As I scroll through my social media feed, I regularly see posts and videos from Christians that call out false teachers, theological errors in the latest Christian books, and heresies hiding in our contemporary worship songs. While vetting teachers and resources is necessary, this practice of critically analyzing other believers’ theological positions has, for some, become a competitive sport. The persistent tracking of who holds the “right” doctrine has turned the ability to identify false doctrine into a badge of honor. I know because I’ve done it. My love for theological precision has led me to call out false gospels and unorthodox doctrine shared online. But here’s what I’ve learned over the years: Our love for knowledge and critical analysis can lead us to confuse spiritual transformation with knowledge accumulation. We may assume that because we know all the right answers, we’re being shaped by them. Ironically, the skill we’ve developed to spot false gospels everywhere else can make it difficult to see the ones we’ve allowed to take root in our hearts. Mirror We Avoid Those of us who lean toward intellectualism and regularly use our analytical skills to critique others’ sermons, ideas, and practices need to be aware of a potential danger. We’re not as apt to apply the same level of scrutiny to our own theological tradition or personal spiritual formation. We tend to see ourselves as knowing the right answers, protected from the deception that others experience. However, this type of thinking makes us vulnerable. The skill we’ve developed to spot false gospels everywhere else can make it difficult to see the ones we’ve allowed to take root in our hearts. If our gaze is always turned outward, we might not notice when false gospels quietly take up residence in our souls. The false gospel of performance can sneak in such that our theological dexterity becomes a means to earn God’s favor and leads us to believe our large amount of knowledge makes us “better” Christians. Perhaps the false gospel of control seeps in, and we find more security in knowing all the right answers than in trusting God for the things about our faith that don’t always make sense. Or maybe it’s the false gospel of moral superiority, where our identity is more tightly rooted in our doctrinal tribes than in the ecumenical body of Christ, making it easier for us to dishonor those with whom we disagree. Our spiritual formation is informed by our beliefs but solidified by our habits. The way we navigate conflict, what we use to find comfort in times of despair, or how we treat the poor and marginalized all tell a story about whom we’re actually following. What we repeatedly practice reveals who is discipling us: Jesus or culture. Despite our understanding of Jesus’s person and work, our lives may reveal that we’re following false gospels much like the people we criticize. From Knowing to Living If we want to be continually transformed by the knowledge of God rather than just accumulating it, we must practice self-examination. After we finish another theology podcast episode, complete an inductive Bible study, or add a new commentary to our library, we need regular rhythms to help us reflect on what we’ve learned. Similar to David’s prayer in Psalm 139:23–24, we need the Holy Spirit to reveal whether what we’re learning is transforming us. Of course, Holy Spirit-led self-examination is uncomfortable, as God will lovingly shine a light on the places we’d rather stay hidden. Sometimes he highlights our calendars and bank statements, revealing that the way we use our resources is evidence of an identity rooted in prestige rather than in Christ. Other times, he might expose a recent online comment that shows our communication doesn’t align with Scripture’s command to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15) or honor our fellow image-bearer (Rom. 12:10). ​Sometimes this process of self-examination reveals our need to practice spiritual habits that help us resist the culture’s subtle yet powerful formative influences. Overconsumption of any kind might show a need for fasting to remind us of our dependence on God. Harsh judgment of others might reveal our need for confession so we become better acquainted with our need for mercy and grace. Through the Holy Spirit’s work, these habits can be a means by which our right doctrine becomes embodied transformation. Better Apologetic ​Self-examination requires us to embrace a posture of humble obedience, as we willingly submit ourselves to the truth that knowing the right answers doesn’t automatically produce right living. As we dig deeper into the theological truths we love to study, we must also consider how they have or haven’t aligned our lives with Jesus’s life and teaching. Through the Holy Spirit’s work, these habits can be a means by which our right doctrine becomes embodied transformation. However, this call to reflection isn’t a call to pack up our false-gospel detectors. The church desperately needs Christians who can identify erroneous doctrine and articulate truth clearly. Yet our task extends beyond calling out false gospels—we’re also called to embody the biblical truth we defend. May the same skill that undergirds our theological precision help us see when we, too, have drifted from Christlikeness and graciously guide us back home. Because the most persuasive apologetic for Christianity isn’t winning arguments online; it’s a life transformed by the truths we claim to believe.

Jim Acosta Warns That 'Partisan Hacks' Will Take Over CNN Due to Paramount/Warner Bros. Merger

A hiker on the hunt for wild asparagus in the woods outside Livorno harvested a Roman funerary marker instead. Retired firefighter Roberto Tessari was foraging last Wednesday after heavy rains when he spotted a rectangular stone slab at the water’s edge of a canal. He turned it over and saw that it was a funerary inscription. An active member of the Livorno Archaeological Paleontological Group, Tessari knew to report the find to the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the provinces of Pisa and Livorno and sent the official archaeologist, Dr. Lorella Alderighi, whom he knows personally, pictures of the slab. He then called his firefighter brethren to help him pull it out of the water. They lifted the stone safely and transferred it to the Superintendency. In a happy coincidence, Tessari’s son was on the firefighting team dispatched to the scene. The slab is 45 cm (17.7 inches) wide, 9 cm (3.5 inches) thick and 29 cm (11.4 inches) high, exactly one Roman foot. It dates to the 2nd century A.D. and is in excellent condition, with an intact inscription framed by a deeply carved cornice. The letters are 4 cm (1.6 inches) high and expertly carved in capital letters carefully laid out to make three even lines. The three lines of Latin text read: T ANCONIUS SEVERUS ANCONIVS PRISCVS ET SABINIA SEVERA V F It is a dedication to one Titus Anconius Severus from his parents, father Anconius Priscus and mother Sabinia Severa. The abbreviation V F stands for Vivi Fecerunt, meaning that the parents had the tomb and marker made while they were still living. The names are not documented in any known sources, but there are interesting details in . Young Titus, for example, bears his father’s family (gens) name of Anconius and his mother’s family name Severus as a cognomen (the third personal name). The cognomen started out as a nickname to distinguish people from the same family since there were so many repeated praenomen (first names) and eventually became inherited as well. They were almost always inherited along the paternal line, but the mother’s family name could be passed down to a son as a cognomen on occasion. The emperors of the Flavian dynasty, for example, used the mother’s name as cognomina for the second sons — Vespasian after his mother Vespasia Polla, Domitian after his mother Flavia Domitilla. One reason for including the mother’s name in a son’s name was if her family more distinguished, so not necessarily adopting the mother’s name per se, but rather including the name of the maternal grandfather. “The discovery is extremely interesting as it is one of the rare Roman inscribed tombstones with perfectly preserved text found in the Livorno area,” emphasizes Dr. Alderighi. “Given the site’s isolation, today as perhaps in the past, with its wooded and uncultivated nature, it cannot be ruled out that the tombstone may indicate the location of a stonemason’s workshop, or that it was never connected to a funerary structure, as the roughly hewn marble back shows no traces of mortar to the naked eye. The inscription likely dates to the 2nd century AD.” The male names (Titus Anconius Severus, Anconius Priscus) and the female figure (Sabinia Severa) do not belong to known individuals, and only the first male figure has a praenomen cited. Furthermore, the males lack patronymics and tribe names, and the gentilic name is copied from the name of a city (Ankòn/Ancon). These are all factors that could indicate the status of freedmen, or those economically important social groups that left traces of themselves in the epigraphic documentation of northern Etruria between the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. The slab is now being cleaned and conserved by Superintendency experts who will conduct an in-depth analysis of the stone, carving and inscription.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on March 19, 2026. Spencer Platt/Getty ImagesStocks declined for a fourth consecutive week as rising oil prices and higher Treasury yields weighed…

The State of New Jersey released images of the warehouse that the Trump administration wants to transform into a mass detention facility in Roxbury on March 20, 2026. State of New JerseyThe State of New…

(Left) Louisville Police Det. Joshua Jaynes. (Right) Sgt. Kyle Meany of the Louisville Metro Police Department testifies in Louisville, Ky., on Feb. 23, 2022. Louisville Police via AP; Timothy D. Easley/Pool…

I’ve made every mistake on this list. Some of them I made dozens of times before I finally learned. Decluttering sounds simple—just get rid of stuff you don’t need—but anyone who has tried knows it’s rarely that straightforward. We bring our baggage into the process, and that baggage often trips us up. Here are the […] The post 7 Decluttering Mistakes Everyone Makes (And How to Avoid Them) appeared first on No Sidebar.

Atlanta Falcons running back Nathan Carter doesn't define success by wins and losses but by his salvation through Jesus Christ.