Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
November 8, 2017
The Truth About Church Shootings (CNN) What Explains Mass Shootings in the United States? International Comparisons Suggest an Answer (New York Times) It’s Easier to Get a Gun Than a Puppy (CNN) Southern Baptist...
4 Steps Your Church Can Take Now to Shore Up Security
Editor's note: This article has been revised. A reference to "an automatic gun" was changed to "a semi-automatic gun" because the weapon used by the shooter at First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas, was a...
How to Honor Veterans in Christ-Centered Worship
Religious liberty is celebrated as one of the historic and foundational Baptist distinctives. In "Four Fragile Freedoms," Walter Shurden wrote, "Religious freedom is the historic Baptist affirmation of freedom OF...
As Evil Inundates Society, Christians Must Not Lose Hope
We have been inundated in recent days with news of random killings, racial killings and retributive killings by terrorists. The saying once was popular, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas." Never have we yearned for...
10 Suggestions to Help Your Church Honor Veterans
I inherited a few traditions early in my ministry that were common in southern rural churches. These included giving carnations to mothers on Mother's Day, inviting members to walk forward to put their "birthday...
Why Jesus’ Life and Teachings Really Should Matter
Jesus' life and teachings didn't matter very much. At least that's the idea one gets from those U.S. Christians who see his only earthly purpose in coming to die as a penalty for human sinfulness - and then rocketing...
Church, State Both Should Seek Economic Justice for Poor
Christians have sometimes claimed that the eighth commandment, "You shall not steal," forbids government from ever mandating the redistribution of wealth for the sake of the poor. According to this interpretation, the...
November 6, 2017
At Least 26 People Killed in Shooting at Baptist Church in Texas (CNN) 26-Year Old Gunman in Texas Shooting Identified as Former VBS Teacher (Heavy) White Teenager Arrested for Burning Down Black Baptist Church in...
Just pick one!
By John D. Pierce My friend Steve Bean and I grew up in church-going families. As teenagers we found our first “real jobs” (defined by a paycheck with tax withholdings) at the restaurant in a newly opened Days Inn...
These Reformation Heroes Were Glossed Over by History
Churches around the globe paused earlier this week and remembered the courage of a man named Martin - and rightfully so. Martin Luther's challenge of the Catholic Church on Oct. 31, 1517, reshaped the 16th-century...
‘Same Kind of Different as Me’
The concept of "spiritual but not religious" arises in nearly every conversation about faith these days. While watching "Same Kind of Different as Me," I got the feeling that is what the movie was trying to be. The...
Why Your Church May Be Measuring the Wrong Info
We are constantly training ourselves on what we really believe is important, though typically with little conscious awareness. This is particularly true of congregations. How so? Whatever our leaders talk about most...
November 3, 2017
Russia-Financed Ad Linked Clinton and Satan (New York Times) The Republican Tax Bill Would Let Ministers Endorse Political Candidates (Washington Post) Tax Bill Includes Provisions Gutting IRS Protections for Houses of...
Profiles in Goodwill: Glen Foster
Glen Foster is pastor of Pantano Baptist Church in Tucson, Arizona, and coordinator of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship West. 1. Where did you grow up? Houston, Texas, and Lafayette, Louisiana. 2. What is your favorite...
A True Baptist Icon for Religious Liberty, Stewardship
Baptist icon George W. Truett was the focus of a recent high school assembly in Hayesville, North Carolina, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Clay County native's birth. An invitation to participate in the...
Report: Healthcare Plays Vital Role in Reducing Recidivism
Efficient and effective integration of healthcare with other rehabilitative initiatives is essential to reducing recidivism, according a report from The Pew Charitable Trusts released on Oct. 18. "Emerging research...
November 2, 2017
Meet the Baptist Church in Georgia that Opened its Doors to Same-Sex Marriage (Washington Post) Indiana Muslim Group Says ISIS Perverts Religion (WIBC) Indonesia: Christian Congregation Fights to Worship in its Church...
Why Protestants Should Learn to Appreciate the Saints
It's been a busy year for those whose connection with Martin Luther is not only confessional but professional. In this 500th anniversary of the year when Luther is credited with starting the Reformation, the world...
Maybe It’s Time Churches Sought Another Reformation
My wife and I visited Wittenberg, a town made famous by the reformers Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon, this summer. Our visit followed a week teaching about the environment on the Bible and Culture course run by...
Why Jesus’ Good Samaritan Can Change the World
We show love for God by the way that we show love for neighbors, which is always measured by what we do, not what we say. Like Bob Goff says, "Love does." This was the central message of a recent sermon I preached on...
November 1, 2017
Faith Leaders Raise Their Voices in Opposing Rights of Christian Baker in Supreme Court Case (Deseret News) Christian Writer Banned from Liberty University After Criticizing Trump Ally (National Public Radio) Trump...