Category Archives: Spiritual Life

What does the Bible say about swearing?

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One of the great one-liners from the Andy Griffith Show comes from Opie’s dad, Andy, when little Opie has said something inappropriate. Andy looks at his son and says, “And to think I was glad when you learned to talk!” I would guess every parent feels this way about a child at least once in his life. I wonder if God ever feels that way about humankind.

You bet he does.

This podcast uncovers the meaning of Ephesians 5:4 where God’s word says, 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. (NIV)

Take a listen.

Oh — by the way, the story about the two pastors is something I heard a couple of years ago, but I don’t have the source. I should have prefaced it with the words, “I once heard an account of…” As I think about it, it could be a bit of an urban legend. Still — it makes the point well. ~Steve

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What does the Bible say about sex outside of marriage?

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PRESENTED 9/30/2012

In my last pastorate, I was often a guest speaker in a sociology class at the University of Pittsburgh. The professor had me address specific ways our church worked to influence society. Naturally, I jumped at the chance.

One time, after class, a young woman came to me and said, “I stopped going to church because of something my pastor said to us.” I asked what the pastor had said. “He told my boyfriend and me that we should not be having sex — that the Bible said that it was sin to have sex outside of marriage. It doesn’t say that!”

Hmm…. Does it?

This podcast presents a biblical perspective on sex inside and outside of marriage.

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Drawing People toward Jesus by Imitating Him

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There is a thinking that supposes that if you want people to come to God, you have to make being Christian appear normal. And a lot of Christians have kind of plugged into that thinking — a thinking that wants to say to people: I’m a Christian and I am no different from you. You should be a Christian too. You might call that the normalcy technique of evangelism, where you make Christianity appear to agree with the societal norms.

That’s meaningless. It’s unbiblical. And it doesn’t work. It doesn’t work because society is marked by the things we read about in Ephesians 5:5. Turn on the television and you will be reminded in HD that society is immoral, impure, greedy, idolatrous, deceived, filled with emptiness, and disobedient to God. But Ephesians 5:1ff teaches that, as Christians, we are different. We are to imitate God.

Some people will find that odd. Some people will be annoyed by it. But some people — people with hungry hearts — will find it intriguing. And in imitating God, you will lead them to discover God.

This podcasts suggests that when you live a life that imitates Jesus, hungry hearts are drawn to you — better, they are drawn to Jesus.

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