I spent eight wonderful years on staff with a parachurch ministry where I learned incredibly valuable lessons and skills, but I also learned what parachurch ministries are not. Though there are many wonderful Christian ministries that accomplish great things in the way of Christian fellowship and outreach it’s important to understand the reasons why all Christians should be a part of a church.

What Does Scripture Say?

The only institution Jesus died to established and promises to preserve is the church (Matt. 16:18). Jesus died for his church and promises to present her as blameless (Eph. 5:25), a promise he does not make about any other Christian organization. There are multiple passages that mention the specific number of disciples added to the church (Acts 2:41, 47; 5:14; 6:1), and there are also Scriptural references to a local church reaching a vote by majority (2 Cor. 2:6), which implies church membership however formal or informal. It’s clear that Scripture teaches that not only should Christians attend church, but should be added to that church’s number by pursuing membership and being actively involved.

Local or Universal Church?

Some might ask, “If all Christians are members of the universal church why must we join a local church?” The universal church is made up of all believers in the world and throughout history. However, that is distinct from the local or visible church which is made up of individual congregations. Though every true Christian is a member of the universal church, God established the local church to be the conduit of Christian discipleship and evangelism for all believers. You could say we prove that we are in the universal church by making an effort to be a part of the visible church.

Parachurch is my church

Many Christians have been greatly encouraged in their faith by the believers they serve with in a parachurch setting. Some might read passages like Acts 2:42: “they devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers,” and think that it accurately describes their campus ministry fellowship. However, it’s important to realize that no Christian organizations, except the church, existed during the time period of the New Testament. For that reason, any passages describing Christian community were describing the local church and to understand them as describing a parachurch ministry is anachronistic. To be clear, parachurch ministries are a wonderful blessing and very useful, they just were never meant to replace the local church.

Some go as far as to say that the parachurch is the church because parachurch ministries didn’t exist in the New Testament or they may feel parachurch organizations fulfill all the responsibilities of the local church. In, response to the first argument, the fact that parachurch ministries didn’t exist in the early church or the New Testament isn’t proof that they are the church, but rather that they are distinct from local churches and came later.

In response to the argument that the parachurch fulfills all the responsibilities of the church, it’s important to realize all the key distinctives of a local church. A church isn’t catered toward a specific people group as many parachurch ministries are. A church practices preaching the whole counsel of God’s Word. The church practices the Lord’s Supper and Baptism, which are the two ordinances of the church. The church practices church membership and church discipline. The church elects elders and deacons, and encourages all its members to give cheerfully in support of the ministry. The church also consolidates its resources to support the ministry, care for the poor and support local and global missions. I know of no parachurch ministry that does or is seeking to do all these things, nor should they. Therefore, if any parachurch claims to be a church they are at best a very unhealthy and dysfunctional church.

This is why parachurch ministries could be compared to being on a soccer team, while a church is more like being a part of a family. On a soccer team you have a group of people who are similarly gifted, gathering for a specific purpose. But a family is much broader, deeper, and lasts for life.

It’s a Blessing

We shouldn’t only join a church because it’s biblical. It’s also a blessing!

Preaching

Some of the most gifted communicators I have ever known have been on staff with parachurch ministries. However, much of the teaching in parachurch settings is highly contextualized to the very specific mission or group of people involved. The preaching at a church and other related teaching moments (Sunday school, Bible study, etc.) are more biblically comprehensive and aimed more generally at biblical and spiritual instruction. For example, I’ve never heard of a parachurch ministry teaching expositionally through the whole Bible, but this kind of teaching is vital for Christian growth.

Elders

Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them” (Heb. 13:17). We can (and should) have many spiritual leaders and mentors in our lives, but Scripture seems clear that those who are qualified and called as elders in the church should be the ones primarily charged to love and care for believers and also given appropriate spiritual and theological authority. The parachurch leaders I know are deeply invested in the spiritual welfare of their volunteers and staff, but every parachurch has a specific mission and the leaders have a responsibility to grow and further that mission. Pastors on the other hand serve the sole purpose of praying and caring for each church member spiritually regardless of where and how they are serving.

Fellowship that is multi-generational

Many parachurch ministries can surround us with other Christians who are like-minded or are in a similar stage of life as us. This is a huge blessing, however, there is also great blessing in multi-generational fellowship. It’s great to know believers who have followed Christ longer than you’ve been alive. They’ve lost friends, they’ve had ups and downs, and yet have faithfully followed Christ through it all. Singing “In Christ Alone” with these saints adds richness to those lyrics and to our spiritual life. Also, being around those younger than us can provide great opportunities to pour into others.

The church helps believers serve Christ most effectively

Parachurch ministries can be a great source of spiritual growth for a season. However, when a person makes a parachurch ministry their primary source of community, sometimes they try to stick around for the fellowship long after passion for the mission is gone. But, when a person’s primary source of fellowship is a church it allows them the freedom to explore the endless avenues to serve Christ in ways that God has uniquely gifted them while maintaining a consistent home base of spiritual teaching and fellowship.

Good habit for the rest of your life

Parachurch and campus ministries are a tremendous blessing, but the church will be the main source of spiritual growth for a believer’s entire life. Therefore, it’s good for Christians to form the habit of being a meaningful member at a church early on, even in their college years. This will prove spiritually vital in transitioning into life after college.

Parachurch ministries are a blessing but Christians need the church and the church needs them. Every believer needs to build up a local congregation by using their gifts and playing their role (Eph. 4:6). In turn, they will be greatly blessed by the church.

One of the things I really appreciate about my parents is that they introduced my siblings and I to many classic movies and a wide range of genres instead of just the newest thing out. This includes many favorites of my mom and older sister like Pride and Prejudice. As a kid those movies definitely moved a bit slow for me, but as I got older I appreciated these movies typically labeled “chick-flicks” more and more.

My enjoyment of these movies definitely does not mean I didn’t make fun of them at times. I think that’s something my parents did well. They gave us freedom to laugh at things we thought were funny or ridiculous without throwing out the baby with the bath water. Of course, it helped that I have a uniquely cool mom and older sister who I’ve always deeply respected and loved to laugh with.

Yet, when it comes to liking these movies I’m definitely in the minority. Most guys I talk to would scoff at the idea of watching a movie like Sense and Sensibility with their wife or showing it to their sons.

Clearly, this is not a primary issue, but I think movies like Pride and Prejudice have an underestimated value that many guys miss. So, here are eight reasons why I think guys should watch Pride and Prejudice and similar movies.

It’s Funny

There is some great humor in these movies and some hilarious characters as well. Mr. Collins is a brilliantly written character whose cringeworthiness makes for some hilarious moments. Whether it’s his awkward facial expressions, gestures, or comments you will find it hard not to laugh or parody some aspect of this character with your family and friends.

It Has High-Quality dialogue.

True, Mark Twain said that every time he read the original novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen he wanted to dig her up and beat her over the head with her own shin-bone. Maybe Pride and Prejudice is lousy compared to the eloquence of Twain and his contemporaries, but compared to the conversation of most 21^st century Americans riddled with crutch words such as, “like, umm, just, you know,” Pride and Prejudice stands apart as arresting and memorable.

It Displays Character

Some of the characters in the movie display a high level of virtue that is refreshing. In particular, they display humility and self-forgetfulness that is very biblical (Php. 2:1-3) but is extremely rare today and seen as archaic. Without spoiling anything, one of the characters does an extremely generous deed, but is adamant that they do not receive credit for it, even when it would benefit them greatly to receive such credit.

It’s at times almost maddening to our 21^st century minds to watch them not speak up to take credit for themselves, but I think that’s good medicine for us. People practically trip over themselves today trying to gain recognition for the things they’ve done, yet Scripture says to not let our right hand know what our left hand is doing, and to work to please God, not man. The characters in Pride Prejudice display such virtue even if it isn’t explicitly Christian.

It’s Modest

There aren’t many movies today that don’t have some dash of sexual immorality in them, so the modesty of movies like Pride and Prejudice are much welcomed. Proverbs says not to go near the adulterous woman’s house (Prov. 5:8), and thankfully these movies don’t tread down that path.

It Encourages a Healthier Attraction to the Opposite Sex

Many modern movies simply emphasize sexual appeal. But that’s very one-dimensional. This has no doubt been influenced by Sigmund Freud’s teaching that human’s most base desire is sexual pleasure. That teaching was a driving factor in the sexual revolution and it has shaped entertainment as well. But many older movies aimed much higher with their romantic interests. It wasn’t just about sex appeal, they wanted you to be drawn to the male or female lead’s virtue, wit, humor, courage, as well as his or her appearance.”

In other words, many modern movies are written to make people think at the end of it, “I want that person’s body.” Many older movies were written to make people think, “I want to marry that person.” This is why I think it’s healthy for young boys to watch movies like this occasionally to enlarge their imagination about the type of woman they’d want to marry beyond physical attraction.

It Corrects a Lopsided View of Masculinity

In his essay The Necessity of Chivalry, C.S. Lewis argues that we need men who aren’t just obsessed with battle, blood, and iron, but are also meek. He points to Launcelot as an example. When the great Knight Launcelot died in Thomas Malory’s novel, Sir Ector said of him, “Thou wert the meekest man that ever ate in hall among ladies; and thou wert the sternest knight to thy mortal foe that ever put spear in the rest.” Lewis writes, “The knight is a man of blood and iron, a man familiar with the sight of smashed faces…” But he’s also “a gentle, modest, unobtrusive man.”

This makes a double demand on a man to be both brave and courageous, but also gentle and meek. Jesus modeled this perfectly. He flipped tables and he took the children up in his arms; he boldly pronounced the seven woes on the Pharisees and wept with Mary.

Movies like Pride and Prejudice display a courageous yet meek masculinity that is often lacking in movies, which I believe helps produce Launcelots in the world.

It Will Bless Your Marriage

Every marriage is different, but enjoying or at least appreciating these movies will bless your marriage since there will be less fights over what to watch. You’ll also love your wife well by taking an interest in what she likes, that is if she likes Pride and Prejudice.

It’s a Happy Ending

Tim Keller points out that, “We live in one of the first eras of history in which it is widely believed that a happy ending is the mark of inferior art.”^[1] This is because many people believe there is no real purpose in life and so all things are meaningless. Therefore, many think art is more beautiful when it reflects this frustrating and empty reality of life. This is especially true of many critics. But many people, if not most, still enjoy a happy ending (see Hallmark movies).

J.R.R. Tolkien wrote an essay essentially arguing that our love for happy endings is built into us by God, and the epicenter of that desire flows from the Resurrection. He argues that happy endings aren’t escapist but actually cause people to sense that ultimately happy endings are somehow a part of reality.^[2] As we read or watch them we inherently believe that though the world is filled with danger and sadness there is still meaning in life and evil will not prevail ultimately.

Is Pride and Prejudice my favorite movie of all time? No. Should you go and watch it immediately by yourself as a guy? Not necessarily. When you watch it should you appreciate it and even enjoy it? Hopefully this has convinced you that you should. At the very least hopefully you won’t want to dig me up and beat me over the head with my own shin-bone.

^[1] Timothy Keller, King’s Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus (New York: Dutton, 2011). 226.

^[2] Keller. 227.

James Anderson has compared worldviews to bellybuttons. Everyone has one but no one thinks about it. While it’s true that many people don’t give a thought to their worldview, many think about it very carefully. Among those who think intentionally about their worldview are of course Christians, but also progressives and advocates of the LGBTQ movement. But the LGBTQ worldview is quite antithetical to the Christian worldview in some important ways. Many advocates of LGBTQ clearly (and aggressively) articulate their worldview, and it’s important for Christians to also clearly and lovingly communicate the biblical worldview and how it differs from non-Christian worldviews.

It’s my goal here to draw out the distinctions between the biblical and LGBTQ worldviews under four major headings: Morality, Community, Teleology, and Anthropology. The format is question and response in hopes that Christians might use the questions (and answers) in interactions with their LGBTQ friends in a way that would lead to helpful and even life-transforming dialogue.

Morality

Do you think it’s problematic if morality is based in us rather than God or a transcendent reality? Aren’t some things wrong on a deeper level than personal feelings? (i.e. racism, rape, etc.)

According to Nietzsche the greatest mistake of humans was to think in terms of a transcendent category that is greater than any individual.^[1] Because we don’t base morals in God or any transcendent reality but rather in ourselves, morality becomes emotional preferences expressed as “right.” But as Carl Trueman points out, this makes society extremely volatile and subject to collapse.^[2]

Additionally, there are some evils that compel us to grasp for something stronger than preference to condemn. No one wants to grant that the Nazi’s were perfectly justified to subjectively advocate for the moral goodness of the final solution. At times we long for an objective moral standard, and the truth is we all assume there is one. As C.S. Lewis writes, “Unless the measuring rod is independent of the things measured, we can do no measuring.”^[3]

The reason we feel indignation at evil around us is because God made us moral people and wrote his law on our hearts (Rom. 2:15; 1:18-20), though our conscience is not perfectly calibrated to Scripture. We must not suppress his good law to pursue our desires since the result would be catastrophic. As the Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it, “All men by their fall lost communion with God, are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable to the miseries of this life, to death itself, and to the pain of hell forever.” It turns out the true harm that can be done to people is in telling them to resist God’s good will for their lives.

What is wrong with the world?

Most people wouldn’t look at the world around us and pronounce it to be perfect. Many locate the problem with the world in our environment. Certainly, in some cases people are made to sin by others. But we can’t cast 100% of the blame on our environment out of compassion for others. In the end, it strips people of dignity and infantilizes them. As G.K. Chesterton points out, if people in terrible circumstances must respond negatively, then the only logical conclusion is that the people born in the best situations are the only people fit to lead and contribute to society.^[4] Similarly, Michelle Alexander argues that removing human responsibility strips people of a vital aspect of human dignity.^[5]

Instead of blaming our environment exclusively for our actions we should listen to the Bible which teaches that, though circumstances matter (Prov. 13:23), the ultimate responsibility for our sin lies with us (Rom. 3:23; Matt. 18:6). In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve are cursed for their sin though it was Satan who tempted them. Each of us will all give an account before God for every careless word spoken (Matt. 12:36).

If we follow Rousseau and credit our corruption to society and our parents (110), then we will take our eye off our greatest enemy: us. The solution is that we need a new heart, which God promises to give every person who trusts in him (Ezk. 36:26). We get that heart by trusting in Christ who was tempted in every way we were yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). Jesus was killed for our sins so we could be brought near to him in a loving relationship we were meant for.

Community

How would you define healthy community with others? Should our friends ever push back on desires we have or how we define ourselves?

Rousseau said community was a hindrance to self-expression.^[6] Rousseau’s sentiments have found a true home in 21^stcentury western thought where self-expression is the highest priority. In fact, expressive individualism is such a high priority that if a community challenges a person’s self-expression it’s seen as harmful, bigoted, and even immoral. We want deep, authentic community, but to avoid the hindrance to self-expression we demand that our community accepts us as we are–no exceptions.

However, if our identity is defined by our own minds, then the number of identities will be as limitless as the human imagination.^[7] This will inevitably lead to the community being swallowed up by the individual. Where the individual is given ultimate sovereignty, real community will die.

Also, those who subjugate community to self-expression aren’t consistent. Greed, incest, pedophilia, and murder are opposed by almost all communities regardless of self-expression. However, by eliminating an objective moral standard like the Bible to tether our morals to it’s doubtful if even those most egregious sins will be opposed for long. We must ask ourselves if we would want to find ourselves living in a community like that in the future.

Lastly, making self-expression ultimate destroys other’s ability to make us better by holding us accountable. This is the type of community the Bible describes. “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). Not only does this make us better people but our love and appreciation for each other grows as we hold each other accountable. As Proverbs 28:23 says, “Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue.”

We need a community that will hold us to the truth and that means opposing us at times when we aren’t walking in accordance with that truth. Christian community gives us just that.

Why do you think some people are so troubled by others not affirming their sexual identity?

Hegel argued that a self-conscious individual only exists in being acknowledged by another (59). As people we crave belonging. Because our very existence is dependent on the acknowledgement of our society, it can cause great emotional distress when we aren’t affirmed by our society. The refusal of some to bake a cake for a gay wedding causes some to feel unacknowledged by society which causes them to feel inauthentic and unvalued.

The Bible tells us that we were made to crave not the acknowledgement of men, but of God. Until we acknowledge him as God, we will always crave acknowledgement. Until we recognize his love as the all-satisfying draught, we will continue to thirst to be recognized by others. Jesus said to the Samaritan woman in John 4:13-14, “Whoever drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water I give him will never be thirsty again. Indeed, the water I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Every person has value and their existence is validated by nature of the fact that they are created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27). But that doesn’t mean all of our behavior and self-identities are acknowledged as valuable by God. God alone gets to define what is and what is not good, because he is eternally good.

So each person living contrary to God’s will should thank him for any lack of cognitive rest they feel in doing so. And they should leave behind anything keeping them from acknowledging the One who will acknowledge them and love them even if no human on earth does.

Perhaps a good follow question would be, how would it change someone’s life if they knew God acknowledged them as valuable? Zacchaeus left his riches and lifestyle behind like yesterday’s garbage the moment he was invited to dine with Jesus (Luke 19:1-10). Maybe it’s ultimately not the acknowledgement of others and of our society we crave, but God’s.

Teleology

Do you think we have a purpose in life? Does the world around us serve a purpose or do we shape our purpose?

There are two ways of viewing the world around us: mimetic and poetic.^[8] The poetic view sees the world as raw material that we must shape into something meaningful. In this view, we as individuals carve out our own purpose subjectively. The mimetic view sees the world as already having a telos and shape that we must conform ourselves to.

The Bible is mimetic in its view of the world. God made the world and everything in it and he gave it all a purpose: to glorify and enjoy him (Isa. 43:7; Matt 22:37-39). God gave us a world with a shape and a purpose, and he gave us bodies, minds, and souls which are designed to live according to his good purpose. There are times when our feelings do not seem in accord with God’s design. Some people are sexually attracted to the same sex though that isn’t God’s design. Some feel uncomfortable with their gender. Yet no treatment or surgery can reverse or erase the immutable reality of our anatomy and chromosomal makeup. We can’t undo or rewrite God’s design, but must live in accord with it as difficult as that may be at times.

If we embrace the poetic view of the world, seeking to author our own purpose from the world the result will be hardship. We are made by God and for his glory. His word is a light to our path and a lamp to our feet. As theologian Herman Bavinck writes, “Where people seek to block out the rays of God’s truth, darkness, crudeness, and suffering ensue.”

Anthropology

What is at the core of a person’s identity? What makes someone who they are?

Some would say a person’s personality or their appearance. But if someone was in a car accident and badly disfigured we likely wouldn’t say they are a different person. If someone even had severe memory loss we may say they aren’t the same, but we wouldn’t say they are a different person.

But some have argued that our identity is found in our sexuality. Freud popularized the idea that sexuality is a person’s identity.^[9] Sadly, this thinking led Freud to the sexualization of children. If sexuality is identity then even children should be sexually active.

The core of a person’s identity is the fact that they are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27). They are spiritual, immortal beings who will live forever either with God or apart from him (John 5:29).

This means that everything outside of our souls, are subject to some change. Married people have often commented on how much their spouse changes over the course of marriage, yet they remain the same person. At the same time God made us each uniquely and wonderfully (Ps. 139). Our personality, ethnicity, desires, gifts, experiences, and gender are all given to us by God and cannot be erased. Each of us glorify God in the way he made us.

This all means that our sexuality, like other aspects of our life, are neither ultimate nor trivial. They aren’t trivial, so we shouldn’t seek to change who we are, nor can we truly rewrite something like chromosomes. Yet, they also aren’t ultimate. When our desires or bodies don’t naturally line up with God’s revealed will for all his people, we must live according to his will and be comforted that any part of us that feels suppressed doesn’t represent who we truly are.

Our value, identity and who we are is wrapped up in Christ. Why some live with unwanted sexual desires or gender dysphoria we may not know this side of heaven. But we do know that like the man born blind, we aren’t any less loved as a person made in the image of God. One day God will cause the full light of heaven to shine on every riddle of this earth, and in that moment we will sing with joyful hearts, “They who trust him wholly, find him wholly true.”

Conclusion

For the history of the church Christians have been exceptionally good at loving and welcoming all people while also maintaining a wall of sound biblical doctrine to surround and define the Christian community. It seems Satan’s strategy over the last couple hundred years has been to use philosophy and cultural influences to erode that wall of sound doctrine and biblical practice to make “love” an indefinable and all-inclusive concept. This undermines one of the church’s most compelling arguments for the faith: love for others. The question for the church in the 21st-century is, will they be enticed to believe the Satanic definition of love which on the surface seems most fruitful and faithful to our 21^st centuries ears, but in the end leads to death for all who are welcomed by it? Or will they follow in the footsteps of the majority of Christians in the history of the church and love and welcome people regardless of who they are while refusing to compromise on what it means to be a Christian? I pray we choose the latter in compassion, kindness, and love.

^[1] Carl R. Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution(Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2020). 174.

^[2] Trueman. 78.

^[3] C.S. Lewis, Christian Reflections, ed. Walter Hooper (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1994). 73.

^[4] G. K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (Independently published, 2020). 87.

^[5] Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (New York: The New Press, 2011). 176.

^[6] Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. 48.

^[7] Trueman. 50.

^[8] Trueman. 39.

^[9] Trueman. 204.

In 2021, Mehrdad Sadigh was found guilty of grand larceny for selling fake artifacts to people from his art gallery in New York City. Sadigh sold numerous counterfeit Egyptian sarcophagus masks for $5,000 that were purportedly dated to the 6th century BC. As it turns out, authenticity matters when it comes to historic artifacts. Authenticity also matters when it comes to Scripture.

The ending of the Gospel of Mark (16:9-20) has been questioned in terms of its originality to Mark. The same questions have been raised about the story of the woman caught in adultery in John 8. You may have noticed that in your Bible those passages are bracketed off with the message “Some of the earliest manuscripts do not include 16:9-20.”

Is the longer ending of Mark original to Mark?

Craig Blomberg points out that some of the earliest and most reliable Greek manuscripts don’t have it. It’s also not in numerous early Latin, Syriac, Armenian, and Georgian manuscripts. Early church fathers and church historians like Origen, Clement of Alexandria, Eusebius, and Jerome did not seem to know about these verses.^[1]

So, where did they come from?

It’s likely that later scribes copying Mark’s gospel felt that Mark couldn’t have meant to end his gospel so abruptly and so they added these verses to give it a “proper ending.”

The natural question then arises, what happened to the end of Mark’s gospel? Some think it was lost. The end of a scroll was the most vulnerable so it could have gotten ripped off. But because of the fact that Mark’s gospel would have been copied many times immediately after it was written, that’s less likely. It’s most probable that verse 8 is Mark’s original ending, in all of its abruptness.

Some Christians and scholars believe Mark is original to Mark and still hold it to be divinely inspired and inerrant. That’s fair. I don’t think it should be a dividing issue. In either case, no Christian doctrine is effected, unless you inappropriately interpret verse 18 to mean that we should be handling snakes and drinking poison in church. This was likely a reference to Paul surviving a venomous snake bite while shipwrecked, and didn’t suggest a command to handle snakes, but pointed to God’s protection of his children as well as his commitment to lend divine authority to the preaching of the gospel with miraculous signs in the apostolic age.

Mark didn’t forget the Resurrection

As for Mark’s abrupt ending, Mark is notoriously brief. It would be surprising if he wasn’t. Also, though Mark doesn’t narrate a Resurrection appearance, he certainly doesn’t leave the Resurrection out. He quotes the angel in verse 6 as saying, “You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here…he is going before you to Galilee.” I understand wanting to have narrated accounts, but that wasn’t what God divinely inspired for this Gospel. That task would be left to other gospel writers.

We can have a tendency to think Mark should have included all important details in his Gospel. But if we believe that God inspired the authors of each of the four Gospels, then it changes our perspective. The gospels are God telling a story from four perspectives. If he’s going to emphasize something in one gospel why should he need to emphasize it in all of them? John Calvin writes that “God so dictated to the four evangelists what they should write that, while each had his own part, the whole formed one complete body.”^[2]

Plus, if it’s true that Mark is writing to Roman Christians who are suffering persecution, he may have wanted to remind them that even the first witnesses to the Resurrection were no heroes of the faith, but struggled with fear.

No matter what the reason, it’s certainly not because Mark didn’t believe the Resurrection or know about it. No one could have believed in Jesus apart from the Resurrection so Mark’s Gospel isn’t meant to exhaustively cover every detail, but recount with brevity the details of Christ’s life, death and Resurrection. The fact that Jesus rose from the dead was presumed.

Can we trust the rest of Scripture?

Some might see this and think we can’t have confidence in the authenticity of any Scripture passage. I think the exact opposite. This shows that if a passage or verse isn’t original, we would know it. Therefore, we can have full confidence that what we read in our Bible is original to the divinely inspired author, and in the very minor instances where it may not be, Scripture indicates that.

Timothy Jones makes an excellent point about the process of God preserving his Word. He points out that many skeptics like Bart Ehrman like to argue that if God divinely inspired his Word it would be perfect and we would have every manuscript, rather than scribes at times making additions and biblical scholars comparing manuscripts to discover the original text.

But Tim Jones powerfully argues that God has worked through more than one imperfect instrument to accomplish his purpose such as Noah, Moses, Esther, Mary Magdalene, Peter and Paul.

Jones writes this:

Ehrman seems to expect God to work around humanity to preserve his words, so that textual criticism wouldn’t even be necessary. The pattern throughout the Hebrew and Christian Scripture reveals a different pattern–the pattern of a God who works through humanity. Given God’s penchant for revealing his glory through failure-prone implements of flesh and blood in the first place, who’s to say that a process such as textual criticism might not be precisely the pathway that God has chosen to preserve and to restore the words of Scripture?^[3]

Sir Frederic Kenyon, the former director of the British Museum, once said this about the authenticity of our Bible’s based on the manuscripts we have: “The interval between the dates of the original composition and the earliest extant evidence is so small as to be negligible, and the last foundation for any doubt that the Scriptures have come down to us substantially as they were written has now been removed.”^[4]

How should we approach the ending of Mark then? Loosely authoritative. We can trust the text insofar as the information is supported in other biblical texts, but perhaps not lean into each word and phrase with the same level of detail we would another text.

We stand on solid ground when it comes to the authenticity of Scripture. Even if you take out the ending of Mark and John 8 as well as the instances of a verse possibly being added, not one Christian doctrine would be affected. If that isn’t miraculous preservation of God’s Word then I don’t know what to call it.

^[1] Craig L. Blomberg, Can We Still Believe the Bible? (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Brazos Press, 2014). 18-19.

^[2] Robert Letham, Systematic Theology (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2019). 191.

^[3] Timothy Paul Jones, Misquoting Truth: A Guide to the Fallacies of Bart Ehrman’s “Misquoting Jesus” (Downers Grove, Ill.: IVP Books, 2007).48.

^[4] Jones. 50.

Would you want to be a Newsie?

Would you say the newsies were good or bad?

They certainly worked hard and looked out for one another, which is good.

They also were fairly dishonest and violent at times, which is bad.

The newsies were poor and had a hard life. Does that make it okay for them to lie or act violently?

Even though circumstances make it harder to obey God we are still required to obey.

Proverbs 30:8-9 says, “give me neither poverty nor riches…lest I be full and deny you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”

So, we see that though both poverty and riches bring unique temptations they don’t excuse our sin. Thankfully, there is grace in Jesus.

Why did Pulitzer decide to charge the newsies more for newspapers?

He wanted to make more money.

Ultimately, greed was the reason so many of the children were working in such poor conditions and often for nothing.

We don’t always know why God allows sad things like this to happen. But we do know a few things for sure: God is good, God knows all things, God is perfectly wise, God is in control and God will ultimately punish all sin justly. So even if we don’t understand why sad things happen like child labor, we can trust that God who sees and knows many things we don’t will use it for good and punish sin, both on the cross for those who trust in him and on judgment day.

How did the newsies free kids all over the city from working in unjust conditions?

They published the truth about child labor so that everyone could read it.

God also proclaimed the truth so that people could be free. How?

He gave us the truth of the gospel in the Bible. The gospel that Jesus Christ–who is the way, the truth, and the life–came to die on the cross and rise from the dead so all who trust in him are saved.

The freedom that Jesus offers is the happiest freedom and it lasts forever.

Would you be surprised if I told you that the best thing you could do for all your relationships is become a better listener?

James 1:19 says, “Let each of you be quick to listen; slow to speak, slow to become angry.”

We see in this verse that we are commanded as Christians to be good listeners. Obviously, if God commands us to do something that should be enough for us. But it’s also helpful to see the blessings in God’s commands.

There are many blessings of being a good listener. One of them is it helps us avoid speaking foolishly. Proverbs says “Do you see a man hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him.” We shouldn’t be hasty to speak, but instead should train ourselves to listen well that our words might be a blessing.

Additionaly, one of the main blessings of listening is that it is an essential way in which we love others. Listening is really an application of the second greatest commandment to love others as ourselves (Matt. 22:39). All of us are eager, even desperate for people to truly listen to us.

There are actually robots people can buy that listen to them. Advancements in AI is making these robots more and more lifelike. This reveals a profound truth about us: we all fear that no one is listening to us. This is perhaps one of the reasons people are so obsessed with social media. We have Twitter and FB and Snapchat, because it gives us the feeling that someone out there is listening and they care.

All of this reveals the golden opportunity Christians have to love people in a significant way simply by listening. We must understand that the question, “How are you?” isn’t a throwaway. How many people get asked that question by someone who truly cares and listens.

Listening is loving. Or as Henry Nouwen said, “Listening is spiritual hospitality.” When you listen you are creating a sacred space where someone is heard and listened to and cared for.

Listening loves people in suffering

In Job 2:13 we read this about Job’s friends, “And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights for they saw that his suffering was very great.”

Job’s friends didn’t do many things right, but at least they started strong. They began with what some have called a ministry of presence. They were simply with Job. They sat with him. I assume they listened, perhaps they even cried with him.

Being a good listener is vital to caring well for others, especially during hard times. Time for words, processing and even theological discussion will come, but listening is vital in the immediate aftermath of tragedy.

Listening loves people by bringing clarity

“The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out” (Proverbs 20:5).

Often the biggest help we can be to people trying to think through a problem or issue is to be a good listener. People can often discover the solution themselves, they just need someone to ask questions to make it clear. They need someone to help them solve the problem by asking them questions.

We are to be servants according to Mark 10:42-45. Listening is an act of service because we are laying aside our desires and focusing on another person. The service of active listening helps people by bringing clarity.

Growing as a Listener

Maybe you’re convinced that you need to grow as a listener. But how? Listening well is actually hard and is a skill we need to develop. Here are just a few suggestions.

Be patient.

Some studies show that we have to listen to someone for 8-10 minutes minimum before they feel like you have truly listened to them.

Lose Yourself in Your Subject

Dale Carnegie tells a story about going to a cocktail party where he met a botanist. He had never met a botanist before and so he began asking him question after question. He didn’t feign interest, he actually tried to lose himself in what this man did for a living. At the end of the night the botanist praised Carnegie for being a great conversationalist. Carnegie pointed out that he barely spoke. All he did was listen.

But the botanist felt so cared for, loved and valued. As Carnegie said, “That kind of listening is one of the highest compliments we can pay anyone.”

People feel loved when we listen to them. There was a child who often asked his mom to listen to his stories. One day the child said, “Mom, I know you love me, because you always put aside what you’re doing to listen to me.” (83).

Take a genuine interest in others. Try to forget yourself by getting lost in the other person’s world and concerns. Don’t just wait for your turn to talk. Let them lead the conversation. Figure out what they are passionate about and ask them about it. Resist giving advice too quickly. You know what people generally do with advice they don’t ask for? They don’t follow it. Of course, admonishing conversations need to happen and we need to be assertive with God’s truth at times, especially in evangelism. But in general it’s good to listen well and wait for people to ask us our opinion.

If we listen well it will enrich our friendships and help us gain new friendships. As Dale Carnegie said, “You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” (52). Next time you’re going to meet with someone and you don’t know what you’re going to talk about, decide to get lost in their interests and in them. The meeting will be way more interesting and you will love them deeply in the process.

Listen Actively

Mortimer Adler compares the relationship between a speaker and a listener to a catcher and a pitcher. The catcher in baseball is just as active as the pitcher.

Our son played baseball this Fall and at one of his games a little kid got behind the plate to catch. At their age very few kids can catch well, but this kid trudged over to the plate covered in catcher’s gear like David in Saul’s armor. It’s a good thing he was wearing heavy protective gear because the ball hit him straight in the face. He didn’t get any glove on this pitch at all. He fell straight on his back as parents stared to see if he was okay. Thankfully, he was fine. He’s a tough kid.

But might I suggest that that is like us sometimes when it comes to listening in conversation. People are spilling their thoughts, eager for someone to listen and words are just hitting us straight in the face and falling to the ground.

When we listen we should:

• Focus intently on them, make eye contact, lean forward, etc.

• Encourage subtly

• Refrain from distracting behavior

• Ask clarifying questions to help you follow what they’re saying

• Set no agenda but let them lead the conversation (unless of course the meeting is for a specific purpose).

Listening is an important way in which we imitate God.

Psalm 116:1-2 says,

I love the Lord, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.

When we listen, we imitate God who loves us by listening to our cries for mercy. He heard the groans of the prisoners doomed to die (Ps. 102:18-22).

And thankfully he did more than listen. He answered our prayers, by coming to earth to die. He drank the cup of wrath we deserved and was raised from the grave.

He’s perfectly loving, he’s the perfect listener, he’s the perfect Lord.

Would you like to be raised in the jungle like Mowgli?

What are some things you couldn’t learn being raised by animals?

You couldn’t learn to read, write, or speak. You couldn’t be taught the difference between right and wrong. Most importantly, an animal couldn’t teach you the good news about God and how he saved us.

God made every creature in the sky and on land and in the sea. In fact, we’re still discovering species of creatures God has made. If you discovered a different type of fish every day for 50 years there would still be more to discover! God is so creative and powerful. But God made humans different than animals.

How did God make us different from animals?

We are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:26). He also gave us authority and dominion over the earth and the animals (Gen. 1:28). We also have souls which live forever (Ecc. 12:7). We will live forever like God and always be with him (1 Thess. 4:17). This is great news because it means if we trust in Christ then when we die it’s more like falling asleep since our souls immediately go to heaven with God while our bodies on earth just await the resurrection (1 Thess. 4:14-18).

Bagheera and Baloo don’t want to take Mowgli to the village of humans, but they know it’s the right thing to do. What are times when you have to do the right thing even if you don’t want to?

Obeying God is always the right thing to do, but it’s not always the thing we want to do. Sometimes we know we need to tell the truth but we don’t want to. Or we know we need to clean our room or share, but don’t want to.

Why should we obey in those situations and do the right thing?

Most of all we should obey because we trust God. God made the entire universe. He is so powerful, smart, and wise. He also loves us so much that he gave his Son to save us. Why wouldn’t we trust him and honor him by obeying him?

We should also know that disobedience might seem like the fun, easy thing to do, but in the end it leads to pain and sadness. Proverbs 4:18-19 says,

But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,

which shines brighter and brighter until full day.

The way of the wicked is like deep darkness;

they do not know over what they stumble.

The path of sin seems light but leads to darkness. The path of obedience seems hard but leads to light, life and happiness with God.

Bagheera and Baloo gave up their time and even risked their lives to help and save Mowgli. Who has done that for you?

Certainly your parents or guardians. Maybe an Uncle or Aunt? Perhaps a friend has been helpful to you.

The person who has laid down their life more than anyone to love you is God. Jesus didn’t risk

Some claim that the Gospels were corrupted. The argument goes that, originally, the gospels were very different, and then people came along and formulated a version of Jesus in the Gospels that we have now based on what they believed about Jesus.

The claim is often made by biblical critics that we don’t have the original writings so we can’t know anything about the original writings. This just isn’t true. In fact, those same biblical critics will often betray their logic when they claim that certain passages weren’t in the original writing. How do they know, if we can know nothing about the originals? Of course, we can know what was written in the originals and when it comes to the Bible we can know with remarkable accuracy.

First, the strong oral tradition would have guarded against the corruption of the events. Also, nothing except the story told in the Gospels we have today can explain the rise and spread of the church.

However, there is additional evidence to suggest that the Gospels were accurate from the beginning and not corrupted or changed by advocates of orthodoxy as biblical critics and many Muslims suggest. For example, early church father Origen writes in the 3^rd century about his frustration with corrupted copies of Gospels in which copyists made mistakes either intentionally or unintentionally. Bart Ehrman claims this is proof that the Gospels were corrupted. Yet his argument backfires. Though there are variants among New Testament manuscripts, it’s important to realize that 99.9% are inconsequential to the meaning of the passage. Yet, still Origen was frustrated and desired to see the Gospels preserved perfectly. Even tiny mistakes were evidently noticed and rectified in the years after the Gospels were written.[1] This perfectionism should give us great confidence in the accuracy of the texts we have today.

Though we don’t have the original texts of the New Testament, the scribes who wrote the manuscripts we have had them. In ancient times, books were made to last. For example, a copy of the New Testament named Codex Vaticanus was made in the fourth century, but was re-inked in the 10^th century. That means that particular copy of the New Testament was in use for 600 years! Therefore, it’s likely that we have copies of manuscripts that were copied from the originals, and if not, the originals were still around.[2]

Apart from this, even biblical critics acknowledge that the more copies you have the better you can uncover the original text. The number of biblical manuscripts far exceeds any other work of antiquity, not by hundreds or thousands, but by tens of thousands.

Some biblical scholars have drawn attention to certain passages that might not have been included in the original New Testament texts. It’s significant that the biblical texts that are often said to have been added later do not change any Christian doctrine. For example, Bart Ehrman lists his top passages that “weren’t in the Bible originally” in the appendix of his book Misquoting Jesus. First of all, it’s likely many of those verses actually are authentic, but even if they aren’t it is inconsequential doctrinally. There are other passages that teach the same doctrine. The claim that certain passages might not be authentic can seem serious. But if Jesus really lived and died and rose again, then can we not trust he preserved his Word? Further, the authenticity of 99.9% of biblical texts aren’t debated, which comprise the main historical claims of Christianity as well as its core doctrines. So, why would we walk away from Christ and his Word over some obscure passages that have little or no bearing on Christian doctrine?

Imagine you wanted to buy a car and you found the perfect one. It was the exact model you wanted and year. It looked perfect when you looked it over it had low mileage, a great engine, and no accidents on its record. Then the salesmen pulls you aside and tells you there are two minor scratches inside the glove box. If you responded, “so what?” you’d be exactly right. Who walks away from a buy like that because of something so minuscule. I’d say it’s a similar situation with God’s Word. Why would we walk away from the avalanche of reasons to trust God’s Word for a few passages that make no doctrinal difference that some people think might not have been original? Especially when it is far from conclusive that those verses in question aren’t original.

The truth is nothing can make sense of the rise of the church except the story told in the New Testament as we have it. Beyond that, we have very good reason to believe that what was inspired by the Holy Spirit and written by the authors of the New Testament is precisely what we have preserved in our Bible’s today.

[1] Jones, Misquoting Truth. 40, 50.

[2] Greg Gilbert, Why Trust the Bible? (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2015). 48.

I can still hardly believe the news. The overturning of Roe v. Wade is something I’ve hoped and prayed for but didn’t think I would see in my lifetime.

This is absolutely cause for celebration and praising God. I know I did and still am. The overturning of Roe means the literal saving of innocent lives made in the image of God, and it is possibly, hopefully, the beginning of the end of the scourge of abortion.

However, the response online from many Christians in some ways soured the celebration for me. The majority of posts were positive and befitting of Christians. But I saw several posts which, though they fit in perfectly with the normal pattern of online engagement, were in opposition to how Scripture calls us to behave as Christians. So, as we praise God for this historic day, here’s some thoughts on how not to celebrate.

Don’t Gloat

Let’s not use this time to rub “I told you so’s” in the face of our opponents.

In the 1930’s Winston Churchill virtually stood alone in England in his opposition to Hitler and calls to military opposition. He was politically exiled, scorned by his colleagues, and laughed at. After appeasement was shattered by Nazi advance and war was declared, Churchill gave a speech in Parliament. Never was a man more entitled to remind others that he told them so, wrote William Manchester.¹ Yet, his speech was the epitome of graciousness and charitability toward his opponents, not taking one opportunity to rub it in their face, but instead insisting, “If we quarrel with the past we may lose the future.”

Haughty eyes and arrogance are an abomination to the Lord (Prov. 6:16-17; 16:5). What do we have that we have not received from God (1 Cor. 4:7) including regenerate faith in God’s Word which is the basis for our belief in the sanctity of life? Let another man praise us, not our own lips (Prov. 27:2). Let’s not use this time to celebrate something God has done to pat ourselves on the back for the fulfillment of our own political prophecies.

And leave room at the celebration for Christians who wanted to see the overturning of Roe but disagreed on how that battle should be waged. Though we may have disagreed on the means, we can be united in the goal and its fulfillment.

Don’t Revile in Return

Christians should expect opposition and hostility. The apostle John writes, “Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you” (1 John 3:13). Yet, our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus (Php. 2:5) who when he was oppressed and afflicted “opened not his mouth” (Isa. 53:7) and “when he was reviled, he did not revile in return…but continued entrusting himself to the one who judges justly” (1 Peter 2:23). We don’t need clever put downs and come backs, because we’ve entrusted ourselves to the one who will come back. Our job is to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God” (2 Cor. 10:5) but we do so as kind-hearted servants of God. Christian engagement with opponents of God’s Word is to be done graciously as outlined in 2 Timothy:

And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

2 Timothy 2:24-26

We patiently endure evil, we are kind to everyone, we bless those who persecute us (Rom. 12:14), we “repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all” (Rom. 12:17), we put away bitterness, wrath, anger and have malice toward none (Eph. 4:31). These are the biblical guidelines for Christian engagement.

Don’t Denigrate Nuance

Don’t harshly criticize other Christians who supplement this wonderful news with other truths Christians hold dear for the sake of others listening. Many pro-choice advocates will see Christians celebrating this news and will assume we don’t care about the hardship of women experiencing unexpected pregnancies. Christians should want to persuade others of the sanctity of life and of the Christian command to have compassion toward others who are suffering. The two aren’t mutually exclusive. We should walk in wisdom toward outsiders (Col. 4:5), and that sometimes means saying things publicly that often don’t need saying in private conversations between Christians.

Don’t Miss Eternity

As we celebrate this day let’s not forget the great commission. We, as Christians, are called to persuade others and implore them to trust in Christ. A crucial place to start is remembering how God saved us. Were we more savable in God’s sight than our cruelest opponents? Were we any better than those who seek to vandalize crisis pregnancy centers? Did we deserve God’s mercy more than them? We were enemies of God, “hated by others and hating one another” (Titus 3:3). Spiritually speaking we were no better than the angriest face you can imagine screaming outside the Supreme Court. “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared he saved us” (Titus 3:4-5). God had mercy on us that we might be an example to those who are to believe in him for eternal life (1 Tim. 1:16). And he’s made us ministers of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:19-20). We are Christ’s ambassadors! How sad if in our celebration of God saving life, our actions and words would be used to alienate people from eternal life. As we celebrate God saving those made in the image of God, let’s not curse others made in the image of God.

It’s time to celebrate. This is a historic day and cause for rejoicing. God has heard the groans of his people and has answered our prayers. But as we celebrate let’s not forget how we are called to act as Christians.

William Manchester, The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Alone, 1932-1940, (New York

Despite it being something we constantly avoid, we need boredom. Boredom is a problem that leads to a solution – creativity, ingenuity, productivity.

In his book The Tech-Wise Family, Andy Crouch writes that boredom is a relatively new phenomenon. Yet, this upward trend has occurred not coincidentally with the simultaneous rise of technology and social media. This seems to suggest that though screens solve boredom in the short-term, they exacerbate it in the long run. It’s like the relief of itching poison ivy only to spread it and make it worse.

Boredom, similar to a painful symptom in our body, is an indicator that something needs to change. It’s a God-given motivator to action, but to what action? When people, and kids especially, are constantly given screens or other cheap forms of entertainment as a solution for boredom it can inhibit their ability to use their mind and creativity to assuage the problem. Lacking these opportunities, the creative muscles will weaken. Screens are an easy fix to boredom but in taking that short cut we miss out. You can choose to always take the shortest route on the highway, but often times you miss things worth seeing. This is why William Powers argues “to lead happy, productive lives in a connected world, we need to master the art of disconnecting.”

Our family recently went on a road trip. We stopped in Idaho Falls, Idaho and were planning to go to the Grand Tetons and then on to Yellowstone. We noticed on the map that if we skipped the Tetons and went straight to Yellowstone it would be much quicker, but we decided to go the long way and it paid off. It ended up snowing and was one of the most magical and memorable parts of the trip.

If you or your kids are bored, don’t reach for the easy fix. Think more intentionally about how you could assuage the problem of boredom. Be thoughtful and creative about how to fill your time. Meditate on Scripture. Write a song. Work on a project. The possibilities are endless. As Cal Newport wrote, “Doing nothing is overrated.”

Jesus told us to work the works of God while it is day; night is coming. When we let boredom push us to better solutions than screens then we will be less bored, and more importantly we will be better stewards of our time which will serve others and please the Lord.

Sonic likes being the hero, but also disregards the destruction he causes. Unlike that, how should we serve others?

We should serve in a way that glorifies God, not ourselves (Matt. 5:16). We should do what’s best for others because of how Jesus loved (2 Cor. 5:14). It’s also good for us to work with a team like Sonic learns to do at the end of the movie. God has gifted us, but he hasn’t given us every gift. It’s fun and freeing to rely on others and celebrate how God has gifted them.

When Sonic meets Knuckles he’s surprised and humbled by how fast and strong he is. How should we respond when we meet people who are as gifted or more gifted than us?

We shouldn’t worry or be sad because God loves us. If God says we are his child and loved (Zeph. 3:17) than what does it matter if we are better than others?

The Master Emerald gives ultimate power to whoever has it. Is it a good thing that the Master Emerald doesn’t exist in real life?

Yes! Scripture tells us that we have all sinned (Rom. 3:23), and even Christians continue to sin (Rom. 7). So, it’s typically not good when one person has too much power.

Who does have ultimate power?

God!

How is God ultimately powerful?

He made all things, he sustains all things, he knows all things (Col. 1:15-20; Rom. 11:33). Thankfully, he’s not just powerful but perfectly good.

Why is it crucial that God is not just powerful but also good?

If he was good but not powerful he’d be nice but unable to help us. If he was powerful and not good we’d fear him and what he might do. But he’s powerful and good, and that’s great news!

What changed Knuckles heart toward Sonic?

When Sonic risks his life to save him, even though he was an enemy.

What’s a real-life example of someone laying down their life to love an enemy?

American President William McKinley had a wife who had very bad health. He regularly took breaks from his busy schedule to care for her. Sadly, McKinley was shot by a person who didn’t like him. Before McKinley died he said he forgave the guy who shot him, because Jesus had forgiven him.

Jesus’ example of laying down his life for his enemies is the greatest example of all. Romans 5:8 says, “For God shows his love for us in this: while we were sinners Christ died for us.”

A Divisive New World

Years ago, I was meeting with a friend who began talking disparagingly about some well-known, faithful pastors. I was surprised because those pastors had a long history of teaching sound doctrine, the same sound doctrine this friend of mine held to. Though this friend once trusted those pastors, he trusted them no longer.

I asked him why he changed his view and he said it was because of a podcast he’d been listening to. I was intrigued, so I listened to the episode in which these pastors’ theological integrity was called into question. Almost every argument the podcaster made was erroneous. He was speculative and made several over-exaggerated and even false claims.

Our world is becoming extremely polarized, but divisive people undermining faithful teachers isn’t new.

In Romans 16:17-20 Paul warns of divisive teachers.

17 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

Paul is warning against divisive people and those who teach false doctrines or create obstacles contrary to sound doctrine. He wants to save the Christians in Rome from being led astray from sound doctrine and from being divided in a way that hurts their fellowship and the faith. I believe, God wants to use this passage to keep us from similar harm from quarrelsome and divisive teachers.

Here’s the problem: how many followers do you think the previously mentioned podcaster would have if he said, “You know, I don’t agree with this particular statement by this pastor, but he is faithful and we should pray for them”? How much of a platform would he have by being charitable and promoting unity? His influence would slightly be far less. But in order to support himself he has to say provocative, controversial things like, “You know those pastors and authors you think are so great? They’re unfaithful.” Divisive teachers serve their own appetites instead of the Lord Christ (Rom. 16:18). They platform themselves by spreading division and doing spiritual harm to the church. They’re self-proclaimed theological watchdogs, but they would do better to watch themselves and Romans 16:17-18 is a great starting place.

What do we do?

So, how do we tell the difference between self-serving, divisive teachers and people who are genuinely pointing out theological error in service to others? Here is a non-exhaustive list of what to look for.

Look for charitability (1 Cor. 13:7) and gentleness (2 Tim. 2:25). Look for humility. Paul’s opponents in 2 Corinthians 5:11-13 constantly commended themselves by way of external metrics (letters of recommendation, ministry accomplishments, great spiritual visions, etc.). Paul humbly said, “What we are is known to God” (2 Cor. 5:11).

Look for specific statements of problematic theology being critiqued rather than hearsay and speculation. Beware of heresy based on hearsay. Be wary of people who take specific statements out of context or overemphasize the theological importance of a second or third level issue.

Look for a genuine desire for reconciliation and to restore a person from their theological error. Do they yearn for the person they’re calling out to repent and be restored to the truth (1 Tim. 1:5; Gal. 6:1)?

Beware of people whose livelihood and influence depends on this controversy.

Look for people who are sober-minded (2 Tim. 4:5), and temperate/self-controlled (1 Tim. 3:2). They aren’t swept up with every controversy. Look for kindness (2 Tim. 2:24-25).

Lastly, let your discipleship flow through your church. Don’t feel like you need to go it alone when it comes to discerning what voices you listen to. Ask one of your pastors for his thoughts on a particular source (and give him a generous amount of time to get to it). Pastors are there to help you apply Scripture to your life and seek to provide wisdom in various issues. Utilize them.

Avoiding divisive teachers is 2,000 years old, but social media hasn’t made it any easier. Thankfully, God hasn’t left us without guidance. His Word is useful for teaching, correcting, rebuking and training in righteousness.

Some have objected that the Gospel writers were more interested in theology than history and that the two are opposed. “We can’t really trust their eye-witness testimony since they were so emotionally and spiritually invested,” they say. But this is simply not true. Emotional investment does not make someone’s testimony invalid. It was the impassioned accounts from Jews after the Holocaust that turned out to be more accurate than reports from the “objective media.”[1]

It would be hard to cite any ancient writing that could not be described as biased in some way, yet we rightly accept those writings as historically accurate. If someone had seen the ministry of Jesus, they necessarily would have had emotional investment if the gospels are true. If someone saw a man rob a bank, who would discount the person’s eyewitness testimony because he’s emotionally invested and already believes the man robbed the bank?[2] Their emotional investment would not discount their testimony to the truth of the event.

Lastly, though some ancient writers played fast and loose with historical fact, it’s clear that was not the intent of the biblical writers. Luke, who wrote The Gospel of Luke and Acts, states his intent clearly at the beginning of his gospel:

Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Luke 1:1-4

Real historical fact explains best the writings of the Gospels and the rise of the Christian church. The Gospel writers set out to write theologically rich, yet, accurate history, and that is what we have in the Gospels.

[1] Blomberg, The Historical Reliability of the Gospels. 73.

[2] J. Warner Wallace and Lee Strobel, Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels, 1st edition (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2013).

A war is raging inside of every follower of Christ. It is a battle between the new man and the old self. This war within is the experience of becoming more like Christ.

In the second half of Romans 7, Paul expounds on the internal struggle of believers.

“For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing…I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin…Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

Romans 7:19, 23, 24

John Piper writes, “To kill sin is the work of living men; where men are dead…sin is alive, and will live. If you are fighting sin, you are alive.”[1] War may not feel right to a believer, but they can be comforted that if there is no war within a person it’s because they are a prisoner to death. The experience of war is affirmation a person is alive to Christ and fighting sin. Only someone who is alive can fight, it’s the person who doesn’t feel the agony of battle who has ceased living or never has.

After George Washington and the continental army famously defeated a British regiment by crossing the Delaware, their enemy was on the run and Washington decided to pursue them. David McCollough describes the scene:

More Americans rushed forward, many of them Pennsylvania militia with little or no training, who refused to yield, as Washington, Greene, and Cadwalader rode among them to lead the way. The sight of Washington set an example of courage such as he had never seen, wrote one young officer afterward. “I shall never forget what I felt….when I saw him brave all the dangers of the field and his important life hanging as it were by a single hair with a thousand deaths flying around him. Believe me, I thought not of myself.”[2]

Those who have been saved by Christ and are now struggling to be more like him are similar to these continental soldiers pursuing their enemy with Washington leading them.

People often think becoming a Christian means going from bondage to heavenly bliss. However, though a person is freed from bondage when they believe the gospel, they are awakened not to bliss, but to war against sin within them. They are captives who have been set free from bondage and handed a sword to fight their way out of the enemy’s fortress. They are free, joyful, alive, breathing fresh air, filled with new hope, but find enemies everywhere and must fight with all their might. They are scared and at times doubtful they will ever escape, yet to their right and left they find other warriors who have been set free and who with them stumble at times and bear the marks of battle, but are still running with fire in their hearts. They were all in filthy rags in their prison of death, but now they find they’re clothed in white and in full armor. Most comforting of all is their leader who rides in front of them on a white horse wielding a mighty sword and calling to each one, “Take heart! It is finished! I have overcome this enemy!”

[1] Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 13

In Romans 13:8 Paul says, “Owe no one anything.” Elsewhere in Scripture, debt is portrayed negatively.

Does this mean debt is unbiblical? Should Christians not have credit cards or car payments? What about so called “good debt” like a mortgage?

What does Scripture say?

The Bible is clear about the dangers of debt.

Proverbs 22:26-27 says:

Be not one of those who give pledges,
who put up security for debts.
²⁷ If you have nothing with which to pay,
why should your bed be taken from under you?

And Proverbs 22:7 says, “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.”

These passages certainly warn of the dangers of debt. However, they don’t teach that debt is a sin outright. Jesus permits debt in Matthew 5:42 when he says, “Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.”

In Deuteronomy 15:7-8, God commands his people not to harden their hearts toward the needy, but to “lend” them what they need.

Therefore, Paul in Romans 13:8, doesn’t seem to be instructing Christians to avoid all debt, but rather to pay it promptly. Paul’s imperative is a restatement of Proverbs 3:28 which says: “Do not say to your neighbor, ‘Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give it’—when you have it with you.”

The avoidance of debt entirely could also affect our ability to obey Scripture. For example, many Christians wouldn’t be able to buy a car cash, but if they don’t have a car how will we get to work in order to provide for themselves (2 Thess. 3:10), their family (1 Tim. 5:8) and support the church (Eph. 4:28; 1 Cor. 16;12; 2 Cor. 9:7)? It will also impede travel, limiting opportunities to fellowship and spread the gospel. Similarly, never buying a house could inhibit our generosity long-term, and even renting requires signing a lease and owing a landlord each month.

Conclusion

We must be wise financially and not jump cavalierly into debt. It can be very destructive financially. But we also must be wise with regards to the rest of our lives. There are other biblical issues we must prioritize as we make financial decisions.

Additionally, we must allow for freedom of conscience among believers in how debt is approached. Some may use credit cards, while others adamantly oppose them. We can discuss the wisdom of such issues with charity while maintaining unity in the spirit of Romans 14.

So, Paul’s command to owe no one anything doesn’t forbid Christians from incurring debt, but it does require us to be wise about debt and to repay it promptly.

Finally, the one debt we will always owe according to Paul is to love others: “Owe no one anything, except to love each other.” But we pay that continual debt gladly, motivated by the love of Christ showed most gloriously in how he paid our debt on the cross.

Everyone in Mirabel’s family has a unique magical gift. What are some of the gifts that God has given each member of your family?

How do those gifts bless your family?

Why does God give us gifts and talents?

We are given gifts not to serve ourselves, but to serve others, especially the church. 1 Peter 4:10 says, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”

Mirabel is sad because she isn’t given a magical gift. How can we be happy if we aren’t gifted like others?

Gifts are a blessing, but the greatest gift of all is that we are loved by God. If God loved us so much that he died for us, then even if we don’t have gifts that others do we can still be happy.

In the movie, Luisa feels like she is going to crack under the pressure of feeling like she always needs to be perfect. Do you ever feel like that?

What should we do when we feel worried that we can’t be perfect?

We must remember that we can’t be perfect because we all sin. In fact, 1 John 1:8 says, “if anyone claims to be without sin, he is a liar and the truth is not him.” Thankfully, Jesus was perfect. He never cracked under the pressure, but died on the cross in our place so we could be perfect in his sight. Now, if we’ve trusted in Christ, we work to please our loving, heavenly Father (Col. 3:23), and if we try our best and fail we are still loved by him, and we can learn from our mistakes.

Mirabel’s grandma, Abuela Madrigal, ends up valuing the magical family gifts more than her family. What do you tend to wrongly value more than people?

We should value God more than anything or anyone (Matt. 22:37-39), and we should love people next after God. When we value things over God and people we hurt others and we don’t use our gifts or possessions to bless others, which is the most fun way to use them.

How can we grow to value God and people more than things?

By seeing how God valued us by dying in our place. We don’t deserve his love, but by his grace he died for us. When we trust in Christ we know he’s forgiven us and loves us and that causes us to love and value him more than anything. When we’re filled up with God’s love we want to pour it into others. Also, when we love God first we want to obey him by loving people.

Most people can relate to waiting on God to answer prayer during a period of suffering. The Puritan writer John Flavel in his book The Mystery of Providence elaborates on why Christians shouldn’t despair when waiting for God to answer tearful prayers.

These delays, both for spiritual and temporal reasons are frequent, and when they befall us we are too apt to interpret them as denials, and fall into a sinful despondency of mind, though there is no cause at all for it (Psa. 31:12, Lam. 3:8, 44). It is not always that the returns of prayer are despatched to us in the same hour they are asked of God; yet sometimes it falls out so (Isa. 65:24; Dan. 9:23). But though the Lord means to perform for us the mercies we desire, yet he will ordinarily exercise our patience to wait for them, and that for these reasons:
One is that our time is not the proper season for us to receive our mercies in. Now the season of mercy is a very great circumstance that adds much to the value of it. God does not judge as we do; we are all in haste and will have it now (Num. 12:13). ‘For the Lord is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him’ (Isa. 30:18).
Another reason is that afflictive providences have not accomplished that design upon our hearts they were sent for when we are so earnest and impatient for a change of them; and till then the rod must not be taken off (Isa. 10:12).

Again, the more prayers and searchings of heart come between our needs and supplies, our afflictions and reliefs, the sweeter are our reliefs and supplies thereby made to us. ‘Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord, we have waited for him, we will rejoice and be glad in his salvation’ (Isa. 25:9). This recompenses the delay, and pays us for all the expenses of our patience.

But though there are such weighty reasons for the stop and delay of refreshing comfortable providences, yet we cannot bear it, our hands hang down and we faint. ‘I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God’ (Psa. 69:3). This even staggered Moses’ faith (Exod. 5:22, 23). O what groundless jealousies and suspicions of God are found at such times in the hearts of his own children (Job 9:16, 17; Psa. 77:7-9)!

But this is our great evil, and to prevent it in future trials, I will offer a few proper considerations in the case.

Mystery of Providence, 155-58

Flavel goes on to list five reasons why delayed answer to prayer is for our benefit. One, the delay causes us to treasure the answered prayer even more. Two, it’s better to have our hearts inclined earnestly to God than receive any earthly blessing. Third, it humbles us and causes us to seek God’s mercies, which we will find are new every morning. Fourth, it forces us to consider if there is any sin in us that is causing this affliction. Fifth, when God finally gives us what we ask after a delay we will all the more realize that the blessing is by pure grace and undeserved, as all our blessings are in this life.

So take heart if you are struggling to wait on God to answer prayer. He works all things–even delayed answers to prayer–for our good.

Most things in life have exceptions. Righteous living generally leads to blessing in this life, but not always. Wickedness generally leads to destruction, but sometimes the wicked prosper. Water is not wine unless Jesus is involved.

Similarly, Christmas is great, but fleeting. It comes quickly, bringing fun parties, gifts, carols and cookies, then it’s gone as quickly as it came. Jerry Seinfeld jokes about how the Christmas tree seems so quaint until the day after Christmas. Suddenly we wake up and say, “what’s a tree doing in our house?”

God is a refreshing change to the exceptions, transience and change in our life.

Lamentation 3:22 says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never comes to an end, they are new every morning.”

So much of our life ebbs and flows, but God is always God. God is infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth (Westminster Shorter Catechism, Q4). He cannot change (Num. 23:19). God being God has no exceptions or special clauses. When it comes to God being God there is no “unless this” or “if that.” God has no variation or shadow due to change (James 1:17).

The other aspect of God that is ceaseless is his love for his children. It never takes a break. It’s there every morning when we wake up and when we go to bed. It never fades or gets old. Long after our presents this year have faded physically or in our hearts, God and his steadfast love will keep shining as bright as the sun.

God is eternal, unchangeable, and ceaseless and so is his love for his children. “The grass withers, the flower fades…” Christmas comes and goes, joy from presents wears off, “but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isa. 40:8). And because Jesus came to earth, we can stand with him forever, secure and radiant in his steadfast love for us for all eternity.

Big decisions can be stressful. Should I take this job? Should I marry this person? Which college should I go to? Finding answers to these questions can create anxiety for all, but they can be especially paralyzing for Christians who intently want to follow God’s will for their life.

Bruce Waltke’s book Finding the Will of God: A Pagan Notion? is an incredible blessing to Christians seeking answers to big questions.

Foundational to Waltke’s approach is a clear understanding of God’s will for us. He argues that ultimately God’s will for us is that we would be mature Christians (79). God commands us to love him and obey his Word (Matt. 22:37-39; John 14:21). Though God does have a specific will for our lives he never promises to reveal that will to us (Deut. 29:29). Rather, we are to focus on God’s revealed will for us, which is loving God and obeying him. Therefore, instead of seeking to find God’s will, Waltke argues we should seek to follow God’s guidance when it comes to big decisions (233). Thankfully, Waltke lays out exactly how to do that. In part one of his book, Waltke dispels common misperceptions about discerning God’s will. In part two, he lays out what he calls “God’s Program of Guidance.” What follows isn’t exactly how Waltke words the steps or structures them, but it is essentially his outline and thoughts.[1]

God’s Program of Guidance

Pray

Not surprisingly, prayer is a vital component in seeking wisdom about big life decisions. This is a crucial way in which we do not lean on our own understanding but acknowledge God in all our ways (Prov. 3:5-6). Prayer gives us peace as we present our requests to our perfect, heavenly Father (Php. 4:6-7) knowing that he will hear our prayers for clarity (John 15:7).

Search the Scriptures

If God’s ultimate will for us is to be mature Christians then we must search his Word to see what biblical issues may be at stake in a decision. For example, if you are considering dating someone you should think about what characteristics you should desire in a spouse (i.e. faith in Christ, godliness, kindness, etc.), or what the purpose of dating and marriage is. If you are considering different colleges or a move, you should consider priorities in Scripture like being a part of a healthy church. Perceiving relevant biblical issues helps guide us toward a decision that will prioritize God’s ultimate will for us: maturity in Christ and love for God.

Search Our Hearts

David writes in Psalm 139:23-24,

“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

As we consider decisions, we should examine our hearts and motives by asking questions like, “Why do I want to marry this person?”, or “why do I want to take this job?” These kind of heart searching questions help us uncover unhealthy desires that could lead us to an unwise decision and put God’s ultimate will for us in danger.

Trust God’s Providence

God providentially orders everything in our lives, including our abilities, circumstances and opportunities. If you aren’t offered the job you want, that is God’s providence making the decision for you. If you can’t afford a particular college, we can trust God’s providence in that too. The same goes for our abilities. Perhaps we don’t have the skill set for a job we want, or the maturity to get married right now. Sometimes God has already made the decision for us and we just need to humbly submit to it.

Seek Wise Counsel

Another crucial aspect to making wise decisions is seeking wise counsel. “The purpose in a man’s heart is deep waters, but a man of understanding will draw it out” (Prov. 20:5). “Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisors they succeed” (Prov. 13:20). We can’t truly complete steps 1-4 until we’ve allowed Christian friends and pastors to join us in each of them. There may be biblical issues at stake we didn’t realize, or motives we were unaware of. Having a church family and pastors who know you well brings vital, wise counsel to bear on big decisions.

Use Your Judgment

If after all these steps you still have multiple choices in a decision, then there’s one step left: trust your judgment. When there are multiple options that make it through all the previous steps then as Augustine said, “Love God and do what you want.” As Waltke writes, “If we have been so uniquely created as to have high-level thinking, it only makes sense that God will use our judgment as part of his program of guidance.” (198).

Waltke’s book is a gold mine for all Christians trying to make big life decisions in a way that is wise but not paralyzing. Even if you aren’t currently facing a big decision Waltke’s approach will enable you to help others who are. I hope many read it and discover God’s ultimate will for their life as well as guidance for big decisions.

[1] For instance, Waltke’s first step is Read the Scripture. He doesn’t have prayer as a step (though he certainly states the importance of prayer in his book), and his second step is to prioritize our love for God over in every decision. I imply that priority in steps two and three rather than a stand-alone

What made George Bailey sad?

He was worried he would go out of business.

Why was he losing his business?

Cause Uncle Billy accidentally lost $8,000 and Mr. Potter found it and didn’t say anything.

Why do people steal and act greedily?

Because of sin. Adam and Even were the first people to disobey God in Genesis 3 and ever since then we all sin.

What effect does sin have on the world?

It brings destruction everywhere. Mr. Potter and George Bailey’s life are illustrations of the sadness and destruction sin brings.

Who saves George’s life?

An angel.

Do you think angels act on their own apart from God?

No. Throughout the Bible angels simply do the will of God. They carry out his commands. But God does say he commands angels to protect us (Ps. 91:11). God watches over us in his power and one of the ways he does that is through angels.

Does this mean we can act recklessly because God will send angels to protect us?

No. In Matthew 4:5-7 Satan tempts Jesus to jump off the top of the temple and then he quotes Psalm 91:11 that God will send angels to protect him. But Jesus responds with Deut. 6:16, which says we shouldn’t test God but should act responsibly.

George is shown what the world would be like without him. How does it make him feel?

It makes him desperately want to keep living.

What do you think the world would be like without you?

I’m sure it would be crazy to see what the world would be like without us, but here’s a more important question: what do you think the world would be like without Jesus?

Very sad. Without us there may be some good things that wouldn’t happen, but we’ve also done bad things. The great news is that Christ did come. George Bailey got to keep living, but all of us eventually die in this life. But because Jesus came, we not only get to live in this world, but forever with him in heaven.