challenge to you today is to try reading Scripture specifically with an eye toward seeing Christ throughout the Bible. You will be both enlightened and blessed because the written word was written to reveal the Living Word, Jesus Christ. Seeing is believing but believing is seeing - see for yourself!
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Assignment Crete. Please plan on attending.
Mel Brown

2011-09-24T09:11:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, September 24th. "What goes up must come down" is an oft repeated statement. Did you ever wonder what could ultimately happen to those many satellites orbiting around the earth? Well this week we got an answer with the warning from NASA that some 26 pieces representing 1,200 pounds of debris called space junk from the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) would come crashing down to earth. The largest piece is expected to be about 300 pounds. The warning is to put people on alert to watch out for the falling masses similar to the postings along highways to watch out of crossing deer, But this space junk is small compared to the 75-ton post-Apollo Skylab space station, the 10-ton Pegasus 2 satellite, or the 135-ton Mir space station, all of which have come raining down to earth. Fortunately most of this previous debris has landed in our oceans. So now with all of the other things people have to watch for and worry about, we add falling space junk to our list! Many experts on Biblical prophecy believe the cataclysmic descriptions in the book of Revelation will be fulfilled by not only supernatural occurrences but by phenomenon such as space wars and falling space parts. Maybe or maybe not, but it is something to consider when you read about the heavenly bodies which will cause havoc and destruction on earth.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, How To Fire The Preacher. This is a message you will not want to miss. I hope you can be there.
Mel Brown

2011-09-17T11:22:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, September 17th. Tomorrow's Re-Church sermon will focus on the three things people want most out of life. Do you know what those three things are? They are consistently at the top of the list when people are surveyed about this topic. The three things are: love, happiness, and peace. Ironically, many people are surprised by the things which are not at the top of the list, i.e., wealth, position, popularity, possessions, etc. Those things usually appear further down the list, not at the top. One characteristic of people who count themselves happy or very happy in their lives is the presence of gratitude and appreciation. They do not allow themselves to take the good in their lives for granted; yet, that is exactly what others so easily allow themselves to do. Take a good look at your life and ask yourself, "do I constantly inventory my blessings and am I thankful for them?" It is so easy to "habituate" things in our lives. To habituate means that we become so accustomed or used to those things, we fail to be as grateful for them as we should be. In other words they become so routine, we fail to appreciate all the good things we have and ignore their true value. The Bible warns us about this happening and repeatedly admonishes us to give thanks, be grateful, have appreciation, and count our blessings. We should all constantly keep a gratitude journal in our minds, if not on paper. The song writer was right when he wrote, "Count your many blessings, name them one by one, count your blessings see what God has done." You won't want to miss this sermon tomorrow. Your happiness may depend on it.
Mel Brown

2011-09-10T09:40:00.000-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, September, 10th. Today I'm covering a potpourri of topics in my blog. Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. There will be ceremonies and remembrances honoring the occasion, but through all of the memorials, we should offer thanks to God that we have not had a similar devastating attack on our soil since that tragic day.
Keep a close eye on what is happening in Europe, particularly with the debt problems of Greece, Italy, Portugal, Ireland, and Spain. Many experts are predicting that Greece will eventually have to face bankruptcy with the possibility that the other debtor nations will eventually follow. Europe is a tale of the haves and have-nots with Germany and France the haves who have been resuscitating the Greek economy with infusions of money. Now the Germans are balking at their expense of the so called rescue and the situation has become increasingly proceeding to a crisis point. Some are purposing a tighter alliance of the European countries with the creation of the "United States of Europe." The financial problems of Europe have impacted other economies; hence the decline in the U.S. stock market.
Things are heating up in Israel. The Israeli population is increasingly growing discontent with their government and want changes. Meanwhile attacks against them by their enemies have increased. President Obama has prescribed a return to the pre-1967 War boundaries and Israel has bulked. Tensions are running high between Israel and many other nations, including the United States. There is no easy solution in sight.
One week from today and tomorrow is Re-Church weekend at Edgewood. We are going all-out to invite folks who formerly attended church and now do not to attend to our Re-Church services. We now have only one week to invite these folks to attend our special services. Solomon said, "He who wins souls is wise" (Proverbs 11:30).
Tomorrow's sermon will focus on the Re-Church theme. I hope you will be able to attend.
Mel Brown

2011-09-03T09:51:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday of the Labor Day weekend. I begin by wishing each of our readers a happy and prosperous Labor Day. Throughout the Bible God highlights the dignity of work. In the first chapters of the book of Genesis, He, Himself, is described as doing the work of creation and then resting from His labor when the work was finished. He commissioned Adam to do the work of naming all of the livestock, birds of the air, and beasts of the field. Literally from day one, God gave Adam responsibilities to complete and Adam labored to do as the Lord had instructed. Work is depicted in the Bible as a blessing. If you don't believe that, talk to a person who has been unemployed for a long time and is unsure about his future and you will find the importance of the security and fulfillment work brings to those who have a job and the chagrin of those who are chronically without one. Of course, there are exceptions, Proverbs warns about some lazy people who refuse to work (Proverbs 19:15, 21:25), and Paul adds that a man who refuses to work should not eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Note that after Adam and Eve sinned, the ground was cursed (changed for the worse) causing Adam and those who followed to experience hard and more difficult labor because the ground was much more resistant to Adam's effort. Thistles and thorns (weeds) became a hindrance and sweat produced by exertion and hard work was the result of the changes sin created. A few other thoughts about work this Labor Day.

(1) Count having a job as a blessing and be grateful for what you have.

(2) Do your work faithfully and do it as unto the Lord; maintain a good work testimony for Jesus Christ.

(3) Pray for those who are without work and assist them if at all possible with help finding a job and sharing your resources with them to meet their needs.

(4) Remember the hungry and starving people throughout the world who can be saved through your generous support to programs such as Edgewood's F.O.O. D. fund (We have helped provide over 1,000,000 meals world-wide during the last 10 years).

(5) Finally, enjoy the Labor Day holiday with your family and friends. It is another opportunity to do as the Lord instructed to take some time to rest from our labors.

Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, God Will See You Through.

Mel Brown

2011-08-20T10:54:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 20th of August. In last week's blog I wrote about explanations for Near Death Experiences (NDE)s during which people who come to the brink of death say they have hovered above their bodies, seen a inviting light, visited Heaven, been temporarily reunited with loved ones, etc. Some explanations focus upon what changes could be taking place in the dying person's brain which could explain these experiences such as occurrence of hallucinations, or abnormal activity in the temporal lobes and other parts of the brain. Other explanations include lack of oxygen, but oxygen deprivation does not fully explain these occurrences because although there is some commonality in symptoms, many oxygen starved people experience psychotic-like hallucinations, confusion, disorientation, and fear rather than tranquility and peace described by those who have Near Death Experiences. Also not all people who have Near Death Experiences are oxygen deprived. Medication reactions have been suggested as an explanation but fail to adequately explain the phenomenon because some patients are not receiving any medication when they have these experiences. Some psychologists explain Near Death Experiences through the use of depersonalization wherein persons who are facing unpleasant experiences depersonalize and create pleasant fantasies to cope. Truthfully, none of these theories seems to adequately account for and explain Near Death Experiences. The final explanation is that the person's soul does actually temporarily leave their body and experience a glimpse of the afterlife. I have recounted these explanations so you can get an overview of the subject and make your own capable judgment. The Apostle Paul had a similar experience when he reported that he had seen the 3rd Heaven and wrote that he didn't know if he was in or out of his body (2 Corinthians 12:2).

Tomorrow's sermon is the final message on Heaven. You won't want to miss it.

Mel Brown

2011-08-13T10:01:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, August 13th. As you know I have been preaching a series of messages on Heaven. During the series I alluded to cardiologist, Dr. Maurice Rawlings', testimony about becoming a believer in Christ after hearing so many testimonies from his patients following resuscitation about what they experienced when they came back from the brink. Numerous other books, documentaries, and personal testimonies have focused upon the phenomenon of Near Death Experiences (NDE), and exactly what occurs when people have such experiences. There are many similarities in their accounts of floating above their bodies, moving toward a light source, seeing loved ones and angels, feelings of peace and tranquility, seeing Jesus, etc. Those believers who claim to have seen what lies beyond death's door seem to have no subsequent fear of death and in fact anticipate it with great satisfaction. There have been many scientific theories offered to attempt to debunk the spiritual significance of these experiences and prove they are not indicators of life after death and the existence of Heaven and Hell. In this and next week's blog, I'll explore and analyze each one.
The Hallucination Theory - Some scientists insist that during these Near Death Experiences, the brain secretes an abundant amount of endorphins which produce an effect similar to a runner's high and an elated state. It is also theorized the a ketamine-like substance is released in the body which accounts for the many of the reported features of Near Death Experiences. In all honesty, our research and understanding of the human brain is still in its infancy and there is so much about the brain and its functioning we do not yet know or understand. Perhaps a more thorough biological and scientific explanation will provide a naturalistic explanation of the features of the Near Death Experience, but that will not ultimately resolve the question of if it is the right one since it will never be the only plausible one.
The Temporal Lobe Theory - The temporal lobes of the brain are located under your temples and are involved in naming objects and faces, mood stability, processing of music and tone of voice, among other things. It has been implicated in spiritual experience and insight. When the lobes have been experimentally stimulated, especially the right temporal lobe, there is an increase in religious and spiritual feelings and experience. Thus by electrically stimulating this lobe there is a mimicking of some parts of Near Death Experiences. Although the number of stroke victims which have been affected in this part of the brain have fewer reported Near Death Experiences, many still do. Also, emotions created by stimulating these lobes include fear, sadness, and loneliness which are not present in those who experience a heavenly Near Death Experience. Even if temporal lobe changes account for some of the activity in Near Death Experiences, they may be identifying a brain mechanism associated with death not the experience itself. Next week we'll explore some of the non-neurological explanations.
Tomorrow's sermon is another on Heaven. Please plan on joining us.
Mel Brown

2011-08-06T09:40:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of August. Yesterday Standard & Poor's, a credit rating agency, announced they were cutting the rating of the United States from AAA to AA+, a one step downgrade. This is the first time in the nation's history we have received such a downgrade from a major rating agency. The downgrade occurred primarily because the national debt of the U.S. is now greater than the nation's total Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the total annual production of all our nation's goods and services. Our nation's debt is now 14 trillion dollars and is increasing substantially every day. Other major rating agencies may follow Standard & Poor's lead in the coming months. There is now much finger pointing among the politicos with the usual accuse/excuse syndrome. But regardless of the history and blame, this is a wake up call to right the ship of state. It seems to me that the solutions for our government are similar to the solutions which must be put in place when a family household is swimming in debt.

(1) Stop Excessive Spending: Carefully prioritize spending requirements, eliminate all unnecessary spending (cut up the credit cards), prepare an austere budget, and take steps to stick to it at all costs. Downsizing is often required involving driving an older car and/or moving to a smaller house.

(2) Look For Additional Sources Of Revenue: Members of families frequently have to get a second job, work overtime if available, do odd jobs, and collect monies owed to them by borrowers if any. Our government has plenty of fraud, fat, and waste to cut and many loopholes which should be closed.

(3) Establish Accountability: Take steps to ensure compliance with the steps outlined above. "People don't do what is expected but what is inspected," is an adage which must be put into practice by rigid oversight, monitoring, and corrective measures.

Taking these common sense steps alone would go a long way toward repairing our fiscal balance sheet and restoring our credit rating.

Tomorrow's sermon is another message in the series on Heaven. It is entitled, The Heavenly City - New Jerusalem. I hope you can be there to hear it.

Mel Brown

2011-07-30T08:42:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this the last Saturday of July. This week some previously undisclosed information came to light in the news. The former Beatle, John Lennon, had both a genuine fascination and flirtation with evangelical Christianity. The famous musician had earlier written the song, Imagine, in which he highlighted the desirability of a world with no religion. The recent news article revealed that he later listened to Billy Graham, Oral Roberts, and Pat Robertson and periodically corresponded with them beginning in 1973, even requesting prayer for his family on one of their hot lines. He spent time during the summers in a resort town near the mountains of Japan where a missionary regularly conducted services and would ask questions about Christianity of the missionary on a continuing basis. Most of his questions apparently centered on the deity of Jesus Christ. It was previously reported that he had written a letter to a number of evangelical preachers asking forgiveness for his earlier statement about the Beatles being more popular than Jesus. It appears that he became an ardent seeker in his later years. His wife, Yoko Ono, was reportedly quite upset with his interest in Christianity and constantly argued against the truth of the Christian faith, particularly challenging the truth of the deity of Christ. While we do not know for sure the condition of any man's heart, it appears that he might have been like King Agrippa in Acts 26:28 who said to the Apostle Paul, "Almost you persuade me to become a Christian," because near the end of his life he wrote the song, Save Yourself. I can only hope that he ultimately found his way to a saving knowledge of and relationship with Jesus Christ. That would be really something to "Imagine."

Tomorrow's sermon is the another in the series on Heaven and is entitled, The Unobservable, Unspeakable, Unimaginable Reality. You won't want to miss it.

Mel Brown

2011-07-22T22:57:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 23rd. I read about a lady who found herself driving in a strange city during a blinding snowstorm. The snow was falling so fast a whiteout occurred making it difficult for her to stay on the road. To her relief she spotted a snowplow and decided to follow it. After she followed the plow for about an hour, the driver stopped plowing, approached her car, tapped on her window, and said, "Lady I'm now finished plowing the Kmart property and am heading to Wal-Mart, are you sure you want to continue following me?" She was moving in her car but was going nowhere, and definitely was not heading for her destination. Jesus commands us to follow Him, but also warns us about the blind following the blind. Sometimes in our Christian life we can spin our wheels like when our car is stuck in the snow; there is energy expended but no forward motion. It behooves us to check our forward progress periodically to see if we are going in the right direction, gaining ground, and getting where we want to go spiritually. Don't confuse movement with progress, they are not necessarily synonymous. Here are some important questions which we should ask ourselves from time to time to check on our progress.

(1) Am I becoming more Christ-like in my life and walk?

(2) Are the spiritual activities I am doing helping me to achieve Christ-likeness?

(3) What should I do, not do, or do more or less of, to make more spiritual progress?

(4) What do I have to do to ensure that I will do them?

May God help all of us to so live that we can say with the Apostle Paul, "Follow me as I follow Christ."

Tomorrow's sermon is another on Heaven and is entitled, The Place Prepared For You."

I sure hope you'll be there to hear it.

Mel Brown

2011-07-15T23:28:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 16th. Recently some parts of the country have been baking in a sultry heat wave. Wichita, Kansas, has experienced temperatures over 100 degrees for 20 days during the last month. Someone compared the relentless hot spell as being like "sticking your head in a oven." It brought back memories of my college days one summer when I lived in Missouri. Every day during the month of July was at or above 100 degrees with exceedingly high humidity. Being a poor college student, I had no air conditioning at home, work, or in my car. Believe me when I tell you it was pure misery enduring the nearly unbearable heat. You couldn't beg, borrow, or steal a window air conditioner because every one in town had already been sold. Many were replacing their non air-conditioned cars to get some relief. It makes you realize that the good old days (without air conditioners) were really not so good after all. Thank God for cool comfort we can enjoy today. Years ago people were creative in their efforts to keep cool. They put blocks of ice in front of fans, would hang cold-water saturated wet sheets in breezeways, sleep on open porches at night, camp out in basements to take advantage of cooler temps underground, and fan themselves with various types and shapes of hand-held fans. Many sought refuge under the shade of trees and foliage. In Jonah chapter 4:6-9, the Old Testament prophet, Jonah, experienced torrid heat from the sun until God provided a vine to provide him relief through its shade. When a worm ate away part of the vine and with it his refuge from the sun, he fainted from the heat and subsequently became very angry, whereupon God reminded him that he selfishly showed more concern for the vine and his own comfort than for the people who would have perished had he not given them his message of repentance. Clearly Jonah cared more about his personal comfort than the welfare of the perishing Ninevites including 120,000 small children. Sometimes we imitate the sin of Jonah when we care more about ourselves and some things than the needs of others, especially those who are in desperate need and are perishing without God's message. He clearly did not do to others as he would have had them do unto him.

Tomorrow's sermon is on the topic of Heaven. It should be a heavenly message. I hope you'll make every effort to hear it.

Mel Brown

2011-07-09T09:14:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 9th. High profile court cases frequently capture people's attention as the courtroom drama plays out day-by-day. Such a case was Casey Anthony's, who was accused of killing her two-year old daughter, Caylee, and was acquitted of murder charges this week in Florida. When members of the jury were interviewed after the trial, several reported that they wept in agony over the not-guilty verdict. Some jurors said they felt she did it, but voted not guilty because they decided there was not enough evidence to convict her; they agonized over the outcome because they felt they had to set a guilty person free. When discussing the evidence presented, they opined that it was not enough to pass the "beyond-a-reasonable-doubt" test. The debate over the verdict has raged in the press and among the public with some holding that members of the jury confused "beyond-a-reasonable-doubt" with "beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt." in their conclusion.

I once preached a sermon entitled, If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you. If people testified as to our attitudes, actions, activities, words, relationships, witness, and lifestyle, would they conclude that we are a true believer and follower of Jesus Christ? Would the evidence presented lead others to conclude there is "reasonable doubt" or "beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt indication?" Since we (our lives) are the only bible some people will ever read, may God help us to live our lives in such a way that the evidence of our faith is conclusive beyond all doubt!

Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, The Devil Is In The Details. I hope you can make it.

Mel Brown

2011-07-02T07:41:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 2nd. Earlier this week I returned from a vacation in Ocean City, Maryland. As my wife and I sat behind our grandchildren during a fire fighter's parade, Barb hollered to the kids to be sure to notice the huge hook and ladder fire truck as it passed on the street. A young lady who was standing near the children approached us and asked if we were speaking to her. After we explained that the comment was intended for our grandchildren who were next to her, she mentioned she was a local reporter covering the parade for her newspaper and asked if she could interview us. We answered all of her questions and she requested to take our picture to accompany her article. Barb and I chuckled as we recounted how she could mistakenly think Barb was shouting her commentary about the parade to a perfect stranger like her. The fire fighter's parade was a huge event in Ocean City that week; it lasted nearly three hours and featured miles and miles of equipment from all over the Easter Shore. As I was watching the assortment of different fire fighting vehicles and personnel, I was struck by how many were designated as "volunteer" firefighters. Many municipalities could not do the job of protecting from fires without this cadre of volunteers who are willing to sacrifice and serve. My mind then switched to a parade of godly volunteers who sacrifice and serve our Lord in so many ways in our church. I found myself thanking God for the many hundreds of voluntary workers who serve on the boards and committees, teach classes, assist with the children, and serve in various other ways in our 70 plus ministries at Edgewood. I close this blog with a heartfelt "thank you" to all of our people who give so much and serve so well in God's volunteer fire force who are constantly battling the fiery arrows of the wicked one (Ephesians 6:16). Well done good and faithful servants (Matthew 25:21).

Tomorrow's sermon is a special 4th of July weekend message. I hope you'll be there.

Mel Brown

2011-06-11T08:39:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, June 11th. When I was a young student at Purdue University, my attention was drawn to a series of posters displayed throughout the campus. The message so prominently exhibited was "Send Us A Man Who Reads." The message was that reading is important to success and students should commit themselves to much reading if they were going to be successful in life now and in the future. Since reading increases knowledge, knowledge increases power, and power increases success, it makes perfect sense to be constantly increasing our knowledge base. But the Bible insists that this message doesn't go far enough. It frequently warns that knowing without doing is inadequate. It reminds us, "Do not be a hearer of the word only, but a doer of the word" (James 1:22). Joshua counsels that we should meditate or put into practice what we have learned (Joshua 1:8), and James opines that even faith without works is dead (James 2:20, 26). He illustrates this principle by comparing faith, without corresponding works, to a dead body devoid of life. It behooves any student of the Bible to be constantly asking himself how he can put knowledge into action and best apply it to his life and circumstances. We should all be as the little boy who fell into a barrel of molasses and prayed, "Lord help me to rise to the occasion." Knowledge horded is knowledge wasted, but knowledge used and shared is a fountain of blessing.

Tomorrow's sermon is about the blessing parents conveyed to their children. The four parts to this Biblical ritual have great application to parents today. I hope you will be there.

Mel Brown

2011-06-03T22:51:00.004-05:00

Today I'm writing my blog late on Friday night instead of Saturday morning to free up more time on my Saturday schedule. This week I read an article in the news which made me very angry. Seldom does a news article make my blood boil, but this story definitely did. It occurred in Texas where a federal judge ruled Wednesday that any form or even mention of prayer at a Texas high school graduation ceremony was strictly forbidden. The judge ordered the words "invocation" and "benediction" banned from the program and further ordered that no student or speaker would use the words "prayer," "bow your heads," "join in prayer," or even "stand" when used in reference to prayer. The ruling was in response to a suit filed by a family whose son attended the school who claimed that their atheistic son would suffer "irreparable harm" if exposed to prayer during graduation. Talk about a chilling restriction of free speech - this would certainly be one! Atheists are growing in both numbers and intolerance of any religious expression in various venues. Years ago the percentage of American atheists was 4% but today it stands at 16%, and they are becoming increasingly militant in their stand against any form of religious expression. Fortunately a federal appeals court overturned the judge's ruling and allowed prayer to be expressed in the commencement exercises this weekend. Thank God some sanity was restored regarding this issue and common sense ultimately prevailed. Christians should never sit idly by while their God-given religious freedoms are being taken away. As Moses asked the children of Israel, "Who is on the Lord's side?" (Exodus 32:26). If we don't stand up for our rights, we just may lose them one by one and that would be an ultimate tragedy since so many paid such a steep price so that we might have them (reference last week's blog regarding Memorial Day).

Tomorrow's sermon is part two on the Millennial reign of Christ. I hope to see you there.

Mel Brown

2011-05-28T07:41:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Memorial Day weekend. Memorial Day is the day we remember and honor those soldiers who gave their lives for our country. To date 1,343,812 American military personnel have given their lives while serving in various wars. Here is the breakdown of those U.S. soldiers killed in battle:

4,454 killed in Iraq

1,586 killed in Afghanistan

52,220 killed in Viet Nam

36,574 killed in Korea

405,399 killed in World War II

116,516 killed in World War I

625,000 killed in the Civil War

25,000 killed in the Revolutionary War

77,063 killed in all other wars

It would be easy to look at these statistics and miss the reality that these were someone's son or daughter, someone's husband or wife, someone's father or mother, someone's sister or brother, someone's best friend whose life was tragically cut short in its prime. They died that we might live and they died that we might be free; that is the price of our liberty. Let us thank God for each and every one of them who gave what President Abraham Lincoln called their "last full measure of devotion" for each of us. In our services tomorrow we will be honoring them.

Tomorrow's sermon in entitled, The 1000 Year Reign of King Jesus On Earth. I hope to see you there.

2011-05-21T08:09:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 21st. Here we go again! Once again a well-known preacher, Harold Camping, has named the date of Christ's coming. According to Camping Jesus Christ will return today at 6:00 p.m. Harold Camping is an 89 year old radio preacher who co-founded the Family Radio Network. This is not the first time Camping has predicted the date for Christ's coming, he had previously predicted that He would return in 1994. His calculations are based upon numerology, floods, and the proliferation of earthquakes and other natural disasters. Do I expect the Lord to return at 6:00 p.m. today - NO I DO NOT. Unless Harold Camping knows more than Jesus Christ and the angelic host, this prediction will come and go unfulfilled just like his last one. Jesus warned against such date setting for His return when He said, "But of that day and that hour knows no man, no, not the angels which are in Heaven, neither the Son, but the Father" (Mark 13:32). The same thought is expressed by our Lord in Matthew 24:36 where He says "But my Father ONLY." People who supposedly had "inside information" and ignored Christ's warning about making such predictions had dotted the landscape of church history with their unfulfilled pronouncements, but the consequences go far beyond their loss of personal credibility. It makes people doubt the genuineness of Christ's future return and fulfills the prophecy of 2 Peter 3:4 of people saying, "Where is the promise of His coming." Many are already mocking Christ's return because of Camping's prediction and it will only get worse after 6:00 p.m. today - what a shame.

Tomorrow's sermon is another in our prophecy series. Please join us.

Mel Brown

2011-05-14T08:26:00.006-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 14th. "Osama bin Laden is dead," read the headline after 40 Navy SEALS entered Pakistan, swooped into the bin Laden compound in four stealth helicopters, and killed the terrorist in his own bedroom. Many people took to the streets in joyous celebration that nearly 10 years after the 9/11 attacks, we had finally tracked bin Laden down and killed him. As I watched the jubilant celebrations, I was reminded of a verse in Proverbs 24:17," Rejoice not when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles." Job 31:29 and Obadiah 1:12 provide similar instruction. The elimination of this terrorist and the threat that he personally posed is not at issue. Undoubtedly, nearly every American is relieved that he is gone and pleased that at long last we got him, but the dancing in the streets, ebullient celebration is premature because: (1) there is considerable evidence that al-Qaeda has other leaders who are stepping into the vacuum and are determined to carry on the jihad against the U.S.A., (2) already threatened reprisals have begun with attacks on human targets as revenge against bin Laden's killing, (3) Many other terrorist groups have vowed to step up attacks against us in retaliation for our killing of bin Laden, (4) it would be a grave mistake to think that we have eliminated the nightmare of threats and attacks from radical groups wishing our demise. Some have described the killing of bin Laden as the cutting off of the head of a snake, but the problem is that there are many other snakes all too ready to strike with their deadly venom.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, The Great Future Battles In Prophecy. It is a message you will not want to miss.
Mel Brown

2011-05-07T07:41:00.004-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 7th. Happy Mother's Day to all of our moms. Thank God most of us have had mothers who loved us, cared about us, and taught us good things. But some mothers mentioned in the Bible provided a decisive negative influence upon their children. For instance, after the death of King Jehoram, the inhabitants of Jerusalem chose his son, Ahaziah, to be their next king. 2 Chronicles 22:2 tells us that King Ahaziah's mother was a woman named Athalieh and 22:3 mentions, "He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counselor to do wickedly." His mother's wicked counsel led to disastrous consequences because Scripture says, "He did evil in the sight of the Lord" (22:4). Another example of a wicked mother's terrible advice is related to the death of John the Baptist in the time of Christ. John was the one chosen by God to prepare the way for the Savior through his preaching of the message of repentance. John had publicly condemned King Herod because he was living with Herodias, his brother Philip's wife. Herodias' hatred for John led her to direct her daughter to demand Herod to behead John after Herod had promised her daughter to do whatever she asked following an apparent sensual dance during Herod's birthday celebration (Matthew 14:1-11). The vast majority of Biblical narratives about mothers extols the positive influence of mothers upon their children, but the overall message is that mothers can influence their children positively or negatively, for good or bad. Thank God for Godly mothers! If you have or had one, thank God for her; if you didn't, promise God that you will do all you can to be one to your children. Your influence can make the difference for time and eternity in your children's lives.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, What God Has To Say To Mothers. I hope you'll be able to celebrate Mother's Day at Edgewood with us tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2011-04-30T10:18:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this last day of April. I'm still basking in the blessings of last weekend's Easter celebration at Edgewood. What a wonderful weekend of services it was in every conceivable way. The Edgewood people rose to the occasion with outstanding commitment and service to make this Easter a tremendous celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Kudos to all who attended, invited, served, or ministered in any way. The people of Edgewood are the very best! I would like to give you a rundown of the services for the next several weeks. Tomorrow I will be preaching a prophecy message which will focus on the tumult which has been occurring throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa, with particular attention to the uprising and changes in Egypt. In preparation for this message, I encourage you to read two important chapters in the Bible, Isaiah 19 and Ezekiel 29, both of which focus on events predicted to occur regarding Egypt. The following week is Mother's Day and I will be preaching a special message in honor of the occasion dealing with what God says to mothers. The following week's message will focus on the host of other nations in the Middle East which are experiencing shifts in leadership and alignments that is critically rearranging the geopolitical checker board.
Please don't forget the fund-raising luncheon after the 10:45 a.m. service tomorrow and the special adult session with the Hillhouses in the church sanctuary during the 9:30 a.m Sunday school hour. I hope to see you at all of these special services.
Mel Brown

2011-04-23T09:23:00.004-05:00

Happy Easter! Today marks the beginning of the four weekend Easter celebrations in the Edgewood Baptist Church. I hope you will be able to attend one of these great worship experiences called, "The Quad Cities Easter Experience" because of the thousands who attend. This year's Easter advertisements have also been referring to the Edgewood Baptist Church as "The Quad Cities Best Kept Secret," to get people's attention and recognition. All of this year's celebration will be led by Edgewood's own people. We'll be showcasing our own musicians, artists, testimonies, and, of course, preaching. Easter services are my favorite services and have been from the day I became a follower of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15, the great resurrection chapter in the Bible, begins by stating that the gospel is all about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. No Resurrection - No Gospel. No Resurrection - No Salvation. "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification," says Romans 4:25. May I suggest that you take the time to read 1 Corinthians 15 this Easter and spend some time meditating upon all of the respective benefits of His resurrection itemized in these verses and then follow up by rejoicing in praise for all that God has done for us through His Son. You will be doubly blessed.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, The Resurrection, Change You Can Believe In." You won't want to miss it.
Mel Brown

2011-04-16T10:06:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, April 16th. Next week is Holy Week during which we commemorate the final week in the life of Christ. It begins with Palm Sunday and ends on Easter. I recommend that you celebrate this week by reading the Scripture passages which focus upon the events in the final week of our Lord's earthly life. This schedule of events follows the traditional chronology of Christ's Passion Week. Previously I suggested the corresponding Scriptures taken from John's gospel, but this year I am taking the readings from Mark's gospel. Palm Sunday - April 17th: Mark 11:1-11 Monday - April 18th: Mark 11:12-19 Tuesday - April 19th: Mark 11:20 - 13:37 Wednesday - April 20th: Mark 14:1-11 Thursday - April 21st: Mark 14:12-72 Good Friday - April 22nd: Mark 15:1 - 15:47 (I also suggest reading or singing the words to the hymn, "The Old Rugged Cross" as you meditate upon Jesus' death on the cross) Saturday - April 23rd: (Read Old Testament prophecies about Christ's death fulfilled: Psalm 22:1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19; 16:10; 34:20; 41:9; 55:12-14; 69:21; Isaiah 50:6; 52:14; 53:3-7, 12; Zechariah 11:12-13; 13:7; Micah 5:2) Easter Sunday - April 24th: Mark 16:1-20 Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Curing Heart Trouble. I hope you'll be able to attend. Mel Brown

2011-04-08T17:25:00.002-05:00

I'm writing this blog on Friday evening because of previous commitments for Saturday. I'm getting more and more excited about this year's Easter services. This afternoon I did a trial run of the Easter sermon and painting with our two artists and was very pleased with the results. The painting was excellent, the coordination fitted very well, and the sermon was timely and power packed. You won't want to miss this Easter or you will be sorry you did when so many others tell you how tremendous it was. Anyone whom you invite and bring will not only hear the gospel of Christ clearly presented but will be blessed by the uniqueness of the presentation and whoever receives the painting for bringing the most visitors for that service will treasure having the canvas in their home. Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Has God Got Your Attention? I certainly hope that you will not have to miss this message. Mel Brown

2011-04-02T09:20:00.004-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, April 2nd. Last week I wrote about the earthquake and tsunami which recently hit northeast Japan. Earthquakes were discussed by Jesus in answer to the disciples' question about the sign of His coming and the end times. They asked in Matthew 24:3, "Tell us when will these things be and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world?" Jesus answered, "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name saying, I am Christ, and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that you are not troubled: For all these things must come to pass but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there will be famines, and pestilences, and EARTHQUAKES, in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:4-8). During the last two decades, geologists report that the number of earthquakes worldwide has been very stable with an average of 17 tremors per year. But last year there were 22 major earthquakes and this year there have already been 7 within the first 10 weeks. The ultimate question is whether this surge in the number of earthquakes is the part of the fulfillment of Jesus' warning or merely a temporary phenomenon. It certainly behooves us as believers to monitor these developments. Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, God's RSVP. I hope you'll be there to hear this important message. Mel Brown

2011-03-26T10:05:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of March. Last week I wrote about the recent multiple tragedies in Japan which included an earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear reactor meltdown. Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara referred to the massive earthquake as divine judgment. He has now apologized for his remark, but a recent poll by the Public Religion Research Institute and Religion News found that nearly 40% of those polled believed that such natural disasters are a sign from God. Although 51% disagreed that natural disasters are a sign for God, 56% reported that they personally believed that God is in control of everything that happens in the world. Some insist that the meaning of these signs from God is always direct punishment. The book of Job clearly teaches that not all disasters are the result of the punishment for sin. It characterizes Job as a man who was perfect (good), upright, feared God, and eschewed evil (Job 1:1); yet Job suffered one catastrophe after another. His servants were killed and his oxen and donkeys were carried away after being attacked by the Sabeans, his sheep and servants were consumed by a conflagration, the Chaldean's stole his camels and wreaked further havoc upon him, and a gale force wind collapsed the home where his children had gathered killing them all (Job 1:13-19). Clearly these tragedies were not punishment from God for Job's sin. The lesson we learn from Job is that we must be careful in attributing all natural disasters as being caused by a punishment for sin by God. Sometimes in Scripture they are, but other times they are not. In next week's blog I'll discuss natural disasters as signs in prophecy.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Re-digging God's Wells. I'll look forward to seeing you there.
Mel Brown

2011-03-19T09:28:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, March 19th. Many of you have been asking about the well being of our missionaries serving in Japan. I'm happy to report that they are all safe and doing well. I received e-mails from the Kings, Smiths, and Zemkes this week. Because of Ellen King's surgery, the Kings have been in Florida for her recuperation. Their daughter, Ruth, also a missionary in Japan, is serving in their church/school in a location approximately 10 hours from the epicenter of the earthquake. The Smiths are located about four hours from the quake site and have reported that all is going well with their family. The Zemkes are on furlough and will not be returning to Japan for several months, and the Piatts are also in the states completing their furlough. The Smiths reported that there are two sister churches located near the nuclear power plant in Fukushima and that they are monitoring the situation in those congregations. A special fund has been established by the Baptist Bible Fellowship International Missions Office to meet the needs of those in Japan who are struggling because of the quake, tsunami, and nuclear reactor meltdown. Manna Worldwide has also begun a fundraising effort to assist the suffering Japanese Christians with their needs and to minister to those affected by these terrible tragedies. These relief efforts are trustworthy vehicles for those of us who want to give money to this charitable cause. Special envelopes are in the pews at church for use by those who want to give to the Japan Emergency Fund. You can rest assured that 100% of what you give will go toward meeting the needs in Japan.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Are You The Man God Is Searching For? I hope you'll be able to attend.
Mel Brown

2011-03-12T09:59:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, March 12th. This week Japan was hit with a massive earthquake which measured 8.9 on the Richter Scale. Trains disappeared, buildings collapsed, villages were devastated, and numbers of people were killed. People in the cities reported buildings swaying like hula dancers and one of Japan's main nuclear power plants became unstable and began leaking radiation. A Tsunami developed off the coast of northeastern Japan which produced waves as high as 12 feet that slammed into the coastal region. The destruction caused by this quake was extensive. When I was ministering in Japan many years ago, an earthquake struck in the middle of the night which shook the house where I was staying with a mighty force. The house rumbled, rattled, and swayed and I had the feeling that the house was going to collapse upon me. It was a very unsettling experience and the two aftershocks which followed perpetuated the anxiety. Earthquakes are mentioned 19 times in the Bible and are sometimes associated with the overthrowing of kingdoms. Haggai 2:6-7 predicts God using powerful quakes for such a purpose, and Daniel 2:44 teaches the ultimate replacement of earthly kingdoms with God's eternal kingdom, "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever."
Jesus taught us in the model prayer that we should pray, "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." This earthquake in Japan should remind us of what is and what is to come.
Tomorrow's sermon is about the sin of taking away from the sacrifice of Christ. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2011-03-05T08:56:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of March. Last week I wrote about the current state of affairs in many of the countries in the Middle East and Northern Africa. With mounting protests and anti-government sentiment fueling the demonstrations, many dictatorial regimes are in imminent danger of being overthrown as happened in Egypt. The ultimate question is what kind of government will replace these autocratic regimes? Will they have a philosophy and purpose of global jihad similar to al-Qaeda, the radical Islam group which sees national boundaries as obstacles to their cause of installing radical Islam governments who will practice their form of religious practice and strict adherence to Islamic law in government in every nation? Will we have Islamic governments similar to the radical Islamic regimes in Iran, Palestine under Hamas, or Lebanon under Hezbollah, or more moderate and secular governments such as Turkey? There is also the threat that the new governments of these nations will be gradually transformed from secular governments into Islamic states. As of now there are still many questions but few answers.
Tomorrow's sermon will focus on the life transforming experiences of the prophet Ezekiel and their application to our lives today. I hope you will be able to be there.
Mel Brown

2011-02-26T10:22:00.004-06:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of February. If you are like me you are carefully following the events which are unfolding in the Middle East and Northern Africa. Because of demonstrations in Egypt where protesters have overthrown the Mubarak government and replaced it with temporary military control, demonstrators have been emboldened throughout the region to attempt to do the same. An strong anti-authoritarian movement has swept throughout region. Here is an up-to-date review of what is happening geopolitically in many countries in the area.
Libya - Protesters have gained control of some parts of Libya and are clashing with forces loyal to strongman dictator Qaddafi in the capital city. Many protesters have been killed and Qaddafi has vowed to fight to the death.
Iraq - Protesters in at least 10 Iraqi cities burned buildings as security forces fired on the crowds as they demanded changes in government.
Iran - Protesters attempted to stage demonstrations against the Iranian government led by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but have met with calls for leaders of the demonstrations to be executed. Protesters have called for continuing protests every Tuesday for the next three weeks in spite of the threats.
Bahrain - Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters have flooded into Bahrain's capital demanding sweeping political changes.
Yemen - More than 100,000 demonstrators poured into the streets in a peaceful demonstrations to protest against president Ali Abdullah Saleh in a wave of anti-authoritarian zeal.
Tunisia - Tunisians have high hopes that the interim government which has been formed will reform their institutions.
Sudan - A government spokesman has reported that president Omar Hassan al-Bashir who has been accused of genocide against his opposition will not continue in office beyond his current term.
How these situations play out could have major implications not only for the region but for the world. Who ultimately gains control of the various countries, their loyalties and alliances, and posture toward Israel and the West can have a great impact on our lives.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, God's Antidote To Fainting. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2011-02-19T08:56:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, February 19th. Last Monday was Valentines Day and I hope you and your sweetheart enjoyed a wonderful Valentines Day together. Usually Valentines Day is thought to be about special cards, flowers, and candy as gifts given as expressions of love. Recent research has shown that the giving of gifts remains an important ingredient in successful marriages, but three non-material gifts given by one partner to another are even more important. One is the gift of listening - the giving of thoughtful attention and consideration to the things which your loved one is saying. The second is caring - the showing of concern, understanding and sensitivity to your mate and their needs. The third is compassion - the empathetic and sympathetic consciousness of the the others feelings and distress. These intangible gifts have proven to be the ultimate Valentine. Materially they cost nothing; practically they are priceless.
Some couples who have been married for many years report that the giving of material gifts fades in importance after years together, but nearly all report that the three intangible gifts of listening, caring, and compassion remain tremendously important throughout the years. What kind of Valentine are you and are you giving the three most important gifts to your Valentine?
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Live Better For Less. I hope you will not miss this message.
Mel Brown

2011-02-12T09:12:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, February 12th. Many of you have been asking about the significance of the uprising in Egypt which toppled the regime of Hosni Mubarak after his nearly 30 year reign. During an 18 day revolt Egyptians filled Tahrir Square which became the epicenter of the people's rebellion. They demanded Mubarak's resignation and the establishment of a new government and continued the pressure until they accomplished their goal - the overthrow of the Egyptian leadership. The military is now in control and Mubarak is out. As of now there are too many unanswered questions about the situation in Egypt to determine the possible prophetic importance of these events. What will be the composition of the new government? Who will ultimately be in charge? What role will the more radical Muslims play in Egypt's immediate future? What will be the leadership's posture toward the west, Russia, and other Arab states? Until we have more clarity about the answers to these questions, no definitive assessments can me made. We'll be closely watching the future unfolding of events in Egypt and keep you well informed. In the mean time we'll have to take a wait and see attitude about the Biblical implications of the Egyptian situation.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Let Us Go On. I hope you'll be able to attend.
Mel Brown

2011-02-05T11:48:00.004-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of February. I returned today from central Florida where Barb and I visited my wife's 96 year old mother, then attended a pastor's conference in northern Florida. I followed the weather in the Quad Cities on my computer and was concerned when I learned that the area endured an 18 inch snowfall earlier this week. As I was flying over the area as we prepared to land in Moline, I was struck by the sea of white which covered everything below with such saturation. Never before have I seen such a 3D-effect created by the snow accumulated on the ground when viewed from the air. The rate of accumulation and overall depth of the final snowfall produced considerable hardship for many people and I wanted to take this opportunity to thank those who worked so diligently to clean the snow from our parking lots and clear the snow and ice from our sidewalks. Our guys did a terrific job and we appreciate the yeoman effort. Thanks to all who were involved in this task for a job very well done! Edgewood is blessed with so many wonderful people who are willing to serve with dedication and determination to do whatever needs to be done in the work of Jesus Christ.
I'm looking forward to returning to the pulpit tomorrow with a message entitled, Keys To Winning Your Life's Race. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2011-01-15T08:48:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, January 15th. Every Friday the various members of the Edgewood pastoral staff submit a report of their visitation results to me. The report shares whom the talked to and the results of their contacts. The emphasis of each of the reports is on their efforts to win people to Christ and/or move them toward baptism and church membership after they have received Christ. I ask each staff member to spend a minimum of two hours each week making these visits. Our Christian Education Director, Sheila Kuriscak, shared a testimony which I thought you would find to be a blessing. One of our Edgewood kids got so fired up about the Lord that they went home and started talking about what it means to be saved through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. After witnessing about salvation to his dad, grandma was asked to come over and talk to dad about the Lord which resulted in the father getting saved. Now that is a wonderful story! Throughout this year we are asking each of our people to "Prepare someone for Heaven in 2011." This young man is off to great start. What if each of us got so excited about Jesus Christ we did among our family members what this young man did. Scripture says, "He that wins souls is wise" (Proverbs 11:30).
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Under New Management. Please join us for this message.
Mel Brown

2011-01-08T09:36:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, January 8th. I hope that you enjoyed a wonderful Christ-centered Christmas and New Year holiday with family and friends. We thoroughly enjoyed having all of our children and grandchildren with us for much of the holiday season. A total of 13 of our family filled our house during the festivities, munching on an assortment of holiday goodies, visiting, and spending quality time together with lots of conversations with grandkids ranging in age from 4 to 13. One thought which I try to keep before me when I am with them is that I will never have this opportunity again. As they grow up (all too fast by the way) they will all too quickly move on to the next life stage and the chance for those exact golden opportunities for connection and influence will forever be lost. Our lives are filled with many "teachable moments" wherein we have a chance to impact, effect, and make lasting impressions upon our little ones which will count for time and eternity. Too often we fail to take maximum advantage of those chances to shape their lives and attitudes. One excellent suggestion is to sign up for the six week parenting seminar being offered at our church on Sunday evenings. The material is excellent for any parent or grandparent and will provide excellent instruction for improving your parenting skills. Our children and grandchildren are far too valuable to not bring them up in the "nurture and admonition of the Lord."
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, God's Accounting: Gain and Loss. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-12-18T09:16:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 18th, exactly one week before Christmas. Last week I wrote about some significant revelations contained in the recently released intelligence cables by WikiLeaks. Of particular interest was information about the vanishing freedoms in Russia. Russia has not reverted to a communist system such as they endured for so many years while part of the old Soviet Union, but to an iron-fisted form of fascism under President/Prime Minister Putin. He has led a regime which has silenced the opposition, curtailed freedoms, eliminated enemies, resumed arms build ups, rejuvenated the military, restored dictatorial ways, and provided support to many of the world's rogue threats. He was able to accomplish this by a massive infusion of capital produced by gains through the sale of Russia's fuels because of the high demand and pricing of oil, the overthrow or marginalization of Russia's oligarchs, the positioning his political proteges in positions of authority and power, the curtailing the media's freedoms, and the crushing of threats to his leadership. In Ezekiel 38-39 Russia is depicted as a strong nation who will lead an alliance of nations in an future attack on Israel. Russia's return to prominence on the world stage clearly makes this scenario more achievable in both the immediate and distant future. Their support of Iran's nuclear program and provision of armaments to many of the countries mentioned as future allies in Biblical prophecy are noteworthy as well. The WikiLeaks material has confirmed what many students of prophecy have been saying about Russia in recent days. The Russian Bear is back and its predatory threat has been restored.
Tomorrow is Edgewood's Christmas musical Drama. You won't want to miss this very special Christmas service and our Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Service this year. I hope I'll be seeing you in these services. Merry Christmas!
Mel Brown

2010-12-11T10:09:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 11th. What an interesting series of revelations we have experienced with the successive releases of the United States State Department classified cables leaked by WikiLeaks. Like so many others I am shocked that these secret cables were so poorly secured and easily accessible to the media. It certainly does not inspire confidence in our government's ability to protect classified information! Some of the more interesting revelations contained in the various files include:
(1) The fledgling democracy experienced under Yeltsin in Russia has vanished. Putin's regime has squashed former freedoms and instituted a fascist control over the country.
(2) The Arab states in the Middle East are equally disturbed about Iran's quest for a nuclear weapon and Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah repeatedly urged us to attack Iran to prevent it at any cost. We also learned that North Korea has supplied Iran with advanced missiles capable of long-distance strikes.
(3) The Chinese government was behind the cyberattacks on Google's computer network earlier this year. It was described as a coordinated campaign of computer sabotage engineered by Chinese government operatives.
(4) Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, and her predecessor, Condoleezza Rice, ordered our diplomats to spy on United Nations Security Council members by obtaining their credit card numbers, frequent-flier data, schedules, e-mails, cell phone information, and even samples of their DNA. This revelation is particularly embarrassing since it is now publicized for all the world to see. The 1946 U.N. Treaty bans such activity on United Nations' property.
(5) The Karzai government in Afghanistan is rife with corruption. It has been receiving money from Iran among others. The Afghan V.P., Massoud, was caught by the Drug Enforcement Agency of the United Arab Emirates with $52,000,000 cash in a briefcase. No explanation was given of the origin or destination of the cache of cash.
We'll follow up on this and other significant information in our next Blog.
Tomorrow's sermon will be the final message in the series on Revival.
I hope to see you in church tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2010-12-04T10:08:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 4th. Yesterday the snow began to fall and continued into today with an accumulation of several inches and a resulting havoc among drivers. The first snow usually results in many fender benders as drivers begin adjusting their driving habits to the new reality of slippery roads, decreased visibility, and diminished vehicle control. Many years ago I read an informative article on the wonders of snow and its relationship to the application to numerous verses of Scripture. The book of Job (38:22) tells us that snow contains many treasures (although most of us probably don't feel it is treasured when we are shoveling it). Snow gets its beautiful whiteness because visible sunlight is white and is reflected by the snowflakes without preference to any particular color in the color spectrum. Snow can either amplify sound or absorb it depending on if it is glazed over or not. Since snow is composed mostly of an high percentage of air trapped in the structure of the snow crystals, it can be provide insulation. Non-compacted snow is 90-95% trapped air. Fresh clean snow is edible, provides much needed moisture for soil when it melts, and can cleanse the air as it falls. Snow covering in Scripture is a picture of forgiveness of sins, purity, the Lord's glory, angels raiment, and the risen Christ. In Walter L. Wilson's excellent reference, "Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types," he suggests that the picture in Isaiah 55:10 of rain and snow related to seeds, germination and growth as an illustration of the seed of God's word operating on the human heart is as follows. "Rain falls and does its good work immediately. Snow falls and may remain on the ground quite a long time before it soaks in. So one may hear a sermon and some parts of it may bless the person immediately as the rain. Other parts of the message will remain in the heart and mind dormant for years. Then when the proper conditions arise and right circumstances exist, the dormant message becomes a living message to the heart." What a picture of the power of God's word both today and tomorrow!
So lets all enjoy and appreciate the snow as a beautiful picture painted by God of many blessings from the Lord to Us.
Tomorrow's message is "Continual Revival Living."
I hope you can make it (the snow will be ended and roads should be clear)
Mel Brown

2010-11-27T11:02:00.002-06:00

In behalf of the entire Edgewood Baptist Staff, We hope that you are enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. Pastor Brown's blog will resume next week.

2010-11-19T22:19:00.002-06:00

Because of the Crown Money Map Seminar being held all day at church on Saturday, I am writing my blog on Friday evening this week. There is an often repeated truism that we will be the same people in the future as we are now except for the people we meet, the books we read, the things we hear, and the experiences we have. In other words the things most likely to influence and change us are the four things mentioned above. Each of these things proves true when it comes to our relationship with Jesus Christ. Our encounters with the Lord and fellowship/accountability with other believers, sermons and lessons we hear, influences of reading the Bible and inspirational books, and the life-changing experiences we go through, all can produce powerful changes in us. I have found one of the most potent change agents in my life is reading the biographies of great men and women. Their personal experiences, examples, and life instruction move me toward greater faith, devotion, boldness, character, and faithfulness. For example consider the testimonies of these great saints of God in their experiences of personal revival in their lives. D.L. Moody was wholeheartedly seeking God when God's presence so overwhelmed him while walking down the street one day, he fled to a private place to fully experience the presence of the Lord as it flooded his life. John Wesley was praying in an all-night prayer meeting with 60 others when God filled his heart and life with revival. When George Whitfield knelt before the altar during his ordination and bishop Benson laid his hands in dedication and prayer upon him, he experienced the fullness of God's presence and overwhelming revival in his life. Savonarola sat in his pulpit for five hours as the mighty presence of God swept upon him and he was revived through and through. Similar personal revival was experienced by Billy Sunday, Charles G. Finney, Johnathan Edwards and scores of others recorded in their biographies and autobiographies. Try reading as many of the testimonies of the great saints of God as you can. You will never be the same if you do.
Sunday's sermon is another in the series on Revival. I hope you will not miss this message.
Mel Brown

2010-11-13T09:32:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, November 13th. Next Saturday, November 20th will mark an important day for the Edgewood Baptist congregation. Crown Financial Ministries will be presenting their Money Map Seminar from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the church Multipurpose center. This seminar is the product of two years worth of planning and promises to be one of the most beneficial programs we have ever conducted for our people. Larry Burkett was a Christian financial expert, advisor, and prolific author extraordinaire. When he launched Crown Financial Ministries he was the dean of financial management with expertise in every area of financial matters. After writing some 40 books dealing with every aspect of money issues, God called him home, but his expertise lives on through his writings and the Crown Financial Ministries including the Money Map Seminar. Regardless of your station in life and the nature of your financial situation, you will profit from attending this seminar. The cost is only $15.00 including lunch. If you decide to attend, it will probably be the wisest fifteen dollar investment you have ever made. Since tomorrow will be the final registration day, please complete the registration form included in your Sunday bulletin and drop it in the large box on the round table in the main foyer tomorrow. You will be glad you did.
Tomorrow's sermon is another in the Revival series. I hope you'll not miss this challenging message.
Mel Brown

2010-11-06T09:21:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, November 6th. Last night Edgewood celebrated the ninth anniversary of our Celebrate Recovery ministry. We enjoyed a time of good food and fellowship, lively worship and praise, and meaningful communion and celebration. But the highlight of the evening for me was the message which I had the opportunity to preach to the celebrants. The theme of the sermon was "Can God? God Can!" It asked and answered the questions of what God would do in our lives if we were willing to yield the control of our lives to Him and allow Him to work in power and practice in every area of our lives. Since We are preaching a series of sermons on Sunday mornings about Revival, the Friday night emphasis perfectly coincided with that theme. There can be no revival in our lives without surrendering our will, our all totally to the Lord. The more of our lives we yield to His control, the greater the revival in our lives. John the Baptist summed it up perfectly when he said, "He must increase; I must decrease." The more we yield to the power, control, and possession of Jesus Christ, the more of the fullness of His presence we experience in every area of our lives. In the light of this great truth, is it any wonder that the apostle Paul urged, "I beg you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that you present your bodies a living sacrifice to God" (Romans 12:1a). Less of self leads to more of God. When we decrease, He increases. That is the Divine method - a timeless formula which always works and always will.
As I alluded to earlier, tomorrow's message will again focus on Revival.
I trust you'll be able to be there.
Mel Brown

2010-10-30T09:38:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of October. Tuesday, November 2nd, is the day of our mid-term elections. As I was preparing to write today's blog, I received yet another of those pesky political telephone calls whereby some person, either live or through a prerecorded message, encourages me to vote for a particular candidate. This call is one of a google of calls I have received during this election cycle. Then there is the incessant political advertisements on television, sometimes as many as four to six in a row which fill the airwaves. When you add the blizzard of political mailings, handbills, posters and newspaper ads, it is an overwhelming avalanche of solicitations plaguing your senses. It seems this year is worse than any other for this cavalcade of contacts. If you are like me you will breathe a sigh of relief when it finally ends. But in spite of the nuisance of these constant advertisements, we need to be reminded that it is our God-given privilege and responsibility to carefully exercise our right to vote. Every Christian should thoughtfully analyze each candidate, determine where they stand on the issues, weigh those positions in the light of their Biblical and personal importance, and then go to the polls and vote.
When you weigh your vote consider what Samuel said about the candidacy of Saul as their chosen king, "Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen, that there is no one like him among the people" (1 Samuel 10:24). Now that's the kind of candidate we should seek to vote for!
Tomorrow's sermon is another on the subject of revival.
I hope I'll see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-10-23T08:40:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 23rd. The times in which we are now living have been often referred to as the "information age." With the unremitting technological advances, the proliferation of research projects, the constant scientific pursuits, and the billions of dollars committed to uncovering the mysteries of man and his universe, we have an estimated 1,000,000 pieces of new information entering our potential knowledge base every single day. That is a staggering number by any measure. In an effort to keep up with it all, we have gone from specialists to sub-specialization to sub-sub-specialization in many fields. Some say we can just keep adding another "sub" as the information continues to proliferate. The prophet Daniel foretold these times when he wrote in Daniel 12:4 that knowledge would increase and man would run to and fro. The Hebrew word for increase in that verse means exceedingly or abundantly increase. But with all of our vast increases in knowledge and information, one thing remains constant - God's unchanging moral laws. Some things are right and some things are wrong, period. Has our vast increase in information changed the fact that cheating, or stealing, or adultery or a host of other misdeeds are wrong? To borrow a phrase from the book of Romans, GOD FORBID! The circumstances and base of knowledge to which we apply God's moral laws may change, but the morals themselves are unchanging. God's standards are immutable because God is immutable. He said, "I am the Lord and I change not" (Malachi 3:6). Thank God we will always have an unchanging eternal compass to provide moral guidance in this rapidly changing world.
Tomorrow's sermon is about the recipe for revival.
I hope I'll have the pleasure of seeing you there.
Mel Brown

2010-10-16T08:15:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 16th. Tomorrow will be a special teacher appreciation day in which we honor our teachers, both inside and outside of our church. We'll be recognizing our teachers, both past and present, who have faithfully taught in our Sunday school, Awana, Children's church, and numerous other Edgewood ministries. We thank God for the faithfulness of so many people who have influenced our kids and adults for Jesus Christ throughout the 105 years of Edgewood's history. Their impact on the lives of others for time and eternity will never be fully realized this side of Heaven. Many of our parents have adopted their children's school and have provided gifts of appreciation to their teachers, and many of our children have invited their teachers to join us tomorrow for this special recognition Sunday. Our students have passed out written invitations to their teachers inviting them to attend on Sunday, and many of their teachers have accepted their invitations to attend. It promises to be a special day in every way. Tomorrow's sermon will focus on Jesus Christ as the master teacher.
Each Sunday evening this fall in the 6:00 p.m. service we'll be focusing on a series of timely hot topics. Every member of our pastoral staff will have the opportunity to tackle one of the controversial issues of the day. Please plan to join us for all of our services tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2010-10-09T09:33:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 9th. For the last several years my daughter Cheryl has taken her sister, Lori, and my wife, Barb, on a get-away trip. It is a time for the ladies in the family to have a special time of fun and fellowship together. Today is the day they return home and I have been busy earlier this morning straightening up the house in preparation for their homecoming. As I was vacuuming, sorting and cleaning, I was reminded of the importance of keeping our spiritual house in order. In 1 John 1:9, God addresses this issue with these words, "If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness." God is saying that we as believers need to do a regular check of our lives to find the areas (sins) which are offensive to God and ultimately damaging to our lives (all sin is ultimately damaging to us - there is pleasure in sin for a season but when the reaping starts the damage is felt). The Psalmist said, "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24). Once we find the areas of our lives which require attention, we are to confess and forsake that attitude, action, habit or omission which is sinful. In fact God tells us that this should be a constant occurrence in our lives. Then we will have close fellowship with God with the joy of our salvation is full force. How long has it been since you have experienced a spiritual housecleaning? If every day you ask the Lord to search you, know your heart and thoughts, try you and reveal any sinful way in you, God will show you those things which need confession. When you do you will be clean, refreshed and right.
Tomorrow's sermon is an exposition of Psalm 32. I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-10-02T10:28:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, October 2nd. Seventh Day Adventist Church followers have mailed out a large number of booklets and literally blanketed some areas of the Quad Cities with their materials. Numbers of our people have received them in the mail. Obviously their intent is to try to convert people to their church. Concerning the questions regarding worshipping on Saturday instead of Sunday as most of Christianity does, here are some answers:
(1) It is true that the Sabbath is Saturday, the seventh day and the day God rested after creation.
(2) The Sabbath according to Jewish reckoning begins at sundown on Friday evening and continues until sundown of Saturday evening.
(3) In the Old Testament the Jews observed the Sabbath for worship and rest.
(4) One of the 10 Commandments concerns the Sabbath, “Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy.”
(5) There were ceremonial Sabbaths (Holy Days) which were also observed besides the seventh day Sabbath by the Jews.
(6) Sunday, the first day of the week, is called the Lord’s Day in Scripture (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1-2).
(7) Why then does most of Christianity worship on Sunday, the Lord’s Day, instead of Saturday, the Sabbath?
(8) Jesus was raised from the dead sometime after Saturday evening and appeared to the women at dawn on Sunday, the Lord’s Day; hence the reason why many have sunrise services early on Easter morning which is always observed on Sunday (Mark 16:9; John 20:1, 19).
(9) In the New Testament the early church worshipped on Sunday, the Lord’s Day (Acts 20:7).
(10) The Apostle John who wrote the gospel which bears his name, the epistles of 1st, 2nd , and 3rd John, and the final book of the Bible, the book of Revelation records that he worshipped on the 1st day of the week while on the Isle of Patmos (where he wrote the book of Revelation while in exile) (Revelation 1:9-10).
(11) Paul commands Christians to give by “laying in store according as the Lord has prospered us on the 1st day of the week (Lord’s Day)” (1 Corinthians 16:1-2)
(12) Church history shows us that the church met and worshipped on the Lord’s Day, Sunday (See church history textbooks).
(13) Of the 10 Commandments found in the Old Testament, Nine are reiterated in the New Testament but the only one not reiterated is “Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy.”
(14) The book of Colossians tells New Testament Christians, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a holy-day, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath Days: Which are the shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ” (Colossians 2:16-17)
(15) We are not to let others judge us in regard to their Old Testament rules and rituals because according to the book of Hebrews and Galatians, the things including the Old Testament sacrifices and rituals were foreshadows of Christ and when Christ came He instituted a New Covenant of Grace rather than law. The Old Testament ceremonial laws were called in Galatians a “schoolmaster” to teach us about the coming of Christ, but when Christ died and was raised again graduation occurred and the need for the school master was over. We are consequently no longer under the ceremonial law of the Old Testament (observing the Day of Atonement, Passover, etc. or practicing Old Testament rituals.

2010-09-25T10:23:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, September 25th. The Psalmist said in Psalm 91:11, "He will give his angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways." It is a comforting thought to know that God has assigned his angels to watch over us as we live our daily lives. Consider these examples which illustrate angels doing just that in people's lives. In 1 Kings 19:5, an angel awakened Elijah and fed him to prepare him for an arduous journey which lay ahead. In Daniel 6:22, Daniel tells the king that God had sent an angel to close the mouths of the lions and deliver him from the lions' den. In Matthew 18:10, Jesus warned not to demean one of the little ones because their angels have constant access to the Heavenly Father. In Luke 16:22, as the beggar, Lazarus, died, we read that the angels came and carried him into Abraham's bosom which is an ancient proverbial expression for Heaven. In Acts 12:7, an angel directs Peter as he delivers him from prison. In Matthew 2:13, an angel directs Joseph the husband of Mary, to take the young Jesus and flee to Egypt to avoid the deadly persecution which is coming. In Acts 27:23-24, Paul counseled the sailors to not be afraid because none of them would perish in the coming shipwreck. He stated that an angel of God had given him this message.. In Daniel 9:20-22, Daniel reports that God had sent the Archangel, Gabriel, in answer to his confession and prayer, to help him understand the mystery of things to come.
Clearly we can see from these many incidents that angels frequently guide, direct, and protect us; hence, the use of the term, Guardian Angels. Think of the many times that God has delivered, led, safeguarded, and helped you or your understanding and consider that an invisible angel was right there with you enabling God to minister to you. Now that is both comforting and encouraging isn't it!
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Vows For A Holy Life And Successful Responsibilities. The message is an exposition of Psalm 101. Also, please plan on joining us for the Soup and Sandwich Luncheon to raise money for Smilehouse Orphanage after the 10:45 a.m. service.
Mel Brown

2010-09-17T23:26:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this very early Saturday, September 18th. In a recent blog I quoted the verse, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord," and observed that any nation that honors and obeys God will enjoy God's blessings. This principle is clearly illustrated in comparing the two kingdoms of Israel in the Old Testament. The kingdom of Israel was united under the rules of Saul, David, and Solomon, but split when Solomon's son and successor Rehoboam refused the people's request to reduce their overwhelming tax burden. The twelve tribes of Israel subsequently divided into two separate kingdoms, the Northern Kingdom consisting of the ten northern tribes and the Southern Kingdom consisting of the two southern tribes. The Southern Kingdom continued under the rule of Rehoboam and the Northern Kingdom under the rule of their selected ruler, Jeroboam, the son of Nebat. Both kingdoms lasted for many years with each having a total of nineteen kings. But there was a significant difference in their leaders and people's relationship with God. All nineteen kings of the Northern Kingdom were evil and led the people into sin. Again and again we read, "The children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord." Evey one of their kings followed in the footsteps of Jeroboam who was described as evil, but the Southern Kingdom enjoyed a number of king's rulership who honored God and led them to obey the Lord. In fact some of their kings led the people in revival and a return to God's principles. The Northern Kingdom was conquered by the Assyrians in 721 B.C., but the Southern Kingdom lasted until 606 B.C. when they were conquered by the Babylonians. This 115 year difference in their existence was evidence of the Lord's blessing on the Southern Kingdom because of their making God their Lord and following Him. There is a dynamic message for any nation in this illustration. America are you listening?
Tomorrow's message is entitled, Experiencing The Presence And Power Of God. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-09-10T23:11:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, September 11th. Actually I'm writing this blog late on Friday night because I have a series of commitments for Saturday. The Apostle John wrote, "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18). When love increases, fear decreases. Love counteracts and replaces fear. The more we love God and understand His love for us, the less we are afraid of Him and His ways. I was reminded of the realization of this verse last weekend when I visited my daughter, Cheryl and her family over the Labor Day holiday. Kai (we call him Kai Kai) is the four year old boy whom they adopted two years ago when he was two years of age. Kai had a rough time in his first years of life. Born with two club feet, he had been in and out of hospitals and orphanages and endured two horrendous operations which left him scarred, marred, and crippled. His mother, a crack foot surgeon, eventually fixed both feet good as new, but this article is not about his physical mending; it is about the healing of his soul. I was at the airport when he arrived at his new home in Chicago and most of us saw him for the first time. He was among strange people in a strange environment and was obviously afraid. He refused to allow me to touch him and recoiled when I tried. God only knows what he had previously endured. He was touchy, resistant, afraid, and withdrawn. All of the members of our family committed ourselves to shower him with unconditional love, affection, attention, and acceptance. Now nearly two and one-half years later, he is a transformed boy. He loves to be loved, touched, and spend time with his family. Love has cast out fear and replaced it with peace. He is no longer afraid but comfortable giving and receiving love and acceptance. He is a living example of the principle taught in this verse. The greater application is that the more we love the Lord and experience His love for us, the more comfortable and fearless we will be with Him. Have you experienced the truth of this verse? I hope you have! The reality of its teaching is life changing in our relationship with God and His word.
Tomorrow, our guest speaker will be Bruce O'Neill, the founder and president of Manna International, the organization we have often partnered with to build feeding centers and children's homes around the world. You won't want to miss him and his inspiring message.
Mel Brown

2010-08-28T09:59:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of August. Last week I wrote about Iran starting their first nuclear reactor using enriched uranium provided by Russia. I also mentioned the processes required to transform the nuclear material used in a nuclear power plant into a nuclear bomb, namely using plutonium from the spent fuel from the reactor or enriching their own nuclear material to the level required for a weapon. Here's some data which will spell out the differences of enrichment which would be necessary. The required level of nuclear enrichment for a nuclear power plant used to generate electricity is 3 1/2 percent. The level required for use in some processes of nuclear medicine is up to 20 percent. But the level of enrichment required for a nuclear bomb is 90 percent or more; therefore, Iran would need to enrich the level of their nuclear material to that level to become a serious nuclear weapon threat to its enemies. That's why estimates of that happening range from as short as a few months to as long as a few years with the average credible estimate being up to one year. The fact that they are building 10 sites for nuclear enrichment located in highly protected mountainous regions makes their claims to merely seeking to have a peaceful nuclear capability highly unlikely, and an Iran with nuclear weaponry would make the description of their involvement in the future warfare described in Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39 very plausible. Take the time to read these chapters and see for yourself. That's why we are watching this drama unfold with a careful eye and so should you!
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Hindrances To Worship. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-08-21T10:22:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, August 21st. Last week I wrote about Iran's activation of its nuclear reactor. Today is the day that with Russia's provided nuclear fuel, the actual fueling is to begin. It will take approximately two weeks to complete the fueling and two months for the nuclear power plant to begin generating electricity. There has been much speculation that Israel or the U.S. would do what was required to "kill" this nuclear site because of the risk of Iran taking the next step of developing a nuclear warhead to attack its enemies. The New York Times reported this week that the United States had dissuaded the Israelis from launching an attack on the reactor site because our best intelligence indicates that Iran is at least one year away from being capable of delivering a nuclear attack. In order to complete the process of making of a nuclear bomb, one of two paths would need to be followed. Either the Iranians would need to extract plutonium, which could be used to make atomic weapons, from the spent reactor fuel, or they would have to enrich enough uranium on their own to make a nuclear weapon. The Russians have insisted that as part of their agreement to provide the fuel to Iran, that they will retrieve all of the spent nuclear fuel so plutonium may not be extracted. But there are serious doubts about the certitude of this process. Additionally, there is great concern that the Iranians intend to build 10 enrichment sites within protected areas of the mountains. If either through the extraction of plutonium from spent fuel or its own enrichment process, Iran obtains the essentials for a nuclear weapon, they will be capable of a nuclear strike soon. They are now much closer to that reality than before. Future developments could unfold quickly and could be of critical importance to our understanding of future events.
Tomorrow's sermon is a tutorial about how to have meaningful personal worship. I hope you'll be able to be there.
Mel Brown

2010-08-14T09:44:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, August 14th. We have been anticipating it for the last two years and now it looks like it will become a reality within the next few weeks. The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Agency has announced that Iran's nuclear power plant will go online seven or eight days after Russia delivers its nuclear fuel supply. The fuel supply is scheduled for delivery on August 21st. In fact Russia has declared that it will begin loading fresh nuclear fuel into the reactor as soon as it is delivered. Some news sources estimate that it will take a little longer and place the activation date in mid-September. Israel's leadership has unequivocally said they will not allow Iran to become nuclear which could precipitate a possible confrontation which might have far-reaching and devastating consequences. When asked if the United States has a contingency plan to take out Iran's nuclear capability, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs said yes. So we seem to be moving closer to a serious conflict which could involve various Arab states, Russia, Israel, and the United States. Numerous attempts to persuade Russia not to supply the fuel for the reactor have been unsuccessful. We are carefully monitoring these events because of the possible relevance to fulfilling Ezekiel chapters 38 & 39. Each of us should be keeping a watchful eye for further developments.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, An Example of Worship from Psalm 96. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-08-07T10:07:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of August. We are now seeing kids returning to school after their summer break. Some schools started this week and many more will be resuming within the next two weeks. In spite of school schedules, we still have a few weeks left in the "dog days" of summer, the hottest days of the summer season. One of the complaints often heard during the summer (in addition to complaints about how hot and humid the weather is) relates to how many re-runs are on television during the June through August months. Comments like, "I've already seen these programs" or "there's not much to watch on T.V." are frequently heard. When it comes to television shows, repeats may be frustrating, but in the Bible, God frequently repeats instructions, commandments, and messages to us. Some are repeated many many times throughout the Bible to make sure we get the message. Obviously, God wants these reiterated reminders to keep these messages before us so we will be sure to heed the warnings or put into practice what He is prescribing. Since the most often repeated commandment in Scripture is "PRAISE THE LORD," it is a certainty that God expects this to be a constant practice in our everyday lives. There are some very practical benefits to following this command including: experiencing God's presence (according Psalm 22 He inhabits the praises of His people), creating more joy in your life, generating attitudes of gratitude, appreciation and thanksgiving, elevating your mood, and creating the lasting habit of genuine worship. How are you doing in putting this most often repeated commandment into constant practice in your life? Let's make every day an example of what it means to obey that commandment and see the difference it will make! Tomorrow's message will be another on the theme of worship. I hope you'll be in church.
Mel Brown

2010-07-31T08:35:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the last day of July. One of the methods I use when studying the Bible is to ask and answer a series of questions about the passage I'm examining. This method is particularly helpful in making practical applications of the Scripture to my everyday life. I'm providing an example of this process in today's blog. Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
(1) What does it mean to SEEK God's kingdom? What is God's kingdom?
(2) What are the specific things I need to do to show I am seeking His kingdom?
(3) What does it mean to SEEK His righteousness? What is His righteousness?
(4) What are the specific things I need to do to show I am seeking His righteousness?
(5) How can I put God first in my life? In my attitudes? In my actions?
(6) If I give God first place in my life, how will that manifest itself in my home? In my work? In my time? In my finances? In my values? In my leisure? In all of my priorities?
(7) If I seek His kingdom and righteousness first in my life what will be the benefits? What are "all these things" that will be given to me according to Matthew 6?
(8) What is the main thing I will do to seek His kingdom and righteousness first in my life TODAY?
When you thoughtfully seek and find the answers to these questions about this verse, you will be better equipped to understand and put into practice the teaching of this verse. Give it a try and see for yourself.
Tomorrow's message is entitled, The Means Of Worship. I hope I'll have the pleasure of seeing you there.
Mel Brown

2010-07-24T09:18:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 24th. Here is a potpourri of events from recent news articles which could have prophetic significance.
(1) The United States successfully used laser technology to shoot down two mechanical drones. The testing of lasers as weaponry has been proceeding in recent days as we continue the pursuit of "star wars" capabilities.
(2) North Korea is making threats to use NUKES in an effort to counter U.S. and South Korean responses to its recent attack on a ship in its region.
(3) China is more actively pursuing its threat to stop recognizing the U.S. dollar as the preferred currency for international commerce and benchmark for other nation's currencies.
(4) More and more nations are continuing their pursuit of nuclear technology in an effort to become a dominant force when it comes to armaments. Many of these nations have unstable or rogue governments which could serve as the cause of a "tinderbox" situation.
(5) The recent revelation of the serious debt and financial malaise in so many European countries is playing out into an increased division of the "haves" and "have nots" in Europe. The "have nots" are increasingly looking to the "haves" for assistance, setting up an important dynamic of dependence and possible domination.
(6) The Palestinian/Arab and Israeli conflicts in the Middle East continue to fester without abatement.
We'll keep monitoring these events for possible major future implications.
Tomorrow's sermon is another in the series on worship and is entitled, Coming To Genuine Worship. I hope you won't want to miss it.
Mel Brown

2010-07-17T09:17:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 17th. There's an old adage, "Denial is not just a river in Egypt (de Nile). That saying is often used when someone is refusing to own up to a mistake, irresponsibility, bad decision or sinful act. It frequently is part of the excuse/accuse process where someone excuses their behavior and passes the blame on to someone else. It first appears in the early chapters of Genesis after Adam and Eve had sinned and the Lord approached them in the Garden of Eden. Adam denied his disobedience and blamed it on Eve, and Eve in turn denied her disobedience and blamed the serpent. You see it reenacted constantly in the interactions of people. Recently during congressional hearings with the heads of the various companies involved in the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, each denied his company's responsibility and pointed the finger of blame at the other guy. The book of Proverbs says, "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will have mercy" (Proverbs 28:13). When it comes to our relationship with God, acknowledgement (confession) is the first step towards forgiveness and is essential in the path leading to correction and future prevention. No one can become an overcomer of any serious addiction, habit, problem, or sin without first facing up to and acknowledging that they have a serious problem - that is an all important first step. Then when we realize our weakness and turn to God for help, we will surely find Him waiting, willing, and able. That is the tried and true formula!
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, The Heart IN Worship. I hope you can be there.
Mel Brown

2010-07-10T10:29:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, July 10th. Earlier this week was Independence Day. I was enjoying a time with my family at the Wisconsin Dells during the day, and as I traveled to my daughter's home in the Chicago area that evening, I was greeted with a constant assortment of fireworks while driving through the various municipalities. It was like having one continuous display of polytechnics all the way there. What a site as the skies exploded in a magnificent sea of colors and range of sounds all around me. As I look back over the various 4th of July activities I enjoyed throughout the day, I was reminded that behind all of the hoopla was an most important purpose - the commemoration and celebration of our independence as a nation and as individuals. In spite of America's problems and flaws, it is such a privilege to live in the "land of the free and the home of the brave." This holiday is about remembering that and being grateful for that entitlement. Our country was founded upon the principle of religious freedom and our forefathers sought to create a land where they could worship God as they chose without interference from the government. Long may we cherish and defend that right for ourselves and others, and may we never forget God's promise" Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." May we fully exercise our freedoms to worship God individually and together and do all we can to exercise the freedom of telling others about our wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ and His saving grace.
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, The Heart of Worship. I'll look forward to your exercising your right to freely worship by being in church tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2010-07-03T21:33:00.000-05:00

Pastor Brown's blog will resume next Saturday.

2010-06-26T08:35:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, June 26th. All of us have watched with interest this week as a drama played out in Afghanistan and Washington D.C. involving General Stanley McChrystal, who was the architect and commander of our war effort in Afghanistan. General McChrystal granted a series of interviews with himself and members of his staff to a reporter from the magazine Rolling Stone. The reporter spent many days with the general and his team and was given almost unfettered access. The final article appeared in the magazine this week and in it are many quotes about various government officials overseeing or involved in the war effort. The series of quotes are often derogatory and disparaging toward many government officials mentioned in the piece. General McChrystal was summoned to Washington to meet with President Obama and immediately tendered his resignation under threat of being fired. Again and again media people are questioning why the General and his people would share so many private personal opinions with a reporter and be so careless with their tongues. Clearly this whole episode illustrates the Bible's wise counsel regarding the power of the tongue and the consequences when it is not properly controlled. Proverbs 21:23 warns the tongue can be a source of trouble, Proverbs 15:2 tells us that a wise tongue uses knowledge aright, James 1:19 cautions us to be quick to hear but slow to speak, Proverbs 18:21 reminds us that life and death are in the power of the tongue and reminds us that the tongue must be controlled. If General McChrystal had heeded these verses, he would still have his command!
Tomorrow's sermon is the final message of the Prophecy Update 2010 series. I hope you can make it.
Mel Brown

2010-06-19T11:03:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 19th of June. Yesterday two strong storms moved through the area with winds up to 80 MPH. This has happened all too often in recent years. I was watching the trees in my back yard bend severely and repeatedly to the point of breaking and was reminded again of a vacation I had several years ago in the Cayman Islands. While we were there Hurricane Charley came through and we were prisoners on the island. There was no way off and all we could do was batten down the hatches and wait for the hurricane to hit. As I sat in the condo I watched the winds whip with ever increasing intensity and the rains fall in sheets. The noise of the storm was like an high-speed freight train passing through. You feel that you are in a hopeless situation because you are. There is nowhere to run and nowhere to hide; all you can do is pray and put yourself in the hands of God. Obviously I survived the ordeal but it left an indelible impression upon me that will last as long as I live! I am reminded of Jesus when He was in the boat with his disciples during a violent storm. He calmed the storm and chided them on their lack of faith. His message was when you have Me with you in the boat, you don't need to fear the storm. His application is "Be still" to each of us. In Luke 6:48-49 He reminds us that if we build our house on the rock instead of the sand, though the floods come, the house will be secure. However bad the storms may be our house in Heaven is waiting and if the storm overwhelms us Jesus will take us to "higher ground." With Jesus with you, you are secure.
Tomorrow's message is the second message of Prophecy Update 2010. I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-06-12T10:26:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this rainy Saturday, June 12th. Beginning tomorrow I will preach a series of three sermons on prophecy as Prophecy Update 2010. In the last year there have been numerous geopolitical, technological, and relational developments which can pave the way for the fulfillment of numbers of Biblical predictions. During the coming weeks we'll look at the changing dynamics among key nations mentioned in the prophetic literature, present an updated profile of weaponry developments and expansion, look at some of the latest relevant advances in technology, and take a closer look at the latest perils facing the nation of Israel. These annual prophecy messages have become some of the most popular sermons I deliver each year both in and out of the church and provide an excellent opportunity to invite family members and friends to church. That is because most people have a profound curiosity about what the Bible says about the future. Even some of the most cynical doubters are fascinated with the subject and prophecy has become the vehicle God has used to reach many with the gospel of Christ. Numbers of our people obtain the messages on Cd's and share them with others as a way of influencing them for Christ. I hope you will do so too. Tomorrow's message is entitled, The Current Positioning of the Nations. I hope you won't miss it.
Mel Brown

2010-06-05T10:16:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, June 5th. George Barna is a Christian researcher/pollster who is continuously researching attitudes and opinions, especially as they relate to all things religious. In one of his recent studies he sampled opinions of church attenders in churches ranging in size from fewer than 100 people to churches of more than 1000. Those who claimed to have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that was still important in their lives today and believed that when they died they would go to Heaven ranged from 63% to 75% of the church people sampled. When asked if they agreed with the following seven beliefs:
(1) That their faith is very important in their lives today
(2) That they have a personal responsibility to share their faith in Christ with non-Christians
(3) That Satan exists
(4) That salvation is by grace not works
(5) That Jesus Christ lived a sinless life
(6) That the Bible is accurate in all of its teaching
(7) That God is the all-knowing, all-powerful, perfect deity who created the universe and still rules it today
Only between 9% and 25% of the church respondents believed these seven doctrinal statements!
Additionally, people revealed that the purpose of faith was not so much to discover truth or relate to a loving praise-worthy God, but to be happy, successful, comfortable and secure. Spirituality to most respondents was less about Christianity than about self.
Consider these responses in the light of 2 Timothy 3 where it says, "In the last days perilous times shall come" vs. 1, "Men will be lovers of themselves" vs. 2, "Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God" vs. 4, "Having a form of Godliness but denying its power" vs. 5; and 2 Timothy 4:3 which says," For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires."
Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Christ-likeness: Transformed Into His Likeness.
I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-05-29T08:00:00.001-05:00

Pastor Brown's blog will resume next week.

2010-05-22T09:32:00.003-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 22nd. One of my favorite portions of the Bible is the 23rd Psalm. This Psalm is a perennial favorite among believers of all ages and has provided instruction and comfort to people in every circumstance of life since it was written many thousands of years ago. Its powerful imagery of the Lord being our shepherd and we his sheep is beautifully expounded in the classic, A Shepherd Looks At The 23rd Psalm, by W. Phillip Keller. Every Christian should read and study his book. As a man who worked as a shepherd, he takes the Psalm line-by-line, explains in detail each concept, and applys it to our daily living. For instance, he illustrates the meaning of the clause, He anoints my head with oil, (Psalm 23:5) by explaining that the head of the sheep becomes irritated by bugs who bite or sting the sheep repeatedly. These bugs can cause considerable discomfort and inflammation to the sheep, especially around the eyes. The shepherd tenderly applies soothing oil on the affected area which sooths the wounds, promotes healing, and helps prevent further infestation. The application is obvious. We as God's children face stings, bites, and irritations from many sources and circumstances in our lives, but the Lord, our wonderful shepherd, applies a soothing balm to our wounds which is the ultimate demulcent to our cares and pains. He not only heals our wounds but helps prevent damage and discomfort to our lives. How many of us have turned to the Lord when something is "bugging" us and then experienced the meaning of His anointing our heads with oil? If you are hurting today, turn to the shepherd's care - He is only a prayer away, lovingly waiting with the anointing oil.
Tommorrow's sermon is The People God Intends Us To Be. The Blackwood Quartet will be our special guests in both a.m. services. I'll hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-05-14T23:13:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 15th. A few weeks ago I wrote about a rocket launch by the U.S. military on a top secret mission. Other than knowing about the launch, all government sources are absolutely mum about the nature and purpose of this project. Numerous sources are reporting the probability that it involves the weaponization of outer space. This week USA Today wrote an article in its Technology Section entitled, "Star Wars Meets Reality? Military Testing Laser Weapons." They began the article with the question, Are we finally witnessing the dawn of the "death ray?" After reporting that the military can shoot down incoming mortar rounds with land-based lasers, they revealed that military commanders are on the verge of successfully firing lasers at tanks and mines from the air. It is referred to as an invisible death ray. Designers have surpassed 100,000 watts of energy within laser blasts which is considered a milestone in the development of effective laser weaponry; however, using lasers for ballistic missile defense remains elusive. Laser technology is advancing at a rapid pace and the potential of laser weaponry is incredible. The descriptions of coming destruction found in the book of Revelation, the Bible's greatest book of prophecy, could easily be the results of both nuclear and laser weaponry. Many challenges and obstacles for lasers remain but Mike Rinn of Boeing's Airborne Laser Program stated "All the science and physics are now proven as far as how lasers work and what they can do." As world powers continue their hunger for more and more powerful and effective weapons, we continue rapidly on the march to Armageddon.
Tomorrow's sermon is another on The Master's Lessons for Living. I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-05-08T10:39:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, May 8th. Financial markets were roiled this week by the circumstances occurring in Greece and the financial threat occurring in numerous other European countries. The European Union consists of 27 nations, 16 of which use a common currency called the Euro. Greece has been teetering on the edge of insolvency and has now agreed to a 144 billion dollar bailout from other European countries and the International Monetary Fund together with the implementation of certain austerity measures to avoid immediate bankruptcy. Articles in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal highlight that Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Ireland are also in deep financial trouble and will probably require financial assistance and serious austerity measures. The good old American "greenback" as the dollar has frequently been called has been the currency of choice for a variety of reasons, but that is not necessarily true for the indefinite future because of the mounting debt in the United States. Now Russia and China have called for the creation of a new currency which will supersede the dollar as the currency of choice. Most prophecy experts believe that such a currency will ultimately become a reality and will become a tool of the Antichrist and his future one-world government to regulate and control future commerce. This situation bears watching as a confluence of circumstances make the demand for such a currency greater and greater. So keep looking up because the coming of the Lord is getting closer every day!
Tomorrow's message is another from the series, The Master's Lessons for Living. I hope you'll be present as we honor our mothers during this service on Mothers Day.
Mel Brown

2010-05-01T10:09:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of May. Several weeks ago I wrote about a proposed tamper-proof national biometric identity card. Details about the proposed I.D. card were released earlier this week. It would be a Social Security card containing a chip that all workers including American citizens would have to produce to an employer upon being hired. Every employer would have to have a new verification scanner to confirm the validity of each applicant's Social Security card. A national system would be created to register both births and deaths to prevent people from using a deceased person's I.D. The cross-referencing of an I.D. card with the birth and death list would supposedly prevent its fraudulent usage. The proposed card would contain an identification marker such as an individuals finger print and would be required to be carried by every worker in the nation within the next six years. The national I.D. program would be named BELIEVE system, an acronym for Biometric Enrollment Locally stored Information and Electronic Verification of Employment. A digital encryption key would have to match employment databases. This proposal by the senate leadership now presented in detail has moved the issue to a new level. The overt threat of terrorism, porous borders, and immigration fraud have made the acceptance of a proposed national I.D. card more amenable to a host of Americans. We'll be carefully following these developments in the days ahead.
Tomorrow's message is entitled, Learning To Communicate Using Christ's Communication Techniques. Also, tomorrow's service will include communion.
I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-04-24T09:45:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, April 24th. The world is becoming a scarier place! Earlier this week there were news reports about the U.S.A. launching a new space craft identified as X-37B. The launch is believed to be the first step in what is being called the weaponisation of outer space. The top secret space craft was developed by the military and its mission and cost are shrouded in secrecy. For those of you who would like to read more extensively about this launch and review pictures of the spacecraft go to: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1268138/X-37B-unmanned-space-shuttle-launched-tonight.
Also, The New York Times posted an extensive article about China's expansion of its naval power with a new strategy called, "far sea defense." which rapidly expands its long- range capabilities. China is also developing a sophisticated submarine fleet to protect its strategic waters.
Iran is rapidly closing in on its nuclear objectives and Venezuela is becoming more cozy with Russia in search of Russian assistance in reaching its technological goals for its own defense. We know that Russia is making rapid progress in rebuilding its military and weapons technology through a massive infusion of money through the sale of its oil resources. It is reported that numerous so called "rogue nations" are hoping Iran will soon become nuclear so they can share their newfound nuclear technology with them.
So the march toward Armageddon continues and therefore the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is getting closer and closer. This is a good time to "make your calling and election sure." and know you are ready for His coming.
Tomorrow's sermon is the third in the series, The Master's Lessons For Living.
I hope to see you in church.
Mel Brown

2010-04-17T07:42:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 17th of April. It is a parents job to work themselves out of a job. By that I mean as our children grow and develop, they should become less and less dependent upon us. When they are born they are 100% dependent upon us and can literally do nothing for themselves. As they mature they become able to feed themselves, dress themselves, and overall do more and more to meet their own needs. When they become adults, they should be able to stand upon their own two feet, make intelligent decisions, provide for themselves, and face the vicissitudes of life; hence the old saying, "Wise sons make proud fathers." But it is an interesting fact that when it comes to our relationship with God our Father, we never outgrow our need for Him and His parenting of us. In John 15 where Jesus compares our relationship with the Lord as being like a vine to its branches, the issue illustrated is the importance of our continued dependence upon our Heavenly Father. We never outgrow our need for His role of parenting us, disciplining us, teaching us, strengthening us, overseeing us, directing us , etc. In fact the longer we live our Christian life the more we learn the importance of depending upon and yielding to Him in the various areas of our lives. Unlike our earthly parents who pass away from us, the Lord promises that He will never leave us (Hebrews 13:5). In the Lord's Prayer our role of depending upon our Heavenly Father is laid out through these requests: Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven, Give us this day our daily bread, Forgive us our debts and we forgive our debtors, and Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Thank God we have a loving, faithful Father who cares so much for us, He has numbered the very hairs on our head.
Tomorrow's sermon is the second in the series, The Master's Lessons For Living. I'll see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-04-10T10:28:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this first Saturday after Easter. I'm still enjoying the afterglow of Easter. What a wonderful day it was in every way for our Edgewood Baptist Church family. The music, message, testimony, featured guests, crowd, spirit, and results were all superb. Everywhere I go people are talking about how great the Easter services were and complimenting the staff and Edgewood people about the day. Even people who weren't there but heard about the services from family or friends are eager to share the good reports they've received from those who attended. Numbers of you have commented about the sermon I preached and shared how it impacted your life. The Edgewood membership certainly rose to the occasion by volunteering your time and talent and doing an outstanding job of serving in so many ways to make this great event possible. Thank you all for a job well done! Now we are working to follow up the many hundreds of visitors who attended including a vast number who have no church home.
Tomorrow I begin a new series of messages entitled, The Master's Lessons For Living. The series will consist of eight sermons centering on the great life-changing lessons Jesus Christ came to teach us. Following each of these lessons will make your life better in every way. I literally can't wait to teach each of these lessons. I hope you will not miss a single one.
Mel Brown

2010-04-03T09:28:00.002-05:00

Happy Easter and good morning on this Easter Eve. I am particularly excited about our Easter services at the i wireless Center at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. So many of you have enthusiastically shared with me about friends and family members who have agreed to attend at your invitation, and so many people are finding our invitation cards at check out counters in stores and businesses throughout the Quad Cities. Edgewood's contagious commitment is an inspiration to the entire pastoral staff, especially regarding your willingness to volunteer and serve in so many ways. All-in-all it promises to be a spectacular day which we will be savoring for some time to come. I'm putting the finishing touches on my Easter sermon which is entitled, Resurrection Power. I can't wait to preach this message! Please pray for these things: (1) That the power of God might rest upon me as I preach, (2) That God will pour out His blessings upon every part of this service, (3) That our Lord Jesus Christ will be honored and glorified in every way, and (4) That God will draw the many who have been invited or otherwise considered attending to this service. Our motivating theme is "HE IS RISEN AS HE SAID."
Because He lives,
Mel Brown

2010-03-27T10:37:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of March. Tomorrow is Palm Sunday which marks the beginning of arguably the most important week on the Christian's calendar. Palm Sunday is the gateway which precedes the commemoration of the so called "Passion" of Christ which means the final events in Jesus' earthly life which were characterized by suffering. Matthew 17:12 says, "But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him and did to him whatsoever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands." The Greek word translated "suffer" in this passage also means agony. The Passion of Christ begins with His observance of Passover and Last Supper and continues through His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, betrayal, arrest, trial, and crucifixion. The movie, "Passion of Christ" vividly depicted the anguish and agony suffered by Christ during these events. Holy Week extends from Palm Sunday through the events of His Passion and culminates with His resurrection on Easter. Holy week is an opportunity to once again fully remember and appreciate what Jesus Christ our Savior did to make our redemption possible. Please take advantage through prayer, praise, the study of Scripture, and worship to fully remember and appreciate all He did for us during this year's Holy Week. Romans 4:25 and 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 remind us that both His crucifixion and resurrection were necessary for our salvation.
Tomorrow's sermon is the final message in the series on Proverbs and is entitled, Solomon's Ultimate Secret of Success. I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-03-20T09:22:00.002-05:00

Good morning on this Saturday, March 20th. This morning I awakened to a snow-covered scene from my bedroom window. I confess I'm tired of winter and ready for the change of seasons. Earlier this week when temps reached the mid sixties, I saw several convertibles running around with the tops down and their owners soaking up some of the afternoon sunshine. It made me eager for the arrival of spring. Those warm days turned out to be teasers because we are not yet finished with winter. The change of seasons is referred to in Scripture as a guide to the arrival of certain future events prophesied in the Bible. As most of you know I monitor current events closely to search for evidences and indications of seasonal changes regarding the fulfillment of certain prophecies. President Obama has announced that he is ready to take up immigration reform and senators Graham and Schumer have revealed as part of the process that they are working on a bipartisan effort to introduce a tamper-proof identity card which will contain each individuals DNA. They are proposing that every citizen be required to have such a card and only those who have them will be employed. We will be carefully watching how this "National Security Card" issue unfolds in light of the Biblical prophecies about the Antichrist's future control and monitoring of citizens. The security card could be the precursor.
Tomorrow's sermon is Entitled, A Sure Formula For Defeat. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-03-13T12:03:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, March 13th. An interesting thing happened on my way to writing this blog today. I was in the process of booting up my computer shortly after 7:00 a.m. this morning when I heard a loud boom and the power in my house went off. Shortly thereafter the trucks from MidAmerican Energy came rolling up to fix the problem. They soon determined that it was a serious problem which would require much of the day to repair. I had to revise my schedule to use a different computer at a different location to do my work and the whole process reminded me of an important lesson. We may make all of our plans but they can be forced to change in a moment's notice. I was also reminded how much we take for granted such as the availability of electricity to run our appliances, computers, furnaces, and lights. Our power outage brought about a conversation with my wife about her mother (she's 95 years old) growing up on a farm in Colorado. She read by kerosene lamp, plowed the fields with a horse- drawn single plow, heated the house with a wood stove, walked or rode a horse to get to where she was going, and studied in a one-room country school. My how far we have come in such a short time. I'm grateful for the many things which make our lives so much easier and better today, aren't you? We all have so much for which to be thankful and it is so easy to take so much for granted, isn't it? To God be the glory, great things, He has done! I'd rather live today than any time since the creation of man, wouldn't you?
Tomorrow's sermon is The Most Destructive Force In Relationships.
I'll hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-03-06T07:52:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of March. In today's blog I would like to deal with a potpourri of the news as the late newscaster, Paul Harvey, used to say.
My wife, Barb, continues to recover from both her hand surgery and her broken foot. She is now one week away from no longer being required to wear her special protective boot and four weeks away from having the cast removed from her hand.
Our guest speaker throughout the day tomorrow will be Dan Brown, founder and director of LIFT ministries. Dan will speak in both morning services, teach in the Edge Student Ministries during Sunday school, then speak at 6:00 p.m. to the Gathering in the church multipurpose center.
During the remaining weeks of March, I will be preaching the three final sermons from the series on Proverbs. The schedule of messages will be:
March 14th - The Most Destructive Force In Relationships
March 21st - A Sure Formula For Defeat
March 28th - Solomon's Ultimate Secret Of Success
Our Easter services at 10:00 a.m. at the i wireless Center are shaping up nicely with tremendous enthusiasm and anticipation from people both in and out of the church. It will be an Easter to remember and I would like to thank all who are working so hard to make it a great success. God only knows the impact it will have on our Quad Cities community!
I'll look forward to seeing you tomorrow.
Mel Brown

2010-02-27T02:38:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this last Saturday of February. As I have mentioned during the series of sermons from the book of Proverbs, we have a invaluable privilege to receive guidance on many topics from the wisest of men, King Solomon. His wisdom is personal platinum and his advice is both sage and practical. If you follow the guidance he offers throughout his many proverbs, you will be well served in any application. When Barb and I were on vacation in Florida last month, we took our GPS device with us to provide guidance as we traveled the roads of the Sunshine State. As we pulled out of the airport parking lot, we activated the device to take us to our first destination and that's when the problems began. The device utterly failed us by mislabelling streets, taking us in the wrong direction, and providing inaccurate information. In the more than twelve months we have used the device, that has never happened to us before. After rebooting the device and encountering the same problems, we turned it off for the rest of our trip and relied a Filling-Station Map. Clearly our GPS as a source of guidance was unreliable. The lesson is that the value of any guidance received is only as good as its source. That's why you can't go wrong with the guidance from Proverbs; its source is impeccable!
Tomorrow's message from Proverbs is entitled, Effectively Applying Life's Great Source of Improvement."
I hope I'll have the privilege of sharing Solomon's guidance with you then. I can guarantee you, it will not lead you astray.
Mel Brown

2010-02-20T10:37:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 20th of February. If you are like me you are a big fan of the Olympics, both Winter and Summer. The Winter Games are now in full swing and it is exciting to watch the skiing, skating, sledding, snow-boarding, curling and all the other events. It is especially gratifying to see our fellow Americans winning so many metals. So often a mere fraction of a second makes the difference between winning the gold or silver metal or even being on the podium at all. I often think of all of the sacrifice, hours of practice, and financial expense the athletes spend as they prepare to compete. Then in a matter of minutes or even seconds, the competition is over. The Apostle Paul compared our Christian life and service to Olympic-type athletic contests in which we "run all" holding nothing back and giving our full measure of devotion and effort to living our Christian life and serving our Savior. As we watch the many athletes give so much of themselves to their sports and leave nothing behind on the track, slopes or ice, it becomes a poignant picture of what Christ is asking of each of us. Many who are interviewed after winning assert that it was worth it all. The song writer wrote, "It will be worth it all when we see Jesus. Life's trials will seem so small when we see Christ. One glimpse at His dear face, all sorrow will erase, so bravely run the race till we see Christ." How right that is!
Tomorrow's sermon is Keys To Wise Communication. I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown

2010-02-13T09:53:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, the 13th of February. Thank you for your prayers for my wife, Barb's, surgery and speedy recovery. The surgery on her hand was Monday morning and after a rough few days, she is now feeling much better. The intense pain is considerably improved and she is increasingly her old self. Her greatest current complaint is an upset stomach which I attribute to having to eat my cooking during the last few days, a fate some would say is worse than death! Actually, the stomach upset is most likely the result of the strong medications she has had to take to manage the severe pain she experienced following the surgery. Also, her broken foot continues to heal and she is now half way through the eight week healing process the Dr. said would be required for the bone to mend. Being laid up from the hand surgery has helped the foot because she has been horizontal most of this week. Once again we were reminded of how much we take for granted when it comes to our daily lives. Being mobile, free of pain, and able to take care of our own needs are only a few of the things taken for granted until we lose those privileges. It is in times like these that we are reminded of our many blessings, especially when it involves our health, strength and movement. Why not take this opportunity to count your blessings and give thanks to God. An attitude if gratitude is an antidote to many maladies, physical, emotional, and spiritual.
Tomorrow's message is entitled, Financial Freedom vs. Financial Folly - Part 2. The handout which accompanies the message is a great blueprint for your finances and the resources listed will be an invaluable set of tools to save you money and help you to stretch your dollars. Please make sure you pick up your copy in the church foyer. I look forward to seeing you there.
Mel Brown

2010-02-06T09:36:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of February. I returned early last Monday from two weeks in Florida to cold temperatures and snow on the way. It was quite a welcome back to winter. Barb and I spent the first week with her 95 year old mother and other members of her family in the Orlando area, then spent the second week hosted by Disney with our daughter, Cheryl, and her family. All-in-all it was a great vacation with one exception. The day before we left, Barb broke her foot which necessitated her using a wheelchair for most of the trip (the foot is broken on the side and was too painful to walk on). She is now able to get around in her special boot most of the time and will require a total of 8 weeks of convalescence. We were relieved to learn that her foot would not require surgery and that her progress in healing has been excellent. Thank you for your prayers while we were gone. I am eager to return to the pulpit and will preach on Proverbs 3:9-10, a message entitled, Financial Freedom vs. Financial Folly. Solomon has some powerful things to say about money matters and you won't want to miss his sage wisdom on handling your finances. I hope I'll have the pleasure of seeing you in the services tomorrow morning.
Mel Brown

2010-01-16T10:07:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, January 16th. Many of you have urged me to continue the messages on Proverbs after I return from vacation in early February. I certainly have appreciated the testimonies of how the sermons have proven so helpful in your Christian walk and personal relationships. Tomorrow's message is Making Wise Decisions and The Reward Factor, then Pastor Ed and Pastor Tim respectively will be speaking during my absence. Upon my return, I'll be preaching the following messages from Proverbs:
February 7th - Financial Freedom Vs. Financial Folly
February 14th - Financial Freedom Vs. Financial Folly - Part 2
February 21st - Keys To Wise Communication
February 28th - Effectively Using Life's Great Source of Improvement (Handling Criticism)
March 7th - Dan Brown Guest Speaker
March 14th - The Most Destructive Force In Relationships
March 21st - A Sure Formula For Defeat
March 28th - Solomon's Ultimate Secret Of Success
April 4th - Easter
I hope you will not miss any of these messages because every one of them is the product of the wisest of men, King Solomon giving advice on the various issues of our lives. If we apply his instruction, we will live all live better, happier, productive lives.
Mel Brown

2010-01-09T10:11:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, January 9th. This is turning out to be a cold and snowy winter! Frigid is a good word to describe it. Last fall I was listening to a long-term weather forecast and was pleased to hear the forecaster predict that we were going to have an El Nino related mild winter. Clearly that forecast has not proven to be accurate. Long-term weather forecasts are not the only predictions about the future which are often wrong; the well-known psychics who predict the important events which will take place during the year are only right about 50% of the time at best. The physicist Niels Bohr was so right when he said, "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future." The Biblical standard for a prophet of God was 100% accuracy in predictions about important events made many hundreds of years in the future dealing with specific people, places and events. Hundreds of such predictions made over approximately 1000 years by many prophets of God have been minutely fulfilled - that cannot be explained away by mere chance and can only be possible by the revelation of an omniscient God. The accuracy of prophecies in God's Word which have already been fulfilled can only serve to reinforce our faith in the accuracy of Biblical prophecies yet to be fulfilled. Christ words ring true when He said, "Thy Word is truth" (John 17:17). Tomorrow's sermon from Proverbs is entitled, The Control Which Produces Great Results. I hope you'll be there.
Mel Brown

2010-01-02T10:10:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this first Saturday of 2010. Happy New Year! In studying how they celebrated the new year in Old Testament times, I discovered a series of steps the Old Testament saints followed to get their new year off to a Godly and productive start. First they searched their hearts for things which were dishonoring to God in their lives, confessed them, and placed them before God for His cleansing and forgiveness. As part of the process, they committed themselves to forsake these wayward ways. Next, they examined their interpersonal relationships to see if they have wronged anyone and damaged a relationship by their attitudes and actions. If so they went to that person, asked forgiveness for their offense, and attempted to reconcile with them and restore the relationship. Finally, they reviewed God's blessings on their life during the previous year and spent time praising and thanking God for those many blessings. They therefore healed their relationship with the Lord and others and saw to it that there was nothing between them and the Lord or any other person which was unforgiven or would hinder their spiritual life in the coming year. Why not follow these steps as a personal spiritual prescription for 2010?
It will surely help each of us to start the new year right. Tomorrow's sermon is again from the book of Proverbs and is entitled, Profiting From Conflict. I hope I'll see you there.
Mel Brown

2009-12-19T08:39:00.003-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 19th. In behalf of the entire staff of the Edgewood Baptist Church, I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and remind you that tomorrow's Christmas service will feature a Christmas drama and the final Christmas message, entitled, The Unexpected Expected Birth. This service on the Sunday before Christmas has traditionally been one of the highlights of the entire year in our church and tomorrow's service will be no exception. On Christmas Eve at 6:00 p.m. we'll enjoy the Edgewood family welcoming the arrival of Christmas together with candle-light communion and a special celebration of Christ's coming. Because Lord willing, I will be taking some quality time with my children and grandchildren during the Christmas season, there will be no blog next Saturday, December 26th. Our next blog will be on January 2nd as the first article of the new year.
Mel Brown

2009-12-12T09:38:00.002-06:00

Good morning on this Saturday, December 12th. In today's blog I'd like to correct some misperceptions about the Christmas story as it is commonly represented. Here are some interesting facts about Christmas:
(1) We do not know if Mary traveled to Bethlehem on a donkey, she may have ridden in a cart.
(2) Jesus was probably not born in a shelter as is commonly depicted in the Nativity scene. Animals were often housed in caves and there is a good chance that Jesus was born in one among the animals housed there.
(3) The tradition that Jesus did not cry as a baby is a legend popularized by the song, "Away in a Manger," where the lyrics say, The cattle are lowing; The poor baby wakes; But little Lord Jesus ; No crying he makes. Nowhere does it say that in Scripture.
(4) The three Magi (Wise Men) came to the Nativity. First we don't know how many Wise Men there were. The number three came from the number of three gifts they brought, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. There may have been two, three, or many more who came, and they did not come to the Nativity scene, but arrived later and saw the YOUNG CHILD at the HOUSE.
(5) We do not know the exact date of Christ's birth. Although we have celebrated Christmas for many years on December 25th, most likely He was actually born on another date.
Though tradition has taken some liberty with the facts surrounding Christ's birth, the true facts of His birth fulfilled many prophecies of the Old Testament exactly as they predicted hundreds of years before.
Tomorrow's sermon is a Christmas message entitled, The Cast of Characters, which will be introduced with a drama called, "Change of Heart."
I hope to see you there.
Mel Brown