Pastor Gabe's Old Blog

This morning, I listened to a sermon from Tullian Tchividjian. It wasn't a sermon he preached yesteryear. It was a sermon he preached yesterday. And he wasn't preaching as a guest speaker in someone else's church. He was preaching in his own church that he has planted in Florida. Tullian Tchividjian—who is the grandson of famed preacher Billy Graham; who followed the honorable D. James Kennedy as the pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church; who made a shipwreck of his ministry when he committed adultery with a member of his congregation; who was revealed to have had another affair; who threw his wife under the bus by making it look like she was the cause of their marriage problems; who was defrocked, then received another pastorate, and broke trust with that church; who has divorced, remarried, and returned to Florida to start his own church—is back. Truth be told, Tullian was never gone. I can't remember a time in the last 4 years since his scandals were firs...

Recently, author and former megachurch pastor Joshua Harris announced that he had left his wife and the Christian faith. The announcement came in a most 2019 way: via Instagram with a picture of himself brooding over a scenic lake (your typical Pondering Pond photo). Most known for his breakout book I Kissed Dating Goodby e, it was all too easy for a plethora of articles to emerge under the heading "Joshua Harris Kisses Christianity Goodbye." Mere days later, Harris was posting pictures of himself at a gay pride event. Some have dared to speculate that Harris's next big announcement will be to come out of the closet. Gossip aside, it's clear that Harris does not intend his departure from the faith to be a quiet, contemplative step back. He will capitalize on his own name and the bankability of a star-pastor going rogue, having said he plans to start a podcast about his "journey." Harris is not a Christian, and he's proud of it. Regarding Harris...

The Bible Project is an online series of free animated videos about, what else, the Bible. When I was first introduced to The Bible Project, I was quite impressed with the quality and had no problem recommending these videos to others. But someone later contacted me and suggested I take a deeper look, particularly in the way TBP creator Tim Mackie addressed the doctrine of the atonement. What I found was astonishing, and little by little more problematic teachings became apparent. After watching dozens of videos, some of Tim Mackie's sermons, and listening to a few podcasts, I did a video of my own entitled What's Wrong With the Bible Project? (which I tried to keep under 20 minutes). The Bible Project fans weren't fans. With nearly 500 comments (edit: which have now been disabled), I've been called everything from a "chump critic," to a "hack," and a "hater." I've been told I'm "just jealous," "misguided,...