Articles for tag: Sex Marriage

July 1, 2022

Kent E. Fillinger

Current Trends in Dating, Marriage, and Parenting

Current Trends in Dating, Marriage, and Parenting

By Kent E. Fillinger When I was young, whenever a boy and girl played together on the school playground, the other kids typically would tease them by singing “The Kissing Song”: “[Boy’s name] and [girl’s name], sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in the baby carriage!” The order prescribed in that song is being followed less and less these days. The purpose of this article is to explore recent data on dating, marriage, and parenting to help church leaders better understand current trends to help shape future teaching and ministry possibilities. DATING

September 1, 2021

Rick Chromey

The 4-1-1 on 9/11: How a Terrorist Attack On America Changed Everything

American generational history is defined by marker events. Terrible assassinations. Catastrophic disasters. Tragic failures. Bloody wars. Economic depressions. From Bunker Hill to Gettysburg to Vietnam, America has been shaped by Thomas Paine’s “the times that try men’s souls.” For those born in the last half of the 20th century, no event proved more horrific than the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. That moment was our generation’s “Pearl Harbor.” In its wake came transformational change in how America socialized, worked, learned, played, and churched. In telephone vocabulary, 9-1-1 is an emergency assistance call. So it’s strangely fitting that September 11,

June 14, 2020

Bob Russell

The Impact of Politics on the Church

By Bob Russell Imagine that a godly couple unexpectedly inherits $10 million. How should they react? Their first response should be one of deep gratitude both to the benefactor and to God, the giver of every good gift. There should also be an overwhelming sense of responsibility to be wise stewards and not squander their fortune. Unearned wealth could spoil their kids or destroy their faith if unprepared, so they need to train their children to be sensible money managers. The Bible says, “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful” (1 Corinthians

March 4, 2020

Christian Standard

Christians Team Up to Help Kenyan Become a Doctor (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon As a boy growing up in Kenya, Daniel Koitatoi wanted to become a physician, but he faced many barriers, including the cost of medical college and his obligation as the eldest son to help his siblings get through school. CMF International shared the story of how several Christians came together to help Daniel achieve his dreams, including missionaries Gary and Judy Woods and Lynn and Dori Cazier, FAME, and First Christian Church of Decatur, Ill. In the process, Daniel transitioned from helping FCC’s medical teams that served in Kenya to taking the lead

March 1, 2018

Christian Standard

Should Christian Leaders Take a Stand on Political Issues?

By Bob Russell A popular Christian blogger recently suggested ministers should avoid preaching “anything political” because that’s an automatic turnoff to most seekers. He pointed out that when preachers take a position on contentious cultural issues they minimize opportunities for evangelism—especially with millennials. He applauded one of the leading ministers in America who recently announced he would no longer preach about homosexuality because it was such a polarizing subject.   WHY CONFRONT CONTROVERSIAL POLITICAL ISSUES? That may sound like good counsel because, after all, our ultimate hope isn’t in politics but in Jesus Christ. But think about the many hot-button

August 30, 2015

Christian Standard

Will Marriage Be Declared Unconstitutional?

By T.R. Robertson The idea seems unthinkable. But same-sex couples aren”t the only ones saying marriage laws have discriminated against them. How will the church react if the government redefines marriage altogether? The federal statute is invalid, for no legitimate purpose overcomes the purpose and effect to disparage and to injure those whom the State, by its marriage laws, sought to protect in personhood and dignity. By seeking to displace this protection and treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others, the federal statute is in violation of the Fifth Amendment. Those are the words of Justice

July 4, 2015

Christian Standard

Five Ways Churches Can Maintain a Faithful Gospel Witness in a Changing Legal Culture

By Christiana Holcomb The Constitution”s freedom of religion guarantee may not be enough to protect your ministry from litigation. But these steps will help. Editor’s note: This article, written before the Supreme Court gay marriage decision, offers strategies even more urgent for churches to adopt today. America is in the midst of a seismic cultural shift in matters of faith, family, and freedom. More than 35 states now issue same-sex marriage licenses. An increasing number of scholars and judges insist that the First Amendment protects only the freedom to believe””not the freedom to live out those beliefs. At least one state

February 13, 2015

Christian Standard

The Case for the Case for Marriage

By Jenny Tyree Knowles What would change if the reasoned case for marriage was examined and taught to young adults, rather than implied and “caught”? The result of millennials (Americans born between 1981 and 2000) “catching” the cultural importance of marriage is playing out right now. Polls show that the broad majority of millennials support the redefinition of marriage. When the talking heads predict the future of marriage, they point to the current opinions of millennials to tell us that the redefinition of marriage is inevitable. So how will the church respond? What is at stake? Some believe it is

February 6, 2015

Christian Standard

Pondering the Future of Marriage

By Jon Weatherly “The Gospel, Homosexuality, and the Future of Marriage” was the title of the conference convened by the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) of the Southern Baptist Convention, October 27″“29, 2014, in Nashville, Tennessee. Around 1,300 people attended, hearing speakers and panels from the SBC and beyond discuss the church”s response to contentious issues raised by the widespread legalization and popular approval of same-sex marriage. I attended all sessions of the conference. My aim was to listen as someone outside the Southern Baptist Convention, learn what I could from an event organized by a leading Christian organization

September 24, 2013

Mark A. Taylor

A Difficult Standard, a Tricky Balance

By Mark A. Taylor The September 20 issue of The Wall Street Journal quoted from a 12,000-word interview Pope Francis had given to the Italian Jesuit journal Civiltá Cattolica. “We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage, and the use of contraceptive methods,” he said. While affirming that the teachings of the church are clear about these matters, he added, “It is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time. We have to find a new balance; otherwise even the moral edifice of the church is likely to fall like a house of cards.” While

July 9, 2013

Christian Standard

Our Own Defense of Marriage Acts

By Mark A. Taylor Last year, just before my daughter”s wedding, a friend e-mailed me about the big day. “My daughter”s wedding was the most exhilarating and exhausting day of my life,” he said, and soon I would know what he meant. But it occurs to me that exhilarating and exhausting describe the whole gamut of married and family life. For example, it”s exhilarating finally to hold a newborn baby, especially after an exhausting labor and drawn-out pregnancy. Likewise, each milestone of the new preschooler”s life is exhilarating: first words, first steps, first everything! And keeping up with her is

August 28, 2012

Christian Standard

Painful Truth with Overwhelming Love

By Mark A. Taylor More than once in recent years, Christian Standard has advocated for compassion toward homosexuals. Most recently we published Mark Moore”s plea1 that those with same-sex attraction need not identify themselves as “gay” and the church should not ostracize them. Last year we reprinted Ben Cachiaras”s advice2 to his church when the issue of same-sex marriage was before the Maryland state legislature. In a piece filled with calls for sensitivity toward gay couples, he wrote, “We must be extra careful about how we discuss this so we don”t give any reasons for Christians to be misunderstood as uncaring or

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