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Category: Religion

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Atheists Have No Reason to be Kind to People by Billy Graham

billy graham 1951
Billy Graham, 1951, when he was still Associated with the Sword of the Lord

Many people have noticed the worst they’ve ever been treated is by people who claim to love the Lord. These same people notice that those who profess to be atheists appear to be much kinder than Christians.

The Bible says the world shall know us by our fruit, but what happens when that fruit isn’t blooming?

One reader had a similar question for evangelist Billy Graham.

The reader asks: “The kindest person I know is my atheist friend who has no use for God. On the other hand, some of the most difficult and unpleasant people I know say they are Christians. How do you explain this?”

Wise as always, Graham answered:

Not every Christian is like this, of course—but admittedly some are, although they shouldn’t be. And not every atheist is like this either, of course—but some are, and in a world that’s often cruel and thoughtless, we ought to be thankful for every act of kindness.

Why is your atheist friend like this? By God’s grace, some people simply have been blessed with a sunny and kind personality, or they had parents who taught them to be kind. Perhaps this was her situation. But I do know this: Your friend isn’t this way because of her atheism, but in spite of it. A person who doesn’t believe in God has little reason to behave sacrificially toward others (although it may make them feel good inside if they are kind).

I also know this: If your friend ever opens her heart and life to Jesus Christ, she’ll become an even kinder and more loving person than she is right now. God will come to live within her by His Holy Spirit, and her life will begin to change. The Bible says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, faith, meekness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23).

Don’t let the bad example of a few weak Christians keep you from Christ. Instead, by faith commit your life to Jesus Christ and ask Him to change you into the person He wants you to be. Then pray for your friend, and ask God to make you an example to her of Christ’s life-changing power and love.

— Billy Graham (as quoted by Jessilyn Justice), Charisma News, Why is it Atheists Can be Much Nicer Than Church Folk?, February 16, 2017

Pastor Keith Ogden Upset Over New American Girl Doll

american girl doll logan

Keith Ogden is the pastor of Hill Street Baptist Church in Asheville, North Carolina. Recently, Ogden expressed his outrage over American Girl’s newest doll. You see, this new doll is a boy, and Ogden thinks “This is nothing more than a trick of the enemy to emasculate little boys and confuse their role to become men.” The Citizen Times reports:

A move by a national doll manufacturer to add the first boy to its lineup has one local minister in a tizzy.

The Rev. Keith Ogden  of Hill Street Baptist Church sent a message to more than 100 of his supporters and parishioners Wednesday titled, “KILLING THE MINDS OF MALE BABIES.”

Ogden invoked Scripture as he criticized the American Girl company for its debut of Logan Everett, a drummer boy doll, who performs alongside Tenney Grant, a girl doll with a flair for country western music.

Logan is the lone boy among American Girl’s vast cast of characters, and the company sees him as both a way to please longtime fans as well as a new addition who will appeal to a broader audience.

“This is nothing more than a trick of the enemy to emasculate little boys and confuse their role to become men,” the minister said in the e-mailed statement he sent at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday after watching a segment about American Girl on “Good Morning America.”

….

“There are those in this world who want to alter God’s creation of the male and female,” he wrote. “The devil wants to kill, steal and destroy the minds of our children and grandchildren by perverting, distorting and twisting (the) truth of who God created them to be.”

Later that morning Ogden told the Citizen-Times that he doesn’t think that boys should play with dolls, that he thinks American Girl’s move will confuse children.

“Now you are going to have little boys playing with baby dolls and that’s not cool,” he said. “We need to get back to our old values and morals.”

Ogden said churches need to stand up and speak truth to power as the community wrestles with gender identity and changing values, especially as it relates to youth programming and activities. The Boy Scouts of America, last month, for example, announced that it will allow transgender children to enroll in scouting programs.

“It just doesn’t make sense,” Ogden said. “It’s not natural for a boy to act like a girl. It’s not natural for a girl to want to be a boy. …You’ve got the government and people who placate this mess instead of telling little boys they can’t change their biology.”

American Girl, however, says it’s just meeting customer demands and expanding its market.

“A boy character has been a top request from our fans for decades,” said spokeswoman Stephanie Spanos, adding that along with two new historical characters the toy line this year will introduce more dolls with modern story lines than at any time in its 31-year history.

“We’re hopeful Logan will appeal to both girls and boys,” she said. “For boys, we know Logan can speak directly to them and give them something unique and special to call their own.”

The brown-haired, gray-eyed Logan doll is 18 inches tall, and has a set of drums to accompany Tenney.

Mattel, which owns American Girl, saw its sales surge last year following its introduction of a more diverse doll selection.

OMG, what’s next? Finding out that Ken never really loved Barbie because he was gay? Surely, the end of the world is at hand!

The Sounds of Fundamentalism: Going to College Makes People (Especially Women) Stupid by Steven Anderson

steven anderson

This is the one hundred and forty-eighth installment in The Sounds of Fundamentalism series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a video clip that shows the crazy, cantankerous, or contradictory side of Evangelical Christianity, please send me an email with the name or link to the video. Please do not leave suggestions in the comment section.  Let’s have some fun!

Today’s Sound of Fundamentalism is a video clip from a sermon by Steven Anderson, pastor of Faithful Word Baptist Church, Tempe, Arizona.

Video Link

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: ‘One Million Moms’ Upset Over Taco Bell’s Use of the Word Hell

taco bell

Taco Bell is following a trend in crude commercials. While a few fast food restaurants are cleaning up their ads, Taco Bell decided to air a commercial that includes foul language.

The newest Taco Bell commercial says, “When your morning is hell, just go to Taco Bell.” They should not use the word hell in a jingle. We all know children repeat what they hear [like when they hear the word HELL in church?].

Taco Bell’s “Morning is hell” ad is irresponsible and offensive. This inappropriate advertisement is airing during primetime when children are likely watching. It is extremely destructive and damaging to impressionable children viewing the commercial.

Please contact Taco Bell through our website and ask the company to pull the current ad immediately! Also, encourage Taco Bell to be more responsible in future marketing campaigns. If Taco Bell wants our business, it must no longer use foul language in its ads.

— Monica Cole, One Million Moms, Taco Bell has joined in Tasteless Advertising, February 16, 2017

Video Link

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Women Are the Property of Their Husbands by Larry Solomon

traditional marriage

God made wives the property of their husbands.

There are some relationships in Scripture where the submission of one to another does not involve the ownership of one by the other. Examples of this would be the Biblical admonition to citizens to submit to civil governments and for church members to submit to their church leaders.  God does not give governments ownership rights over their citizens and he does not give church leaders ownership rights over their members. These two spheres of authority are limited in their powers and jurisdictions.

But God established some spheres of human authority where ownership of human property is either allowed (such as slavery under certain circumstances) or ownership is simply implied such as the relationship between a father and his children or a husband and his wife.

The ownership of the wife by the husband is confirmed in the 10th commandment where a man’s wife is included in a list of his possessions:

“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.“ Exodus 20:17 (KJV)

Again in the book of  Deuteronomy a man’s wife is included in his possessions:

“And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it. And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet eaten of it? let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it. And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.” Deuteronomy 20:5-7 (KJV)

These possessions all belonged to the man and he had the right to make use of them.  In fact he was encouraged to make use of these possessions.

There are many that falsely attack the Bible based on these and other passages saying that the Bible makes a woman a possession that is no more valuable than cattle(Exodus 20:17) and a peace of land (Deuteronomy 20:5-7).

Another way of saying their argument is “If a woman is owned by her husband then she has no value as a person”.

But this could not be farther from the truth.  While it conflicts with our modern values a person can be owned by another and yet have great value. The Bible says “Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.“ (Proverbs 31:10). I don’t know about you – but I think rubies are far more valuable than a house, cattle or a vineyard!

Also the Bible calls on husbands to give “honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel“(I Peter 3:7).  So just because women are the property of their husbands does not mean husbands can treat them the same as their cattle.  This a false argument proposed by those who do understand the Biblical concept of human property verses the world’s concept of human property.

— Larry Solomon, Biblical Gender Roles, Does God Want a Wife’s Beauty Hidden From the World?, July 11, 2014 (Recently updated)

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Christianity is Like Playing Monopoly by Michelle Lesley

michelle lesleyThe Bible. Scripture. The Good Book. It used to be so blatantly self-evident that God’s written Word was the foundation and standard for the Christian faith that it was assumed. A given. You learned, “I stand alone on the word of God- the B-I-B-L-E,” when you were three or four years old, you believed it, and you moved on.

….

Have you ever played Monopoly? If you have, you know that you’re supposed to use a Monopoly board, two dice, the and the game pieces and Chance and Community Chest cards that come with the game. You also know that there is a standard set of Monopoly rules that are supposed to be followed.

Suppose a friend invited you to play Monopoly but wanted to use a checker board instead of a Monopoly board. Or wanted to create a new rule that you would get $500 for passing Go instead of $200. Or that you could get out of jail without rolling doubles.

Monopoly was created in 1903 by a lady named Elizabeth J. Magie Phillips. Magie created the game to teach people the consequences of having large or valuable tracts of land controlled by private monopolies¹. Each piece of the game and each rule was created with that teaching goal in mind. To alter the rules of the game is to, at best, be out of alignment with Magie’s intentions and purposes, and, at worst, to not be playing Monopoly at all. If you want to truly play Monopoly, learn the fullest extent of the lesson Magie was trying to teach, and respect Magie as the creator of the game, you’ve got to play by her rules. All of them. Even the ones you don’t like or particularly understand.

Many of the same principles apply to Christianity. God set Christianity up a certain way with His own intentions and purposes. If we alter His rules, we’re, at best, not lined up with those intentions and purposes, and, at worst, not practicing Christianity at all. If we really want to honor God, grow in Christ to the greatest extent and truly be practicing biblical Christianity, we’ve got to play by His rules. All of them. Even the ones we don’t particularly like or understand.

But what many Christians are doing today is taking their “Monopoly game” of Christianity and assuming it’s for their own entertainment, better quality of life, or positive feelings. And because they’re largely ignorant of the Creator of the “game” and His purposes and intentions behind said game, the players start tossing out His rules whenever those rules don’t fit the purposes and intentions of the players.

God created you and me and the world and Christianity and the church for His glory. He gets to make the rules. We follow the rule book (the Bible), not because those rules will make us personally happy or successful, but – simply and ultimately – because they are given by God and glorify Him. What He says goes, and we honor Him by our obedience. We need to remember that our role in the game is player, not Creator. Players submit to the authority of the Creator.

….

When it comes to Christian beliefs and practices, your experiences don’t matter either. It doesn’t matter what kind of so-called supernatural experience you had where you babbled incoherently or “heard God speak” or saw a “vision” or whatever. If your interpretation of your experience conflicts with the written word of God, your interpretation of your experience is wrong. Something may have happened, but it wasn’t God. (And if something supernatural happened and the Bible says God doesn’t work that way, there’s only one other option.)

When you decide what you’re going to believe and do based on your own opinions, feelings, and subjective personal experiences rather than the written word of God, what you’re doing is saying, “I know better than the almighty, all-knowing God of the universe.” You’re setting yourself up as judge over Scripture. You’re in charge, not God. Doesn’t sound much like a slave[Lesley believes Christians are God’s slaves, Romans 6:22], does it?

— Michelle Lesley, Michelle Lesley ~ Give me church ladies, or I die, Basic Training: The Bible Is Our Authority, February 17, 2017

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Donald Trump is a REAL Man by Jesse Lee Peterson

jesse lee peterson

I want all men to pay attention to the president. If you want to know what it was like in the good old days when boys were boys and men were men, look at your president. If your daddies failed you by not being a real man, God has given you another example.

— Jesse Lee Peterson, Right Wing Watch, Jesse Lee Peterson, God Has Given America An Example Of What A Real Man Is In President Trump , February 17, 2017

Bruce Gerencser