Category: Bible Knowledge

4 ways evangelicals have destroyed their own movement The Evangelical Christian movement that was committed to spreading the gospel no longer exists in America. Rather, it has morphed into a demographic subset with certain belief and behavior patterns that, day in and day out, have very little to do with any historical conception of what it meant to be an evangelical – even if some exceptions still “evangelise.” Evangelicalism generally exists today in order to preserve itself and its institutions or to advance the agendas of people who happen to be committed to preserving evangelicalism and its institutions. A movement that began with preachers standing on boxes in the fields and riding from one town to another to preach the gospel has now fragmented, and evangelical leaders have adopted the agendas of politicians and theologians as their own personal preservation projects. This is a far cry from the historical roots of evangelicalism in the 1700s and its resurgence in the 1950s. Evangelical Christianity saw some of its most significant growth under the preaching and vision of John Wesley and George Whitfield, who traveled far and wide preaching the gospel. In his book, How To Pray: The Best of John Wesley on Prayer, Wesley shared: “I continue to dream and pray about a revival of holiness in our day that moves forth in mission and creates authentic community in which each person can be unleashed through the empowerment of the Spirit to fulfill God’s creational intentions.” Note how Wesley says nothing about “godly leaders” or “moral values.” Modern day evangelicals still look back to the ministry of evangelist Billy Graham as the gold standard for what it means to be an “evangelical.” Graham shared his heart in an interview: “I want to tell people about the meaning of the cross. Not the cross that hangs on the wall or around someone’s neck, but the real cross of Christ… With all my heart I want to leave you with the truth, that he loves you, and is willing to forgive you of all your sins.” It’s worth noting that Billy Graham deeply regretted the times he got involved in politics, especially with Richard Nixon. While these statements from evangelists who defined the evangelical movement capture the heart of evangelicalism, theologian Roger Olson gives us a more concrete picture of what evangelical Christianity is: “Historically, theologically, and spiritually it is a trans-denominational movement of mostly Protestant Christians who share belief in the necessity of a personal decision for Christ for authentic Christianity. It is a movement that emphasises the Bible as supernaturally and uniquely inspired and authoritative for faith and practice. It is a movement that believes salvation comes only through Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection. It is a movement that practices evangelism and social transformation in a variety of ways. Finally, it is a movement that values traditional basic Christian beliefs.” Evangelicalism started and thrived as a movement that shared the message of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus to save us from the power of sin and death and addressed social needs such as ending the slave trade, opening orphanages and schools, and providing hospitals where there were none. Today, evangelicalism has fragmented into a political voting block rather than a movement for sharing the gospel. Several key factors are driving the dissolution of evangelicalism in America: Using evangelical platforms for political ends It’s no secret that Republican candidates see Liberty University, a school that at least has evangelical roots (I’m not sure how evangelical it is any more), as a key platform for launching their campaigns and speaking to voters. While there is something to be said for inviting leading public figures to engage in debates and discourse in a university setting, we have to admit that Liberty has become more of a campaign platform that political leaders can use to spread their own messages rather than a platform for preaching the gospel. If you want to destroy evangelicalism, keep using evangelical platforms to spread the messages of politicians. Politicians will keep coming to us because they understand the influence of evangelicals better than we do. Evangelical leaders aligning themselves with political leaders Evangelicals have long abandoned a prophetic role in society where they remain neutral in the midst of political debates. Whether it’s Jerry Falwell Jr. openly endorsing Donald Trump or Rick Warren giving a “Wink, Wink” endorsement of Marco Rubio by joining an advisory committee, evangelicals are using their personal influence for the sake of presidential hopefuls rather than the gospel. This diverts their attention and waters down their potency as messengers of the gospel as their politics create yet another wedge between themselves and those listening to their preaching. Unlike Paul, who viewed himself as a soldier for Christ who was duty bound to avoid any distractions or secondary causes, evangelicals tangled up in politics continue to divert attention away from the cause of Christ. Mind you, the Bible does not prohibit Christian leaders from engaging in voting and civic activities according to their convictions. But it’s the misuse of their power for a cause other than Christ, and even the potential confusion of a political cause with the cause of Christ, that’s the issue. Using the gospel to save America rather than using America to preach the gospel Our religious freedom gives us tremendous opportunities to speak boldly and openly about the new life found in Jesus. We are free to serve and love others in the public sphere because of our faith. However, many American evangelicals have turned this around and used the gospel as a tool to save America from God’s judgment. Rather than using America’s freedom to advance the gospel, they are putting America first by employing the gospel as a cultural modification tool. While culture warriors would point us to the stories of the Kings of Israel and Judah as justification, there is no evidence in the Gospels, book of Acts, or epistles that Christians came remotely close to this misuse of the gospel…

9 scriptures that teach principles on investing The Bible is not just a book filled with old stories, but is also packed with truth and revelation that is relevant to present day issues and situations. The Word of God is complete in that it gives light and insight to every area of life. From relationships, work issues, character development, leadership and even finances. In fact, there is a strong Biblical emphasis on handling and making use of money. That’s because God is a God who wants to stay relevant so as to guide us in everyday living. It is not God’s intent to leave you hanging on a thread and blindly figuring out principles of money, but to graciously give us principles and ideas to use finances to benefit from and to bring glory to Him. In His ministry, Jesus spoke about money and financial management. The wise king Solomon also gave instruction and counsel on how to handle money and how to put in investments. For those who want to go into investments and passive income, the Bible covers that topic as well. Here are nine scriptures that teach us a thing or two about the best practices of investing. Proverbs 21:20 | The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down. Proverbs 19:2 | Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps errs. Luke 14:28-30 | “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?” 2 Corinthians 9:6 | The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Proverbs 16: 9 | In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps. Ecclesiastes 11:2 | Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight; you do not know what disaster may come upon the land. Proverbs 13:11 | Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow. Proverbs16:8 | Better is a little with righteousness than vast revenues without justice. Luke 16:10 | He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.

A horned viper of the kind that may have bitten the Israelites. TE Lawrence – Lawrence of Arabia – was one of the great heroes of the First World War in the Middle East. He helped to raise the Arab tribes against the Ottoman Empire, lived among them and was involved in daring raids against forts and railways. During his exploits he travelled by camel and lived rough. In one of his books about his experiences,Revolt in the Desert, he writes of travelling through a particular region. He says: “…the plague of snakes which had been with us since our first entry into Sirhan, today rose to a memorable height, and became a terror.. .this year the valley seemed creeping with horned vipers and puff-adders, cobras and black snakes. By night movement was dangerous: and at last we found it necessary to walk with sticks, beating the bushes while we stepped warily through on bare feet… they got so on our nerves that the boldest of us feared to touch the ground.” Terrifying stuff; and that was what the Israelites faced in the same area nearly 3,000 years before. Numbers 21:1-9 tells of the people facing a plague of snakes after they complained against Moses because of the hardships of the journey. They even complained about the manna: “We detest this miserable food!” When the snakes began to do their work, though, the Israelites turned their attention to them, instead. “Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us,” they asked. God’s remedy was for Moses to put a bronze snake on a pole, so that anyone who was bitten “can look at it and live”. Nowadays anyone travelling in that region would take plentiful supplies of snakebite antidote with them. But this isn’t medicine, it’s miracle. So what is God saying through the story? 1. He doesn’t stop us behaving stupidly, but he offers a way out. We’ve all done things we regret. In the Israelites’ case it was childish moaning about the hardships of their lives. For us, it might be anything from petulant behaviour to serious sin. But the lesson of the bronze serpent is that God is gracious and we can “look and live”. 2. The snake was a transfigured representation of what caused the pain. We don’t get over hard times, whether we see them as the consequences of sin or just things that happen because life’s like that, by ignoring them. Instead we have to confront them, acknowledge them and learn from them – and we find that God meets us with grace even in our darkest times. 3. People weren’t healed by looking at the snake. The snake was only the symbol of the power of God. In the ‘Wisdom of Solomon’, a book in the apocrypha, a Jewish commentator writes about this story and says: “If a person looked at that symbol, he was cured of the snakebite – not by what he saw, but by you, the saviour of all mankind… They were bitten so that they would remember your commands, but they were quickly rescued, in order to keep them from forgetting you completely and depriving themselves of your kindness. No medicine or ointment cured them. They were restored to health by your word, O Lord, the word which heals all humanity” (16:7, 11-12). 4. The snake prefigures the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 3:14 Jesus says: “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” There’s a similarity, but also a contrast: the Israelites were given life through looking at the snake, but when someone “looks” at Christ – and the implication is that the “look” is a plea for help and a trust in his grace – they’re given eternal life. The contrast is the same as in John 4:14 when Jesus tells the woman at the well, “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 5. The snake became a snare. The bronze snake was preserved by the Israelites as a treasured reminder of what they had experienced in their wanderings. But by around 700 years later it had become more than that. The people had given it a name, Nehushtan, and begun to worship it. King Hezekiah broke it in pieces when he destroyed the other idols that the people followed (2 Kings 18:4). The snake was a means of grace that became an object of worship. The people forgot the Creator in favour of the creature. God speaks to us today in different ways – great preachers, perhaps, or songs, or Christian conferences. We can give these things too much weight; they matter simply because they point us to him.

A couple from Scotland have been named as the winners of half of last Saturday’s record £66m National Lottery Mr and Mrs Martin from Hawick in the Scottish Borders have announced some noble causes they intend to support with their new-found wealth, including helping their local town which has been badly affected by recent flooding. Christians often wonder whether money is a good or bad thing. You can do a lot of good with wealth but it can also cause a lot of harm, and Jesus seemed to have some pretty harsh words for rich people in his day. But is it as simple as all money and wealth is bad? More often than not, what God actually says is that money itself is fine but it is the love of money that is dangerous and wrong. Here are ten Bible verses to help you think about what God says about money: Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” Malachi 3:10 “‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.’” Hebrews 13:5 “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” Acts 20:35 “In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Luke 12:33-34 “Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Proverbs 13:11 “Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.” Proverbs 22:7 “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” Exodus 22:25 “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.”

10 Bible verses about forgiveness Reuters It’s one of the hardest things to obey, but Jesus was clear in his teaching that Christians must forgive others – it’s even in the Lord’s Prayer. The good news is that God also forgives us. Here are 10 Bible verses to remind you of His mercy, as well as his call on us to forgive others, too. Psalm 103:8-12 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbour his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” Acts 10:42-43 “He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Ephesians 1:7-10 “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment — to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.” Isaiah 43:25 “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” Colossians 1:13-14 “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Ephesians 4:31-32 “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Matthew 6:14 “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” Psalm 130:4 “But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.” Isaiah 1:18(b) “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” Isaiah 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” via 10 Bible verses about forgiveness | Christian News on Christian Today.