Christian Heritage News

Posted at Reformation Scotland: Our troubles just keep increasing as a nation. Conflict is everywhere you look, even between the critical institutions within the fabric of our society. Indeed, that’s true of many other nations too and their political crises. Why is that happening? Could it be that God is leaving us to the consequences of our national sins? If that’s the case then the solution will not be found in anything else except repentance. This is where the hope lies, there is mercy in God exposing our sin. The judgment of God is a call for us to return to Him. Scripture has a lot to say about nations overcome by sin, error and judgment–other nations as well as Israel. In Joel chapter 2, the Lord calls on Israel to make right use of the warning He gives about the judgment they can expect. He does this with two exhortations. They should engage in sincere repentance and humbled themselves through fasting and unfeigned sorrow (Joel 2:12. They must also strive to have their s

By Aaron Earls - Posted at Baptist Press: NASHVILLE (BP) -- Most American evangelicals believe Jesus' Golden Rule -- "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" -- applies to politics. Some, however, see the political realm leading up to the 2020 elections as no place for niceness, according to a new study. A LifeWay Research study sponsored by the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention (ERLC) conducted in November of 2018 explored the perspectives of American evangelicals on civility, politics, media consumption and how likely they are to engage with views different from their own. "The results of this polling project were occasionally encouraging, frequently surprising and in some cases very much indicting," said Russell Moore, president of the ERLC. "What this polling clearly shows is that there are forces driving the church apart from one another. That shouldn't surprise us. But it should convict us

By Andrew McDonald - Posted st The Protestant Standard: Over the years Northern Ireland has been famous for a number of reasons. Once described as the last bastion of Protestantism in western Europe, it was for many years known for its adherence to the historic Protestant evangelical faith, with churches on every corner and a gospel heritage unequalled in most parts of the west world. As the birthplace of the Titanic and the home of Van Morrison, Joey Dunlop and George Best, their achievements have caused its name to echo round the world. Sadly it has also been synonymous with terrorism as a result of the violence laden years of 'the troubles'. In recent years however it has obtained another association, that of the hit HBO television series Game of Thrones. Due to Northern Ireland providing a number of filming locations it has become widely associated with the program, and is now a popular tourist destination for its fans. Although the series is undoubtedly a profitable m

Posted at The Domain for Truth: Perhaps one of the most disturbing place I’ve been to has been the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. I visited there many years ago. Here’s a bit about it : Tuol Svay Pray High School sits on a dusty road on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In 1976, the Khmer Rouge renamed the high school S-21 and turned it into a torture, interrogation and execution center. Of the 14,000 people known to have entered, only seven survived. Not only did the Khmer Rouge carefully transcribe the prisoners’ interrogations; they also carefully photographed the vast majority of the inmates and created an astonishing photographic archive. Each of the almost 6,000 S-21 portraits that have been recovered tells a story shock, resignation, confusion, defiance and horror. Although the most gruesome images to come out of Cambodia were those of the mass graves, the most haunting were the portraits taken by the Khmer Rouge at S-21. At least 14,000 victims. I’ve seen other numb

Posted at WSMV: NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Tennessee now has an official day of prayer. Gov. Bill Lee announced Oct. 10 will be the state’s Day of Prayer and Fasting. Read more and watch the Governor's video here. Christian Heritage News Editor's Note:  A couple of observations: First of all, it's nice to see Christians come out of hiding during the Trump presidency. Secondly, it would be even nicer if this were an explicitly Christian event. It is at least a step in the right direction. - AW

Wheaton College students Caeden Hood, from left, Gabriel Emerson, Matthew Swart, Daniel Allen and Jeremy Chong at Millennium Park, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019. All of them except Allen are suing the city because of rules they believe infringe on their ability to exercise their First Amendment rights to free speech and free exercise of religion at Millennium Park. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune ) By Steve Warren - Posted at CBN: A group of four Wheaton College students is pushing back after Chicago's Millennium Park restricts any type of evangelism. The park is one of the Windy City's top tourist attractions. It hosts almost 25 million visitors every year and is the number one tourist attraction in the Midwestern US, according to Wikipedia. But now the city is limiting access to those who want to share the gospel. "An essential part of Christianity is sharing the gospel," said Jeremy Chong, a sophomore at the college, told the Chicago Tribune . The four studen

Liberty.edu By Jordan McDonald - Posted at CNBC News: Liberty University students are demanding an “open and clean investigation” into school president Jerry Falwell Jr. after explosive news reports detailing alleged self-dealing and the denigration of students and officials during his tenure at the Christian university. “We should hold the university president at the same standard that me and my friends at Liberty are held to,” Ian Parish, a senior at Liberty University, told CNBC in an interview. Continue reading...  See also: Embattled Liberty University ‘Dictator’ Jerry Falwell Jr. Vows to Sue ‘Fearful’ Staffers Who Exposed Damning Emails to Media  (Christian News Network)

Posted at Calvinist Ruminant: For logic, as well as salt, a little goes a long way. And like salt, your sense can tell when a dish has too little or too much. Too little and the casserole is bland; too much and the beans are inedible. This holds true for certain doctrines we come across. Have you ever read something by a Christian “influencer” or “public theologian” and thought, “That sounded good, but there’s something missing?” It sounded partly true, but your Christian sense was left unsatisfied by it. It was partly right, but partly…off. The casserole was bland. It needed more salt. Because you were made in the image of God, your mind was made to think like God. Westminster Larger Catechism Q&A 17 teaches us that part of that image is being made with a “reasonable soul.” It further defines the image as being made in “knowledge.” These two aspects of the image are known as the image in general and in particular. The general image of God in man is the spiritual aspect of

Wikipedia By Shane Vander Hart - Posted at Caffeinated Thoughts: Iowa becomes the 11th state added to California’s official travel ban list because it defunded sex reassignment surgeries of Medicaid dollars. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced his state will restrict state-funded and state-sponsored travel to Iowa because the state passed a law defunding Medicaid dollars for transgender surgeries. Iowa becomes the 11th state that California has placed on its state travel ban. “The Iowa Legislature has reversed course on what was settled law under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, repealing protections for those seeking gender-affirming healthcare,” Becerra said. “California has taken an unambiguous stand against discrimination and government actions that would enable it. That’s why my office is adding Iowa to the list of states subject to state-funded or sponsored travel restrictions.” Continue reading... 

By Anna Grace Wood - Posted at Femina Sola Gratia: Galatians 6: 2, Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. Cancer is defined by Merriam-Webster as a serious disease caused by cells that are not normal and that can spread to one or many parts of the body or something bad or dangerous that causes other bad things to happen. That pretty much defines cancerous relationships as well. Abuse never happens in a vacuüm. One part builds on another, and another and another until it becomes a way of life for the abuser and makes life unbearable for the abused. Abuse takes many sizes and shapes. From emotional abuse to physical, from sexual abuse to financial, from isolation to control, any type of abuse hurts. Any kind of abuse is sin. And nearly any case involving domestic abuse will far too often cause Christians to abandon post and forget that God’s Word commands us to bear one another’s burdens. Being in an abusive situation that you cannot get out of is hard e

Ligonier.org By Stephen Nichols - Posted at Ligonier Ministries: Someday, we will be like Him. That’s our hope. But it’s not a hope that we put on the shelf, and it’s not a hope that sends us into a cave. It’s a hope that sends us into the world with confidence. We can be confident in God, confident in His Word, confident in Christ, confident in the gospel, and confident in hope. In the AD 90s, Domitian ruled as emperor over Rome. His cruelty rivaled that of Nero. He insisted that he be worshiped as a god. Christians, of course, could not participate in the rituals of this emperor cult. That left them vulnerable, and that vulnerability led to persecution. It is likely that John’s exile to the island of Patmos directly resulted from Domitian’s edicts. John refused to bow. John wrote Revelation during this time, many scholars believe. Also around this time, an early church figure named Clement, serving as bishop at Rome, sent a letter to the church at Corinth. Clement opens his le

By Phil Greenwalt - Posted at Emerging Revolutionary War Era: Published September 11, 2019 Before the horrific terrorist attacks that struck the United States on September 11, 2001, this date in American history saw the longest single day engagement with the highest number of combatants during the entire American Revolution fought in southeastern Pennsylvania. Known to history as the Battle of Brandywine, approximately 30,000 soldiers were involved and 1,887 became casualties, the majority, 1,300 being Americans. One of those 1,300 individuals was Reverend or Chaplain Joab Trout, from New Hampshire. The night before the engagement, he gave the following sermon beat the evening call on the eve of battle. And 242 years later the words still echo with a sense of patriotism and stoicism for a cause that was worth fighting and dying for. Below is the full sermon... Read the full sermon here.

By Maurice Roberts - Posted at Banner of Truth: It would appear that one of the many ways in which God punishes the sins of men and nations is to give them over at times to widespread perplexity and confusion. Life in a perfect world would be ideally simple. We should all instinctively seek first the glory of God and he would unfailingly supply our every need. Supply would always providentially balance demand. Men would never know want. As they delighted themselves in God as their highest and only good, so he would manage their private and social affairs for them, anticipating their requirements and tailoring all circumstances to their comfort, convenience and capacities. As a wise and kind parent foresees the needs of his children in their nursery and arranges everything for their safe and profitable enjoyment, so God would dispose all events (if we were still in our first paradise) so that nothing would terrify or confuse us. That the world we live in is not so now, is a reflec

A montage of eight images depicting, from top to bottom, the World Trade Center towers burning, the collapsed section of the Pentagon, the impact explosion in the South Tower, a rescue worker standing in front of rubble of the collapsed towers, an excavator unearthing a smashed jet engine, three frames of video depicting American Airlines Flight 77 hitting the Pentagon - Wikipedia September 11 attacks - Wikipedia The September 11 attacks (also referred to as 9/11 ) [a] were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda [2] [3] [4] against the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks killed 2,996 people, injured over 6,000 others , and caused at least $10 billion in infrastructure and property damage. [5] [6] Additional people died of 9/11-related cancer and respiratory diseases in the months and years following the attacks. Four passenger airliners operated by two major U.S. passenger air carriers

By Michael Kelley - Posted at Outreach Magazine: To persevere in the faith, we cannot abandon the church. Sometimes when you read the Bible, you get caught on a single verse. Sometimes a single word. You read it, and you’re hung up—you can’t move on. Maybe it’s because that word strikes an emotional chord. Maybe that word stirs up and stokes your affections. Maybe you just sense that this small section requires further reflection. That’s an OK thing. Scripture is not meant to be rushed through, but instead to be thought deeply upon. Savored. Cherished. And yet, it’s helpful even in those moments to zoom out after a time and remember a few other details. It’s important to remember, for example, who wrote the book to begin with. And who the book was originally intended for. And it’s important to remember the overall purpose or main idea of that particular book of the Bible. Here are a couple of examples (all up for debate I’m sure): • Genesis is about who God is, and who we are in

By Jesse Johnson - Posted at The Cripplegate: Published August 29, 2019 Recently I’ve watched three claims about Jesus worm their way into popular discourse: That Jesus was A). a person of color, B). an immigrant, and C). Palestinian. Obviously, the increase in these claims coincides with their perceived political value. Last Christmas, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez made these points as an appeal for Christians to advocate for different immigration policies. Just yesterday, the Washington Post ran a ( particularly strange ) column appealing to evangelicals to stop supporting President Trump—something about his connection to the youth group purity movement of the 1990’s (!)—but it closed with the author reminding Christians that Jesus was a “person of color” and “[an] immigrant.” As ironic as these statements are coming from people arguing for expanded legalized abortion, they are not confined there. I’ve seen pastors, authors, and church leaders repeat those three claims in contexts w

By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at Abounding Grace Radio : David Brooks published an opinion piece in the New York Times on 5 September (2019), in the voice of one of the apparently many angry, bitter, lonely folks who view the world principally through their screen of their phone or computer. He captures the thinking of a sizable lot of people and especially those who are so alienated that they feel the need to hurt as many others as possible to get attention. That cry for attention comes at a very high cost indeed. Yet, rather than dealing with the real issue people focus on guns. Such alienation and violence is not new. In the 1937 William Wyler film, Dead End , Humphrey Bogart rather brilliantly portrayed just such a figure, Baby Face Martin. It is fascinating to watch the other characters around him attempt to connect, to buffer the anger, to mediate, and all to no effect. Martin is a murderer on the run, who returns to the slum where he grew up to find his old girlfriend a

Posted at Reformation Scotland: Understandably, sometimes we want a break from the wearying sorry saga of political conflict. But the more prominent events are, the more we need to seek a biblical perspective on what we can learn from them. Sometimes we need to leave aside political opinions and allegiances and take a step back to understand a situation. It’s a wider problem that may well become an enduring reality in various countries. The clash of populism and mainstream politics may lead to a growing trend of fragmentation. Where does a biblical perspective come from? It comes from the knowledge that God is reigning and that these things are not outside His sovereign purpose (Romans 11:36). The Bible actually speaks of political paralysis a great deal. It speaks of how God may bring those in power low by removing their authority and wisdom (Job 12:16-24). It is God who changes times and sets up rulers and brings them down; He gives wisdom (Daniel 2:21; 1 Kings 3:9; Prove

By Pastor Gabriel Hughes - Posted at The Midwestern Baptist: A video was posted yesterday in which Benny Hinn—the famed prosperity preacher and faith healing hack—seemingly repents of his prosperity preaching. In the video (which you can view here ), Hinn says the following: "I will tell you now something that I think is going to shock you. I think it's an offense to the Lord—it's an offense to say, 'Give a thousand dollars.' I think it's offense to the Holy Spirit to place a price on the gospel. I'm done with it. I will never again ask you to give a thousand or whatever amounts because I think the Holy Ghost is just fed up with it. Are you—Did you hear me? I think that hurts the gospel. So I'm making this statement for the first time in my life, and frankly I don't care what people think about me no more." He then asks his audience, "Am I shocking you?" and says, "Let's have a high-five on that one!" and he st

President Donald Trump and Jerry Falwell Jr, Liberty University, 2017. ( Wikipedia ) Posted at Pulpit & Pen: Denver Riggleman, (R-VA) married two same-sex campaign volunteers , Alex Pisciarino and Anthony LeCounte, at King Family Vineyards several weeks ago. He then received a vote of ‘no confidence’ by his local Republican Central Committee. However, tonight Riggleman proudly posted a letter of endorsement from Jerry Falwell, Jr., the president of Liberty University. Falwell said he supported Riggleman in spite of his marrying the gay couple and invited him to attend a fundraiser because of “shared values.” In the letter, Falwell claimed that gay marriage was a non-issue because the Supreme Court had decided the issue, and there was nothing that could be done on a local or state level to change that fact. Accordingly, Falwell voiced concern that Democrats could take over the Virginia State House, and said he would support Riggleman regardless of his position on abortion.

The End Time By Elizabeth Prata - Posted at The End Time : A man who hardens his neck after much reproof will suddenly be broken beyond remedy. (Proverbs 29:1). Gill’s Exposition explains the intriguing part about broken beyond remedy: shall suddenly be destroyed; or “broken” (e); as a potter’s vessel is broken to pieces with an iron rod, and can never he put together again; so such persons shall be punished with everlasting destruction, which shall come upon them suddenly, when they are crying Peace to themselves notwithstanding the reproofs of God and men; I understand that when Christians are developing and practicing discernment, it’s sometimes difficult to detect a false teacher, especially in the early days of the false teacher’s ministry or the early days of the Christian. Other people, though they suspect, find it hard to admit that their favorite teacher is false. “But they teach about Jesus!” they say. I know, it’s interesting to listen to some of the more cra

By Wes Bredenhof - Posted at YINKAHDINAY: Hillsong is one of Australia’s most well-known exports. They’re known not only for their praise and worship music brand, but also for attracting celebrities like Justin Bieber. Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently spoke at a Hillsong Conference. He’s a member of a church that belongs to the Australian Christian Churches, to which Hillsong also belongs. Hillsong is not just a church – it’s a global phenomenon. Around the world, over 130,000 people attend Hillsong each week. That could be a great thing if Hillsong was faithful to the Scriptures. If they were faithfully preaching the gospel and following the Word of God, Hillsong could have a powerful impact. But are they? Last week, the ABC featured a piece on modern Pentecostalism in Australia . This is how it opens: It is Sunday morning at Hillsong’s megachurch in the Sydney suburb of Alexandria, and Pastor Natalie Pingel pauses mid-sermon to conduct an impromptu Dwayne “The