There is a great deal being said in recent days about Jesus being divisive. What is a stunning turn of events is that it is not being declared by people outside the Christian faith who you would expect to have a negative view of Jesus. Instead, it is being proclaimed by people within the church …
Tag: Bible
Loving Your Enemies
Several years ago, I wrote a book titled The Provocative God: Radical Things God Has Said and Done. The focus of the book was to address radical passages in the Bible that we have either become so familiar with that we fail to recognize their radical nature, or that, due to their radical nature, we …
Whatever Happened to Hope?
Do we live in troubled times? Of course we do. I don't need to give you a litany of the terrible things happening in our world. You see it 24/7 on your news feed, social media, and from the people around you who are sharing and passing along more of the same. It is a …
Can We Really Love Our Enemies in Times Like These?
I am reminded of a line from a song by Larry Norman, "The Beatles said all you need is love, and then they broke up". If four lads from Liverpool who were making serious bank together couldn't get along, how are we supposed to actually love one another in a time of such division and …
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What Ever Happened to Civil Debate?
One of the more formative experiences in my childhood came in the 6th grade. We had a teacher who encouraged open debate and critical thinking. Several times during the school year a subject would arise in which there were multiple, strongly held, varying positions among the students. Our teacher would use those times to set …
Did Jesus Claim to Be God
A brief video exploring the self identity of Jesus and His claim to be God.
Provocative Bible Verses: John 3:16
For years John 3:16 had a seemingly constant presence and American sporting events, especially in the end zones of football games. The ubiquitous man with the rainbow-colored Afro held up his sign for all the world to see, week after week, game after game. Clearly it is the most famous citation of any passage in …
Honoring Obama Even When You Disagree With Him: The Sequel
This piece was first posted four years ago today. I find that it is just as relevant now as it was then and can only hope that people who claim to follow Christ will exhibit Christ-like character no matter what their political position may be. It is deeply concerning to me that I see many …
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Jesus said to them, “my wife”
Yep, that's the line that has the theological nerd world all a buzz. Of course it probably also has caused no small amount of questioning and consternation among the faithful as well as gloating among the skeptics. It all stems from a scrap of 4th century paper about the size of a business card on …
Christianity’s Fate Is Not Contingent on America
Before you go off on me as being somehow un-American, I was born into a typical Pittsburgh blue-collar family. My Dad's first job was in a coal mine before he worked his way to owning a Chrysler-Plymouth dealership and fulfilling his version of the American dream. My favorite actor always has been and always will …
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“Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be” by Cornelius Plantinga
Make no mistake, this is a book about sin. It is about the hideous nature of sin, the way it corrupts, destroys, and slowly sucks the life out of people. It is not the kind of thing most people want to talk about these days. Sin has been replaced with "dysfunction", "addiction", "syndrome" and a …
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Obama, the Bible, and Same Sex Marriage
It is impossible to turn on the news today or go to the internet without being confronted by the news of President Obama's statement that he supports the right of same-sex couples to get married. While I can certainly appreciate his compassionate heart for people who feel they are unfairly being denied the possibility of …
Week 6 from Genesis Study Now Available
This is week 6 from our study of Genesis covering 5:1-6:8. Among other things, we take a look at that strange verse about the Sons of God and the Daughters of Men and the Nephilim Genesis Study on Video Week Six I hope you enjoy it and will add your voice to the conversation.
Christianity and Science: Is There a Conflict?
As a kid I was enthralled with science, any branch of science, astronomy, biology, chemistry, paleontology, physics, anatomy, it didn't matter. Until the fifth grade I lived in a house that backed up to a huge woods that included a spring fed pond where my best friend Bobby Kramer and I used to catch salamanders, …
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Why Being Thankful Just Doesn’t Cut It.
I know that this week is all about being thankful. I know that the Bible is clear that we are to give thanks in all things. I wrote a blog on that very topic sometime back. Give Thanks in All Things. In spite of that I have to admit that I am having second thoughts …
The Provocative Christian 