Category: Lies we believe

How Churches can Overcome a Toxic Culture-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven- Matthew 5:14 and 16 NASB

 Secular culture has always had an element of toxicity to it. 

This is unavoidable because anything (or anyone) that isn’t actively for Christ will always be anti-Christ in some way (1st John 4:3). Nonetheless, until recently, much of secular culture was fairly neutral, some elements might have even been considered somewhat wholesome.

That ship has officially sailed. 

At this point in human history nearly every culture on earth has embraced every evil under the sun and started calling the evil “good” (Isaiah 5:20). Politics are corrupt, people are selfish, cruel and mean, many appear to be going feral, deviant sexual behaviors are embraced and celebrated. Parents are no longer honored, life is no longer held sacred, and marriage is no longer seen as a necessary steppingstone to parenthood (Romans 1:18-32, 2ndTimothy 3:1-5, 2nd Timothy 4:3). Sadly, that list is barely skimming the surface of our world-wide cultural brokenness.  

Sigh. 

Churches tend to take one of several unhealthy approaches in dealing with the ever-encroaching madness. Some mainline denominations gleefully embrace and celebrate the culture. In these churches abortion and euthanasia are viewed as gifts, they believe gender is a choice everyone gets to make and homosexuality, is just another sexual option on a long list of options. Politicians who battle for the “right” to live a life of what the Bible calls “sin” are applauded as heroes. 

 Other churches do their level best to simply ignore the culture. They focus on Jesus and how awesome He is and how awesome He is to those who love Him. These churches will do anything short of sin to keep negativity and ickiness from creeping into their churches.  If something problematic does find its way into the like the death of Charlie Kirk, a gay couple or outspoken political views the whole messy muddle is quickly swept under the rug, and leadership moves on to cheerier topics. 

Others attempt to fight the evil, not with good as the Bible instructs (Romans 12:18-21) but with mockery, condescension and mean-spiritedness. These folks poke fun at anyone who disagrees with the Bible, conservative political views or their expression of Christianity.

The drawback with the first approach is (hopefully) obvious. Embracing sin to win people to Jesus makes almost as much sense as believing someone could cast out a demon with the power of Satan (Matthew 9:33-34). It’s absurd. Celebrating sin just makes  something God expressly forbids feel safe (2nd Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19). This tactic keeps individuals deceived, disobedient to God and trapped in the ugliness and hopelessness of sin (2nd Peter 3:11, 1st John 1:6). 

The problems with second approach are more complex. On the surface this approach feels wholesome and agreeable because it limits offense and controversy and makes Christianity an easy thing for people to accept. However, because churches have remained silent regarding cultural issues an entire generation is mostly ignorant concerning a whole host of biblical issues including (but not limited to) abortion, euthanasia, gender, homosexuality and what it means to honor one’s parents. Furthermore, what you win people with you win them to. Winning folks to a wishy-washy, inoffensive form of Christianity will not form strong disciples able to withstand persecution.  This approach also cruelly ignores the pain of those who have been damaged by the culture. The Church ceases to be a place of healing if no one is ever allowed to talk about anything icky, contentious or hard.  

The third approach sometimes feels the most holy and helpful because it actively calls out sin and heresy.  However, no one in the history of forever has ever been mocked, belittled or shamed into holiness or right thinking. It just doesn’t happen. 

So, what should the church do about the culture? Following are four things we can do: 

Be real without embracing despair or hopelessness-

The culture is terrible. More and more people are choosing to live a life of sin. This damages the sinners and generates untold pain for their families. Politics are divisive and gross. This makes communication and finding common ground challenging. The state of the culture makes life uglier and living out our faith harder. These are realities we have to deal with. However, none of these issues make Jesus any less powerful or God any less good.  We must recognize the realities of our age without losing sight of God’s goodness or power to transform people and situations (Joshua 1:9, Galatians 6:9).

Be a hospital for those hurting from the culture-

Churches cannot ignore the damaged, brokenhearted people in their midst. Churches must acknowledge, love and provide opportunities for healing for those leaving sinful lifestyles including homosexuality and transgenderism. Churches must also come alongside family members (parents, grandparents, siblings) and help them to love wayward family members with the love of Jesus. 

Be like Jesus and not just the Jesus who turned over the tables in the temple- 

There were a lot of sides to Jesus and being like Jesus doesn’t mean we are always milk-toasty, wishy-washy and endlessly tolerant of every stupid thing to come along. It does mean we lead with love even when we have to say hard things and draw rigid lines around what we will and will not do (Romans 6:12-14, Ephesians 4:25, Ephesians 5:11-12). 

And finally:

Choose biblical relevance over cultural relevance- 

Forget about cultural relevance. Our culture is rotting from within; it has nothing to offer but death and sorrow. There’s nothing to be gained from aligning Christianity with death, sorrow and rot. Instead, Christians must choose to align with the Bible and fearlessly declare truth. It’s where life is found (Psalm 16:11, Deuteronomy 30:19) and a culture of death is overcome (John 10:10). 

Five Crazy Pants Lies Christians Believe about Sin-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long- Psalm 25:4-5 NKJV

We live in an age of crazy pants lies.

There are so many lies told concerning so many issues, it can be tricky sorting out truth from fiction. This should come as no surprise to Christians.  Scripture predicts an age of widespread deception in the years prior to the return of Jesus (Matthew 24:4, Matthew 24:11-12, Matthew 24:24). Sadly, church world is not, nor has it ever been immune to lies (Romans 16:17, Timothy 4:3-4, 2nd Peter 2:1). Christians have an enemy that seeks to steal, kill and destroy every good thing in the life of believers (John 10:10, Mark 4:15, 1st Peter 5:8).  Therefore, the enemy benefits from Christians believing lies. There are more lies are told about sin in our age than almost any other issue. Some believe that because our sin is forgiven it is not something Christian’s ought to get worked up over. Others are so legalistic they make zero space for the foolishness and failings of humanity. This leaves those who have experienced moral failure feeling hopeless. Sin is an area that needs the light of truth shone on it. Following are five of the biggest lies we believe about sin.

All sin is the same-  

In one sense it’s true that all sin is the same. All sin is terrible and any sin (no matter how small or insignificant it seems to us) will keep a person separated from God forever (Romans 3:23). However, the whole notion that all sin is exactly the same once a person has been redeemed by Jesus (Mark 16:16, Romans 10:9-13, 1st Corinthains 15:1-5, Ephesians 2:1-10) does not hold up biblically. Some sins carry greater consequences than others. Telling someone their hair looks nice when it doesn’t (a lie) really only hurts the liar. Choosing to lie will make the liar comfortable with lying. Becoming comfortable with sin gives the devil a foothold in a person’s life. This will likely lead to a hardness of heart and even more lying but at the end of the day it is the teller of the small lie who is hurt the most (Revelation 2:8). Other sins like murder, abuse, idolatry and theft damage others, potentially creating life altering ripples in current and future generations (Proverbs 6:27-28). Moreover, the Bible makes it clear there are certain sins that if practiced routinely will keep a person out of heaven (1st Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-20, Ephesians 5:5). That is simply not true of every sin.  One can view this sticky wicket in one of two ways. Either genuinely saved people do not routinely commit those sins (Calvinist theology) or routinely committing those sins causes you to lose your salvation (Armenian theology). Either way it should make us think long and hard about what kind of sin we allow ourselves to get caught up in (Hebrews 12:1).

God doesn’t hear when a sinner prays-

Hogwash. God hears everything. He’s omniscient. God does not tune out prayer simply because it was uttered by a sinner (Romans 3:23). If He did no one in the history of humanity would ever have had a prayer answered. However, the only prayers God routinely ANSWERS from those living in stubborn, unrepentant sin are prayers of repentance asking for mercy, help and grace (Micah 3:4, Isaiah 59:2, 1st Peter 3:7). It’s just one more really good reason to choose to live a life as free from sin as possible (1st John 3:22. 

Sin is the fault of an outside source or influence- 

This lie is as old and persistent as the fall (Genesis 3:12). In John chapter nine Jesus heals a man who was born blind. Instead of marveling at the miracle they just witnessed, the pharisees just wanted to know who sinned causing this man to be born blind. Our generation is remarkably similar. Anytime someone sins (child molestation, abuse, murder, etc.) people look to outside sources to explain why that person became such a heinous sinner. Bystanders are quick to blame bad parenting, poverty and bullying for the sinful actions of the sinner. Ultimately, this tendency keeps people from taking responsibility for themselves and places guilt squarely on those (parents especially) who oftentimes did nothing wrong (Ezekial 18:1-31). The truth is that we all (no matter our experiences) have a choice about whether or not we sin (James 1:13-15)

Intentional sin is no different from unintentional sin- 

 It is true that any sin can be forgiven. It is also true that God understands and makes space for human weakness and stupidity (1st John 1:9-10). That’s what grace is for.  However, intentional sin (sinning on purpose, knowing it’s a sin) reveals a prideful heart that has either strayed far from God or a heart that never knew God at all (Numbers 15:30). Furthermore, those who sin intentionally and arrogantly often feel that God “owes” them forgiveness. These folks are (in my experience) more likely to deconstruct and walk away from the faith altogether (Hebrews 3:11-13). The bottom line in all this is that intentional sin is very bad and spiritually very dangerous.  Anytime we are tempted to sin intentionally we should do some heavy self-reflecting (2nd Corinthians 13:5) and make an effort to figure out what’s going on in our hearts. 

And finally: 

Our sin is what defines us- 

It can be, but only if we refuse to place our faith in Jesus. When we trust Jesus to forgive our sin and choose to repent (Matthew 4:17, Matthew 3:8). Jesus graciously forgives our sin, forgets all about it and makes us (spiritually speaking) white as snow. He then gives us the ability to transform into His image (Isaiah 1:18, Micah 7:19, Romans 12:2, 2nd Corinthians 5:17). This is a gamechanger for anyone who chooses it.  

Four Things Done and Taught in Churches that Harm Christians-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

We proclaim Him, admonishing every person and teaching every person with all wisdom, so that we may present every person complete in Christ- Colossians 1:28 NASB 

Fourteen-ish years ago when I began writing this blog, I wrote ad nauseum about problems I saw in Church world. Nearly every week I wrote about some church peeve or irritant I had with how church was being done. 

Then I did this thing I do sometimes. 

I got tired. It felt like I was expending a lot of energy yammering on endlessly about church problems. In more introspective moments, I wondered if I was perhaps overdoing some criticisms. I didn’t want to be one of those people who only complained and never really DID anything to solve problems or make the world a better place.  So, I intentionally pivoted. I began writing more posts focused on doctrine, Bible study and spiritual growth. My hope was that by focusing more on Christian living I would ultimately impact the church community and facilitate much-needed change.

Well. 

This last week it occurred to me as I was listening to some really one-sided teaching on a critical issue that the problems in church world have not gone anywhere. I felt a distinct nudge from the Holy Spirit to revisit some issues that are still impacting the church negatively. Following are four the Lord laid on my heart this week: 

Heretical teachings on grace- 

Grace is the most essential doctrine in all of Christianity. Grace is the foundation of everything we believe about Jesus, salvation, forgiveness and how we respond to those who have sinned against us (Ephesians 1:5-7, John 10:10, Matthew 18:21-35). Without grace there is no prospect of salvation, no forgiveness, no abundant life and no hope for anyone no matter how “good” they appear to be (Isaiah 64:6, Romans 3:23-25, Ephesians 2:8-9, 2nd Peter 2:18). Period. However, anytime the doctrine of grace is taught without discussing the doctrine of sin it creates very real practical and theological problems. One of those problems includes an attitude Paul warned about in Romans (Romans 6:1-23). It’s the idea that it is okay (perhaps even good) for Christians to sin on purpose because it gives God an opportunity to forgive their sins (demonstrate grace). Therefore, (the logic goes) sin your face off because grace is just a big bucket of forgiveness one can dip into anytime they sin intentionally or unintentionally. This attitude is foolish and spiritually dangerous because it ignores the clear biblical call to repent and become increasingly more holy with every passing day (John 8:11, 1st Peter 1:15-16, 1st Peter 2:5, 1st John 5:1-4). This does not mean there is no room for failure, mistakes and human frailty in Christianity (Romans 3:23, 1st John 1:8-10). It just means Christians are deeply grieved by their own sin and never treat it lightly. 

Salvation without Repentance- 

When I first started writing this blog, I was deeply troubled by the fact that most American churches no longer gave a salvation message. This is an area of growth for the American church; more and more are giving a salvation message. This is very good. However, the whole notion of sin and repentance is sometimes being left out of the call to salvation (Isaiah 1:28, Isaiah 13:9, Matthew 9:13, Luke 13:1-3). People are not always being told that they need salvation because they are sinners who need to be forgiven. Instead, the message being preached in many churches is often a bit fuzzy, i.e. “you need Jesus because He will give you comfort and make you a better version of yourself”. Jesus will do those things but that is not the primary reason we need Jesus. We need Jesus to make us right and holy before a holy God (2nd Corinthians 5:17). 

Bible-lite  

 The Bible is the most beautifully balanced book in all of creation. It is abounding with stories, psalms and theology that reveal and remind us of God’s kindness, mercy, grace and goodness. If one needs a positive reminder of God’s love and goodness they will find it (Isaiah 43:25, Ezekial 36:26, Psalm 23, John 3:16, 1st Corinthians 6:11). However, the Bible also has a lot of passages that serve (metaphorically speaking) as a kick in the backside (Romans 1:18-31, 1st Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21). God designed His word this way on purpose knowing that we need both in equal measure. Without both we quickly lose sight of our on-going need for sanctification and growth (2nd Corinthians 7:1, 2nd Peter 1:3-11).  

Silence concerning the culture-  

The word toxic is overused to the point of absurdity in our world. Nonetheless, our culture is truly toxic. It is a lethal force that damages our souls without our knowledge or consent.   Unfortunately, many pastors and Bible teachers are reluctant to address cultural issues because they want to avoid “being political”. I get it. However, many “political” issues are first and foremost spiritual issues, and many Christians (especially young Christians) are ignorant of what the Bible has to say about a myriad of critical issues including (but not limited to) abortion, how a Christian should treat their parents, cancel culture, poverty and homosexuality. By avoiding “political” issues the church has short-circuited the discipleship of millions to the detriment of the church and the culture. 

Contrary to popular opinion, what a Christian believes matters. 

What we believe matters because our beliefs about doctrine, cultural issues, God’s character and truth all inform and affect our behavior and we will give an account for our behavior in this life (Matthew 12:36, Romans 14:12, Hebrews 4:13).

The Newest Thing in Idolatry-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to idols. Behold, the former things have come to pass, Now I declare new things; Before they sprout I proclaim them to you.”- Isiah 42:8-9 NASB

Idolatry is about more than bowing down to a creepy little statue. 

Even back in the day when people bowed down to creepy little statues all the time idolatry was still about more than bowing down to a creepy little statue (Psalm 135:15-16, Revelation 9:20). It was about what the creepy little statue could do for you. All the creepy little statues offered something. Some (most) offered sexual freedom, others offered spiritual protection, safety or financial success. 

People still practice idolatry. 

 Although, the age of creepy little statues pretty much ended (at least in the west) with the dawn of the Christian age. Idolatry is best defined as being devoted to something more than we are devoted to God. Conversely, idolatry can be defined as depending on an object, substance or person to give us something we should only get from God like comfort, peace or a sense of significance (1st John 5:1).  Anything can become an idol. Drugs, alcohol, sex, fame, careers, money, families and children are all things we commonly put ahead of God or look to give us a sense of significance or personal peace (Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 3:5, 1st Corinthians 5:11). 

 Idolatry is more complex than it used to be.  

Idolatry is also getting more complex all the time. Instead of worshipping creepy little statues, substances or material things, modern people have put a new spin on idolatry. We have taken a whole bunch of ideas God came up, twisted those ideas into something God never intended and then we love the twisted version of the idea more than we love God’s original plan. Christian’s and non-Christians are alike are guilty of these spiritual and moral shenanigans. 

This creates all sorts of problems. 

When non-Christians do it, they simply bully people into accepting the new definition of the old word. They mock and humiliate anyone who disagrees with them. This effectively keeps truth from being told which inevitably leads to spiritual decay and moral bondage (Isaiah 59:14-15).  When Christians change God’s ideas it leads people away from sound doctrine into a wish-washy feel-good kind of faith that is incapable of saving anyone from anything. Following are ideas that have been changed to the determent of us all:

Love-

It’s hard to argue against love. After all, God is love (1st John 4:8, Zephaniah 3:17). That being said, the biblical definition of love (1st Corinthians 13) is very different from the moral free-for-all our culture defines as love. Truth-be-told and view of love that encourages something (anything) the Bible forbids is an idolatrous impostor of love that poses moral danger to anyone who buys into it. 

Kindness- 

The words “be kind” are everywhere. They are plastered all over tee-shirts, bumper stickers and throw pillows. Christians and non-Christians alike love to talk about kindness but it doesn’t mean what it used to mean. Old fashioned biblical kindness is awesome (Acts 9:36, Ephesians 4:32). It means doing the same types of things for other people we would like done for ourselves, forgiving others, loving like Jesus loved and assuming the best in others whenever possible (Luke 6:38, Galatians 5:22). Authentic biblical kindness is meant to point people to God and His offer of salvation which is the epitome of kindness. The new definition of kindness demands people be allowed to do whatever they want, whenever they want, however they want. No one is ever allowed to give correction, words of caution or punishment, even if a person’s actions cause harm to themselves or others. This type of kindness actually the exact opposite of biblical kindness because it sends people to hell rather than pointing them to God. 

Peace- 

Worldly peace is all about an absence of conflict. Which often means one party simply acquiescing to the demands of the other in an effort to avoid further conflict and/or keep themselves out of trouble.   Biblical peace is rare in our fallen world even amongst Christians.  Biblical peace comes as a natural result of both parties being in alignment with God and His values (John 16:33). Any peace that does not consider what God would want for all parties involved is not true peace. It’s false peace. 

Compassion- 

Compassion is a deep awareness of another person’s suffering accompanied by a desire to alleviate it (Matthew 9:36). There are two common types of suffering in this world. This first is suffering due to circumstances beyond a person’s control like natural disasters and trauma. The second is suffering that comes about as a result of bad, stupid or sinful choices. Everyone agrees the first kind of suffering needs immediate relief through acts of kindness and generosity. The second kind of suffering is where things gets squishy. Godly compassion in these situations always involves helping people to see their need for repentance and real lasting change. As a result, biblical compassion often leads people to Jesus. However, idolatrous compassion seeks to make people feel good about bad choices and remove any conviction a person may feel for their sin. Without conviction no one will come to repentance (1st Corinthians 7:10). 

The twisting of ideas has transformed our world. Moral responsibility is a thing of the past and things that were once unthinkable are now commonplace. However, it’s never too late to change direction but it has to begin with God’s people. 

Solving the Worry Problem-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

If I say, “My foot slips”, Your mercy, O Lord, will hold me up.In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul- Psalm 94:18-20 NKJV

Worry. 

We all do it. 

Just about every human on earth worries about the past, the future, their careers, their finances, their kids, their marriages, their health and the health of the people they love. Christians worry about the same stuff everyone else worries about. The biggest difference between Christians and non-Christians when it comes to worry is Christians feel guilty when they worry and most non-Christians simply see it as a problem to be medicated into extinction. As a result, worry and anxiety has become big business. In 2007 America spent eighteen billion dollars to medicate anxiety disorders in the United States.  That number does not include what was spent on counseling or herbal supplements used to treat anxiety and worry. 

That’s a lot of worry and a big old pile of money. 

The two questions Christians ought to ask themselves are: 

Is worry a sin? 

And 

What do I do about worry? 

Many Christians believe it is a sin to worry. Team “worry is a sin” believes there are verses that prove Jesus explicitly forbid worry (Luke 12:22-25, 1st Peter 5:7). They also believe His apostles reiterated His teaching in their letters. Team “worry is a sin” also believes any concern expressed over anything is worry and consequently is a sin. Ironically these teachings generate a lot of worry for a lot of folks.

I do not encourage Christians to worry (more on this later). That said, I am a member of team “worry is not a sin” for a couple of reasons. First, there are zero verses that explicitly state worry is a sin.  Furthermore, worry and anxiety do not appear on any of the “sin lists” in the Bible (Romans 1:18-32, 1st Corinthians 6:9-11, Galatians 5:19-21, 1st Timothy 1:8). Most significantly, Jesus’ teachings on worry seems to show deep concern for the wellbeing of the worrier (Matthew 6:25-26). Nowhere does Jesus indicate that worriers are sinning or in spiritual danger due to their anxiety (Hebrews 4:15). It’s also true the Bible makes a distinction between worry and appropriate concern. The apostles did not worry their heads off about anything. However, many of them expressed deep concern over issues in their letters, including false teachers (Acts 20, 2nd Peter 2:1, Jude), bad doctrine (1st Timothy 1:3, Hebrews 13:9, 1st John 4:1, 2nd Timothy 4:3) and sinful people impacting the church negatively (2nd Timothy 3:1-5, 1st Corinthians 5:1-12). There is nothing wrong with showing appropriate concern if your child is running in front of a car or you are being chased by a bear. Nonetheless, it is neurotic and unhealthy to lay around and worry about such things if they aren’t happening.  

That being said.

Just because something is not a sin doesn’t mean it’s beneficial (1st Corinthians 10:23).  To the contrary, Jesus’ teaching in Luke twelve makes it clear that worry is pointless and changes nothing.  So, what do we do about worry? In a broken and fallen world there is no end of things to worry about. However, there are some things we can do that will help us deal with worry appropriately. All of these (if done consistently) will have a bonus consequence of drawing us into closer relationship with Jesus.  

Be proactive about inviting God into the problem-solving process- 

I am convinced that this life is simply a training ground for whatever God has for believers in the next life (Matthew 25:1-29). This means our problems are more than just annoyances or things to get worked up over. They are opportunities to learn and grow into better people so that we are ready for the responsibilities of the next life. This means that problem solving is not running ahead of God (as some say). Instead, problem solving is an opportunity to grow as people learn from God and develop a skillset that will benefit us in this life and the next one. But in order for that to happen we have to invite God into every issue of life through prayer and be willing to let His spirit lead us to problem solve effectively. 

Make a daily practice of remembering the goodness of God-

Sometimes, we worry simply because we have forgotten all the ways and times God has rescued us, provided for us or protected us in the past. Making a practice of remembering how God has come through for us in the past is the best way to prevent the spiritual amnesia that leads to pointless, soul-sucking worry (Psalm 77:11, Deuteronomy 4:12, Psalm 103:2). 

Be intentional about putting the rest in God’s hands-

 I do not think worry is a sin. That said I do think a yearning to be in complete control of everything is (Proverbs 19:21, Psalm 37:4-6). Conquering worry begins with accepting the reality that control is elusive (impossible) in a fallen world. We must also acknowledge that much of our anxiety is related to our fear of loss of control (Isaiah 41:10, Psalm 118:6). It is simply a fact that there will always be things in life that are worrying and even intimidating. Our job as Christians is not to pretend everything is fine when it isn’t. Instead, God wants us to take our worries and fears to Him in prayer until those fears transform into child-like trust and love (Galatians 5:25). 

The Best Bad Example this Week-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

No one among mankind can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.  With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way- James 3:8-10 NASB

I have been writing this blog for a few years (thirteen to be exact). By design it has never been a space where I routinely share my political opinions. Nonetheless, long-time readers may recall a time in the not-so-distant past when I did occasionally write about politics or political issues. That changed a couple of years back when I made a deliberate decision to stop writing about political issues. My reasons were (and still are) as follows:

I realized exactly how divisive politics have become. I still have relatives who won’t talk to me because of political views I shared years ago. 

I came to a place where I recognized the limitations of politics. Chiefly, the reality that the “right” politics cannot transform a single human heart or save a single human soul.  Only Jesus can do that (1stCorinthians 5:17, 2nd Corinthians 3:18, Romans 12:2).  Without heart change born out of salvation there can be no real social change. 

    God made my personal calling crystal clear: I am to disciple believers and evangelize unbelievers, that’s it (Mark 16:15, 2nd Timothy 4:1-2).  Politics are no longer my gig.

    There are good Christian people who routinely share their political views. I truly believe God has called some of those folks to that realm of ministry (Romans 12:4-6). However, God has called me to other things, and I am okay with that. 

    All that being said.

    This week I came across a really good bad example that I really wanted to write about. However, the bad example involved a well-known political figure (more on that later) and I wasn’t sure how to proceed. After spending some quality time in prayer, I am convinced that even though the bad example took place in the political realm it has a lot of discipleship implications.  

    So here goes:

    It all started when Rob Reiner and his wife were tragically found dead in their home.  It was quickly determined that they were likely murdered by their son.  Donald Trump (the well-known political figure, I mentioned earlier) wrote a post on X sharing his very unfavorable opinion of Rob Reiner. He criticized most of his work as well as his political views. Trump intimated the Reiners were murdered by their child because they said unkind things about Trump and because they held the wrong political views. 

    Please understand.

    I am not opposed to Donald Trump. I voted for him. I am convinced he has done some good for the country. I believe whole heartedly he was and is a better choice than the alternative we had. My intention is not to denigrate the president just to shine some light on an issue that has crept into every aspect of the modern world, including church world. 

    The problem is with how we are choosing to speak (Proverbs 12:18). Many people have concluded it’s okay and even healthy to say WHATEVER they are thinking because they “know” it’s what’s everyone else is thinking.

     I am reasonably certain this is the logic behind many of President Trump’s comments. 

    He (and others like him) feel they are performing a public service by speaking “the truth” everyone is thinking but are too polite to share.  The problem with this logic is three-fold. First, not everyone is thinking those things. Thank God. There are still people in this world whose minds do not automatically jump to the meanest, most terrible thing imaginable. Choosing to say the meanest thing possible (whether it’s true or not) is a very effective way to spread ugliness and toxicity. It tends to reinforce thinking that ought to be examined and repented of, not embraced (James 3:5-6, 2nd Corinthians 13:5, 1st Corinthians 11:28, Galatians 6:3-5, Matthew 3:8, Acts 3:19) or spread like an infectious disease. 

    The second issue with this logic is that no one (except God and the people involved) knows what’s really true in the vast majority of situations. Assuming and stating we know something without proof (like why someone was murdered) is at best prideful and at worst beyond cruel (James 1:19, Proverbs 10:18).  

    And thirdly, assumptions hurt people unnecessarily. They just do. There are always two sides to a story (Proverbs 18:17). Unless we are willing and able to listen to both sides, we should be very cautious about weighing in on situations we know nothing about. I am convinced that anytime we share an assumption about a situation we are not personally familiar with we simply expand the size of our societies ever-increasing pool of ignorance.  

    I am not opposed to Christians (or anyone else) speaking truth. Speaking truth is what Christians are called to do (Matthew 10:26-27, Acts 4:29-31, 1st Corinthians 2:7). Believers in Jesus are to be a preserving influence in whatever culture they find themselves (Matthew 5:13). This means speaking truth fearlessly about all issues, but especially issues related to the word of God.  That said, any truth spoken should be spoken in the most loving way we can muster (Ephesians 4:15, Philippians 4:8). Any truth not spoken in love just becomes more nastiness and we do not need more of that. 

    How to Spot a False Teacher in the Church-

    Lisa M. Price2 Comments

     There will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute- 2nd Peter 2:1-2 

    Last week, I was scrolling a social media site, and I happened upon a post entitled “twelve false teachers to avoid”.  There were a couple of people on the list I had never heard of but for the most part it was a “who’s who” of popular Christianity. The poster (not someone I know) did not give a list of reasons for placing those folks on their list. It was just a list of names. The comments were passionate. Many disputed the posters conclusions; others felt the poster was spot-on. 

    I am not opposed to the notion of identifying false teachers the Church.  The New Testament frequently warns readers to be on the lookout for false teachers (Matthew 7:15, Acts 20:28-30, 2nd Peter 2:1-3, Jude 4). False teachers mislead and sometimes even entice people to sin (2nd Timothy 3:1-8). This makes all Christians look hypocritical, causing unsaved folks to reject Jesus because of the behavior of Christians (2nd Peter 2:1-2).  

    Not good. 

    Nonetheless, I don’t love the idea of publicly calling out false teachers. Such tactics lack grace, teach nothing and hurt those who may have made a mistake in their teaching and have since repented. All human leaders are fallible. Punishing anyone for immaturity or a mistake is worldly rather than Christian (Titus 3:11). Moreover, it seems to me it is more important for the average Joe or Jane Christian to be able to identify false teachers rather than be given a list of people to avoid.   So, in the interest of education I am providing a list, not of people to avoid but of characteristics to lookout for. The list is not exhaustive, but it’s a good place to start. 

    First and foremost:

    They are almost always squishy when it comes to sexuality-

    This is the most glaring red flag for false teachers today. Most (not all) false teachers take a worldly stand on sexual issues. Oftentimes they openly promote LGBTQ lifestyles in the name of “love” or “grace”. It is neither loving nor gracious to celebrate any behavior God explicitly forbids (Acts 15:29, Romans 1:24-27, 1st Corinthians 6:18, 2nd Corinthians 6:9-11, 1st Thessalonians 4: 3-8). 

    Their ministry is about something besides Jesus or living for Jesus- 

    Many false teachers center their ministry entirely around the “prophetic word”. These self-proclaimed “prophets” have a fresh “word from the Lord” nearly every day and their predications typically have a very low rate of accuracy.  Other false teachers focus mostly on politics or psychology. They tend to make the Bible secondary in their teachings. False teachers often blend politics or psychology with the Bible explaining away sin in psychological terms or making patriotism a standard of holiness. For the record, I am not opposed to patriotism or psychology as long as we put God first and keep the rest in perspective.  I also believe God speaks to and through people, even today (Hebrews 12:25). Furthermore, the New Testament explicitly cautions readers not to become contemptuous or dismissive of prophecy (1st Thessalonians 5:20-21). That being said, a healthy Christian teacher focuses MOST of their teachings on living a victorious Christian life, understanding the teachings of the Bible and glorifying Jesus, NOT on politics, psychology or the prophetic word.

    They resist authority including scriptural authority-

    Most (all) false teachers resist any kind of authority and are rarely (if ever) under a denominational covering. Furthermore, they tend to become angry and belligerent when told that their teachings do not measure up to biblical standards. Truth-be-told there is little real spiritual authority anymore, even in many denominations (Judges 21:25). Therefore, it is critical Christians study the Bible for themselves so they can spot erroneous teaching when it is presented (Acts 17:11, 2nd Timothy 2:15).

    The fruit is bad-

    Most false teachers do not have (for the most part) good fruit. They don’t lead a lot of people to the Lord and when they do those folks tend to fall away. They also tend to lack the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23, 2nd Peter 1:3-11, Colossians 3). Be on guard for those who make salvation secondary and/or talk about Christian virtues but do not walk them out.  

    They lack the character required for Christian leaders- 

    The Bible sets clear standards for those in Christian leadership. Anyone can have a bad day (or even a bad season) but for the most part a healthy Christian leader should be mature and tested (1st Timothy 3:6). They should also set a good example, be kind, clear minded, able to teach and patient with difficult people.  They should not be pugnacious (fighty), greedy, gossipy or given to drunkenness (Ephesians 4:11-15, 1st Timothy 3:1-13, 2nd Timothy 2:4). If a Christian leader is dishonest, lacking in virtue and/or cannot live in peace with most people most of the time, he or she should not be followed.  

    They are motivated primarily by money and attention- 

    There is nothing wrong or sinful with having a big ministry or lots of followers, nor is it wrong to raise a lot of money for godly causes.  However, a lot can go wrong when a teacher or preacher tailors their teaching to gain a huge following and raise a lot of money (Mark 8:36, 1st Timothy 6:3-6, Titus 1:10-11).  If a teacher or preacher talks a lot about money but very little about sin and living a righteous life, chances are good they are more interested in a personal following than seeing souls saved and people sanctified. 

    Ultimately, false teachers are a lot like the fig tree in Matthew 21:18-19. They tend to be all style with no real substance. They profess to believe all the right things but the more you look the more obvious it becomes that their lifestyle and teaching is a little “off”. The era of podcasts and YouTube has made it possible for false teachers to thrive with little or no real accountability. It’s on the individual Christian to choose who they follow wisely and practice discernment in all things. 

    How does Jesus Expect us to Work out Ephesians 4:32 in our Daily Lives?

    Lisa M. Price5 Comments

    Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so must you do also- Colossians 3:12b-13 NASB

    Earlier this week as I was scrolling my social media feed I came across a post on boundaries. I know about boundaries. I read the book on boundaries.  I have even taught a couple of classes on boundaries.  I routinely advise folks I work with in ministry settings to set boundaries. I’m not unaware of what boundaries are, nor am I against setting them. Please don’t send me an email explaining boundaries to me. It will just make me feel misunderstood. 

    That out of the way, I do feel compelled to share the experience I had with the Holy Spirit this week. I will warn readers ahead of time, this post might be challenging (offensive) to some. 

    Okay, so.

    I was reading through the post on boundaries and not really thinking too deeply about what I was reading. I certainly wasn’t bothered or offended by what I read. The author did not say anything I hadn’t heard before. Then (out of nowhere) a verse popped into my head. It was word-for-word perfect in the ESV translation:

    Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you- Ephesians 4:32

     I have been a Christian for a long time.  I know enough about how the Holy Spirit works to know that when a random verse pops into my head as I’m mindlessly reading an article it means something. At the very least, it means I’m supposed to go a little (lot) deeper and figure what God is trying to say (Hebrews 12:25). 

    So, I dug deeper.

    The word the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart was tenderhearted. So, I whipped out my handy-dandy Greek dictionary and looked it up. The Greek word for “tenderhearted” means to take pity on someone or to show mercy. Then I looked up “kind” in Greek. It means to be gentle, gracious and good natured toward others. At that point, I decided I might as well look up “forgiving” as well. It means not to exact punishment.  I concluded that Ephesians 4:32 could be translated:

    Be good natured and gracious toward others. Take pity on people who don’t know better or don’t do better even when they know better.  Do not exact punishment on people because they annoy or hurt you.

    I will not lie. I experienced some conviction. 

    It occurred to me that people, even church people (me included) talk a lot about empathy, kindness, mercy and compassion. Nonetheless, it’s fair to say we have lost our way when it comes to living out the biblical commands to be kind, tenderhearted and forgiving in our day-to-day lives (Luke 6:35, Romans 13:8, Colossians 3:12). Truth-be-told, many believers (me included sometimes) are taking their cues about how to treat people from the world rather than Jesus. The social media post I mentioned earlier serves as a relevant example. The writer (who I do not know) is a professing Christian who basically made a case for boundaries being the ultimate conflict resolution tool. They suggest that if anyone hurts you or even just annoys you, the best solution is to go “no” or “low contact”.  Conflict solved. The poster openly defined boundaries as cutting difficult people out of one’s life (1stJohn 4:1). 

    What? 

    Here’s the thing: cutting a person out of one’s life is not setting a boundary (John 13:35, John 15:12, 1stCorinthians 13).  God does not call His people to build thick walls to keep annoying people out of their lives (Romans 12:10). Anyone who believes ending a relationship without a really compelling reason (like genuine abuse) is God’s will or a good example of a biblical boundary is just plain wrong. Boundaries are meant to be like fences with gates that swing open on both sides, not walls that block contact with the outside world. God wants us to figure out ways to maintain and heal relationships not obliterate them (Romans 12:16, 2nd Timothy 2:23-25). Boundaries ARE about setting limits concerning what you will or will not do. Boundaries are not meant to punish people for past sins (Romans 2:1).  Unless a person is currently doing something truly egregious and stubbornly unrepentant (being annoying, rude or stupid is not egregious) Christians don’t cut people out of their lives.   Furthermore, cutting contact or even limiting contact with someone is not conflict resolution. Ending the relationship will halt the conflict, but it will never resolve anything. 

    Moreover, what if Jesus started treating us the way we treat annoying people? We would be in all kinds of trouble. Every single one of us is annoying in some truly profound way. We are slow to learn, slow to obey and super stupid sometimes, especially if perfection is our standard.  We need Jesus to take pity on us daily and not punish us for our sin and stupidity. 

    God commands His people to be a light to the world (Matthew 5:14-16). One way to do that is to take pity on others for their lack of consideration, wisdom and social grace. No where in Scripture are we told to view frustrating, rude or even mean people as impediments to our peace or as problems to be eliminated. Oftentimes God uses those very people (warts and all) to grow us and mature us into the image of Jesus.  We must never forget that God the commands to love others in spite of their deficiencies and irritating behaviors (John 15:12, Romans 12:10, Romans 13:8, 2nd Corinthians 13:11, Ephesians 4:2). 

    Just like He does with us. 

    Satan’s Best Schemes-Updated for the Next Generation

    Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment


    So that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes- 2nd Corinthians 2:11 NASB 

    A scheme can be defined as:

    An underhanded plot or a plan, program or policy that is officially adopted and followed. 

     Satan has schemes (Ephesians 6:11, 2nd Corinthians 2:10-11, 1st Peter 5:8) and it certainly feels like he has a lot of them.  However, in reality, Satan really only has a short list of policies, programs, plans and plots. All his schemes are clever (in a terrible kind of a way) and cleverly designed to discourage people from getting into right relationship with God and/or keeping them from becoming all they were created to be. 

    Although Satan’s schemes are relatively few in number, he has been refining and honing his strategies since the dawn of humanity (Genesis 3). As a result, he’s a pro at what he does. Satan’s best schemes are (and always have been) unforgiveness, distraction, distortion of God’s plan for sexuality, self-pity, division and idolatry.  There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Nonetheless, in recent years Satan has updated how he presents his best schemes for the latest generation. Following are the newest twists on some of Satan’s old favorites:

    Unforgiveness- 

    Unforgiveness is a winner for Satan because unforgiveness is a spiritual poison that slowly destroys our souls and makes us unfit to do anything good or life-giving with our lives (Matthew 6:14-15, Matthew 18:21-35). Choosing not to forgive keeps us inwardly focused and trapped in a prison of bitterness and hate that severely limits our potential and turns us into an ugly distortion of what God intended us to be (Hebrews 12:15).  In recent years Satan kicked all this up a notch by rebranding unforgiveness and hate as a weird kind of self-care. Satan (and the people he uses) want us to believe forgiveness is weakness and broken relationships are an indicator of “good boundaries” and “self-respect”.  This lie has led an entire generation into believing that refusing to forgive is somehow healthy and will bring them peace. It’s a brilliant but entirely devastating strategy. 

    Distraction- 

    There is nothing Satan loves more than a good distraction. Distraction is designed to take our minds off pleasing God and loving the people in our lives (Matthew 22:34-40). Distraction from those two things allows all kind of chaos and sin to take root in our own lives and the lives of the people we love most, especially our children. At one time Satan was limited to distracting us with basic things that still mattered to some degree, like work and recreation. Since the invention of the smartphone now we are frequently distracted from the things that matter most and the things that used to distract us from the things that matter most. The result is lives wasted on futility and meaninglessness.  

    Distortion of God’s plan for sexuality-

    God’s design for sexuality is not complicated and has not evolved over time. It’s one man with one woman for a lifetime (Genesis 2:24, Matthew 19:5, Ephesians 5:30-31). Satan has never been a fan of this plan because life-long fidelity and devotion will always produce good mental health, strong families and stable societies, and he hates those things.  However, in recent years Satan has put a new and clever spin on sexual deviancy by convincing folks that their sexual choices are not really choices at all but rather genetic and therefore unchangeable. This has led to all sorts of insanity including laws that forbid discussion about sin and how to get free of it. It’s also led to a lot of despair with people feeling trapped by behaviors they could get free of through a relationship with Jesus and some in-depth discipleship training.

    Self-pity-

    Satan has always adored self-pity because, if it’s allowed to fester, it embitters and ultimately turns the individual against God. When someone allows self-pity to take root, they cease taking responsibility for their own choices and blame God for every problem they have. Instead of looking to God for comfort and help they turn God into the source of all their misery and pain. This in turn makes them feel justified in turning to sin and substances (bitterness, cynicism, drugs alcohol, pornography, etc.)  to make themselves feel better. Self-pity went mainstream a few years back when the powers that be began elevating victimhood into a virtue. People have been taught that there is nobility in being a victim which makes the self-pity that goes hand-in-hand with victimhood a badge of honor rather than a spiritually dangerous indulgence (Ephesians 4:31, Acts 8:23).

    Division- 

    Satan has always treasured hatred and division. Division destroys friendships, churches and families (Jude 18-19, 2nd Timothy 3:1-5) Now that politics has become a religion to so many, even some Christians feel justified in dividing over the stupidest, most worldly, most temporal thing imaginable: politics. It would be funny if it weren’t so sad. 

    Idolatry-  

    Satan loves idolatry because whatever we worship quickly becomes our number one priority and we will do whatever that idol demands in order to please and appease it. Thanks to a clever crusade courtesy of Satan no one in the western world worships weird little statues anymore. Instead, people worship themselves. Which just happens to be the most dangerous form of idolatry of all. Mostly, because there is no end to the depravity, selfishness and evil that can dwell in the human heart. When a person is living entirely to please self, they can justify a lot of evil in the name of self-care, wellness, good mental health and self-actualization. 

    We cannot stop Satan from scheming, but we can resist his schemes (James 4:7, Ephesians 6:13). We resist the schemes of the enemy with holy, righteous, God-honoring behavior and love for all people (Hebrew 12:14, Romans 12:1, John 13:34, 1st Corinthians 13, Romans 13:8).  Resisting Satan’s schemes empowers us to become all God created us to be and, in the process, we show a dying world the way to life.  

    It’s a win-win. 

    How the Loss of One Truth Sent Western Culture Straight to Crazy Town-

    Lisa M. Price2 Comments

    The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us- 1st John 1:7b-10 NASB

    Doctrinal teaching has fallen on hard times. 

    Even many Christians are uninterested in learning the details of most doctrinal teachings. The attributes of God, redemption and justification by faith just don’t hold a lot of appeal these days. Although, perhaps, the doctrine that has fallen on the hardest of times is the doctrine of original sin. 

    Nobody likes it.

    Seriously. 

    Even many Christians are uncomfortable with the whole concept. Original sin is a tough sell in a culture that is easily offended and obsessed with fairness.  Original sin is the belief that every human being is morally and ethically corrupted from the moment of conception by Adam and Eve’s choice to disobey God and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3, Romans 5:12, Ecclesiastes 9:3, Psalm 14:2-3). The doctrine of original sin teaches all humans are sinners from conception (Romans 3:23, Psalm 51:1-5). This means human beings cannot rehabilitate or fix themselves (Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:3-7), we need God to do that for us. 

    The above-mentioned gloominess aside, the criticalness of a doctrinal teaching is revealed by what happens when a person (or culture) stops believing it is true.  Most folks in the west stopped believing original sin was a reality about fifty years ago.  There are at least four ways the world has gone crazy town because we ditched the doctrine of original sin, including:

    Criminals have become sympathetic victims rather than bad guys- 

    Most western societies see criminals as victims and justice for actual victims of crime as unfair and unjust. Original sin teaches that all people (regardless of upbringing) have an inborn inclination towards evil. Conversely, most secular folks believe humans are born perfect and are corrupted by traumatic personal experiences or less-than-perfect parents. Christians believe even unredeemed people have a choice about whether they fully give into their sinful tendencies (Calvinists call this “common grace”). When a culture ceases to believe in original sin, bad behavior is no longer about choices it’s always about trauma and the whole notion of personal responsibility dies an ugly death. A criminal is not a criminal because they chose a life of crime, they are a criminal because of forces outside their control like poverty, abuse, suffering and neglect (Romans 2:5-8). The unintended consequence of this belief system is that our justice system often shows more compassion to lawbreakers than to law abiders (Isaiah 59:14-15). 

    Parenting gets weird-

    For generations parents have understood that kids are born with a tendency towards rebellion, bad behavior and disobedience (Proverbs 22:15, Ephesians 6:1). Even godless societies agreed it was the parent’s job to squash rebellion and steer children towards law-abiding behavior and decency. When parents stopped believing children were rebellious from birth all of sudden, they were forced to blame themselves and their own broken upbringing for the bad behavior of their kids. This has created a weird approach to childrearing where parents live in fear of traumatizing their children with any kind of discipline or even disapproval (Proverbs 13:24). As a result, children are oftentimes quite awful, and parents are unspeakably miserable when they should be enjoying one of the ultimate blessings of human existence (Psalm 127:3-5) 

    Becoming our most authentic self suddenly seems like a great idea-

    The death of original sin gave birth to the whole notion all people should do their best to “become my most authentic self”. This whole idea of finding our authentic self is unbelievably popular today. Nobody even questions whether this is something we ought to be doing. However, if one looks a little deeper at the fruit of this view it becomes clear that “being my most authentic self” is at the root of transgenderism, sexual deviancy, adultery, many divorces and most child neglect.  This is because as fallen beings our most authentic self is our sin nature. Consequently, our most authentic self is typically weird, sinful, selfish, vulgar and wants what it wants when it wants it (Ecclesiastes 6:1, Genesis 6:5). None of this nonsense should be celebrated or pursued. 

    Everyone gets their own truth- 

    Believing the lie that people are inherently flawless, logically leads to the belief that what each individual person thinks or believes is always right and true. Because no one wants to start calling people out for being wrong, we have instead conceded that everyone is entitled to their own individual truth. The truth each individual holds does not have to be provably true it just has to be believed by the individual. One does not have to be a rocket scientist to determine that eventually my “truth” will conflict with someone else’s “truth” at some point. This is when things get ugly because we all know deep down inside there cannot be multiple truths.

    The fruit of denying the reality of original sin is clearly rotten. Sadly, we cannot force unbelievers to believe any Christian doctrine. However, as Christians we can see to it that we are walking in truth (John 8:32) and teaching truth to the next generation. When we walk in truth we instantly become the salt and light this world needs (Matthew 5:13-16)