Veggie Tales, Moralism, and Modern Preaching
A number of years ago, my kids were into Veggie Tales. And, truthfully, so was I. It was actually quite enjoyable to watch these charming videos, cataloging the journeys of Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber, et al. Indeed, I could probably recite the opening song word for word.
The other day, my daughter Emma (who is now 16) told that she had heard some folks critiquing Veggie Tales as just “moralism” and not something Christians should let their kids be watching. So, she asked me what I thought about that.
This sort of critique reminded of an interview several years ago with World Magazine in which the creator … Continue reading...
Taking Back Christianese #8: “It’s Not My Place to Judge Someone Else”
We live in a culture where the thing that is most offensive is not doing something wrong, but telling someone else that they are doing something wrong.
Bad behavior gets a pass. Calling it bad behavior does not.
Of course, this cultural trend should not be surprising. We are told in Scripture that depraved cultures “call evil good and good evil” (Is 5:20).
But, living in a culture like this has had its effect on Christians. We have been conditioned to never condemn certain kinds of behavior lest we are chastened by an avalanche of social media accusing us of being legalistic and judgmental.
Thus, even in Christian circles we … Continue reading...
How Do You Obey God When He Asks You To Do the Impossible?
In all of the many Star Wars films (and there are too many now), one of my favorite segments is where Yoda is training the young Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back.
After Luke fails to lift his X-wing fighter out of the swamp by using the Force, he complains to Yoda, “You want the impossible.” Then he walks off into the woods to pout.
Of course, Yoda then proceeds to lift the X-wing fighter out of the swamp himself and sets it on dry land. Luke stares in amazement, “I don’t believe it.”
Yoda’s reply is classic, “That is why you fail.”
While the quasi-Gnostic, New Age … Continue reading...
Taking Back Christianese #7: “America is a Christian Nation”
In any election year (especially one as tumultuous and exhausting as 2016), there will be claims and counter-claims about what values and principles should guide the United States of America.
And such debates inevitably lead to appeals to the history and heritage of our country. What principles guided the founding fathers? Were the founding fathers Christians? Were the founding documents Christian in nature?
Thus we come to the next phrase in our “Taking Back Christianese” series: “America is a Christian nation.”
Our purpose in this post (as in all the posts in this series) is simply to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of this phrase. We will do this by … Continue reading...
Taking Back Christianese #4: “We Have Freedom in Christ”
The wildly popular song “Let it Go,” from the movie Frozen, has the following lyrics:
It’s time to see what I can do
To test the limits and break through
No right, no wrong, no rules for me I’m free!
No doubt this captures the sentiment of much of our culture. People are looking to break through any last vestige of rules in our modern world. And they define the lack of rules–no right or wrong–as freedom.
Christians sometimes use a phrase that captures (or at least can capture) a similar sentiment, “We have freedom in Christ.” And Christians use this phrase in drastically different ways. Indeed, it … Continue reading...