Tuesday Watchdog: How Far Does Church Autonomy Go?

Rick TryonLeave a comment

Abuse Survivor Petitions Texas Supreme Court

Cindy Clemishire has asked the Supreme Court of Texas to revive most of her defamation lawsuit against Gateway Church, disgraced founder Robert Morris and former church elders.

An appeals court dismissed most of her claims under the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine, which limits civil courts from interfering with church doctrine, governance and internal affairs. Clemishire’s lawyers argue the court stretched that protection too far because the dispute concerns public statements about abuse—not theology. Morris pleaded guilty in 2025 to five counts involving sexual abuse of Clemishire when she was a child.

Religious liberty is essential, but religious immunity isn’t.

Government shouldn’t decide whether your church believes in predestination, speaking in tongues, the Trinity or Saturday worship.

However, allegations involving sexual abuse, concealment or publicly defaming a victim aren’t theological doctrines.

So What?

Jesus didn’t tell churches to protect institutions, and He had some extraordinarily severe words about harming “little ones.”

Matthew 18:6
But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

The Texas Supreme Court now has a chance to clarify where the line between church doctrine and criminal behaviour belongs, and it should be a no-brainer.

Read the latest report on Clemishire’s appeal

‘Your Life And What Comes After’, The Book

Rick TryonLeave a comment

My book, Your Life And What Comes After: Plugging Into God’s Forever Plan Now, is now available at amazon.com in paperback and e-book formats.

Check out the reviews for the book here.

This book isn’t written for scholars or theologians. It’s written for ordinary people who are curious about life, about God, and about what the Bible actually says about the future.

You don’t need a religious background or special training to follow along. The goal here is simple: to walk through the Bible’s big story in clear, everyday language.

The book is divided into three parts.
Part One explains the big picture of God’s plan and how people throughout the Bible connected their lives to that plan.
Part Two explores what the Bible says about heaven, hell, the end of the world, and what comes after this life.
Part Three focuses on the most practical question of all: how do you and I plug into God’s forever plan right now in everyday life?

The paperback version is $10.99 and the e-book is $2.99.

Bible Rebel September Newsletter: Is Jesus A Republican?

Rick TryonLeave a comment

A new national political debate is emerging around candidates such as Texas Democrat James Talarico, Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon and Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed, who are explicitly incorporating faith into their campaigns. Detroit pastor Lorenzo Sewell accused progressive candidates today of “virtue-signaling” to Christian voters rather than authentically representing biblical Christianity.
See story here.

For decades, Republicans have enjoyed something close to ownership of America’s public Christian vocabulary. That may be changing, and that would be a good thing.

Let Republicans quote Jesus. Let Democrats quote Jesus.

Phillipians 1:15-18

Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will:
The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds:
But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.
What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.

Listen to them all then open the Bible and check them all.

Jesus isn’t Republican or Democrat, and Scripture shouldn’t be retrofitted to whichever political platform we already support.

Rick Tryon
Editor/Publisher Bible Rebel

August/September Highlights

Armchair Apocalypse: What About Those Four Horsemen?

Spiritual Wickedness In High Places

They Said It: Four Quotes On The Book Of Haggai

Video Mini Message: Don’t Fear Death

Ten-episode Bible 101 video series completed

Watchdog Alert: Should AI Tell You What The Bible Means?

Nightclub Church?

Coming in September/October

More of our Armchair Apocalypse series.

“Your Life and What Comes After” book available.

More in-depth content on deeper biblical studies and theological issues.

More Video Mini Messages like this – What Is Heaven?

You can find all of the current Bible 101 episodes and One-Minute Mini Messages here on our YouTube Channel, and you can subscribe to our YouTube channel here.

We’ll also be continuing our regular features, guest articles, and series:

  • Your Life And What Comes After: Plugging Into God’s Forever Plan Now
  • Armchair Apocalypse
  • They Said It: Poignant quotes on a variety of topics
  • Guest articles
  • And more…

Watchdogs

As always, we’ll be keeping a watchdogs eye on all of the latest political, religious, biblical archaeology, and cultural news and events from around the world and bringing to you in bite-size chunks to keep you informed.

Finally, are you interested in contributing content to Bible Rebel?

Bible Rebel is always looking for interesting, compatible content for our biblerebel.com website/blog. We are accepting writing and video submissions for review and possible publication on our platform.

If you have a teaching series, opinion piece, research piece or other content that fits with the Bible Rebel mission we’d like to see it!

If your content fits our mission and creed, included below, then email it to us at in**@********el.com. Written pieces should be no more than 500 words and video content no longer than 7 minutes – either can be submitted as part of a longer series for consideration.

Thanks, and stay tuned for our next newsletter.

Oh, and please go over and give us a follow on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).

They Said It: Four Quotes On The Book Of Malachi

Rick TryonLeave a comment

Here are four quotes from four different voices on themes in the Book of Malachi:

G. Campbell Morgan — on empty religious ritual:

    “I am more afraid of the profanity of the sanctuary than I am of the profanity of the street.”

    Charles Spurgeon — on Malachi 3:17 and God’s “jewels”:

      “Our God, who regards quality more than quantity…”

      Matthew Henry — on Malachi as the final prophetic voice of the Old Testament:

        “Though he be the last… the Spirit of prophecy shines as clearly, as strongly, as brightly in him as in any that went before.”

        Dwight L. Moody — paired with Malachi’s criticism of weary, halfhearted worship:

          “I get tired in the work, but I never get tired of the work.”

          Malachi’s target isn’t atheism. It’s comfortable, going-through-the-motions religion—people who still show up, still perform the rituals, and still use God’s name, but whose hearts have checked out. That’s probably one reason this 2,400-year-old little book can still hit uncomfortably close to home.

          Thursday Watchdog: China’s Imprisoned Religious Minorities

          Rick TryonLeave a comment

          Washington’s Pressure Grows

          The bipartisan United States Commission on International Religious Freedom is urging President Trump to make religious prisoners a priority when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits Washington on September 24.
          https://religiousfreedominstitute.org/events/ccp-oppression-in-america-and-china

          The commission specifically highlights imprisoned Christians along with Uyghur Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Falun Gong practitioners and others targeted by Beijing’s religious controls.

          A Washington briefing yesterday brought together representatives of several persecuted religious communities to discuss Chinese Communist Party repression and concerns that intimidation extends into the United States.

          So What?

          Christians should absolutely demand freedom for imprisoned Christians in China.

          But will we also demand freedom for the Muslim, Buddhist or Falun Gong prisoner? We should, because religious liberty isn’t Christianity asking government for preferential treatment.

          Armchair Apocalypse: What Is ‘Great Tribulation’

          Rick TryonLeave a comment

          We’ll be looking closely at questions and answers about “The Great Tribulation” in a four-part series, starting with Part One here.

          Part One: Does Revelation Actually Describe a Seven-Year Tribulation?

          Ask most prophecy teachers about the Great Tribulation and you’ll probably get a detailed seven-year timeline involving the Antichrist, the Beast, global war, and judgments arriving one after another.

          You might even get a chart.

          But if we’re going to understand Revelation, we should begin with what the book actually says—not with the chart.

          The phrase “great tribulation” appears in Revelation 7:14, where John sees a huge crowd standing before God:

          “These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” — Revelation 7:14, KJV

          The Greek word translated “tribulation,” thlipsis, means pressure, distress, affliction, or suffering. It was not a special word reserved only for a future end-times disaster. In fact, John opens Revelation by calling himself his readers’ “companion in tribulation” (Revelation 1:9).

          The believers in Smyrna were also experiencing tribulation and were warned that some of them would be imprisoned (Revelation 2:9–10). In Pergamum, a believer named Antipas had already been killed (Revelation 2:13).

          For those Christians, tribulation wasn’t a theological theory. They lived under Roman authority in cities where emperor worship was part of public life. Refusing to honor Caesar and the Roman gods could cost them friendships, employment, freedom, or life itself.

          Revelation does mention periods of 42 months, 1,260 days, and “a time, times, and half a time.” Each equals approximately three and a half years and draws from the symbolic language of Daniel. What Revelation does not do is combine two of those periods, call the result seven years, and name it “the Great Tribulation.”

          The familiar seven-year scenario comes from connecting Revelation with a particular interpretation of Daniel’s seventieth week and several other passages. That may be a valid theological argument, but readers should know that the complete system is assembled from several texts. It is not plainly laid out in Revelation.

          So What?

          John’s first readers probably weren’t calculating how many years remained before suffering began. They were trying to remain faithful while suffering was already happening.

          That changes the question. Instead of beginning with, “When will the Great Tribulation happen?” perhaps we should first ask:

          What did tribulation mean within the Jewish and biblical world John’s readers already knew?

          We’ll look at that in Part Two.

          Tuesday Watchdog: Pastor Calls Native Ceremonies “Idol Worship”

          Rick TryonLeave a comment

          A major Associated Press report published Monday examines the escalating dispute at the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. Pastor Sarah Lucas of Foundations for Nations publicly condemned traditional Arapaho practices—including the Sundance and sacred pipe ceremonies—as “idol worship.” The sermon triggered protests, and Northern Arapaho leaders have told the church to leave.

          There’s a legal complication: the church sits inside reservation boundaries but on privately owned land, making the tribe’s authority to remove it uncertain. Attendance at the church has reportedly fallen by roughly half, and tribal leaders have adopted new rules requiring religious organizations to obtain approval before operating on tribal lands.

          Can Christians respect another person’s religious freedom while simultaneously telling them their religion is false? Biblically, yes.

          Paul didn’t arrive in pagan Athens and announce that every religion was equally true. He saw a city filled with idols—and then reasoned with the people about the God they didn’t know.

          So What?

          Christians shouldn’t mock Native Americans or pretend the brutal history of forced religious assimilation never happened.

          But neither should a Christian pastor be required to say something she believes is worship of another god is compatible with Christianity. Respecting someone’s right to believe something is not the same as agreeing that what they believe is true.

          That’s religious liberty.

          But let’s be clear about the basic tenet of our faith as declared by Jesus Christ, and let’s not hesitate to speak the truth boldly:

          “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” — John 14:6 (KJV)

          Saturday Watchdog: Spiritual Wickedness In High Places

          Rick TryonLeave a comment

          Never Forget

          Never forget. Because the people who invoke the name of their god as they slaughter thousands of innocent men, women, and children never forget.

          Because the spiritual darkness that animates their hatred and inspires the evil acts they commit never rests.

          Ephesians 6:12
          For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

          But it appears that too many in our country have indeed forgotten over the past 25 years. Hopefully not enough to open the door to a shocking reminder.

          They Said It: Four Quotes On The Book Of Zechariah

          Rick TryonLeave a comment

          Here are four quotes from four different Christian voices on themes in the Book of Zechariah:

          Charles Spurgeon — on Zechariah 12:10 and God’s work of grace:

            “Every work of grace begins with God.”
            Spurgeon saw Zechariah’s promise of the “spirit of grace and of supplications” as pointing ultimately toward Christ and God’s initiative in redemption. (The Spurgeon Library)

            John Calvin — on God’s presence among His people:

              “God is never idle while he dwells in his people.”
              Commenting on Zechariah’s restoration promises, Calvin emphasizes that God’s presence produces actual transformation—truth and holiness, not merely religious identity. (Enduring Word)

              David Guzik — on Zechariah 6 and the promised Priest-King:

                “God’s promised blessing in the future means that He wants the work to continue right now.”
                Guzik draws an important practical lesson from Zechariah: future hope isn’t an excuse for sitting around waiting for prophecy to happen. It should produce faithfulness in the present. (Enduring Word)

                James Montgomery Boice — on Zechariah 8:23:

                  “We are all clinging to the seamless robe of that one Jew, Jesus of Nazareth.”
                  Boice understood Zechariah’s picture of the nations seeking God through Israel as ultimately pointing toward Jesus—the Jewish Messiah through whom God’s blessing reaches the nations. (Enduring Word)