Category: Theology
VIDEO: The Holiness of God Explained
Posted on December 6, 2016 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
What do you know about the holiness of God? I’m sure you’ve heard about holiness. Anyone that has attended church for even a short period of time has heard of holiness. Despite hearing about it, sometimes for years, many people are not quite sure what holiness is or how to explain it.
The video below is an animated illustration of God’s holiness. It is a visual depiction of holiness in a way that clearly communicates the truth of Scripture.
This theological theme, God’s holiness, is central to our life as Christians. Understanding God’s holiness and why He commanded us to “be holy for I am holy” is important for our spiritual growth. Being able to understand and explain God’s holiness is essential for understanding the world around us and why we view events differently than people that don’t know Jesus.
Take a few minutes and watch this video, and share it. You will gain a better understanding of one of the most essential, yet misunderstood aspects of God in all of scripture.
More Resources for Parents Seeking to Raise Godly Kids in a Sinful World
Posted on November 2, 2016 in Family, Theology by Nathan Cherry
Last week I posted a few resources for Christian parents to help in raising their kids in the “fear and admonition of the Lord.” I found those resources very helpful for me, personally, as I seek to raise my kids in the Gospel. So, when I came across more resources to help with this holy task, I wanted to share them as well.
Take a look at some of the articles below to learn more about cultivating the Gospel in your kids, the importance of your presence, and how to avoid “provoking your children to wrath.” There’s even a couple of videos at the end of the list that I think are very helpful (the first video is a beautiful animated YouTube song depicting the Gospel.) I hope these are a blessing and encouragement to you as you seek to impart your faith to your children.
10 Tips for Leading Kids to Christ
“This is definitely not an article about “success, and how we have achieved it.” Rather, as the old adage goes, we are beggars telling other beggars where we have found some bread. If you are seeking to influence little ones toward Christ, you might find these ten tips helpful…
New Survey Proves People (Christians) Have No Clue What They’re Talking About
Posted on October 26, 2016 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
Recently, LifeWay Research and Ligonier Ministries surveyed 3000 adults concerning the state of theology in America. The results are a glaring red flag that proves how uninformed and uneducated Americans are concerning theological issues. The researchers only identified about 20% of those they surveyed as evangelicals; many other respondents identified themselves as evangelical. That in itself is a problem.
(See the chart below to view the top 12 questions and answers from the survey.)
Resources for Christian Parents Seeking to Raise Kids in a Sinful World
Posted on October 25, 2016 in Family, Theology by Nathan Cherry
As a parent that is deeply committee to imparting my faith to my children, I am always looking for resources to help. I am often overwhelmed by the task of sharing my faith with my kids, teaching them, and training them. I fail daily and need the wise counsel of those who have gone before me.
With that in mind, the following list is some helpful resources for everything from praying for your kids to taking them to church. There’s insight on answering kids’ biblical questions and tips for raising Godly kids. And, at the end is a list of books and other resources that can provide further support in your task as a parent of bringing the Gospel to your children. I hope this is a helpful list of resources that provide encouragement and support for you, mom and dad.
Why Require Unregenerate Children to Act Like They’re Good?
“Here are at least three reasons why Christian parents should require their small children (regenerate or unregenerate) to behave in ways that conform externally to God’s revealed will. I say “small children” because as a child gets older, there are certain external conformities to God’s revealed will that should be required and others that should not. It seems to me, for example, while parents should require drug-free, respectful decency from a 15-year-old, it would do little good to require an unbelieving and indifferent 15-year-old to read his Bible every day. But it would be wise to require that of a 6-year-old, while doing all we can to help him enjoy it and see the benefit in it.”
A Baltimore Victory! And a Victory for Religious Freedom Too
Posted on October 19, 2016 in Life, Sexuality, Theology by Nathan Cherry
It’s almost too absurd to consider. And yet, it’s a reality in our upside down social landscape. Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and the City Council sought to force pro-life pregnancy centers to advocate abortion. Mayor Blake an the City Council apparently are so committed to abortion in Baltimore that they are willing to force people fundamentally opposed to it to not only support it, but to help advertise it.
A recent article reports:
VIDEO: The Bible Project is Helping People Read and Learn the Bible Through Media
Posted on October 18, 2016 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
The Bible Project video series is teaching people the essential truths of biblical doctrine in a simple format that is easy to learn and understand.
I’m always looking for resources that can be used to better teach the truth of Scripture. I like things that can be used to help kids or adults better internalize the doctrines that are foundational to our faith.
To that end, I came across a video series being produced that is helping to accomplish the goal of teaching the essential doctrines of Scripture in a visual format.
The Bible Project is a non-profit ministry dedicated to helping people read and understand the Bible. Their website describes the ministry this way:
Part 2: what Is the Church and What Does It Exist?
Posted on October 6, 2016 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
Our entire culture is designed to attract us to something and sell something to us. Corporations spend billions of dollars to learn exactly the right words to make you buy their product. Marketing and advertising is a billion dollar industry centered around attracting and selling. From television, to the Internet, to billboards, you can’t go an hour without seeing an ad for something. When the church engages in these tactics, it cheapens grace in favor of enticements.
The church is the most expensive purchase in all of history. The bible tells us that Jesus bought the church “with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). The grace that has been poured out on the body of Christ is priceless. When we seek to entice people through the doors of our church with cheap attractions (like door prizes), we cheapen that priceless grace and the Gospel of Jesus.
Part 1: What Is the Church and Why Does It Exist?
Posted on October 5, 2016 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
I posted the church’s sign on social media with my encouragement for people to run far away from such a church. That started a conversation with friends from all over about the intentions of the church and whether having door prizes was a good idea. Some viewed this as a good way to “attract” people to church so they could hear the Gospel. The thought was, get them in the doors and share Jesus with them. If they get saved then it was worth it. The opposing thought was that this church was cheapening grace and the Gospel with enticements.