Resources by Topic: Culture and Worldview

Like many of you, I am not looking forward to all the political turmoil, including in the church, that is sure to come as the presidential election gets closer. At the same time, this is an excellent opportunity for God’s people to determine where our hope is placed.

If you’ve seen the news, you know about the nightly riots and looting and protests against the police in downtown Portland, thirty minutes away from our home. There has been a heavy toll on the officers and their families, and the lack of police presence and resources in other areas has also affected people in the city.

At my request, EPM staff member Stephanie Anderson researched and wrote the following, with which I fully concur. This is a justice issue that should burden all of us. May God use this blog to draw attention to what is surely on His heart.  

Two and a half decades ago I joined others, including many physicians, in expending a lot of time and effort to oppose Oregon’s move to become the first place in human history (yes, even before the Netherlands) to legalize physician assisted suicide. We warned about the slippery slope of euthanasia, which is simply abortion of the elderly.

This article by Jonathan Tjarks is a helpful reminder that most of the people around us embrace the idea of a build-it-yourself spirituality, though they likely don’t realize it. But such beliefs are ultimately hopeless and empty. So may we boldly share the good news about Jesus and the truth, grace, and hope He offers! 

In this blog I’ll address some difficult issues that some will misunderstand or be offended by despite my efforts to speak accurately and carefully. There are many balancing statements in this blog, which partly accounts for its length. If you take one statement out of context without those other balancing statements you can misunderstand anything I’m saying. I hope you don’t.

In this excerpt from my novel Dominion, the main character Clarence reflects about life as a black man in America. 

Soon after the death of George Floyd, Kelsey Brown, a woman I know and deeply respect, who lives here in Oregon, shared the following words on Facebook. My heart breaks for Kelsey and her family, and all the more having heard these stories over and over again from trustworthy people like her and Vergil.

A few years ago I enjoyed meeting recording artist Shai Linne at a conference where we were speaking the same night. We had a terrific conversation in which I thanked him for his extraordinary work and artistry in conveying solid biblical doctrine. Please listen to his powerful words in the following article. They resonate, down to the specific illustrations, with what every black man, from poor guys to rich ones, told me when I interviewed many black Americans while researching my novel Dominion.

I have posted previous blogs and articles on racial justice, including my last blog post. At the risk of being misunderstood or misquoted by some who will say, “This is no time to defend cops,” I want to also address the role of righteous people of all ethnicities serving in law enforcement, and say something to police officers that I feel deeply.

In this excerpt from my novel Dominion, the main character Clarence Abernathy, a black journalist, discusses issues related to race with his friend and coworker Jake Woods (the main character of the previous novel Deadline). There’s a lot of action in the book, but this is a lengthy dialogue, one that may help you think a little differently about racial issues than a nonfiction treatment might.

My son-in-law Dan Franklin, teaching pastor at Life Bible Fellowship Church in Upland, California, shared the following thoughts on Facebook yesterday. May Jesus be honored, justice prevail, and peace be upheld for the sake of all people.

I have the greatest appreciation for Trillia Newbell, the author of United: Captured by God’s Vision for Diversity. One of the many things Trillia does is provide a commentary for the podcast The World and Everything in It. She recently shared some thoughts related to the murder of Ahmaud Arbery. Please listen carefully to what Trillia has to say and ask God to speak to you through her.

This video, from my son-in-law Dan Franklin, married to my daughter Karina, is terrific. Some believers on both sides of the debate of when we should reopen are dismissive of the specific and very different circumstances that inform people’s viewpoints.