Tim Kiess

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

Even when we believe with all our minds that life is meaningless, we simply can't and don't live that way.

[Tim Kiess @timkiess12]

https://t.co/GJ4dcpHR2o

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

To insist doctrine doesn't matter is a doctrine itself. It's the doctrine that doctrines don't matter.

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

Have you heard God’s blessing in your inmost being? Are the words “You are my beloved child, in whom I delight” an endless source of joy and strength? Have you sensed, through the Holy Spirit, God speaking them to you?

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

The Bible doesnt give us a god at the top of a moral ladder saying-“If you try hard to summon up your strength & live right, you can make it!" Instead, we repeatedly see weak people who don't deserve God's grace, don't seek it & don't appreciate it even after they have received it.

[George Yancey @profyancey]

He is probably to the right of me on a lot of things but man I am beginning to like Erick Erickson.

[Erick Erickson @EWErickson]

At some point, actual Christians, not just the ones who call themselves that, are gonna have to opt out of politics for the parties to improve the quality of their candidates. Continuing to insist Christians vote for evil, so long as it’s lesser than the other, is getting old.

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

We inherited the idea that freedom means freedom from constraint, from expectation, and from obligation. Maximum options. Minimum commitment. But what if that kind of freedom doesn't actually bring real freedom? What if the people who are most committed to a person, a vocation, or a community are the ones who are most fully free? Dad argued that real freedom isn't the absence of constraints. It's the presence of the right ones. That fits what you were made to be. The freedom chapter in The Stories We Live By reframes the entire conversation. Order here: https://t.co/TLgK05MqTQ

[Peter Heck @peterheck]

An online post argued Trump’s presidency made celebrating America impossible. Replace Trump with Obama, Biden, Bush, or Clinton & the deeper issue remains: politics has grown so large that gratitude suffocates. Christians of all people should know better. https://t.co/k2GQMkrCpy

[Judge Stephen Dillard @JudgeDillard]

Every American should watch every second of this video.

Thank you, @BenSasse.

[George Yancey @profyancey]

I find this a fascinating comparison. I think this divide of Never-Trumpers is useful. In the world of Never Trumpers, I am a Dispatch man myself. I believe that to go the Bulwark route is to treat Trump as if he has no redeeming value and that anything he does is wrong. Not only does that not comport to reality, it puts one on a path of unminigating hate. It is the type of hate that can be used to justify violating one's own values and to mistreat one's precieved enimies. I sometimes have Bulwark never-Trumpers mad at me for not going far enough in hate for Trump. I fear that if I do that, then I will lose my soul to hate. I refuse to go that route. I will say that Trump is usually wrong. I will not say that he is always wrong and deserves unending opposition, no matter what he is doing. I refuse to dehumanize him the way he dehumanizes his enemies. I do not want to wake up one day, look in the mirror and see in the mirror what I have opposed. So the Dispatch route is the one I will trod.

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

"If I have THAT, my life will have meaning. I'll have value and feel significant and secure." THAT—is the object of your worship.

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

More freedom. More options. More information than any generation in history, and yet anxiety is up 25% globally. Loneliness at epidemic levels. A mental health crisis no policy seems to fix. Maybe the stories we're telling ourselves about what leads to flourishing aren't working. Dad thought so. He spent his last years diagnosing why. -Michael Keller

[Peter Heck @peterheck]

Seeing videos of people “trying Jesus” & feeling peace is great - but faith isn’t just feelings. It’s grounded in truth. Don’t ignore the nudge, but go deeper: read Scripture and find a faithful church. That’s where lasting transformation begins. 👇

https://t.co/KRb4RLI38C

[Timothy Keller (1950-2023) @timkellernyc]

The main problem our heart has is not so much desires for bad things, but our over-desires for good things.

This is just a summary of St. Augustine: the primary sin is against the 1st commandment, to love anything (usually good things) more than God.

[Justin Brierley @JusBrierley]

Charles (Chuck) Colson was part of the group of presidential staff, who were sent to prison in 1974 for their role in the Watergate scandal that led to the downfall of President Nixon. While in prison, Colson became a Christian and, after he came out again, began to use his talents for God rather than Government.

Colson once famously said these words:

“I know the resurrection is a fact, and Watergate proved it to me. How? Because 12 men testified they had seen Jesus raised from the dead, then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Every one was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would not have endured that if it weren't true.

Watergate embroiled 12 of the most powerful men in the world-and they couldn't keep a lie for three weeks. You're telling me 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible.”

[George Yancey @profyancey]

This is a sad reading. Unfortunately, the source article is paywalled, so I cannot evaluate it. But if this article is correct, an important theory often used to explain the behavior of groups that social scientists criticize has been falsified. Man, no wonder sometimes people hate academics. It is corruption like this that can feed that hate.

https://t.co/8nuAE9tpQh

[Tim Kiess @timkiess12]

https://t.co/tCpVxHYpKx

[George Yancey @profyancey]

We can complain about the toxicity in social media, but if we keep following and supporting toxic content providers, then we only have ourselves to blame. Chrisians especially should ask hard questions about who we support. Is who we are following supportive of the fruits of the spirit or not? If they are not showing any of those fruits, or only one or two, then we should rethink retweeting and supporting such providers. And by the way, this is a bipartisan issue. I could name people on the left and right, but that will just make them defensive, and this post is about them. I want people to think about who they are following and decide if that person is exhibiting the fruits of the spirit. If you yell bothsidism on this, then you are missing the main point that this is about introspection, not blame shifting.
So are the people you are supporting with your likes and retweets exhibiting the fruits of the spirit? Feel free to use this guide to answer that question.

Love – Do they treat others as image bearers? Not just their allies but their enemies. Are they criticizing out of real love, hoping for change, or to dehumanize those they disagree with? Do they try to understand others or try to scapegoat them and strawman their opponents' arguments?

Joy – Does reading their posts increase joy or anger in your life? Do they ever attempt to help their supporters to seek out joy even in bad situations? Or do they use those situations to try to manipulate their supporters towards anger?

Peace – Does the presence of those you support increase peace in your life or the lives of others? How often do you read their comments and feel angry? Do they increase or decrease the turmoil in your soul? Do you think Christ desires you more to bear the sword or the olive branch? Which one do you think the content provider you support brings to our society?

Patience – Does your content provider exhibit patience in times that can be trying? Does he or she increase or decrease your ability to be patient with the Samaritans in your life? Does the content provider encourage you to treat those Samaritans in the same way that Jesus did?

Kindness – Are you more likely to be encouraged to be kind or cruel to others after reading the post of a content provider? Does reading this provider lead you to have more empathy with those you disagree with? Does reading this provider lead you to reduce others to dehumanizing stereotypes?

Goodness – If your content provider influences you to take any actions, perhaps as simple as commenting on his or her post or another post, would you say that these are the actions Jesus would do? If the answer is yes, what is the scriptural basis of your belief? Is there any possibility that you have developed that assessment to feel better about supporting the content provider? Is that goodness in keeping with the other fruits of the spirit?

Faithfulness – Do you feel empowered with more faith towards Christ or towards worldly power after reading the posts of your content provider? Does reading this person strengthen your faith and move you closer to Christ? Or does reading this person make you less willing ot put your faith in Christ and more willing to take situations into your own hands and solve them yourself?

Gentleness – Does this content provider lead you to be more gentle or coarser with other people? Does this provider stir up more compassion for others or more anger for others? After reading the posts of this provider, are you more likely to seek out ways to love other people or to complain about them?

Self-control – Does this content provider encourage you to be more disciplined in your life and walk with Christ? Does this provider encourage you to act and think recklessly in ways that may be harmful to others? Is the provider leading you to be rash and uncaring about how you hurt others, or does the provider encourage you to be deliberate and even tactful if you must confront the sins of others?

I think it is worth asking these questions on Palm Sunday. Are we truly being a blessing to our society, or are we feeding demons with hatefulness and rudeness in the way we consume social media? Just something to think about.