The church desperately needs both good gospel works and good gospel workers for the Good News message. The apostle in his letter to Titus makes a clear connection between faith and practice. Why is this so important? Our faithful obedience to God’s word ensures that “in everything,” we can “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10, ESV throughout). Evangelistic churches know the place of good works in Good News proclamation. Because Jesus has cleansed us and made us his... Read More
Category: Christian news
How to Find Common Ground When You Disagree About the Common Good
How do Christians live faithfully and as good neighbors in a world we don’t control? In 2020, Tim Keller and I coedited a book titled Uncommon Ground. Our project convened a group of evangelical and evangelical-adjacent friends to reflect—as the subtitle said—on how Christians can live faithfully in a world of difference. Since then, however, I’ve rephrased the question for my own work. We should be faithful, yes, but also neighborly. And our world is not just host to real... Read More
Evangelical Broadcasters Sue Over IRS Ban on Political Endorsements
A group of evangelical broadcasters who hosted Donald Trump at their national conference earlier this year are suing the Internal Revenue Service over the so-called Johnson Amendment, a tax law that bars nonprofits from supporting political candidates. Lawyers for the National Religious Broadcasters, along with two Baptist churches and a conservative group called Intercessors for America, argue in their suit that the ban on engaging in politics restricts their freedom of speech and... Read More
Triumphalism After Dobbs Was a Mistake
I’ve been in the pro-life movement for 40 years. My wife founded the Austin Crisis Pregnancy Center (ACPC) in 1984 and later chaired the national umbrella group for such centers, Care Net. I chaired the ACPC for a while and later chaired meetings of pro-life leaders in Washington, DC. We’ve also personally helped unmarried women unhappily surprised by pregnancy. One lived with us for nine months, during which time she gave birth. Another got married in our living room and also gave birth,... Read More
Deep in the Heart of Megachurch Country, Dallas Mourns a Summer of Pastor Scandals
On a recent Sunday morning, Gateway Church, one of the largest nondenominational megachurches in the United States, sprang to life. Golf carts ferried people from distant parking spaces to the front door. The airport-terminal-sized campus in Southlake, just outside of Dallas, filled with people. They purchased coffees from the café in the lobby, and children played in the two-story indoor playground. In the service, cameras on booms dipped to grab shots over the crowd as the worship band led... Read More
Christian Formation for the ‘Toolbelt Generation’
I always assumed my sons would go to college. My husband and I were indelibly formed by our own college years of deep reading, endless discussion, and applying what we’d learned in the classroom to our faith and the world. University life helped us grow toward being “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matt. 10:16), renewed for the service of God (Rom. 12:2). I expected my children would begin adulthood the same way. But in his junior year of high school, our oldest son... Read More
German Pastor to Pay for Anti-LGBTQ Statements
Nearly five years after a German pastor sparked controversy with comments about homosexuality, the legal dispute appears to be over with a settlement of 5,000 euros (about $5,550 USD). Olaf Latzel, pastor of a conservative congregation in the state-privileged Protestant Church, called homosexuality “degenerative” and “demonic.” He condemned what he called the “hobbylobby” and slammed “these criminals” at a Berlin LGBTQ pride celebration, “running around everywhere.” Latzel... Read More
Should Christians Across Denominations Be Singing the Same Songs?
If you feel like it’s hard to keep up with the cascade of new worship music, you’re not alone. The industry is producing new releases at a quicker clip, and the typical lifespan of a worship song—the time a song remains in regular rotation for church worship teams—has shortened. Faced with a seemingly endless supply of new music, worship leaders are looking for ways to incorporate new music without skipping over the process of discerning whether the style and message of a... Read More
Rwanda Explains Why It Closed Thousands of Churches. Again.
Rwanda has shut down almost 10,000 places of worship in the past two months, and now its president has proposed making churches pay taxes on their income. The country’s crackdown on houses of worship comes as part of an ongoing push to protect Rwandans from church corruption and fraud and to ensure that their buildings meet certain physical standards. Just weeks after winning his fourth term, President Paul Kagame condemned “mushrooming churches” that “squeeze even... Read More
Activist Lila Rose Under Fire for Suggesting Trump Hasn’t Earned the Pro-Life Vote
“If you don’t stand for pro-life principles, you don’t get pro-life votes.” That’s what Lila Rose, a leading pro-life activist, posted Monday on social media, in response to the latest move from Donald Trump’s campaign to moderate its stance on abortion. It’s the line that put her at the center of controversy this week, with Trump supporters blaming her for jeopardizing the GOP ticket and calling her a grifter. The clash spurred further debate over what committed pro-lifers... Read More