Newsmakers

Country star John Rich has been pointing people to the Book of Revelation, using his musical talents to highlight Scripture's most complex eschatological text. Rich released the eponymous "Revelation" earlier this year after spending time "watching the way the world's going, the way our country's going" and finding himself compelled to speak out. The singer recently spoke with CBN News about how chaotic events in America and around the globe have got him thinking deeper about theological matters.

"I think we've all been thinking about that, but I really didn't set out to write a specific song about it," Rich said. "It just kind of came out of nowhere. It was kind of downloaded to me." Rich said the words started popping into his head, and he quickly wrote them down, finishing the song in about an hour. "I tell people it's really not lyrics; it's really scripture that I just made rhyme," he said. "Like I took what it says, and I figured out how to build that into what would be a song, and then I didn't really know what to do with it."

Rich admitted he wasn't sure who would be interested in a song called "Revelation," but, as time progressed, he realized it's a tune that really hits on the uncertainty and chaos so many feel. "It became more and more apparent to me that the things that song was talking about — which is spiritual warfare — that there is a much bigger situation going on than Democrat, Republican, left, right," he said. "Much, much, much bigger, which we're told in scripture." Rich continued, "That's actually the truth of it — 'We wrestle not with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers.'"

Evangelist Nick Hall is in the midst of yet another monumental, year-long evangelism campaign.

"Anthem of Grace" kicked off with a massive global broadcast on Good Friday, hitting tens of millions of people with the Gospel. Translated into 60 languages, millions are still consuming the content in nations across the world.

"It's been amazing to see what God is doing," Hall, founder of the Pulse Movement, told CBN News. "And I think we all know this, but ... there's a revival spreading. There's joy, there's hope."

The evangelist said the Anthem of Grace campaign centers on two things "Amazing Grace," the "most sung and most translated hymn ever." Beyond that, he said the campaign seeks to focus on the power of the Gospel to change hearts and minds.

"[It also focuses on the] story of every believer whose life has been changed by this and trying to tell the story of God's grace in our lives, and welcoming people into that anthem of grace," Hall said.

The faith leader said the mission of highlighting the change God has made in people's lives and helping others discover the same transformation in their own journeys is the pinnacle of the campaign. Listen to him explain.

Eric Mock, vice president of the Slavic Gospel Association, sits down with Tré Goins-Phillips to discuss the latest in the war between Russia and Ukraine, explains how the presidential election could impact tensions there, and how Christians in both countries are responding to the continuing crisis. 

Pastor Samuel Rodriguez believes Christians must see the ever-complex issues of immigration and the border through a "biblical lens." "With Matthew 25 and Leviticus 19, it should be a lens of compassion and the rule of law," he said, going on to also cite Romans 13. "Obey the government as it pertains to laws that are in there for the preservation of liberties, and rights, and the security of families and homes."

Rodriguez continued, "Come on, 15 to 20 million illegal entries. Never before in human history has any nation permitted over 10 million people, undocumented, without us knowing who they are, to come into any respective nation." The preacher, who also serves as president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, said there are dangerous individuals among those who have entered illegally and that children have gone missing in the mix of people coming through the border.

"We've lost 300,000 kids ... there are 300,000 unaccounted kids," Rodriguez said. "We have no idea where they're at." Not only are these kids missing, but Rodriguez said data says they might also be in grave danger. "Unfortunately, we know from the data, we know from past history ... this breaks my heart even saying this, many of them are probably being sex trafficked as we speak," he said.

Rodriguez said these factors should lead Christians to defend America's standing as a "sovereign nation," while also recognizing the importance of immigrants to the fabric of the country. The preacher did note that "deportations will take place" in the new Trump administration and said Christians might struggle with the concept of "mass deportations." But Rodriguez, who indicated he has inside information on coming plans, believes the government will mostly "come after the criminal element."

On today’s Newsmakers: prophecy in Israel, rejecting God, and a rock star speaks out.

For KING + COUNTRY, one of the most popular Christian and inspirational bands around, is gearing up for the Christmas season in a big way.

Just months after singers Joel and Luke Smallbone brought their family's story to the big screen in biopic "Unsung Hero," the duo are heading back to theaters with a new project: "A Drummer Boy Christmas Live."

The cinematic experience, which will run from Dec. 5-9, will make For KING + COUNTRY's popular Christmas show accessible to people across the nation.

And the brothers promise to deliver a "sonic journey that blends the sights and sounds of the season with the musical mastery, heartwarming storytelling, and dazzling production." Joel Smallbone told CBN News he's elated to bring the show to audiences.

"One of the things that we love is Christmas tours," he told CBN News. "And we've done one almost every year since the beginning of the band."

But with the Christmas season so short, he said they came up with another option: bringing the Christmas show to movie theaters so even more people can see it. The band performed a show at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, rallied 12,000 fans — and created "A Drummer Boy Christmas Live."

"It's really beautiful," Smallbone said. "This year, more than ever, I feel like we desperately just need to kind of keep the main thing the main thing, and these great hallmarks of humanity that are love, and joy, and peace, patience, kindness, goodness — let's put them back in the driver's seat this Christmas."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbdmcBDna8E

Ultimately, Smallbone said "A Drummer Boy Christmas Live" is all about honoring the true meaning of Christmas.

"This is singing about baby Jesus, and this is singing about the redemption of humanity, and this is singing about BC to AD," he said.

As for upcoming plans after the theatrical experience, Smallbone said For KING + COUNTRY is, for the first time since the beginning of the band, spending a year away from touring.

"We're ... going away to write and record ... and we're also going away to work on our next feature film that is going to production next fall," he said, explaining that the band will come back to perform after these upcoming projects.

It's been two years since social media influencer Oli London officially detransitioned and embarked on a faith-filled journey toward true peace and joy. "Life has changed very dramatically," he recently told CBN News. "I wake up every day with a sense of purpose, a sense of duty ... I feel a lot happier every single day." London, who has openly spoken about his Christian faith, said it has been "exciting" exploring his newfound belief in God. Raised as an atheist, he said he wasn't "too familiar with Christianity."

But since detransitioning two years ago, he spent a lot of time in Christian spaces. "I've been going to a lot of Christian events, been going to churches, connecting with people in the Christian community and elsewhere," he said, noting he's now trying to live out Jesus' example. "And I've been tremendously happy since then." But it's not just faith that has been the centerpiece of London's changed life. He's now become an advocate speaking out to help others struggling with the issues that once dominated his own life.

"Since ... I detransitioned, I've also been trying to use my platform now to try and do good in the world," he said. "And try to spread faith as well to the Generation Z audience." Considering London's own back story, he expressed a passion for young people "being led astray" today. "They are not connecting with God," he said of youths. "God is being taken out of classrooms in some places, and ... I think it's something that the young generation is missing." London has been open over the past two years about the detransition process, reaffirming past expressions that it wasn't the easiest of journeys, especially after years of attempting to present as a female.

"I underwent a lot of surgeries over a period of 10 years," he said. "I was going through an identity crisis, so I did spend several hundred thousand on the surgeries, the looks ... the clothes, all the fillers, the makeup, everything like that." London continued, "And ... it is something I regret, but, at the end of the day, I think ... it is a lesson. You can't dwell on these regrets, you can't dwell on the past." Ultimately, he said he tries to focus now on the positive, despite wishing these weren't decisions he had made. As for his transition, which he said has made him 10 times happier than before, London said at the start there wasn't much information or resources.

Listen to him tell his story.

A documentary filmmaker is on a mission to explore the authenticity of ancient Bible prophecies.

Tim Mahoney, whose new film "Patterns Of Evidence: The Israel Dilemma – Ancient Prophecies" hits theaters Nov. 13, 14, and 17, told CBN News the events unfolding in the Middle East today are intricately tied to what we see happening in the Old and New Testaments.

Mahoney said the roots of his new movie were set in 2007 when he was working on another project surrounding the Israelites' fleeing Egypt to head for the Promised Land.

As he navigated that story, he realized a great deal about God's promises to Abraham had been misunderstood or had gone unknown to some.

Hear Mahoney discuss the film.

Author Joel Rosenberg believes some of the events unfolding around us hold biblical significance, particularly when it comes to Israel and the Middle East. Rosenberg, an expert on biblical prophecy who now lives in Israel, recently spoke with CBN News about Hamas, the war in Gaza, and how current events might play into what the Bible says about future happenings and the end of days. 

"That is the number one question I'm getting asked ... 'Can you put this [current moment] in a prophetic context?'" Rosenberg said. "I would say, number one, we're definitely in a birth pang, right? Jesus speaks in Matthew 24 that there's going to be contractions and releases, moments of wars and rumors of wars, and kingdom against kingdom, nation against nation, as well as earthquakes and famines and other disasters." He continued, "Those are contractions, and just like when your wife gets close to delivering ... the contractions are longer and more painful, and the release moments are shorter."

Rosenberg said Israelis were living in a time of release on Oct. 6, 2023, as it was safe, prosperous, and secure — the safest it had been in modern history. "You'd have to go back to the days of Solomon and David when the kingdom was peaceful and secure," he said, noting Israel had just come off making four Arab-Israeli peace treaties and normalization treaties via the Abraham Accords. "We were just about to finalize another deal — the biggest peace and normalization deal in Israeli history — and that would be with the Saudi government."

But all of that peace was obliterated by Hamas' horrific terror attack on Oct. 7, 2023, an event he said was the "longest contraction" modern Israel has faced. "I would add that, just in context, I believe COVID was a biblical Matthew 24 contraction where ... a lot of people died. But the other part was ... not only was there this terrible health pandemic, plague, a biblical plague, but even the American government could say in an instant, 'You can't go to church. You can't leave your house. You can't go see your friends, but the strip clubs could stay open. The casinos could stay open. The bars could stay open — the liquor stores, but not churches. That was a contraction."

He believes Amos 9:9 is a recurring prophecy, but that the current war in Israel is a "shaking" that falls under its umbrella. "I don't believe Israel's under judgment ... in other words, God didn't send this enemy, but God ... allowed it," Rosenberg said. "Why? To shake us, to help us realize that most Israelis either haven't read, don't remember, or don't care about Psalm 23, in which David, our greatest king, told us the Lord is our shepherd." He said some Israelis forgot, due to security, the realities inherent in this Scripture.

Hear him break down the Gog and Magog prophecies, address Donald Trump's election, and more.

A Hollywood director and producer is offering a lens into a truly unique profession, showing audiences what it's really like to be a military combat chaplain.

Richard Hull's new film, "Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain's Journey," which releases in theaters Nov. 8, gives audiences a chance to better understand these unsung heroes' experiences.

"I knew nothing about military chaplains," he told CBN News. "I didn't even know that that existed as a profession."

Hull, who ended up directing, writing, and producing the project, said he became personally invested as he started to explore the backstories.

"The more I got to know the subject matter, the more I fell in love with it, and I thought, 'This is a movie that, not only do I want to produce, but I also want to direct and be the storyteller behind it,'" he said.

Before long, Hull was diving into combat chaplain stories and learning more about their experience on the battlefield. The project quickly and easily came together, with actor Chris Pratt — an outspoken supporter of veterans — joining forces as an executive producer.

"He's a big military supporter," Hull said of Pratt. "He's a very faith-forward guy. He really has a true heartfelt interest in telling these stories, most of which have never been told."

Hull is hoping "Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain's Journey" helps open eyes to the experiences chaplains have "in the chaos of war." He shared that 419 chaplains have died throughout U.S. history, explaining that the roots of the chaplaincy date back to George Washington.

"On the one hand, chaplains go into combat wearing a uniform, but not carrying a weapon," he said. "It's a profession that ... you do it for some higher calling."

Chaplains do everything from saving lives on the battlefield to offering comfort to those who need it. Hull said they're "revered" within the military — for a reason. Chaplains' impact helped him realize just how much of a difference one person can make.

"They're just present and they're dealing with these moments of life and death with soldiers, young and old — and families," he said. "And it's really intense, and it's really powerful, and it's very existential, and a chaplain may come from a particular faith, and all faiths are represented in the chaplain cores of all the different military branches."

While chaplains have incredible experiences, Hull said there are also downsides and struggles, which are explored in the film. Some chaplains have even expressed facing "compassion fatigue" and other related issues.

"When you go to war, you're going to come back a very different person," he said. "And war can leave scars on your soul."

Ultimately, the movie offers what Hull said is a "true look at what these people, as humans, go through and the power that they have."

Find out more about "Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain's Journey" and get tickets here.