Has Christmas Lost its Lustre?

For many people Christmas is perceived as a bother and a chore.  To be sure we once lived in a country that was overtly Christian but now we are all heavily secularized.  I suspect that many who will read this column do not see the lustre in the Christmas story even if they once did. Perhaps for a majority, the Nativity and all its trappings is merely a faint and distant light. 

Now for sure merchants love Christmas. Usually a third or more of retail profits come because of Jesus and the manger. Or did I get that wrong?  Perhaps I should say because of Santa and his sleigh full of gifts bought from these same retailers.   But some merchants and administrators are beginning to wonder if they can finally jettison the heavy cargo of the Nativity. Witness what the managing team of the Stone Road Mall tried to do only a few weeks ago—they attempted to off-load Jesus, Mary and the whole scene.  Some others as well would like to get away from the word Christmas completely, and just focus on the “happy holiday” aspect. With each passing Christmas season we are increasingly waging the Christmas “wars”—some want this season to be wholly secular, while others like me want to retain its spiritual meaning.

But beyond the merchants, what about you who are presently reading this article?  Do you see the historical story of Jesus’ birth in a manger as a wonderful truth? Do you pause, as shepherds once did, to worship King Jesus with awe?  Or is the whole scene simply ho hum to the point of boredom?

Why have so many lost the wonder and the awe surrounding the Nativity?   Why are so many disillusioned with Christmas?  I would like to suggest six possibilities:

1)      You may have been spiritually wounded and confused by a pagan god in a red suit, big belly and long white beard who comes bearing gifts.

2)      You may be one of those unlucky people who have been conned into thinking the historic birth is nothing but myth. Isn’t it ironic that an atheist group in New York City has a billboard urging people to “Keep the Merry, Dump the Myth?” Yes, they want you to dump the historical Jesus and embrace Santa.  Please don’t believe the lie. The truth is out there.  Refind the lustre.  Dump Santa instead.

3)      You may be a name only Christian who shows up at church on Christmas and Easter. Trust me, I’m not blaming you. There’s a really good chance your mom and dad reared you to think that Jesus and his teaching didn’t matter.  Since the apple usually falls close to the tree, you may loosely call yourselves a Christian, but in your heart of hearts you don’t have the foggiest notion of what it means to follow Christ. Sadly, you have been inoculated against experiencing the real thing.  How can you perceive the lustre for the first time? Embrace Jesus.

4)       You may have had a sincere belief in the past because you saw the light and the glory around the baby called Jesus. But somewhere, sometime, someone in the church profoundly hurt you and you turned away. You concluded falsely that it was all humbug.  And not really knowing what you were doing you threw out the bathwater. Tragically you chucked out the true God-who-came-in-flesh at the same time. No wonder the lustre is gone.

5)      You may see no lustre around the Baby in the manger for you have willed to follow light that is no light at all. Jesus warned that this would happen to some, “...Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” See and embrace the ancient lustre—love not the darkness, love light.

6)      You may be one of those persons who truly believes in the historical baby Jesus who was indeed born of a virgin. You know in your heart it is true. You know that it happened as described in the ancient trustworthy texts but somehow the intellectual knowledge of the truth has never made it to your heart and your spirit.  You are not one who rejects the glorious shining of this true Baby who came in the flesh— you simply do not perceive it.  There is not likely any lustre in Christmas for you for head knowledge without experience of personal faith remains but head knowledge.  Discover the lustre—trust and confide in Jesus.

Guelph Mercury: December 22, 2012

Royal Hamel is ordained with the Christian and Missionary Alliance and is a freelance writer. He can be contacted at watchman2003@sympatico.ca

Popular novel should be renamed Fifty Shades of Porn

Because of its popularity this is my second post on Fifty Shades. This fuller article was published today. See link below.

British writer E. L. James’s erotic home run is flying off the shelves.

In the United States alone, almost 20 million copies of the 1,594 page trilogy have been sold. The book has held the top three spots on USA Today’s bestselling books list for nine weeks. In at least one hotel it has upstaged the Bible. The owner of the Damson Dene Hotel in Windermere, England has replaced the Gideon Bible in each room with a copy of the steamy novel.

Many people have asked, “Why are women by the millions buying this book and simply devouring it?” I am sure there are many different reasons. For instance, the story line is apparently profoundly romantic, and women have always been attracted to this genre. But there is another very basic reason. This popular work might be titled Fifty Shades of Grey, but a better title would be Fifty Shades of Porn. The book is all about explicit sex. Does sex sell? You bet it does — when doesn’t it sell? 

E. L. James deals with sex in a way that is new for most mainstream people, which is another reason for her popularity. She delves deeply into the realm of sadism and masochism and does so in a focused, erotic way.

Although there is nothing new under the sun, there is plenty under the sun that is new to people who have never tried it or thought about it. This material directly appeals to the curious crowd who have an interest in trying something new in their intimate lives.

My great concern is that unwary and unwise Christians might take up this book. They might think any book so mainstream and at the same time so wildly popular is not likely to be harmful. They would be wrong. In my view this work has power to attract and seduce. Like all porn, it wields the ability to deeply invade the thought life and to take people to places they should not go. It is a sad sight to see people caught in the web of porn addiction.

I suspect that some reading this article will at this point be furious at me. They might say to themselves, “There goes another prudish, sex-hating, repressed and bigoted Christian.” Well they would be wrong. 

The Bible is explicit that sex is a good gift. After God created all things, including Adam and Eve, he described everything he had made (including sex) as being very good (Genesis 1:31). In I Corinthians 7, God instructs that husbands and wives are to meet the sexual needs of one another. In Hebrew 13:4, the Bible instructs that, “marriage should be honoured by all and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.”

Now, it is true that from the time of Christ to the present, Christians have accepted God’s guidelines around this good gift of sex. Simply stated, sexual intimacy is a gift to be shared only between husband and wife in the covenant of marriage. God gave commandments regarding sexual conduct because the wrong use of sex with the wrong people causes offence to God, leads to the killing of innocent life in abortion, promotes the destruction of families, and leads to unhappiness in marriage ... I could go on and on.

So what impact, in particular, does porn have on marriage? Sheila Wray Gregoire, author of The Good Girls Guide toGreat Sex, writes a cautionary note to men in one of her blog posts.

“Porn rewires your brain so that what becomes arousing is a picture or an image, and not a real live human being. Porn will make you impotent in your marriage, it will make your wife feel like trash, and will make her feel angry and unwanted. And it is a form of cheating. It is not OK. It is wrong. End of story.”

I would counsel everyone to resist the temptation to pick up this book — running in the other direction is a far better choice.

Royal Hamel is ordained with The Christian and Missionary Alliance and now writes as a freelance journalist.

Published Guelph Mercury, July 28, 2012    Find it here

Fifty Shades of Porn

British writer E. L. James erotic home run is flying off the shelves. In the United States alone almost twenty million copies of the 1594 page trilogy have been sold. The book has held the top three spots on USA Today’s bestselling books list for nine weeks.

Not a few people have asked the question, “Why are women by the millions buying this book and simply devouring it?”  There may be nuanced reasons, such as the fact the story is apparently profoundly romantic, and women have always been attracted to this genre.  Nothing new here.  But beyond that simple fact there are some other very basic facts.  The book is all about sex; it is without doubt a form of soft porn.  Does sex sell?  You bet it does, the more profound question is, “When doesn’t it sell?” 

A further reason for the high sales relates to the fact that this book deals with sex in a way that is new for most mainstream people.  It delves deeply into the realm of sadism and masochism and does so in a focused erotic way.  Although there is nothing new under the sun, there is plenty under the sun that is new to people who have never tried it or thought about it. This book directly appeals to the curious crowd who have an interest in learning and maybe even trying something new in their intimate lives.

My great concern is that unwary and unwise Christians might take up this book.  They might think that any book that is so mainstream and at the same time so wildly popular is not likely to be harmful. They would be wrong.  In my view this work has the power to attract and seduce well meaning Christians.  It has the power to invade their thought life and to take them to places they should not go. Porn will do that, you know.  

It might be called Fifty Shades of Grey, but a better title would be Fifty Shades of Porn.  I do not believe that literature like this has any place in the life of a committed follower of Christ.

It is dangerous to even toy with the temptation to pick up this book—Running is a far better strategy.    

Alleged Killer/cannibal Luka Magnotta has Plenty of Fans

Yes, it’s unbelievable, but the alleged killer/cannibal, Luka Magnotta, has his own fans on Facebook.  At least he did until the service shut down some 1400 fans because it was deemed  inappropriate. Apparently the fans consisted mostly of teenage girls as well as some older women. The following is a quote from an ABC news article.

"I like EVERYTHING about him," Destiny St. Denis, the 21-year-old creator of the now defunct page told ABC News in an email. "He needs to know that there are A LOT of people that care about him. He doesn't have to go through life thinking that no one does. That isn't fair. What he did, is his business! No one is in the position to judge him. I support him because he is a human being who deserves love, respect, and affection just like anyone else."

So here is one fan who thinks that no one is in a position to judge Magnotta, because after all what he did is his business.  How many others of his fans believe essentially the same thing?  Well, we don’t know for sure, but there are probably a few others among the remaining 1399 fans.

So what does this have to do with walking and talking our Christian faith?  Well it raises the profound question of whether it is every right to pass judgment on other people. In our contemporary Christian society I’ve heard more than a few Christians loudly proclaim that we have no right to judge anybody. But is that true?

Come and let us reason together for a moment. Is there such a thing as right and wrong?  Is there good and evil in the world? Are there not people in Nigeria right at this moment plotting to murder as many Christians as possible, simply because they are Christians? Were those people who flew the planes into the World Trade Centre guilty of evil because they mercilessly slaughtered over 3000 innocent people? What about serial killers? What about pedophiles who abduct, rape and murder young children. Were Hitler and Stalin and Mao Tse-tung merely misguided in their calculated slaughter of millions of innocents, or did they do evil, and are their actions culpable and worthy of judgment?

Our whole society has gone gaga over moral relativism. And those moral relativists who are consistent cannot condemn anything, because after all, it might be right for some to do “evil”, even if it might be wrong for others to do that same “evil.” 

Sadly I think some of this relativism has infected and affected even some in the church.  For we are at the point where in the name of tolerance and non-judgmentalism Christians are being asked to not pass judgement on actions that former generations clearly saw as moral evil. 

Christians are often referred to as sheep in Scripture.  I put it to you that well armed lambs are neither mute nor stupid. Christians possess wisdom and discernment from scripture. Let us bleat out warning and admonitions to a generation fumbling in the darkness—for the love of God, and the love of people.

I invite you to follow this blog by signing up by email (see top of page). I invite you to follow me on Twitter @royalhamel           

Let us talk the walk 

Let us flood the darkness—with light!

  

Great Message on Repentance

For the last while I've been writing on the important topic of repentance. Sometimes I feel like a lone voice in the wilderness crying out about the virtual loss of this crucial doctrine.  How important is it?  Quite simply there is no true following of Christ without it.  Indeed I think there is no true conversion unless the one who is trusting in Christ also manifests repentance.

With the dearth of this teaching everywhere, imagine my surprise  to hear a guest speaker at my local church bring a message on precisely this theme.  David Loney is an active part of Crossings Community Church in Acton and he spoke last Sunday.  I would very much like you to hear this sermon. It is available here.

Be blessed, challenged and grow in the things that shall last forever.

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Catholic Bishops Called to Bark Like Dogs

Some Catholics were grievously disappointed that their bishops did not do more to stop the Ontario Liberals from pushing Bill 13 through parliament. Father Alphonse De Valk concludes that with the passage of this bill there is little left of Catholic education that is distinctly Catholic.  He laments that this so called anti-bullying bill will in fact systematically teach Catholic children a version of sexuality that is not according to Catholic teaching. He states in a recent article published on lifesitenews.com: 

"Ostensibly about fighting bullying in schools, Bill 13 is much more than that. It is a product of the homosexual agenda which since the early nineteen seventies has tenaciously fought to have its lifestyle accepted, first by the general public, then recognized as a civil “right” by the judiciary under the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms, and finally given “equality “in 2005 under Prime Minister Paul Martin, who even removed the definition of normal marriage between one man and one woman. Today it has triumphed in the schools.

From here on activists will seek to deform the consciences of toddlers and students. School materials have been in preparation for years. Barbara Hall, Commissar of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, holds that today her Commission overrides all other rights, including the Charter’s religious section."

De Valk is especially critical of the Catholic bishops. He thinks they made very little effort to stop the passage of this dangerous bill. Quoting from Saint Boniface, a famous German martyr, he writes, "Let us be neither dogs who do not bark, nor silent onlookers nor paid servants who run away before the wolf."  

De Valk’s advice is good for Evangelical leaders as well. Is it not incredibly ironical that we have a vast army of muted, moral watchmen, who mostly just watch, as our culture slowly trickles down the drain into a moral wasteland?  God help us, we need some barking dogs. We need them now. 

What Does it Mean to Repent?

I heard a rare message on repentance at my home church this last Sunday. David Loney at Crossings Alliance Church did a great job of teaching and laying out what it actually means.

The call, “to repent” is sometimes confused with penance.  They are not the same.  To “do penance” which comes to us from the Catholic tradition implies carrying out penalties usually imposed by the priest in the confessional booth. A person might be told to say thirty or forty “our Fathers’” or some other religious duty.

The word, repent comes from the Greek word, metanoia which means “to change one’s mind”.  It  carries with it the thought of turning from one course of action and turning toward another. Evangelicals in times past have usually conceived it as turning away from sin and turning toward God.  Bakers Dictionary of theology notes, “Generally however metanoia can be said to denote that inward change of mind, affections, convictions and commitment, rooted in the fear of God and sorrow for offenses committed against him, which, when accompanied by faith in Jesus Christ, results in an outward turning from sin to God and his service in all of life.”

Repentance in the book of Acts is repeatedly tied to the call to put faith in Jesus. Apostolic preaching expected that the new convert would be a transformed person.  The new convert would have turned away from sin and selfishness and their new orientation would have been toward God and love of neighbour. Repentance should always be linked with the call to believe in Christ. 

An old story has it that a newly converted follower of Christ was being mocked and belittled for his newly found faith. His tormentors laughed at him for believing that anybody could turn water into wine.  The convert said, “I don’t know how Jesus turned water into wine. I wasn’t there.  But I do know that in my own home he has turned beer into furniture and whiskey into shoes for my kids.”

6 Reasons Why Repentance is Missing Today

I know that I’m not the only one who has noticed the teaching of repentance is largely missing in our churches today.  Since our evangelical ancestors made much of it in their preaching and teaching, we do well to ask ourselves why there is so little focus on it in our time. 

For starters I am offering the following six reasons that seek to explain its demise in Christian circles today. My plan is simply to lay out these points in a somewhat stark format and then expand on them in the days to come.

1.       I believe there is widespread ignorance of what the term actually means. This should not surprise us since doctrinal teaching in the churches has been de-emphasized over a period of many decades

  

2.       I think that some teachers and preachers have concluded that repentance is opposed   to grace. And since grace for them is the primary teaching of the Bible, they are loathe to muddy the waters by also speaking of repentance. 

3.       In order for repentance to make sense as a teaching the pastor has to be willing to treat the wider issue of what constitutes sin. And in an age of rampant ethical relativism the whole concept of sin itself is largely rejected by the broader culture.

4.       The preaching of repentance smacks of judgmentalism.  And our society hates with a passion anybody who dares to pass judgment on its actions.  Likewise, the preacher bristles at the mere idea that he might be perceived as passing judgment on anybody.

5.       The preaching of repentance does not fit in with the seeker sensitive mentality found in many churches today.   In such churches the leaders design everything to appeal to newcomers so they will return.

6.       To boldly preach repentance means taking a stand against popular sins that are culturally accepted and many leaders simply do not have the stomach to confront people in the pew, or the people who make up our society.

Repentance Has Gone Missing

Just a few days ago a friend of mine related a story about his encounter with the leadership of his church.   Rob (not his real name) had expressed concern with the problem of “Christians” among the fellowship who were cohabiting without benefit of marriage. Rob wanted the leaders to take some kind of action. Specifically he wanted them to lovingly speak the truth of this sin and its dangers to these young couples. He was shocked beyond belief by the leaders’ response. They indicated they were not interested in preaching against sin. But rather they were all about preaching Jesus, and wanted to just preach the gospel and not be judgmental in anyway.  

I suspect, sadly, that this attitude is prevalent in thousands of churches in our day. And I am not speaking solely of the mainline (sidelined and slipping) churches, but of all Christian churches in general.  

Just how important is the teaching or repentance in the scripture? First, let’s note that Jesus began his ministry with the call to repentance. The apostolic preaching in the book of Acts frequently includes the call to repent. The church down through the centuries has carefully guarded the truth that repentance is part of the ministry of preaching the good news of Jesus.  J. Edwin Orr insisted that, “repentance is the first word of the gospel.” Martin Luther strongly called Christians to repent as part of their daily walk with God.  General William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, warned that one of the chief dangers of the twentieth century would be the offering of forgiveness without repentance.

I lament that we live in a time when we see much decline in the churches. I think that one of the clear reasons for this decline is the loss of this very basic teaching of repentance. On every hand we see a growing and blatant apostasy in many mainline churches.  But we need to see there is another apostasy at work, quieter perhaps, but no less dangerous.  Far too many Christians in the conservative churches, yes even some Evangelicals, are neglecting, and abandoning certain basic truths of scripture. 

For the next week or so this blog will explore, just how this doctrine has been lost and how it can be recovered. And yes, it can be recovered and the church can be made strong again. The church can and will find herself, reforming her own reformation by God’s help and leading.  May God help us all to move in that direction. And soon, please God.

                   

Why is the Catholic Church under Attack?

As I follow Christ I seek to encourage and teach fellow believers to speak about their faith in Jesus. To achieve that end I provide training in witnessing and evangelism and constantly challenge others to boldly talk the walk.  

But there is another way of understanding, “talking the walk.”  In my view Christians have the duty and responsibility to confidently enter the public square with the truth of Christianity. Of the many faith groups that I know of, there is one in particular who seems to understand this calling better than others.  I speak of the Catholic Church.  Many who follow her teaching are people who speak up for Christian values in the public square.  As a result they are often maligned for their efforts.

The following is a letter published today in a local Guelph newspaper defending the Catholics for their willingness to speak the truth.

Dear Editor,

Re: Letter to the editor, “Solid argument lost in translation” (Tribune, June 21, 2012).

Letter writer Cory Houghton wants everybody to be certain that Alan Pickersgill did not attack the Catholic Church in one of his recent columns.   So, in a fairly nuanced way he tries to defend Pickersgill, and at the same time scorns the idea that Catholic Christian, Betty Karl, has any right to feel attacked.

It amazes me that Houghton has the audacity to say to someone in a faith tradition that they have no right to their feelings. Who does he think he is? Then in a surprising turn he, himself, proceeds in the last half of his letter to specifically attack the Catholic Church for some of her public stands on morality, and her persecution of various groups some 500 years ago.

Frankly, I too, grow tired of the almost constant drum beat of attack against Catholics. And no I don’t agree with every Catholic position. In fact I am an Evangelical Christian with a different faith tradition. But I recognize that the Catholic Church is one of the last bulwarks of defence against the rampant tide of immorality sweeping the West.   

Among other charges, Houghton claims that the Catholic Church is linked with homophobia. I’m of the strong opinion that there is a much more sinister phobia on the loose.  There is a growing animosity toward Christian values found in virtually every level of society.

Yes, I speak of Christophobia. It is very much present, and is growing.  I long for the day when the media will begin to report on it.  

Royal Hamel

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Anti-Semitism in Germany

 A regional court in Germany decided that parents can be brought before a judge for causing bodily injury if they have their child circumcised. According to reports neither religious reasons, nor the rights of the parents can be used to justify the procedure.  

This does not look good. It especially looks bad that this decision against Jewish people has been undertaken by a German court.  Who does not know that for thousands of years circumcision has been a fundamental rite of the Jewish faith? Indeed, some might argue that it is the most basic rite, and therefore the most basic religious right of this oft persecuted people.

What would Christians say if a court all of a sudden concluded that baptizing people was now considered to be against the law?  Yes, you can be certain millions of generally passive Christians would sit up and take notice.  Such a decision would be an attack on the heart of Christian faith and practise.  It is exactly the same with this decision respecting the Jews in Germany.   

There will be some who say that this is not persecution, it is merely a decision taken on the basis of the health of the child.  What rubbish! Let’s be realistic, circumcision has not been happening in a corner for the last few thousand years. Don’t you think if this was a serious health matter it would have been dealt with hundreds of years ago?

It is well documented that presently we are living in a time of heightened anti-Semitism, the like of which has not been seen since the time of World War II. 

This unprecedented act by a German judge is simply another manifestation of that age old scourge of Jew hatred that the world simply cannot seem to shake.

I implore my fellow Christians to shake off passivity; I implore you to speak and to act on behalf of Jews wherever they are found 

Blankenhorn Abandons Traditional Marriage

Marriage=One Man + One Woman

We live in a time when simply speaking truth is controversial. For a long period of time the general cultural values of the west were more or less comparable to the values of Christianity. That is no longer the case. To define marriage today, for instance, as a union between one man and one woman can easily land you in hot water.

The Southern Baptists in the USA recently affirmed their strong commitment to traditional marriage. I applaud them for making such a statement. I share their understanding that God created and defined marriage to be a union of one man and one woman. See their excellent article here. I believe marriage can no more be re-defined than a square can be redefined as having only three sides.

David Blankenhorn formerly defended traditional marriage. However, in a recent New York Times article he has now come out in favour of same-sex marriage. In the article he puts forth three reasons for the change in his position. He thinks that to oppose such marriage is to somehow stigmatize homosexual love as being less than its heterosexual counterpart. He also feels that the more important issue, now, is comity and mutual acceptance—that we must put aside our differences for the sake of being reconciled, and avoid more of the so called, “culture wars.” In his final argument he points out that both the national elites and the younger generation favour same-sex marriage. He thinks that this emerging consensus should be respected.

I view the above arguments as spurious and shallow. If truth and morality mean anything it is precisely because they don’t change with the changing times. Dare I say it—even God cannot make a four sided figure into a triangle. Blankenhorn wants there to be mutual acceptance and reconciliation. This is always a worthy goal to pursue, but it must not be pursued at the expense of truth and reality. It certainly did not work in the USA in the civil war era when some states wanted the right to keep slaves while other states saw slavery itself as an abomination. As for the argument that we must respect the emerging consensus of the elites and the youth—please don’t insult our intelligence. I can easily imagine that in ancient Roman society the leading elites and the youth my have favoured the continuation of slavery. These same elites may have also favoured the vicious gladiatorial combat in the coliseum. So what! No society should decide questions of morality on the basis of straw polls and preferences.

I am deeply disappointed with Blankenhorn and his faux reasons for changing his mind. How wonderful that God will not and cannot change his mind on the definition of true marriage. He has clearly spoken on this issue (Genesis 2:20-25 and Matthew 19:4-6).

Both passages clearly teach just one definition of marriage—one man + one woman—there is no other possible interpretation.

Nik Wallenda Walked and Talked his Faith in God

On June 15, 2012 Nik Wallenda made history by walking directly over Niagara Falls on a 500 metre tightrope. A day or two after the event I watched a short video clip from ABC news. It was a beautiful sight seeing Nik, resplendent in his red track suit, walking slowly but calmly while defying the roaring monster far below. But as I watched I heard something amazing. In a brief lull from the flood of words pouring from the newscaster, I heard clearly and plainly the words, “Praise be to you Jesus, praise  to the Father.” I was stunned. Where, I asked, did those words come from?  Almost immediately I guessed Nik had been wired for sound, and this praise was issuing from him as he made the dangerous crossing. Later that day I confirmed my theory and also learned that Nik is a follower of Christ and fearlessly speaks of his faith in Jesus.

I have met a number of people who believe that verbally sharing the faith is not necessary. They have told me that instead of speaking about Christ, they witness by living a godly life in front of their neighbours and friends.  They have commented, “I’ll show my faith by my lifestyle; then if people are interested they will ask me questions.”

Now, this idea that we can be “silent” witnesses for Christ is not new.  I clearly remember having a personal conversation on this topic many years ago with a girl I was dating. Jacqueline (not her real name) was raised in a pastor’s family and was seeking to live a godly Christian life.  However, she had accepted this notion that speaking of Christ was not necessary.   Her viewpoint was all the more surprising for she was part of a denomination that practised bold witnessing.  I was convinced she had not learned her silent concept of witness either at home, or in her church.  Nevertheless, she had picked up the idea somewhere and it strongly appealed to her.

Recently I had almost an identical conversation with another follower of Christ. This idea that Christians are not called to, “talk the walk” is perennial, and I seriously doubt it will ever completely go away.

 I don’t want anyone to misunderstand.  People who think like this are half-right, but they are also half-wrong. It is indeed crucial that we who believe should, “walk the talk.” Nothing is more necessary. Our actions must back up our words (Matthew 5:16).  Actions alone, however, will never be enough.  For we are called over and over again to be a people who speak and confess, called to be a people who, “proclaim the excellencies of Christ” (I Peter 2:9).

I think many people who think like this have the idea that only super-smooth, courageous, natural talkers have responsibility to verbally share their faith. They might reason that shy people should not be expected to step out of their comfort zone.  It appears they have developed a defense for quiet and introverted people, giving them a basis for keeping quiet and “witnessing” only with their “lived out truth.”

But scripture does not back the claim that we only have to “live it” (Acts 1:8, John 20:21-22, Romans 10: 14-15). Walking the Christian faith and talking about it should never be separated. They certainly should never be put in opposition to one another.  

We’ve all heard the expression that Christians must, “walk the talk.”  No truer statement could be made. But I suspect that far fewer people know that believers are also called to, “talk the walk.”

 Nik Wallenda crossed the Niagara Falls walking and talking at the same time. He walked a narrow, dangerous pathway, in faith,  that God would keep him on the wire.  But at exactly the same time, he talked—talked to God and 13 million listeners, publicly giving thanks and praise to his savior and creator.

Nik witnessed both by actions and words. Let all who believe in Jesus go and do likewise.

Are Europe and the West the New "Dark" Continents?

In an earlier age Christian cross cultural workers went by the thousands from Europe and North America to the continent of Africa. They took with them the message of truth and love found in Jesus Christ. By unswerving commitment to their message and love for the African people they planted the church in a most difficult place. 

As a new paganism sweeps Europe and the West it is fascinating to see how missionaries from Africa are bringing light to the new "dark" places of the world.  Wallace Henley writes about this irony in an interesting piece entitled, Reverse Missions to the "Dark" Continent (Part I). See the full article here.

Can Even a Christian be Sure of Eternal Life?

Shouldn’t religion provide assurance of life after death?

A good many people are concerned about what comes after this life. They have deep uneasiness about where they are going after death.

I don’t blame them. Death comes knocking for all. Some day each one of us will have a little obituary in the local paper.

Where does religious faith play into this? Shouldn’t religion, above all else, be concerned with life after death? Now don’t get me wrong, belief in God should encourage the doing of good to other people. But, what if we really are creatures who shall live forever? Should not our religious worldview give us certainty as to our future state after we’ve been planted in the earth?

But, no, surprisingly enough the major religions of our day do not give such assurance. Ask any follower of the major Eastern religions if they have assurance. I have personally asked this question of many. They will say, more or less, all we can know for certain is that the soul does not die with the body. It shall live on and come back as another life form. This new life may be better or worse than the former—they just don’t know. But do they have a definite assurance of going to heaven? No, they make no such claim.

Another major religion, a very large one, also has not the tiniest shred of assurance. I have personally spoken to a number of its followers. The response has been the same: We can’t know for sure until we are judged on the basis of our actions. If we have done more good than evil then, yes, we will go to heaven. If not then we will go to the other place.

Now to be fair, many of those who claim allegiance to the Christian faith also have no certain hope of eternal life after death. They were taught their good deeds must outweigh the bad before God will reward them with eternal life.

But what if this teaching is fundamentally flawed? What if Jesus actually taught a person can have certainty about eternal life, right now, in this life? Wouldn’t that be something quite amazing?

Some time ago I had an amazing conversation with a cashier while paying for my gas. I had asked him if his belief system gave him any assurance of heaven upon his death. Not surprisingly, he said it doesn’t. Then, when I told him that as a Christian I had absolute assurance that when I died God would accept me, and usher me into heaven, he was astounded. He asked how you would know that you have done enough good deeds so that you deserve to go to heaven?

It was a great question, and perfectly logical if you believe that good deeds will buy your way into heaven. But what if the premise is wrong? What if our nature is so corrupted and so far from God that no quantity of good deeds could ever buy our way into heaven? Not even the best of us is good enough to be acceptable to God by our good deeds. But we must not despair.

Historic Christianity has always believed in grace. Grace simply means, “undeserved favour.” It means that Jesus shows mercy to people who don’t deserve it.

Christian teaching is unique—it points to a person, Jesus Christ, as being the basis for our finding acceptance and favour with God. Personal faith and trust in him are paramount in the Christian way of thinking. Yes, good deeds are still important. But, if eternal life was granted to me and you on the basis of our good deeds, we could never, never have any kind of assurance. We would always have a niggling anxiety about the future.

But God set up a different and wonderful plan. The Bible says, “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son…I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

Published in The Guelph Mercury, June 8, 2012

The Christian who Loved too Little

John Christian raced out of the house, slamming the door behind him. He was going to be late for his prayer meeting.  The bang of the door caught the attention of Brick Rexford who was parked in the neighbour’s driveway. Brick was in the back seat with Maria, the pretty young daughter of John’s neighbour. Brick didn’t even bother disentangling his hands from the young beauty. He was a local bad boy, and there were rumours that he was already pimping a number of local girls.

John remembered when Maria had been a sweet, innocent ten year old girl. He sighed grimly; he certainly didn’t like what seemed to be happening to her now.  His eyes locked briefly with Brick, he scowled angrily at him.  Brick insolently returned his gaze with an air of thinly veiled contempt.

He was worried about Maria, but what could he do about it? He thought that maybe he would share it as a prayer request.

Reaching his destination downtown John parked the car and began walking to the place of prayer.  He was about to walk past the Kettlestone Hotel when he abruptly stopped in amazement.  Workmen were buzzing around the building.  Then John saw the new sign.  No longer, “Kettlestone Hotel”; the new neon red signage boldly announced, “Kettlestone Passion Palace,” Then John Christian remembered:  prostitution was no longer illegal in Canada—some judge, somewhere, had decided that licensed brothels would increase the safety of the sex workers.  From what John could see the place would soon be open.

But John’s inspection of the property was interrupted by the approach of a clean shaven young man sporting hair, so long, that it was resting on his shoulders. His long white robe caught John’s attention too.  This must be one of those new cultists who had come into the city just a short time ago. You could always recognize them by their strange clothing, and unusual haircuts. But for John the far more worrying aspect of this cult was its strange and false views of Jesus. He regarded them as a danger to anybody who was seeking truth.  

The young man with the clipboard came straight to the point. Pointing to the Passion Palace he said, “I hope the sight of that joint makes you as sick as it makes me. I’m hoping that you will help me and my friends put an end to this monstrosity.  We’re worried about the young people in this city. We frankly don’t want any one of them to end up being enslaved in the flesh trade. We think we can stop this.  So, we’re gathering signatures from as many local people as we can, then we plan to present these names to our city government.  Sir, will you please take a stand for the good of this community.  Will you please sign this petition?”

John Christian was momentarily tempted. He certainly didn’t want a brothel in town.  But then he recalled the times he had been told that Christians should not get involved in politics.  Some had said, “Politics is just too dirty.”  Others had  warned, “If we get involved in politics it will just distract us from what we should be doing—winning people to Jesus.”

“I’m sorry,” John said, “I don’t believe I should get involved, and I’m already late for my prayer meeting.”

Just two weeks later John read in the local paper that licensing had been denied for the proposed brothel.  It turned out that members of the cult had turned the tide by collecting thousands of names in their petition drive to shut it down.

The closure turned out well, too, for Maria.   The young beauty was heartbroken when Brick dumped her.  She didn’t know that his true interest was purely financial—his plan was to set her up in the brothel under his control. But that option was lost.  In the end Maria got over him, went on to study medicine and became a doctor.

Reading the newspaper account John felt a twinge of pride that he had not signed the petition—he had escaped the temptation of political involvement. He never knew of course, that Maria had been delivered from a sordid life of prostitution by the action of a few cultists whom he despised.

But on the coming day of judgement John would learn all these facts. And on that day he would also hear Jesus asking him, “Who was the true neighbour to the young woman who fell into the hands of the rapacious pimp?”