fisher of men

In his engaging book “Suburbianity” (Harvest House), Nashville pastor, Byron Yawn asks American Christians to get truly radical about embracing God’s call to an ordinary life where our nice, affluent, next-door neighbors need Christ as much as anyone living in the third-world. Originally published May 20, 2013.

As the earliest extra-biblical Christian confessional document, the Apostles’ Creed has stood the test of time as the preeminent testament to creedal orthodoxy.  The creed, attributed to the earliest missionary followers of Jesus, distills the basic outline of what it means to be a Christian into a short summation that belies the depth and richness of what it proclaims. The Apostles’ Creed We believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; (He descended into hell.)1 On the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father; from which he w...

  In recent years Pinterest has exploded in popularity. Initially favored solely by women, the site now is used regularly by men and women, old and young to capture ideas, information, or any other image deemed valuable. Once the item is “pinned” friends may view the image and the “pin” is shared. It’s an incredibly efficient and practical way to promote ideas or images that we like among friends. And who isn’t intrigued by what our friends value and enjoy? We take notice of what they like. The Scriptures provide the framework for understanding what God likes. In the Apostle Peter’s first letter we read of someone and something that is highly valued. Peter says that they are precious in God’s sight. What are we talking about? The godly woman. ...

This is post probably has something to make everyone unhappy. But here goes. With Memorial Day on Monday (in the U.S.) and, no doubt, a number of patriotic services scheduled for this Sunday, I want to offer a few theses on patriotism and the church. Each of these points could be substantially expanded and beg more detailed defense and explanation, but since this is a blog and not a term paper, I’ll try to keep this under 1500 words. 1. Being a Christian does not remove ethnic and national identities. In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free (Gal. 3:28), but this does not mean men cease to be male or Jews ceases to be Jewish. The worshiping throng gathered around the throne is not a bland mess of Esperanto Christians in matching khaki pants and white ...

[embedded content] Was Jesus Ever Married? Transcribed from the video above, Bryan Chapell discusses whether Jesus was ever married: There is no evidence that Jesus was married in the books that give us the history of his life. So anything that would suggest that Jesus was married is pure conjecture, and we would say usually being articulated by people who have some agenda to undo the biblical record and add something to it. So anybody who’s saying that Jesus was married is just making that up. There is no record of that in any historical account or any biblical account. Now we want to be careful we don’t go too far to say that because Jesus was not married, marriage or sexuality are automatically evil in some way. Jesus disciples did marry. Jesus was at a stage of life where h...

For more information about Colin Smith, visit: www.unlockingthebible.com and www.theorchardefc.org For more answers to questions about Christianity, visit www.christianity.com Originally published December 18, 2012.

“I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you.” (Psalm 73:22) The driven, watchful envy of a horizontal pleasure-oriented heart will drive you crazy. It will not only rob you of your satisfaction and joy, it will take your humanity from you. It will make you more of a brute than a friend. It will eat your heart and consume your soul. You see, if you somehow fall into thinking that life is found in the pleasures and comforts of the physical; created people; things and experiences of this here and now world; then that is what you will live for. You won’t live for God. You won’t live for the good of others. You won’t be motivated by what is loving, good, true and wise. No, you will live for you, and whether you know it or not, everyday will be a hot ...

David Platt’s latest book, “Follow Me,” picks up where his best-selling book “Radical” left off. Christians are called both to follow Christ and to be disciple-makers. Trusting only in the radical righteousness of Christ, we lay down our lives to do God’s will in whatever location He calls us to serve. Originally published May 29, 2013.

“And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many shall stumble on it. They shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken.” (Isa. 8:14-15 ESV) It’s easy to stumble over Jesus. He doesn’t fit the general profile of the nice-guy religious leader. He does not ask you to work for him—to clean up your act, be measurably good, or bring any sense of your own righteousness to him. He simply asks that you trust him and the work he has done on our behalf for salvation, by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8). The simplicity of Jesus’ gospel work is troubling to people because he works for us, and we cannot add to what he is doing. Yet we should feel overjoyed and relieved to know ...

One of the noblest pursuits a child of God can embark upon is to get to know and understand God better. The best way we can accomplish this is to look carefully at the book He has written, the Bible, which communicates who He is and His plan for mankind. There are a number of ways we can study the Bible, but one of the most effective and simple approaches to reading and understanding God’s Word involves three simple steps: Step 1: Observation—What does the passage say? Step 2: Interpretation—What does the passage mean? Step 3: Application—What am I going to do about what the passage says and means? How to Study the Bible in 3 Steps Step 1: Observation Observation is the first and most important step in how to study the Bible. As you read the Bible text, you need to look carefully at what i...

Diversity:  the condition of having or being composed of differing elements; variety. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) The word diversity is not in the Bible. And though not in the Bible, God’s word is filled with diverse descriptions of people, God’s created and image-bearing people. God, himself, is diverse as the triune God—three in one person. Diversity is found throughout the pages of Genesis as tribes and tongues and nations are established (Genesis 1-11). We see diversity in the way the Lord calls people to himself—all nations. Paul ties it all together reminding the Galatians of God’s promise to Abraham for all the nations. “And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justifythe Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be...

In The House at Pooh Corner, the second of A. A. Milne’s enchanting collections of Winnie-the-Pooh’s adventures, we meet fussy mother Kanga, who deems it vital that, whatever else he does, her happy-go-lucky, into-everything offspring Roo should regularly take his strengthening medicine. Why? To grow up strong, of course. And what does that mean? Strength is physical, moral, and relational. Strong people can lift heavy objects, stand unflinchingly for what is right against what is wrong, lead and dominate groups, and in any situation, as we say, make a difference. Strong people carry personal weight, which, when provoked, they can effectively throw around. Strong people win admiration for their abilities and respect for their achievements. Kanga wants Roo to be strong, as other parents wan...