The most important question any Christian should be able to answer is why we choose to believe the Bible. The standard fallback answer given by many is “I was raised that way”. The problem with this sentiment is that many things that we were raised to believe turned out to be false. For example, our parents told us if we went outside with wet hair, we would catch a cold. As adults we learned that a cold is a virus.
Another answer often given is “I tried the Bible and it worked for me.” This answer certainly opens up a huge logical hole when based on a personal experience. Malcolm X changed his life, he tried the Nation of Islam and it “worked for him”. He later denounced his beliefs in Islam and was killed for it. What about the changed life of a Mormon or a Jehovah Witness.
Our response, as Christians, should sound something like this…
“I choose to believe the Bible because it is a reliable collection of historical documents, written by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses, reporting supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophecies and claimed their writings are Divine in nature and not of human origin.”
Dr. Voddie T. Baucham, Jr., Dean of the School of Divinity at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia
The five solas were not exactly Reformation slogans, but they serve as a good summary of the Reformed faith. Neither Martin Luther nor John Calvin nor any other Protestant Reformer summarized his teachings in a tidy list including Scripture alone, Christ alone, faith alone, grace alone, to the glory of God alone. Taking flight in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, this fivefold summary became the shorthand version of what is known as Reformed theology. While this description of the Reformed faith came later, it still captures well the core of the gospel in all its graciousness and Christ-centeredness, just as it is revealed in the Scriptures. These five solas show the glory of God’s gracious way of salvation in a way that sets the tone for true theology, resounding in how we think and live in this world.
The Global Anglican Communion meets for the 4th time since 2009. Conservative primates gathered in Kigali and withdrew their recognition of Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, as the “first among equals.” The chair of St Augustine is now empty, as far as leaders representing an estimated 85 percent of the Anglican Communion are concerned. The primates gathered at the fourth Gafcon conference stated:
We have no confidence that the Archbishop of Canterbury nor the other Instruments of Communion led by him (the Lambeth Conference, the Anglican Consultative Council, and the Primates’ Meetings) are able to provide a godly way forward that will be acceptable to those who are committed to the truthfulness, clarity, sufficiency, and authority of Scripture. The Instruments of Communion have failed to maintain true communion based on the Word of God and shared faith in Christ…
Successive Archbishops of Canterbury have failed to guard the faith by inviting bishops to Lambeth who have embraced or promoted practices contrary to Scripture. This failure of church discipline has been compounded by the current Archbishop of Canterbury who has himself welcomed the provision of liturgical resources to bless these practices contrary to Scripture. This renders his leadership role in the Anglican Communion entirely indefensible.
Their Kigali Commitment calls for repentance by progressives within the Anglican Communion. “Despite 25 years of persistent warnings by most Anglican Primates, repeated departures from the authority of God’s Word have torn the fabric of the Communion,” stated the primates. “These warnings were blatantly and deliberately disregarded and now without repentance this tear cannot be mended.”
Gafcon will provide support for evangelicals in and out of the Church of England.
“In view of the current crisis, we reiterate our support for those who are unable to remain in the Church of England because of the failure of its leadership. We rejoice in the growth of the ANiE [Anglican Network in Europe] and other Gafcon-aligned networks,” stated the primates. “We also continue to stand with and pray for those faithful Anglicans who remain within the Church of England. We support their efforts to uphold biblical orthodoxy and to resist breaches of [Lambeth 1998] Resolution I.10.”
The primates echoed the provisions of the 1998 resolution, noting that LGBT people should be treated with dignity.
“We affirm that every person is loved by God and we are determined to love as God loves. As Resolution I.10 affirms, we oppose the vilification or demeaning of any person including those who do not follow God’s ways, since all human beings are created in God’s image,” stated the primates. “We are thankful to God for all those who seek to live a life of faithfulness to God’s Word in the face of all forms of sexual temptation.”
The statement endorses the continued existence of two conservative movements in Anglicanism, but recognises a need to have a single conservative point of identity—in essence, a reordered communion.
“The leadership of both groups affirmed and celebrated their complementary roles in the Anglican Communion…,” stated the primates. “The goal is that orthodox Anglicans worldwide will have a clear identity, a global ‘spiritual home’ of which they can be proud, and a strong leadership structure that gives them stability and direction as Global Anglicans.
“We therefore commit to pray that God will guide this process of resetting, and that Gafcon and GSFA will keep in step with the Spirit.”
The Bible describes God as holy (Isaiah 6:3), righteous (Psalm 7:11), just (Deut 32:4), and sovereign (Daniel 4:17-25). These passages tell us two things about the nature of God. (1) God is capable of preventing evil and (2) God desires to rid the universe of evil. So it goes, if these two attributes are true, why does God allow evil?
God designed the world to have consequences. Our actions affect others. Because of Adam’s choice to sin, the world now lives under the curse and we are all born with a sinful nature (Romans5:12). One day God will judge the sin in the world and makes things new. When He created the Old Testament laws, one of His goals was to discourage and punish evil. He judges nations and rulers who disregard justice and pursue evil. Likewise in the New Testament, God states that it is the government’s responsibility to provide justice in order to protect the innocent from evil. (Romans 13). He also promises severe consequences for those who commit evil acts, especia;;y against the innocent (Mark 9:36-48).
We live in a real world where good and evil have consequences. God’s desire is that for all of our sakes we would obey Him that it might be well with us (Deut 5:29). Instead, what happens is that we choose our own way, and then blame God for not doing anything about it. Such is the heart of the sinful man. Thankfully, Jesus came to change men’s hearts through the power of the holy spirit. He does this for those who will turn from evil and call on Him to save them from the sin and its consequences (2 Corinthians 5:17).
God does prevent and restrain some acts of evil. This world would be MUCH WORSE were God not in control. At the same time, God has given us the ability to choose good and evil, and when we choose evil, He allows us, and those around us, to suffer the consequences. Rather than blame God for evil we should focus on the the cure for evil and its consequences – Salvation through Jesus Christ.
After signing up for alerts on the publication of this particular volume, I received an email from Christianbook.com that alerted me to the fact that I would be able to order before the March 14th date that other booksellers were putting on sale. Not sure if that was because I was a member or not. At any rate, I was excited to say the least. I quickly put my order in on the 2nd and received on the 7th, a full week before Amazon, for example, would put on sale. As of this writing, still on pre-order status on Amazon, at a considerable higher price.
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The Bible came in a standard Thomas Nelson bi-fold box with no visible damage at all. Upon first inspection, I noticed two things. First the volume was quite light in weight. Second, the leather was quite flexible and soft but not quite as soft compared to the Sovereign wide margin, for example. This Bible weighs in at 37.5oz and the Sovereign wide margin comes in at 48.1oz, according to my digital kitchen scale. The dimensions are otherwise the same except for the width of the book block, this volume is about 1.25 inches, and the sovereign is 1.62.
This particular publication is not a premium Bible, and I did not expect one. There are 5 spine hubs outlined in gold, a nice touch. The text on the spine appears to be stamped rather than embossed, I expect it will rub off over time. There are no colors in the text block, except for the red letter in the New Testament. I have grown quite used to chapter and verse numbers in color to make it easier to find. The signatures are sewn, however there is no edge line construction. A curious choice given that this model is not meant to be written in the margins heavily. The liner appears to be paper, but it is coated and has a synthetic feel. I wonder how long before it begins to tear away from the book block. This is quite a bit of cockling in the signatures, and it becomes a little annoying when turning pages in the front and the back. To be fair, I find this with almost every volume printed in South Korea.This is a first edition, obviously, this version has indexed tabs and the paper is adequate, but certainly not premium. Considering the inclusion of the Apocrypha, I wonder how the weight is so much lower compared to other Bibles in my collection. It really does make a difference when reading for extended periods of time. My ESV Study Bible remains on my desk at all times as it weighs in at full 4.75 lbs. Apples and oranges, however.
The Deuterocanonical Books are separated from the new and testament, there are 15 included, however, Psalm 151 is not included. As an Anglican, I can appreciate the inclusion of the apocrypha when praying the daily office. Until comfort print, this endeavor was a challenge on my middle-aged eyes. It is surprising the lack of options when it comes to KJV Bibles that include the apocrypha, although modern digital printing has improved, quite often the Cambridge text can be a challenge to read for any length of time. Once I saw that Thomas Nelson offered the KJV with the apocrypha AND genuine leather. I was ready to purchase.
Very happy with my purchase. It has become one of three Bible that I use every day. The size and weight make it a true pleasure, however, some color in the text would have been nice. I expect that will change in the future. You can go wrong if you prefer a volume with the apocrypha as your choices are quite limited.
Easter Sunday falls on a different Sunday every year. Using the 1928 Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church, Easter falls on the first Sunday, between March 21st and April 19th, after the Paschal full Moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox. If the full moon lands on a Sunday, then Easter is the following Sunday
The date is fixed in accordance with an ancient ecclesiastical computation, and does not always correspond to the astronomical equinox. The Metonic cycle of 19 years is one in which the phases of the Moon repeat exactly. It is thus possible to have a 19-year cycle for the dates of full or new Moon. In the Julian calendar this 19-year cycle can be fairly easily translated into a date for Easter.
The date of the Paschal Full Moon, used to determine the date of Easter, is based on mathematical approximations following a 19-year cycle called the Metonic cycle.
March 21 is the Church’s date of the March equinox, regardless of the time zone, while the actual date of the equinox varies between March 19 and March 22, and the date depends on the time zone.
In today’s Gregorian calendar the calculation is complicated by the definition of which century years are leap years. These leap years mess up the simple Metonic cycle by altering the number of days in different periods of 19 years.
On page lii and liii of the 1928 BCP, you can find the calculation for determining when Easter Sunday is. It requires the following steps:
Find the Golden number or “Prime”
Find the Sunday (Dominical) Letter
Determine Easter Sunday on Calendar with item # 1,2
More than 360m Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.
In the past year, the persecution of Christians has not only increased, but it has also spread to more corners of the globe – with incidents occurring on every continent, according to a new report.
The advocacy group Open Doors USA recently released the latest edition of its annual World Watch List, which ranks countries based on the treatment of their Christian populations. The group said the increase in incidents considered persecution was alarming and only getting worse.
“It is appalling that Open Doors has to report that persecution has increased again in 2016 and we are still at the worst levels of persecution in modern times,” David Curry, president and CEO of Open Doors USA, “The spread of persecution has gotten worse, now hitting nearly every continent in the world. There were 23 Christians killed in Mexico specifically because of their faith.”
People get ready, there’s a train a-coming You don’t need no baggage, you just get on board All you need is faith to hear the diesels humming Don’t need no ticket, you just thank the Lord
People get ready for the train to Jordan Picking up passengers from coast to coast Faith is the key, open the doors and board ’em There’s room for all among the loved the most
There ain’t no room for the hopeless sinner Who would hurt all mankind just to save his own Have pity on those whose chances are thinner ‘Cause there’s no hiding place from the Kingdom’s throne
I’m getting ready I’m getting ready This time I’m ready This time I’m ready
Having a proper burial for your recently departed was held with great importance during Biblical times. Most of us are aware of the great lengths ancient Egyptians went through to preserve the dead for their eternal journey, but the ancient Hebrews also took great care in preparing their dead for burial, as evident in John 19:39. In most cases, Jewish families buried their dead in caves and tombs when possible.
39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus[a] by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds[b] in weight.
John 19:39 – English Standard Version
The practice of cremation is found throughout the Bible. The first-time cremation is referenced as a burial practice is 1Samuel 31: 11-13:
11 But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all the valiant men arose and went all night and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. 13 And they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted seven days.Saul and his sons were cremated because burial was not possible. While ancient Hebrews and Egyptians traditionally buried their dead in tombs of some form, cremation was also an option when necessary.
Under Xi Jinping’s leadership, PRC officials continue to assert far-reaching control over China’s diverse religious communities. As more religious activity and resources move online, especially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, PRC authorities have expanded use of digital tools to surveil and suppress online religious expression. Invasive surveillance technologies track and monitor religious groups and individual believers that authorities deem a threat. On March 1, 2022, new Measures for the Administration of Internet Religious Information Services went into effect, which require a government-issued permit to post religious content online and ban the online broadcasting of religious ceremonies, rites, and worship services, among a host of other restrictions infringing upon Chinese citizens’ freedom of religion or belief.
A hearing was held on Tuesday, September 13, 2022 at 10am. The hearing was not held in chambers due to the pandemic that the Chinese ultimatly caused.
This hearing will assess the shifting landscape for religious freedom in China and the PRC’s use of digital repression to bolster Chinese Communist Party control of religion. Witnesses will address the many ways that digital and biometric technologies targeting religious believers in China are applied more broadly for social control, and the potential for like-minded authoritarian states to adopt the PRC’s model of technology-enhanced religious repression.
