Plowshares Into Swords, Or Swords Into Plowshares?

What do you do when two verses are in obvious conflict with each other? I’m not talking about apparent conflict or even factual inconsistencies but when one verse uses the exact same words to as another to say the completely opposite thing? As if one is saying, “No, that’s wrong, here’s what is really going...

Las Vegas and Our Culture of Violence

Note: This is adapted from a 2015 article I wrote after the massacre of nine African-Americans in a Charleston church. Sadly, I didn’t have to change much to adapt it. Once again we are reeling in the aftermath of another mass killing, the worst one in U.S. history. As usual, we also have to listen to the...

Should the President Heed the Sermon on the Mount?

Do you want the leaders of our country to follow the Sermon on the Mount? I’m not asking if you think they should be compelled to, or if the Sermon on the Mount should be made the law of the land along with the Ten Commandments and other parts of the Bible. This isn’t about religious liberty or whether the...

The Power of Escalating Forgiveness

Practically everyone believes that violence is wrong, it is evil, and it is a huge problem all around the world. We long for peace that is real, that is lasting, and that is more than just an oasis in a desert of violence. We just can’t agree on what to do about it. Nor can we agree with what the Bible says...

How to Not Follow Jesus and Still Be Biblical

Yes, you can do the opposite of what Jesus says and claim to be perfectly biblical, quoting chapter and verse, and do so without violating the integrity of the passage you are quoting. That’s because in the Old Testament, there is an argument going on. In ancient Israelite religion, there are two paths that...

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