Category: The Christian Spirit

Reflections on living as a disciple of Christ.

American Character: George Whitefield

  

George Whitefield Preaching He was a sensation. He was not even strictly an American, but a traveling evangelist from Britain. Yet America was on his heart. When George Whitefield arrived in America in 1740, he started in Georgia and traveled up the coast, preaching in all the colonies. The result was the climax of what we call the First Great Awakening. Whitefield’s voice boomed, and he dramatized his sermons. Thousands traced their conversion to his messages. Ben Franklin became his… Read more »

Christians and Race

  

Let’s talk about race. And let’s talk about the Christian perspective on race. Those who reject the Christian message try to pin a label on us, that we are racial bigots. How often I have heard that the most segregated hour of the week is Sunday morning. They try to imply that evangelicalism is a “whites-only” religion. Well, first of all, that has not been my experience—not in the churches I have attended, nor at the Christian colleges where I… Read more »

Principle: Sowing & Reaping (Part IV)

  

I ended the last post with this question from Psalms 11:3: If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? The answer is actually quite simple: rebuild. Now, I know that is easy to say and considerably harder to do. But there is no other choice. Nehemiah followed God’s call to return to Israel from Persia. His task? Rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. What he saw could have led him to despair, yet he had faith that the Lord… Read more »

Principle: Sowing & Reaping (Part II)

  

Jesus related the following parable to His disciples: A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. In my last post, I noted that Christians are to be sowing the seeds of God’s principles. As we sow, people respond differently to the truths we are sharing. Some people are so closed off against the truth, the principles/seeds… Read more »

Principle: Sowing & Reaping (Part I)

  

We sow seeds in the natural, but we do the same spiritually. A dictionary definition of the word “sow” points to the natural side when it says: To scatter seed in the ground for the purpose of growth. What is “seed?” Again, according to the dictionary: That from which anything springs. But then it moves the definition from the natural to the spiritual, when it adds this one word: PRINCIPLES. Christians, therefore, should be about the business of sowing principles… Read more »

Deliver Us from Evil

  

We awake this morning to the news that North Korea has shot off two new missiles. This follows the nuclear test it conducted just a few days ago. This is a rogue state, “led” by a egotist fueled by communist ideology. Then we have Iran. We always have Iran. Not only has this Islamic nation’s leader denied the Holocaust ever took place, he has repeatedly stated his desire to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. The Iranian government… Read more »

Beyond Good Intentions

  

I honestly believe that many Christians who disagree with my political views have good hearts. They think they are doing God’s will. I’ve noticed that one of the motives for those who support liberal politicians is their desire to help the poor. They have faith, so to speak, in the government programs that aim to bring people out of poverty. This is a grave mistake. It’s one thing to have good intentions—God will look at the heart and realize that… Read more »