Monday, December 21, 2020

Monday's Catch: Post-Modern Pseudo Prophecy and More


How Postmodern Pseudo-Prophecy Dishonors God When does a prophet become a false prophet? Joe Carter explains.

In Texas, Evangelical Republicans Rally to Keep Trump: He’s Part of ‘the Divine Plan’ In permitting Trump's election God's plan may have been to expose our lack of faithfulness to the teachings of his Anointed, Jesus, his only begotten Son, and our willingness to make idols of political leaders who do not embody Jesus's teachings but speak and act in ways so antithetical to his teachings that they fit the description of an anti-Christ, the lawless man against whom Jesus warned. While Trump is often hailed as a pro-life champion, his withholding of health care and food stamp benefits from pregnant women and other vulnerable segments of the US population, his denial of the seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic, his inadequate and chaotic response to the pandemic, and his readiness to write off thousands of people, including unborn children, as expendable tells a different story.

Why Do They Hate Us? Here’s the common Christian answer, the one that’s conventional wisdom in most conservative churches: “Just as Jesus and the apostles promised, the world hates us because of our faith. We reject the world’s libertine sexual ethics and commitment to abortion, and thus the world rejects us.” But there’s also a less comforting—and also quite true—answer to the question, “Why do they hate us?” There is a growing cultural divide between white Evangelical America and much of the rest of the nation that has nothing to do with Christian faithfulness.

Pandemic Pop-Up Pantries: How Our Church Responded to Local Needs Whether a need arising from the pandemic and subsequent recession, or something else, churches can rise up to love their neighbors by following Jesus’s own example, compelled by grace.

Why We Keep Asking about the Christmas Star This week’s Jupiter-Saturn conjunction represents one of dozens of theories trying to explain the sign that pointed Magi to Jesus.

Magi, Wise Men, or Kings? It’s Complicated. Christian tradition finds meaning in each of these mysterious monikers.

Christianity Isn’t ‘Becoming’ Global. It Always Has Been. Why this misperception poses a stumbling block to the spread of the gospel.

Twelve Major Trends for Churches in 2021 While predicting future trends is never a precise effort, Thom Rainer and the Church Answers team do see enough data points to suggest these twelve trends are potentially powerful movements that will affect congregations, some for better and some for worse. They are not listed in any particular order.

Case Study: How to Start a Sermon Series Well So you’re about to start a sermon series, but how should you approach the first few minutes of the first sermon in that new sermon series?

'Online Is Not the Same': Children's Choirs Face Muted Festive Season Directors and young singers embrace the challenge of virtual events – despite not being able to hear each other.

Music in Wartime Music in wartime is an ancient tradition. Why? Why should something so beautiful, lively, and celebratory be laced with something so horrid, devastating, and grim? There is the simple explanation that music is a mood-booster. I think we can extract a deeper reason, though. Music declares victory before the battle. Music strengthens the heart with the promise of what could be the reward of valor: rest, peace, and jubilee. 

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing! I would be up a gum tree if I had to pick one Christmas carol or hymn that encourages my heart. I am deeply moved by so many of them! For Dan Flynn Hark! The Herald Angels Sing! has long been his favorite.

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