Super Bowl Sunday is just around the corner. The Super Bowl has become an unofficial national holiday with 114.4 million people tuning in for the game. The Super Bowl is not just famous for football. It is also famous for its witty commercials. In previous years, the game featured 71 commercials with a cost $4.5 million per 30 second slot.

The Super Bowl is also the second largest day of food consumption in our nation. The only day we eat more is Thanksgiving. During the Super Bowl, Americans will eat 1.23 billion chicken wings, 615 million chickens, 28 million pounds of chips and down 8 million pounds of guacamole.

The game has become an annual celebration we enjoy with our family and friends. While most watching that Sunday claim they gather for the football, one in every five admit they watch simply to be with friends.

Is there anything Jesus would have us to do with this fun-filled football Sunday? What would Jesus do with the Super Bowl?
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What is Baptism?

Baptism is a public immersion of a believer under water. It is generally performed in the presence of other Christians. It is a public picture of identification with Christ's death, burial and resurrection being the source of your life. The Bible tells us, in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, that Christ died for our sins, he was buried and rose again. In Colossians 2:12, it tells us baptism is a picture of our identification with Christ's death, burial and resurrection being where we place our confidence for forgiveness of our sins and relationship with God.

NOTE - Baptism doesn't make you a Christian. It is a public declaration of what you believe. Baptism is like a wedding ring. It is the outward symbol of the commitment you made before God in your heart.

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Kwanzaa is an African-American holiday created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chair of African Studies at California State University, Long Beach. Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26 to January 1. Karenga’s original concept was to provide African-Americans with a time to focus on the cultural heritage and values of Africa and to provide an alternative to Christmas. Karenga drew from a number of different African harvest festivals, Black Nationalist ideology, and other cultural influences to create the seven “Nguzo Saba,” or principles of African heritage. Each of these principles is represented by a physical symbol, one for each day of Kwanzaa. Read More...

It wasn’t long ago some were predicting the main challenge for our generation would be too much spare time. For example, in 1967, testimony before a Senate subcommittee claimed that by 1985 the average work week would be just twenty-two hours. Instead we went the opposite direction. Today Americans lead the industrialized world in annual work hours. In 1967, the average employee worked 1,716 hours a year. By the year 2,000 that rose to 1,878 hours a year.

With so much time needed for work how can we balance our work, church and family life?
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Whether or not a Christian should give a percentage of an inheritance—or for that matter any source of income—to the church or other Christian ministry is the subject of debate within the Christian community. There is also the question of whether or not an inheritance can even be considered income. As for the amount of our giving, some in the Christian church have taken the 10 percent figure from the Old Testament tithe and applied it as a “recommended minimum” for Christians in their giving. Some say give on what you make before taxes (gross income) and others say give on what is left over after taxes and deductions (net income). Much debate and argument on the details of tithing and giving have needlessly occurred, sometimes even splitting churches and dividing Christians from one another.
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membered that the tithe was a requirement of the Mosaic law in which all Israelites were to give 10 percent of everything they earned and grew to the Tabernacle/Temple (Leviticus 27:30; Numbers 18:26; Deuteronomy 14:24; 2 Chronicles 31:5). In fact, the Old Testament Law required multiple tithes which would have pushed the total to around 23.3 percent, not the 10 percent which is generally considered the tithe amount today. But the Bible is clear that tithing was part of the Mosaic Law for the nation of Israel, not for all mankind. Just as Christians are not required to sacrifice animals or observe the ceremonial laws regarding washing and other rituals, neither are we required to give a set percentage of our income, regardless of how it is acquired.

The New Testament references giving in 1 Corinthians 16:1–2 and there we find the principle for giving for Christians. Paul exhorts the Corinthians church to set money aside “for God’s people,” to do it on the first day of the week, and to save it and set it aside in keeping with the income of the giver. “Income” is not defined, except that in the King James Version, the word is translated “as God has prospered him.” From this we can say that inheritance, gifts, winnings, tax refunds, legal settlements, etc. are part of being prospered by God and should be included in income. But again, the amount of the inheritance to be offered is not defined. Another principle for offerings is found in 2 Corinthians 9:6–7 where Paul again exhorts the Corinthian believers to give generously from their hearts, each one deciding before God what to give. Paul explains that it is not the amount or the percentage or the source of the income, but the attitude of the heart that is important to God. Each should give “cheerfully,” not as one under the compulsion of a legalistic mindset or the requirements set down by others. We should never give to get, never give to be noticed, and never give to be spiritually rewarded. If we are in fellowship with God and at peace with our giving, then all is well. As with all things, wisdom should be sought from God, who has promised to give it generously (James 1:5), just as we are to generously and cheerfully give back to Him.

Portions in this post taken from Got Questions: Bible Questions Answered

The Bible tells us that God’s will is for us to love other people. We are called to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27) and even to “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:27–28).
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Nelson’s Bible Dictionary defines temptation as “an enticement or invitation to sin, with the implied promise of greater good to be derived from following the way of disobedience.” Resisting temptation begins with knowing that Satan is the supreme “tempter” (Matthew 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 3:5) who has been tempting mankind since our Creator placed His first two children in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3; 1 John 3:8). Ultimately, however, we know that Satan’s power over Christians has been effectively destroyed as the war has already been won through our Savior’s death and resurrection which conquered the power of sin and death forever. Nonetheless, Satan still prowls the earth looking to drive a wedge between God and His children, and his temptations are unfortunately a daily part of our lives (1 Peter 5:8). Yet with the power of the Holy Spirit and the truth of God’s Word to help us, we will find ourselves effectively resisting temptations. Read More...

Whenever door-to-door evangelism is mentioned, people invariably think of Jehovah’s Witness or Mormons. While only a tiny proportion of Mormons undertake two year missionary work, all Jehovah’s Witnesses are expected to take part in the door-to-door work. They are referred to as “publishers.” They have to report their activity, which includes the number of hours spent each month going from house to house and in conducting Bible studies with interested people. Read More...

A meddling mother-in-law that intrudes into the lives of her son/daughter and son-in-law/daughter-in-law is what the Bible calls a “busybody” (1 Timothy 5:13). The meaning of the Greek word that is translated “busybody” in the 1 Timothy passage means “a self-appointed overseer in other men’s matters.” Overseeing is what some mothers-in-law are engaged in. This kind of behavior is annoying, very frustrating, and contrary to God’s plan for the family. Read More...

God’s Word does not explicitly teach whether or not a Christian should play video games. The Bible’s principles still apply today regarding the best use of our time. If a specific activity is controlling our lives, we should break away from it for a time. This “fast” could be from food, movies, TV, music, video games, or anything that distracts our attention from knowing and loving God and serving others. Read More...

Moderation is perhaps the governing concept for a Christian view of bodybuilding/weightlifting. First Timothy 4:8 teaches,

for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 1 Timothy 4:8 (ESV)

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