What the Church can learn from Penn State

November 12, 2011 Bible Reflection Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Something went horribly wrong at Penn State, that much is clear from all the dialog on the news and sports radio in the last week. The evidence points to the fact that evil was being perpetrated and nothing was done to stop it. If people were ignorant that something bad was happening, it seems as […]

Paths of Righteousness for His Name’s Sake

September 18, 2011 Bible Reflection Mark McIntyre 3 Comments

In Psalm 23:3, King David writes, “he leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” While there is benefit to me in walking a path of righteousness, my benefit is not the primary purpose of God’s leading me. David points to God’s reputation and God’s purpose as the reason for the leading. […]

An unwanted mirror

In Matthew 23:13-33, there are recorded eight woes that Jesus pronounced upon the “scribes and Pharisees.” Jesus is harsh in his criticism as he unloads on his antagonists. The danger is that we can read these woes in a way that is not helpful or appropriate. If we take an us/them approach to these woes, […]

Why do we make church so complicated?

Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28-30 that his yoke is easy and his burden is light. Why then do we make church so complicated? We have programs and activities that would make the average cruise ship activities director envious. We have men’s groups, women’s groups, singles groups, youth groups, coffee shops, concerts, ministry days, outreach […]

Counterfeits and the real thing

The fact that evil deeds have been done by those who claim allegiance to Christ is a criticism that is sometimes raised against Christianity. In thinking about a response to this critique, it dawned on me that anything of value is likely to be counterfeited. The presence of the counterfeit is a backhanded compliment and speaks to the value of the original.

Stumbling blocks: how we live matters more than our words

Parents and church leaders, the best thing we can do for the next generation is to renounce our selfishness and come to meet Jesus at the Cross in humility and submission. We need to confess where we have compromised and seek to recover the ground that was lost. We want to hear the words of Matthew 25:21, “well done good and faithful slave.” We need to live lives that point to the reality of the Gospel.

It’s a matter of perspective – reaction to the angry atheists

Atheist authors present God as vengeful and capricious. Jesus presented a very different picture of his father. We must choose the correct perspective to view God correctly.

Let’s maintain some perspective

In the debate over homosexual marriage, we must maintain perspective. We can press for external conformity or be used by God to bring internal change.