One Tuesday in November… After Tuesday night’s election, there were various reactions to the results. Although it was actually before any polls closed, one example of a response is this tweet from someone I follow on Twitter (and who follows me): A US Veteran said he felt betrayed by people voting for Obama. I could…
Category: Pastoral
Is Benny Hinn a False Prophet?
Traditores (Traditores.org) is not a “discernment ministry.” However, I promised friend on Twitter that I would provide evidence that Benny Hinn is a false prophet. Since it’ll be a wee bit difficult to do that in 140 character pieces, I’m writing this post instead. 🙂 First, when I say “false prophet,” I am talking about…
Christian Voter’s Guide Bible Study
For church this morning I threw together a quick Bible study about voting (or not voting). Below is the result with a couple modifications based on member input (or you can download it as a PDF file). The Bible never speaks to voting, but there are plenty of principles in Scripture that can be applied…
A Christian Voter’s Guide (2012)
Back in my original "A Christian Voter's Guide," I suggested some basic principles in deciding how to vote: Vote based on your worldview Some issue are so significant they almost dwarf all others You should be fully convinced in your own mind There is a lot at stake when it comes to the direction our…
Jesus’ 7 “I Am” Statements in John
Jesus’ 7 “I am” statements in John for my Twitter friends Julie and Mike: John 6:35 (ESV) Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. John 8:12 (ESV) Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light…
“We All Need Forgiveness…Forgiveness”
Driving a few hours too long Back in September I had to get our Cube back from South Dakota to New Hampshire, and had decided to take three days for the trek. When it was time to stop on day two, by the time I found what would be a good location, it seemed like…
Pick Me! Pick Me!
One of the reasons I like being around young children is because their excitement is infectious—even when it is about inconsequential or mundane things. Michelle and I have been blessed by the fact that Augie is especially able to appreciate life's ordinary occurrences. There is no school day where he isn't thrilled to hear the…
Psalms == Praise?
During this morning’s “wing-it” Bible study (please note I didn’t say “wing nut” Bible study :-)) the last minute leader, Stan, spoke about the various parts of worship…and signing came into scope. These two verses came up as I did a search in Crossway’s English Standard Version Study Bible on my iPhone: addressing one another…
Forgiveness
I’ll be writing next week’s bulletin article on forgiveness…it was inspired by a passing thought I had during my (work) trip to Hawaii. As a Christian it would almost seem “easy” to say, “Father forgive them, they know not what they do” if someone is torturing and then killing you. I’m sure “easy” isn’t the…
Is free will an illusion?
Interesting video about free will (hat tip to Hot Air): [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q40PfsLxMzY&w=420&rel=0] During college I watched a debate between a Calvinist and a…well…I guess you would say a “non-Calvinist.” In it the Calvinist spent a little time waxing philosophical about free will, and whether it actually exists. Ultimately, he was arguing, you cannot do anything outside…
“Two rival religions? … The real struggle is between Christianity and Post-Christianity.”
There is a very interesting article by Albert Mohler that is worth your time titled, “Two Rival Religions? Christianity and Post-Christianity.” Not only does it explain why it is near impossible to convince a liberal Christian of something outside their worldview, but it (in great respect) puts into words how secularism is itself a religion with…
Righteous Children of God
Okay…at this point I will allow any of you who consider the subject of proper biblical hermeneutics boring to stop reading this article… Still there? 🙂 Well, for those of you who are braving what could be a really dusty, boring dialogue…get a good shot of coffee and let’s dive in! Of course, you may…
Teach Your Children Well
Bill Nye the Science Guy and a child with a verboten name… This was a sermon I planned to preach last week…but postponed it when a difficult verse in Hebrews came up during the previous Wednesday’s Bible study…a verse that warranted a little more attention. Although I do realize that some still disagree with me…
Passing the Point of No Return
Betrayal How many here have experienced a devastating betrayal from a friend, a spouse, or a family member? I suspect if you have spent more than a couple decades on this earth it has happened to you…and that by me causing you to think about it you immediately recalled a taste of the same pain…
Advice from a Stuffed Tiger
At this point I know I am probably famous (or infamous) for using secular songs as jump-off points for my sermons. However, today’s inspiration came from a comic instead of a tune. Any Calvin and Hobbes fans here? Although I wish Bill Watterson was still producing more of that strip, there is something to be…