Wonders of the World

A book review on the last day of 2024 in the Wall Street Journal has a wonderful and surprising final paragraph.  The reviewer is Maxwell Carter, who is vice chairman of 20th- and 21st-century art at Christie’s in New York, and the book is The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World:  An Extraordinary New Journey … [Read more…]

Do We Know What’s a Sin?

What better topic than sin as you draw up your New Year’s resolutions? When trying to avoid sin, it seems to me that two problems commonly arise that are not quite the same thing:  They are close but distinct.  First, we might wonder whether the Bible labels an action sinful at all.  Second, we might … [Read more…]

Was Jimmy Carter a Christian?

Of course he was, but you wouldn’t know from the NBC national news tonight.  That program closed with a segment that the show promised would describe the important life role played by the late president’s deep personal “faith.”  And, to be sure, it did mention”Sunday school” and “God” and even showed briefly a shot of … [Read more…]

Is Christmas a Good Holiday for Christians?

Christmas gets some bad press these days for, especially, its commercialism.  But let’s not miss the forest for the (Christmas) trees:  It’s a great holiday, especially for Christians — and it’s a great way to send the Christian message to everyone else. For starters, how could Christians not celebrate the birth of their Savior?  You … [Read more…]

What Does God Think of Us Americans?

Recently I was sitting at a table in the food court of our local shopping mall.  As I looked over the court and watched the mall’s denizens, I wondered what America’s Founders would have thought of it all. Of course, when you put the question that way, you think first of what they would think … [Read more…]

Why Would God Insist That We Love Jesus?

Premise:  Christians believe that God wants us to love one another and, even prior to that, to love Him; salvation also requires that we accept Jesus Christ as divine.  See, e.g., John 3:16-18 and 14:6. Now, it is commonly argued that it seems very unfair that someone who leads a good life, full of selfless … [Read more…]

Insight and Evangelism

There are of course many valuable truths and insights that are not found in the Bible.  There’s not a word in it, for example, about the Pythagorean Theorem.  And the fact that the Bible contains many valuable truths and insights is not proof that it is Scripture.  Poor Richard’s Almanac is not Scripture, for example. … [Read more…]

Keeping It Simple

Maybe it’s formulaic but it’s also true, in my humble opinion:  All we have to do is accept Christ and try our best to do what He wants.