God Running

Father Francis Beaten, Then Shot Twice in the Head

Father Francis Beaten and Shot

Dutch Jesuit Priest, Father Francis Van Der Lugt, was killed by a masked gunman–shot twice in the head. He was killed at a monastery in the Syrian rebel stronghold of Bustan al-Diwan. Some report that he was beaten before he was shot.

Father Francis was famous for his refusal to leave Bustan al-Diwan in spite of the obvious danger. In a video interview from February, 2014 he was asked why he wasn’t taking advantage of the opportunity to leave Syria and return to the safety of his home in the Netherlands. Father Francis said he didn’t want to abandon the twenty-eight remaining Christians, and that even if there were no Christians, he would stay to help all Syrians.

One of his passions was rescuing the religious art in the area from the destruction of the war. He would often search through the rubble of churches and mosques looking for the remains of religious artwork, some pieces as old as 1,000 years.

Father Francis laid down his life for his friends–even as his Savior did.

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 1 John 3:16

References:

Video: Homs priest says “‘hunger’ is the biggest problem”

NY Times

Senna Part 2–Teach us to number our days: Psalm 90:12

From the archives, one of our most popular posts.

Why is Christianity so Difficult?

Why is Christianity so hard? It’s not. Not if you’re all in. What I’ve found in myself and observing others is that if you live your life for yourself, you’ll experience a certain level of comfort, or, if not comfort, then at least some measure of self gratification. But if you give yourself completely to Christ, you’ll experience an abundant life–the best life possible. It’s when you or I are in between that it gets hard.

Jesus said the Christian life is narrow (Matthew 7:13-14), but he never said it’s hard. In fact he said it’s easy. (Matthew 11:28-30) The thing is, it doesn’t become easy until you’re all in. Jesus said he came so we could have a rich abundant life (John 10:10), but you and I won’t experience that rich abundant life unless we connect with Christ to the fullest extent we can.

I think many Christians today find Christianity hard because they’re not disciples. It might seem like a paradox but the deeper you go in Christ, the richer and more abundant your life becomes. You love God more. You grow more. You love people more. And you also lose yourself, and that part can be scary. You lose yourself because your focus turns away from you and toward loving God and loving people. That idea can be frightening. It’s frightening because we don’t want to let go of ourselves. We fear losing the self-life. But if you ever have the courage to try it, if you ever find the courage to just plunge into Jesus Christ and become a real follower of him and his words, you’ll discover what many have discovered before you:

Intimacy with Jesus results in the best life possible.

“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” -Jesus Christ, Matthew 16:25

Lose yourself in Jesus Christ, and see what happens to your life.

[Image via Pictoscribe – Creative Commons]

8 Comments

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

Christian, Christianity easy, Christianity hard, Surrender Yourself to God, why is Christianity so hard

The Answer to Proverbs 4:7 + 1 Corinthians 1:24 = X

Last post I asked you to solve the equation: Proverbs 4:7 + 1 Corinthians 1:24 = X

We had some great responses to this equation in the comments section. In this post I’ll share my own solution. (If this is your first time seeing this equation, and you want to solve it yourself, stop now and look up the Proverbs 4:7 and 1 Corinthians 1:24)

Bible Verse Equation Answer

Proverbs 4:7 says, “Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.” (NIV) And the same verse in the King James version says, “Wisdom is the principal thing.”

1 Corinthians 1:24 says that Jesus Christ is the wisdom of God.

So from those scriptures I come to this solution: Proverbs 4:7 + 1 Corinthians 1:24 =

Jesus Christ is the principal thing. Get Jesus. Though it cost all you have, get Jesus.

[Image via Johannes Winger-Lang – Creative Commons]

3 Comments

Posted on March 22, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

1 Corinthians 1:24, bible-verse-equation-answer-Proverbs-4:7 1-Corinthians-1:24, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Proverbs 4:7, the wisdom of God, wisdom

Solve This Equation

Solve this equation: Proverbs 4:7 + 1 Corinthians 1:24 = X

6 Comments

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study

1 Corinthians 1:24, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Proverbs 4:7, the wisdom of God, wisdom

Where Wisdom is Given Abundantly and for Free

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not… James 1:5

You know that guy who’s intimidating. The one who makes you feel like he’s unapproachable. Maybe at some point he had information you needed, but you didn’t ask him for it did you? You didn’t ask him for it because you were afraid he’d come down on you if you did.

Well God won’t respond like that.

I’ve read James 1:5 at least a dozen times, but I never saw it until this morning. What it says is that God will never come down on you when you ask Him for wisdom.

So ask Him.

God was pleased when Solomon asked for wisdom. He’ll be pleased when you do too.

“Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 1 Kings 3:7-10

[Image via walknboston – Creative Commons]

3 Comments

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study

1 Kings 3, Bible, God wisdom, James 1:5, prayer, wisdom

Why is Christianity So Restrictive?

Bow Shock Around LL Orionis – Hubble Telescope Image

The Bible Says No, and Obnoxious Christians

I understand. You don’t see why people shouldn’t be allowed to have sex before getting married. And there’s plenty of other restrictions in the Bible that don’t make sense to you either. And that Christian guy you know who prays that God will help him beat the next level of Candy Crush, and the Christian lady who has the bumper sticker that says, “After the rapture, you’ll wish your car had a Christian bumper sticker,” well–they are really obnoxious about what the Bible says not to do. And there’s no logic to some of it. It doesn’t make sense. It’s just too restrictive.

What if God Thinks Like This? Read More

5 Comments

Posted on March 8, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

Objections to Christianity, Why is Christianity so narrow, Why is Christianity so restrictive, Why is the Bible against, Why is the Bible so judgmental

RC Sproul on Truth and the Age of the Earth

So R.C. Sproul stands in front of a seminary class and asks the question, “How many of you believe God’s revelation in scripture is infallible?” They all raised their hand.

Then he asked, “Well how many of you believe God’s revelation in nature is infallible?” Nobody raised their hand. “How can that be?” Sproul asks. “It’s the same God giving the revelation.”

All truth is God’s truth.

You might want to check out the video. Sproul says it so much better than I can.

5 Comments

Posted on March 6, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

age of the earth, Christianity, creationism, R.C. Sproul, science and the Bible, Sproul, young earth

Profile of a Doubter: Genuine Seeker (Part 9)

Let’s Also Go, So We Can Die With Him

So you’re a doubter. Or maybe you know someone who is. You might be interested to hear the story of a doubter in the Bible.

Here’s the scene: The Jews tried to kill Jesus in Judea near Jerusalem. So Jesus is hanging with his disciples a safe distance away in the area of Jericho. It’s then that Jesus hears about his good friend coming down with a fatal illness. People are begging him to come and help because things have gotten to the point where he’s the only possible solution. The only problem is Jesus’ friend has fallen ill near Jerusalem. So if Jesus goes to help, he’ll have to return to the same area where the Jews just tried to assassinate him. But Jesus says, without any apparent concern, “Let’s go there again.”

The disciples react, they say, “The Jews just tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”

And it’s at this point that Thomas, commonly known as “Doubting Thomas,” says something amazing. He says, Read More

1 Comment

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

Christianity, Doubt, Doubting Thomas, Is Jesus real, Profile of a Doubter, why do I doubt

God Knows How to Drink Coffee and Fix Computers

“God knows how to do everything… He knows how to drink coffee… He knows how to fix computers…” – Annie (my 7yr old) #kidtheology @coryburket

My friend Cory Burket put this out on Twitter yesterday. I just had to share it.

Charles Manson, Books, and Christ: Genuine Seeker (Part 8)

The Book That Changed The Lives of Charles Manson and Warren Buffett

Before he became a mass murderer, Charles Manson was in prison for grand theft auto. He needed something to do to pass the time so he took courses based on a book. The book showed him how to get people to do what you want (even if it’s a heinous act of bloodshed) by convincing them it was their own idea. Lee Iacocca credits the same book for launching his career. So does Lyndon B. Johnson. So does Warren Buffett. A psychopath, a president, and one of the richest men in the world: they all say their lives were changed dramatically, by the same book. Read More

2 Comments

Posted on February 22, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Seeker

Christianity, faith and doubt, how do I become a Christian, Jesus Christ, why do I doubt, Why do I doubt God, Why do I doubt Jesus

The Angry Crowd, Freakonomics, and Doubt: Genuine Seeker (Part 7)

The Angry Crowd (This Really Happened)

Imagine you’re sitting in class with thirty-five other people on a Friday. It’s late afternoon and before your instructor dismisses you and your fellow students, he makes an announcement. He warns everyone to avoid downtown this weekend, because there’s a large (we’re talking hundreds of thousands) pro-life demonstration occurring there.

But just as soon as he says the words “pro-life,” there’s an overwhelming eruption in the classroom. It seems every student stands up from their chair and jeers and boos and hollers against the pro-lifers. You’re new to the group and their reaction takes you completely off guard. You’re shaken–because you’re pro-life.

From the moment the class booed and hissed at the notion of a pro-life demonstration, it felt almost impossible for you or anyone else to voice a pro-life point of view. The derision in the room was palpable.

Like most people, you like to think of yourself as independent and unconstrained by the thinking of people around you. But you’re sitting next to a good friend who knows you’re pro-life. And in the moments following the contemptuous crowd reaction you find yourself hoping he doesn’t say anything to tip off your sentiments. Read More

4 Comments

Posted on February 15, 2014 by Kurt Bennett

Bible Commentary, Bible Study, I Wish Someone Had Told Me This When I Was Young, Seeker, Suffering

apologetics, Christian living, Christianity, Faith, Is Jesus real, peer pressure, social norm, why do I doubt

God Running

There is only one place in the Bible where we see God running.

Father Francis Beaten, Then Shot Twice in the Head

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Senna Part 2–Teach us to number our days: Psalm 90:12

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Why is Christianity so Difficult?

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The Answer to Proverbs 4:7 + 1 Corinthians 1:24 = X

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Solve This Equation

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Where Wisdom is Given Abundantly and for Free

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Why is Christianity So Restrictive?

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RC Sproul on Truth and the Age of the Earth

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Profile of a Doubter: Genuine Seeker (Part 9)

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God Knows How to Drink Coffee and Fix Computers

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Charles Manson, Books, and Christ: Genuine Seeker (Part 8)

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There is only one place in the Bible where we see God running.

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