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The other day I was talking to a guy about what it means to be a Christian. You know, the standard difficulties. "It means being good." "I mean, why would God allow bad things to happen?" "How is it fair for God to send people to hell who never heard about Jesus?" The regular mistakes and objections. The difficultly (for me) is that there are answers. The problem is that they are not generally emotionally satisfying. I mean, which feels better? "I worked hard and got into heaven" or "By grace you have been saved through faith; and that…  ( Click for more )

Anyone who has read very much of my stuff knows that words are important to me. Not just the recent redefinition of "marriage". All kinds of words. Are we saying what we mean and do our words mean what we intend to express? Over and over it seems that words, in their natural shift, are moving so fast that it's becoming increasingly difficult to actually express what we mean to say. So "love" now means mostly sex and perhaps warm affection. A lot of words have been hijacked from their original meaning to an almost exclusively sexual connotation. But beyond that…  ( Click for more )

How much is too much? Evangelism is a biblical command. And lots of churches are working on it. They have strategies and plans like "Set a goal for the number of professions of faith, conversions, or baptisms." Use more entertaining music, better videos, more inviting language. Build bigger churches with more room and comfort and programs. Because that's what works. One of the worst evangelical strategists was in the Bible. When the jailer asked Paul, "What must I do to be saved?" (which, you must agree, is a soft pitch to any evangelist), he quickly offered,…  ( Click for more )

The Great Commission. It isn't new. Or controversial. Most believers know what it is. "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)

"Yeah, yeah, we get it. Go and preach the gospel." No, that's not what Jesus commanded. That was part of it, but it was much, much more. What's interesting to…  ( Click for more )

The phrase is biblical. "The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds." (Matthew 11:19) So it must be true, right? And, so, if Jesus was the friend of sinners (I'm not so sure these days we'd be willing to extend that totax collectors), what are we doing bringing up the whole "sin issue" these days? We claim to be followers of Christ. Follow Christ. Be a glutton and a drunkard and hang out with sinners! Of course, I'm making a leap,…  ( Click for more )

We feel pretty free here in America. We have plenty of comforts and luxuries. We're doing pretty well. We get to vote on representatives and leaders and laws, even if sometimes the courts counter the people. We mostly get to decide what's good or bad. It's the luxury of a democracy. (Okay, a republic, but you know what I mean.) For some reason, there are lots of people that seem to port that over to places it cannot go. They seem to think that truth is something to vote on. That is silly at best and dangerous at worst. They seem to think that God's views are variable and, let's…  ( Click for more )

If ever there was a completely outdated and therefore useless verse in the Bible, it would be this one, wouldn't it? Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the LORD! (Isaiah 31:1)

Oh, sure, we can translate from "horses" and "chariots" to "humvees" and "jeeps", but, seriously, we (Christians) aren't waging war anymore, so what's the point? If that's what you come away…  ( Click for more )

I know a lady who is a devout Roman Catholic. She is divorced, so she is not really in good standing with the church. And she has met a guy she would like to marry, but the church doesn't allow remarriage, so she's living with him instead. She told me, "I think the church needs to change its position on divorce." It is popular in the media to hear of those (loud) voices calling for the church to change its views on homosexual behavior and other sexual sins. Many have argued that Pope Francis has changed the Catholic view on marriage, divorce, and homosexuality. If not,…  ( Click for more )

There is little doubt that the influence of (genuine) Christianity is on the decline in America today. We all know that. The Pew Research Center and Washington Post (among others) all affirm this. But we don't need polls to see it; it's right there. What's the problem? The answer depends on where you're coming from, of course. If you're one who has never been a part of the Christian world or has defected from it, you might say, "We're waking up to the truth." If you're looking at it from the Christian perspective, however, the answer is different. As it happens, however,…  ( Click for more )

Did you ever see The Final Cut? It was set in the future where everyone (almost everyone) has memory implants that record everything you ever did. Robin Williams plays a "cutter", someone who goes through those records when you die and makes a "final cut" of your life to give comfort and lasting memories for those who survive you. Of course, given the "uncut" version, with all its hidden sins, perversions, activities, and all, this can be quite a daunting task. In this movie, the person for whom Williams was hired to produce a final cut was a guy who…  ( Click for more )

One of the wonderful promises that we have from God is that He forgives and forgets sin. "I am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake, and I will not remember your sins" (Isaiah 43:25). How wonderful! So while I am pretty good at remembering my own sin, God inflicts Himself with some divine form of Alzheimer's, with some sort of supernatural selective recall where not only does He not remember my sin, but He also doesn't pay attention when Iremember my sin. "Dear God," I might pray, "I still feel so bad for that particular sin. Please, please,…  ( Click for more )

What is "objective good"? The term is meant to describe that which is, in and of itself, good. It is intended to stand in opposition to subjective good. This would be that which is good to me (or you, if you prefer). You can see this, right? I remember the story of two villages along the Amazon (which originally was a river in South America, not a book-selling website). A heavy rain came through, and the question was, "Is that good?" The village upriver was delighted. They needed the rain for their crops. The village downstream was devastated. The rain caused a…  ( Click for more )

We all know the evils that people do. There are murderers and rapists. There are those who injure children and those who torture puppies. There are those who rob banks and deal in drugs. We all know of these bad things. It's awful. It seems that we have, on the other hand, a range of "acceptable sins", things that, well, if you're going to get technical, are sins, but, look, everyone does them and, really, they're not that bad, are they? The first one that comes to mind for me is unforgiveness. I mean, if someone does you wrong -- serious wrong -- who would blame you…  ( Click for more )

James writes "to the twelve tribes in the Dispersion", to the Jews who are throughout the world. He has a lot to say about a lot of topics, but in chapter 4 he brings up the problem of infighting. Why do we have conflict? "The reason," he says, "is that you desire and do not have." So we fight to get what we want. Bad. Then, as if in disgust over the whole thing, he writes this: "You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?" (James 4:4). This is an odd concept on the face of it. Since "adultery"…  ( Click for more )

We all know the Great Commission, right? Go and preach the Gospel. Well, no, not quite. Although that might be the answer you will hear ... or even think. No, Jesus said something a little different. "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)

What's my point? Didn't that just say we were supposed to…  ( Click for more )

I remember once hearing a speaker talking about that stunning passage in Paul's first epistle to Timothy where he says that women aren't supposed to usurp authority from men (1 Timothy 2:9-15). "They tell me," he said, "that if we take this passage at face value, it says we should consider women as second-class Christians." He followed that with, "Let me say one thing here before I get to the passage. If that's what it says, then we must." Now, he concluded immediately after with, "Of course, that's not what it says ..." but I found the…  ( Click for more )

This is a striking passage in Ezekiel. It's addressed to "the shepherds of Israel", but I don't think it's very much of a stretch to read it with the New Testament "shepherd" concept in mind (Acts 20:28-31; 1 Peter 5:1-4). "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to those shepherds, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock? You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat sheep without feeding the flock. Those…  ( Click for more )

God told Moses, "All the earth is mine." (Exodus 19:5) God says, "Every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are Mine." (Psalm 50:10-12) Paul says, "From Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen." (Romans 11:36) God starts to sound like a kid who hasn't learned to share ... except that it is all His. A fundamental difference. Authority seems to…  ( Click for more )

Perhaps the single most common complaint against God, both among believers and skeptics, is the complaint, "If there is a God, how can He allow all this suffering?" Oh, maybe it doesn't start with "if" but assumes God. And maybe "suffering" is modified. Maybe it's "evil" or something similar, but you get the idea. Indeed, I would be a little surprised if you hadn't asked something similar. We all come up against it. Jeremiah complained, "Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?" (Jeremiah 12:1)…  ( Click for more )

In Philippians we read, "Make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose." (Philippians 2:2) "Of the same mind." What does that mean? It is a common biblical theme. Jesus said, "... I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me." (John 17:23) In Ephesians we see the unity of the Spirit (Ephesians 4:3) and the unity of the faith (Ephesians 4:13). So, what is this? Some would argue that…  ( Click for more )

What do you look for in a spouse? Is he right for me? Is she good looking? Is he successful? Is she funny? Will he support me? Will she support me? Men and women may have some differences in what they're looking for, and individuals may vary even more widely, but there is, I think, at the bottom a common core. "Will this person help me toward self-fulfillment?" What do you want in a marriage? It probably looks fairly similar. Does he love me like he should? Does she give me what I need? Again, this stuff may vary, so perhaps the best place to look for an answer is in…  ( Click for more )

I'm sure you've heard it; might have even said it. "I love you to death!" An endearing phrase, I'm pretty sure. But can you take it literally? God did. Think about it. Paul said, "We preach Christ crucified." (1 Corinthians 1:23) What a story! He even recognizes the problem. "To Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness." And that's the Christ we preach--crucified. But it's huge. I suspect we suffer from a little nearsightedness and often don't see just how vast God is and, in consequence, how vast our sin is. We stand guilty of Cosmic…  ( Click for more )