On the Net: "A Big Church? Or a Healthy Church? What If You Had to Choose?" and More

A Big Church? Or a Healthy Church? What If You Had to Choose?

Usually, a choice for church health is also a choice for church growth. But not always. Sometimes it's one or the other. Read More

Socialism in Jesus’ Name?

“Jesus wants us to care for the poor. Socialism cares for the poor. Therefore Jesus wants socialism.” It’s a pretty simple syllogism. It is, nevertheless, a terribly flawed one. Read More

Church Libraries as an Antidote to “The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind”

Many Christians are pretty good at orienting their heart, soul, and strength toward their Creator, but few really know what it means to love God with their minds. Read More

Leadership and the Art of Humility

“Jesus was a man for others; as his disciples we live for others. Humility is living for others.” Read More

Pastoral Prayer as Worship

When trimming things from your own worship service in order to become more efficient, could I make one plea? Don’t take away the pastoral prayer. Read More

The Sin of Talking Too Much

Paul Tautges examines the dangers of talking too much. Read More

The one reason Christians should fear a Trump presidency

While Trump may be scratching the backs of celebrity pastors and preachers and telling them what they want to hear about saying "happy Christmas" his campaign has contained a disastrous threat to religious liberty. Read More

There is a list of reasons that a Christian, evangelical or otherwise, should not support Trump. They include his angry outbursts, his divisiveness, his deceitfulness, his dishonesty, his untruthfulness, his vengefulness, his open contempt for and ridicule of other people, his self-aggrandizement, and his lack of transparency where it matters most (e.g., income tax returns). These character traits are not an invention of the media. They are not qualities that Jesus and the apostles viewed as desirable in an ordinary man, much less a leader. They are qualities that Jesus associated with human sinfulness and the devil. They are qualities that the apostle Paul described as "works of the flesh." Being outspoken and not tempering one's words is not one of the "fruits of the Spirit" listed by Paul. Nor are these qualities lauded elsewhere in the Bible. The Bible warns us against putting our trust in human leaders instead of God. Until he began to run for president, Trump supported abortion and gay marriage. His change of heart is suspicious and has the appearance of being a disingenuous attempt to ingratiate himself with evangelical voters opposed to abortion and gay marriage. Trump displays a willingness to tell his audiences what they want to hear in order to gain their support and adulation. Whether Trump wins or loses the election, evangelicals are causing what may prove irreparable damage to the causes of conservative Christianity and evangelicalism through their support of Trump.