Spirituality Column #389
April 29, 2014
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville

By Bob Walters

Getting to heaven has been in the news lately.

Just-former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, 11^th richest person in the United States (16^th in the world), recently announced he is putting $50 million of his own money in play to refute American citizen gun rights in general and the National Rifle Association in particular. 

Considering this and what he considers his other good works, Bloomberg, 72, added, “If there is a God, when I get to heaven, I'm not stopping to be interviewed.  I am heading straight in.  I have earned my place in heaven.  It's not even close."



In covering liberal politicians like Bloomberg (once a Republican, surprisingly), reporters dutifully characterize such “Heaven” references – no matter how arrogant – as cute, endearing, charming, etc., even authoritative.  Conversely, reporters reliably and energetically castigate conservative politicians for even an accurate Christian reference as hateful, some variety of “phobic,” and possibly crazy. 

In practice then, self-serving religious references by Liberals provide colorful news sidebars, but Conservatives supporting obedience, liberty, the truth of Jesus Christ, the Glory of God, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the sanctity of the Bible are spewing hate speech. 

The Bible says few people will understand Christ.  That’s easily the most provable statement in scripture.


Christians, Mormons, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus all have different views of heaven, which – “Obvious” alert – is one of the things that makes them all different.  

Bloomberg comes from an American Jewish family and he is certainly entitled to express any religious view he pleases.  He enjoys that right under the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  How ironic that his anti-NRA effort is aimed at undoing the second amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  But that’s politics, not religion.

As for Heaven, however, no amount of politicking will get you in.

Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) is commenting on heaven and religiously obtuse media, not judging Mr. Bloomberg.  82 verses: What the Bible Says About Getting Into Heaven.

Spirituality Column #388
April 22, 2014
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville

By Bob Walters

For better or worse, this year’s Easter season seemed overflowing with church, Bible, and Jesus-related news and entertainment.

The weeks leading up to Easter saw the release of several religious-themed movies.  “Son of God” and “God’s Not Dead” were specifically Christ-honoring Christian films.  “Noah,” evidently an egregiously non-biblical environmental purpose pitch (I believe the reviews and am staying away), nonetheless elevated a “Bible” story – no matter how twisted – to the top of the box office ratings.

Barna, the Christian survey folks, announced a poll saying 19 percent of Americans “use” the Bible – read it regularly and believe it – exactly matching the 19 percent of Americans who think the Bible is just a book of stories and occasionally helpful life teaching.  I’m glad the first number is so high and surprised the second number is so low.  News reports, silly and shallow, treated it is a new and shocking testament to unprecedented evenness of believers vs. unbelievers.

In the first place, God’s truth does not depend on any “poll,” not even a Christian one.  Reporters can stand behind their facts, but life has taught me to stand behind my faith.  Christ came for all (John 3:16), not for a percentage.  And even with all that divine, life-giving, love-promising, eternal grace that is available, the Bible clearly tells us few people make it to the narrow gate.  Redemption is about faith, not the odds.

Then there was the headline that screamed “Harvard Scientists Authenticate ‘Wife of Jesus’ Scripture,” or some such nonsense.  The headline and lead paragraph were obviously calculated to cast doubt on both the Bible and the traditions of the Church, which teach us that Jesus was not married.

It turns out scientists had “dated” a piece of Egyptian writing to the 4^th-6^th centuries AD.  Probably gnostic or otherwise heretical in origin, the writing is evidently “real” enough – like a “real” copy of the satirical “Onion” publication – but came after the canon of the Bible was generally settled in the third century.  Something can be “real” in the world without being Truth in the heavens.  Our culture frequently forgets that.

Easter, and the preceding Christian season of Lent, is undoubtedly the most broadly “Holy” time of the year.  If ever the divine message of love, forgiveness, redemption, and eternal life embodied in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is going to popularly resonate beyond the church walls, that’s when it will.

It’s not a bad thing to have culture pay a little more attention to Christianity, but it’s important to be able to discern truth from fiction.  Our eternal lives depend on it.

Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) observes that Christmas is fun, but Easter is Holy.

Spirituality Column #387
April 15, 2014
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville

By Bob Walters

Spirituality Column #386
April 8, 2014
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville

By Bob Walters

If you believe in Jesus Christ, go see the movie “God’s Not Dead.”

If you do not believe, marginally believe, or are honestly on the fence or confused by Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, the Cross, religion, church, Creation, salvation or any particular purpose at all for human life, I really hope you see “God’s Not Dead.”

Here’s what will happen.

Believers will clap, cry, cheer, identify, murmur, nod, smile, sneer, shake their heads and finally breathe a sigh of Hallelujah! that a God movie “gets it right.”  The movie is our whole culture in a classroom, our pain in a crucible, and our joy in a compelling story.  It’s a wonderful exposition of describing the reason for our faith in Christian truth in the setting of courageous every-day ministry.  I left smiling broadly.

The not-so-into-Christianity viewers in the theater, first of all, will either be annoyed by the Christian believers’ reactions or possibly embarrassed for them, thinking them naïve or dull-witted.  But on the screen they’ll see very recognizable, every-day, secular anti-God culture in an unusual environment – an environment that returns intelligent, loving, on-point fire from the Christian position.

Typically, whether in the media, entertainment, or academics, the secular passes for truth and the worldly gets a pass.  Rather than being defensive, “God’s Not Dead” plays Godly offense in a smart, determined, informative and powerful kind of way.

What I’d say to a non-believer is that “God’s Not Dead” depicts what Christians really think, do, pray for, believe and go through on a daily basis – both good and bad.  I hope they understand that the argument, rationale, faith, courage, worldly fallenness, anger, love, fear, and self-centered sin depicted in the movie applies dramatically to both Christians and non-Christians.

Christian’s aren’t saved because they are better people – we surely are not.