A few weeks ago, something strange happened. Elon Musk’s name was being associated with something other than cars, AI or even space. Instead, to widespread curiosity, it was Jesus. To date, the clip of him talking with Babylon Bee about his admiration for Jesus has been watched more than 2.2 million times…
This article appeared on the Premier Christianity website in February 2022. To read the full piece please click here.
For some people, retirement is not in their vocabulary — and for many years, that seemed to include Pat Robertson.
He’s the 91-year-old founder of CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network), the first US Christian television station, and America’s longest-running TV host. But last week, Robertson told viewers of The 700 Club that, after 55 years hosting the programme, he was to step down, to be replaced by his son, Gordon.
This article appeared on the Premier Christianity Blog in October 2021. To read the full piece please click here.
“What do you want?” the lady shouted. I desperately hoped she wasn’t speaking to me so I surreptitiously ignored her. But when the question was repeated, with increased fury in her voice and eyes, I knew it was my attention — or, more specifically, my sandwich order — in the spotlight. It was downtown Chicago on a busy Thursday lunchtime, and the lady in question was standing on a counter (yep, on a counter), some 30 feet in front of me, loudly asking for people’s food orders. Being shy and British, this way of ordering was an anathema to me…
This article appeared on Globe Soup in July 2020. To read the full piece please click here.
They're like marmite. You either love or hate Coldplay.
Catchy melodies, anthemic songs and emotional lyrics are their staple — the very things that draw in the fans but deter the haters.
But wherever you fall on the divide, Coldplay have had a monumental impact on pop culture. This month marks 20 years since their debut album Parachutes was released…
This article appeared on the Premier Christianity Blog in July 2020. To read the full piece please click here.
To the uninitiated the above photo may look like an album cover for a singing quintet. Five handsome chaps looking rather dapper. All that’s missing are a few vintage mics.
But alas they are not. Instead they are five pastors who have more than Jesus in common. They’re all friends with Justin Bieber.
The above photo was taken at a private celebration last Monday to mark the singer’s marriage to Hailey Baldwin.
Here’s the lowdown on the each of them…
This article appeared on the Premier Christianity Blog in October 2019. To read the full piece please click here.
BMX bikes, arcade games, walkie-talkies, nods to Stephen King and films such as Jaws and E.T., a playlist featuring the likes of Cyndi Lauper and The Clash. Then there are the likeable kids who bear a close resemblance to The Goonies. It’s little wonder people have been getting all wistful over the 1980s pop-culture phenomenon Stranger Things.
The Netflix original series first aired in 2016; its stunning success surprised even the streaming giant and turned its young cast into global stars. More than 40 million households tuned in to watch the first episode of Stranger Things 3 within days of its release earlier this month, a Netflix record.
There are many facets to the appeal of Stranger Things. Alongside the wonderful nostalgia, the show features an endearing set of relationships, a haunting synth-led score, compelling character development, sacrificial acts of love, geeky bits of science, and an imaginative, if sometimes confusing, plot line. Then there is the stranger side to Stranger Things, the supernatural, which leads to get-behind-your-sofa moments. It is here that the show bears a surprising likeness to the eschatological world view of the Bible.
Christian author Michael S Heiser, whose new book The World Turned Upside Down: Finding the Gospel in Stranger Things (Lexham Press) is released in October, writes: “Stranger Things taps into spiritual questions and crises and addresses them the way the gospel story does – with mystery and transcendent power, justice, and love.”
This article appears in the Culture column of the August 2019 edition of Premier Christianity. To read the full piece please contact subscriptions@premier.org.uk to get a copy of the magazine.
“I think it's an offence to the Lord, it's an offence to say 'give $1,000'. I think it's an offence to the Holy Spirit to place a price on the Gospel.”
This is the charge many Christians would level at the prosperity gospel — the strand of Christianity that teaches health and wealth are promised to those who give financially. So it may surprise you to learn this quote comes from Benny Hinn, a name synonymous with the movement for the best part of 40 years…
This article appeared on the Premier Christianity Blog in September 2019. To read the full piece please click here.