George W. Sarris
TweetMDiv Gordon-Conwell, speaker on Biblical & family issues, actor/narrator in New York, tells World's Greatest Stories
Posted 2/7/12 at 8:08 PM | George W. Sarris |
By George W. Sarris
I may be somewhat naïve, but I am always amazed at how people can be so blind as to not see the obvious.
I’m thinking right now about the ruling of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco that determined that the voter approved Proposition 8 ban on same sex marriage in California is unconstitutional.
The rationale of the court was clear –
Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently. There was no such reason that Proposition 8 could have been enacted . . .
The court determined that there was not a good reason in this situation for treating a man with a woman – as opposed to a man with a man or a woman with a woman – differently.
Of course, I’m somewhat naïve, but I thought the legitimate reason for treating those different classes of people differently was actually pretty obvious: FULL POST
Posted 2/2/12 at 2:37 PM | George W. Sarris |
By George W. Sarris
The story is told about a poor man who had a large family.
A wealthy banker in the community came to visit him one day. Looking at the children, he remarked, “These, sir, are that which make a man poor.” In response, the poor man looked up and replied, “Oh, no, sir. Quite the contrary. These are they which make a man rich. For, I would not give up even one of these precious children for all of your wealth!”
God has blessed me with five wonderful children. I have learned much from them. And, have sought to pass along to them much of what I have learned in life. Some time ago, a friend of my son emailed me to ask a question:
“What is the one lesson you taught your children that has yielded the biggest dividends?”
Wow! That is a really big question! I have taught our children – or at least attempted to teach them – so many lessons. And, all of them have been, in my mind, important. Was there one lesson that was most important? I had to think about that for a while. FULL POST
Posted 1/26/12 at 3:56 PM | George W. Sarris
By George W. Sarris
If I had a nickel for every time someone made the comment – God is not only loving. He is also just! – I would be a wealthy man.
People say that so often, and with such confidence and sometimes even condescension, that you would think that this one statement suddenly provides the final answer to all the questions, objections, and ethical dilemmas that result from a discussion about how God deals with mankind. The problem, as I mentioned in an earlier blog post, is that this idea suggests that God is somehow internally conflicted – that the loving and just elements of His character are somehow in conflict with each other.
However, God is not conflicted internally. The loving and just elements of His character are not at war with each other. His love is not in opposition to His justice. It was His justice working together with His love that led to Christ dying on the cross for our sins. FULL POST
Posted 1/20/12 at 12:47 PM | George W. Sarris
By George W. Sarris
Sometimes, God teaches important lessons in the strangest ways. He chose to speak to Balaam through a donkey. He revealed Himself to Moses through a burning bush. He got the attention of the prophet Jonah through the medium of a great fish. He taught me an important lesson through a cartoon – actually, it was an animated film.
But, perhaps I should step back a second and put the issue in context.
I had always wondered why Jesus would choose the phrase “Son of God” as a key reference to His deity. I knew it had to have a very profound meaning for the Jews of His day because they understood it as a clear claim by Him to be God. That is why He was put to death.
In the interchange between Jesus and the Jewish leaders in John 10,
Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” “We are not stoning you for any of these,’ replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.” Jesus answered them . . . Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?” FULL POST
Posted 1/10/12 at 1:42 PM | George W. Sarris |
By George W. Sarris
God blessed me with good parents, and I will be forever grateful to Him for that.
They were certainly not perfect – they had the same weaknesses and shortcomings, and made many of the same mistakes as other parents. But, I always knew that they loved me. I always knew that they wanted the best for me. And, no matter how much I messed up, I always knew they would never give up on me or abandon me.
My parents didn’t treat me and my brother the same because we were different. We had different personalities. We had different interests. We had different skills and abilities. At times, when my mom would make something special for my brother, I would tease her by saying, “You always did love Brian more than me!” I could say that because she and I both knew that it was definitely NOT true! She didn’t love my brother more than me. She and my dad loved us both with the same quality of love – a love that always had our ultimate best interests in mind. FULL POST
Posted 12/16/11 at 3:52 PM | George W. Sarris
By George W. Sarris
Every day The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and every other daily newspaper acknowledge on their front pages that Jesus of Nazareth is the most influential person who ever lived, and that his impact on the history of the world is greater than that of any other individual.
That acknowledgement is also on the cover of Time, Newsweek, US News & World Report, and People every week. In fact, the same acknowledgement is prominently displayed on the home pages of atheist.org, athiestalliance.com, infidels.org, and celebathiests.com. You probably placed a similar notice on any correspondence you recently sent out.
You see, each one of those newspapers, magazines, websites, and articles of correspondence had a date on them. The event we will be celebrating on December 25 was actually the pivotal event of history. FULL POST
Posted 12/8/11 at 1:33 PM | George W. Sarris
By George W. Sarris
Over the years, I have become increasingly convinced that the family is by far the most important and strategic agency for communicating the content of the Christian faith to the next generation. Churches, Christian schools, and youth ministries have a place. But, none comes close to the effectiveness of the family.
As a youth pastor once told me, “How can I expect one or two hours a week to have any kind of significant impact on a child. My job is to help parents do their job.”
So, what can we as parents do practically to help get eternity into the hearts of our children?
What Can A Family Do?
I have served on the staffs of three Christian organizations, have participated in numerous Biblical and family conferences, and have been an active church member throughout my adult life. During that time, I have heard many people tell of the importance of having a “family altar.” I’ve read articles in magazines about how to have vibrant “family devotions.” I’ve seen materials that are designed specifically to help parents get their children excited about reading the Bible as a family. FULL POST
Posted 12/2/11 at 3:26 PM | George W. Sarris |
By George W. Sarris
You are going to die. It makes no difference if you are rich or poor, wise or foolish, educated or uneducated, successful or unsuccessful. You are mortal, and you are going to die!
Most of us don’t want to hear those words, but they are true nonetheless. For that reason, death has always occupied the minds of the living. And, more particularly, what happens after we die? That is a question that everyone thinks about at one time or another. That is the question everyone wants to know the answer to.
Coupled with the fact that we will all die is the fact that injustices and inequities are part of life in this world. Inherent in all of us is a sense that something has to be done in the next world that will somehow rectify the unfairness we see all around us in this world. Throughout history, people in every culture have wrestled with what that would look like and tried to come up with an answer. Most have concluded that there is some kind of balance scale on the other side on which humans are weighed, with those who are found wanting being cast into a place of anguish and misery. FULL POST
Posted 11/18/11 at 12:04 PM | George W. Sarris
By George W. Sarris
I was fascinated to see a picture of President Barack Obama kissing Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez on the lips with the words prominently displayed, “UNHATE!”
It turned out to be a photoshopped image for a controversial series of ads by the Italian clothing manufacturer, Benetton.
Several years ago, that company instituted their “United Colors” ad campaign to promote tolerance – of various ethnic groups, of various lifestyles, and of various controversial issues. They had a priest kissing a nun. A black woman breastfeeding a white baby. Three actual human hearts sitting side by side labeled “Black,” “White,” “Yellow.” FULL POST
Posted 11/11/11 at 10:48 AM | George W. Sarris |
By George W. Sarris
It’s been said that the best indicator of what people really value is what’s written in their checkbook!
That’s because what we do speaks louder than what we say. Proverbs 20:6 is a clear example of that truth –
“Many a man claims to have unfailing love, but a faithful man who can find?”
When it comes to the issue of Hell, what we say often doesn’t match up with what we do.
What I mean is that many Christians say they believe that Hell is a place of conscious, never-ending suffering, but don’t live their lives in ways that would indicate that they really believe it to be true. They don’t exhibit any serious concern for the billions of people supposedly destined to end up there. They have to be taught to “just walk across the room,” instead of running as fast as they possibly can to tell their lost relatives, friends, and coworkers of the horrific danger they face. And, very few seem to care enough for those they think are heading toward endless misery to go out of their way to try to stop them. FULL POST
