Gospel.com Blog

Still following the “Jesus tomb” story? In addition to the ministry responses we mentioned here earlier, take a look at Back to the Bible’s new article on the topic. It explores what the Bible tells us about the details of the lives of Jesus and his family–and how the filmmakers’ claims match up to those details.

As promised, Answers in Genesis has published a thorough review of the The Lost Tomb of Jesus, the controversial documentary that aired over the weekend. To say that they weren’t impressed by the film’s theological and archaeological claims would be an understatement–read the full review for the details.

Two hundred years ago today, William Wilberforce’s tireless efforts helped to bring about the end of the slave trade in England. Wilberforce was an unlikely moral crusader, but he fought a long, hard 20-year battle against the deeply entrenched slave trade… and won.

The Christian History Institute has two good pieces about Wilberforce and his stubborn fight for justice: an article about Wilberforce’s life and work, and another identifying important lessons for modern Christians from Wilberforce’s struggle. Take a few minutes this weekend to read up on one of the great moral victories of the modern era.

A couple noteworthy new items at the InterVarsity Press site:

First, Craig Evans’ new book Fabricating Jesus is out, and examines the strange allure today of scholarly “reinterpretations” of Jesus. In a short interview with the author, Evans discusses the problem and offers some ideas that might explain why scholars seem to be so drawn to revisionism of Jesus. The interview and a few other items are available on the book’s website.

Secondly, a new Online Pulpit column is up: New Kids on the Block, with some practical suggestions for making your church a friendly and welcoming place for newcomers and visitors.

Here’s something interesting from the Sammy Tippit Ministries website: a collection of newspaper accounts of Christian revivals in early 19th-century communities! Eight different newspaper clippings describe scenes of prayer and conversion in different Welsh towns at the turn of the century. We tend to think of evangelism and revival as modern concepts ushered in by Billy Graham and other big-name evangelists–but American and British history are full of examples of revival happening on both the local and national scale.

If the topic interests you, the Christian History Institute has quite a bit more on historical Christian revivals. You might start with Jonathan Edwards’ words on revival in 1736, the unusual events at Cane Ridge, Kentucky in 1801, or CHI’s overview of the Welsh Revival referred to in the Sammy Tippit link above.

Who says history had to be boring? The Christian History Institute has long set out to make the history of Christianity more accessible, and they haven’t left kids out of the picture. The CHI for Kids section of their site has a very large number of history-related games and resources for kids. A few highlights:

• a complete list of “hero stories” from their Glimpses for Kids publication, telling inspiring stories from church history.
• a large number of quizzes based on those stories–in honor of CS Lewis’ birthday, try this quiz about CS Lewis (after reading the article about him, of course).
• a form where kids can submit their history questions to be answered on the site.

There’s a lot of good material there. (While you’re there, take a look at their Glimpses for Kids children’s bulletin inserts–a lot of the material on the website is drawn from them.)

Dr. Stanley Lindquist was a World War II hero and a pioneer in the field of psychology… and he’s also the founder of the Link Care Foundation, a ministry that provides counseling and pastoral care to missionaries and clergymen around the world.

Lindquist was recently featured in CBS-TV’s “Stories of Service,” which gathers first-hand accounts from veterans. You can read about Lindquist’s life story and watch a video about his battlefield experiences and the ministry to which he dedicated himself after the war.

Is the New Testament account of the Gospel story tainted by anti-Semitism? How are we to explain the prevelence of anti-Semitism throughout history in Christian societies–and how can we reconcile the Holocaust, its most extreme example, with the idea of a loving God? These are questions once again being asked on blogs and in the media in the wake of Mel Gibson’s recent escapades.

Mart De Haan of RBC Ministries recently traveled to Israel, and while there he found himself grappling with these questions. In response to a friend’s concerns, De Haan has written an open letter addressing questions about anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, and their links to the Gospel.

Is the Biblical account of Jesus’ life trustworthy? Is the Christian church a sham, based on clever secrets and lies? In less than a month, the Da Vinci Code movie hits theaters across the U.S. It’s already raising plenty of questions about and challenges to the Christian faith. Is your church ready with answers?

EvanTell and Probe Ministries have partnered to to create Redeeming The Da Vinci Code, a DVD teaching kit that aims to equip Christians to respond to the film’s historical and theological challenges. It’s designed to be used in a single seminar or spread over several small-group discussion meetings and is available the Probe.org ministry site.

This is also a good opportunity to point out another Da Vinci Code resource in the Gospelcom Alliance–RBC Ministries’ The Da Vinci Code: Separating Fact from Fiction, a site with plenty of articles and other resources to help you get to the bottom of the Da Vinci challenge.

A disability or medical difficulty can transform even the “simplest” everyday acts into serious challenges. Does a serious condition like blindness or paralyzation mean the end of your Christian ministry in everyday life? Not at all, says the Christian History Institute–this week, the CHI looks back at famous Christians who made great contributions to the church despite physical and mental difficulties.

They’ve collected biographies of eleven disabled Christians whose afflictions ranged from moderate to severe. Their biographies make for inspirational reading and a reminder that God can work through anyone, regardless of the challenges they face.