By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: I Thessalonians 2:13-20    

The boldness and courage of the Ukrainian people are currently being challenged. Only time will tell where this challenge leads. One Ukrainian mother was reported to have said that the Ukrainian people would fight for their freedom and for democracy “to their last blood.”

The question arises: are we as courageous and as bold in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ? We do not fight for souls with bullets and guns, but with prayer, grace, love, courage and boldness. [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: I Thessalonians 2:1-12    

What if you found a treasure that would make you both rich and that would change the world? But it wouldn’t make you rich unless you set free that gift to change the world. This is the gospel (II Corinthians 4:7). The gospel lavishes on us the riches of God’s grace in Jesus Christ, but it must also be shared in order to have its greatest impact on us and the world. 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12 reminds us of the keys to sharing the gospel. [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: I Thessalonians 1:1-10    

Have you ever filled out a job application? More than likely you needed a list of references. You would select those who know you best, trusted people, friends, or co-workers. These references would vouch for your character and work ethic. As the Apostle Paul begins writing 1 Thessalonians, he introduces two of his co-workers, Silvanus and Timothy, vouching for their spiritual credentials, emphasizing those spiritual characteristics that vouch for spiritual maturity and genuine faith.

Partnership, I Thessalonians 1:1. Paul introduces Silvanus and Timothy as gospel partners. They were not only partners with the believers at Thessalonica, but partners with “God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ” (verse 1). Further, the currency of this partnership was “grace” and “peace.” In essence, Paul wanted to make sure that we understand that gospel partnership is an essential characteristic that recommends us to God, the Church, and the world. Though different in giftings and aptitudes, Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy were not adversaries, but gospel partners.  [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 9:4-19

We do not like being honest. Even the most honest person in the world has a difficult time in being honest about their own sinfulness. We are honest with God when we confess our sins and His Lordship over all things (Romans 10:9-13). Put simply, to confess is to agree with God. When we confess our sins, we are agreeing with Him as to who we are apart from Christ. To confess that Jesus is Lord is to agree with God that He alone is Master and Lord of all things.

After seeing several remarkable visions concerning the future, Daniel is given a vision of God’s mercy and grace. Jeremiah (25:11-12) and Daniel (9:1-2) are envisioning the end of the Jews’ 70 year-long exile. Daniel repents of his sin and that of his people, confessing the Lordship of God over all things.    [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 7:1-14   

Question: If you could know exactly what was going to happen tomorrow, would you want to know? 

Some might say, “Yes, I would want to know so that I could better prepare for what is coming my way.” Others might say, “No, I don’t want to know because knowing would increase my anxiety and stymie my faith.”

We cannot know the future. Yet we serve a God who knows the future. He is omniscient – He knows all things about all things past, present, and future. He not only knows the future, but He “makes” and “designs” the future so that His purposes might be accomplished. As Daniel 7:21 states that God “changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.” As the old saying goes, “Has it ever occurred to you that nothing has ever occurred to God?” [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 6:10-24    

According to GodTube.com, John H. Sammis was the writer of the Christian hymn Trust and Obey in 1887. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1846, Sammis died in 1919 in Los Angeles, Calif. 

He was a businessman and a preacher for the Presbyterian church. He taught at Biola University.

The inspiration for this hymn began in 1886 when the composer of the music, Daniel B. Towner, was the music conductor during one of Dwight L. Moody’s revivals.  [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 4:28-37

God hates pride (Proverbs 6:16-19). In fact, James 4:6 notes that God resists the proud. So, let’s be clear. God doesn’t just hate pride; God hates the proud person. This is strong, but biblical language. Pride is not some disembodied sin that someone, somewhere, in another time and place commits. Pride is a sin committed by a person. Pride is being self-sufficient to a fault; pride is arrogance wrapped up in a ‘know it all attitude’; pride is not needing God even when we say that we do. Pride puffs up our self-esteem and destroys relationships. Whereas godly confidence is grounded in a reliance upon God, pride is self-centered.  

Pride declared (Daniel 4:28-30). Nebuchadnezzar was a proud man. Twelve months after Daniel interpreted two dreams for him that made him appear powerful and supreme (Daniel 5), Nebuchadnezzar was “walking on the roof of the royal palace in Babylon,” exclaiming to himself that he alone had vast power and majestic glory (Daniel 4:30). It’s one thing to think it; it’s quite another to say it aloud.   [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 3:14-26    

The “Pledge of Allegiance” has become a controversial thing in recent years. For some, to pledge allegiance to a nation they feel has been unfair to them is beyond the pale. 

For most, however, the pledge to a nation that has given them so much is a “no brainer.” The point is clear — a person pledges allegiance to that which they value or deem worthy. Allegiance has a companion word — alignment. We align ourselves squarely with what we have pledged our allegiance to. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego’s allegiance to God and His truth caused them to align themselves with practical holiness — prayer and theological conviction.   [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Daniel 1:8-21

We are amid a massive cultural shift. Things that were once familiar are now strange; truths that were once cherished are no longer applauded. In his book, Reinventing Liberal Christianity, Theo Hobson traces the collapse of Western civilization through three steps: (1) What was universally condemned is now celebrated; (2)  What was universally celebrated is now condemned; (3) Those who refuse to celebrate are condemned. In other words, we are “behind enemy lines” in the sense that the Christian faith is no longer the favored worldview in the public square. How are we now to live? Just as Daniel did when he found himself in a foreign land — with integrity and conviction.

A Commitment Expressed, Daniel 1:8-10. As Daniel was taken into Babylonian captivity he was put to the test. Nebuchadnezzar demanded that the best of the Hebrews men be selected to be reeducated and to be put on a different diet. He wanted them to conform to the “Babylonian way.” But Daniel determined “not to defile himself” (v. 8). Daniel wasn’t belligerent, but he was determined to keep himself holy. This was his minor act of rebellion that ended up having a major impact. [Read more…]

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor, Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville

Focal Passage: Ezekiel 16:20-21; 23:36-39; Psalm 139:13-16   

Dictionary.com defines the term “value” as: something that is of relative worth, merit, or importance. We apply the term “value” to many things. We value our money, time, families, and friendships. We value life. 

But what happens when a person (or an entire culture) stops valuing the right things and starts valuing the wrong things? This is exactly what has happened in Western civilization (Europe and North America). Rather than valuing life, we have become a “culture of death” that no longer values the very things that give life. But we are not the first to embrace such a deadly posture against God and the life He gives. [Read more…]