Is Jesus Dead?

Much of what happens in churches today is little more than what you might get if you combined an AA group, a Rotary Club, and a positive-thinking seminar.

Jesus is important, but he is important mostly as an idea.

Even in very conservative churches, Jesus is little more than a person who once did something that benefits his followers today. The really important event was his crucifixion. The Resurrection was a nice bonus, sort of an "in-your-face" to Satan. And the Ascension is virtually ignored.

Of course, if you asked these people they would say that they believe Jesus lives in heaven.

But it is well established that what people say they believe is often very different than what they actually believe.

Let's face it, most of what happens in churches doesn't need Jesus to be alive.

The worst offenders are pastors.

We act as if everything depends upon us. We want God to bless our work, but it is our work. We may ask God for advice from time to time, but it is up to us to perform our ministry with faithfulness and to produce results for the kingdom.

• We go to school to be trained how to be effective ministers.
  
• We read books about becoming better leaders.
  
• We go to seminars to learn how to cast our vision.
  
• We develop goals and plans to make the most use of our time and our abilities.
  
• We may even go to retreats to learn how to depend more upon God in what we do.
  

But in the end, it is our work and our ministry.

In effect, we have killed Jesus all over again.

This is not our church, our work, our ministry. It is his Church and his ministry.

The issue is not How does Jesus get in on our ministries? Instead, because he is the living and reigning Lord, the issue is now What is he up to, and how do I hitch a ride on whatever he is up to?

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 12

What we do as pastors is not determined by a market survey. It is not determined by a skills assessment. It is not determined by an oversight board's idea of what should be done.

The first and central question in thinking about ministry is Who is Jesus Christ and what is he up to?

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 13

Our normal approach to ministry is the problem.

All that we think we should do and can do and are doing in ministry must be put to death.

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 13

Everything we "know" about pastoral ministry is wrong:

Ministry is not a matter of a minister working hard, preaching relevant sermons, being a super-efficient congregational administrator, attending those who are sick, downcast, grieving and lonely, all the while growing the congregation and charming the people with a winsome and attractive ability to relate warmly.

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 119

This is the primary purpose of pastoral ministry:

At its core, pastoral work involves bearing witness to the joining of two stories, the parishioner's and God's. Who is Jesus Christ specifically for this person amid the particularities and exigencies of her current life experience?

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 128

Pastoral care is not primarily about the minister's care. Neither is the minister a professional for hire who is paid to care. His or her primary mission is to bear witness to Jesus Christ. The specific skill that is brought is theological rather than functional.

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, p. 144

The thing we must do is bear witness to the Lord who always gets there, wherever there is, ahead of us with his healing, saving, blessing, renewing, restoring, raising, forgiving, comforting and kingdom-bringing ministry of God's grace, love and communion.

Andrew Purves, The Crucifixion of Ministry, pp. 133

Go to Amazon now and buy The Crucifixion of Ministry.

Jesus is Lord. Act like it.

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

Die, Pastor, Die

Atheist Denis Diderot said, "Man will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest."

He wanted to bring about the end of Christianity. But the future of Christianity depends upon something that sounds surprisingly similar.

Andrew Purves has written an excellent book, The Crucifixion of Ministry. Here are a few quotations from the preface:

There is little, maybe nothing, we who are ministers of the gospel can do that really changes things. If anything worthwhile is to happen, Jesus has to show up.

Ministers can't forgive sinners, raise the dead or bring in the kingdom of God. Neither can we grow congregations, convert sinners or heal the dying.

Our strategies, action plans, pastoral resources and entrepreneurial church revitalization techniques have become not the solution but the problem. Our ministries need to be crucified. They need to be killed off.

On the back cover, Stephen Seamands writes, "Every pastor and Christian leader needs to read this book—about once a year."

Put down all your church growth, leadership, strategic planning, vision casting, management, and evangelism books. Click here and buy this book from Amazon. It's only $10.20.

Purves writes in the "benediction":

Friends, I know ministry is hard. The pressures are heavy to bear. Often we feel trapped by our limits, and with respect to the things of God we are indeed limited in understanding and faithfulness. That's why we need a Savior. Many of us have worked diligently to become professionally competent. However, in spite of our good intentions, efforts and hopes for ministry, we are perhaps aware of a deep weariness, of sadness even, and joy in ministry is remembered as a log-ago, wistful anticipation that has never been quite fulfilled.

It has taken me into my sixtieth year to begin to internalize some of the implications of Paul's injunction that I have been crucified with Christ and that it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2:19-20).

I always felt embarrassed because I was nearly fifty before I started to understand this. I guess I'm just about on schedule.

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be."

Lost Gospel of Simon Magnus

Today archeologists revealed a stunning discovery. An alabaster strong box was found containing an ancient document claiming to be the lost Gospel of Simon Magnus

"This scroll forces us to rethink much of the conventional wisdom about the actual words that Jesus spoke," said Abraham Rabin, head of the translation team. "For example, the Beatitudes in Matthew's Gospel are a distortion of Jesus' original message."

Here is the translation of Simon's alternative Beatitudes:

Blessed are the wealthy,
for they can contribute more to God's work.
Blessed are those who are thin and attractive,
for they can draw more people to the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who can get their way,
for they can accomplish great things for the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for advancement,
for they will go far.
Blessed are the focused,
for they will get more done.
Blessed are those who know how to stand up for themselves,
for they will not be overlooked.

Another long-misunderstood passage is the parable Jesus tells about separating the sheep and the goats. The updated translation gives a new perspective on the final judgment:

Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom that was prepared for you since the beginning of the world. For I was bored and you entertained me, I was unsuccessful and you invited me to a seminar, I was ignorant and you taught me correct doctrine."

Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when did we see you bored, unsuccessful or ignorant?"

Then the King will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the masses, you did for me."

The Gospel of Simon Magnus contains a long-lost parable of Jesus:

The kingdom of heaven is like a business that was struggling. The owner worked longer and harder, yet it remained stagnate. But then he applied the seven principles for success, and his business grew faster than that of all his competitors.

"This discovery will transform how churches operate," said Rabin at today's press conference. "No longer will pastors need to pussy-foot around. They can now take off the gloves without apology, knowing that they are following the true teaching of Jesus."

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

Thank God for Mean People

Jesus said, "Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man" (Luke 6:22).

One reason we should be glad is that this treatment puts us in the company of the prophets. Thank God for mean people.

But another benefit is that this treatment drives us to God himself. It leaves us feeling empty and vulnerable. And if we follow Jesus' advice (and example) we return good for evil and we bless those who curse us. Thank God for mean people.

It hurts when people are mean out of selfish motives. But it is especially painful when they are mean "for your own good" or out of "love." This pain can drive us to despair or it can drive us to the One who knows all about betrayal. Thank God for mean people.

This also helps us to appreciate those who are kind, faithful and loyal—the ones we often take for granted. Thank God for mean people.

Failure has a way of leading us to a point of surrender, but it is a rather slow process. Personal attacks serve as an instant "wake up call." Thank God for mean people.

It's easy to allow our "Christ following" to become routine. We start to think, "I have a pretty good handle on this." We don't bother God with day-to-day stuff. We plan to ask for his help only when something really big comes up. But then mean people come to our rescue and remind us that we aren't self-sufficient at all. Thank God for mean people.

The way of discipleship begins with brokenness, emptiness and surrender. And few of us choose this on our own. We generally need some outside stimulus. Thank God for mean people.

It is only when we have enemies that we can learn to practice some of Jesus' most difficult words: ^"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you" (Luke 6:27–28). Thank God for mean people.

But it's also good to have kind people, gentle people, compassionate people, faithful people, good people, and loving people. Thank God especially for them.

Take the time to be extra kind, gentle, compassionate, faithful, good, and loving to the people you meet today. You really don't know how much they might need it.

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

Walk This Way

In the movie Young Frankenstein there is a classic comedy scene where "Igor" (Marty Feldman) tells Dr. Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) to "walk this way." This scene inspired the hit song by Aerosmith.

There is a similar misunderstanding in the church, which would be hilarious if it were not so tragic. Congregations try to mimic "successful" churches and end up without either success or anything resembling a church. Reverend Russell Rathbun writes (HT: Maggi Dawn):

Nothing is sadder than to see a beautiful congregation of fifty member that has been around for a hundred years in a small town in rural Iowa turn them selves inside out chop up their organ, spend what little money they have on technology (cordless mic.s and keyboards are favorite starters, then on to the projector and the power point) all because one of the board members attended a Willow Creek training and bought the "How To" book at the sales table on the way out.

The church ends up having to watch kindly Mr. Sundquist fumble with the sound system, able to get from it only ear piercing feed back, while the forty nine year old volunteer youth director tries to rap.

He likens this to trying to wear someone else's clothes. The book of Acts, he argues, is not a "how to" book. We shouldn't try to mine it for the "biblical principles" for growing a successful church.

The only thing worse than wearing someone else's hip new clothes, is wearing someone else's old clothes.

But this is not only true for the early Church in the book of Acts. It is also true for the "seeker-driven" model of Willow Creek and Saddleback Church. Not only are the strategies and methods a poor fit for most congregations, but the days of the church service as a late-night talk show or as a rock concert are over.

So what do you think?

Why are church leaders so eager to copy the methods of others? Why are new churches trying to become megachurches "right out of the box"? Why do small churches have such an inferiority complex?

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

No More Biblical Principles

You can find people offering "Biblical Principles" for just about any subject:

• Biblical Principles for Marriage
  
• Biblical Principles for Business
  
• Biblical Principles for Raising Children
  
• Biblical Principles for Spanking
  
• Biblical Principles for Finances
  
• Biblical Principles for Time Management
  
• Biblical Principles for Conflict Resolution
  
• Biblical Principles for Fitness
  
• Biblical Principles for Government
  
• Biblical Principles for Church Organization
  
• Biblical Principles for Leadership
  
• Biblical Principles for Sex
  
• Biblical Principles for Education
  
• Biblical Principles for Church Music
  
• Biblical Principles for Vegetarianism
  
• Biblical Principles for Bible Study
  
• Biblical Principles for Prosperity
  
• Biblical Principles for Economics
  

So what's the problem?

The problem is that these "biblical principles" do not all agree and are often more an expression of culture than they are of any clear teaching of the Bible.

Just because something is stated in the Bible that doesn't mean it is a "biblical principle."

Some things are clearly presented as biblical principles, especially statements by Jesus. When Jesus said, "Bless those who curse you," he intended for it to be a guiding principle for his disciples.

But a passing statement in the Old Testament should not necessarily be turned into a "biblical principle."

The book of Proverbs is a collection of general truths. These are not "biblical principles" as the phrase is generally used. The precepts collected by Solomon and others require wisdom in their application. Some are even contradictory:

Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself (Proverbs 26:4).

Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes (Proverbs 26:5).

Notice that these contradictory statements are found right next to each other. They were never intended to be "biblical principles."

The book of Psalms is a collection of Hebrew poetry. It is not a theology textbook. It is not a collection of "biblical principles."

Here is one of the milder imprecatory psalms:

Break the arm of the wicked and evil man (Psalm 10:15).

Surely that statement was not intended to become a "biblical principle."

The book of Job is a drama composed of speeches by Job, three of his friends, another guy who just shows up without explanation and God. God takes issue with what Job says. He repudiates the speeches of the three friends. And he ignores the comments of the other guy. There important theological lessons to be learned from Job's story. But be wary of any "biblical principles" that are based on proof texts from Job.

Statements made by God to Jeremiah (1:5) or through Jeremiah to the Israelites going into exile (29:11) are not "biblical principles" applying to Christians.

Actions taken by biblical characters are not necessarily templates for "biblical principles" to be applied to business, leadership or government.

Evangelicals seem to prefer a black and white world. They seek rules that they can blindly apply to every situation.

But being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not a paint-by-number project.

Let's have a little less talk about "biblical principles" and a little more focus on living as apprentices of Jesus Christ.

Jesus clearly avoided simplistic answers in his earthly ministry. Why would he want his followers to reduce his teaching now to simplistic rules?

Jesus did not call potential disciples to a code of conduct. He called them to follow him.

As a pastor, I must repent for all those sermons I preached when I said, "This is what the Bible says you should (not) do."

It's not my job to teach "biblical principles." My job is to say along with Paul, "Follow me as I follow Christ."

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

e-Greed

I have been frustrated for some time by the short-sighted mindset of book publishers.

This mindset seems to be a combination of "this-is-how-we've-always-done-it" thinking and greed. Of course, this phenomenon is not limited to Christian publishers. But it does seem to be especially egregious when done "in the name of Christ."

I do not object to individuals or companies making a profit. I believe that it is an honorable thing to provide something of value to the world and to be financially rewarded for those efforts. But I do have a problem with exploitation and "price gouging."

What makes the current situation in e-publishing particularly frustrating is that the publishers are working against their own long-term interests.

We've seen Hollywood's resistance to new technology create confusion and stagnation in the entertainment industry. The music industry has also contributed to the chaos of digital rights management.

I also believe that our current copyright laws need to be redone to reflect the present state of technology.

But even without any change to the copyright statute, book publishers are missing out on an amazing opportunity to take advantage of today's digital "revolution."

With the invention of the printing press, books quickly went from a luxury item affordable only to a few wealthy individuals or institutions to an inexpensive medium for the transmission of and "democratization" of vast new fields of knowledge.

The Reformation could never have happened without the new world of publishing made possible by the printing press. It is hard to imagine the Industrial Revolution ever gathering any "steam" as long as books needed to be copied by hand. The Scientific Revolution was an effect of the print technology "cause."

"In just three years, between 1517 and 1520, Martin Luther's 30 publications probably sold more than 300,000 copies."

Before the printing press, a handwritten Bible might take a single monk 20 years to transcribe. In 1424, Cambridge University library owned only 122 books, and each of them cost the equivalent of a small farm. According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, by 1500 there were more than 9 million books in Europe.

Imagine what would have happened if William Caxton had marketed his edition of The Canterbury Tales with this approach:

You can purchase your own copy of the ribald tales in Chaucer's masterpiece. The hand-copied edition would set you back a lifetime of earnings. But now you can buy this work produced by the new printing press at a substantial discount. For a mere five-years' salary you can order your personal edition. Once enough individuals sign up for this pre-publication offer, we will begin setting the type.

That's enough historical reflection. Now for my rant.

Disclaimer: What follows in my experience and my opinion. I do not claim that this company is alone guilty of the practices and attitudes I mention. Nor do I claim that it is the worst offender.

Some time ago, I purchased the Scholar's Library: Gold from Logos Bible Software. Its current price is $1379.95.

As I recall, that's the same price that I paid. It was a lot of money. But I thought it was a good investment.

The concept is appealing.

1. Electronic books require no shelf space (something that I have less and less of).
   
2. I can search all my books by topic or Bible reference.
   
3. I can do research much more efficiently than with printed books.
   

Since my initial purchase, I have bought one additional book: The Hermeneutical Spiral by Grant Osborne. I had thought about buying the print edition, and the electronic edition was slightly cheaper. But I've gotten little use out of the book in the six month's I've owned it.

Well, I don't really own the book. I have a copy of it on my hard drive, but I can only access it from the Logos software and only on this one computer.

In December, I received an e-mail of an offer that was "too good to be true." For a mere $395.95 I could "own" $6,000 worth of books (300 individual titles). Of course, the value is calculated by what I would have to pay to get print editions of these works. Also, as an owner of the Scholar's Library Gold package, I already have several of them (about one-third). Oh, and I have to buy before December 31, 2007. Any CDs not sold by then will be destroyed and never offered again. And in case I have a slight shortage of cash, I can go on the installment plan starting at $55 dollars a month.

They include a little disclaimer that sounds like it was written by the Payday Advance Loan people:

The payment plan is a budgeting tool which can be used wisely or irresponsibly—"choose wisely". Don't use a payment plan or buy products you can not afford. While we would love everyone to buy all our books, we do not want people to go into debt because of us or abuse a payment plan.

Did I mention that several of the books most people would never buy unless they were included in a "package deal"? And a few of them appeared to be the public domain.

I don't have to buy it. By not buying it I am not harmed in any way. The value of my previous purchase does not diminish if I pass on this "upgrade."

So what's my problem with this offer?

For starters, it sounds like I'm being sold a used car.

Things like "offer good only" until December 31, leftover product will be destroyed, never be offered again, installment plan.

Second, the price of the print editions is irrelevant.

Only a fraction of the retail price of a printed work goes to the author. The remainder goes for production and distribution costs. Eventually, the production and distribution costs of an electronic product are zero. Yes, the books have to be created in the electronic format, but this only has to be done once. Even new editions can be produced with virtually no work. And customers can download electronic books at an insignificant cost to the publisher.

Third, these "special offer" prices should be the regular prices.

If they can afford to sell these books at the "one time offer" price, they could sell them forever at the same price. Every additional copy is pure profit, once the royalties are paid.

This whole electronic publishing thing could be revolutionary.

What if I could convert my own documents into the same format and add them to my purchased collection?

Surprise, I can do just that with the Personal Book Builder.

For a mere $89.95 I can buy software to convert my own documents. But wait, the license is good only for one year. And no one else can use the documents I create. I can't even use them unless I access them on the very same computer on which they were created.

Of course there is the Personal Book Builder—Standard Edition. It will set me back $249.95. And it's also only good for one year. What's more, I cannot "sell" my documents to anyone else. I can only distribute them for free. If I want to sell them, I must buy a different (more expensive) license and pay additional processing fees.

Even with this software, converting my own documents is a complex process involving several steps.

And then, only Logos customers who own one of the "seven boxed products" will be able to read my work.

Have these guys heard of Adobe Acrobat?

Their business model seems to be based on protecting their ability to charge premium prices for their software and electronic "books." The irony is that they would be able to make significantly more money if they weren't so greedy. Of course, they are not the only ones who are greedy here. The print publishers are trying to hang on to their stranglehold of the market. They find themselves the owners of electronic rights that they

• Claimed for books they had published before there was such a thing.
  
• Tricked unsuspecting authors into giving away.
  

And they are selling these works at a price point that is designed to protect the printed product, a price point that gives them (but not the author) an obscene percentage of profit.

The truth is that traditional publishers are becoming increasingly irrelevant. Instead of positioning themselves to add real value in a new world, they are trying to slow down technological progress.

Someday, someone will provide a low-cost, high-value channel for publishing and purchasing electronic works. Whoever does will become ridiculously wealthy. And I'll be able to say, "I told you so."

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"

7 Reasons People Do Not Understand the Bible

Most people do not understand the Bible.

I've addressed several specific passages that people tend to misunderstand. But in this post I want to look at why people so often misunderstand what they read in the Bible. I can think of at least seven reasons:

1. They start with a bad translation.

Many people try to read the King James Version and get bogged down in the archaic language. This translation was first made in 1611. It uses language similar to what you would find in one of Shakespeare's plays. For most people, this translation might as well be in a foreign language.

At the other extreme are The Living Bible and The Message. These versions are not properly translations. They are what are known as paraphrases. They are easy to understand, but they are simplified explanations of one person's idea of what the Bible says rather than what the Bible actually says.

Another type that leads people astray is the strictly literal translation. An example of this would be the New American Standard Bible. It uses an artificial model of language translation that often results in an awkward style of English. Anyone who has studied a foreign language knows that there is not a simple one-to-one correspondence between words in two languages.

Good versions combine accurate translation with natural-sounding English. A couple of examples are the New International Version and the English Standard Version.

2. They are lazy.

Probably the most common reason that people don't understand the Bible is that they are too lazy to do the work that is necessary.

One form that this takes is assuming that every verse in the Bible is a personal memo written just to them. They read a particular verse and interpret it as if God just wrote it that morning with them specifically in mind. Pastors can sometimes be the worst offenders of this mistake.

Another way that people are lazy is that they only read a little bit of the Bible and expect to understand it. Each sentence of the Bible must be understood in the context of the paragraph of which it is a part. And that paragraph must be understood in the context of the entire book (such as Romans or Luke). The book must be understood in the context of the entire story of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation.

Each book must also be understood in the context of the shared culture of the author and the readers. Many people think that they should be able to read a portion of the Bible and understand it instantly without any background information. But all communication is built upon a foundation of common knowledge.

Because we are removed in time and culture from the original readers, we lack some of that common knowledge. This results both in a lack of understanding and in misunderstanding.

3. They are tone deaf.

Just as there are different styles of music, there are different styles of writing. But many treat the Bible as if it were all the same. They read Proverbs as if it were a physics textbook. But it is actually a collection of general truths. In fact, some proverbs contradict other proverbs. The book of Job (pronounced JOBE) is a drama. It is not intended to be read as if it were a court transcript. The books written by Paul in the New Testament are letters written to specific people usually in response to particular situations that Paul felt needed to be addressed urgently.

Treating the whole Bible as if it were an instruction manual is not only confusing, but it is also dangerous.

4. They treat it like a dead frog.

In the olden days (when I was in high school) students dissected frogs in biology class. These frogs were dead, of course, preserved in formaldehyde. The idea was that the best way to understand how a frog was put together was to take one apart.

This works for machines, electronics and dead animals. It is not recommended for spouses, however. If you want to know what makes your spouse "tick," you must interact with him or her as a living being.

The Bible is more like a spouse than a dead frog.

Too many people think that they can analyze the details of a Bible passage and arrive at the exact meaning of the text. But this treats the Bible as a dead thing.

Instead of us operating on the Bible, it needs to operate on us. As long as we are dissecting and analyzing the Bible, we are keeping it at arm's length. We are treating it like an object.

5. They believe in magic.

Most people do not know the difference between magic and the supernatural. They tend to read the Bible as if it were a fairy tale where anything can happen. They assume that God can do anything he wants. But this is completely wrong.

Even miracles have rules.

The Bible tells us that reality is much more than what we can see and touch. God is not limited by what appears to be possible. But that doesn't mean that just anything can happen. Reality operates according to "laws," even in the supernatural realm.

What we think of as "natural laws" are just a subset of true reality. (This is similar to the relationship between Newtonian physics and Einsteinian physics.) God is able to act in ways that seem to violate natural laws. But he is really only acting according to a higher "law."

6. They can only see trees.

Many people focus on the details in the Bible and miss the big picture. The Bible is in essence one big story.

It starts with creation and mankind's rebellion against God. Then it tells of the people that God called to be his own, starting with Abraham. Abraham's descendants became God's chosen people through whom God intended to reach the entire world. But the chosen people took this to be a privilege instead of a responsibility and failed in their calling.

"In the fullness of time," God came to us in the form of Jesus Christ. He established a new people. He proved himself faithful and defeated the forces of evil by dying a brutal, humiliating death. But he rose victorious from the grave and now reigns in heaven until the day when he will bring final, complete justice. In the meantime, he has left his Church to do the work of his kingdom.

Every verse, paragraph and chapter of the Bible must be understood in the context of this story.

7. They think they are Simon Cowell.

Finally, people don't understand the Bible because they sit in judgment of the Bible instead of allowing the Bible to evaluate them. They pick and chose the parts that they like and ignore the rest. They come to the Bible with their philosophy and their theology and force the text to fit their preconceptions.

Or they use the Bible to condemn other people. They tell others what they should and shouldn't do. They hunt down heretics and apostates. They engage in the "ministry" of discernment.

Without humility, we cannot truly understand the Bible. We must be prepared for parts of the Bible that refuse to conform to our preconceptions. We must be prepared for the Bible to challenge our attitudes and assumptions. We must be prepared to encounter the living Christ, the true Word of God, in the pages of God's "word."

These are seven reasons that I believe many people fail to understand the Bible. Let me know what you think. Do you have other reasons that you'd like to add? Do you disagree with some of my reasons?

Pastor Rod

"Helping You Become the Person God Created You to Be"