We are called as God’s people, and we are each called individually.
But what is it that we are called to?
I always come back to something I read in the Os Guinness book, ‘The Call’ – “…we are not called to something or somewhere, we are called to Someone.“
When I think on that profound truth I picture a child playing in the backyard on a sunny day, and a father coming outside through the back screen door of the house into the yard, opening his arms and calling to his child by name.
The child stops playing, turns his head to his fathers voice, and runs joyously across the yard straight into his fathers arms.
And I see my whole life as running across the yard into my Fathers arms. That’s what we’re called to.
As continue in this series, ‘Your Life And What Comes After’, I will always keep that picture, that truth, as the basic starting and ending point of it all.
President Trump made some interesting remarks recently on his way to the Middle East for events celebrating the historic peace deal he engineered.
He told reporters on Air Force One, “I don’t think there’s anything going to get me in heaven… I think I’m not, maybe, heaven-bound.” He made the remarks while traveling to Israel, reflecting on his peace efforts and faith. Trump added, “I’m not sure I’m going to be able to make heaven, but I’ve made life a lot better for a lot of people.”https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/10/13/trump-heaven-christian-faith
There are two big misconceptions that President Trump illustrates here in his remarks.
First, there’s absolutely nothing Trump or anyone else can do through their own works to obtain eternal life. Salvation is by grace alone through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ and is available to anyone and everyone who believes it and accepts it. I’m aware that Calvinists think that the act believing and accepting is the same as ‘works’ – but they are wrong.
Second, the Bible doesn’t teach that we ‘go to heaven’. It clearly and repeatedly teaches that heaven comes to a redeemed creation on earth and that our physical bodies are resurrected to everlasting life with God.
I hope to see Mr. Trump rejoicing with the saints on that day.
Too many times, folks seeking purpose in their lives come up short in finding the answers they’re looking for. Why?
I think most of the time it’s because you can’t really understand the purpose of your individual life unless and until you gain some understanding of, and appreciation for, what I call God’s Grand Plan.
What is God’s Grand Plan?
Well, let’s let the Word of God speak for itself:
Genesis 1:27-28 – So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth.” (Berean Standard Bible)
First, we are the only creatures that carry the image of God. We are to be like Him, and we are to reflect who He is to the creation—which is to glorify our Creator.
Second, we are to be fruitful and multiply, caring for and adding value to His creation, and filling it with more and more of His image-bearers so that God is glorified more and more.
God created man not only to reflect His image and add value to His creation, but also to have a relationship with Him. We are to be companions of and have fellowship with the Creator of the universe.
That was God’s original intention. Then it all went wrong because of man’s disobedience and refusal to submit to the clear and loving will of his Creator.
Now What?
Now God’s Grand Plan is to restore His people and His creation to their original purpose. Paradise was lost; it is to be regained. Everlasting life with God was lost; it is to be regained.
But our original purpose remains the same today, even in a fallen state of sin, death, darkness, and rebellion: to glorify God and add value to His creation.
What Does That Have To Do With My Life?
If you’ve ever been part of a team or organization, you know that once you get a basic understanding of the ‘big picture’ goals and purpose of the team or organization, your part in it begins to make more sense, and you get a clearer vision of what you need to do individually.
We’ll start to look into what all of that means—and what it looks like in real life—in the next part of this series.
To monitor current news and events related to faith and culture.
To provide an alternative viewpoint to the world’s pervasive climate of darkness, nihilism, and hopelessness for those seeking truth, light, and purpose.
To examine and question the assumptions of religious tradition and provide a resource for information and inspiration for people of faith who have become dissatisfied with an increasingly lifeless and empty ‘churchianity’.
To present the Biblical truths which reveal God’s nature and purposes and proclaim the lifechanging, world-altering, radical message of Yeshua the Messiah – Jesus Christ, our risen Lord and Savior.
At Bible Rebel, this is our one and only creed: Our living God is a loving God and the Bible is His revealed word and will. Our hope and eternal salvation relies entirely on the work of God’s only begotten son, Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life.
So, expect some controversial viewpoints and uncomfortable ideas in some of the coming content from Bible Rebel.
Coming in September and October
Starting a new series called the “Your Life and What Comes After” series.
More in-depth content on deeper biblical studies and theological issues.
We’ll also be continuing our regular features, guest articles, and series:
Rethinking The Rapture
They Said It
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.
Conservative influencer Charlie Kirk was assassinated at a rally in Utah on Wednesday, September 10, 2025. He was 31 years old.
Here are some quotes from him on his Christian faith.
“I’ve been a Christian basically my whole life … It means more this year than it did last year, it means more this year than it did when I was 20. It’s almost a gift that grows sweeter with time. The more I read, the more I live, and the more it actually — I’m completely able to admit I’m a total, absolute sinner and I fall short from the grace of God.” Faithwire
“We have to get back to kind of what being saved means. It means that I was drowning in an ocean and I happened to get picked up by a lifeboat, and that’s about it. It’s not like I earned it or that I swam better than anyone else.” Faithwire
“Freedom is not sustainable if you remove religion … I’ll be even more specific, freedom is not sustainable if you remove Christianity.” MovieGuide
“I love Jesus, love liberty, and love America.” ChurchLeaders
“I realized that there is a desire for revival in this country, that there is a yearning for a different type of Christianity. It is about preaching a hot gospel and bringing a nation to repentance, which will then lead to revival.” NPR
“Young men are returning to church … They want something that is lasting. They want something that is ancient, that is beautiful, something that has stood the test of time, something that’s not going to change, something that’s all of a sudden not going to … just flip around and have some sort of … transgender story hour.” Christianity House
Anyone who knows even a little bit about the Bible and the history of Christianity knows that it was the religious leaders of the time, along with their secular allies, that were responsible for the killing of the prophets, the reformers, and even the Son of God himself, Yeshua our Messiah.
The religious leaders. The wolves in sheep’s clothing. The whited sepulchers. The vipers. The religious leaders.
There is no new thing under the sun. Fallen human nature and the rot of man-made religion hasn’t changed since they murdered the prophets, burned the ‘heretics’, and tortured and crucified our Lord.
That is part of the reason why I do not subscribe to a modern denominational creed of set of doctrines. I don’t think that modern day Evangelicals, or Baptists, or Lutherans, or Catholics are going to burn anyone in the town square – it’s just that I don’t trust organized religion.
I’m non-denominational. I’m a ‘Non’. And there are a lot of others just like me, in fact more and more folks are fleeing traditional ‘churchianity’ every day. Why? More on that in future posts.
Here’s my one and only creed, which I’m happy share with my brothers and sisters in The Fellowship of the Nons:
Creed of the Fellowship of the Nons
Our living God is a loving God and the Bible is His revealed word and will. Our hope and eternal salvation relies entirely on the work of God’s only begotten son, Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life.
A huge part of the purpose and reason for the Bible Rebel blog is stated in our mission:
“To examine and question the assumptions of religious tradition and provide a resource for information and inspiration for people of faith who have become dissatisfied with an increasingly lifeless and empty ‘churchianity’.”
‘They Said It’ is a regular feature highlighting quotes from various folks on various topics of interest and relevance to our readers.
John Ramirez (Former Satanist, now Christian evangelist):
“I was a general in the kingdom of darkness, but God had a better plan for me. The devil is a counterfeit — he gives you temporary power, but Jesus gives you eternal life.” — From his book, “Out of the Devil’s Cauldron”
Doreen Virtue (Former New Age teacher and occult practitioner):
“I used to give angel readings and write about psychics and tarot, but when I read the Bible, especially Deuteronomy 18, I realized I had been doing what God detests. I gave my life to Jesus, and everything changed.” — Interview with “Faithwire,” 2019
Zachary King (Former high wizard in Satanism):
“I saw real demons. I summoned them. I did spells that worked. But none of it gave me peace. Only Jesus had the power to free me.” — In his testimony featured in “All That Remains: The Story of a High Wizard Who Found Christ”
Alice Bailey (Former witch, converted to Christianity):
“I was deep into the occult, believing I had control. But I was deceived. When I encountered Jesus, the darkness fled, and I finally knew truth and love.” — (Note: This quote is attributed to a woman with the same name, not the theosophist Alice A. Bailey. Sources are from modern deliverance ministry testimonies.)
Editors note: the guest article appearing here does not necessarily reflect the views of Bible Rebel editors or other guest authors and contributors. Bible Rebel seeks to present a wide range of ideas and viewpoints in order to fulfill our mission to provide resources for “Curious Fearless Faith”.This is Part 2 in a new series on prayer called ‘Why Must We Pray, Anyway’ by Steve Sann.
E.M. Bounds further correlated: “If prayer puts God to work on earth, then, by the same token, prayerlessness rules God out of the world’s affairs, and prevents him from working.” Truth be told, God is regulated by the same laws of justice that He incorporated in all His creation. He cannot just interrupt the continuum, violate personal property rights, suppress dissent, and generally force His will on the lives of others. In contrast, Satan and the governments of men overstep these boundaries with reckless abandon. Nonetheless, God is constrained by the rule of law: to God, what is His property is His, and that which is Satan’s is Satan’s.
John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, observed in his day: “It seems God is limited by our prayer life – that He can do nothing for humanity unless someone asks Him.” He went on to say: “God does nothing but in answer to prayer.”
But how could that be?
The ugly facts are these: Adam legally transferred to Satan the authority and rulership of this world by heeding Satan’s words and rejecting God’s command in the garden. With that transaction, God’s liberty to direct the affairs of this world became restricted. At that time, the day-to-day administration of the material realm passed from man to Satan, limiting the scope of God’s involvement. Satan was instated as “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), with mankind subjected unto him.
Satan is now the god of this world! Clearly, ”The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof” (Psalms 24:1), but God leased out the property management to man—who summarily legally transferred that lease to Satan. Christ terminated that lease for we who believe, and the eviction notice has been sent. The sheriff will soon be arriving (1 Corinthians 15:24). Yet, now, with God’s sovereignty temporarily impaired and man ensnared in Satan’s world, man became alienated from God.
Because many do not understand this, they are forever making excuses for why God does not save the suffering children, stop the hate and war, cure the world’s diseases, and generally make all of us wealthy! These matters are now left up to the faith and labor of the individual person.
Churchianity and the theological status quo should be scrutinized by all people of faith regularly. That is exactly how we got the Reformation.
Is there a New Reformation brewing? It seems so. There is a difference between truth and tradition.
Man-made Christian creeds and doctrines are no longer being blindly accepted as biblical truth just because the Protestant clergy or the Catholic Papacy say so.
The nature of God, heaven, hell, sin, the apocalypse, predestination or free-will, the Rapture, the origins of the universe – all of these ideas and more need solid reexamination to see if the commonly accepted doctrines of men used to explain them measure up to the message of scripture.
The Bible Rebel blog is a resource for those seeking original and curated content, including news and commentary, covering faith, biblical studies and interpretation, and the intersection of politics, culture, and the Bible.
Our Mission
To monitor current news and events related to faith and culture.
To provide an alternative viewpoint to the world’s pervasive climate of darkness, nihilism, and hopelessness for those seeking truth, light, and purpose.
To examine and question the assumptions of religious tradition and provide a resource for information and inspiration for people of faith who have become dissatisfied with an increasingly lifeless and empty ‘churchianity’.
To present the Biblical truths which reveal God’s nature and purposes and proclaim the lifechanging, world-altering, radical message of Yeshua the Messiah – Jesus Christ, our risen Lord and Savior.
At Bible Rebel, this is our one and only creed: Our living God is a loving God and the Bible is His revealed word and will. Our hope and eternal salvation relies entirely on the work of God’s only begotten son, Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life.
So, expect some controversial viewpoints and uncomfortable ideas in some of the coming content from Bible Rebel.
In my previous letter I asked the question a lot folks have: If God is real why doesn’t He just do a bunch of magic tricks for everyone all the time so that they will see Him, believe in Him, and love Him?
Well, lets take a bit of a deep dive into the answer.
Maybe God seems ‘hidden’ to our five senses so that folks can choose faith freely, rather than being forced by undeniable proof.
God isn’t some old dude up in the clouds or some alien in outer space – God is spirit, imperceptible to our limited senses.
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:24
God wants a genuine, personal relationship with us, and He wants us to know him as He is. That requires some effort on our part, as in any human relationship. God doesn’t seek robots or slaves who have no choice but to obey and believe in Him.
God’s hiddenness requires us to seek deeper understanding, to doubt, to wrestle with Him, and to develop faith and patience. It requires us to work on our own character.
But make no mistake, God reveals Himself everywhere and at every moment through the complexity, precise workings, and order of His creation.
