Inola church of Christ

08/31/2026

WHAT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST? Want a true answer? It is found in the New Testament of Jesus. It is Heaven's eternal plan, carried out by Jesus Christ. Want to seriously know more. Give this sermon a listen. NOTE: This is the last of my video lessons to be put on FB as an ad. The video sermons will continue to appear on this site, but not as an ad.

08/30/2026

A CRY IN THE EARLY MORNING I think I had just awakened. Soon there would be chores, then breakfast, then off to school. It had been raining a little and I knew it would be messy out in the cow lot. Then, this sound! I had not heard it before. There it is again. I don’t like what I am hearing! Then, again. Listen carefully, oh so carefully! Again! It sounded human! I hurried to the back door of our farm house and looked into the dim light of the dusk of the damp morning air. The sound came again. It was a cry for help, a desperate cry. Mom was in the kitchen, holding her breath, as I ran out the back door. It could only be coming from Dad. Through the yard gate, past the horse trough, through the gate into the cow lot . . . and there was dad . . . laying on the wet ground. “I fell . . . one leg went one way . . . the other went the other way. . . I did a split . . . I think I tore something . . . help me get to the house.” His pain, reflected in the short phrases, broken by gasps for air, holding the breath, then the next phrase. But even more evident was the look on his face. Dad . . . dad . . . I thought . . . what must I do? What can I do?

“Help me up . . . give me some support.” All I could think of was getting him to the house. I reached down to him, put my right arm under his thighs just above his knees. My left arm went around his back under his arms. “Don’t carry me . . . don’t pick me up . . . DON’T CARRY ME . . . Awwwwww.” The pain spoke. I was fifteen, I think. Dad weighed maybe one eighty-five, or maybe one ninety. “Awwwwww.” The pain cried out again. I lifted dad into my arms and started for the house, about fifty yards away. Not once do I remember him being too heavy. Not once did I consider I might drop him. Not once did I think I couldn’t get us safely back into the house. As I think back, I can only imagine that dad must have thought we would both collapse in a heap at any moment. But we didn’t.

We later learned that he had torn a ligament loose in his leg and it took some time to heal. But, oh, that memory! Doing what I could not do under ordinary circumstances. Doing the “impossible.” How did I find that strength, that confidence? Why did I believe this was something I had to do?

One of the most challenging passages in Scripture for me is Ephesians 3:20-21, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Can I really do more to glorify God in the church and in Christ than I think I can? Don’t I know myself? Don’t I know my own abilities and limitations? Can’t I set my own boundaries? Don’t I know when to quit?

Can I do more than I think I can? I did it with dad. Can I not do the same thing for the Lord? What cry of God would so move any of us to go beyond our self-imposed limits? Could it be the look of compassion and love that Jesus gave Peter after his denial? Could it be the plea, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do?” echoing from the cross? Could it be the final exclamation, “It is finished,” as Jesus fulfilled His earthly purpose, fulfilling all the prophecies of His sacrificial death? Could it be the despair of a broken heart that cries out, “What must I do to be saved?” Could it be the joy of hearing, “Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name?” Could it be the new kind of life I have as I walk in the Light of His Word? And ultimately, could it be most wonderful words ears can hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant?” And into all of this is added the strength which He supplies. Isn’t this enough to move us, out of love and gratitude, to do more than “all that we ask and think?” Isn’t it enough?

Bill Keele, D.Min. Inola Church of Christ

To my regular readers. This is the last time I will run an article on the Inola church of Christ page as an ad. I will continue to run my articles, but not as an ad, so the dispersion will be much smaller. Thanks to those who have followed for the years. They money is going in a different direction in our attempts to share the gospel with people in our world.

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08/24/2026

AND WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?
His question appears to wish to avoid the implication of the passage "Love your neighbor as yourself." He seemed to prefer a select group but Jesus gave him an answer he probably never expected.

08/20/2026

TOOTHPICKS! The county health nurse reached for new toothpicks as each student passed under her careful inspection. You see, we were country. Some of us were country poor and didn’t know it. Then there were some of us that were . . . well, we were just children of the forties, nineteen forties that is. We played with cats, dogs, wild rabbits (if we could catch them), baby birds that had fallen out of their nest and maybe a horned lizard or two. This isn’t counting the chickens, pigs, cows, sheep and goats that were a daily part of some of our lives.

The two toothpicks? The health nurse used them to carefully examine our head for lice. It kinda felt good to have your hair moved here and there and get your head gently scratched during the exam. If you were “clean,” you would hear an “OK, next” and you would be sent back to home room. Those two toothpicks would be dropped into the waste basket and two fresh toothpicks would soon be in her hands until the whole line of children had been inspected for lice.

In case you are curious, I never remember having lice or having a note sent home to my parents about anything like that. I think the fact that my grandpa Howell had been a doctor helped my parents be careful about such things. I didn’t escape all country maladies. I did get a tick in my ear and I did get ringworm on the back of my head. Dad borrowed grandpa’s head mirror, found the tick and happily extracted the monster. The ringworm, however, was different. It took a paste made out of warm water and lye soap. The mixture was plastered on top of the site and continued to be so until healing became apparent. Incidentally, ringworm or tinea is a fungal infection and does not involve any worms of any kind. That gadget dad used to get the tick out of my ear was a tremendously helpful instrument. It would allow a bright light source in front of the doctor be focused into an ear or nose. The doctor could look through the hole in the middle of the round mirror and there was no shadow. Indispensable!

There are times in life when we need to use the tools available to examine closely the word of God. Our goal is to know what God wants us to know when He speaks. I am reminded of the passage in Habakkuk 2:20, "But the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him." This is not the silence of meditation. This is not the silence of quiet time. It is a time of silence because when God speaks, we must listen to understand and obey. Our deepest desires must include the desire to know God’s will—to know what He meant when He said it. Today, His voice is brought to us by His son, Jesus, as contained in His New Testament. The Father’s words were given to Jesus. Jesus gave the Father’s words to the apostles and certain inspired ones of the first century. As a result, in the New Covenant of Jesus, we have “everything pertaining to life and godliness” 2 Peter 1:3, “the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints,” Jude 3 and all we need to be “adequate, equipped for every good work, 2 Timothy 3:17.

If your religious convictions do not require you to “always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;” 1 Peter 3:15, repent! This is not your “testimony,” this is book, chapter and verse—God’s word! You must get a “head mirror” and shine it deep into His word. Learn the meaning of words as to what they meant when they were spoken. Expect your life to be changed. Don’t be surprised when must you throw away some of the popular doctrines in Christianity that are preached today. Sometimes toothpicks are enough, but the head mirror and the stethoscope of serious study must be a part of a Christians character and habitual use.

Bill Keele, D.Min. Inola church of Christ

Christians do not defend the faith with testimonies and experiences, they defend it with book, chapter and verse--God's word! Saving faith must be based upon God's word. Faith based on testimony and experience is based upon human reason and emotion. That is not saving faith. Romans 10:17 and John 6:63 and Jude 3.

08/16/2026

SERVANT HEARTS They were not superhuman. They were not puppets in God's hands. They were willing servants--slaves if you prefer--ultimately purchased by the blood of Christ. This would be true of all of them, no matter when they lived--for the grace of the blood of Jesus flowed back as well as forward in time. An essential nature of the servant heart? Faithfulness.

08/13/2026

THE MOHAWK In the 1950’s, this was the name of a haircut that some of the guys and gals were getting. But, at that time, it was unusual at Knippa High for anyone to have a Mohawk.

Now to the story. There was a “new girl” at KHS. She was five grades below me. But, in a school of about 110 students . . . well, everyone notices everyone else, even if only in passing. She was a loner. She didn’t “fit in.” And, she was the brunt of teasing. Finally, one of the guys or group of guys—and I don’t know who—dared her to get a “Mohawk” haircut and if she did, he would get one too. For those of you that are not familiar with this haircut, a strip of hair is left in the middle of the head and the sides are either cut as short as possible but preferably shaved. You can probably guess what happened. Within a day or so, the “new girl” shows up with a Mohawk. I wasn’t around when she confronted the one or ones that dared her, but I do know this. At least, I know it by rumor. The guy or guys who dared her commented about how they didn’t think she would ever do it (never in a million years?). But she did! And, yes, no one in that group got a Mohawk.

I don’t know all of the feelings that may have gone into that incident, but I suspect there were many. My guess is that the “new girl” got the brunt again and felt betrayed, with a large helping of other feelings mixed in. How the others involved dealt with what they had done, I can only guess. The “new girl” didn’t seem to fit in better because of her haircut. Perhaps she wasn’t teased as much, I don’t know. My wife, Kay, guesses she was probably teased more.

Later, when I started college in Fort Worth, I noticed that the trend for that haircut, Duck Tails, Flat Tops and Butch cuts were much more common in that city than in Knippa, Texas!

Almost from the beginning, dedicated Christians didn’t fit in either. They were no longer welcome in the Jewish heritage of their birth. They were welcomed into the pagan culture, but only if they would give up their Christian ways. They definitely were outcasts from emperor worship. The stronger their dedication to God, the greater the separation. Unfortunately, some Christians tried to find ways to placate their Jewish heritage by incorporating various aspects of the Law of Moses into their teaching and practice. Some sought to placate their pagan neighbors by participating in some of their less offensive (?) practices. Others believed they could offer a sacrifice to the emperor and pledge themselves to him as a god—but were relieved of any guilt since they did not really mean it. Then others put their Christianity in their pocket and only brought it into view when it was safe to do so.

However, an even greater temptation seems to be the softening and sacrifice of truth for the sake of peace. For some, this has gotten to this: “I’m a Christian, but I believe that all good people are going to heaven.” Even atheists? “Sure. All good people, have as much right to heaven as anyone.”

There will be numerous times that life will not be fair. There may be times when we may be the outcast. There may be times when compromise and “giving in” seems to be our only hope. But, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”

Question. Have I knowingly given up any Biblical truths in the name of unity, harmony and peace?

Bill Keele, D.Min. Inola church of Christ

When must turns into ought and ought turns into should and should turns into "what does it matter," we may be in serious spiritual danger. Changing doctrinal beliefs is not always a sign of better understand but a sign of compromising on behalf of God.

08/10/2026

PETER, HOW DO I CALL UPON THE LORD TO BE SAVED? And Peter's sermon in Acts 2 provides God's answer. There are three elements to look for: the statement, the question and the answer. There is no mistaking these three things.

08/08/2026

THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME So begins the song written by Albert Brumley in 1937. Born near Spiro, Oklahoma on October 29, 1905, Brumley produced lyrics for some 236 plus songs, provided melody for some 126 songs and edited three hymnals. This hymn, “This World is Not My Home” focuses upon the end of life and the desire for heaven. It reminds one of the words of Paul, the apostle, in Philippians 1:23, “But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better;” (NASB). The chorus continues the theme with these words, “And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”

While I love the song, I have modified the first stanza a bit to describe my own desires in my present circumstance. Does this reflect your thoughts, too? "This world is not my home, I’m just a passing thro’, but Lord, I’d like to stay here longer, if that’s all right with you!” You see, I believe that I still have work to do for my Master. He has given our life on earth purpose. When we put His first things first, we will have a purpose as long as we have physical life. When we make God, His will and His way the center of our life, we will always have a purpose.

I have known people who have made their job, their family, and even “things” the center of their life. What makes me believe this is true? Because when these things are lost and cannot be recovered I have heard them say, “I have no reason to live. I am ready to die.” However, a Christian has the same reason to live as he or she did before the loss of these things, the same fundamental reason for joy, for hope, for peace . . . for living! Christians live for Him! He is the center post of our life. He is the pivot point of our purpose. We died to self. We were buried with Him. We were raised with Him. We were given a new life to live. (Romans 6:3-4). When everything else is lost or falls apart, the center of our life is still solid, still strong.

Should a Christian look forward to heaven? Of course! But meanwhile, we live daily for Him. We have purpose.

Bill Keele, Inola Church of Christ

Many see God's purpose for us is to be happy. May I suggest something greater? God's purpose for us is to be happy because we are saved and following Jesus in His word.

08/02/2026

PAUL, HOW DO I CALL ON THE LORD TO BE SAVED? Did you ever do this? How can I know for sure what you did? Do you ever describe exactly what took place when you called on His name?

07/31/2026

LICKY, LICKY We had been looking for a Shih Tzu pup that we could have in the house. We wanted one that was friendly, smart and would love human company. We heard that this was typical of that breed. We looked and looked and finally found a breeder that was selling Shih Tzus for a price we could afford. I remember that we asked her several times, “How big will this dog grow to be?” The answer was somewhere between eight and ten pounds. Great, we thought. So we drove out to her place and saw some of the cutest puppies you could imagine. We finally selected one and took him home. His name was Nicki! He was all those things we had wanted in a dog. He loved for us to play with him. He loved to sit on the sofa next to us. He loved to jump into our lap. And he was “as smart as a whip.” In fact, we have never had a dog that was as smart as Nicki.

But Nicki had a problem. He couldn’t help it. He got big! When he jumped up to sit in my lap, it felt more like an attack than a friendly greeting. He got so strong that if he wanted to lick your face, you had to work hard to keep it from happening. Fortunately, things worked out for us. We went on vacation and found a family with a young son that was willing to dog-sit for us while we were gone. They did this several times. They sang Nicki’s praises and their son loved him—they would take Nicki. Now we could start looking for a smaller dog and Nicki got a home with a family with a son that loved him. We did miss Nicki, but we were convinced he would be happier in his new home than with us.

One of our church members found out that we were looking for a small “lap dog.” Their daughter raised Yorkies and invited us to take our pick of the last three pups of their dog’s latest litter. So, we went to look at Yorkies. Which one? Which one? Which one? And, actually a little female Yorkie made up our minds for us. Of the three pups, she was the one that saw us and came scampering over to us. The lady said that she had a flaw and the other two didn’t. The flaw? One ear stood straight up and the other bent over. That didn’t matter to us. She picked us and we picked her—Missy or, as I called her MissyDog.

Some people are like Missy. They are open and warm and welcoming. They approach you with a smile even if you are a stranger. You don’t have any reservations about returning a warm greeting, an inquiry about where you are from or even about where you live now. Their inquiry is not one of evaluation—are you good enough for me to talk to you. Rather, their inquiry is one of getting to know you better. Perhaps in the process we will find common threads of interest. Out of that interest, stories can be shared along with joy and laughter as well as sorrow and compassion.

It is opening the door of the heart. It reminds us of 1 Corinthians 13:5 where love is described as not seeking its own. This means we are to be a warm and welcoming person with a genuine interest in others rather than from what we can gain from the relationship. On the one hand, we see people that are warm and welcoming as a blessing in our life. When people come to us with an attitude of what’s in it for me, we are immediately put on guard.

Where does “Licky, Licky” come into this? When we had been gone, even if it was for a relatively short time, Missy wanted to lick our hands in greeting. So, this became a ritual with Missy and us. If she was elsewhere, we would say, “Missy. . . Licky, Licky.” She would come running, give us those licks of greeting and let us know she was glad to see us. I hope that we and our readers are people that others like to see coming their way—but no hand licking. Shaking hands or a friendly hug will do.

Bill Keele, D.Min. Inola church of Christ

Unfortunately, even for people who are warm and welcoming, it is not always easy to be so. This is true, especially when we face those troublesome times that come our way. It is during those times we must remember that circumstance does not take away anything Jesus died to give us. We can give it away, but it cannot be stolen.