Unbelief and the Christian in this Lost and Dying World

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16 (LSB) 

My first job as an application developer was with the FDIC. I developed the application that was used by those who went through the Bank inventory process during a bank closing to record that bank’s inventory into a database which resided on a Compaq portable computer. I usually went to those closings to support the app and do whatever was needed to keep things running. When we got back to the office I would take that Compaq, copy the db files off of the hard drive onto a network drive, open those db files with the main database server app, and then upload that data into our main database, then assist whoever needed it in printing reports, etc…. Continue reading

3 Opportunities the Trials of Life Bring

“Family, friends, food – these are all good things. And yet they cannot be the ultimate source of our joy. It must go deeper than that, and because of God’s mercy, He has given us the true reservoir or joy. It is in Him. Trials, because of their very nature, threaten our temporal sources of joy, and therefore give us an opportunity to clarify to ourselves where our ultimate joy lies.”

(Michael Kelly) The older I get, the more convinced I become that much of life is about responding.

That’s the because the older I get, the more I see how much of life is actually out of our control. We do what we can to be proactive, prepared, and anticipatory of all different kinds of issues, but none of that preparation will ever make us completely ready for the things that happen to us every day…. Continue reading

How 80s Movies Catechized a Generation, And What We Can Learn from Them

“Catechesis is about teaching the fundamentals of the faith. It is simple but not simplistic, thoughtful but not arcane, practical but not pragmatic. It focuses less on speculative aspects of theology or ‘hot topics’ and more on providing the basic categories in which Christianity is understood and lived. It provides us the grammar to speak to God and neighbor in a genuinely Christian way.”

(Keith Foskey – Clear Truth Media) I can usually tell how old someone is simply by throwing out a few references. For instance, when I say “88 miles per hour!”, “Freeze gopher!” or “I’ll be back” to a certain subset of adults, I don’t have to cite the references; they know all of them. And I always know I’ve met a friend when I use the word “plethora” and he asks me if I know what a plethora is. Continue reading

Deeply Disturbing: Biden Campaign to Brainwash Americans

“Flaherty said “misinformation narratives” include “conversation online about corruption or mental fitness…or [Biden’s] record on the Crime Bill”—effectively defining “misinformation” as anything that the Biden team found inconvenient.”

(Mary Dowling) Matt Orfalea dug into Twitter to expose the Biden campaign’s brainwashing operation to convince America and the world that Biden was mentally fit. Joe Biden was never bright, but he had his faculties until a year or two before he ran for the presidency. We have plenty of evidence on this site alone. Continue reading

Put On the New Self

19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21 (LSB) 

The enemy of our souls has from the beginning worked against all believers’ knowing and understanding the veracity of their eternal standing before God who says that those who believe Him and obey Him, denying themselves in the process, have indescribable blessings awaiting them in eternity…. Continue reading

The Justice Department Makes The Case Against Hunter Biden . . . and Itself in California

“For years, I have expressed alarm at the special treatment afforded to Hunter Biden on the charges. Many of us have also criticized Weiss for allowing the most serious tax charges to expire despite being able to extend the statute of limitations. He has yet to offer a compelling reason why prosecutors would ever allow viable felony charges to expire when they could have extended that period.”

(Jonathan Turley) Special Counsel David Weiss appears to have finally made the long-awaited case exposing years of concealment and political corruption. No, it is not the case against Hunter Biden. The allegations of tax fraud in California are obvious and unavoidable. Weiss just made the case against the Justice Department and himself in protecting Hunter Biden from the most damaging charges of being an unregistered foreign agent. In a new filing, Weiss released evidence on Hunter seeking money to advance the interests of a Romanian on United States policy. Continue reading

Gospel Preaching They Can’t Ignore

“The difference between most modern-day ‘gospel’ preaching and the apostles’ was that theirs actually took some guts. Indeed, the words ‘bold’ or ‘boldness’ are found 13 times in Acts, each time referring to speaking to people. And it is a trait that is markedly absent from the church today.”

(Jamie Bambrick – Clear Truth Media) You’ve likely heard orthodox gospel presentations that got no reaction. Someone goes through all the essential facts of the Christian faith: man’s creation and fall, the coming of Christ as God and Man, His death, burial, resurrection and ascension–and even the theology can be fundamentally sound: that He died in our place to take our sins, that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, and that in Him we can become a new creation. So far, so good. Continue reading

If Democrats Want Proof Foreigners Are Registering To Vote, Virginia Just Found 6,303 Examples

(Sean Fleetwood – The Federalist) As part of their embarrassing smear campaign against Republicans worried about the integrity of America’s elections, legacy media have twisted themselves into pretzels trying to convince the country that foreign nationals interfering in the U.S. electoral system is a nonexistent problem.

So-called “journalists” and their Democrat political allies regularly claim concerns about noncitizens registering ahead of and voting in the 2024 election are baseless because it’s already illegal for foreigners to cast ballots in federal contests…. Continue reading

GOP Should Send Kamala Harris a ‘Thank You’ Card for Picking Walz

When view article takes you to Kruiser’s morning briefing, scroll down 2 paragraphs to read his report on Tim Waltz.  

(Stephen Kruiser – PJ Media) When I found out on Tuesday morning that the DNC had chosen Tim Walz as its approved chaperone/babysitter for Kamala Harris, much of the nagging dread I’ve been writing about went away. After all of the flailing that they had done while trying to pretend that Joe Biden was still with us mentally, it looked like the Democrats might be getting a little bit of their act together during the Harris honeymoon. Continue reading

After Walz Pick, Kamala Can No Longer Deny She’s A Radical Leftist

(Mark Hemingway – The Federalist) Prior to two weeks ago, Kamala Harris’ political career was defined by two things: Being America’s most liberal senator and the most unpopular vice president since we started polling.

The popularity problem was easy enough to solve. After she was dubiously installed as the Democratic standard bearer, the media charm offensive and meme onslaught began. Harris now has a degree of superficial popularity such that she’s not the toxic figure she was a few months ago. Continue reading

‘Georgia Owes President Donald Trump an Apology’ – Fulton County to Address Voter Fraud Issues in 2020 Election

(Gateway Pundit) A hearing will take place this morning in Georgia to discuss the corrupt acts that occurred in Fulton County in the 2020 Election.

IMPORTANT

GA State Election Board will discuss SEB2023-025 this morning

17,852 votes counted with no ballot images

20,713 original votes from tabulators out of thin air Continue reading

More Pathetic ‘Fact Checking’ of Megan Basham’s Shepherds for Sale

“Basham’s book has blown the whistle – not for progressives in mainline churches waving trans flags – but for traditional evangelicals discovering they’ve been the frogs in progressive evangelicalism’s slow boil. These churchgoers thought their leaders were stomping on the cultural brakes as the country careened towards the socialist cliff, but now see that not only are many leaders not braking, they are actually stepping on the gas.”

(David Morrill) In the political arena, tools for exploitation include divisive identity politics, class envy, hyperbolic scare tactics, and good old-fashioned character assassination. Leftist evangelicals are willing to use the same tactics, but they usually get the ball rolling with scripture twisting and Jesus-shaming emotional subjectivism. These uniquely effective tools for manipulating undiscerning believers often do the trick and avoid the need to resort to the more obvious political tools. Continue reading

Did You Know ‘Christians for Kamala’ is a Thing? Look at This Circus

Jacqui Lews, promoted by Jemar Tisby, says the reason Christians care about homosexuality but not eating pork is because there is a lot of money in pork. She says Jesus and the Jews were “not obsessed with the bedroom.”

(The Dissenter) Did you know that there’s actually a “Christians for Kamala” conference? Yes, you read that right. In the ever-bizarre world of progressive Christianity, this event is being billed as a gathering of believers united in support of Kamala Harris. Continue reading

What is the source of true joy?

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in Your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’ 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and does them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain descended, and the rivers came, and the winds blew and fell against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Matthew 7:21-27 (LSB) Read verses 26-27 on the site.

One of my first posts, What is Joy?, which I wrote on January 10, 2006 (I have since reposted it), has a read rate of 5 per day. This is obviously because it is returned in search engines to people seeking some truth about Biblical Joy, which is a constant theme throughout God’s Word…. Continue reading

An anti-culture of nothingness

“If queers mocking the Lord’s Supper and a decapitated singing head are the things that France—or at least her officer class—consider to represent her, then things have surely taken a most dark turn. “This is France,” tweeted President Emmanuel Macron. I hope he was exaggerating.”

(Carl Trueman – World Opinions) The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics will be remembered as an eloquent testimony to the tilt of contemporary Western culture. The drag queen parody of da Vinci’s The Last Supper and the appearance of the severed head of Marie Antoinette performing karaoke said it all: A culture that has given the world the plays of Racine and Molière, the novels of Stendhal and Hugo, the paintings of the Impressionists, and the music of Berlioz and Fauré served the world a dish of blasphemous kitsch and gaudy perversion. Continue reading

Immanuel Church: A Wretched Hive Of Big Eva Villainy

(Ray Fava – Evangelical Dark Web) Certain churches thrive on celebrity culture. We see that after the fall of Robert Morris, Gateway Church turned to celebrity pastors to fill the vacancy and stem the reported loss of membership. And so they turned to Max Lucado to lend his credibility to their cause. This is far more common in charismatic megachurch culture than it is in a more Reformed and complementarian tradition. It is seldom to come across a church that trades in celebrity to boost its influence as much as Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

Nashville is already a prestigious city in Evangelicalism, with few others able to compete on the same level…. Continue reading

Sheep and Goats together

“Then he will say to those on his left [goats], ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Mat 25:41

“Thanks to the Buford business model adopted by seeker churches around the world, we stopped worshipping as one true body with a common steadfast doctrine. We started teaching people that they needed to “live their truth,” even though there is only One Truth. And we stopped sharing the Gospel as Jesus commanded in the Great Commission.”

(Amy Spreeman – Berean Research) A number of years ago a Stand Up For The Truth radio listener challenged me on a show topic. I can’t remember the exact title now since all of the broadcasts I produced were scrubbed, but it was something along the lines of, Who is Church For? How the seeker model created by business guru by Peter Drucker was pushed by Rick Warren, Bob Buford, Bill Hybels, etc., onto their associated churches as a business model for “doing church.” I’m sure the original title was shorter. Continue reading

Everyone who hopes in Christ purifies himself or herself, as He is pure

28 And now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He is manifested, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. 29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who does righteousness has been born of Him. 1 John 2:28-29 (LSB) 

There are two types of people in the world. There are God’s children and everyone else. One of the reasons I love to read the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and Revelation is that John, the disciple whom Jesus loved (John 21:7), wrote very profound words that have no gray areas. Of course he wrote as the Spirit breathed these words through him, but God used this man’s entire makeup in that process…. Continue reading

The Truth About Candidate Trump

“Put aside the fact that Donald Trump is an equal opportunity insulter, why would a journalist seeking information not be specific in defining what she sees as a serious problem? That’s not hard.  You put names and dates and context in your query.  Let the audience clearly understand the issue.”

(Bill O’Reilly) With apologies to the late Jimmy Buffet, millions of Americans are wasting away in Mediaville this summer following the fast-moving presidential campaign.

My belief is that many viewers and readers know they are being deceived but watch and read slanted stuff anyway….

Continue reading

Diplomacy Swarms Mideast as Israel Awaits Iran Attack

“U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his counterparts from the G7 nations in a conference call Sunday that any attack, which he expected to be a joint undertaking between Hezbollah and Iran, could happen within 24 to 48 hours…”

(Newsmax) Diplomatic pressure mounted Monday to avoid an escalation between Iran and Israel following high-profile killings that have sent regional tensions soaring, while numerous governments urged their citizens to leave Lebanon. Continue reading

If You Buy Into Climate Change Alarmism, You Can’t Believe the Gospel

“And here lies the crux of the matter—if death existed before the fall, then Christ’s atoning sacrifice is rendered meaningless. The gospel teaches that through Adam’s sin, death entered the world, and through Christ’s death and resurrection, the power of sin and death is broken.”

In the recent Christian social media sphere, a lot has been stirred up about climate change. Voices from all corners are demanding us to take action, citing “scientific” studies and dire predictions of an impending global catastrophe. But let’s pause and think—does this narrative align with the gospel we hold dear, or is it another deceptive tactic designed to sow doubt and confusion? Continue reading

Obama Steps Out From Behind the Curtain to Help Run the Harris Presidential Campaign

(Rick Moran – P Media) Barack Obama has been a very busy man in recent weeks. Within hours of Joe Biden’s disastrous June 27 debate with Donald Trump. the former Democratic president was working the phones looking to engineer a quick Biden exit.

That was not to be. Biden was within three points of Trump in the national polls and felt that Obama, Pelosi, and the whole gaggle of establishment Democrats were running scared. There were still four months to go before election day, and Biden felt he had time to recover. Continue reading

That Is Not The Way You Learned Christ

17 Therefore this I say, and testify in the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 being darkened in their mind, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart. 19 And they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not learn Christ in this way—Ephesians 4:17-20 (LSB) 

Not long ago I listened to some old episodes of Dr. James White’s “The Dividing Line.” This post is about one particular episode from August 10, 2010. In it, he played part of a “debate” that took place on a radio show in England. The person Dr. White wanted us to hear was a man who professed to be a Christian, but was what I would call a perfect example of the product of “Liberal Mainline Christianity.”… Continue reading

What is Spiritual A.I.D.S.?

“The influence of Buddhism and Hinduism on Contemplative Prayer is apparent. Words such as “detachment,” “transformation,” “emptiness,” “enlightenment,” and “awakening” swim in and out of the waters of these books. The use of such terms certainly mandates a closer inspection of what is being taught, even though Contemplative Prayer is presented as a Christian practice.”

(Don & Joy Veinot – Midwestern Christian Outreach) Nehemiah is one of my favorite Old Testament books, and while reading it this week, I came across a familiar favorite passage of mine. Though I am familiar with the passage, I was struck anew with its importance. Nehemiah had overseen the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall after Israel’s return to her land after exile. In this passage they were installing the new gates to the city.

Nehemiah states in Nehemiah 7:1

“The gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed.” Continue reading

Gavin Ortlund Breaks Ranks, Bolsters Basham Book Sales

“By transparently and narcissistically attempting to be the hero for progressive opposition to Shepherds for Sale, Gavin Ortlund (and his laundry list of decidedly un-conservative positional baggage) broke ranks. He violated the cone of silence. He drew unwanted attention to the theological particulars the evangelical left tries so desperately to avoid discussing – the particulars that are at the heart of Basham’s book.” 

(Protestia) The cone of silence order had been issued. The Evangelical Intelligentsia was busy pretending Megan Basham’s just-released book Shepherds for Sale didn’t exist. But pastor-turned-professional-Youtuber and “theologian in residence” at daddy’s church, Gavin Ortlund couldn’t help himself. Continue reading