Should Christians try to influence laws and politics? Historically, Christians have disagreed. Dr. Wayne Grudem's booklet offers a historical and theological overview of the disagreement and offers an answer that lends itself to thoughtful action. The booklet is adapted from a chapter of his book, Politics- According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture. Here, he addresses five views of Christian involvement that he finds unbiblical, incomplete, or spurious. He closes with a more balanced and biblical solution.

From Mozambique on Africa’s East Coast to Nigeria, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso in West Africa, Christians in the region are under jihadi attack.

The Gospel of Grace sufficiently covers it all, but the media feels differently

In contrast to critical theory, Christianity offers an identity as children of God that transcends our differences. It is thus that the sons of slaves and the sons of slaveowners can be brothers. //

Everyone is condemning racism. There is no overt pro-racism side to speak of, and most accusations of racism are denied with apparent sincerity. But we do not all mean the same thing by it.

We may agree that racism is a perennial poison in our nation, as evidenced by persistent racial disparities, particularly between black and white Americans, but we disagree over what racism is, what sustains it, and how to respond to it.

Not all anti-racism is created equal, and the differences between approaches are more than questions of tactics. It is not just that radicals and crooks have used protests as cover for rioting and looting, or that people are bitter at experts and officials who promoted coronavirus lockdowns only to encourage protesters to flout the rules. Rather, fundamental philosophical and even religious differences are at work.

This is in large part because the anti-racism promoted by critical race theory and related social justice approaches has become increasingly religious, even cult-like. From iconoclasm to rituals of penance and humiliation, this anti-racism includes strong religious elements. These arise from a pseudo-theology that opposes Christianity. Thus, it is imperative that Christians fight the sin of racism both personally and socially, while also ensuring that when we address racism, we do so from a Christian perspective.

From a Christian perspective, racist ideas are heretical because they deny the brotherhood of man and therefore the fatherhood of God. Racism thus implicitly rejects the redeeming work of Jesus that restores us as children of God.

Furthermore, it repudiates the fellowship of believers through the Holy Spirit, in which we see a glimpse of a heavenly home that includes those from every tribe and tongue and nation. Racism is a heresy directed at each person of the Trinity and against God’s work in the human race from creation to eschaton. It lies about who we are, who God is, and how we relate to each other and to God.

When Ravi Zacharias was a cricket-loving boy on the streets of India, his mother called him in to meet the local sari-seller-turned-palm reader. “Looking at your future, Ravi Baba, you will not travel far or very much... //

Zacharias told the story of standing with his successor in front of Lazarus’s grave in Cyprus. The stone simply reads, “Lazarus, four days dead, friend of Christ.” Zacharias turned to Ramsden and said if he was remembered as “a friend of Christ, that would be all I want.”

When up against a bully, even when that bully is looking at me in the mirror, I focus on who I am in Christ. And knowing who I am in Christ gives me the strength and wisdom I need to face every bully. I gently (or more firmly if needed!) remind myself “I am who God says I am.”

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gabe44
10 hours ago
There is no way for us to know the financial means of Joseph and Mary. But inferences can be drawn if you look at Luke 2:24 and Leviticus 12:8. The former: 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.” The latter: 8 But if she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering.

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Laocoon gabe44
8 hours ago edited
I'm not sure that's any indication of anything.

By the 1st century Judiasm was dying. The people living in Judea and Galilee were mainly doing the min and calling it all good. The Pharisees created elaborate ways of avoiding as many of the religious obligations as possible. Jesus repeatedly criticized Jewish leaders for this nasty little habit. Not suggesting that either Joseph or Mary were as hypocritical as the Pharisees...but it's quite likely that they were doing the customary sacrifices that were found to be generally acceptable in their day. Luke actually says that when he refers to them "keeping what is said in the Law of the Lord". By the 1st century the whole doves/pigeons thing was pretty much the customary sacrifice and was in keeping with the conventional interpretation of the Leviticus passage.

As Streiff said...the term used for Joseph's profession is a Tekton. That term refers to a skilled craftsman..often in wood or stone. We get our word Architect from combining Archi (master, supervisor, leader, high skilled) and Tekton. During the youth of Jesus the Herodians were building Sepphoris only a short commute (6 kilometers) from Nazareth. They were snapping up all of the skilled workers they could lay their hands on and paying cash wages. Josephus records the scarcity of skilled craftsmen for the various projects the Herodians were working on. It was so bad that they were training Levite priests to be craftsmen to work on the more problamatic parts of Herod's Temple.

Can't prove it, but it's likely that a trained and skilled Tekton in Nazareth would be making a pretty good living from the work going on at Sepphoris. There weren't any US prevailing wage laws in 1st century Judea/Galilee...but from what we know about their building projects...the Herodians were quite willing to pay a premium to get quality work. We see that in Masada, in Caesarea, and in the remains of Sepphoris. And due to the craftsmen being absorbed in the near-by government bullding project at Sepphoris...prices for work on private sector projects would likely have risen as well. It was a good time to be a Tekton.

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riderdan
14 hours ago
Go the other way...

The Holy Family were the victims of government overreach that forced them to leave their home and travel to a far-off place (unreimbursed) for bureaucratic purposes. Due to government incompetence and poor planning, they were forced to sleep in a barn because no provision had been made for the influx of citizens created by the decree of unelected, unaccountable Caesar. Subsequent to Jesus' birth, armed agents of the government invaded private homes mercilessly killing children in hopes of preventing an eventual threat to the established order.

The message of the Nativity is simple and has nothing to do with your political cause //

Jesus was not homeless. He was born in a manger because his parents arrived in a Bethlehem in the midst of an influx of people there to register for the census. There were no rooms to be had. It was the manager or nothing. The Holy Family had a home in Nazareth. //

A birth cohort is not “membership in a particular social group.” They Holy Family was a refugee in exactly the same way that anyone today on the run from state authorities would be called a refugee. The move from one region of the Roman Empire to another is not even remotely similar to that of a modern refugee. At a stretch, He could be classed as an internally displaced person, with an emphasis on the singular form of “person” because there were no others similarly situated. The period of time in which the Holy Family was away from Nazareth was fairly short. Herod the Great died no more than a year or two after the birth of Christ and then the family returned home. By age 12, we know the Holy Family was traveling openly to Jerusalem for Passover pilgrimage (again, not a mark of a family in poverty).

The truth here is very simple. Christ is not a metaphor for whatever political cause you are flogging. The Nativity is not a primarily a reminder of illegal immigrants or the poor or the social justice cause you are pushing. The Nativity is the a demonstration of God’s love for the world and his desire that we all be saved, for as Saint John, the disciple whom Christ loved, wrote,

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. 18 He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God.

It is really that simple.

Two women, one old and one young, were the first to welcome and praise the Savior of the world. Two paintings show the beauty of these wondrous events. //

His teaching and followers across the globe radically transformed world culture, toppled great powers without ever firing a shot, established the world of humanitarianism and accessible medical care for commoners, inspired the scientific method, and enlivened the world movements for justice, human dignity, and individual freedom. He literally divides history and is responsible for the founding of the largest, most diverse collection of people around some basic ideals. //

We read in Luke 1:41-44:

And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.

This is a major event in Jesus’ story and thus the Christian church, but we seldom appreciate it as such. It is the first time Jesus is both proclaimed and worshiped as God! //

Elizabeth proclaims the blessedness of Jesus and his mother. The simple but world-changing confession, “Jesus is Lord,” was the first and most basic way Christians began to proclaim their faith and greet one another in the church’s early years. It was the first Christian creed, and Elizabeth was the first to proclaim it, long before Christmas morning. Think on that for a moment.

The second greeting is even more incredible and speaks to an intimate relationship in the Savior’s life. Baby John leaps for joy, literally, at the coming of the Savior. He does so as a child in the darkness of his mother’s womb. (Yes, Christianity has profoundly strong words for the humanity and dignity of the unborn child in John and Jesus’ remarkable in utero contribution to the good news.) //

Humble motherhood and the intimate bond only mothers can share is the human font of the Christian story. //

To be sure, the Christian church, which is often incorrectly charged with being sexist by people who know little of its actual story, is founded upon two women being the first to welcome and praise the Savior. (Remember as well, it was a small group of women who announced the “second birth” of the Savior, if you will, at his resurrection.) What other major faith or philosophy has women playing such a significant role in its founding? I cannot think of one.

German-born evangelist Reinhard Bonnke, who attracted massive crowds in Africa during decades of preaching, is being mourned by millions of Christians across the continent following his death aged 79. Kenyan writer Jesse Masai looks back at his influence.

With comparisons ranging from British "Prince of Preachers" Charles Spurgeon to American televangelist Billy Graham, Bonnke's status as the father of modern-day crusade preaching and healing in Africa is not in dispute.

Across the continent, huge week-long church rallies are now commonplace, characterised by mass mobilisation, big tents, colourful podiums, sophisticated public address systems, local language translators and, in some instances, evangelists who mimic Bonnke's oratory and stage antics, including how he firmly gripped microphones. //

Dr Mutua avers that while Bonnke may have inspired other teachers, pastors, apostles and prophets in Africa and beyond, the evangelist's work remains unfinished.

And while the Associated Press news agency reported in 2014 that Bonnke was living in a $3m (£2.3m) apartment near Palm Beach, Florida, Dr Mutua argues the evangelist was committed to transparency.

However, Prof Esther Mombo from the university's Center for Christian-Muslim Relations in Eastleigh (CCMRE), says that Bonnke's impact on Africa is complex and may take researchers some time to properly evaluate.

Established in 2010, the CCMRE has been at the heart of several attempts to build inter-religious relationships between Muslims and Christians in the African context.

Prof Mombo argues that Bonnke's preaching did not always foster peaceful co-existence, but rather rivalry and hatred.

"The people who suffered through such utterances were the ordinary people. There are also those who were exploited," she says.

"His healing ministries appeared to be strange, and to an extent a circus. Yet I am sure that through his ministry, some people met Christ and grew in faith."

Bonnke held a farewell gospel campaign in 2017 in Nigeria, after which he stepped down as the organisation's leader because of poor health.

To some it may seem strange that we would quote Scripture, and then say it is a myth. But some have already caught on.

This very well known Scripture is often misquoted and mistunderstood. The way this Scripture should read is, "The wage of sin is death.

There is a GIGANTIC difference between what these two phrases communicate.

If we say, "the penalty for sin is death", then we infer that God is paying out the penalty. Nothing could be further from the truth. When attached to the rest of the verse, "but the free gift of God is eternal life", it makes it seem like God is sitting on a cloud with entrance tickets to heaven in one hand and a hangman's noose in the other. It infers that He is watching our lives and deciding which fate we will each earn by our behavior!

But actually, "sin" is being personified here. Jesus is telling us that if we make Sin our master, we will slave for him all of our lives and the wage he will pay us is death. In fact, we will have difficulty and darkness all through our lives if we choose to serve Sin.

Then there is a comparison. Jesus is telling us that God is already holding out a free gift in His hand, one which we do not have to work for -- life. Sin pays a wage - God gives a gift.

There are two ways to serve Sin. The first is to be to be drowning in self destructive habits, drugs, uncontrolled sex, drinking, lying, stealing, etc.

The second and less obvious way to be trapped by Sin is to attempt to please God through good behavior and religion. That will lead a person into an unwinnable battle with sin which can only end one of two ways; in false pride, or failure and sorrow. If we allow Sin to be our master and to control our lives, he will direct us into the same dead religious patterns that Jesus came to defeat. Sin will entrap, hurt, break down, and finally kill us.

But God has a gift - eternal, abundant, overflowing life. A gift, by definition, is something which is in no way earned.

The recent case of a white Texas police officer who fatally shot and killed her black neighbor – Botham Jean – when she allegedly mistook his apartment for hers ended in a controversial sentencing Wednesday. Amber Guyger was convicted of murder by a jury after just one hour of deliberation. The judge declined to impose the full sentence of 99 years, instead opting to give Guyger a 10 year sentence.

Botham Jean’s young brother took to the stand to deliver a victim impact statement and took America’s breath away when he did not offer the expected (and understandable) rage and anger, but instead offered Guyger forgiveness.

“I know if you go to God and ask him, he will forgive you.”

“I love you just like anyone else and I’m not going to hope you rot and die,” Brandt Jean told Guyger. “I personally want the best for you. I wasn’t going to say this in front of my family, I don’t even want you to go to jail. I want the best for you because I know that’s exactly what Botham would want for you. Give your life to Christ. I think giving your life to Christ is the best thing Botham would want for you.”

Brandt Jean then exited the witness stand and asked if he could give his brother’s killer a hug. Guyger said yes and broke down in tears as the two embraced.

Once we’ve given ourselves to God in and through Jesus it’s no longer just us facing these struggles //

Christ has come to set us free and when He sets us free we’re free indeed. I know that’s what the word says. But how do I get in on all this freedom when I’ve spent so much of my life as a willing slave to these sins?

The first step is to admit my inability to resist the sin. And to realize that these thorns in my flesh are there to protect me from pride and to shape me into what the Lord intends me to be. It’s the act of surrender, of admitting my inability to resist that makes a way. You see when I get to the end of my rope if I give up my struggle and ask Jesus to use His strength to resist the temptation for me I can walk unscathed through the fires of my lust. When I’m weak then I’m strong because Christ’s strength is perfected in weakness.

Ghana's chief imam is a man of few words, but the 100-year-old Muslim cleric certainly knows how to make waves - by attending a Catholic Church service as part of his birthday celebrations.

Pictures of Sheikh Osman Sharubutu, sitting attentively in the pews of Accra's Christ the King Catholic Church for an Easter service, went viral on social media.

The grand mufti, leader of Ghana's minority Muslim community, wants to ensure that his legacy is peace - the fruit of inter-faith harmony.
Image caption Sheikh Sharubutu (in green) attended the Easter Sunday service

His church attendance was given even more resonance as on the day he was being pictured alongside parish priest Father Andrew Campbell, Islamist suicide bombers unleashed attacks in Sri Lanka, killing more than 250 people at churches and hotels.