Matthew 7:27 could describe the fall of Heritage USA and PTL Network. “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
(Barry Bowen – Trinity Foundation) On Monday, October 5th, Lori Bakker, cohost of The Jim Bakker Show, posted the news her husband televangelist Jim Bakker died. Lori’s brief announcement ends with the words, “Jim finished his race with faith. His voice, his vision, and his legacy will never be forgotten.”
Bakker’s legacy is worth critically examining so that future church congregations and leaders avoid repeating and excusing the same abuses.
As a religious leader, Bakker embellished his testimony, preached the prosperity gospel, committed fraud to raise funds for his theme park, lived an extravagant lifestyle, cheated on his wife, and staged a comeback after spending almost five years in prison. Continue reading
Scroll down the page past Today’s History to read the article.
“The offending material? Approximately 17 seconds of a documentary that used Angell’s own publicly available statements as evidence of the theological problems being examined.”
(Matt Margolis – PJ Media) 
(The Dissenter) This is the problem with mixing religion with politics, and it’s the problem I’ve always had with Turning Point USA.
“Married and unmarried women alike need to understand that they have been tasked with some of the most important areas of Christian life: instructing younger women and, frequently, children. These are gravely important things that require excellent, theologically sound, discerning women who have the maturity to recognize sin and error. Imagining that this is a feminist invention does not serve the church or the home well.”
“With the Jesus Calling foundation giving more than half a million dollars to the group tasked with investigating it, it’s difficult to imagine a more clear 
At a private fundraiser last week for Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, AOC reached a startling conclusion. “If Abdul can win in Michigan, anybody can win anywhere,” she said. “We are going to break the electoral map everywhere, everywhere, because that is what it is going to take to guarantee health care to every American.”
“The selection of Erik Petrik as the next editor-in-chief highlights how far the organization has moved from conventional journalistic expectations. Petrik’s primary experience is in creative production, podcast development, film, and visual branding; he executive-produced the feminist series The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill that revived Mark Driscoll’s career and has overseen other audio and design initiatives at CT…” 
(The Dissenter) Obviously, Jesus never said anything about homosexuality.
“People hear a song in church. They enjoy it. They search for it online. They discover the artist. Then they discover the church. Then they discover the pastor. Before long, they are listening to sermons, reading books, attending conferences, and absorbing an entire theological framework.”
“Should pastors engage in the political process? They absolutely should. Because many political issues are, at their heart, theological issues and moral issues that strike at the very center of what we believe to be true and what we believe people need to know in order to flourish personally and as a culture….I think the pastors need to step up. I think throughout American history, pastors have had a strong voice at key moments in American political history.”
“The bottom line is this: Republicans, right now, are in a much stronger position than they have been, not just compared to eight years ago, but over the long term as well, the relative health of the Republican Party, at least in terms of party registration, is pretty gosh darn good relative to the Democrats,”
“Whether they call themselves communists, socialists, or Democratic Socialists of America, they call for power to the people, but their real goal is power and control over the people. They want to become the spigot for all our needs. They want to be our supplier, to decide who gets what – while always setting aside a more than generous portion for themselves.”
“Tragically, his family read victim impact statements to a weeping Flynn, including from his 12-year-old and 10-year-old daughters, who begged him to confess and repent of his sin, saying in part…”
“Bakker is the archetype of the celebrity televangelism downfall. Bakker was never accountable to a local church or congregation. He was essentially his own pope, king, and god. And it proves that financial success, fame, lavishness, a large audience, and even political connections are not evidence of God’s blessing.”
“What Nate walks into is an ideological stew, complete with Communist imagery, a protester praising Hamas leadership and calling for Sharia law in New York. There were even women marching beside a man who says he wants women wearing burqas, while those same women tell Friedman they have absolutely no interest in wearing one. And of course, the usual threats of violence directed straight into the camera.”
8 And a roadway will be there, a highway,
And it will be called the Highway of Holiness.
The unclean will not pass by on it,
But it will be for him who walks in that way,
And ignorant fools will not wander on it.
9 No lion will be there,
Nor will any vicious beast go up on it;
These will not be found there.
But the redeemed will walk there,
10 And the ransomed of Yahweh will return
And come with joyful shouting to Zion,
With everlasting gladness upon their heads.
They will attain delight and gladness,
And sorrow and sighing will flee away. Isaiah 35:8-10 (LSB)
“…major corporations like Disney suppressing the news in order to weaken the President. The Founders who devised First Amendment protections for the press could never have anticipated that. What we have now is a Constitutional protection for corruption. The Supreme Court needs to take a hard look at that scenario”
“This illustrates the problem I am referring to. Phil Johnson was able to identify some of the most popular online self-proclaimed Christian nationalist figures as representative of the movement, but if anything, they are liabilities for the guys Sean McGowan mentioned who are trying to make a difference in the ecclesiastical debate. For the record, I did critique the sermon but also noted that Johnson was encouraging Christians to vote, which for me was positive.”
“Panentheism is gradually being legitimized by the Roman Catholic church and some evangelical leaders. Within Evangelicalism, it is coming in through the Roman Catholic mystical practice of Contemplative prayer and panentheism, in which Fr. Richard Rohr and the Enneagram are deeply rooted. “Shepherds” have been using the Enneagram as a nine-week sermon series, as well as for counseling, “discipleship,” and other “spiritual formation” programs.”
In modern times, R. C. Sproul often said, “To live coram Deo is to live one’s entire life in the presence of God.”
“They grew up more online than any generation, but many of them are now looking to get offline. They romanticize old technology, physical media, records, CDs, flip phones, older fashions, and pieces of life from generations they never even experienced.”
UPDATE
“Though Americans offer a wide array of reasons why they oppose AI and data centers—from job losses to infiltration—there’s a deeper reason. They gather at city council meetings because these places allow a mostly unchurched crowd to fulfill its desire for community, meaning, and a mission that church once provided.”