Consistent with Faith

God works by His Spirit to bring people into a saving knowledge of Christ, and as we follow Christ in salvation, we can experience the cleansing and empowering work of the Holy Spirit.  Hebrews 10
says:
22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

The Spirit of God will reform our consciences, He will teach us God's truth, in accordance to the Word of God, bringing it to light in our hearts.  He guides us in our decisions and gives us the strength we need each day.  We know the Holy Spirit is powerful - and prevalent.  He is working in this world to show people their need for Jesus, and in response to the prayers of His people, we can be confident that He is at work.

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We are called to walk in the Spirit and we can be convinced that the Holy Spirit is at work not only in our lives, but toward the lives of those whom God wants to bring to Himself.  Jesus spoke about the
Spirit in John 16, and said:
8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me;
10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more;
11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

Perhaps you saw the movie, Paul, Apostle of Christ, which starred Jim Caviezel in the role of Luke and James Faulkner playing the title role.  When you are playing a role of such magnitude, I can be it can be a rather daunting task, and Faulkner, who, according to The Christian Post, is "admittedly on his own faith journey."  Now it's hard to tell what that means, but one could surmise that Faulkner was touched in a special way as part of that film.

He was at the Movieguide Faith and Values Award Show recently, which was televised on the Hallmark Channel earlier this week.  Jeannie Law of The Christian Post caught up with him at the Awards show and devoted an article primarily to Faulkner, in which he described what he called an "extraordinary" experience:

“It took me on a journey,” Faulkner said. “My wife was amazed at the difference in me. She said, 'If only you can be like this all the time. It's fantastic, you're filled with a completely different spirit.”

What Faulkner was filled with, he said, was the Holy Spirit, admitting that before he began working on the film his faith wasn't as strong as it is now.

“Jim (Caviezel) is a devout man, whereas I'm Anglican light. But I have some questions myself as a result of playing Paul and I view the world differently and my fellow human beings differently [now],” he confessed.

Faulkner told Law on the red carpet: "I think that faith-based films, family films, films that celebrate, our better natures are important and therefore, I'm thrilled to be here as part of the Movieguide awards.”

The Christian Post review of the awards cited one special moment of the show, in which Jim Caviezel appeared on stage with Faulkner and gave up his award. Caviezel won the Christie Peters Grace Award for Most Inspiring Performance in Movies for his role in Paul, Apostle of Christ.

Other awards included the Christie Peters Grace Award for Most Inspiring Performance in TV which went to Jean Smart for A Shoe Addict’s Christmas.  Smart noted, "I have a 10-year-old and it had been quite a while since I'd done something that she could watch. Not just my daughter but our kids are exposed to so much stuff that is just not healthy for them..."  Her co-star in the Hallmark movie, Candace Cameron Bure, co-hosted the awards with daughter, Natasha, according to International Business Times.

The article noted that Movieguide founder Ted Baehr "revealed that movies with positive redemptive content is on the rise. Showing that in the past 10 years family friendly content has gone up 10 percent."

Other awards included:

Epiphany Prize for Most Inspiring Movie of 2018 – Winner: “I Can Only Imagine”

Epiphany Prize for Most Inspiring TV Program – Winner: "When Calls The Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing”

$15,000 Kairos Prize for Most Spiritually Uplifting Screenplay by a First-Time or Beginning Screenwriters - Winner: Nathan Leon for “Grace By Night”

$15,000 Kairos Pro Prize for Most Inspiring Screenplay by an Experienced Filmmaker - Winner: Paul Cooper for “Mingo Road”

And, you have the best movies for families and for mature audiences. According to Movieguide, the ten best for families were:
Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch

Peter Rabbit (2018)

I Can Only Imagine

Paul, Apostle Of Christ

God’s Not Dead: A Light In Darkness

Mary Poppins Returns

Spider-man: Into The Spider-verse

Paddington 2

Incredibles 2, and 

Ralph Breaks The Internet.

The Best Movie for Families was Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch.

The 10 best for mature audiences, in alphabetical order, were:

Ant-man and The Wasp

Chappaquiddick

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Little Pink House

Mission: Impossible – Fallout

A Quiet Place

Skyscraper

Solo: A Star Wars Story

Unbroken: Path To Redemption, and 

Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

There are several takeaways here.  First of all, I want to be clear...while I don't think unbelievers are filled with the Spirit; that is a gift and commandment for Christians, we can acknowledge that God is working supernaturally to bring people to Himself.  The Spirit can work in the life of a person to bring him or her into that saving knowledge of Christ.  And, for the unbeliever who acts in a movie that reflects Christian principles, there is an opportunity to be in an atmosphere where the Spirit can work.  We can also know in our churches and our spheres of influence, as we seek the Lord and walk in the Spirit, we can create an atmosphere of love and truth through which someone can come to know Him.

We can also be reminded personally to seek out entertainment choices consistent with our faith perspective.  This can perhaps inspire us, and our dollars spent on family and faith-based entertainment can send a message to Hollywood that we want more of this type of material.

Finally, we can recognize that there are fellow believers who wish to make a difference in the entertainment industry.  We know that they can be influential as they reflect Christ in their work.

The Pursuit of...

Out of our faith walk with the Lord can emerge a sense of His joy and peace.  As we worship Him,
we can know that inner satisfaction and have a heart of thankfulness. Psalm 37 states:
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.

People are seeking to be happy; and sometimes that sense of happiness will be rooted in external circumstances.  Our happiness as believers is determined by the level that we abide in Christ - and we can experience inner satisfaction, expressed through joy and peace, flowing from the knowledge that we are right with Him and that He is sustaining us, no matter what the externals might tell us.  Our joy is not of this world but comes from His presence in our hearts.

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Even in the midst of enduring hardship, we can have an abiding joy in the Lord; the knowledge of
Him brings satisfaction - some might even call it happiness. James 5 states:
11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your "Yes," be "Yes," and your "No," "No," lest you fall into judgment.
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.

Going to church can contribute to a person's happiness; that sounds like a simple, commonsense statement of cause and effect, doesn't it?  A recently released Pew poll explored the connection between church attendance and well-being, and Baptist Press reported on the results.

The article states:

"This analysis finds that in the U.S. and many other countries around the world, regular participation in a religious community clearly is linked with higher levels of happiness and civic engagement," Pew said, citing civic activities such as voting, joining community groups and volunteering.

The story points out that, "Pew describes actively religious people as those who identify with a religious group and attend church services at least monthly."

The survey found that, "In the U.S., 36 percent of actively religious people said they were very happy, compared to 25 percent of inactive religious people and 25 percent of those unaffiliated with any religious group."  According to the story, the poll seems to indicate that religious affiliation is not enough to bring about greater happiness and civic participation; it's religious activity that makes a difference.

Some other snapshots: only about a third of these religiously active Americans say they are in "very good health." 96% of the group indicated that they "avoid frequent drinking," and "85 percent don't smoke, 64 percent exercise several times a week, and 72 percent are not obese."

With respect to community involvement, just over two-thirds of religiously active Americans vote in national elections versus 48% of the religiously unaffiliated.  Also, 58% belong to at least one non-religious group, vs. 39% of religious unaffiliated people.

How does the U.S. compare to other countries? According to the report, "Surveys found the highest rates of very happy people among religiously active people in Mexico, 71 percent; Colombia, 58 percent; and Ecuador, 56 percent."  The Pew survey included the U.S. and 25 other countries.

All right, let's consider this: What constitutes true happiness?  Some think that the externals, such as pastor and former corporate executive Stu Fuhlendorf was relating, contribute to our happiness.  Others look to be happy through sinful behavior.  Truth is, God wants us to experience His joy, which is a deep-seated satisfaction in Him; happiness, which is thought to be more externals-based, can be a fickle concept.  Others say God doesn't want us to be happy, rather to be holy -  I would submit that if we are right with God, internally, we can walk in His joy, which is listed among the fruit of the spirit.

We can pursue what God has in store for us and we can be satisfied as we allow Him to work in our lives.  If we are pursuing God, we can certainly have that deep knowledge in our souls that we are pleasing Him; that can make for a happy, or a joyful life.  All in all, our joy in the Lord is determined by inward factors, rather than external circumstances.

Streets of London

Chapter 4 of the book of Luke describes Jesus preaching in the synagogue, and He preached from a
passage in Isaiah that outlined His call by God:
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."

That is the call of Jesus, and as He prepared to leave this earth, He commissioned His followers to go everywhere and proclaim His truth.  He has come to redeem humanity, to bring hope and liberty.  He has defeated the power of darkness, and He calls us to walk in His wonderful light.  He wants to open our eyes and the eyes of those with whom we interact to His truth.  In the power of God, we can communicate who Christ is and what He desires to do.

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In Acts 4, we find that Peter and John had been used by the Lord to pray for a man, who was healed.
They proclaimed:
11 This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.'
12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.

Over the past few days, there has been a rapidly-growing chorus that has been publicized regarding  an unfortunate event on the streets of London.  Faithwire has picked up the story of the arrest of a street preacher; the report states:

In a video of the incident posted to Twitter, officers can be seen forcefully asking the African man to stop, before arresting him on a rather baffling charge of “breaching the peace.”

According to the published exchange with an officer near the Southgate Underground station, after the preacher is accused of "breaching the peace," the policeman says: “It’s what you’re doing at the moment...You’re causing problems — you’re disturbing people’s days and you’re breaching their peace. If you won’t go away voluntarily, we will have to arrest you.”

The preacher said, "I will not go away, because I need to tell them the truth — because Jesus is the only way, the truth and the life..."  The Faithwire account continues:

“But nobody wants to listen to that,” the officer snapped back. “They want you to go away.”

At this point, the officer handcuffs the man, before an additional officer snatches his Bible out of his hands.

“Don’t take my Bible away,” the man cried.

“You should have thought about that before being racist!” the officer replied.

 Racist?  Well, Faithwire reached out to the Metropolitan Police.  What did they find?

The police admitted that, despite the officer’s comments accusing the preacher of being “racist,” nothing of this nature had been said by the Christian man. They also noted that “no language of this nature was used in the presence of officers.”

“The initial report suggested some Islamophobic language had been used,” the police force told Faithwire. “However nobody has made a formal allegation to this effect and no language of this nature was used in the presence of officers.”

Now, it has been reported that the man was "de-arrested."  Yet, the account provides a chilling look at a clear case of bias against someone preaching the gospel.  As Faithwire reports:

Many have called on the police to apologize for the incident. Christians and atheists alike have expressed their outrage at the incident. Anglican clergyman and former chaplain to the Queen, Rev. Dr. Gavin Ashenden, was one of those to speak out.

“The police have closed down freedom of speech and become Christianophobic,” he wrote on Twitter. “If we fail to protest we will lose our freedom under the law.”

Obianuju Ekeocha, who is described in the story as a "Christian and pro-life activist," had posted one of the early accounts of the arrest of the preacher. Ekeocha also tweeted out a video of the arrest of the Christian preacher side-by-side with an incident in which UK police responded to a Muslim preacher shouting "Allahu Akbar;" shall we say it was a "friendlier" exchange.  The source of that video was the Leave.EU Twitter account.

Certainly, this central event is illustrative of the clash of worldviews in which we find ourselves.  Christianity has become a target, while worldviews aligned with Islam are tolerated and even found to be favorable.  Radical Islam is a serious threat, yet there has been a determined effort to downplay or eliminate the religious element; witness how media and politicians are reticent to label acts of terror as being connected with Islam.  And, yet to criticize Islam become bigoted and Islamophobic; criticizing Christianity is an accepted practice.

But, that's just par for the course, according to Jesus, and we have to be careful that we don't make ourselves out to be religious victims.  He told us we would experience tribulation and persecution. But, we can continue to exhibit confidence in our Savior and allow Him to live His life through us.

We do acknowledge that there are those that will challenge the Christian faith; we can study the Word and rely on the Spirit, prepared to defend it.  We can make a reasonable, determined defense of the truth of the Bible and adopt that attitude reflected in Romans 1, that we are not ashamed of the gospel.  We can certainly be bold for Christ.

Finally, there is a simple purity that is exhibited in this image of a preacher on the streets, proclaiming the Gospel.  In a day when we find church members and leaders debating a number of issues and incorporating worldly philosophies and constructs in our churches, we can continue to adhere to communicating the true, pure gospel, the good news that changes lives.

While They're Young

We have to determine that we will think Biblically about the issues and decisions with which we are
confronted. Colossians 2 states:
18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.

There does seem to be a lot of errant philosophy that is out there these days; the knowledge of God is being challenged by the fruitless thinking of humanity.  There are those who would distort God's intent on so many things, including our biology - there is teaching that our gender is fluid, or can be changed; hardly a scientific concept.  Plus, there are those that deny the science and think that an unborn child or even a child who survives an abortion are not worthy of living.  As a culture, there is an aggressive departure from the ways of God.

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Each human being reflects the glory of his or her Creator - God, who has an intent for all humans to
come into a relationship with Himself through Christ and fulfill His purpose. Genesis 1 says:
26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

In pockets of our culture, we are finding that evil is called good and good is called evil, and people, in the name of "inclusion," are allowing unacceptable behavior to flourish.  One example of this is the phenomenon known as the Drag Queen Story Hour, which, astonishingly, has been allowed in public libraries.

One such event occurred recently in Lansdale, PA.  It was a presentation by one Eric Torres, described by ChristianNews.net in this way:

As previously reported, Eric Torres of Philadelphia chose the name “Annie Christ” for his stage name out of his “love of gothic themes, horror movies, and bands such as NIN.” His Instagram page features a mix of photos from his everyday life as Eric—such as his interest in mudding—and his alter persona as a drag performer—some of which are gory, some with grandiose wigs and makeup, and one where Torres painted an upside down cross on his forehead.

The library director did say there were calls of complaint, but he believed that “a lot of the parents are interested in … the message of the story time about acceptance and inclusion.”  And, there was a protest that was organized by local Christian believers.  But, the mayor of the city, Garry Herbert, sided with Torres in an embarrassingly strong way.  ChristianNews.net reports:

“I was approached with a petition from community members asking to commemorate the day where Lansdale showed its dedication to inclusion and diversity,” Herbert told North Penn Now. “After speaking with staff, we agreed to declare Feb. 2 as ‘Inclusion Day in Lansdale,’ where we will celebrate our diversity and our commitment to that cause.”

The Christian protest organizer contends that cause - is sin!  The story states:

Steve Piotrowski, who organized the initial prayer rally outside of the event, expressed disappointment that the borough has chosen to celebrate sin. He released a statement sharing the gospel with those who would read his words, noting that the right kind of inclusion is inclusion in the kingdom of God—and there are conditions for entry.

And, a South Carolina legislator has taken a step to ban public libraries from hosting these drag queen events in his state. ChristianNews.net also reported on a proposal by Republican Rep. Garry Smith, who had "proposed a budget amendment that would have required all state-funded libraries to abide by the Standards for Health and Safety Education Act, which currently solely applies to public schools and determines what is 'age appropriate' for children."  Smith addressed the House Ways and Means Committee, saying that “four men dressed as women to talk to 3-to-8-year-olds about being transgender and those issues" would not comply. The committee, unfortunately, tabled the recommendation.

The website notes that a recent event in Greenville has left city officials with a bill for funding the security for it.  The story says:

According to local television station WYFF, costs total $47,829.82, which include “feeding lunch to 170 people for nearly $1,600 and the purchase of four megaphones for about $100,” as well as the use of “drones and barricades supplied by county codes to cover the event.”

No doubt, there is an agenda here.  In a piece at LifeSiteNews.com, we read:

Drag queens are deliberately "grooming" the next generation to accept LGBT ideology when they read to children in public libraries at drag queen “story hour” events, a U.S. drag queen admitted.

Dylan Pontiff, a drag queen who helped organize one of these story hour events for children as young as three at the Lafayette Public Library in early October, is shown in a video making that shocking admission to the Lafayette City-Parish Council in Louisiana during a Sept. 17 meeting.

"This is going to be the grooming of the next generation. We are trying to groom the next generation," said Pontiff, who when dressed in drag goes by the name Santana Pilar Andrews.

This is such blatant sinful expression, plain and simple - and it's being marketed to children.  We continue to see the proliferation of ideologies that conflict with the Christian worldview. Christians should be diligent in identifying, praying against, and standing up regarding this corrupt action that is contrary to God's design and intent for gender.

We can recognize that there is a concerted effort to teach children, with impressionable minds, an errant viewpoint on gender.  For instance, I have reported on curriculum being made available to schools, in a kid-friendly package. The enemy specializes in desensitizing people to God's truth.

And, there is the false notion that gender is "assigned" at birth and determined later in life by the person himself or herself.  It is true, gender is assigned, but it is done by the Designer, who has wired it into our DNA.  Gender is not a psychological construct, it is biological, it is not fluid and it is not our individual choice. 

Mostafa's Miracle

Studying the early Church can be a source of great inspiration as we seek to apply God's principles
and follow Him today. In Acts 4, in the face of opposition, the believers prayed:
29 Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,
30 by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus."
31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Our world can be shaken and our mouths can be opened to speak God's Word when we are filled with the Spirit.  We relinquish control over our words, our thoughts, and our deeds as we allow His Spirit to fill us, to govern our actions, and to flow through us so that Christ is glorified.  We can possess a sense of boldness to do the will of God and to share His love.  Even in the face of opposition, God will be faithful to His people.

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In Romans 1, we find a passage that can challenge us in our walk and our proclamation of gospel
truth:
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."

Mostafa was from Upper Egypt and was dispatched by his family on a mission - to spy on his cousin, Mohammed.  What had Mohammed done?  It was believed that he had become a Christian.

The Open Doors website tells their story.  The site states that in Egypt:

In Muslim families, any member who leaves their Muslim beliefs and upbringing subjects themselves to tremendous pressure from their immediate and extended family to renounce Christ and return to Islam. Some are locked up, others are isolated, tortured or even killed.

So, Mostafa made the journey to a church in Cairo, knowing that he would have to kill his cousin if the information the family had received were to be verified.  The story says:

Mostafa found his cousin in a church listening intently. Quietly, he slipped into the seat behind Mohammed and waited for the service to end. But then he noticed something strange. The words he was hearing—the prayers, especially the worship—didn’t disgust him.

Mostafa related that he told his cousin, Mohammed:

"I came all the way from our family’s village to spy on you and see if you had indeed become a Christian,” he said, wiping a tear from his cheek. “I should inform your family about what I saw, but I just can’t. I think the choice you made might have been the right one. Can you tell me more? Why did you leave Islam for Christianity?”

Mostafa went to Mohammed's house that night and they talked about the gospel. Then, Mostafa had a dream. According to the article, "He saw Jesus on the cross, looking at him and saying: 'I did all of this because I love you, and I want you to be free from your sins.'”

The Open Doors article reminds readers:

Mostafa’s vision is similar to what many Muslim converts describe. Many sources have reported the same phenomena. Dreams and visions like Mostafa’s are repeatedly cited as specific ways God reaches Muslims throughout the Arab world and beyond.

In the morning, Mostafa related to Mohammed what he had seen, and they prayed for Mostafa to receive Christ.  As he cried, Mostafa cried out to God: “I planned to kill my cousin, Your follower. But now I am prepared to give my life for You myself.”

The story continues:

The following month, Mostafa was baptized with his cousin standing next to him. He hasn’t told his family that he and Mohammed are now followers of Jesus. Currently, the two young men are living as secret believers, following Jesus in the place He has provided for them.

Open Doors relates:

New believers in hostile places like Egypt hide their Bibles and connect to other Christians online or visit secret meetings. They follow Jesus’ teachings in their actions, hoping that how they live their lives will influence those around them for the gospel. Only when they think it’s safe do they share their new faith with others...

"Mostafa's Miracle" can inspire us with several principles.  For one thing, we recognize that God is working to bring people to Himself; even using dreams and visions to reach out to Muslim believers.  No one is beyond the reach of our Savior.

Remember also that Christians and Muslims do not worship the same God.  We serve a loving God who is full of mercy and grace; our God is a God of freedom.

We can also be inspired by those who live in these predominantly Muslim countries, and other countries who persecute Christians, who are not ashamed of the gospel, risking their lives to follow Christ.  We can consider if we possess that adoration for Christ and determination to follow Him.

Super?

In an age where the Church is being challenged to be relevant, I think we have to make sure that we
are being reverent toward God and His Word. Psalm 89 reminds us of His majesty:
6 For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord?
7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, And to be held in reverence by all those around Him.
8 O Lord God of hosts, Who is mighty like You, O Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You.

In the quest for relevance, I see instances where there is a lack of reverence.  We can make sure that we are never sacrificing a sense of awe for God by trying to package Him or brand Him in a way that we think will increase our numbers or popularity.  It's not about our popularity; it's about making Him famous.  The one true God does not need to be repackaged - sure methods may change in order to reach people, but we should be grounded in the fear of the Lord, with a sense of awe in His presence.

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Jesus is worthy of all our praise, and we should seek to give Him the honor He deserves.  Hebrews 12 says:
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
29 For our God is a consuming fire.

We certainly know that Jesus is Lord of all, so our efforts to defend Him fall far short of His might and majesty; yet, He is deserving of reverence and respect.  When that is missing and He is being denigrated, then it's highly appropriate for those who believe in Him to speak out.

Some 200,000 people spoke up for Jesus when they discovered that a major comic book company, DC Comics, was planning to do a highly disrespectful and even blasphemous depiction of Christ.

Faithwire reports that:

“Second Coming,” a television series produced by DC Comics, has been canceled after 200,000 people signed a petition against its release on the grounds that it was “blasphemous.”

The series was based on a character with a Messiah complex — fitting because the main character was Jesus. The plot line follows the return of Jesus to Earth, where he teams up with a superhero named Sun-Man to fight evil.

According to the article, the plot summary contends that Jesus comes back to earth to "learn what it means to be the true messiah" from his superhero roommate. It states: “But when Christ returns to Earth, he’s shocked to discover what has become of his gospel — and now, he aims to set the record straight."

Writer Mark Russell disputes the "blasphemy" charges; Faithwire reports that the proposed show, according to an interview Russell did with the website, Bleeding Cool, "is about Jesus coming down and being appalled by what he sees has been done in his name by Christianity in the last two thousand years. He goes by a megachurch and they have a billboard of this Tom Brady-looking Jesus Christ throwing a football and he doesn’t even recognize himself which is a metaphor for him not recognizing what’s been done with the religion that bears his name.”  The article notes that Russell "grew up in the church."

One of the sticking points has to do with the Jesus character not knowing that things on earth had spun out of control.  Who knows, this may pop up again; DC cancelled the show, but Russell has the rights to it back. Oh, by the way, according to Faithwire, Russell has authored a book, God Is Disappointed In You, which was "billed as a condensed version of the Bible."

So, what can we take away from this unfortunate story?   Well, first of all, I think we can reflect on showing the appropriate respect for the things of God.  I still believe that we should demonstrate reverence for the Lord, and never bring Him down to our level.  We should possess an attitude of exaltation for our Savior.

The writer has a mistaken notion on the work of redemption that Jesus came to do.  He is not about "setting the record straight;" true, humanity without the Lord is under God's judgment - by its choice!  But, we can also choose to accept what He has done for us on the cross.  He is all about redeeming humanity and establishing His kingdom.

And, I don't want to get into the analogy of Jesus as a superhero; I don't think we need to reduce Him to that level.  True, His "superpowers" are unlimited and do not contribute to self-exaltation; rather, to exalt the Father - not to show off, but to show up in a mighty way.

The Black Bible Experience

God has established His Church, on the firm foundation of His Word and His faithfulness to it.  In
Ephesians 2, we read:
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone...

The Church is a powerful institution and is comprised of flawed people who worship and serve a flawless God.  In spite of our imperfections, God will use us to share His message to a world that needs to see and hear it.  He will use people from various racial and cultural backgrounds, of various geographical heritage, in order to express His nature.  We are one body, one Church, made, as Acts 17 states, from one blood - we can pursue what makes us united in Christ; and our devotion to the Word is a key component.

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In Matthew 16, we see that Jesus asks His disciples a very important question:
15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

Jesus is building His church, based on what God the Father has revealed.

During this Black History Month, I want to consider to share how God is at work in the lives of African-Americans, with some results from the American Bible Society's State of the Bible survey.

At the ABS website, we find this proclamation:

African-Americans have higher levels of Bible engagement than the general U.S. population, which is demonstrated by their beliefs and practices, according to the latest State of the Bible survey by American Bible Society. For many African-Americans it is more important to start the day with the Bible rather than coffee as 37 percent chose the Bible over coffee (17 percent), sweets (26 percent) and social media (20 percent). Of those considered Bible Centered 60 percent use the Bible every day.

Roy Peterson, President and CEO of American Bible Society, is quoted as saying, "African-Americans know that Bible engagement can impact all areas of their lives for the better,” adding, “The Bible is the source of ultimate hope and joy. People who devote time in it can discover for themselves how the Word of God can help make sense of life.”

And those with "higher levels of Bible engagement" want more, 90% of those in the two highest categories: Bible Centered and Bible Engaged.  

In the survey, a significant number of African-Americans also shared insight and exhibited hope for our culture. 45 percent believe the "Bible has too little influence on society." 83% are "concerned about the decline in morality," higher than the 79 percent of all Americans who are. The summary states, "Many cite the lack of Bible reading as the reason for the decline (23 percent)." But, "51 percent of African-Americans are still more optimistic about the future than Whites (32 percent) or Asians (24 percent)."

Interestingly enough, "61 percent believe the Bible is the moral fabric of the U.S. compared to 39 percent who believe the U.S. Constitution is."

And, 48% of African-Americans would listen to a church leader, versus 9% who would listen to a business leader.  Over 90% have a Bible in their homes and around three-quarters of those surveyed wish they would read the Bible more.

This snapshot from the American Bible Society survey reminds us of the necessity of Bible engagement for all of our lives.  Truth is, we all need more of God's Word.  We can rejoice in the faith journeys of African-Americans and draw strength from God's faithfulness. We can learn to appreciate one another's stories about how He has moved according to His Word.

We also realize that we have been called to be unified with one another around the principles of God's Word.  When people of various cultural and denominational backgrounds hold God's Word high, what incredible things He will do through His Church.

We can all be challenged to base our viewpoints and decisions on the Bible; what a strong impact that can make on our culture!

We can be encouraged that as we face the future, the Bible produces real hope.