What Is Real Conversion? (Part Four)
by Richard T. RitenbaughSometimes we are so caught up in our day-to-day activities, including overcoming our individual sins, that we forget the goal of the conversion process, the product into which we are to be transformed. ...
18-Dec-09
What Is Real Conversion? (Part Three)
by Richard T. RitenbaughThere would be no need for conversion without the existence of sin and its destructive effects on humanity. Sin and the anti-God world it has spawned is what Christians must turn from so that they can truly follow God's way of life. ...
11-Dec-09
What Is Real Conversion? (Part Two)
by Richard T. RitenbaughA great deal of confusion exists--even among professing Christians--about true conversion. Contrary to many who teach it, confessing the name of Jesus is not how the Bible defines a converted person. ...
04-Dec-09
What Is Real Conversion? (Part One)
by Richard T. RitenbaughThe world contains over a billion professing Christians—of Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox creeds, not to mention the hundreds of denominations. ...
27-Nov-09
Manna and the Preparation Day (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbeIn last week's essay, we traced the connection between manna and "the true bread from heaven," Jesus Christ (John 6:32). ...
20-Nov-09
Manna and the Preparation Day (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeBecause of how precious time is, God wants us to make the most of the Sabbath, that time that is transcendentally better than the rest of the week. Thus, in His providence, He gave us the Preparation Day, which sets the stage so that we can properly receive the gift of the Sabbath. ...
13-Nov-09
Comfort-Zone Christianity?
by Richard T. RitenbaughOver the past several days, I have been very uncomfortable. Since my adrenal fatigue set in during the summer of 2008, I have had a more-or-less persistent ache in the area of my right hip....
06-Nov-09
At the Center of Everything
by Staff"Things fall apart. The center cannot hold," wrote W.B. Yeats in his famous, "The Second Coming," a short poem about the declining morality of the twentieth century. ...
30-Oct-09
Islam: Dark Beginnings
by David C. GrabbeThe landscape of religion is shifting. While Christendom has claimed the largest number of adherents for centuries, present trends strongly indicate that we are living in a religious axial period, a time when the old order and powers decay and are replaced by new powers. Barring a radical course correction, adherents of Islam will outnumber professing Christians very shortly—perhaps in as few as twenty years. ...
23-Oct-09
Can the True Church Be Found?
by Richard T. RitenbaughPerhaps the most famous line from the quill of American patriot Thomas Paine is the sentence that opened his pro-revolution pamphlet, The American Crisis, No. ...
16-Oct-09
The Bible's Roles for Men
by Staff"Real Men Don't Eat Quiche." Way back in 1982, a little-known author by the name of Bruce Feirstein earned himself a small fortune when he wrote and published a humorous, tongue-in-cheek book with this title. The book deals with stereotypes about masculinity and lists lots of activities that "real men" should not involve themselves in. ...
25-Sep-09
The World's Need for Atonement
by Richard T. RitenbaughAll we have to do, according to this formula, is to get world leaders in one room, and after a few handshakes and a couple of beers—voila! World peace! It is so simple: Just let them jabber at each other for a few hours, and they will walk out arm in arm, best friends forever! ...
18-Sep-09
Coming: A Truly Benevolent Ruler
by Richard T. RitenbaughIn Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, the hero, a hard-boiled nineteenth-century New Englander by the name of Hank Morgan, opines that the best government is a benevolent dictatorship, particularly one with him at its head. ...
11-Sep-09
9-11 and American Decadence
by Richard T. RitenbaughThis morning marked the eighth anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center buildings in New York City by Islamic fundamentalists. ...
04-Sep-09
More on Tolerance
by John W. RitenbaughThis morning, upon opening the inbox of my email account, I discovered an item declaring that the United States Postal Service has issued a stamp commemorating the Islamic holiday of Ramadan. ...
28-Aug-09
Liberal Lion or Liberal Lyin'?
by Richard T. RitenbaughWith the death of longtime Massachusetts Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy this past week, the American people are provided another "teachable moment" in this summer of teachable moments. ...
21-Aug-09
Nonsense and Senselessness
by Richard T. RitenbaughWhen did the world stop making sense? Perhaps it has not made much sense for a long while, but lately it seems to have taken a definite turn toward the nonsensical, especially here in the United States. ...
14-Aug-09
Is There Hope For Equality?
by John W. RitenbaughPerhaps the greatest of all social ideals is equality. ...
07-Aug-09
A House Built on Sand
by StaffOnce, reason and common sense were valued in America. ...
31-Jul-09
Tolerance and Love
by John W. RitenbaughFor the past twenty-five years or so, tolerance has been a powerful theme of secular preachers of political correctness. ...
24-Jul-09
Why So Many Religions? (Part Two)
by John W. RitenbaughPart One, published several weeks ago, ever so briefly covered one aspect of why there are so many religions. ...
17-Jul-09
The Face of Identity Politics
by Richard T. RitenbaughThis week, the country witnessed the heavily televised confirmation hearings on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. ...
10-Jul-09
Why So Many Religions? (Part One)
by John W. RitenbaughIt is difficult to know how many religious organizations populate this earth, but the number is very high. ...
03-Jul-09
Music Appreciation
by StaffIt is movie night, and the family decides to watch a classic sci-fi flick. The popcorn is popped, the DVD waits in the player, the lights are dimmed, and everyone settles comfortably into their seats. ...
26-Jun-09
Genesis 1 and Free-Moral Agency
by John W. RitenbaughWhat does Scripture say about free-moral agency? Do we have it, or are we human puppets on a string, dancing to the tune of someone else's will? ...
12-Jun-09
What's Wrong With Works?
by John W. RitenbaughCertain categories of subject matter published in the Church of the Great God's "Berean: Daily Verse and Comment" are almost certain to stir challenges against their content. ...
05-Jun-09
How Big Is the Pie?
by David C. GrabbeIn his bestselling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey observes that most people are entrenched in what he calls a "scarcity mentality": They see life as having only so much, as though there were only one pie out there. ...
29-May-09
The Absence of Love
by StaffOn Tuesday, April 14, 2009, crowds gathered in Bingham Hall, a University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill educational building, filling the seats with college students, professors, and members of the community, waiting to hear Congressman Tom Tancredo speak about illegal immigration....
22-May-09
Change and Responsibility
by John W. RitenbaughMy last essay addressed the fact that change is always present in every person's life. ...
15-May-09
Individualism and Unity
by Staff... Instead of Rand and her radical individualism, the Bible is the most important source for understanding who we are and what our responsibilities are. How, then, does God view the individual? ...
08-May-09
Change and Constancy
by John W. RitenbaughHow often do we wish that, when life's events are producing pleasure, satisfaction, and a sense that all is well in the world--at least in our world--things would remain that way forever? ...
24-Apr-09
Watching Is Not Passive
by John O. ReidHerbert W. Armstrong often turned to Ezekiel 33 to expound upon being a watchman over Israel, saying that if he did not warn Israel about the approaching "time of Jacob's Trouble" ...
17-Apr-09
Another Look at the Book of Job
by David C. GrabbeThe story of Job has long been a place of inquiry for those enduring severe trials. ...
10-Apr-09
On Self-Righteousness
by John W. RitenbaughII Corinthians 13:5 charges us with the responsibility of examining ourselves. This is appropriate at any time during the year, but it is especially helpful as we prepare to take the Passover and renew our covenant with God through Jesus Christ. One very important area to search out concerns self-righteousness because it lies at the root of many other sins. ...
03-Apr-09
Memory and Humility
by StaffWhere we stand in the history of the United States and the entire world is both captivating and distracting. ...
27-Mar-09
In Honor of Jesus Christ
by John W. RitenbaughDuring the Passover season, our minds are more forcibly focused on the importance of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to our salvation. ...
20-Mar-09
A Man of Sorrows
by John W. RitenbaughThe radio and television news broadcasts over the past six months have been so depressing that listeners and viewers have complained to the stations to look for something good and encouraging to report. ...
13-Mar-09
The Necessity of Biblical Infallibility
by StaffThe authority of the Bible has been under constant assault from biblical "scholars" and theologians. ...
06-Mar-09
Nothing Is More Important
by John W. RitenbaughMany of us have experienced an event that completely altered the direction we were heading. ...
20-Feb-09
Why Is Hope Delayed?
by John W. RitenbaughIt may sound impossible, but we can have hope in the face of the monumental problems facing, not just the United States, but also the entire world. ...
13-Feb-09
The Nanny Church (Part Three)
by David C. GrabbeCharacter is born out of struggle—out of pitting ourselves against events and circumstances or against our own nature. Without something to struggle against, we will never develop discipline or self-control, nor hone our wisdom or foresight. Our prioritization skills languish and become muddled because they are unneeded. Perseverance atrophies from lack of use.
06-Feb-09
What Has Happened to Deference?
by John W. RitenbaughIn a crowded restaurant not long ago, I noticed that a large number of male patrons entered wearing a hat of some kind, but almost none ever removed it from his head, even after being seated and served. ...
23-Jan-09
Jesus, Paul, and the Christian Right
by John W. RitenbaughThe pages of history are amply sprinkled with records of clashes between church and state over who should bear the greater authority in the land. ...
16-Jan-09
The Nanny Church (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbePart One showed that wherever there is a government of man, it tends to take on greater power and responsibility as the governed relinquish their liberty for the sake of being taken care of. ...
09-Jan-09
The Nanny Church (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeThe term "Nanny State" has come to describe a government that insists on over-regulating the individual in order to force him to act according to the government's wishes, rather than allowing the individual to make his own choices. ...
02-Jan-09
A Picture Against a Thousand Words
by StaffIn the past month, motorists around the United States have undoubtedly noticed roadside depictions of the nativity scene of Jesus Christ. ...