Last week I heard from a few of our readers, and of their disappointment that we didn't have a Valentine's Day post. In point of fact, we've never addressed the holiday here at Think-Biblically.com and it's not an oversight. We've never talked about the holiday because it's not a Biblical one. I assure all our readers that it probably isn't because I happen to be single. We have done articles on how to have Godly relationships, however,which are easily searched for. While this post is titled "Love", I sense it isn't what our readers are hoping for either.
This November Hollywood will release a movie that should be interesting to believer's everywhere, Paul, Apostle of Christ. The movie will chronicle the life of Paul as told in the book of Acts. The title role is played by James Faulkner (of Game of Thrones and Downtown Abbey) and is accompanied by Jim Caviezel (The Passion and Person of Interest) playing Luke. The movie is being directed by Andrew Hyatt (Full of Grace, The Last Light, and The Frozen). In anticipation of the movie, we've produced this brief introduction to the man so you will be able to judge if the movie hits the mark.
Continuing our elaboration on last weeks post, we turn to the issue of abortion. While a divisive subject in our culture, most Christians believe abortion is murder. Back in the early 1970's when the landmark Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade was passed, ignorance of the state of the child was somewhat forgivable. The science was just not there to prove what a fetus was at the various stages of development. After, only a hundred years before Charles Darwin was populating the myth that the human embryo would cycle through its entire evolutionary development before birth.
There were four days in 1944 that changed the face of the war against the Japanese. It was during the Second World War and Japan had to thsi point maintained a shield of islands between their mainland and much of the Pacific ocean. On January 31, American forces overwhelmed their enemy on the Kwajalein Atoll taking on 3,500 of the enemy and leaving only 51 survivors. It gave the American forces a foothold in the Marshall Islands and allowed them to island hop all the way to Japan. Although each battle was successively more difficult, it resulted in winning the war.
Last week we highlighted one Olympic athlete who stood boldy for her faith, but there are many others. There are a number of athletes, and a few Hollywood actors and they have earned the respect of the Christian community for their boldness. With such public examples, why do so many Christians timidly go about their lives? For too many work or attend classes anonymously, hardly ever showing their true identity as followers of Jesus. It flies in the face of good Biblical teaching. "For God did not give us a spirit of fear," Paul writes, "but of power and love and self-control."
Call tomorrow what you will: Valentine's Day, Single's Awareness Day, Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent... All are correct. I confess, the season has snuck up on me as Easter Sunday is much earlier than normal this year. While I know that most protestants do not celebrate Ash Wednesday (or Lent), there are some good reasons they may want to. While not a Biblical event, it is a church tradition that started around a thousand years ago. It is an act the believer commits to before God that shows our gratitude for Jesus' sacrifice and reminds us of the cost of salvation.
Last week was an anomaly in content, a result of a bad illness I suffered. Unfortunately I couldn't get as deep into some of the issues I raised as I'd hoped. So I'm taking the opportunity to do so now. If you recall, I asked a question about Global Climate Change: When I say "Global Climate Change" you say...? Global warming? man-made climate change? Or how about: "For look, I am ready to create new heavens and a new earth! The former ones will not be remembered; no one will think about them anymore" (Isaiah 65.17).
I confess, I've not given the #MeToo movement enough consideration. When women started coming out with accusations against men they have worked with for sexual sin, I had two knee-jerk reactions. The first was a question: if such crimes occurred, why wait so long to report it? I was willing to dismiss the claims wo reasons: the length of time between the act and the report, and the lack of evidence for the claim. The second reaction was that it was largely a political movement, with an anti-biblical feminist agenda. While the later may be true, I was wrong to dismiss it so readily.
Last week the 23rd winter Olympic games began. Back in 1896, when the modern Olympic games were first observed, the goal for international competition was to break down cultural barriers and to bring people together. Such noble goals are often stated and are sincerely attempted, but it is infrequent to have success in doing so. It would appear success was reached this year, as North Korea joins in the games being held in South Korea, the two leaders getting together to talk. As inspirational as it may be, there are even greater things to learn from the Olympic games.
We've all heard the term. It's been used by athletes, lawyers and quite frequntly by the President of the United States. One way of defining "Fake News" is any news story or rumor that appears damaging to an agency, entity or person. Another way to define it is, as Pope Francis recently did, as "evil" and "a lie." He even went so far as to compare fake news to "serpent tactics", referencing the biblical snake in the Garden of Eden that first deceived mankind. It is a fitting comparison, though the devil might prefer to call them "alternative facts".
Deep in the heart of a large American city, a man lays unconscious in a gutter, his life pumping out of his wounds and down the sewer grate. No one knows how he came to be in such a state, most don't even notice him or, if they do, avert their eyes quickly and pretend not to notice. His dark curly hair is matted with blood from a head wound. No one can tell how much longer the man will live, but less than a day for sure.
2017 was a hard year for Christians worldwide, with a large increase in persecution. In Iraq for instance, where the Christian population once numbered about 1.5 million there are only 200,000 survivors. In predominantly Muslim countries, Christian women particularly are targeted. They are kidnapped, raped, their children taken to be raised as Muslim and the women then killed , sold to sex traficers, or returned to their villages. Pastor's daughters are especially sought out as they bring more money. It is estimated that six women each day are persecuted in very real fashion each day.
