One important rule for understanding the Bible is that we should read the Old Testament in light of the New Testament. Our text from Sunday, Colossians 2:11–12, helps us understand what circumcision really means. Some Christians believe that circumcision was replaced by baptism. Because circumcision was given to Abraham’s children, they believe baptism should be given to believers and their children. But in Colossians 2:11–12, Paul shows us that circumcision was actually poin

This past weekend, Lakeside Baptist Church celebrated a significant milestone: ten years of pastoral ministry under Pastor Mike’s leadership. In a time of reflection and thanksgiving, I sat down with Pastor Mike to look back on God’s faithfulness, reflect on lessons learned, and look ahead to what the Lord may yet do among us. The following is an excerpt from our conversation. TJ: Mike, ten years is an incredible accomplishment. Looking back over the past ten years, where hav

In this week’s sermon, we were reminded that the Christian life begins by receiving Christ Jesus the Lord. But have you ever stopped to think about why the Bible uses the words “receiving” and "believing" interchangeably? In this blog, I would like to further explore that question. One of the verses that we looked at on Sunday was John 1:12 – “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” Here, the apostle John makes t