Last spring I had the privilege of speaking at a conference for NFL players put on by Pro Athletes Outreach (PAO), a group which exists to unite a community of pro athletes and couples to grow as disciples of Jesus and positively impact their spheres of influence. They have a fantastic outreach to professional football and baseball athletes and their wives. I’ve seen firsthand the amazing difference they’re making. In the off-season I exchanged emails and texts with dozens of NFL players and cha..Continue reading→
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Thoughts
Motherhood Is a Marathon
I wanted to do great things for God. In the spring of my senior year of college, on the brink of embarking upon my own journey into adulthood, my future was undecided and that was simultaneously terrifying and thrilling. As a philosophy major, my path was narrower than I had realized, but I was sure it would take me on some grand and glorious adventure. I knew the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. “Glorify” sounds like such a grand term. It evokes images of battlefie..Continue reading→
1 Peter 5:7–8: How Not to Battle Anxiety
Anxieties attack our faith and torment our peace. The question with anxiety is not whether it will come, but rather, how can I fight it when it does? Watch NowContinue reading→
Is Love of Money Really the Root of All Evils?
Is the love of money the “root of all evils” or only the “root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10)? “All evils” is the formal English equivalent of the original Greek (pantōn tōn kakōn). It is remarkable that all older versions of the Bible translate 1 Timothy 6:10 in the more literal way: “The love of money is the root of all evils” (or all evil). This includes the Wycliffe Bible, Luther Bibel, Geneva Bible, King James Version, Douay-Rheims, Darby Bible, and Revised Standard Version. Bu..Continue reading→
Hot Topics
Doxological Calvinism
Doxologies punctuate the Bible because they punctuate the life of faith. This at least was Paul’s understanding of the life of Abraham: “he was strong in faith, giving glory to God” (Rom. 4:20). Let me invite you to take a simple word-association test. The usual procedure for such a test is that the administrator says a word and the subject responds with the first word that comes to mind. Thus, the word horse might immediately prompt the word cart from some people, but race (as in horse race) f..Continue reading→
The Kingdom Comes Not Through Maneuvers But By Repentance
Today’s Essenes are the gnosis-exalting hip churches and the law-exalting fundy churches, each preaching legalism of a different sort and rendering different sorts of people untouchable. They advocate withdrawal from either “church people” or “the world,” as if true kingdom enlightenment exists in an ecclesiological utopia hermetically sealed off and protected by either their cultural savvy or their cultural avoidance. Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered..Continue reading→
NT Commentaries Withdrawn Over Plagiarism Allegations
The author, Peter T. O’Brien, was presented with the findings and provided the following response: “In the New Testament commentaries that I have written, although I have never deliberately misused the work of others, nevertheless I now see that my work processes at times have been faulty and have generated clear-cut, but unintentional, plagiarism. For this I apologize without reservation.” At the beginning of July 2016, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. received allegations against one of its New..Continue reading→
5 Lessons My Parents Taught Me About Sexuality
“These days, as I get older and consider marriage and my future, it’s the God-designed preciousness of sex that I think about more often. Sex, I’ve learned from my parents, is something to be esteemed without being glorified. While portrayed as a cheap commodity in culture today, God created it as a valuable gift.” “Sexuality”is an electric buzzword in our culture, igniting opinions like wildfire. With clashing commentary from secular society, Christians in recent years have increasingly recogn..Continue reading→
Life & Society
[Audio] How Pastors Can Preach about Religious Freedom
My friend Dr. McKay Caston (who happens to also be my pastor) preached a sermon recently that demonstrates how pastors can and should preach about religious freedom. It is fine example of speaking the truth in love and preparing a congregation for the rising tide of persecution in America. McKay has agreed to let me post the audio here and share his sermon notes below. You can follow his blog here. I encourage you to share them with pastors and church leaders and prayerfully encourage them to en..Continue reading→
Movies
Watch: New footage from Star Trek Beyond as it premieres at Comic-Con, plus a new featurette on Captain Kirk
Star Trek Beyond opens in regular theatres tonight, but some lucky fans got to see the film last night at the San Diego Comic-Con, where it was shown on an outdoor IMAX screen with live orchestral accompaniment. The studio has posted a number of clips from that event — clips that include bits of new footage that we haven’t seen before — as well as a new featurette on Captain Kirk. Check ’em all out below the jump. Here is the featurette on Captain Kirk: And below are the videos from Comic-Con, ..Continue reading→
Four things from the Young Messiah DVD commentary
At last, I have acquired a copy of the American Blu-Ray of The Young Messiah! While it doesn’t have all that many bonus features, it does have a few of them, which is more than I can say for the Canadian disc, which has none. (The American Blu-Ray also comes with a DVD copy of the film, which the Canadian Blu-Ray does not.) The bonus features include a 10-minute featurette on the making of the film and about seven minutes of deleted scenes, none of which add all that much to the story. But the d..Continue reading→
Watch: Spock and McCoy disagree on their next course of action in a new Star Trek Beyond clip
Star Trek Beyond comes to theatres tomorrow night, and the stream of promotional videos shows no signs of letting up. The latest clip from the film expands on a moment that we’ve seen in the trailers, in which Spock and McCoy are surrounded by some drones after they are stranded on a mysterious planet. Check it out below the jump. Here is the clip (and by the way, did the original Spock ever address Doctor McCoy by his first name “Leonard”, the way he occasionally called Kirk “Jim”?): The studi..Continue reading→
Grace and beauty in “Babette’s Feast”
Hey everyone, Chris here. I’m currently on vacation with my family. But awhile back, I was introduced to a new film writer whose insights I’m greatly enjoying. His name is John Irwin and he blogs about film at beezfilms.blogspot.com. Looking at his list of favorite films, I found that we shared a few in common, and I asked him if he’d like to write about one of our shared favorites, one I’ve wanted to write about for awhile but just haven’t had the time. So today, enjoy this guest post from John..Continue reading→
Ben-Hur news round-up: Is the new film a “Trojan horse”?
Another week, another round-up of Ben-Hur news items, plus a few new TV spots. First, Christian Today has a few quotes from Roma Downey, who calls the film “the most riveting opportunity of our [i.e. hers and Mark Burnett’s] careers”: “It’s a feast, a beautiful re-imagining of this epic story. I think that the movie in many ways is a Trojan horse, because it’s an action/adventure movie and it delivers on that, and viewers won’t be disappointed with that. It’s epic. But…it’s a story of redemption..Continue reading→
Is there a big spoiler in the new Star Trek Beyond TV spot?
So a bunch of Star Trek Beyond reviews went online last Friday, and I read a few of them to get a sense of what the movie would be about. Some of them hinted at a major revelation that comes up late in the film, but they declined to say what it was. Now, however, Paramount has released a TV spot that might just give it away. It’s possible, of course, that the spot in question doesn’t show the precise spoiler that the reviews avoided describing, but it does hint at something very significant abou..Continue reading→
Hail, Caesar! and the road-to-Damascus experience in film
Is Hail, Caesar! the first movie from a major Hollywood studio to depict Saint Paul’s road-to-Damascus experience on the big screen? I think it might be. Last year, I looked at a dozen different filmed versions of the road-to-Damascus story and posted images from all twelve of them, but they were all either produced for television or made by independent church-based filmmakers. I couldn’t — and still can’t — think of a single major mainstream film that has ever portrayed it. Apart, that is, from..Continue reading→
Box office: Ghostbusters gets off to a good but not great start, while animated films continue to set new records
After months of controversy, an all-female reboot of a popular comedy franchise had a good but not great start at the box office this weekend, while a couple of animated films continued to set new records for the animation medium. Ghostbusters — a reboot of the 1980s spooky-comedy series that has been hugely controversial online because it has four women in the lead roles instead of four men — grossed an estimated $46 million between Thursday and Sunday nights. That’s a personal best for directo..Continue reading→
Review: “Ghostbusters”
“Ghostbusters” is what happens when originality clashes with lucrative intellectual property. Truthfully, Paul Feig’s remake of Ivan Reitman’s beloved 1984 comedy is about as good as you could hope for. In its best moments, the cast makes you forget about the original and accept this new version as its own funny, weird thing. But those moments are too often undercut by awkward references to the first film, as if it’s haunted by the specter of Peter Venkman. Feig veers from the trend of doing a b..Continue reading→
Music
Ripcord by king Stevian
king Stevian releases his first single Ripcord to start 2017 off. For his upcoming Album he gives praise to the Father in heaven in Jesus name.[...]Continue reading→
Newsboys Honor Veterans By Partnering With Guardian For Heroes Foundation At Recent Show
Late last month, the Newsboys packed out an arena in Nashville with their 'Love Riot' Tour. The concert served as a benefit for the Guardian for Heroes Foundation, established by late U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle. The Foundation helps combat veterans transition into life after the military. RELATED Newsboys Shine Spotlight On Heroes During the show that night, Chris Kyle's brother Jeff spoke about the mission of the organization. BeastMode for the Brave endurance athlete George Ch..Continue reading→
For KING & COUNTRY Unveils New Christmas Song
Today for KING & COUNTRY unveiled their new Christmas single, "Glorious," as part of the Into The Silent Night (Extended) EP. The EP also includes "Little Drummer Boy," "Angels We Have Heard On High," "Into The Silent Night" and two recordings of their previous Christmas hit "Baby Boy." RELATED for KING & COUNTRY Announces Details Of Fall Tour "Christmas is coming, but #GLORIOUS is here! I just saw it's 0.69 on iTunes, for now. We've been working on this since Feb! And how about a ha..Continue reading→
Shawn McDonald Launches PledgeMusic Campaign For New Album
Shawn McDonald has launched a PledgeMusic campaign and pre-order for his new album. "I create with all of me and I love what I do. To thank you guys for allowing me to continue to write and do what I love, I wanted to invite you to be a part of my new album like never before. We've crafted what we hope are some really cool ways for you to engage, support and be a part of the making of a new record. For me this is a journey, it's just faith and I choose to put my journey into song and ..Continue reading→
Casting Crowns Announces Spring Leg Of ‘The Very Next Thing’ Tour
Multi-platinum selling and GRAMMY® winning group Casting Crowns will hit the road again this spring for the second leg of "The Very Next Thing" Tour, featuring K-LOVE Radio's Male Artist of the Year Danny Gokey and special guests Unspoken. Presented by Compassion International and Museum of the Bible, the 40-city arena tour kicks off Feb. 16, in Baltimore and will make stops in markets like Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Chicago, New York, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Orlando, Tampa, Grand Rapids, Minnea..Continue reading→
Ellie Holcomb To Release Sophomore Album ‘Red Sea Road’ January 27
The 2014 GMA Dove Award winning New Artist of the Year Ellie Holcomb will release her sophomore album, Red Sea Road, on January 27, 2017. This record celebrates the Hope we have in Jesus, and the powerful & personal ways Ellie has seen Him make Red Sea Roads through some of the most heartbreaking times of her life. RELATED Ellie Holcomb Expecting Second Child "The past two years for our community have been heavy, full of suffering and loss," shares Ellie Holcomb. "Red Sea Road is a record full..Continue reading→
Spencer Kane Video Nominated For MTV’s Cover Of The Month
Solo pop singer turned Anthem Lights member Spencer Kane is up for MTV's Cover Of The Month for his video of Shawn Mendes' "Mercy." "I need your help! MTV asked me to submit my MERCY video to their COVER CONTEST and I did. PLZ click this and clap 10 trillion times, and I may be able to win," he posted to social media this morning. RELATED Spencer Kane Fills Open Spot in Anthem Lights Kane shared his "Mercy" cover to Spotify, iTunes and YouTube last week, where it already has over 8,0..Continue reading→
Anthem Lights’ New Album Gets Fully Funded On Last Night Of Kickstarter Campaign
Pop group Anthem Lights has spent the last month raising money for their new album Painted Skies. With just over a day to go in their Kickstarter campaign they were less than fifty percent funded, but much to their amazement, the project was fully funded (112% to be exact) on the last night of the campaign. RELATED Spencer Kane Fills Open Spot in Anthem Lights "Do you believe in miracles?? If anyone has been waiting to pledge, NOW is the time. It doesn't look good guys, but we are incredi..Continue reading→
Trip Lee Announces New Mixtape
Rejoice hip-hop fans Trip Lee is back. The longtime Reach Records veteran officially announced his anticipated mixtape The Waiting Room after teasing it for the past month on social media. This announcement comes on the heels of the debut single "Too Cold" last week. The official pre-order for The Waiting Room is live through Reach Records, and on the album's official page they provide some background on the album "Throughout the 10 songs that make up The Waiting Room, Trip wrestles with j..Continue reading→
American
Defending Ruth Tucker Again
From Arise, used with permission.By Maureen Farrell GarciaOn January 26, 2017Some Christians see logic as the only trustworthy and effective way to communicate and receive knowledge. Unfortunately, there is not enough space in one post to systematically present the origins of this idea. In general, though the topic is a complex one, we can trace this concept from Ancient Greece, which gained momentum during the Enlightenment, through present Western thought. Some critics of Ruth A. Tucker’s book..
Abortion Advocate Protesting March for Life Put Down Her Sign and Got a Pro-Life Sign. Here’s Why
Abortion activists show up every year at the March for Life in Washington, D.C. to counter the hundreds of thousands of pro-lifers who march for unborn babies’ right to life. This year, the pro-life message appears to have touched at least one of those protesters. A Michigan woman called in to Teresa Tomeo’s Catholic Connection radio show recently to share the change that her family witnessed in a young pro-abortion protester during the march last week. The caller, Maryanne, told Tomeo and he..
German Parliament Honors Nazi Euthanasia Victims
On January 27, 2017, the Germany’s Bundestag [Parliament] commemorated the 72nd anniversary of the liberation of the inmates of Auschwitz concentration camp. This year the focus was placed on the 300,000 disabled victims of the notorious Aktion T-4 euthanasia program. Under Aktion T-4, beginning in 1939, people were gassed or given a lethal injection and cremated in six killing facilities in Germany and Austria. This helped the Nazi regime to refine its system for processing millions, rather th..
Abortion Activists Traveling Across Pro-Life Ireland to Hand Out Dangerous Abortion Drugs
In yet another stunt designed to trivialise the abortion debate in Ireland and endanger the lives of women facing unplanned pregnancy, pro-choice activists have announced their plans to travel round the country again, handing out abortion pills. Sadly, this is nothing new for ROSA, the group behind the stunt. In October 2015, they drove an “abortion pill bus” on another tour to promote the repeal of the Eighth Amendment, Ireland’s last remaining constitutional protection for unborn children. A..
Entertainment
GRAMMY® Acclaimed Crowder To Release “American Prodigal” Sept. 23
“Run Devil Run,” First Single, Hits Today Sept. 23 will mark American Prodigal, the anticipated sophomore solo project from Crowder. American Prodigal will build on Crowder’s double-GRAMMY® nominated Neon Steeple (2014), which debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200, sparking both a No. 1 hit and top 5 single at radio, a Grand Ole Opry debut, a Dove Award along with multiple nods, numerous K-LOVE Fan Award Nominations and tours throughout the U.S. and abroad. Premiering a fiery new music video for..
Modern Hymn Writers, Keith & Kristyn Getty, Debut Music Video For New Single
NASHVILLE, TN (June 17, 2016) – Keith and Kristyn Getty, the world-renowned modern hymn writers whose songs are sung by an estimated 100 million people each year in churches and concert halls on every major continent, debuted the music video for “Living Waters,” the first single off their new studio album “Facing a Task Unfinished,” released today. The project marks the 5th studio album from the couple and their first major release of new songs since their widely-embraced Hymns for the Christian..
The Conjuring 2 Finds Light in the Darkness
To understand the underlying message of The Conjuring 2, you just have to look at its calendar. The trials of the Hodgson family take place during London’s drippy, dark December. The days are growing shorter, the nights colder. And the things that go bump in the night at the Hodgson’s north London home are becoming ever more bold. Christmas spirit? More like Christmas spirits. Given the ghoulies that 11-year-old Janet Hodgson (Madison Wolfe) is dealing with, the girl would tell you ..
‘We Have a Calling:’ Conjuring 2 Writers Talk About Where Faith and Fright Meet
Some Christians believe that believers shouldn’t even watch horror films, much less write them. Too scary, they say. Too gross. The occult themes in many can even be dangerous. Screenwriters Chad and Carey Hayes, twin brothers who penned The Conjuring and, now, The Conjuring 2 (in theaters June 10) have heard it all—sometimes from their own family and friends. But they have a different take. They see a dark world out there—not the world they create through their work, but the world ..
US
Statistics on churchgoing at Christmas
Over half of Americans will go to church on Christmas day. Of those who don’t, 57% said they would be open to an invitation to go. [Note the opportunity.] A LifeWay Research study of churchgoing at Christmas also found that 89% of churches will hold services even though Christmas falls on a Sunday. [But over one in ten won’t. See our discussion.] Lutherans are the most likely to hold Christmas services on Sunday (94%), while Pentecostals are least likely (72%). [Why is that, do you think?] Also,..
“That’s Christmas”
Chicago Tribune columnist Rex Huppke writes about how when he was a kid Christmas was hugely exciting, but that it has gotten even better now that he is older. He writes about that, focusing on “a series of moments before, during and after Dec. 25 that make you stop and think: ‘That — that right there — is Christmas.'” Read what he is referring to after the jump. What are the moments that make YOU reflect, “that’s Christmas”? From Rex Huppke, Christmas gets better as you age – Chicago Tribu..
Blog news
Merry Christmas, everybody! I thought I’d pass on some news about the Cranach blog and tell you about what’s coming up next week. Patheos has been bought by the even bigger religious site BeliefNet. Patheos will have its own identity, the editors will be the same, and it will, as they say, remain its own brand. But BeliefNet has resources that will make possible some technical improvements, new features, and, eventually, a new look. I’m not sure what they have in mind, but be on the lookout for ..
The tragedies behind “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”
Let me just let Jim Priest, writing in the Daily Oklahoman, tell it: As Christmas carols were sung and Christmas bells rung, Henry thought back on two tremendous tragedies. His loving wife, Frances, had been fatally burned in an accident in their own home. His son, Charles, had been severely wounded in the war. When Frances was caught up in a fire, Henry attempted to smother the flames by throwing his arms around her. He only succeeded in severely burning himself on his face, arms and hands. He ..
Church & Theology
Theology, Church History, and Guarding the Good Deposit
Follow @BrandonSmith85 Photo courtesy: Neuestock When I began working with the Christian Standard Bible, my first priority was to dig into the history of the translation. I wanted to know who was involved, how it was developed, how it was marketed over the years, and how many Bibles were out in the wild. In order to understand fully the good and the bad about the project ahead of me, I had to take a thorough inventory of where it came from. I could’ve done my job without this investigation—but n..
Salvation by “Faith” Alone or “Allegiance” Alone?
Follow @BrandonSmith85 If you spend any time talking to me about the Trinity, you’ll know that I’m quick to recommend Matthew Bates’s book, The Birth of the Trinity. This book received wide acclaim from various tribes, and it’s on many people’s lists of go-to works on the Trinity and the early church. His new book, however, is getting a little more heat. I was provided a review copy of the book, and it’s certainly worth dealing with—whether one ends up agreeing with Bates’s proposal or not. In S..