Tommy Mann

  Over several chapters in the book of Genesis we see some ironic repetitions. There is an old saying that tells us, “What goes around comes around,” meaning that a person’s actions usually have consequences for that person. Consider how things “come full circle” for these people:   Abraham lies to Abimelech, telling him Sarah is his sister rather than his wife. Abraham’s son Isaac lies to (possibly the same) Abimelech, telling him Rebekah is his sister rather than his wife.    Jacob deceived his father Isaac in order to get a blessing. Jacob was deceived by his uncle Laban, who gave him Leah instead of Rachel.   Rachel sent Bilhah to Jacob to make Leah jealous. Leah sent Zilpah to Jacob to make Rachel jealous.    Jacob used a coat and a slaughtered animal to trick his father into believing he was Esau.  Jacob’s sons used a coat and a slaughtered animal to trick him into believing Joseph was dead.     There is so much childishness i...

As a Christian is there ever a time that we can justify going to war? War obviously involves taking lives, and aren’t we supposed to be against that? What about the death penalty: isn’t killing a killer still murder? Some Christians are opposed to these concepts, and I want to be very clear here. I am not writing this to argue with you; I respect that stance, and I am not trying to start a war of words. This is just my personal belief after studying this topic.  At the same time, I am not a hawk when it comes to war. I do not believe in going to war for selfish reasons, like gaining territory, resources, or money. But I do believe the Bible teaches the concept of just wars, to wit, some wars are justifiable. But aren’t we called to be peacemakers? Yes, in His famous sermon on the mount Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God (Matthew 5:9).” But this sermon was given to teach how to conduct ourselves in our individual ...