bosalisbury.com Posts

Published May 11, 2026 by

Jonathan Fisher: Come unto Christ

Sermon #10

Pullquote

  What have you to do then, my friends, but to come? — The table of his love is spread; his feast is prepared, and what is wanting but guests? — Go out quickly, says the master of the feast, go into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. — The servant said, Lord it is done as thou hast commanded and yet there is room! What then says the Lord of the feast? — Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in that my house may be filled —  So tenderly does Jesus invite you, my friends, and will you not come?

… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Published March 30, 2026 by

Jonathan Fisher: Prayer

Sermon #9

Pullquote

Petition is that part of divine worship, which most particularly claims the name of prayer. — In this we call to view our many both temporal and spiritual wants and ask of God a supply. For this we have great encouragement in the word of God, (Ex. 34:6) both from his nature, and his promises; from his nature, because he hath proclaimed himself the Lord, the Lord God, (Ezek. 36:26) merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in goodness and truth.

Comment

This appears to be another sermon which Jonathan Fisher judged a success, since he preached it nine times to the cosmopolitan audiences around Boston , as well as the more rustic folks encountered on his circuit to the Eastern Frontier in Bluehill, downeast in the District of Maine.… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Published March 30, 2026 by

2 Peter 2:10-22 by Dick Lucas

Many Antichrists

You can listen to this sermon at The Proclamation Trust.

Pullquote

This spirit of heresy that is everywhere and is in every age the same. It simply comes out in new dress, new colors, and new form. Hymenaeus and Philetus are long ago dead. We shall never meet people who are precisely the same as them, but we certainly will meet people who have got the family likeness.

Comment

Dick Lucas offers a unique perspective on identifying first-century heresies, false teachers, and “small-a” antichrists—ones that can appear at any time in history. And, I think he’s on to something here.… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Dick Lucas Dick Lucas Sermons

Published March 21, 2026 by

Jonathan Fisher: Free Grace

Sermon #6

Pullquote

There is something in this text very humiliating to the self-righteous, but glorious and soul reviving to the repenting burdened sinner. The self-righteous person is always disposed to claim a title to salvation of his own merit; to claim it in part as a debt due to him for his supposed good works. But by this text we are plainly assured that salvation is wholly an unmerited favor. There is here no room left, but for the deepest humility. Salvation, however glorious a thing, however earnestly we may desire it, is what we never can procure of ourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.

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Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Published March 19, 2026 by

Galatians 3:1-4:20 by Dick Lucas

You can listen to this sermon at The Gospel Coalition.

Pullquote

J.B. Phillips has a nice translation for verse 1. “Oh, you dear idiots” — and I think that by the way shows that despite what people say about chapter 1, 6 to 10 , he’s not angry with them, he’s bewildered by them he’s utterly perplexed that his dear children are playing the fool like this he asks who has bewitched you and some commentators needless to say imagine that some of the missionaries were magicians like the woman in the road where I live who has a car with placards all over it “I believe in magic” — I always think it’s a marvellous testimony really because her car is without doubt the most bashed car in the square and magic has not managed to keep her obviously clear of accidents so it’s a fairly moth-eaten testimony and necessarily one look at her at the wheel is enough to tell you that she’s going to need all the help she gets.

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Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Dick Lucas Dick Lucas Sermons

Published March 18, 2026 by

Jonathan Fisher: Conscious Guilt.

Sermon #5

Pullquote

The keen sensations of pain we have from the effects of material sin, causes the idea of being in the midst of it to strike us with a degree of horror; of being conscious of a pain we are immediately alarmed with the fear of punishment; from the scripture representation of future punishment; we fear that it may be fire; the idea strikes us with such terror as disturbs our peace; to avoid this we seek some gentler name which may serve the present [???] our minds, and give us a little peace. We agree to call it guilt of conscience for conscious guilt, though often very severe, is not commonly in this life so intolerable as burning.

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Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Published March 16, 2026 by

Running Through Camptonville

This is one of my favorite paintings.

A friend posted a video on Instagram of her daughter running by on a dreary winter day — it’s a split-second long. I loved the complementary colors and motion, so I thought I’d try to capture both on a small 12″ X 12″ canvas. It is in a private collection on the East Coast.

You can find my work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/bosalisbury2018/
And, over on Facebook at: Bo Salisbury Fine Art… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Family • Friends Fine Art The Last Postmaster of Camptonville

Published March 15, 2026 by

Philippians 2 by Dick Lucas

You can listen to this sermon at The Gospel Coalition.

Pullquote

The murmuring against God was inevitably that murmuring against the leader. And, of course, that will always be so, won’t it? often the murmuring against the pastor is actually murmuring against the God who sent him to you. So this does give some indication, I think, that Paul plucks these two words out of the Old Testament, which is quite common for him to do, and plants them there on the conscience of the Philippians and says you’re not to be like those men in the desert whom God, in the end, killed and refused to allow them to go into the promised land.

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Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Dick Lucas Dick Lucas Sermons

Published March 14, 2026 by

Jonathan Fisher: The first Things

Sermon #3

Pullquote

God is not the cause of evil or sin. It is true he is the cause of those beings who are the cause of evil, and by not creating them he had have prevented it. But this does not make him properly the cause of evil, but only a permitter of it: to suppose the Deity to be the absolute cause of evil; that evil takes place, as such, through his immediate influence would be blasphemous. But this we may suppose: namely that any plan, like that of the goal ensures the sum of happiness in the universe, notwithstanding all misery it may produce worthy to be put in execution.

… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Published March 14, 2026 by

1 Timothy 1:1-11 by Dick Lucas

You can listen to this sermon at The Gospel Coalition.

Pullquote

We have much cause for alarm, as well, of course, as for gratitude. The last 40 years have been years of enormous evangelical advance. The last 40 or 50 years have seen a complete change. But the question in my mind is, are those people who have been evangelical ministers and engaged in evangelical ministry, are those churches that have been known as evangelical churches, are they now going to continue as such? That’s the question.

Comment

The Pastorals are a particular favorite with Lucas, and I think it is because his focus is and always has been Evangelical preaching and teaching that provokes Christians to carry the Gospel out into the world.… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Dick Lucas Dick Lucas Sermons

Published January 31, 2026 by

Fathers of an Extensive Country: The Lives and Ministries of Daniel Merrill and Jonathan Fisher

Fathers of an Extensive Country
Fathers of an Extensive Country: The Lives and Ministries of Daniel Merrill & Jonathan Fisher

A few years ago, Ryan Rindells and I decided to write a book about the complicated friendship between Reverend Jonathan Fisher of Blue Hill, Maine and his neighbor, Reverend Daniel Merrill of Sedgwick. In the book, you will find this quote from a contemporary, Ebeneezer Price, in a letter to Fisher:

We are, also in a sense, tho young, the Fathers of an extensive Country – our Faithfulness, & setting a pious example, will effect [sic] the present, & doubtless generations to come.[1]

Here is our synopsis of the book:

A narrative lens can illustrate and illuminate a historical period’s unique significance.

… Read the rest

Daniel Merrill Jonathan Fisher Jonathan Fisher Sermons

Daniel Merrill Jonathan Fisher

Published September 12, 2025 by

Who Is Dick Lucas?

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Published June 1, 2025 by

Nevada Club

It seems like forever ago when I walked into downtown Grass Valley for their annual classic car show, snapping away with my Nikon. When I got home and looked at all the photos I shot, it just seemed natural to paint the passage of time. I had to move some cars parked out front, but that guy actually walked out and started taking photos on his phone. Nevada Club is acrylic on canvas and is part of a private collection.

You can find my work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/bosalisbury2018/
And, over on Facebook at: Bo Salisbury Fine Art… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published January 14, 2024 by

Faithfulness: Keep Your Promises

For the Christian, failure to keep a vow or promise or covenant or contract is not merely a moral or ethical issue but a Gospel issue. This notion is on the mind of the apostle Paul when he pivots upon Galatians 3:15 to demonstrate that believers can rest their full weight on the Gospel because it stands upon the promises God made to Abraham — promises that can never be set aside or amended.

To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. (Galatians 3:15 ESV)

We live in a culture that rests upon many Biblical values, so even non-Christians expect people to keep their agreements.… Read the rest

Church • Ecclesiology Gospel-Centered Religion

Published March 15, 2023 by

Fable Coffee

I wanted to capture a downtown Grass Valley scene without the Del Oro Theater in it. So, here is my acrylic on canvas painting of Fable Coffee: 12″ X 16″. It took years, but I was finally able to sell it to a good friend and fellow painter.

You can find my work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/bosalisbury2018/
And, over on Facebook at: Bo Salisbury Fine Art

… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published October 20, 2022 by

Pool Day With Olive and Sylvie

Olive and Sylvie Pool Day

I thought I’d try my hand at hyper-realism, but I don’t think acrylic paint was the best choice. Live and learn, they say. I painted this from a photo of Olive and Sylvie I took at the Aquatic Center. It’s a 40″ X 40″ canvas, and it has found a home.

You can find my work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/bosalisbury2018/
And, over on Facebook at: Bo Salisbury Fine Art… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published May 1, 2021 by

Jesus Is Not Enough

The Pleasures of God

Some of the most heartbreaking episodes in my Christian experience have been encountering friends who have become disillusioned with the Gospel, defeated in their spiritual life, or disappointed with the church — they concluded, “Jesus really isn’t enough for me.” They don’t ever say that, of course — various reasons or rationalizations might be articulated, but no matter the story, the bottom line is Jesus wasn’t enough to sustain them in the Christian life. Having passed through a particularly difficult event like a church split, physical hardship, betrayal, a devastating personal failure, or an overwhelming test of obedience, these once enthusiastic followers of Jesus are left joyless, crushed, and hopeless. … Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Gospel-Centered

Faith Gospel Jesus John Piper Unbelief

Published March 31, 2021 by

Instagram Art

I find constant inspiration for painting from Instagram, where I discover some very fine compositions by friends and family. When I am working on a large painting or feel uninspired, I go to my collection of Instagram finds and work on a small piece or study. Recently, my friend Jonah posted a self-portrait of himself that was wispy and mysterious. I began by painting his portrait in color, as I imagined him without filters, and then glazed over it until I achieved the effect I wanted. Here is an example of the first stage along with the finished vignette.

You can find my work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/bosalisbury2018/… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published March 15, 2021 by

What Happens When Christians Don’t Keep Their Word?

Graphic Courtesy of The Brick Testament

I heard a sermon a while back on Acts 4:32-5:11, the account of Ananias and Sapphira:

There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

… Read the rest

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Published March 1, 2021 by

My Grandparents

Going through family photos, my eyes landed on one I had never seen before. My grandfather Arnold, is on the left with my grandmother Louise in the center. Her twin Lucille is on the right waving her kerchief. They are standing near the San Gabriel River in El Monte California, at the family ranch. The original photo was a sepia and I wanted to preserve that look while surrounding them with a sky blue. This is oil and acrylic on canvas.… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published January 1, 2021 by

A New Year and Another Theological Thing: Universalism

Daffodils Keep Coming Back

It’s a thing. It’s a perennial. It’s a recurring fascination. Like Daffodils springing up along our local highways in February, some Evangelical somewhere escapes the bonds of fundamentalism, gains new insights and clarity concerning what Jesus and the New Testament actually taught about this or that long-held, cherished doctrine or confession. Then, rather than move along down the road to enlightenment and into their newfound freedom from a dark, dank doctrinal prison, these initiates feel compelled to set the rest of us straight and usher Christ’s church into the hidden knowledge that will set the captives free from dogmatism (such a shame, too, because as Dorothy Sayers once observed The dogma is the drama).… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Gospel-Centered Leadership Religion

Published September 5, 2020 by

Teacher runs race, reclaims her life – San Antonio Express-News

Lisa Hunt didn’t win the Rock ’n’ Roll San Antonio Half Marathon on Sunday, but then again, she’s not dead either. That was a possibility for the 44-year-old teacher back in 2012, a few weeks after she ran in the 2011 version of the full marathon. You and I might view Hunt’s journey after that as either a mysterious tragedy that altered Hunt’s life forever or as intangible proof the human spirit cannot be destroyed.

Read about Lisa Hunt here: Teacher runs race, reclaims her life – San Antonio Express-News.… Read the rest

Media Coverage Necrotizing Fasciitis

Published August 22, 2020 by

My Dad’s Advice

I was reflecting on my dad, who passed away in 1996. I think about him often — probably every day. He was a memorable man and I’m reminded of him every time I look at my arms and hands. Back before the entire world owned smartphones, taking and developing photos was a bit of a pain. So, I don’t have many pictures of my father. This is how I remember him.

As a kid growing up in Whittier, CA, some of my friends absolutely hated their parents and, from what I could tell, usually for no good reason, if it’s reasonable to hate someone at all.… Read the rest

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Published May 14, 2020 by

Quarantine

Quarantine

This was a small painting born from sheltering in place during the early months of the COVID 19 pandemic.

The painting began years ago as one of my first attempts at oil on a black gessoed canvas. My first attempt was dismal. So, I decided it would be an abstract, but that became horrible. So, I thought I would experiment with collage on oil paint using pages from an old Bible and dried flowers.

I still wasn’t happy with it until I had the gas mask idea, inspired by current events. A friend from the coast really liked it — now, it’s his.… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Fine Art

Published April 11, 2020 by

Family, Finances, and the Faith: Nepotism In The Church

Let’s face it, Jesus says some hard things. One of the most offensive statements in the Gospels is this winnowing word about families and disciples or followers of Jesus:

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26 ESV)

First, what is Jesus not saying? He isn’t barring or shutting anyone out of the Kingdom. Rather, He’s speaking the language of common sense along the same lines as this statement:

No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion Church • Ecclesiology Leadership Planting