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False Teaching, Hell & Gay Marriage: Crosswalk's Top 10 Trending Articles of 2015

Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Crosswalk’s Trending blog kept our readers up to date with the Christian issues of today. Some of the topics were timely, such as the U.S. Supreme Court’s legalization of same-sex marriage across all fifty states. Other issues have been discussed in the Christian sphere for millennia, such as hell, sin and false teaching. The following were the most read Trending blogs of 2015:

10. Is It Wrong for a Christian to Attend a Gay Wedding?

Key Quote: “What about Jesus, though? He spent time feasting with tax collectors and speaking with outcasts. He touched the untouchable; He called the unclean. Shouldn’t we, then, go to a gay wedding to reach out to those most in need?”

What YOU Said: “I would not be able to attend a gay wedding without standing up and objecting.” -Marisol Martinez

9. 7 Sure-Fire Ways to Recognize False Teachers

Key Quote: “The prophet Jeremiah kept telling the people of Judah over and over what God planned for Jerusalem, urging them to turn from their wicked ways. But the people preferred to listen to false prophets who told them what they wanted to hear. We have to make sure we’re not doing the same.”

What YOU Said: “With all due respect, a lot of the ‘blame’ must lie with the people (sheep) themselves. Specifically, if they have no ‘love for the truth,’ they will necessarily be deceived and accepting of false teachers according to their own proclivities (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). This of course in no way *excuses* the false teachers, but it does go a long way toward explaining their overwhelming popularity today.” -Merrill Seroy

8. Is Your Church OK with These Sins?

Key Quote: “According to young adult minister Frank Powell, the church has its own “chigger problem” that we’re not paying attention to. In particular, he says that there are 9 “acceptable sins” that are lurking in our pews, and we must deal with them—otherwise, the damage will be great later.”

What YOU Said: “Interesting how he avoided the sins that would be offensive in light of our current culture; sins many churches tolerate everyday.” -Tom Savage

7. 5 Christian Clichés You Should Stop Using

Key Quote: “Sometimes, we Christians just need something to say. We feel like we should have some piece of wisdom to offer, some answer to a crisis, some hope to hold out. But sometimes, our advice isn’t as useful as us just being there in times of need. It’s like when Job has just suffered a devastating loss, and his three ‘friends’ have all the answers. They have the clichés, and Job lets them have it: ‘Doubtless you are the people, and wisdom will die with you!’ Job 12:2

What YOU Said: “I don't like the saying, ‘Everything happens for a reason.’ I think God sometimes intervenes in our lives, but when he gave us choice we have had to pay for our mistakes as well as mistakes of others. God has good plans for our lives, but He has to revise those plans according to our experiences.” -Judy Penuel Gorski

6. What Chris Pratt Said about His Faith Will Change Your Mind about Hollywood

Key Quote: “Looking at Chris Pratt on the surface, you may think the actor is just another Hollywood star. Handsome and wealthy, Pratt has appeared in a variety of movies and TV shows including ‘Guardians of the Galaxy,’ ‘Parks and Recreation,’ and ‘Zero Dark Thirty,’ just to name a few. Pratt was even the highest grossing actor of 2014, making $1.2 billion between his lead roles in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ and ‘The Lego Movie.’ But in an QPolitical article, we find that there is a lot more to Pratt than good looks and money. Particularly, we learn that Pratt is a man of faith.”

What YOU Said: This man's faith in God is remarkable. It is indeed a blessing when actors share their faith in God. I pray that God continues to use this man's testimony to encourage other actors to declare their faith, despite all the controversy in Hollywood. May God bless him and his family! -Debbie Cantin

5. 10 Questions for Christians Who Support Gay Marriage

Key Quote: “...not all Christians have been so shocked or saddened. In fact, many have blithely changed their Facebook profile images to blaze with the colors of the rainbow. They’re glad for the ruling and see no contradiction between the tenants of God’s Word and gay marriage. To those, Pastor Kevin DeYoung at The Gospel Coalition presents a list of searching and important questions:

What YOU Said: “I do not support gay marriage. I don't support hate either. I support loving our neighbor… Too many Christians and also people professing Christianity are busy spewing hatred yet have never lifted a finger to be loving and kind to their gay neighbors, or their Muslim neighbors, or their gluttonous, morbidly obese neighbors, or their prostitute neighbors, or their perpetual gossipy neighbors, etc. IF those same people would take this to the LORD in prayer instead of publicly and viciously attacking the lost, I daresay He would be pleased. GOD is not surprised by any of this. HE has a plan.” -Krista France

4. 5 Things We Believe about Hell That Are Not in the Bible

Key Quote: “There are some who believe hell is not relevant because Jesus is ‘meek and mild’ and only about love and compassion. They say that God only talked about hell in the Old Testament and transformed in the New Testament with the birth of Jesus. But this is simply not true.” 

What YOU Said: “Why all this debate?? It's as simple as this: Chose Jesus, gain heaven; reject Jesus, lose heaven & there only one other place to be, hell.” -Carol Young

3. The Most Disturbing Trend Happening in Your Church in 2015

Key Quote: “We have lots of programs, but not nearly enough discipleship. Doing more as a church doesn’t necessarily mean that people are growing. The trend toward less attendance may have much to do with us missing the point of what church is supposed to be about: helping people follow Jesus better.”

What YOU Said: The problem with all the churches around me are they are too worldly. The messages are not teaching, the pastors are to worried about trying to be funny or like Joel Osteen. They are way tuned into the club atmosphere, and the message of the bible gets lost. Another problem i see is that churches today are not teaching Morals or Values. The anything goes casual worship does not build disciples of Christ, it takes away from the message and the seriousness of sins. -Justin Price

2. Stop Taking Jeremiah 29:11 Out of Context!

Key Quote: “We often approach Jeremiah 29:11 as a security blanket: God has a plan for me that is good, so clearly this suffering I’m going through will end soon and then my flourishing will begin! But that is not at all what God was promising to the Israelites, and it’s not what he’s promising us, either.”

What YOU Said: “A fair treatment of that popular Scripture. All of God's promises are true, and we can claim them. Nevertheless, their fulfilment normally sits on conditions or requirements we love to ignore. By ignoring the context many Christians block the fulfilment of the promises in their lives.” -Lionel Merritt

1. Why is Your Church Ignoring THIS Sin?

Key Quote: “Christians in America have the Proverbs 30:15 disease. We’re like the daughters of a leech that cry “Give! Give!” We never have enough; we’re never satisfied. Instead of yearning for more of God, we yearn for more earthly stuff.”

What YOU Said: “Thank you for the definition of gluttony, and for a clarification that it applies to more than just an excess appetite for food. From what I understand about his article, excess desire of any consumable item constitutes gluttony.” -David Greaves

Publication date: December 28, 2015