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I have a relationship with Jesus Christ. That is what defines me as a Christian. I value this relationship, so I pursue it, nurture it, enjoy it, embrace it. I look at the Word of God to learn about the Word made flesh. I seek to obey Him more because He said if I love Him I will obey Him. This is a big part of my life, this relationship. Then I hear others who have this relationship. Christian music, Christian speakers, Christian bloggers, Christian "social media" -- all contribute to the view that all those others have of their relationship with Jesus. And sometimes…  ( Click for more )

James wrote, "A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways" (James 1:8). Double-minded. It seems to be the standard rather than the exception. I was looking at a display of works by a local artist. On a plaque was a quote from the artist. "I am certain that there is no absolute truth," the artist assured us. She went on to say that she wanted her work to cause people to see the beauty all around us without any allusion to truth. That is what I call "double-minded." She is absolutely certain of the absolute truth that there is no absolute truth.…  ( Click for more )

"She was a Christian, but she was distraught about her daughter's death all those years ago. 'Why would God take my child?' she asked me. I was able to give her comfort. 'It wasn't God's will,' I assured her. 'God never wills that kind of thing.' She felt much better." It was an actual discussion I heard. It was an actual position that was taken. And, I'm fairly certain, it was not a minority view. The speaker was a Christian, and I'm sure that many agree. God doesn't will that kind of thing. I am, however, completely baffled by "She felt much better." Years…  ( Click for more )

It seems to be a common idea these days. We ought to avoid conflict. The mentality of earlier America, for instance, when "Live free or die" was an actual motto and people thought that fighting for freedom was noble is no longer "in". We prefer now a "kinder, gentler" perspective. Do not take up arms. Do not go to war. There isn't anything worth fighting about, at least not seriously. Well, at least not Christians. Christians are not supposed to fight. You know, like the Bible says: "Wrestle not." Except that's not what it says. Here's what…  ( Click for more )

The Episcopal Church is about to revise the Common Book of Prayer to eliminate God as "Father" -- to make God gender neutral. It isn't new; the Church of Sweden has already discouraged the use of "Lord" and the male pronoun in reference to God. The point in these efforts is not to make our references to God more biblical or more in line with how He has revealed Himself to the human race. It is ostensibly to be "more inclusive," to offer a "variety of gender-neutral options," to "modernise." It is nothing but an assault started by some…  ( Click for more )

Irony is defined as "the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning." If you look around at current events, you'll find lots of illustrations. Often they are humorous; not always. This idea -- words used that end up expressing the opposite -- is a key component of the Cross. Yes, that Cross. Think about it. One Christian song speaks of the irony of the One who made the seas crying out, "I thirst." I think that just touches the surface. The Cross represents the darkest moment in human history. Human beings…  ( Click for more )

We all know that our world has decided to modify, over the past 60 years or so, the definition of marriage. This gradual redefinition has left it essentially undefined. Oh, yes, we might agree that it's some socially recognized legal contract between spouses that establishes rights and obligations, but it's all very vague. It is no longer, for instance, an actual union as it had been considered for so long because dissolving a union is no small issue but we're quite happy with "no fault divorce". And "monogamy" was all well and good for awhile, but we've headed…  ( Click for more )

"Angels we have heard on high," the song says. In fact, it is most likely that we have not heard them. Indeed, I would suggest that we know very little about the ever popular "angel" and his nemesis, the demon. What does the Bible tell us about these beings? First, let's clear the confusion. Here's what is not true of angels or demons. Angels are not people who have died and gone to heaven. (In Hebrews 12:22-23 there are two groups in heaven. There are angels and there are "the spirits of righteous men made perfect". Two distinct groups.) Every time…  ( Click for more )

There is a perception among many believers that faith and reason are distinct and separate. I disagree for biblical reasons. There is, on the other hand, a perception on the other side that would argue the reverse. If we can only provide the most coherent, most cogent, most rational, most well-constructed line of reasoning, we should be able to convince people to come to Christ. The Middle Ages are sometimes referred to as "the Age of Faith". The term, of course, was coined by the philosophers of the time known as "the Age of Enlightenment" -- roughly the middle…  ( Click for more )

We have all heard of "the kingdom of God". The phrase is not new to us. Matthew refers to it as "the kingdom of heaven", but it's the same thing. It is almost exclusively a New Testament concept, an idea that had its launch, so to speak, in Jesus's first teachings: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15). We've all heard of this kingdom. But ... what is it? In Jesus's time the kingdom of God was "at hand" and "near", but apparently not actually present. He said, "I…  ( Click for more )

There are lots of sins in the Bible. (Who knew, right?) And we know that all sins are equal in the eyes of the Lord, right? Well, perhaps not. All sins are equal in the sense that all sins deserve God's judgment, but I don't think it is true that all sins are of equal weight. We know this because of things like Jesus's words to the cities where His works had been displayed without repentance. He told them that "it will be more bearable on the day of judgment" for the cities that would have repented had His works been done there (Matthew 11:20-24). And John writes about…  ( Click for more )

In George Orwell's 1984 the main character, Winston Smith, worked for the Ministry of Truth, the government organization that was constantly in the job of rewriting history in order to control people and thought. One of the Party slogans was, "Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past." The Ministry of Truth controlled the past (and, therefore, the present and future) by rewriting it. Turns out, it's not as much of a fiction as we might think. Rewriting history has become more common these days. Some try to tell us the Holocaust…  ( Click for more )

The Peanuts character, Linus, is famous for his statement, "I love mankind; it's people I can't stand." It's humor. That's how humor works. You set up a thought -- "I love mankind" -- and then you take a sudden, unexpected turn. Funny stuff. But not always. Like the parallel version, "I love Christ; it's Christians I can't stand." Oh, of course, it's not generally laid out that way. It's usually more subtle. "I love Jesus, just not the people who ... make up His church." How does that work? How does one love God but not the people of God?…  ( Click for more )

God is described in Scripture as having all knowledge (Omniscient) (Psalm 136:1-6,16; Psalm 147:4-5; Isaiah 46:9-10; 1 John 3:20; etc.), having all power (Omnipotent) (Matthew 19:26; Revelation 1:8; Revelation 7:11-12; Revelation 19:6; Psalm 147:5; Jeremiah 32:17,27; Job 37:23; Daniel 4:35; etc.), and having all authority (Sovereign) (Psalm 115:3; Proverbs 16:9; 1 Chronicles 29:11-12; 2 Chronicles 20:6; Job 42:2; Psalm 103:19; Psalm 135:6; Ephesians 1:11; Romans 9:21; Lamentations 3:37; Proverbs 16:33; etc.). If you were paying attention to the…  ( Click for more )

In the book of Job we read that Satan tested Job because of a challenge from God and took away Job's property and children (Job 1). What a blow! He lost everything. He lost everything at Satan's hands under God's supervision (Job 1:12). So, of course, Job was upset with God, right? Right? Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. He said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD." Through all this Job did not sin nor…  ( Click for more )

For reasons beyond me, there are those who believe that Genesis is myth. Many limit it to Genesis 1-11, which only confounds the problem. What makes Genesis 11 myth but Genesis 12 history? The language didn't change. The approach didn't change. And what "myth" includes "these are the generations of ..." (Genesis 5)? Worse, what does it say about the rest of the biblical authors? When God spoke at Sinai, He indicated, "In six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them" (Exodus 20:11), but we're expected to conclude that…  ( Click for more )

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For His invisible attributes, namely, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were…  ( Click for more )

In Paul's second letter to the church at Corinth, Paul was concerned that they were too susceptible to error. I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. (2 Corinthians 11:3-4)

Interesting. By what means might they be led astray (as the serpent…  ( Click for more )

We know better. We truly do. We know Jesus is the only way to be saved (John 14:6). We know "there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) We know we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and that any other gospel is a false one (Galatians 1:6-9). We know all this. And still ... we walk into walls all the time. We think that good works will save. Oh, most of us don't run afoul of that too often. Still, we tend to think that if we're good we ought to get rewarded…  ( Click for more )

Everybody knows that boys need dads. They need the male example. They need the influence of a loving male in their lives and in their homes. Well, everybody that is thinking clearly. And everybody knows that daughters need mothers. Like boys and their dads, girls need the influence and example of a loving mother. In both cases, they will perceive that they are supposed to be the boys their fathers are or the girls their mothers are. Conversely, the epithet "mama's boy" is not intended as a compliment. Studies have shown that boys raised by a single mother have more adverse…  ( Click for more )

We all know it. There is a morality problem in our nation ... in our world. All I have to do is mention Harvey Weinstein and we will all nod and say, "That's a bad thing." We are constantly flooded with repeated and new accusations of sexual abuse and harassment and it just doesn't seem to end. It is positively immoral. There is, however, a problem here. We are all in agreement that it is immoral while we aren't very much in agreement just what constitutes "immoral". The difficulty, you see, is that we can't agree on a definition of "morality." Do…  ( Click for more )

Jim Elliff wrote a piece asking, "Why do Some Pastors Deliberately Avoid Teaching Doctrine?" He suggested that "many pastors" have begun to intentionally avoid teaching doctrine. Why? The aim is to encircle more people for our churches by minimizing that which limits us. "The problem is," he says, "it works." Why? "Doctrine does narrow things." And, frankly, there are fewer attracted to sound doctrine than to "tolerable beliefs". The Bible favors doctrine. Paul told the young pastor, Timothy, Now we know that the law…  ( Click for more )

The phrase is actually an Islamic phrase. It refers to Jews and Christians (and a group of people known as Sabians). "The Book" in view, then, would be the Bible. For Jews, it would refer to our Old Testament and for Christians it would be the whole Book. Christians embraced the term in later days declaring, "Yes, indeed, we are people of the Book." Of course, modern Christians are often in disagreement on this point. Modern Christians (self-professed) might consider themselves "religious, but without all that Bible nonsense." They would think it's…  ( Click for more )

One of the disagreements between the Protestants and the Catholics was the issue of assurance. The Reformers believed that God cannot lose any of His own, that He sustains them all to the end. The Catholics were appalled. In the Council of Trent they said, "If any one saith, that he will for certain, of an absolute and infallible certainty, have that great gift of perseverance unto the end, unless he have learned this by special revelation; let him be anathema." (The Council of Trent, Session 6, CANON XVI) Do you believe that it is possible to know that you have eternal…  ( Click for more )