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If Jesus “Saves” What Exactly Does He Save Us From?
By Steve on July 10, 2020
I recently received a message from Louise who had read my blog article 3 Reasons Jesus is Not my Personal Lord & Savior and then went on to write and ask me the following questions:…
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Episode 097: Following the Jesus “Way” with Derek Vreeland (Pt. 2)
By Steve on August 27, 2019
Hi Pilgrim, In Part 2 of our talk pastor and author Derek Vreeland discusses what it means to “Practice Resurrection”, how his own faith has matured over the years, and then gives…
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Tim Keller’s N.Y. Times Interview Reveals American Evangelical’s Problem In A Single Sentence
By Steve on December 27, 2016
A recent New York Times article making its way around my social media feeds highlights in a single sentence what is fundamentally deficient in American Evangelicalism. In the article Times writer Nicholas Kristof asks prominent…
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Why “Jesus Saves”? Like, What’s The Point?
By Steve on September 1, 2015
Beyond the Pale regulars know that the idea of salvation, and what it means to be saved, keeps coming up here. (Meaning I spend way to much time thinking about it 
) In the last couple years though I’ve…
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What Does It Mean To Be “Saved” Pt 5
By Steve on August 18, 2015
Salvation for Christians in the West has tended to imitate our culture; meaning it has become a very personal thing. Jesus somehow became a personal Lord and a personal Savior. Of course Christ has many titles and names ascribed…
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5 Reasons People Didn’t Like My 5 Reasons “Sinners” Were Entering The Kingdom Of God Ahead Of Christians
By Steve on August 4, 2015
My previous post 5 Reasons Sinners Enter The Kingdom Of God Ahead Of Christians generated more than the usual feedback. Many found it “sobering”, “so true”, and “I Love this”. Never the less others were…
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Why Many Christians Still Build A House On Sand
By Steve on March 17, 2015
An interesting conversation I had recently started when someone stated that if we “believe in Jesus” it’s like building your house on a rock. (Matt 7:24) When the rain and storms come we will be…
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Do Christians Really Want Jesus To Be “Prince of Peace”?
By Steve on December 22, 2014
This Christmas I’ve been thinking a lot about something that Jesus accomplished when he born in a humble stable and executed as a political scapegoat 2000 years ago. He established a whole new government……
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3 Things To Consider Before Inviting Your Friend To See Left Behind
By Steve on September 16, 2014
In a couple weeks time the Left Behind movie will open in cinemas around the world. As someone who got “onboard” the Left Behind evangelistic bandwagon 14 years ago when the original version with Kirk Cameron came…
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Christianity Without Hooks 2: A Story of AIDS
By Steve on December 4, 2013
Evangelical Christianity has all kinds of hooks designed to catch people into the faith. We * organize special meetings * bring in exciting speakers * create multimedia shows * provide free food (pizza for the youth)…