Once upon a time most people trusted Christians, preachers, and churches. That time has pretty much passed as their trust has evaporated under the scorching heat of our hypocrisy. We live in an age of distrust and suspicion, especially when it comes to the Church and its spokespersons and it’s mostly our fault. “They …
The Essence of Good News Bearing
Irrespective of color, status, or lifestyle everyone deserves to be treated with civility. And there’s nothing more equalizing than the gospel and no one like the Maker of humans to humanize the dehumanized. Rahabs of all sorts need friends––sincere, non-judgmental friends––a rare possession of the dehumanized, to be sure. “Othering” people and befriending them are …
Humanizing the Dehumanized
Prostitution is a dehumanizing path into which most in the trade are deceived or coerced. Selling one’s body for survival is for the desperate, the last resort for the victims of bone-crushing poverty and social marginalization. She is simply human “merchandise” to the heartless broker and the soulless buyer. There’s no way to put a …
Befriending The Banished
“I used to think that to be Christlike meant to be alienated and put off by the sin of others. But it’s quite the opposite. Refusing to be alienated and put of by the sin of others is what allows me to be Christlike.” Brant Hansen “If you owned a Rembrandt covered in mud, you …
It’s the Rope That Saves
As I read it, the rope Rahab draped out her window and used to scale down Jericho’s wall was the very same red rope that the scouts put to use for their escape some days before. The rope was meant for both Jewish scouts and pagan prostitutes; for insiders and outsiders. As the scouts were …
