Bridge of Reason

  In Acts 17 the Bible describes the Internet in general, and social media in particular. A place where people spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing of something new. So, what do we do with that, and what can we learn from Paul? I was looking again at Paul and his journeys and trials in Acts. In Acts 16 he is imprisoned in Phillippi, along with Silas, after having been beaten with rods for preaching the gospel and, ‘turning the world upside down.’ Before the end of the chapter the jailer and his family came to a living faith in Christ, and the police and magistrate came and apologised for their treatment. They moved on from there to Thessalonica (Acts 17), preached Christ crucified, buried, and risen, only to find themselves being hunted down by a mob of jealous Jews. Not being found, and encouraged by the brothers to leave, they set out for Berea. Finding some success with Berean Jews (who were reportedly more noble than those in Thessalonica) they found the Jews...

Someone over at Quora asked this question and I was curious to know the answer. The reply on Quora, from an inactive Witness with a still faithful family, talks about video conferencing among other things. The Memorial Meal, where gathering was prohibited, took place online, with a leader giving the talk on Zoom. They made bread according to the prescribed recipe, had some wine, and afterwards threw it away in the kitchen bin I imagine. It will come as no surprise to find everyone dressed for this as though they were going to the Kingdom Hall, even though they were at home. The door-to-door work and the cart witnessing are cancelled of course. However, undaunted, they have resorted to telephone witnessing, calling back their call backs on the phone. Some are letter writing, again no surprise given the way the Society can marshal their army of members to mass produce letters of protest at the drop of a hat, clogging up the already burdened mailing system. You can r ead more here. ...

People don’t believe in miracles, not because they haven’t witnessed a miracle, but because their world view will not allow for miracles. Even though someone they otherwise respect should relate an account of a miracle many will not believe it. They will, rather, reconsider the esteem in which they hold their friend. Neither will showing them a miracle guarantee their conversion because they may make every effort to explain it away and we have seen this. So it was with the people who saw the miracles of Jesus and his disciples, who drove out demons, healed the sick and preached the kingdom message. They saw Jesus feed five thousand (John 6:1-15) and ate their fill, but this did not guarantee their accepting who Jesus was. When the crowd later sought out Jesus in Capernaum he said, ‘You are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labour for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will ...

ANN: Before I was taught by the Mormons in my teens, I only knew what I had learned at Sunday School as a small child and in R.E. lessons in school. Like many people, I thought that a Christian was someone who tried hard to do good things, read the Bible, and prayed to God. I learned from my Mormon friends that Jesus had paid for the fall of Adam, so that we are all born sinless and are held accountable only for the sins we ourselves commit. Because Jesus died for my sins, I could work to be acceptable to God and hope one day to be judged worthy of heaven. It certainly sounded right, and I looked no further. I was introduced to the Mormon church via a card through the door offering a free copy of the Book of Mormon. I had been asking a lot of questions about God and the purpose of life, so I sent it off. The book was delivered by two Mormon missionaries when I was out, so my mother made an appointment for them to come back and speak to me. Through their teaching, and visits to the chur...

What do you think of when your hear the word ‘sanctified?’ Paul’s first letter to Christians in Thessalonica is best summed up in verse one of chapter four, ‘How to live in order to please God.’ The context is very important if we are to appreciate its application today. Paul was writing to a church living in what was a hostile environment for Christians, calling them to live sanctified lives. We are beginning to experience this environment in what was traditionally a ‘Christian country.’ You might be aware of recent controversial developments in Ireland regarding gay marriage. Ireland (Eire) has voted to change the constitution to allow gay couples to marry. This has proved an enormous challenge to the Catholic Church that takes a traditional, biblical view on marriage . You might remember also, in Northern Ireland, Ashers Bakery was successfully prosecuted for refusing to bake a cake with a pro-gay message on it. They didn’t refuse custom to a gay man, but simply refused to put ...

In ministry the least reliable thing of all is a testimony. I know that sounds a strange thing to say but when people stand up and tell their story you really have little or no control over what they will say, there is often little chance of verifying their back story and, especially if it goes to print, it can be a serious liability. Testimonies can also be heart-warming, encouraging, and inspiring, and I don’t want to discourage them. Its a question of how they are handled, what we make of them, and what weight we give them. Content is a good guide. Twelve Baptisms My wife and I were invited some years ago to a baptism in a local church. It was a pretty exciting occasion, in a charismatic church so plenty of music, ‘alleluias, and arm waving. If I tell you there there twelve baptism candidates that night you will understand all the excitement. We took our seats, but not for long, as the band struck up a hearty chorus and the congregation were on their feet, on their chairs – you ...

  If I haven’t already said it to you personally, I wish you a Happy New Year. As we begin a New Year with fresh opportunities to bring God’s light and truth where deception has darkened people’s minds it seems good to start with the fundamentals. You will know that, even within the Christian Church, there are troubling challenges to the long-established truth of the Gospel. Add to this the claims of the cults and the increasing marginalisation of the church in an intolerant liberal society it has never been more imperative to ensure we stand on solid ground in our faith and witnessing. Even after all these years we at Reachout will get asked about groups we haven't heard about, ideas we are not familiar with. Where do you start, what do you ask, how do you asses truth claims in light of God's Word? Here are ten questions to help lay some solid foundations on which to build a reliable picture. What do they say about God? Is he the one, true God of the Bible? Is h...

Have you noticed that folk involved in cult ministry tend to learn on the job? Not many “qualified” Christians turn their minds too much to the world of the cults, although there are some notable exceptions.  In the main, people in this ministry might be termed by the world, “enthusiasts,” although they would see themselves as faithfully answering the call of God to a difficult ministry that has captured their hearts. We do what we can. We are all familiar with the argument that insists, “don’t touch, don’t engage,” based on an erroneous reading of 2 John 10;  “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take him into your house or welcome him. Anyone who welcomes him shares in his wicked work.” Of course, the fact is that anyone who isn’t a born-again believer doesn’t bring correct teaching, and then there are those inside the church whose teaching is questionable. So are these people insisting we separate ourselves entirely from the very ones to whom Jesu...

The vast majority of Jehovah’s Witness at your door will be very genuine people. They will be zealous for the truth that has been learnt from their relationship with the ‘organisation’-the Watchtower Bible &Tract Society. The individual will be calling on you as part of their ‘mission field.’ They will feel in doing this that they are serving Jehovah. Most will attend five weekly meetings each lasting an hour, spend 10 hours a month on the doors, prepare for four of the weekly meetings; reading the latest book and 32 page weekly magazine; personal study and family study. There is little time for activity independent of the Society. History The Organisation started in Pittsburgh USA in the early 1870′s when several young people began studying the Bible to discover the date of Christ’s return. Today, it is not as it originated with the founder Charles Taze Russell; in those days there was room for differences of opinion and expression. Their second President, Joseph Rutherford, ma...

It hardly seems possible but a year has passed since Doug Harris, the founder, chairman and driving force behind Reachout Trust was called home. We miss him, miss his drive and energy, his genius, humour, and love for the Lord and for the ministry. The trustees have agreed that we can’t simply allow the considerable ministry resource that is Reachout Trust disappear and that it would be good to continue the work as a service to the wider church and a legacy to Doug. Doug’s work took him into television in latter years, as many know, and he has worked successfully for Revelation TV. As a result this blog has lain dormant for some time. It seems good to bring it up-to-date and publish on here periodically, teaching, informing, and encouraging people in the truth. Of course, nothing will be as it was without the man himself, so I hope you will be patient as we work things out, forgive us for not coming up to his exacting and energetic standards. But lets see what can be done in his memo...

An excellent and well-reasoned article from Rocky Hulse of Mormon Outreach. Well worth clicking through and reading: On the front cover of Newsweek, October 17, 2005, is a stain glass window depiction of the “First Vision” of Mormonism with the title “The Making of the Mormons,” subtitled “Beyond Prophecy and Polygamy: The Future Of a Booming Faith.”  On page 58 is an interview with the current Mormon Prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley.  The following question was asked, “Could you talk about religious intolerance and conflict around the world?  It is a difficult age.” (Newsweek, Oct 17, 2005, pg 58).  The following is President Hinckley’s response: “Hateful.  Meanness.  Bitterness.  I don’t like it.  We’re all sons and daughters of God, and therefore in a very literal sense, brothers and sisters.  And we ought to treat each other that way.” (Newsweek, Oct 17, 2005, pg 58).  After reading the rest of this article, ask yourself if the above...

One of the things people ask of ministry to the cults is, “Why do you do it?” There was a time when it hardly needed explaining but now, even within some parts of the church, there are those who ask whether it is really altogether Christian to challenge other religions. Somehow it doesn’t seem altogether respectable, especially in a world where, if people want a religion at all, they shop for one. I mean, you wouldn’t rummage through other people’s purchases down at the department store, identifying fashion victims, criticising colour combinations - at least not to their faces. There are two reasons why we do it. The first, and by far the most important, is that people pin their eternal hopes on their religious choices and God has commanded that Christians should “Go into all the world telling the good news.” People concerned about eternal things need to hear eternal truths and be warned about those things that will prove ultimately false and empty. Jude wrote of his eagerness to ...

A Weekly Bible Reading for Bridge Builders The Richmond Briefing has been a weekly feature of the Reachout web site for five years and is now available on the blog. To find out more and read earlier briefings go here Reading – The Snare of Legalism (Matthew 19:1-12) The Chambers Dictionary defines legalism as “strict adherence to law...the tendency to observe letter or form rather than spirit, or to regard things from the point of view of law.” It also helpfully illustrates the definition with a reference to the opposing doctrines of salvation by works and salvation by grace. I do like The Chambers Dictionary and commend it to you. But what is wrong with keeping the law? Surely as Christians we believe in being law-abiding? There is certainly enough in the New Testament about obedience to authorities. We are instructed, “obey your parents in the Lord” (Eph.6:1); obey your earthly masters with respect” (Eph.6:5); obey your leaders and submit to their authority” (Heb.13:17...

A Weekly Bible Reading for Bridge Builders The Richmond Briefing has been a weekly feature of the Reachout web site for five years and is now available on the blog. To find out more and read earlier briefings go here Reading – Great Ones and Little Ones (Matthew 18) There is something so human about the question, you have to smile. Along comes this amazing Jesus who walks on water, heals the sick and raises the dead. He begins to talk about his kingdom and offers you a place in it. It is human nature to wonder, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” The disciples are thinking the way the world thinks, of ambition, endeavour, accomplishment and status. The kingdom Jesus describes is characterised by entirely different principles. 18:2-4 Greatness in this kingdom is realised only by having the faith of a child. It is impossible without total dependence on God as a child depends on a parent. When Jesus called Israel they refused him and stood at a distance in judgeme...