Head-dibs

A couple of weekends ago I was speaking with a man who brought up an objection to the gospel that is very, very common. The conversation reaches a point that goes something like this: “God commands that all men everywhere repent,” I say. “But, God forgives and is merciful and gracious,” comes the reply “Yes, He is, to those who repent,” I respond. “Are you reading ‘The Holy Bible’? Show me your Bible! Is it ‘The Holy Bible’? You are not reading from the New Testament. You are reading from the Old Testament. The God of the New Testament is a God of grace, not like the wrathful God of the Old Testament,” one objects. “Regardless of where I am reading, you will find the grace of God in the Old Testament as much as you find the wrath of God in the New Testament. Here, let me show you . . .” and I open the scripture. “You are twisting the Bible around . . .” and the person usually walks off. I am amazed (and not surprised) that those who seek to justify themselves be...

A few years back we sought to expand our street ministry beyond simply doing the work of evangelism by holding a Bible study in a local coffee shop. Many weeks we enjoyed studying through the Gospel of John as we sat outside, drinking coffee or tea. Our study grew more exciting when those sitting nearby became engaged by what they were overhearing. Once we had as many as eleven people gathered around (these tables sat only sat four people per table)! That particular day, one fellow stayed after and poured out his heart, expressing grief over his sexual immorality and dissatisfaction of working as a bouncer at a local gay bar (located, incidentally, about a block down the street from this very coffee shop). One day, as we were just getting our study started, a personal familiar to me came up the sidewalk—a woman who had once been in my Adult Bible study class about two years previously. I remember her distinctly because as we studied the Gospel of Mark verse by verse, she sudden...

I was handing out gospel tracts during a visit to the grocery store (I come close to emptying my pockets sharing the gospel this way. I primarily keep my eye out for bored people who are tagging along while someone else does the shopping—they would do nearly anything to pass the time, so gospel tracts are a great diversion). I rounded the corner and passed by a small elderly African-American woman pushing her basket. I extended a gospel tract to her, “May God bless you as you read this.” She put her hand out to take it, and asked, “What is it?” “It’s a gospel tract,” I replied, then repeated, “May God bless you as you read this.” This dear old lady snapped her hand back like I had slapped it and turned her head as if I’d suddenly gone invisible. “No! I don’t want that from you!” She quickened her pace away from me. My heart broken from her reaction, I was nearly weeping when I spoke a half-hearted “Good evening” to her. I don’t know how to wish someone’s grandmother (or great-grandmoth...

Tertullian (160 - 220 A.D.) wrote the following in his "Apology," addressing the ignorance of the Roman authorities behind the unjust persecution of Christians: " We lay this before you as the first ground on which we urge that your hatred to the name of Christian is unjust. And the very reason which seems to excuse this injustice (I mean ignorance) at once aggravates and convicts it. For what is there more unfair than to hate a thing of which you know nothing, even though it deserve to be hated? Hatred is only merited when it is known to be merited. But without that knowledge, whence is its justice to be vindicated? For that is to be proved, not from the mere fact that an aversion exists, but from acquaintance with the subject. When men, then, give way to a dislike simply because they are entirely ignorant of the nature of the thing disliked, why may it not be precisely the very sort of thing they should not dislike? So we maintain that they are both ignorant while they...

"Have you ever heard of anyone in history being imprisoned or executed for distributing copies of Grimm’s fairy tales? What would you say if you’d heard that copies of The Iliad and The Odyssey had been banned in Saudi Arabia and North Korea? Imagine people trying to smuggle copies of Hans Christian Andersen’s works into China? Such ideas are comical, but the Bible, which has been called a mere collection of myths and fairy tales, has suffered all of these fates. Throughout history and even today, copies of the Bible are banned and burned, and those possessing it are persecuted and imprisoned. There’s something about this ancient book that threatens and frightens those in power, especially those who use power to oppress people weaker than themselves. And they have every reason to be frightened.” Eric Metaxas, Everything You Always Wanted to Know about God (Colorado Springs, 2005), page 155. (ht: Ray Ortlund) Other "Randoms": Even literature has its " one hit wonders...

Reading through the account of Polycarp’s martyrdom reveals several observations concerning the conflict of worldviews and the impact of truth. Polycarp was killed for being a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, killed in the name of religion. The persecution of believers today occurs because of the same conflict the world showed against truth--the same hostility that even our Lord Jesus Christ faced in his arrest, trial and death. Truth wrecks the principles of religion because truth is rooted in the person of Lord Jesus Christ, not in a man-made system of people who think they understand God. Pragmatism as a worldview results in many, many problems, because it attempts to establish truth in a "user-friendly" fashion. When two people stand shoulder to shoulder in the name of pragmatism or religious tolerance, the systems fail before it ever begins; for example, biblical truth stresses that man is the crown of God's creation, so for one man to "lift his hand" aga...

My goodness, how times have changed. One of our children was lamenting that her iPod only holds a few thousands songs and a certain number of videos. My wife and I looked at each other, remembering how we once conquered the world with a Walkman and a cassette tape “back in the day.” Remember when those who had tattoos were to be avoided, and those who had them would never be caught dead saying the word “church”? Now there exists a Church of Body Modifications. Did you know that in the early 1900’s doctors who studied so-called “diseases of the mind” were called “alienists?” Today we call them “psychologists.” The ancient Romans, who once worshipped a copious number of “gods” had a name for people who did not acknowledge Ceasar as “god.” They were called “atheists” and reserved the term primarily for Christians! A Christian leader by the name of Polycarp lived about 75 - 155 A.D. When he was 86 years old, he was arrested by the Romans and brought to trial because he would not recant his...

A witness of the gospel lays his life down because of the gospel—this is inherent by the very word from which we derive our word for “witness” (“martyr”). A martyr is a witness and this requires faithfulness to the very end, whatever that may be. When we witness for Christ, we are taking a stand against all that is not for Christ; contrariwise, a witness for all that is not Christ is setting himself against all that is Christ. There is no middle ground. Flesh and blood is not our enemy. The Lord Jesus Christ spent His flesh and blood to redeem flesh and blood that will repent. Our witness of what Christ accomplished is to flesh and blood, so this is not our enemy. Our adversary is the devil, who is always opposed to Christ and His glory. John’s revelatory vision communicates several vital principles in this regard that we would do well to attend. Revelation 12 describes the vision of a great red dragon with seven heads, seven crowns, and ten horns. This dragon is standing before a woma...

Justin Martyr (100 - 165 A.D.), an early apologist for the Christian faith, wrote in Discourse to the Greeks , "These have conquered me – the divinity of the instruction, and the power of the Word: for as a skilled serpent-charmer lures the terrible reptile from his den and causes it to flee, so the Word drives the fearful passions of our sensual nature from the very recesses of the soul; first driving forth lust, through which every ill is begotten – hatreds, strife, envy, emulations, anger, and such like. Lust being once banished, the soul becomes calm and serene. And being set free it returns to Him who made it. For it is fit that it be restored to that state whence it departed, whence every soul was or is." The theology of war (James 4:1-4) helps us understand that lust is the driving force behind the nations casting off the rule of God. This is not a lust limited to sexual immorality and can include lust for power, wealth, and kingdoms (to name a few). Lust is a complete...

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"While that great body [of the Roman Empire] was invaded by open violence and undermined by slow decay, a pure and humble religion gently insinuated itself into the minds of men, grew up in silence and obscurity, derived new vigor from opposition, and finally erected the triumphant banner of the Cross on the ruins of the capitol." Edward Gibbon, "The Decline And Fall of the Roman Empire." (1776)

In the year 1818, the King of Huachine, one of the South Sea Islands, became a Christian. He discovered a plot among his fellow natives to seize him and other converts and burn them to death. He organized a band to attack the plotters, captured them unawares and then set a feast before them. This unexpected kindness surprised the savages, who burned their idols and became Christians. (From the Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations)

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The British nurse who was suspended without pay for offering to pray for a patient's recovery has been reinstated and will return to work in the next few days. Caroline Petrie, an evangelical Christian from Weston-super-Mare, was subjected to disciplinary action by North Somerset Primary Care Trust even though the patient was not offended and made no complaint. Petrie, who was supported by the Christian Legal Centre, was summoned last week to a disciplinary hearing on the charge that she had failed to demonstrate a "personal and professional commitment to equality and diversity." Read the rest here on Fox News .

From the American Center For Law And Justice (ht: Tim) BREAKING NEWS : Stimulus Bill Discriminates Against Religious Activity Our legislative team has unearthed a little noticed provision in the economic stimulus bill that is simply unacceptable. There's a provision in Section 803 of the measure that provides money for the modernization of university facilities. However, as written, the stimulus bill would prohibit schools that accept this funding from allowing religious activity to take place in those facilities. Here's the language included in the stimulus bill: "Grants awarded under this section shall be for the purpose of modernizing, renovating, and repairing institution of higher education facilities that are primarily used for instruction and research. . . ." Funds may not be used for the "modernization, renovation, or repair of facilities--(i) used for sectarian instruction, religious worship, or a school or department of divinity; or (ii) in which a subs...

I am racking my brain trying to draw out an illustration of someone who stands out as an outstanding Christian example. I am distracted because as I am sitting here thinking, my oldest children are laughing and talking about things that happened in youth group (“student ministries”) or summer camps. The highlight of their entertainment of the moment involves recalling contests involving drinking gallons of milk or speed-eating Oreos, chasing them with entire cartons of eggnog—and the predictable outcome (no pun intended) of ingesting such large quantities all at once. Why is this funny? Why are Youth Pastors (Student Pastors) advocating this kind of sickening behavior? Worse still, what kind of Christian example is to be found in this kind of so-called leadership? How is one to respect them? People who are respected are those found to be upright, with integrity. Respected people are those with good reputations; temperate; prudent; hospitable; able to teach and remain teachable; ...

The Bible is a miracle book and the fact that it exists is a miracle in itself. One particular aspect of the miracle is the Bible is known to be “The Good Book” because throughout its pages we see the wicked heart of man being addressed by the discontent of God to leave man in his depraved condition. God that he might rescue from the penalty, power and presence of sin seeks after man, in all his wickedness. That is a miracle. What miracle of the Bible stands out as your favorite (leave a brief description in the “comments” section below)? We tend to think of the biblical records as “stories” but they are so much more than that as “story” has come to imply separation from reality. Miracles are called such because of what they are in reality, not separate from but rooted in reality. Miracles cannot be denied. Once I was talking with a young lady concerning her worldview, proudly proclaiming herself to be atheist. I asked her how she thought how the Universe came into existence (including...

I didn’t want to go to the Department of Motor Vehicles to preach this morning. I was full of justifications for not going, but I went anyway and prayed that God would anoint the time. I walked with purpose over to the people waiting in line and asked them, “Are you here for your lotto tickets or for the DMV?” They laughed. I greeted each person waiting in line with a warm “Good morning” and handed everyone a Gospel tract. A woman at the end of the line handed the tract back to me. “I’m not interested,” she said. I took it back and thought, That’s okay; she’ll soon be hearing the message anyway. Taking my position adjacent to the line, I began to preach. ( read the rest here )

Each week my family enjoys an outing to the Richland County Public Library or one of its regional branches. Recently we visited the St. Andrews Branch wherein I was able to enjoy some very good conversation with a few patrons. I had a very good conversation with a 19 year-old patron who was patiently waiting for an open computer for internet access using the “ Character Survey .” Shortly afterwards I engaged a young African-American father waiting for an open computer. He was a rather large fellow, wearing black jeans, a red tee-shirt and his head was covered with a black stocking. I approached and asked, “Excuse me, sir. I am taking a survey and was wondering if you would be willing to help me with some information through a brief interview.” “Sure,” he said, “No problem.” And he graciously invited me to sit. I pulled up a chair. Thanking him, I gave him a brief run-down of what will transpire the next few minutes. “I am working on a project involved in the study of personal characte...

“If the gospel be not preached, Jesus Christ is, as it were, buried. Therefore, let us stand as witnesses, and do Him this honor, when we see all the world so far out of the way; and remain steadfast in this wholesome doctrine. . . . Let us not deceive Jesus Christ in the testimony we owe Him, by stopping our mouths, when it is needful to maintain His honor, and the authority of His gospel. Yea, and when we see our brethren afflicted for the cause of God, let us join with them, and assist them in their affliction. Let us not be shaken by the tempests that arise, but let us always remain constant in our purpose; and stand as witnesses for the Son of God, seeing He is so gracious as to use us in such a good cause. Let us mark well, whether men suffer for their sins, or for the truth of God . . . . Every man will confess this: but they add, we are weak, and shall quickly be beaten down by the cruelty of our enemies. But St. Paul taketh away this excuse, by saying, God will strengthen us, ...