Why accountability and integrity still matter

Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby is at the center of a whirlwind this week in what may turn out to be one of the most pivotal gambling storylines in American sports history. In an extreme infraction of NCAA rules, Sorsby made thousands of bets worth upwards of $90,000, many of which were placed on his own team in his two years with the Indiana University football team.

However, unlike the mythologized events of Shoeless Joe Jackson and the 1919 White Sox, or the blacklisting of Pete Rose from the Hall of Fame, Sorsby’s football career may continue on without a hitch.

On Monday, Lubbock County Judge Ken Curry granted Sorsby a temporary injunction against the NCAA, pending his trial, allowing him to continue practicing and competing with Texas Tech. His trial is set for February 8, 2027, roughly two weeks after the 2027 National Championship game. Should the injunction stand, Sorsby will miss just the first two games of the season.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Brendan Sorsby and the value of facing consequences →

SpaceX will launch the largest public offering in history today, valuing the company at $1.77 trillion. The company’s founder, Elon Musk, owns roughly half of its stock, which would put his personal net worth at more than $1 trillion when combined with his stakes in Tesla, The Boring Company, Neuralink, and other ventures.

While Musk was already the richest man in the world, he is now set to become wealthier than the next four richest people combined. That kind of wealth is difficult to fathom, but these figures might help make the point:

• Since he co-founded the first of his US tech and engineering companies 31 years ago, Musk has amassed an average of roughly $59,492 per minute, totaling $3.6 million per hour and $602 million per week.
• His net worth exceeds that of 125 countries.
• His fortune is equal to 3 percent of the US GDP.
• He could buy every team in the NFL and the NBA with $500 billion left over.

And if you’re still having trouble appreciating just how large $1 trillion is, perhaps the best way to convey its magnitude is to think of it in terms of time. One million seconds is equal to roughly 11.5 days. By comparison, 1 billion seconds amounts to 31 years and 8 months, while 1 trillion seconds equals 31,688 years.

Continue reading Denison Forum – SpaceX to make Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire →

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Michigan’s House of Representatives have all proclaimed June as “Fidelity Month.” This emphasis on faith, family, and country began as a grassroots movement started by Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program at Princeton University.

You might think Prof. George initiated Fidelity Month in response to Pride Month, but this is not so. Prof. George explained:

Back in the spring of 2023, I happened to read a report in the Wall Street Journal. It included polling data showing that the belief of Americans in certain core values—values that had traditionally been sources of unity and strength for Americans—had very considerably diminished over the past decade or decade and a half. I’m talking about values such as religion, family, and patriotism.

And these values have indeed been sources of our unity and strength in the United States of America because we are not a nation who can look to a common racial heritage or ethnic heritage, or even a common religious tradition or cultural heritage for our unity and strength. We Americans come from many, many different racial and ethnic backgrounds. We come from different traditions of faith. Our cultural histories are very different. So what do we have in common? What binds us together? Especially when times get tough—what are our sources of unity and strength?

According to Prof. George, “The polling showed that one value had increased in importance in the minds of Americans, and that was money. Religion went down, family went down, country went down, but the belief in the importance of money went up.”

In response, he announced on his Facebook and Twitter accounts, “By the power vested in me by absolutely no one, henceforth the month of June will be Fidelity Month.” The movement he launched has now grown across the nation.

“When you eat and are full”

I believe there is a simple reason our commitment to religion, family, and country has declined as the importance of money has risen. Think of the first three as one side of a seesaw and the fourth as the other. The higher our love for God, family, and country, the lower our love for money as a mere means to these ends. The reverse is true as well.

Why is this?

In Deuteronomy 6, Moses warned the Israelites as they prepared to enter their promised land:

When the Lᴏʀᴅ your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant—and when you eat and are full, then take care lest you forget the Lᴏʀᴅ, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery (vv. 10–12).

But this makes no sense. If the people built nothing they are about to own and enjoy, if God provided it all, why would they “forget” him when they “eat and are full”?

For the same reason we do: Humans want to be our own god (Genesis 3:5). We want to be self-reliant so no one can take away what we rely upon. We want to own what we have as if we deserve it, lest it be taken from us and given to those who deserve it more.

The more religious among us are willing and sometimes even glad to give some of what we have to God and his projects. We will give time, money, and service to causes we deem worthy.

But make no mistake: it is our time, our money, and our service we are donating. We begin each day as the rightful owners of the next twenty-four hours and choose where and how to spend “our” time through “our” day.

Nothing I wrote in the last paragraph is true.

Born in Houston and not Pyongyang

Paul asked, “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7).

Did you have anything to do with your conception and birth? Can you manufacture the next minute of your life? Do you “own” anything in this world that God Almighty cannot take from you this moment?

I was born to loving parents, a privilege many do not experience. The abilities with which I work were given to me apart from any merit on my part. I have had opportunities that much of the world’s population has not, through no fault of their own.

I did nothing to be born in Houston, Texas, and not Pyongyang, North Korea.

The fact that I do not have pancreatic cancer (so far as I know) and Ben Sasse does is no merit on my part or demerit on his. In short, my life is a gift, as is yours.

Fidelity to God’s purpose during Fidelity Month and all year long is therefore an appropriate expression of gratitude for his grace.

Wouldn’t you agree?

Quote for the day:

“God desires from us more fidelity to the little things that he places in our power than ardor for great things that do not depend upon us.” — St. Francis de Sales

Our latest website resources:

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• Is Christianity true? Answering the hardest questions about God, Jesus, and the Bible

Denison Forum

Graham Platner, a candidate for the US Senate in Maine, has generated national headlines for weeks. Among the controversies he has faced, his wife stated that he sent sexually explicit messages to several women while married.

Nonetheless, Democrats in his state elected him last night as their nominee.

Ken Paxton, a candidate for the US Senate in Texas, has similarly been accused by his wife of adultery. Nonetheless, Republicans in his state elected him recently as their nominee.

My purpose is not to endorse either candidate, their parties, or their opponents. It is rather to respond to the remarkable dichotomy in our culture between our politics and our personal morals.

According to Pew Research Center, 90 percent of US adults consider adultery to be “morally wrong”; only 2 percent called it “morally acceptable,” while the rest said it is “not a moral issue.” And yet political figures from Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson to Bill Clinton and Donald Trump have been accused of it. A Wikipedia “List of federal political sex scandals in the United States” contains ninety-four entries. Some faced political consequences as a result, but many (if not most) did not.

Why is this?

And why is the question relevant to us all, even (and especially) those who are not in politics and who have been faithful to our spouses?

“That is about the best we can do”

In a recent New York Times column, Ross Douthat writes that “early-21^st-century Americans are profoundly divided about what being moral means.” He explains:

We have enough of a consensus to keep society together, which is why there aren’t a lot of people out there arguing, say, that it’s actually good that a politician cheated on his wife. But once you get beyond the theft-murder-adultery basics, we’re in a world of factional moralities and profound metaphysical divides (his italics).

In such a world, he suggests, moral failings can actually be a political advantage if they assure voters that a candidate is not going to force their moralisms on others. Candidates who espouse and exhibit exemplary ethics, by contrast, might seek to impose a stringent morality that’s alien to the rest of us.

To illustrate: The New York Times reports that when medical aid-in-dying laws are enacted in Illinois and the District of Columbia this fall, nearly a third of Americans will live in states where euthanasia is legal. The article notes, “Despite widespread support in polls, the number of people who actually go through with the practice remains very small.” The rest would not choose euthanasia for themselves, but they apparently believe that they have no right to make such a choice for others.

In a tolerance-centered, post-truth society, the last thing we want is others telling us what to do.

Movie critic and writer Roger Ebert gave voice to what many Americans think about life and happiness: “I believe that if, at the end of it all, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do.”

Ebert says he does not fear death because “I believe there is nothing on the other side of death to fear.” Accordingly, he wrote, “All I require of a religion is that it not insist I believe in it.”

“The small gets big and the big gets small”

Writing today’s article has made me deeply sad. Sad for a country whose moral standards have become so personalized as to be virtually nonexistent. Sad for those who tolerate behavior that is profoundly harmful to those who choose it. Sad for those who believe that their beliefs about the afterlife somehow determine its reality, akin to claiming that my denial of the sunset will prevent the sun from setting.

But if all I do with this article is shrug my shoulders and go about my day, I will miss the profound opportunity to admit the ways I am no different.

I sometimes succumb to temptations that personalize morality while denying biblical truth. I sometimes do not share the gospel with people in danger of spending eternity in hell, which is obviously the most harmful outcome of all. And I sometimes ignore the reality that in the afterlife “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Does any of this resonate with you?

If so, this is the necessary first step to experiencing what John Donne called a “holy discontent.” Such restlessness is vital for our souls, since we must be discontented with where we are before we will follow God to where he wants us to be.

The author Jennie Allen urges us to believe that God has a “great story” for each of us. When he “prompts our hearts and motivates us to participate in his unfolding story,” she says, we experience “deep joy and satisfaction in realizing that our insignificant moments often contribute to matters of eternal significance.”

As a result, she assures us, “The small gets big and the big gets small, and together we get to be part of giving people God.”

Will you pray for “holy discontent” for your heart and for your nation today?

Quote for the day:

“Great people do not do great things; God does great things through surrendered people.” —Jennie Allen

Our latest website resources:

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• America’s vice problem, Iran update, Gen Z box office boom, 60 Minutes turmoil & NBA Finals

Denison Forum

Technological idolatry and the human quest for meaning

Way of the Future is an AI-worshipping church dedicated to “the realization, acceptance, and worship of a Godhead based on Artificial Intelligence.” Another group called Theta Noir organizes rituals around a supposedly sentient AI deity called MENA, which its followers venerate through cryptographic liturgies and multimedia ceremonies.

According to Jason Blazakis, a terrorism expert writing in the Wall Street Journal, these are examples of “Spiralism,” an informal movement where followers share AI-generated manifestos and what followers consider to be revelations from a conscious machine. A violent version is the Zizians—according to Mr. Blazakis, this is a network of people who “are convinced that a coming superintelligence will decide the fate of every living thing and that violence now is justified to shape what that AI will become.” The group is linked to six violent deaths so far.

What explains such idolatry?

Continue reading Denison Forum – AI-worshiping churches, Spiralism, and Zizians →

I am writing today to offer hope where you might not expect it.

First, the news: Iran fired missiles at Israel this morning in several waves of attacks. Sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and explosions from missile intercepts could be heard over the city. Explosions were also heard in Tehran shortly before noon local time, hours after Israel said it had struck military targets in central and western Iran.

This was the first exchange of strikes between the two nations since a shaky ceasefire was called in April. As the New York Times reports, “The fighting has propelled the Middle East back to the precipice of the full-scale war that began in February.” Early Monday, President Trump posted on Truth Social, “Israel and Iran must immediately stop ‘shooting.’”

Closer to home, five people were stabbed at New York City’s Penn Station last night; the suspect is now in police custody. And a search continued yesterday for two men who appeared to fire guns at each other at a popular street festival in Toledo, Ohio, shooting at least twelve other people in the process. The victims ranged in ages from fourteen to sixty-one; two are reported to be in critical condition.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Israel and Iran trade attacks for the first time since April →

Last week, we discussed what it means to trust God and his word as the source not only of our blessings but also of our sense of freedom and independence.

But what happens when a culture comes to see obedience to God as the source of persecution and disparagement? How can a nation live in a manner that the Lord can bless when it has come to accept a sense of toleration and an understanding of morality that are simply incompatible with the kind of morality that he asks of us?

Unfortunately, America seems intent on finding out. And there are a few areas in which that is more clearly demonstrated than in our approach to sex and sexuality.

So, in light of that struggle, what might God say to us today?

Abiding by God’s standards

In Genesis 13, we read that “the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord” (v. 13). God called the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah “very grave” (Genesis 18:20) and could not find ten who were righteous in Sodom (Genesis 18:32).

Continue reading Denison Forum – The consequences of rejecting God’s design for holiness and sexuality →

How Christians can answer God’s call to be America’s moral compass

Throughout much of this week, Dr. Jim Denison’s Daily Articles have focused on issues of morality in the culture while providing guidance on how to embrace a more biblical system of values amid pressure to do otherwise. It’s an important conversation, particularly because our culture has little hope of embracing Christ’s teachings if Christians aren’t doing so first.

I must admit, though, the transition from reading each morning’s articles to diving into the day’s news shortly thereafter has felt particularly jarring.

It’s not necessarily that this week has seen an abnormal influx of people rejecting biblical values, though examples have not been hard to find. After all, stories to that effect are present every day.

Rather, I think the juxtaposition of this week’s theme in the Daily Article with the news of what’s happening in our culture and our world has stood out because it’s made me wonder how much our culture still cares about morality in the first place.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Does morality still matter in America? →

Four biblical principles

Some years ago, I wrote a Daily Article in response to statements made by a well-known Christian figure. My article was sharply critical of his published words. The next day, I received a very kind and heartfelt response from his daughter. It turned out that she read my article each day and wanted me to know that there was another side to her father’s reported statements.

Her gracious response reminded me that I should never write or speak on a subject without considering those for whom it is highly personal. This principle applies especially to the Pride Month article I published yesterday.

As I wrote that article, I had in mind some dear friends whose sons are gay. I also thought of gay and lesbian friends I have known over the years. However, there wasn’t space to offer reflections on the inherent balance in “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15), so I’ll attempt to do so today.

How do we take biblical stands on moral issues in ways that help rather than harm? How do we offer truth with compassion? How do we address divisive issues out of love for our Lord and our neighbor (Matthew 22:37–39)?

Let’s consider four biblical principles.

One: Be honest about our own failings.

When I was a seminary professor teaching philosophy of religion, a chapel speaker taught me a lesson I have not forgotten. The previous week, it was revealed that a very prominent pastor in our area had been engaged in numerous sexual affairs. The story was all over the local news.

The speaker began his message by referencing the scandal. I assumed he would rebuke the pastor’s sins and warn us against following his example. Instead, he pointed his finger at us and said, “There but for the grace of God go you.” Then he pointed at himself and said, “And there but for the grace of God go I.”

Whether we are speaking about LGBTQ issues or any other moral subject, it is vital that we do so with a spirit of humility. I may not be committing your sins, but you may not be committing mine. As Henri Nouwen reminded us, wounded healers are often the best healers.

Concerning the subject at hand, it is important to remember that sexual sin is not unpardonable, heterosexual sexual sin is just as sinful as homosexual sexual sin, and God loves LGBTQ people as much as he loves everyone else. As a result, we are not superior people telling inferior people what to do—we are beggars telling other beggars where we found bread.

Two: Submit to the Spirit.

I’ll admit that it is hard for me to love people who are engaged in behavior I consider to be unbiblical and harmful to society. Abortion and euthanasia supporters come to mind: their activism costs unborn and infirm humans their lives. LGBTQ activists seeking to influence children during Pride Month is similarly frustrating for me.

But as St. Augustine noted, God loves each of us as if there were only one of us. Because “God is love” (1 John 4:8), he cannot not love us. If I submit every day to his Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), he will produce the “fruit” of “love” in my heart and life (Galatians 5:22). I will be empowered to love my neighbor as myself (Matthew 22:39) and act out of such love in ways that are redemptive rather than hurtful.

This is a gift I need to receive and share every day. So do you.

Three: Declare and defend biblical truth.

You’ve probably heard the St. Francis of Assisi quote, “Preach the gospel at all times. When necessary, use words.” There are two problems here. First, Francis never spoke these words. Second, they’re wrong: in preaching the gospel, it is always necessary to use words (Romans 10:14).

People need and deserve to know what God says about the challenges they face. The Bible speaks directly to LGBTQ issues, for example, with truth that is clear and redemptive. (For some of our ministry’s resources on this subject, click here.) Peter’s injunction is the guidance we need:

In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame (1 Peter 3:15–16).

Every word of this text is vital for our society and for our souls.

Four: Pray for transformed hearts with urgency.

It is the job of the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin, save our souls, and conform us to the character of Christ (cf. John 16:8–11; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Romans 8:29). Our role is to share biblical truth in love as the Spirit leads us and then to pray for hearts to be transformed by God’s grace.

Such intercession requires both persistence and urgency. Persistence, because changing hearts can be a long process, and urgency, because broken souls and fallen society hang in the balance.

Do you know someone who needs biblical truth shared with humility in compassionate love? Someone who needs your ongoing intercession and personal encouragement?

I especially appreciate Max Lucado’s testimony here:

“I choose kindness. I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me.”

With whom will you “choose kindness” today?

Quote for the day:

“Compassion is born when we discover in the center of our own existence not only that God is God and man is man, but also that our neighbor is really our fellow man.” —Henri J. M. Nouwen

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Denison Forum

Why a biblical response to Pride Month is relevant to us all

In honor of Pride Month, the Boston Public Library has scheduled nineteen drag queen story hours across its branches, most of them designed for children ages eighteen months to five years old. There will also be a Pride-themed kids concert with a focus on “LGBTQ youth/family pride” and craft nights at which children can “make fidgets, keychain decorations, and wearable art with an LGBTQ+ Pride theme.”

Continuing the focus on children and teenagers, the New York Times is recommending nine comic books and graphic novels with LGBTQ protagonists timed for Pride Month. The decades-long drive to normalize LGBTQ ideology is working: GLAAD (an LGBTQ advocacy group) surveyed the ten largest entertainment distributors in the US, reporting that 23.6 percent of their films included an LGBTQ character, which is 2.5 times higher than the percentage of the LGBTQ population in the US.

A strategy on four levels

As I have often noted, this movement seeks to normalize LGBTQ activity, legalize it, stigmatize those who disagree, and criminalize such opposition. The first three stages have already been reached; if the so-called Equality Act or similar legislation becomes law, we’ll be at stage four.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Nineteen drag queen story hours and nine LGBTQ comic books →

Four common mistakes we make with sexual sin

If you’re looking for a nice devotional thought today, this isn’t it: A parasitic fly that eats animals alive has been found in Mexican sheep thirty-one miles south of the US border. The New World screwworm lays eggs in wounds on any warm-blooded animal. When the eggs hatch, the larvae burrow through living flesh, eventually killing the host. An outbreak in Texas would cost the state’s ranching economy an estimated $1.8 billion.

I begin with this story because it illustrates the conversation we began yesterday. Like a screwworm that eats living flesh, sexual sin destroys our minds, marriages, society, and souls. Christians are by no means immune: 75 percent of Christian men and 40 percent of Christian women admit that they view pornography. In a recent survey, 23 percent of the pastors who responded admitted to sexually inappropriate behavior with someone other than their wives.

In what ways are Christians especially susceptible to sexual temptation? Let’s consider four common mistakes we make.

One: Not preparing to face temptation

Christians are a threat to Satan and thus the targets of his wrath (1 Peter 5:8). He wants to defeat us spiritually and destroy our witness.

Continue reading Denison Forum – The New World screwworm and a warning for our souls →

After three seasons and twenty-six episodes, the HBO series Euphoria officially ended last night. According to Wikipedia, the show is “an American psychological teen drama television series” that “follows a group of high schoolers in the fictional town of East Highland, California.”

The article reports that Euphoria is the fourth most-watched HBO series since 2004. It has received twenty-five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and nine wins. Tellingly, it has also been nominated for the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series for “excellence in media portrayal of LGBTQ people and themes.”

And it has been widely criticized for its pervasive nudity and pornographic content. The Parents Television and Media Council reported that its first season contained “child rape, graphic nudity, pornography, drug use, [and] explicit language.” Common Sense Media similarly warns viewers that the show “features lots of boundary-pushing content related to sex, drugs, and sexual violence.” Both articles contain descriptions of scenes that are too graphic for me to repeat.

At this point, I hope this topic seems so irrelevant to you that you’re wondering whether to continue reading. I would feel the same way if I were you. Since HBO carries such immoral content, my wife and I don’t even have a subscription. I know that Euphoria and shows like it are absolutely off limits for Christians.

Upon reflection, however, I realized that this topic is highly relevant—for me, for you, and for everyone else—for a reason I had not considered prior to writing this article.

The Talmud forbade “the sin of looking”

We are familiar with Jesus’ warning, “Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). He spoke these words as part of his Sermon on the Mount, which was delivered to his disciples and to the crowd of Jews that gathered to hear him.

In their culture, looking at sexual images was strictly forbidden. In the Talmud, the tractate Shabbat 64b warned against those who “nourished their eyes from nakedness,” described as “the sin of looking.” In Avodah Zarah 20a, the Talmud similarly forbade looking at women in ways that might lead to sexual arousal.

As a result, Jesus’ warning was not directed at pornographic content because such content did not exist in his Jewish culture. When Christianity advanced into the Roman world, where erotic art was prevalent, the New Testament applied Jesus’ warning by commanding readers to avoid “sexual immorality” (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:18; Colossians 3:5), translating porneia, the word from which we get “pornography.”

Here’s my point: even if you and I treat sexual images as if we were first-century Jews, Jesus’ warning against lust is still relevant to us.

Why is this?

Three facts about sexual sin

According to our Lord, a person who looks at a woman lustfully “has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” We can understand his logic: they have broken their marriage vows in their thoughts, though not in their actions.

But why is this so dangerous?

One answer is that sinful thoughts inevitably lead to sinful actions: “Desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:15). Every adulterous act began with adulterous thoughts. Divorce rates double when people start watching pornography, devastating marriages and families.

A second fact is that pornography and lustful thoughts often become addictive and even damage brain function. They are a mental, emotional, and spiritual cancer that always metastasizes (cf. Numbers 33:55; John 8:34).

A third factor relates to our witness: If others see us watching sexual content in a movie, television show, or online, they will likely question the sincerity of our faith and will see our sin as endorsing their own.

A question I had not considered

You probably knew all of this prior to reading this article, as did I. Here’s a question I had not considered before today: Does sexual sin damage people and society more pervasively than any other sin?

Of the sins forbidden by the Ten Commandments, murder and violent crime are obviously the most deadly. However, according to the US Department of Justice, 2.3 percent of Americans were victims of a violent crime in 2024. By contrast, 73 percent of US teens have seen porn online, and 58 percent of adults have watched pornography as well.

Considering the other Commandments, it seems likely that more people steal, lie, or covet than commit sexual sins. But do theft, deceit, and coveting devastate families and society as broadly?

Tomorrow we’ll discuss biblical responses that lead to victory over sexual temptation. For today, let’s admit that this sin is in fact poisonous to our minds, marriages, families, and souls.

A counselor friend of mine once noted that Satan is a great economist. He loves to tempt us to commit sins that will cause the most damage to the most people, like a rock thrown into a pond that produces ripples touching every shore.

Is sexual sin such a rock in your life today?

Quote for the day:

“Peace of heart is the natural outcome of purity of heart.” —Spiros Zodhiates

Our latest website resources:

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• How literally should Christians read the Bible? Approaching Scripture in its context
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Denison Forum

Approaching Scripture in its context

It is common for Christians to debate how to read Scripture. Some argue to read it purely literally, and some argue to read it mostly figuratively; so, where should believers draw the line? The truth in this instance is in the middle, as both are required to read Scripture accurately.

Often, this is by no means a simple task, as it demands reading and seeing different biblical passages in their original contexts. Some of these contexts are being heavily debated in the current culture, such as women in ministry, eschatology (the end times), Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, Philippians 4:13, and how to interpret Romans 7.

If one reads Scripture with preconceived notions or bias, it can greatly hinder or harm the interpretation of the passage. It is important to remember that the Bible was not written to us; it was written for us.

For example, the author of this article—and, I suspect, most of its readers—are modern Western thinkers attempting to read and interpret an ancient Eastern text from thousands of years ago. The way we view history, events, language, and communication is worlds different from how they did. Thus, to be responsible readers of Scripture, we must seek out how the authors of Scripture intended their Spirit-inspired writings to be read and understood.

Continue reading Denison Forum – How literally should Christians read the Bible? →

As we discussed last week, Scripture lists several reasons why God judges nations that are of particular relevance to America. However, each is also tied closely with a reason why the Lord might bless our nation as well. Today, we’re going to look at the first of those reasons: Our response to God’s word.

Disobedience to God’s word is a “blanket” sin that covers all that follows. Those who are disobedient to his word must face his judgment, since he cannot be a holy God while rewarding sin or a loving Father while blessing that which harms his children.

For example, God upbraided Israel prior to the death of Joshua: “You have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?” (Judges 2:2). Accordingly, he warned that he would not “drive out” the nations before them, but “they shall become thorns in your sides” (v. 3).

The Lord similarly revealed to Zechariah:

They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great anger came from the Lord of hosts . . . “and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate.” (Zechariah 7:12, 14)

Continue reading Denison Forum – Learning to depend on God’s word →

Earlier this week, Pope Leo XIV presented his first encyclical: a letter from the pope to the Catholic Church and its leaders. The 42,300-word document, titled Magnifica Humanitas, or “Magnificent Humanity,” outlined his thoughts on technology—with a specific focus on artificial intelligence—and called for remembering the importance of people as we integrate it into our lives.

While the document was presented on Monday, it was actually signed on May 15 to mark the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum, an encyclical written by his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, in 1891 to provide Catholics with guidance amid the Industrial Revolution. The current pope sees AI as potentially having a similarly revolutionary impact on our world.

At the same time, his letter encourages Catholics and all “people of good will” to be wary of the potential impact artificial intelligence could have on our culture, without being fearful of the technology itself. In his view, the chief danger is far less dystopian than many of the books and movies featuring a future dominated by AI might suggest.

Rather than artificial intelligence conquering humanity on its way to taking over the world, Leo suggests a far greater risk is humanity giving up our position in God’s created order and elevating our own creation instead.

Continue reading Denison Forum – The new Babel: Reclaiming the image of God in a world of AI →

Why Housing First is the most Christ-like response to homelessness

On June 1st, the Trump Administration is changing how homelessness-reduction initiatives are funded. According to an official statement, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is reversing the “status quo of ‘housing first’ and ‘harm reduction,’” arguing that those approaches “have failed at great cost to those suffering on our streets and to working American taxpayers.” Instead, the administration is prioritizing treatment-focused responses aimed at addressing addiction and mental illness.

On its surface, that sounds compassionate. Addiction should be treated. Mental illness should be taken seriously. Christians, of all people, should care deeply about helping people heal.

Yet the new funding requirements misunderstand both the causes of homelessness and the conditions people need in order to recover.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness defines Housing First as an approach that “does not require people experiencing homelessness to address the all of their problems including behavioral health problems, or to graduate through a series of services programs before they can access housing.” This approach is founded on the belief that “people need basic necessities like food and a place to live before attending to anything less critical.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – First the roof, then the rest →

Iran said this morning that it had targeted a US air base in response to recent US military attacks. According to Forbes, a deal over the Strait of Hormuz now “hangs in [the] balance.”

The US shot down four Iranian drones and struck a ground control station near the Strait of Hormuz that its military assessed as presenting a direct threat to American forces and commercial shipping. Iran’s announcement today came as US ally Kuwait reported its air defenses were responding to “hostile missile and drone threats.”

Hours earlier, President Trump signaled that an agreement between the two sides wasn’t close. The global oil benchmark soared above $98 per barrel early this morning after reports of the attacks emerged.

When Americans were captured at the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979, ABC News covered the ongoing crisis under the title, “America Held Hostage.” It seems we have been held hostage to Iran ever since.

Our country is six times larger than theirs; our population is nearly four times larger. Our economy is over sixty times larger than theirs. They are some six thousand miles from us. And yet, for my entire adult life, Iran has been in our headlines, nearly always for nefarious reasons.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Hormuz deal “hangs in balance” as Iran targets US air base →

One of the founding distinctives of Denison Ministries is that we are stridently nonpartisan. However, there are days when my Daily Article is criticized by those who thought I was too supportive of a particular politician or party and by those who thought I was too negative toward them—and both were responding to the same article.

Today may be one of those days.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth has condemned a Memorial Day social media post by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) that featured the images and names of thirteen soldiers killed during the military conflict with Iran. The reason: the images were displayed under the words, “Remembering the Americans who have died in Trump’s war with Iran.”

Sen. Duckworth is a Purple Heart recipient who lost her legs and partial use of her right arm when the helicopter she was piloting was hit by an RPG in Iraq. She said of the post, “It is incredibly distasteful to use our heroic dead for a political attack on Memorial Day. I’m a Democrat and I condemn this post by the DNC.”

After similar criticism on both sides of the aisle, the DNC deleted the post.

A “reign of terror created by false alarms”

If you’re a Democrat, right now you want me to cite examples of Republicans committing similar acts of partisan politicization. If you’re a Republican, you want me to offer more examples of Democrats doing the same. If you’re neither, you’re shrugging your shoulders, condemning both sides, and hoping I’ll move on.

If only I could.

It would be one thing if the bitter partisanship of our day were limited to contemporary politicians and political parties, but such rancor is as old as contested elections in American history.

In 1796, supporters of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson lambasted the other side in editorials and other campaign tactics. In 1800, the rhetoric got even worse. One of Jefferson’s supporters warned that if Adams were reelected, the nation would be “divided without a cause” under a “reign of terror created by false alarms to promote domestic feud and foreign war.” Ministers supporting Adams, in turn, accused Jefferson of being an atheist and warned that his views would lead to unchecked vice in the infant nation and the judgment of God.

From then until now, politics in America have often been practiced on a level approaching religious fervor. Our next election season begins as soon as the last election is over. Our era of 24/7 news coverage, social media, and narrated algorithms turns up the heat even further.

But there’s another factor at work, one that transcends politics and is vital to us all.

“Compromise begins to resemble betrayal”

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal is titled “The Gospel According to Karl Marx.” Author and filmmaker Robert Orlando writes: “Marx argued that modern economic life had produced alienation—workers estranged from the products of their labor, from one another, and ultimately from themselves,” creating what The Communist Manifesto calls “the history of class struggles.”

Orlando, therefore, notes:

When politics adopts the structure of salvation history, it inherits the moral intensity of religion while losing its restraints. Opponents are no longer merely mistaken but obstacles to history’s inevitable future. Compromise begins to resemble betrayal.

This mindset explains why Marxist critical theory has so inflamed its adherents against Israel, evangelicals, and anyone perceived to be “oppressing” the “oppressed.” Politics becomes the means of secular “salvation” and a zero-sum game in which any means are justified by the ends.

However, such secularization of salvation predates Marx in America by generations.

“He it is that bears much fruit”

Our founding declaration famously claimed that all people are “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights” to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Note the next sentence: “To secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” The Founders believed that the government they were creating could “secure” rights endowed by our Lord.

Can any secular system fulfill this promise?

The Founders knew their secular government could flourish only if its practitioners possessed character that their system could not produce. John Adams spoke for many with his observation, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

Absent godly character, our politics have been and will always be ungodly. The same is true of business, law, and any other relational vocation. What Robert Orlando observed regarding Karl Marx’s worldview is true of all secularism: its concepts “can’t produce justice on their own, because justice depends on the moral character of the persons who act within those systems.”

Here we find yet another reason we need the intimate, transformational relationship with the living Christ we’ve been discussing this week. Our Lord was clear: “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, my italics).

Which outcome do you choose for yourself today?

Quote for the day:

“Holiness, as taught in the Scriptures, is not based upon knowledge on our part. Rather, it is based upon the resurrected Christ indwelling us and changing us into his likeness.” —A. W. Tozer

Our latest website resources:

• Does the anti-weaponization fund grant justice or subvert it?
• The altars of our culture’s excess: How gambling, drugs, and lust became our modern idols
• A choice between life or death
• Rise of antisemitism, America’s AI backlash & the heart problem underneath it all
• How to disagree better on the role of women in ministry

Denison Forum

When I read this story this morning, I knew I needed to write on it, but not for the reasons you might think.

Last Saturday, a paraglider in Austria was floating along when a Cessna 172 flew overhead and shredded her sail to pieces. The woman, identified on social media only as Sabrina, began spinning and plummeted to the earth. Somehow, she was able to pull her emergency chute and landed relatively unharmed.

In the caption of her now-viral selfie video, Sabrina writes that May 23 will always be like a second birthday to her, since she knows how lucky she is to be alive.

I have no way to connect personally with her experience, since heights and I are not friends. (When I fly, I read the entire time and pretend we’re on the ground.) Nor have I had the privilege of visiting Austria. And the next selfie video I record that goes viral will be my first.

But like Sabrina, I have had a second birthday. If you are a born-again believer, the same is true for you.

The key to the Christian life is to experience every day what we experienced on that day.

Why I won’t celebrate Rosh Hashanah

My editor makes the Daily Article possible, not only with her excellent editorial work each morning but also by handling the technology that posts the article to the website and distributes it via email. Yesterday, she and I were discussing my Memorial Day article and the fact that so many Americans seem to have lost the purpose of the day.

She and her husband have a theory: Much less of the population today knows someone who died for our country. Between World War II and Vietnam, there was a day when nearly everyone knew someone who had served, and many knew someone who had died in the service. Today, both are much less common experiences, and it’s harder to commemorate something with which we don’t have a personal relationship.

I think she’s right, and not just with regard to Memorial Day.

• Eid al-Adha is a major Islamic holiday, honoring Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son. However, I will not take part when it begins tomorrow, because I am not a Muslim.
• Saga Dawa Düchen is the holiest day of the year for Tibetan Buddhists. However, I will not take part when it is observed this Friday, because I am not a Buddhist.
• Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year. However, I will not take part when it is observed this September, because I am not Jewish.

If I lived in a nation that celebrated these holidays, I would want to find ways to participate that align with my Christian worldview. It is therefore unsurprising that secular Americans would find secular ways to celebrate Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. And it is unsurprising that Americans with no personal connection to those who died in military service to our nation would be less motivated to honor their memory in personal ways.

This principle is highly relevant not just to our culture but to our souls.

“Remember what you are saved for”

The purpose of Christianity is nothing less than reversing the Fall and restoring us to the image of God in Christ. Oswald Chambers noted, “Remember what you are saved for—that the Son of God might be manifested in your mortal flesh.” C. S. Lewis likewise noted in Mere Christianity:

The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons… are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose.

Being “born again” is therefore only the beginning of the Christian life (John 3:7). Like a spiritual baby, we are intended to grow in Christ (2 Peter 3:18) until we become like Christ (Romans 8:29). And we become like Christ by walking with Christ, living in intimate fellowship with our Savior every day, abiding in him as branches abide in the vine (John 15:5).

Being religious is not enough. Paul warned Timothy about “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power” (2 Timothy 3:5). The “appearance of godliness” changes nothing; the power of God changes everything (cf. Zechariah 4:6).

We can expect secular Americans to reject Christianity unless they see Christ in us (Colossians 1:27). If we offer only one more religion among many, why would irreligious people be interested? If our faith does not change our lives, why would they expect it to change theirs?

But if we walk in intimate fellowship with the living Lord Jesus every day, others will see Christ in us. We will demonstrate his character and compassion, speaking his truth and manifesting his love, and they cannot be the same. Some will reject us as they rejected him, but multitudes will be drawn to our Lord (cf. Matthew 8:1; 15:30).

And our lives will be restored to the purpose for which they are intended, with the abundant joy known only to those who are “more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).

“There is only one relationship that matters”

I’ll close with my favorite paragraph from My Utmost for His Highest, where Oswald Chambers noted:

There is only one relationship that matters, and that is your personal relationship to a personal Redeemer and Lord. Let everything else go, but maintain that at all costs, and God will fulfill his purpose through your life.

Then he added, “One individual life may be of priceless value to God’s purposes, and yours may be that life.” While I appreciate his wisdom, I would change “may be” to “is.”

Do you agree?

Quote for the day:

“The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.” —Elisabeth Elliot

Our latest website resources:

• A choice between life or death
• Rise of antisemitism, America’s AI backlash & the heart problem underneath it all
• Why are Americans turning against AI?
• How to disagree better on the role of women in ministry
• Three purposes behind America’s founding

Denison Forum