There is no hurt like church hurt. Moral failures, abuse scandals, doctrinal disputes, financial indiscretions, leadership failures, relational strife- these things threaten (and often succeed) at splitting churches right down the middle and leaving countless Christians wounded, confused, and frustrated. To many, the amount of pain church often delves out makes it seem not worth staying in. Church is messy. It’s broken.

But at the same time, if we love Jesus, we have to continually ask what Jesus loves. In his book, “Broken but Beautiful”, J.P. Conway writes about the “resilient beauty” and powerful, yet often untapped means towards human flourishing the church gives us. Yes the church is broken, but there’s more. She’s beautiful.

How do we show grace in the church towards those who hurt us? How do we pursue unity and love in the midst of brokenness and pain? What do we do when we feel like giving up on church altogether?  

The end of the world. As Christians we believe it’s coming. Society as we know it will someday collapse, empires will fall, and the earth itself will dissolve as King Jesus returns in victory to establish His Kingdom and recreate a new earth and new heavens. But what will that collapse- that day of doom- look like? And how can we be ready?

For centuries, people have been predicting the end of the world or some other global catastrophe like a nuclear war, earthquake, or massive societal collapse. Many have tried to prepare for it. Doomsday preppers, as they are called, are known for stockpiling food, weapons, and other supplies as they await the end. Some Christians have gotten swept into the doomsday prepper movement because of the belief that they must physically prepare for Armageddon, the return of Jesus, or World War III. The American Redoubt movement is a migration movement that encourages like-minded people (mostly conservative Christians) to relocate to the Inland Northwest so they can be in a geographically safe area and make that area more conservative. Advocates of this movement encourage Christians to live off the grid, homeschool their children, grow their own food, raise livestock, hunt and fish so they can be self-sustaining in the event of a full-scale societal collapse.

But what about the great commission? Is Jesus’s vision for His people in the last days for them to isolate, or to go into the unbelieving world with the message of the gospel?

We know that Jesus is coming back, and the earth as we know it will someday come to an end, but should Christians be preppers? Does the Bible say anything about doomsday prepping?

In 2016, Ian Cron (an Episcopal priest) and Suzanne Stabile wrote “The Road Back to You”, and Zondervan publishing released the book, “Sacred Enneagram”. The enneagram, a supposed tool of personality analysis, was then unleashed and has become one of the most popular, widespread and celebrated teachings in the evangelical church in recent years. There are Enneagram books, podcasts, blogs, trainings, YouTube videos, Social Media pages- one pastor even preached an entire SERMON SERIES on the 9 types, where he found characters from the Bible, guessed their type, and taught the Enneagram using the Bible.

But where did the Enneagram come from? And why is it true? Is it based in science? Psychology? Personality theory? Or….something else?

The origins of the Enneagram are a bit…complex, to say the least. But we do know is that its roots are based in esoteric thought, mysticism, sacred geometry, new age teaching, and it gets even weirder. Things like automatic writing and strange revelations from an angel, or spirit guide named “Metatron”.

Do you want to know where it comes from? Do you want to know what it really teaches?

In Exodus 23:9, God says “Do not oppress a foreigner; you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt.” It’s clear from reading scripture that God desires for His people to be compassionate, kind, and understanding towards those who come to another country seeking safety or greater economic opportunity for themselves and their families. But what if an immigrant comes to a country illegally?

Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2 instruct all people to follow the laws of a nation. Therefore, breaking a country’s immigration laws is clearly understood to be sin. But what if a prosperous nation like the U.S. doesn’t have compassionate or reasonable immigration laws? Are we therefore justified in supporting those who break the law because of the Bible’s command for us to show compassion, justice, and mercy to the alien and foreigner?

How are we to respond as Christians to illegal immigrants on an individual level? Is loving, showing compassion, and having mercy on them the same as promoting, enabling, or excusing illegal immigration?

The Bible is an amazing book. It’s actually a collection of 66 books written over a 1600-year period by 40 authors in 3 languages, on 3 continents. Amazingly, these 66 books share a common storyline, a common theme, and a common message. But it was written a long time ago in a world very different from the one we live in now. So how do we know about the world as it was at the time of the Bible?

The biblical text and other written records are the most important pieces of information we have about the history of ancient biblical peoples. But these records alone have left many unanswered questions. That is where archaeology comes in. Excavations of ancient sites across the land of the Bible, Israel, have provided bits and pieces that give us clues to the past and help grasp a better understanding of the world as it was when the Bible was written. We sometimes find that the picture we get in our heads when we read a Biblical passage isn’t entirely as accurate as we thought. And we gain a deeper appreciation and better understanding of the context and background that forms the Biblical text.

Does modern archeological confirm what people find in their Bible? Or does it contradict what we read in the Bible? How can archeology help us become a better student of the Bible?

The headline is far too common- prominent Christian pastor, evangelist, or leader caught in an affair, financial indiscretion, double life, or leadership failure- leaving countless wounded, confused, hurt, angry and almost everyone questioning, “how did this happen? Why did this happen? And Why didn’t we see it coming?” The anger is justified. The confusion merited. The questions fair. That leader is responsible for their sinful, duplicitous decisions and should be held accountable.

And…then there’s the world of the internet, where hot takes regarding any leader’s moral failings abound via tweets, YouTube videos, and all manner of online content. Commentary is offered and blame is cast on everyone and everything. Everything regarding the leader and their ministry is churned up, questioned and called into scrutiny- every sermon ever preached, every book ever written- even their own salvation and relationship with Christ. After they have been thoroughly scrutinized, gutted, examined, blamed, and called out, that figure and all of their contributions to the church at large are decisively and forever cancelled in a terminal act of judgment- never again to be known for anything other than their failures and sin.

But is this how it’s supposed to be when a leader fails us? Are we to decisively and finally “cancel” them and all their work, or is there another response we can give? And if we didn’t cancel them, wouldn’t that just be justifying and excusing their sin?  What are we to do with our questions, confusion, hurt, disappointment, and anger? Is there any hope of redemption or any road back for a leader who’s fallen?  

The following is the 2nd episode in a 2 part series where we explore the differences between the theologies of Calvinism & Arminianism. 

Calvinism and Arminianism are two systems of theology that attempt to explain the relationship between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility in the matter of salvation. Calvinism is named for John Calvin, a French theologian who lived from 1509-1564. Arminianism is named for Jacobus Arminius, a Dutch theologian who lived from 1560-1609.

 For the past 500 years, Christians (mainly protestant evangelicals) have continued to debate these systems of theology related to salvation and how exactly it works. The dispute centers around an understanding of what the Bible means when it talks about concepts such as depravity (or the sinfulness of man), predestination (or the divine foreordaining of all that will happen and all who will be saved), and atonement and who will be included in the atoning work of Christ.

So which one is right? Is it that God is absolutely sovereign and ordains some people to be saved and others to be sent to hell? Or is it that God invites all human beings to place faith in Christ and be saved?

In Matthew 11, Jesus invited all who are weary and heavy laden to come to Him, and He would give them rest. But in John 15, Jesus says, “you did not choose me, but I chose and appointed you.” So does Jesus invite us to choose Him in salvation, or does He choose us in salvation? We know that the Bible teaches that God is sovereign over all things, but does that mean we don’t have free will? How does the sovereignty of God work with humanity’s responsibility to obey God’s commands?

Calvinism and Arminianism are two systems of theology that attempt to explain the relationship between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility in the matter of salvation. Calvinism is named for John Calvin, a French theologian who lived from 1509-1564. Arminianism is named for Jacobus Arminius, a Dutch theologian who lived from 1560-1609.

For the past 500 years, Christians (mainly protestant evangelicals) have continued to debate these systems of theology related to salvation and how exactly it works. The dispute centers around an understanding of what the Bible means when it talks about concepts such as depravity (or the sinfulness of man), predestination (or the divine foreordaining of all that will happen and all who will be saved), and atonement and who will be included in the atoning work of Christ.

So which one is right? Is it that God is absolutely sovereign and ordains some people to be saved and others to be sent to hell? Or is it that God invites all human beings to place faith in Christ and be saved?

It’s estimated that there are 40,000 Christian denominations and movements in the world today. And chances are, if you’re a Christian listening to this podcast, you’re a part of a church that’s associated with one out of the 40,000.

Jesus prayed to the Father in John 17:41 that his future followers would exhibit a special kind of unity that would be a testimony to the world. So what happened? Why does it seem like Christians can’t agree on anything? Why are there sometimes four different Christian churches on the same street? And why are there so many Christian denominations? For those who aren’t Christians, it must seem confusing. Which church is the right one?

In our increasingly secular, post-modern, post- Christian culture, Christians must become more united on (and more focused on) Gospel issues. But the truth is there are issues of secondary importance that we’re just not all going to agree on. Things like worship styles, church governance, and nuances of non-essential doctrines can often lead to a diversity of perspectives in the body of Christ. How do we talk about these things with other believers in humility, grace, love and understanding? What makes a local church (or even denomination) the right fit for you and your family?

New Year, new you…well, hopefully. The reality is, for most of us not much has changed since this time last week when it was 2020, except for the new page on the calendar. For a lot of us, we’re carrying into the new year the same stubborn old habits, the same old struggles, and the same old sins that we wrestled with last year.

But what if the Bible gave us a regular discipline we could practice to remind ourselves that as followers of Jesus, our God is NOT our bellies, or our food, our TVs, or our screens? Fasting, the practice of voluntarily abstaining from food (or certain activities) for a period of time, has been practiced by Christians for thousands of years. In fasting, a believer abstains from food in order to be available for prayer and communion with God. Fasting isn’t easy, but it’s designed to separate you from your perceived life support so you can focus exclusively on the Lord.

Sadly, many Christians have never fasted. Just mentioning the practice is enough to cause some people panic. Why would anyone want to fast? Much less for longer than a day? What does the Bible say about fasting? Do you have to fast?