PHILADELPHIA (BP) – Scripture engagement remains down among Americans, but a widespread curiosity gives ground for evangelism, the American Bible Society (ABS) said in releasing the first chapter of its 2023 State of the Bible survey. Only 47 million Americans, or about 18 percent of the adult population, ranked as Scripture-Engaged in the 2023 study, using a descriptor based on Bible use and its impact in one’s life. Scripture-engaged described 49 million adults in 2022, down from 71 … [Read more...]
Five things Christians should know about Ramadan
RICHMOND, Va. (IMB) – Imagine fasting for 28 days. No food or drink during daylight hours. It’s about more than testing your will power. Your social standing and status with God depend on how well you do with this task. For Muslims around the world, this is their reality for the next month. This year, Ramadan starts on the evening of Wednesday, March 22 and lasts until Friday, April 21. This is when every follower of Islam is encouraged — and in some cases, required — to spend the month … [Read more...]
Article IX of the BF&M: The Kingdom
Following is another in a series of columns on The Baptist Faith & Message 2000. Article IX of The Baptist Faith & Message 2000 reads: “The Kingdom of God includes both His general sovereignty over the universe and His particular kingship over men who willfully acknowledge Him as King. Particularly the Kingdom is the realm of salvation into which men enter by trustful, childlike commitment to Jesus Christ. Christians ought to pray and to labor that the Kingdom may come and God’s … [Read more...]
‘Jesus Revolution’ winningly shows unlikely revival
KANSAS CITY – While reports of revival on the campus of Asbury University have dominated headlines and social media recently, it’s timely that another revival – this one among hippies in the early 1970s – is hitting theaters. “Jesus Revolution,” a film produced by the team that brought us “I Can Only Imagine,” is based on the true story (or, as the opening credits tell us, “based on a true movement”) of the Jesus Revolution, a revival among hippies and young people that spread throughout … [Read more...]
STUDY: Biblical worldview among U.S. adults has declined by 33% since start of COVID pandemic
by Cultural Research Center First post-lockdown study reveals that only 4% of American adults now possess a biblical worldview. Barna: "Biblical theism much closer to extinction in America ... than it is to influencing the soul of the nation" Glendale, AZ (Cultural Research Center) — New research from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University indicates that the 6% benchmark measure of American adults with a biblical worldview, recorded in January 2020, may prove to be … [Read more...]
Do Christians and Mormons worship the same God?
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was first published in 2016, but the question has been raised recently by ongoing controversy regarding Mormonism and the popular show, “The Chosen” (Read more here). See another column about Mormonism and biblical Christianity here. Do Christians and Mormons worship the same God? The question may irk our LDS friends, who insist that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the restored Church and therefore cannot be distinguished from orthodox … [Read more...]
‘Amazing Grace’: Classic hymn by slave-trader-turned-pastor inspires praise to God after 250 years
EDITOR’S NOTE: A panel of musicians, church historians and theologians will discuss the impact and legacy of the hymn, “Amazing Grace” and its author, Feb. 15, at 10am at the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MBTS) in Kansas City. Read more here. KANSAS CITY – Most preachers wouldn’t dare to tackle writing a sermon and a hymn for their congregation, but that was par for the course for Pastor John and his peers. On New Year’s 1773, he was preaching through 1 Chronicles 17, … [Read more...]
‘Amazing Grace’ panel to be held at MBTS
EDITOR’S NOTE: Read more about John Newton and his classic, “Amazing Grace,” here. KANSAS CITY – A panel of musicians, church historians and theologians will discuss the impact and legacy of the hymn, “Amazing Grace” and its author, Feb. 15, at 10 at the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MBTS) here. 2023 marks the 250th anniversary of the song, penned by small-town preacher John Newton in 1773. It would go on to become one the most well-known songs in history. “Our hope is that … [Read more...]
Open Doors’ 2023 World Watch List shows persecution spiking in Sub-Saharan Africa
ORANGE, Calif. (BP) – Violence against Christians is spiking in Sub-Saharan Africa, driven by violence nurtured in Nigeria by Islamic and Fulani terrorists, Open Doors U.S. said Jan. 17 in its 2023 World Watch List tracking Christian persecution globally. Nearly 90 percent of the 5,621 Christians killed in the study period were in Nigeria, Open Doors U.S. said, verifying 5,014 such killings there. “Open Doors only records the events that we can verify. In reality much persecution, … [Read more...]
Top 10 findings, ministry insights from State of the Bible 2022
PHILADELPHIA (BP) – Scripture engagement improves life in all areas except financial wealth, but Bible use continues to lag behind levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Bible Society said in recapping key findings from the 2022 State of the Bible. “People live better lives when they engage with the Bible – reading it frequently, applying its teachings to their decisions, and making it central to their faith,” the ABS said. “Personally, they experience less stress, less … [Read more...]
Rise in antisemitism should prompt evangelism, Messianic Fellowship director says
EVANSTON, Ill. (BP) – Ric Worshill remembers the beatings he endured his eighth grade year. They always happened in the same place as he walked to Hebrew school. He remembers the humiliation. He remembers the perpetrators as attendees of the “religious school” (he won’t give the name). He remembers being confused because, as he puts it, “They were supposed to be Christians.” Worshill identifies as a Jew who recognizes Jesus as the Messiah. And as a North American Mission … [Read more...]
Thomas Kidd’s latest book receives WORLD best book of the year award
KANSAS CITY (MBTS) – Thomas S. Kidd’s latest book, Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh (Yale University Press, 2022), was recently named WORLD’s Best Book of the Year. Kidd, who serves as research professor of Church History at Midwestern Seminary, said of the recent announcement, “I was so pleased to learn about the WORLD best book of the year award. It is a testimony to how many readers are interested in the vital but contested role that faith played in the American … [Read more...]
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