Views, Visions and Values.

Monday, 28 July 2014

'Thought Police' Target NFL Super Bowl-Winning Coach for 'Intolerance', Charisma Magazine

Tony Dungy.

Former Super Bowl-winning coach and current NBC football analyst Tony Dungy became the latest target for the "Thought Police" last week, when he said he wouldn't have drafted openly gay player Michael Sam because of the distractions it would cause for the team.

Said Dungy, "I wouldn't have [drafted] him. Not because I don't believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn't want to deal with all of it. It's not going to be totally smooth ... things will happen."

And for his innocuous comments, Dungy was dubbed the "World's Worst Person in Sports" by ESPN's Keith Olbermann, and other swift attacks on Dungy came from all over.

What we talk about when we talk about evangelism, Christian Today, Justin Welby

Evangelism is such a word. For Christians, it's the name for an activity that some love and others hate – it's a passion for some and an embarrassment for others. For non-Christians, it's a word that can send them running to the hills, feeling they are in danger of having something 'done' to them. (I wonder which of these descriptions fits you – and what you've experienced in the name of evangelism to make you feel this way?)

Given all this controversy around the word, it was no surprise that when, on taking office last year, I declared evangelism as one of the three priorities for my ministry. Some people thought I was profoundly misguided, while others jumped for joy.

However, it's my belief that if only we truly 'got' evangelism, we, the Church would live to show what it meant. And to 'get' it means to receive it, and to give it. Continually. And if we lived what we spoke of, and spoke of what we lived, no-one would have to point at the Church and wonder what it was for.

Please click here to read more:

Universalism Is Next for the Soft Love Crowd

According to Steve Chalke, the traditional teaching of God's wrath being poured out on His Son on the cross "stands in total contradiction to the statement 'God is love.'"

But couldn't it be just as easily argued that any type of future punishment for the lost, especially if it does not result in their ultimate salvation, "stands in total contradiction to the statement 'God is love'"?

After all, why would a loving God punish someone or judge someone when there's no hope of their redemption? Wouldn't that be utterly cruel?

And what about all the nice people who don't believe just as we do? Are they eternally lost? And let's not forget all the "gay Christians" (by which I mean those who claim to follow Jesus and practice homosexuality at the same time). Surely a loving God would not condemn nice people like them.

Make Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson gay lovers, fans urge BBC , Daily Mail

· Co-creator Mark Gatiss admitted receiving explicit plotlines and drawings
·        It comes ahead of the release of series four, which is due late next year

·        Landlady Mrs Hudson often makes references about the pair's sexuality

·        Gatiss says they took inspiration from Billy Wilder's 1970s film on detective

The creator of BBC TV series Sherlock has been inundated with fan mail urging him to make the detective and Dr Watson gay lovers.

Mark Gatiss admitted he had been overwhelmed with explicit drawings and plotline ideas ahead of the new series starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, due late next year.

It follows a running joke in the show which hints the pair might be closer than friends, especially by landlady Mrs Hudson, played by Una Stubbs, 77, who often makes references to their sexuality.

Read more here

Further reading

Words for the Wise, Jesus Teaches at the Feast. John 7 Nasb

John 7 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

7 After these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. 2 Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. 3 Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. 4 For no one does anything in secret [a]when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” 5 For not even His brothers were believing in Him. 6 So Jesus *said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. 8 Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.” 9 Having said these things to them, He stayed in Galilee.

10 But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as if, in secret. 11 So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, “Where is He?” 12 There was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him; some were saying, “He is a good man”; others were saying, “No, on the contrary, He leads the people astray.” 13 Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews.

14 But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach. 15 The Jews then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?” 16 So Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. 17 If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself. 18 He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

19 “Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you carries out the Law? Why do you seek to kill Me?” 20 The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who seeks to kill You?” 21 Jesus answered them, “I did one [b]deed, and you all marvel. 22 For this reason Moses has given you circumcision (not because it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a man. 23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses will not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath? 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but [c]judge with righteous judgment.”

25 So some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is this not the man whom they are seeking to kill? 26 Look, He is speaking publicly, and they are saying nothing to Him. The rulers do not really know that this is [d]the Christ, do they? 27 However, we know where this man is from; but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from.” 28 Then Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying, “You both know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. 29 I know Him, because I am from Him, and He sent Me.” 30 So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. 31 But many of the crowd believed in Him; and they were saying, “When [e]the Christ comes, He will not perform more [f]signs than those which this man has, will He?”

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about Him, and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers to seize Him. 33 Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.” 35 The Jews then said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He? 36 What is this statement that He said, ‘You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”

37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “[g]If anyone is thirsty, [h]let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From [i]his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Division of People over Jesus

40 Some of the people therefore, when they heard these words, were saying, “This certainly is the Prophet.” 41 Others were saying, “This is [j]the Christ.” Still others were saying, “Surely [k]the Christ is not going to come from Galilee, is He? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him. 44 Some of them wanted to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

45 The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, “Why did you not bring Him?” 46 The officers answered, “Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.” 47 The Pharisees then answered them, “You have not also been led astray, have you? 48 No one of the rulers or Pharisees has believed in Him, has he? 49 But this crowd which does not know the Law is accursed.” 50 Nicodemus (he who came to Him before, being one of them) *said to them, 51 “Our Law does not judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing, does it?” 52 They answered him, “You are not also from Galilee, are you? Search, and see that no prophet arises out of Galilee.” 53 [[l]Everyone went to his home.

The Bible Panorama

John 7

V 1–5: REJECTION BY RELATIONS Jesus stays in Galilee, rather than going to Judea. His half-brothers advise Him to go from Galilee to Judea for the Feast of Tabernacles. They challenge Him to do His miracles openly. They do not believe in Him yet, though later they will.

V 6–13: SENSITIVITY ABOUT SECRECY Jesus knows that if He goes publicly to Judea now, He will unnecessarily speed up the opposition against Him, and He knows that this is not yet the right time for Him to die. He remains in a world that hates Him, because of His testimony about the evil within it. Many want to kill Him. So He goes in secrecy and indeed there is a lot of complaining and mixed opinion about Him. Misunderstanding and murmuring is rife. Fear of the Jews silences those who would like to commend Him.

V 14–24: TEACHING IN TEMPLE At the middle of the feast, Jesus goes public by teaching in the temple. The Jews cannot understand the source of His teaching. He declares that His doctrine is from God. He asks why they want to kill Him. They respond that this is not so and that He is demon-possessed. He shows the inconsistent hypocrisy of their agreeing to circumcise on the Sabbath, while judging Him for making someone well on the Sabbath. He accuses them of not judging righteously and only with regard to external appearance.

V 25–31: DIRECTNESS ABOUT DEITY Debate is on every hand about who Jesus is. Some conclude from the rulers’ public silence that they agree that He is the Christ. Jesus makes His claim to Deity clear by saying that He comes from God and has been sent by God. Some seek to kill Him but are unable to do so, because His time has not yet come. Many believe on Him, reasoning that Christ would not do more signs than Jesus has done.

V 32–36: MURMURING AND MISUNDERSTANDING The Pharisees hear the murmuring of the crowd and, with the chief priest, send officers to take Him. He tells them that He is going to go to God. Although they will seek Him, they will be unable to find Him or to follow Him. The Jews misunderstand His statement and wonder if He is going to go to the Greeks.

V 37–39: GIFT AFTER GLORIFICATION Jesus promises the gift of the Holy Spirit, as rivers of living water, to those who will believe in Him. The Holy Spirit will be given to believers after Jesus has been glorified.

V 40–44: IGNORANT OF IDENTITY Opinions are divided as to the identity of Jesus Christ. Many ignorantly say that if Jesus really is the Christ, He would have come from Bethlehem! They seem ignorant of the fact that Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus! Yet again, those wanting to take Him are unable to do so.

V 45–53: CONFUSION ABOUT CHRIST The confusion continues about the identity of Jesus Christ. The officers tell the chief priest and the Pharisees that no one ever spoke like Jesus. The Pharisees criticise them and the crowd. Nicodemus, who earlier came to Jesus by night, tells them that a man should be heard and the facts looked at before he is judged. At this stage their opposition is rationalised because they say that Jesus came from Galilee. They argue that therefore Jesus cannot be a true prophet. They do not realise that Jesus came from Bethlehem, not Galilee, and in any case prophets did come from Galilee, including Jonah and Nahum! Biased opposition seldom stops to look at the facts!

(There is debate whether chapter 7, verse 53 to chapter 8 verse 11 is in the best original manuscripts. As with the very few other occasions where differences of opinion arise concerning the content of the original manuscripts, no doctrine is taken away or added to by the inclusion or exclusion of the particular passage, because God’s Word stands as a whole. It is also true that, after further research, some previously doubted passages are now again given greater credibility than formerly, and we have to be careful not to jump to wrong conclusions. These notes continue as if the passage is in the original.)

From tubby smoker to record-breaking runner: Former 20-a-day man Steve Way finishes 10th in Commonwealth Games marathon, breaking 35-year British record Daily Mail

Steve Way.

 Way finished 10th for England in the marathon at Glasgow 2014

 He promised to celebrate with his first pint of lager in three months

 Shortly after the race he tweeted with the hashtag #BestDayEver

 He once weighed more than 16st and smoked 20 cigarettes a day

 He changed his lifestyle and now runs 130 miles a week

 The 40-year was the fourth man home at the London marathon

Seven years ago, he was an overweight smoker who feasted on chocolate and takeaways.

But yesterday, Steve Way finished tenth in the Commonwealth Games marathon, breaking a 35-year-old British record. And the 40-year-old celebrated his feat by drinking his first pint of lager for three months.

The bank worker finished in two hours, 15 minutes and 16 seconds, beating Ron Hill’s 1979 best for the over-40s. Mr Way, from Bournemouth, weighed sixteen and a half stone and smoked 20 cigarettes a day when he decided to get fit at the age of 33.