Christians And Christ Followers

Are you a Christian or a "Christ Follower"? Is there a difference? Does it matter? For some - apparently so. I've been somewhat curious as to what's behind this new fad that would cause life long Christians to want to suddenly be referred to as "Christ follower" instead of as a "Christian". Don't get me wrong - a Christ follower is a very good thing and I'm one myself. But why the change? What's the big deal? Is it bad to be called a "Christian"? After all, "Christ followers" have been called "Christians" for nearly 2,000 years. The name started all the way back in Acts 11:26 where we learn that the disciples were first called Christians in the city of Antioch. The Apostle Peter later added: "However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name." 1 Peter 4:16. I do praise God that I bear that name - Christian. And that's why I'm not sure we should be so quick to abandon that name. It's fitly described believers for the last 2,000 years - and now it suddenly doesn't work for some?

I get that there have been plenty of hypocrites, bad eggs and just plain lousy representations of Christianity that have without question hurt the name of Jesus and the name "Christian". But is that alone a good reason to abandon the name 'Christian' - given that the name 'Christian' literally means 'Christ follower' anyway?

I'm a big fan of Ohio State football. I went to the Ohio State/Michigan game a couple of years ago in Columbus with a friend of mine who is a Michigan fan. I wore my scarlet and gray and he wore the Michigan maize and blue. Throughout the day he was treated OK by most of the fans. There were, however, exceptions - exceptions who acted like absolute idiots and embarrassed me as an Ohio State fan. Since that time and despite those bad eggs, I haven't once considered calling myself a 'scarlet and gray follower' instead of a Buckeye fan in order to distance myself from miscreants who like the same team as I. My friend is also smart enough to know that not all Buckeye fans act like some did at that game. I could give other examples - but the point is that you will find clueless, out of touch, ignorant people in ALL genre's of life - so are we going to find other names to label ourselves with when we find whatever term(s) we are labeled with is no longer cool?

History reveals that there have been plenty of fakes and frauds doing terrible things while they carried the name of Jesus - but that didn't cause Luther, Huss, Tyndale or Wesley to abandon the name Christian. Are we smarter than they were?

Do people who prefer the label "Christ follower" really think they they are going to outrun the negative examples and phonies who wear the name of Christ? Good luck with that. Give 'Christ Followers' enough time and they will undoubtedly garner more than their fair share of hypocrites as well. Then what happens? Another name change?

Part of this name change appears to be attempt to put distance between those believers whom they deem to be uncool and/or out of touch. Which leads me to this thought: I don't think we're smarter than the saints of old, but I do think we may be more smug. The smugness with which this "Christ follower" thing is coming off is what bothers me. It's a smugness fed by generational conceit. It's the old "I'm better/smarter/got-it-more-figured-out/ than you do" thinking.

Can we dispense with the 'label war' and let believers be who they are, and concern ourselves with loving our neighbors as ourselves while going after God with every fiber of our being? What's the point of mocking and belittling other believers anyway? Is this what a real 'Christ follower' should be doing?

I guess some believers love their labels more than they realize.

Growing Up Pentecostal Not What It Used To Be

Last night I got a brief history lesson of what it was like being a Pentecostal Christian back in the 1920's and 30's in America. In our small groups at church my mom shared her experiences of growing up in a Pentecostal family in that era. Hearing her stories I was reminded just how 'leprous' it was to be a Pentecostal Christian in those days. She related how neighborhood children would be her friend until their parents found out that my mom's family were 'tongue talkers' and that would be the end of the friendship - leaving her to play alone most of her growing up years. My mom and grandparents even experienced the people who would literally sneak up to their church in order peer in the windows to see what was happening inside - then wait outside until after service so they could throw rotten tomato's and eggs at the believers coming out of the church. Pentecostal believers know a little bit about the ugliness of prejudice.

I've experienced a little "Pentecostal prejudice" myself - not nearly to the extent of my mom or grandparents endured - but I know what it feels like to be 'left off the list' because of who I am. I've been in various circles and felt the cold icy chill enter the room as I relayed that I was Pentecostal. I have plenty of friends and family who've shared stories of exclusion or wrong treatment by various "Non-denominational Christian" schools and organizations, merely because they found out that they were of the Pentecostal persuasion. It's honestly very easy for me to see why some people hate Christians - I've seen (and still see) that gross, superior, 'Eww, I'm better than you' attitude firsthand in 'Christian' circles.

I see it's ugly head popping up again lately (albeit mostly from secular sources) in the media when they found out that Governor Sarah Palin is a Pentecostal believer and were (are) eager to show that she is some sort of loon.

Meanwhile - there's no comparable Christian movement on the planet to the Pentecostal movement. There are a half a billion Pentecostal believers and growing - and by no accident the Pentecostal movement continues to be the fastest growing movement within Christianity. Some of the harshest critics of Pentecost such as the "speaking in tongues is of the devil" crowd - is dwindling away. (Some of them are Pentecostal believers who now attend my church!)

In spite of all of the prejudice and bitterness that we as Pentecostals have experienced - my heart as a Pentecostal believer and pastor is not to fight back, cop an attitude, or even debate the Holy Spirit Baptism as a doctrine. My desire is that all believers would come to enjoy the fullness of the Holy Spirit Baptism - to enjoy it as the blessing and empowerment from God that it is meant to be. I no longer waste time trying to convince the 'unconvince-able' with scripture or theology - I simply pray that God would reveal Himself to them in ways they've never experienced Him before.

Christian Singer Ray Boltz Comes Out Of The Closet

A bit of heart breaking news - Christian singer Ray Boltz publicly announced that he is a homosexual last Friday during an interview with the Washington Blade. Boltz is known for mega Christian hits such as "Thank You" & "Watch The Lamb". He had retired from Christian music several years ago.

Dinosaurs, Matt Damon And Four Thousand Years

If you've seen the recent Matt Damon interview (posted below) he states that he wants to know if Governor Sarah Palin "believes that dinosaurs were on the earth 4,000 years ago", stated in the usual condescending, Hollywood elitist way.

His question reminded me of a picture taken of a recent discovery. They say a picture is worth a thousand words (years?) so check the pic below:



What you are looking at comes from the inside of a T. Rex thigh bone found in Montana in 2005. Slide A shows tissue fragments that are still elastic. Slide B shows a rather 'fresh' tissue appearance. Slide C shows regions of bone where fibrous structure is still present!

The problem (for some scientists) is that T. Rex is thought by many to have been extinct for 65 million years - in fact the very bone this tissue sample comes from is said to be around 70 million years old in the National Geographic article!

Does it not beggar belief that this elastic, fresh looking tissue could have really lasted for the last 70 million years?

Dinosaurs on the earth 4,000 years ago?

Here's a better question - can someone with complete honesty and scientific integrity expect me to believe this tissue sample is 70 million years old?

Welcome To The Worldview Wars

Politics admittedly is a dirty, and at times, ugly business. The mud-slinging, the attacks, have long been an unfortunate part of the political process in recent American history. But the battle we are currently watching take place in the American political landscape goes way beyond Obama vs. McCain - it even goes way beyond Democrat vs. Republican. What we are watching unfold is literally the clash of worldviews. Governor Sarah Palin (like her or not) is a professing born again Christian, of which she is of the conservative evangelical variety. She believes the Bible cover to cover - she believes God created the earth just like the Book of Genesis says - she believes abortion is wrong - she believes Jesus Christ is man's only hope and salvation.

In the opinion of some, those beliefs make her unfit for public office. Why? Because they don't like them. Those Biblical views clash with the thinking of the unregenerated secular world. Note just two recent examples of some of this harsh criticism of Palin and her worldview:

- South Carolina Democratic chairwoman Carol Fowler sharply attacked Sarah Palin today, saying John McCain had chosen a running mate "whose primary qualification seems to be that she hasn’t had an abortion." That Palin is a woman who is strongly Pro-Life is obviously going to clash with someone with an unbiblical view of life and the unborn - thus the 'snarky' comment.

- The video below is a Matt Damon interview where he was asked what he thought about Sarah Palin. Besides all of the other "nice" comments he makes - notice towards the end of the clip that he takes a swipe at Christianity by stating with a mocking tone: "What I want to know is does she believe dinosaurs were on the earth 4,000 years ago?"




It's not just clashing politics my friends - it's clashing cultures and worldviews.

The Truth:

Isaiah 5:20: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

2 Peter 3:3: Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.

Despicable Cruelty

Just read a horrific story of how police are seeking 3 or 4 juveniles near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who set a pit bull on fire burning the poor dog to a crisp.

At the end of the story the District Attorney Lynne Abraham made this statement concerning the case: "How we treat our animals is a reflection upon society as a whole."

The thought that immediately popped into my mind is - how about we replace the word "animals" with "unborn"? That says even more about our society.

Do We Want A Government Health Care Takeover?

Having spent the last 5 months dealing with the nightmare of my sons newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes - I've been able to see health care in America a little more 'up close and personal' than I ever have before. After the initial panic of realizing that our personal health insurance policy was woefully insufficient to cover our son's disease, I was then blown away at how many other groups, organizations and resources were available for people like me who have catastrophic and reoccurring medical bills.

Just to give you an idea of what my son must have every month to simply survive - the supplies include: two types of insulin, blood glucose meter's, blood testing strips (he uses 8 of these per day and they cost $1 a piece), lancets, syringes, alcohol swab, glucose tablets, emergency glucose gel, glucagon emergency kit, Ketostix test strips and gauze pads. The monthly cost of these supplies is about $650 - Not to mention the software and palm pilot he carries to track his blood glucose level, carbohydrate intake and daily insulin corrections.

Yes, health care is expensive - ridiculously expensive. Good health insurance is equally expensive.

So am I ready for a government takeover of the health insurance industry? Absolutely not. Not now - not ever. That would be disaster of Biblical proportion in my opinion.

While I strongly believe that health insurance companies need to be regulated by the government - that should be the extent of government involvement in health care. The American health care system is certainly not perfect and needs to be tweaked - but I'd much rather have this system as is than have a government bureaucrat handling my medical affairs. Our system, while flawed, is still better than the rest of the world.

To see a good example of what happens when the government takes over health care - check out how much fun they're having with the government run model already in place in Canada.

Something has become crystal clear to me over the past months of frequent doctor, hospital, pharmacy visits and hours and hours of research that my wife and I have done: No one in America goes without health care unless they choose to.

In order to to help sell the very bad idea of government operated health care - we repeatedly hear about the 40 plus million Americans who are uninsured - and certainly that is concerning. But have you ever wondered who these Americans are who have no health care?

Here's the list that brings clarity of thinking to who these millions of people are who don't have health insurance:

Who are the uninsured in America?*

10 million illegal immigrants.
15 million who are eligible for Medicaid but don't apply.
15 million adults whose children are eligible for free insurance - but don't sign up.
10 million childless adults - many of whom choose to go without insurance to save money.

Rather eye-opening isn't it?


(*Statistics from the book, Fleeced, by Dick Morris.)

Testimony From Governor Sarah Palin

I was sent this link today - it's Governor Sarah Palin speaking at a Master's Commission graduation at Wasilla Assembly of God this past June.

Check it out HERE.

Pastoral Malpractice

"Suppose you were to contract a potentially serious medical condition and went to see a doctor. Upon asking him details about the diagnosis and medical consequences you found out that he does not take medical literature literally. In addition, he has not kept up on the latest medical research and has been out of medical school for several decades. He prefers to make his patients happy and comfortable rather than to force them to confront the truth about their health condition. Would you see such a doctor? Neither would I. Such a doctor eventually could be found guilty of malpractice....(if) our souls are more important than our bodies, why do people look to premier doctors to diagnose and treat their physical conditions but select a pastor who sidesteps truth when it comes to their eternal souls? That makes no sense. Apparently many do not truly believe that the condition of their souls is that important..."

Read the rest from Bob Dewaay HERE.

Cameron Strang's Invitation To Pray At The DNC

"A few weeks ago, I was asked if I’d be interested in possibly praying at the Democratic National Convention. Taken aback, but intrigued at the opportunity, I accepted. What better way to continue positive dialogue, show support for an emphasis on faith issues and pray in a forum where faith isn’t typically thought to be emphasized? To quote someone close to me—and meaning no disrespect whatsoever to Christian Democrats—it was a chance to bring “light in the darkness.” And hey, Jesus told us to pray, right?"

Read the rest HERE.