Tag: God
Are You a Christian That Affirms Homosexuality? You Need to Read This!
Posted on January 14, 2015 in Marriage, Sexuality by Nathan Cherry
What is the message being communicated by Christians and the church regarding homosexuality? In years past we might be quick to answer the question and our chance of accuracy would be fairly certain. Not so much today. The push to normalize homosexuality has caught many churches and Christians up in its net and seemingly dragged them along. The result is a Christian culture that is frayed at the ends with churches that have decided to abandon biblical teaching in favor of a cultural message.
The new message declares the Bible old, outdated, irrelevant for today’s culture, or even just plain wrong. Somehow pastors want their congregations to believe in the veracity and inerrancy of Scripture when it comes to the existence of heaven and hell, the creation of the world, salvation and eternity. But not about human sexuality.
Pastors want people to believe that God created man and woman, that He formed them from the dust of the earth and gave them life – but not that He knows what is best for them. It must be a weird sort of tension to try and affirm Genesis 1 -3 as biblical truth then relate Romans 1 as outdated and irrelevant.
Planned Parenthood “Pastoral Letter” is Full of Lies and Bad Theology
Posted on December 2, 2014 in Life by Nathan Cherry
Once again the Religious Affairs Committee has sent out a letter explaining, in part, that abortion “will not threaten your relationship with God.” I want to highlight the main points of the letter and respond to each. I do this because it helps us prepare a biblical defense against abortion and anyone, including pastors that would try to convince us of its legitimacy.
– We believe, as religious leaders in our faith communities, that abortion is a morally permissible choice for a woman facing a problem pregnancy.
It’s interesting to me that no Scripture was used to support this claim. The pastors I know and trust always have Scripture to back up their positions. This lets me know that it’s not just their opinion but a biblically formed position that can be verified and supported through the Bible. The fact that Scripture is not used to support this claim is dubious.
Maybe there is no Scripture included because the actual Bible contradicts their position. Over and over the Bible says that God formed babies in the womb (Psa. 139:2; Isa. 44:2; 24; Jer. 1:5). The Bible makes clear that killing is murder (Ex. 20:13; Matt. 5:21; Rom. 13:9; Jas. 2:11). The theology is easy here.
The fact that this letter does not define a “problem pregnancy” other than to say it could be due to “medical, physical, emotional, economic, and relational reasons” is misleading. Some will support abortion if the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother – something that could certainly be considered a “problem.” But to lump these other factors in with such a rate and extreme scenario shows that Planned Parenthood is still willing to mislead and deceive people in order to perform more abortions.
Bradford, Washington, Lincoln, and W: Thanksgiving Proclamations Thanking God and Encouraging Prayer!
Posted on November 27, 2014 in Public Policy by Nathan Cherry
The very first Thanksgiving Proclamation was made by William Bradford in 1623. At least that is how history records it. I have no doubt the Pilgrims were quite thankful when they landed in the “new world.” But history doesn’t record an official proclamation until several years later when Bradford, the governor of the colony, said these words:
From One Heresy to the Next – Gnosticism, Pelagianism, and the New Sexuality Threaten the Church
Posted on November 26, 2014 in Sexuality, Theology by Nathan Cherry
The church of Jesus Christ has endured a host of theological debates and controversies over the centuries. One need only to look back in time to the debate over Gnosticism, or review the debate surrounding Pelagianism (to name just two) to see the scope of theological discussion the church has underwent.
While these heresies attempt to make a comeback once in a while – Gnosticism resembles new age teaching while Pelagianism and Semi-Pelagianism seem to always be lurking in the shadows of church history – the latest heresy to infiltrate the church is no less destructive.
The heresy of sexuality is causing just as great a disturbance in the church as any other throughout history. Denominations are dividing, churches are splitting, lines are being drawn and some are choosing to sit in silence. This new heresy is no less a doctrinal, theological, and moral issue than Gnosticism and Pelagianism.
Efforts to push a new sexuality complete with a new definition of family and marriage want to make sexuality about personal choice, identity, preference, or any other non-biological factor. The reality remains that gender and sexuality is an inherently biological factor determined at birth by no effort of the individual. For those that don’t believe the Bible this is can be a hard truth to handle. It leads to questions of “why am I attracted to the same-sex if it is wrong, or against nature?” Such questions are valid and not to be taken lightly.
New Song by Garth Brooks is Leaving A Lot of People In Tears
Posted on November 21, 2014 in Life, Marriage by Nathan Cherry
If you’re a fan of country music you are no doubt familiar with Garth Brooks. Even if you don’t like country music there is still a chance you like Garth. He’s just one of those singers, performers, that people like.
Brooks’ new song shares a simultaneous pro-life and pro-mom message. And it seems to be causing a lot of folks to grab a tissue.
Brooks recently shared that the song is “a conversation between God and this unborn child about ready to go down to earth. And when God describes what a mom is – whew, it kills me.”
Those lyrics that describe what a mom is say:
“So hush now baby, don’t you cry / Cause there’s someone down there waiting whose only goal in life / Is making sure you’re always going to be all right / A loving angel, tender, tough and strong / It’s almost time to go and meet your mom.”
Take a few moments to watch the video – posted below – and remember that life is precious, and kids need a mom and a dad.
Can The Church Simply Change Teaching on Sexuality and Marriage?
Posted on October 20, 2014 in Marriage, Sexuality, Theology by Nathan Cherry
Some say Christians, and the church, are out of touch and “behind the times” regarding sexuality and marriage. They want us to “get with the program” and accept homosexual behavior and marriage redefinition.
While some have acquiesced to the demands of those seeking to redefine marriage by voicing their acceptance for homosexual behavior and marriage redefinition, that is no longer good enough. The demand now is that Christians and churches support, affirm, and cheerfully endorse such behavior. The idea of tolerance, once a pillar of the LGBT movement, has been demolished, replaced by verbal affirmation and celebration.
These demands are being made by people who believe it’s no big deal for the church to simply change centuries of doctrinal convictions. Furthermore, they would have us reject the plain text teaching of the Bible in favor of their culturally imposed position. Is such change even possible?
Christian Swingers Say God Would Be Okay With Their Lifestyle
Posted on October 14, 2014 in Marriage, Sexuality by Nathan Cherry
ISpreading the word: Cristy and Dean Parave, pictured with daughter Britney (right), are fans of swinging don’t even know where to begin with this one. Sometimes you come across something so profoundly…stupid, that it’s hard to even get a grasp on it. Such is the case with the story of Dean and Christy, self-titled “Christian swingers.”
Dean and Christy met online and hit it off. After being married for a little while they began swinging as a way to spread God’s Word. Now, if that sounds like an odd statement it’s because you have some moral footings and Biblical knowledge that help you realize sinning in order to spread God’s Word is a contradiction.
But according to Dean, being a sinner is the best way to tell other sinners about God. In the video, posted below, he says:
Am I The Only One Confused By “Atheist Churches”?
Posted on October 9, 2014 in Religious Freedom, Theology by Nathan Cherry
But what I wonder is just how inclusive and accepting the atheist church is. They claim to be a center for inclusivity, but would they accept me, an evangelical Christian? Would they be open to changing the way they conduct their services so as not to offend me? Would they adopt a “doctrinal statement” that acknowledged God to include me?
While many atheists attack Christians for their beliefs, calling them exclusive, bigoted, hateful, discriminatory, etc., the reality is that every group, including atheists has beliefs that are offensive to someone else. The fact that atheists deny the existence of God is offensive to me, should I sue? If they don’t let me join their church should I sue? If they require members to sign their support for their humanist tenets should I sue? Should I seek to have them removed from college campuses, high school events, and other public arenas?
On the Issues of Gender, Sexuality, and Marriage – Christians Cannot Change
Posted on September 18, 2014 in Marriage, Theology by Nathan Cherry
It seems that with each new attack on marriage by those seeking to redefine it Christians resolve all the more to stand for the true, traditional definition and image of marriage that has been foundational throughout civilization for centuries.
This fact draws the ire of activists that can’t understand why Christians are being so stubborn and resistant to change. After all, at times in history Christians have changed their position on issues that were controversial in culture (think slavery). And even issues that are not contentious in society have been debated by Christians (think alcohol). So if Christians have changed their views on various issues at times, why won’t they change their view on marriage?
A recent article ponders this very question:
In recent years blogger Rachel Held-Evans has amassed a following of sorts. Mostly for her neo-evangelical views that continue to move away from biblical theology and increasingly embrace a more liberal doctrine. She has publicly embraced homosexuality as compatible with Christian doctrine and appears to hold serious contempt for the Complementarian view of gender given in the Bible.
But the evidence that Evans is straying into a liberal theology rife with dangerous ideas can be seen in her “God as Mother” language used in an article that is now two years old. Like many people, I missed the article when it first came out but recent reviews of it by Owen Strachan and Karen Swallow Prior caught my eye. In the article Evans says:
“Mary was not the first, nor the last, mother to hold the broken body of her child in her arms. … And, because of today, because of the cross, it is a pain that God Herself understands.”
Did you see the two little words that have very big implications?