An American author and minister, Marshall Hayden, wrote an article several years ago with the intriguing title, “Would Every Non-Hurter Please Stand Up?”
Hayden observed that people come to church services and seem fine. They put on their best smile. Wear their best clothes. And look happy. Yet, he pointed out that we need to look beyond the facade and below the surface to realize that our pews are full of hurting people. Continue reading
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Do these three names mean anything to you? Melchior? Caspar? Balthasar?
Tradition has it that these men were the 3 kings of the Orient who came bearing gifts to baby Jesus.
You’ve heard the song, “We Three Kings”? And you have seen the manger scene with Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the animals, and the shepherds all together? Continue reading
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Last Sunday night NBC televised live the rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar, the adaption of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s and Tim Rice’s 1970 musical stage play.
The storyline is told from the point of view of Judas Iscariot. In the opening song, Heaven on their Minds, Judas is speaking to Jesus and says.
“Jesus! You’ve started to believe
The things they say of you
You really do believe
This talk of God is true. Continue reading
Over 2,000 people, including family, friends, dignitaries, and common folks were assembled under one big tent in celebration of the life of evangelist Billy Graham.
What the people repeatedly heard in the 90-minute service was the name of Jesus. Not 15 seconds into the ceremony Jesus was mentioned. And before it was concluded Christ was referred to almost 100 times. Continue reading
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Is Jesus the “only begotten Son of God?
Apparently, Apollo Quiboloy, the megachurch preacher from the Philippines doesn’t think so.
Actually, I had never heard of Quiboloy who boasts some 6 million tithing followers in that country and worldwide, until he made the news when he was detained by federal agents in Honolulu, Hawaii, last Thursday. Agents discovered $350,000 in cash and parts to assemble military-style rifles were discovered on his private jet. Continue reading
While on Christmas break we learned of billboards that appeared in the Dallas Metroplex, as well as other major cities around the country with the above message.
Provocative signs like these have been an annual Christmas tradition sponsored by the American Atheists. “Everyone knows that the stories we’re told in church aren’t the truth,” said David Silverman, president of American Atheists. “People ignore that fact because they enjoy the community, the friendship, and the traditions that go along with religion.”
Although it might seem we’re a little late to the party, it’s never too late to open the Bible and separate fact from fiction. What does the Scripture say about Christmas and Jesus’ birth? Continue reading
Shannon Johnson Kershner, a Waco, Texas native, and leader of the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago, Illinois, has declared that Christianity is not the only way to heaven.
In a recent podcast with the Chicago Sun-Times, Kershner was specifically asked, “Is Christianity the only way to heaven?”
“No,” Kershner replied bluntly. Continue reading
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