The Christian Worldview

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4). Imagine that you were out playing with your best buddy -- your five-year-old son -- taking him for a ride in the dune buggy, as you had done many times before, when you accidentally flipped it over causing his death. The deepest hurt you have ever experienced sets in -- first shock, then grief, depression, bitterness, and anger, at yourself, even God, for how this could happen. This is exactly what happened to JJ Jasper and his son Cooper less than two years ago. How does one go on from there and deal with the deep mental, emotional, and spiritual anguish? Is there something in God’s character and Word that can sustain us through our most difficult losses in life? This Father’s Day Weekend on The Christian Worldview, we’ll be talking with JJ Jasper about the loss of his son, Cooper, and how God offers comfort and grace in the midst of our darkest times. The Jasper’s story has been made into a touching 40-minute film which you can watch for free or order the DVD for the cost of shipping at FlameOn.net. When it comes to great loss in life, it’s not “if” we’ll experience it, but “when”. Tune in to The Christian Worldview this week to discover that God's grace is still greater than our greatest loss.

“Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; or the LORD will see it and be displeased, and turn His anger away from him” (Proverbs 24:17-18). Democrat Anthony Weiner from New York is one of the more vociferous liberals in the U.S. House of Representatives. Most everything that Christians oppose, such as the homosexual agenda and the killing of unborn babies, Weiner stands in strong favor. What’s more, he often advocates for his unbiblical positions in a contentious and arrogant manner. It wouldn't be a stretch to consider Rep. Weiner an “enemy” of Christians and biblical values. So what was your inner reaction this past week when you found out that the married Rep. Weiner sent lewd messages and pictures of himself to a number of women? Did you tell yourself not to “judge” him? Did you think, “I’m glad his sin found him out”? Or maybe you wondered, “How does God want me to respond to the downfall of an ungodly man?” Whether it’s a politician you don’t like, a family member you avoid, or someone at work you can’t stand, Christians needs to understand how to apply the tricky issue of loving our enemies. We’ll discuss that this week on The Christian Worldview Radio Program.

“Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:13). A study by the Higher Education Research Institute found that students who professed to be “born again” Christians when entering Protestant colleges were more likely than their counterparts who attended public universities to say they no longer considered themselves to be born again Christians upon graduation. Huh? How can going to a professing Christian college be more faith-destroying than attending a secular university? Don’t most Christian colleges, especially the well-known, historically sound ones, have chapel and Bible classes and faculty who believe and teach the fundamentals of the faith? Listen to our guest this weekend, Ken Ham, president of Answers in Genesis, who has written a brand new book entitled Already Compromised and you will find out the perplexing state of affairs on Christian colleges across America. Most parents and students think they will be “safe” from a Bible-rejecting agenda when they choose a Christian college but Ken Ham and one of America’s top research teams show that you need to be a lot more careful when deciding on a Christian college. Tune in for an eye-opening program on The Christian Worldview.

“Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you” (2 Peter 1:12). This is Memorial Day Weekend when Americans pause to remember the sacrifice of the members of our military who fought and/or died in wars past and present. Whoever said, “He who forgets history is doomed to repeat it” was exactly right. Forgetfulness is one of the great liabilities of human nature. We think and do the wrong things over and over again because we fail to remember God’s Word or the consequences we or others suffered when we sinned in the past. This is why the Bible is full of exhortations to “remember”. The nation of Israel had many annual feasts so that they would remember God and His goodness. Jesus and His apostles were always “stir[ring] you up by way of reminder” because they knew how easily we forget and get off course. This week on The Christian Worldview, we’ll look at three important things that every Christian needs to remember to have a closer walk with God and to stay on track for the long term. And thank you to the members of our military who have served our country and sacrificed to preserve our way of life.  

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel [of Jesus Christ], for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). The above statement was made by the apostle Paul, a Jewish believer in Jesus Christ. Jews and Christians share much in common: the Jewish Bible is somewhat similar to the Christian Old Testament; Jews and Christians both revere patriarchs and prophets like Abraham, Jacob, David, and Isaiah; and Jews and Christians typically have a love and concern for Israel and her people. But it is on the all-important question of “Who is Jesus Christ?” that Jews and Christians diverge. Jews do not consider Jesus Christ to be who He claimed and was prophesied to be -- their promised Messiah -- while Christians worship Him for who He said He is -- the Son of God and Savior of Man. Is there sound reason and evidence for making the case to Jews that Jesus Christ is their Messiah? Or, as some say, can Jews be right with God without Christ because they are “God’s chosen people”? And does a Jew have to discard his/her ethnicity and become a “Gentile-like Christian” to be a follower of Jesus? Jonathan Bernis, a “Messianic rabbi” (a Jewish believer in Christ) and president of Jewish Voice Ministries, will join us this weekend on The Christian Worldview to answer these questions and to discuss his new book, “A Rabbi Looks at Jesus of Nazareth". If you are Jewish or have a friend who is, this program is for you!

Guest: Dr. Michael Brown, author, A Queer Thing Happened to America “Then the LORD spoke to Moses, "Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves” (Exodus 32:7). Following the path of the Episcopal and Evangelical Lutheran churches and the United Church of Christ, the Presbyterian Church USA voted this week to officially allow homosexual ministers to lead their congregations. One can understand how the God-rejecting world accepts and promotes homosexuality and extra-marital heterosexual immorality, but it’s deeply troubling that a major professing Christian denomination will ordain church leaders who are unrepentant homosexuals and fornicators when the Bible is so clear about this issue. Our culture, and sadly, our churches, have become “corrupted” with sexual immorality. Yet genuine Christians are called to live in this fallen world and be “salt and light” in it. How should true believers respond to what our guest, Dr. Michael Brown, writes in his new book, A Queer Thing Happened to America? And just as important, how can we live a pure life in the midst of this perverse culture? We’ll answer those questions this week on The Christian Worldview Radio Program.

“My son, fear the LORD and the king; do not associate with those who are given to change, for their calamity will rise suddenly, and who knows the ruin that comes from both of them?” (Proverbs 24:21-22) Project yourself back 75 years ago in America. Would anyone have complained that it was wrong to kill America’s “Enemy Number One”, even if unarmed, during World War II? Would people have questioned whether the Church of England should be marrying a prince who has been living in sin for years with his girlfriend? And what was the perspective on marriage, parenting, and the faith back then as compared to now? Jesus Christ and His Word are the same “yesterday, today, and forever” but the worldview of a nation changes over time. My parents, both in their late 70’s and with nearly 57 years of marriage together, have lived through this change in worldview, from growing up in the 1930‘s to living in 2011 America. They will join us on The Christian Worldview to explain why the nation has changed and what individuals today can do to be grounded in the truth in the midst of changing and turbulent times.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts" Isaiah 55:9. Have you ever been asked or thought about one of those really tough questions in life?  Like, why would God, when He could have stopped it, allow the systematic torture and murder of six million Jews and other “undesirables” by Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany?  Or here’s another one: since God is in control of His creation, did He purposely cause the deaths of tens of thousands of people in “natural disasters” through the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and the recent tornadoes in America, and if so, why? Even with the most informed biblical worldview and grounded faith, some things in life are truly hard to understand or explain. But Ray Comfort, evangelist, apologist, and author of a new book entitled, Defender's Guide for Life's Toughest Questions, is one of the best at examining Scripture to answer the really tough ones.

"Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins." I Corinthians 15:12-17 How important is the resurrection of Jesus Christ?  What makes this truth meaningful or significant to you personally?  These are the questions we will ask our guests, Minnesota Vikings head coach (and Christian!) Leslie Frazier, comedian Bill Arnold, former linebacker for the MN Vikings Jeff Siemon, and Pastor Dave Gibson, during this weekend's LIVE broadcast from "Arise with the Guys".  

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1-3). I went to hear pastor Rob Bell speak at a church in the Minneapolis area last Monday night.  It was an illuminating evening on many levels (which I’ll share with you this weekend on the radio program) but one thing was abundantly clear: Rob Bell is what the Bible calls a false teacher (2 Peter 2:1). He’s not just a teacher with a few errant beliefs, he’s a false teacher preaching a false gospel that will lead people to hell.  Consider just one quote from “Love Wins”, his wildly popular book that rose to No. 2 on the New York Times bestseller list: “A staggering number of people have been taught that a select few Christians will spend forever in a peaceful, joyous place called heaven while the rest of humanity spends forever in torment and punishment in hell with no chance for anything better. It’s been clearly communicated to many that this belief is a central truth of the Christian faith and to reject it is, in essence, to reject Jesus. This is misguided, toxic, and ultimately subverts the contagious spread of Jesus’ message of love, peace, forgiveness and joy that our world desperately needs to hear.” (p. viii) The heresy of Rob Bell is not some insignificant, inside-the-church petty squabble.  This topic is the cover story of this week’s Time Magazine with the headline, “What If There Is No Hell? A popular pastor's best-selling book has stirred fierce debate about sin, salvation and judgment.” So what should the Christian response be to Rob Bell and false teachers like him?   Should we just be happy that he’s bringing more people, especially young people, into “Christianity” through his edgy books and videos?  Should we pray for him, be kind, and “not judge”?  Or should we name false teachers by name and expose their heresies?  And what actually qualifies someone for “false teacher status”.  Tune into The Christian Worldview this week..