How many times have you heard the statement, "I can forgive, but I can't forget"? When I hear those words they are nearly always spoken with a tone that says, "I am holding on to the pain and I will deal with the offender accordingly". What seems to be said is, I forgive, therefore I …
Author: Dan Lacich
Suffering has it’s Up Side
In fourth grade we had an incubator in class filled with eggs. Day after day we looked into the incubator to see if there were any tell-tale signs of cracks in the eggs that would be the sign that the chicks inside were beginning to hatch. When that first chick started to peck its way …
Everyone Wants a Piece of Jesus
Tonight I spoke at a college class on World Religions. I was the guest speaker and given two and a half hours to explain Christianity. The class is taught by a Muslim whom I have become friends with over the past few years. He teaches this class a couple of times a year and this …
Provocative Bible Verses: Is Jesus God?
It seems that in the past few weeks I have come across a number of people who claim to be Christians but do not think Jesus was God. The real question I suppose is, "Did Jesus think that he was God?". The short answer to that question is clearly yes. In fact, that is the …
What Would You Do If….?
I find it very interesting to consider "worst-case scenarios". A few years ago I even bought a board game by that name. (By the way, don't bother getting it. It became the fulfillment of it's own name) But thinking about the worst-case scenario recently I thought, what would the typical church going American do if …
Provocative Bible Verses: Jesus Never Knew You!
You can't read the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats without being just a little bit nervous about your eternal destiny. Now without a doubt, the Bible teaches that we are saved by faith in Christ and even that is not our own doing but a gift from God. Ephesians 2:8-9 is about as …
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You are Called by God to the Ministry
Last night I sat in a conference listening to Neil Cole talk about the damage we have done to the cause of Christ by making the ministry of the professional clergy more important than that of the average Christian. I could not agree more. If you are a follower of Christ, you have been called …
Provocative Bible Verses: Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven?
In an era that promotes tolerance as the highest of virtues and the idea that truth is relative, it is considered outrageous to claim that Jesus is the one and only, exclusive way, for people to attain eternal life. I have heard it more often than I can count; "What about all the people in …
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The Beatles said “All you need is love” and then they broke up!
Those words come from a song by Larry Norman. It was his album, "Only Visiting This Planet" that provided me, a Led Zeppelin listening new Christian, with some great rock n roll that focused on Jesus. That quote from the Beatles and the commentary on their eventual inability to work together tells us something of …
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The Theology of Travel Problems
There I was in the Johannesburg airport in South Africa. I was supposed to be changing planes in Atlanta right about then and heading home to Orlando. That's what happens when your connecting flight from Cape Town gets diverted to another airport, in a town you never heard of, due to bad weather. The four …
Provocative Bible Verses: The Fellowship of Suffering
"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death" Philippians 3:10 We met the first week of sixth grade. I was the new kid in the class and as it turned out we lived two streets apart. In one …
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Steelers Free Safety: a study in contrasts, or is he?
Troy Polamalu wears number 43 for the Pittsburgh Steelers but is clearly more commonly known by his extremely long, flowing hair trailing behind in the breeze, while he runs like few men can. On the field he appears to be everywhere at once. He makes plays that cause the most seasoned commentators, coaches, and players …
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Provocative Bible Verses: Jesus Came to Divide People
"Think not that I came to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law" Matthew 10:34-35 There is a clear impression …
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House Churches, Mega Churches, and the Westminster Kennel Club
I admit that to the untrained eye, I am something of a biblical and theological mutt. There is no pedigree to my background. My theology degrees include a Bachelors from a Catholic/Charismatic University, (Yep you read that right) two years of study at a very liberal Presbyterian seminary, a Masters degree from an Evangelical/Anglican school, …
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Provocative Bible Verses: Turn the Other Cheek
"But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also" Matthew 5:39 Many people want to bypass these provocative words from Jesus because they seem to imply that we are to allow people to just beat the tar out of us …
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The Provocative Christian 