WWUTT 2540 Q&A The Top 40 Biggest News Stories of 2025 (Part 2)

What were some of the biggest stories that happened in 2025 affecting

Christianity and religious news? And how should we view them as Christians? We consider that in today's episode, when we understand the text.

Many of the Bible stories and verses we think we know, we don't. When we understand the text is committed to teaching sound doctrine and rebuking those who contradict it.

Visit our website at wwutt .com. Here once again is Pastor Gabe.

Thank you, Becky. Who once again is not with me for this episode. She's still kind of recovering from the illness that we had and then jumping back into the busyness of having to catch up on all the stuff that we missed because we were sick.

So she's not with me for this episode, but God willing will be along with me next week when we go back to answering questions from the listeners.

Typically on these Friday episodes, we take questions from listeners via email. You can send a question to whenweunderstandthetext at gmail .com

or send us a voicemail. Go to wwutt .com, that's our website. Click on the voicemail tab and record your question or comment to us and we would love to hear from you.

The website's gonna change a little bit this coming week. It's just not gonna be hosted on Blogger anymore, but still should be easy to navigate.

You should find that voicemail tab right at the top or a tab that you can click on and contact us via email or through the website.

We thank you so much for listening to when we understand the text and telling somebody else about this ministry. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, we do

New Testament study. And I just started in the book of Acts right here at the start of 2025.

Then on Thursday, we do an Old Testament study and I've been in the book of Jeremiah. And then of course, Friday is our

Q &A. Saturday comes up on occasion, not every week, but I tend to address some, you know, more current event type of things and stuff like that and viewing that from a

Christian worldview on Saturday. And then Sunday is Sunday.

So I air sermons on Sunday and you can catch the latest series that I'm in right now, preaching through the book of Romans at my church,

Providence Reformed Baptist Church in Casa Grande, Arizona. You can find out more info about the church by going to providencecasagrande .com.

This podcast is made possible by the church and I so appreciate my congregation for supporting this work that I do.

And much of the congregation even listens to these episodes, especially this one, as we jump back into counting down the biggest news stories that affected

Christianity and religious news for 2025. We covered the first 20 stories last week.

This is not a countdown, but we go through these in order in which they happen. So we went from January 1st to July 10th.

And today we pick up with the 21st biggest news story of 2025, which occurred on July the 14th.

And before telling you that story, I'm gonna play this tribute video that I did in memory of John MacArthur.

So listen here. The greatest gospel verse in the

Bible, 2 Corinthians 5 .21, he made him who knew no sin, sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Let me unpack those 15 Greek words. He, God, made Jesus sin. What do you mean he made

Jesus sin? Only in one sense. He treated him as if he had committed every sin ever committed by every person who would ever believe, though in fact he committed none of them.

Hanging on the cross, he was holy, harmless, undefiled. Hanging on the cross, he was a spotless lamb. He was never for a split second a sinner.

He is holy God on the cross. But God is treating him, I'll put it more practically, as if he lived my life.

God punished Jesus for my sin, turns right around, and treats me as if I lived his life.

That's the great doctrine of substitution. And on that doctrine turned the whole reformation of the church.

That is the heart of the gospel. And what you get is complete forgiveness covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

When he looks at the cross, he sees you. When he looks at you, he sees Christ. Isaiah 53, five through six.

He was wounded for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities.

Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. And with his stripes, we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned every one of us to his own way. And the

Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all when we understand the text.

On Monday, July 14th, 2025, John MacArthur died at the age of 86.

He was the influential pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California for 55 years and host of the popular radio ministry,

Grace To You. I had the privilege of visiting Grace Church to attend the Shepherds Conference back in March.

And Dr. MacArthur's health had diminished so that he was unable to speak at the conference. But he did address the attendees through a video and said he was nearing the end of his race.

Though he didn't preach, the sermon that he was going to deliver was printed in booklet form and distributed to everyone who was in attendance.

Later in the year, he went into the hospital having contracted pneumonia. And then on July 14th,

Pastor John passed into eternity. I was on vacation at the time. I was camping and off grid.

I didn't have a phone signal. So I did not hear the news of his passing until my cell phone had a signal again, which was a couple of days later.

It was sad news, but not unexpected. The timeless truth that MacArthur taught lives on in many thousands of sermons that are available for free through the

Grace To You website. Now he was probably the highest profile death in evangelicalism in 2025, but there were many stalwarts of the faith that we lost.

Perhaps the next most notable was Votie Bauckham and his death even more unexpected when he died on September the 25th.

Votie was with his wife in Dallas at the time visiting family on her side when he experienced a heart incident that he would not recover from.

Many have been familiar with Votie's heart issues. In 2021, he was rushed from Zambia where he had been teaching back to the

United States because he was experiencing heart failure. The next year, he and his family moved back to the

US where he became the founding president of Founders Seminary in Cape Coral, Florida.

The seminary had just launched in August when he died the following September.

Previously, he had served as the Dean of Theology at African Christian University in Zambia for nine years and planted

Grace Family Baptist Church in Houston where he had been a pastor. Votie died at the age of 56.

Also, we lost Bill McCartney this year. He was the founder of Promise Keepers, died on January the 10th at the age of 84.

I guess I should say last year now as we are in 2026. Dr. James Dobson died on August the 21st at the age of 89.

He was very influential in my Christian upbringing as I was a very regular listener of Focus on the

Family as well as Adventures in Odyssey, even all the way up through my teenage years,

I continued to listen to that radio drama. Chuck Gerard, the lead singer of the contemporary

Christian band Love Song died on August the 11th at the age of 81.

George Foreman, the famed boxer who later became a preacher died on March the 21st at the age of 76.

Phil Robertson known for, or he was the patriarch of the Robertson family that became well known through the

TV show Duck Dynasty. He died on May the 25th at the age of 79. Famous women's

Bible teacher, Kay Arthur died on May the 20th at the age of 91. I had the chance to sit and eat dinner with her back in the start of 2020.

It was right before COVID hit. I was in Nashville, Tennessee with my dad and my son, Zachary and we met

Kay Arthur there and enjoyed dinner with her. Jubilant Sykes, who was an opera singer and well known for his great musical performances, even at Grace Community Church.

He was stabbed to death in December, on December 8th to be precise. And his son was taken into custody as being the one who killed his father.

Hulk Hogan died on July the 24th at the age of 71. Known for being a wrestler, but it was said near the end of his life that he had been baptized and was a professing believer in Jesus Christ.

Also of note was the death of televangelist, Jimmy Swaggart. This was a man whose entire ministry was ridden with scandal and it's unclear as to whether or not he even repented of much of that before he died, but nonetheless was one of the most influential televangelists in history.

He died on July the 1st at the age of 90. And then there was also this death. I don't believe that this man was saved, at least from my perspective, but he was spoken about a lot in Christian circles because of the influence that his music had, especially back in the 70s and 80s.

Ozzy Osbourne, who was the former lead singer of Black Sabbath, died on July the 22nd at the age of 76.

He was known as the Prince of Darkness because of his heavy metal and satanic leanings.

And there were many people who were praying for his soul before he died. So those are some of the big names that we lost in 2025 as the 21st big news story of the year.

Next, the 22nd big story on July the 21st, US golfer,

Scotty Scheffler says faith and family are what's most important to him.

At the age of 29, Scotty Scheffler is presently the number one ranked golfer in the world and has been for more than two years.

But for all of his stats and accomplishments, including winning the Masters in 22 and 24, winning a

US gold medal in the US Olympics in 24, and the US Open in 2025, and many other accolades, none of that is as important to him as his faith and his family.

My faith and my family are what's most important to me, Scheffler said, who also said in an interview years ago, the reason

I play golf is to glorify God. Here is Scheffler in his own words.

This is not a fulfilling life. It's fulfilling from a sense of accomplishment, but it's not fulfilling from a sense of like the deepest places of your heart.

I love putting in the work. I love being able to practice. I love getting out to live out my dreams. But at the end of the day, sometimes

I just don't understand the point. It's like showing up at the Masters every year. It's like, why do I wanna win this golf tournament so badly?

Why do I wanna win the Open Championship so badly? I don't know. Because if I win, it's gonna be awesome for about two minutes.

Skip Bayless is a popular sports commentator and he commented on Scheffler's comments.

Bayless said that Scheffler needed to make the sport more important than anything. And Bayless used himself as an example.

He said that his commitment to sports cost him his first marriage and he's foregone having children because of his dedication to being the best at his craft.

What a sad response. Scheffler has his priorities in order. He hits a ball.

Who wants to be known in history as being the best in the world at hitting a golf ball if it costs him his wife and children and especially his own soul?

Scheffler said, I have worked since I was two years old to have a chance to play professional golf for a living. And now

I've been able to win tournaments that I just dreamed about playing in. It's an amazing feeling.

And I'm so grateful to be able to live out my dreams. However, he says, if my golf ever started affecting my home life or if it ever affected the relationship

I have with my wife or with my son, that's going to be the last day that I play golf for a living.

The number 23rd story of 2025 was on August the 1st when lesbian actress,

Cynthia Erivo played Jesus Christ in the rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar.

Cynthia Erivo, a lesbian British actress known for her role in the movie Wicked was cast as Jesus Christ in the

Hollywood Bowl production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar. Now the rock opera itself has always been blasphemous but this casting caught special attention given

Erivo's sex and sexuality. The announcement in February sparked immediate online backlash.

The criticism intensified after performances in August and the footage hit social media labeling her portrayal demonic and intentional blasphemy.

Erivo portrayed Jesus with a shaved head and long sharp nails. Supporters including co -star

Adam Lambert defended the choice as fitting the musical's long history of provocation and gender transcending themes emphasizing

Erivo's vocal talent and the show's theatrical nature. Erivo herself dismissed the criticism lightheartedly asking why not and noting that it was a musical where she could sing my face off.

The production received positive reviews for her powerful performance despite the ongoing debate.

An article in the UK based Christian magazine Premier Christianity praised the casting saying that a lesbian woman playing

Jesus was inclusive rather than blasphemous expressing hope that Erivo's interpretation could make

God's story feel more accessible to marginalized people. Nope, it still just remains a blasphemous mess and continues to lead people into error rather than the truth.

The 24th big story of 2025 was on August the 7th when pastor

Doug Wilson was interviewed on CNN. The year 2025 was a big year for Doug Wilson.

He appeared at the National Conservatism Conference in September. He had long form profiles done on him in Politico Magazine, the

Los Angeles Times and the New York Times. He had a conversation with atheist Sam Harris on Harris's podcast.

He appeared at TPUSA's America Fest and was openly praised by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth who attends one of Wilson's churches in Washington DC.

But his most notable appearance of the year was on CNN in August when he was interviewed by Pamela Brown for being a self -described

Christian nationalist. Wilson's desire he said in the interview was to turn the United States and eventually the world into a

Christian theocracy and facilitate the second coming of Christ. Some of the things that Wilson said in the interview which were offensive to liberals included saying that women are the kind of people that other people come out of.

He said that he wants to repeal Obergefell which legalized same -sex marriage in the United States.

I certainly can't argue with him on wanting to overturn Obergefell and he wants to repeal the 19th

Amendment which gives women the right to vote. In the longer interview which did not air on CNN but you could watch on their website,

Wilson made some odd theological comments. For example, he said that the law was crucified with Jesus and the law was resurrected new with Jesus.

That doesn't make any sense. It was also in 2025 that Wilson published a book entitled

Sounds F .V. Revisiting the Federal Vision Controversy. In 2017,

Wilson wrote a blog article in which he would say that he no longer identified himself with the theological viewpoint that was known as federal vision.

But in an interview he did with Jared Longshore to promote this new book at the start of the year, he admitted to still being federal vision.

He also said that the Bible does not make a distinction between the law and the gospel but he flattened law and gospel into the same category.

That is an untenable position biblically. As John 1 .17 says, for the law was given through Moses, grace and truth, the gospel came through Jesus Christ.

And Romans 3 .21 says, but now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.

And verse 28 says, for we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

And Galatians 2 .21 says, I do not nullify the grace of God for if righteousness were through the law, then

Christ died for no purpose. I have appreciated Wilson's cultural commentary.

And when publicly interviewed like by CNN, Wilson often shares the gospel. He is unashamed of his

Christian faith and speaks boldly in the public square. Praise God for that. But doctrinally,

Wilson is a mess. And if you wanna learn from doctrine, I would not encourage you to learn it from Doug Wilson.

The 24th big story of the year was on September the 10th. And this one has been covered in a number of different Christian webzines and news sites and things like that as being the biggest story of the year.

I think it's unquestionably the biggest story of 2025. On September the 10th,

Charlie Kirk was assassinated. Charlie Kirk was the conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA.

He was assassinated on Wednesday, September 10th during an outdoor speaking event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.

A single sniper shot struck him in the neck from a rooftop over a hundred yards away in front of around 3 ,000 attendees.

At first, it was said that Kirk was wounded, but still alive. However, he was soon pronounced dead at a local hospital.

The shooter was Tyler James Robinson, a 22 -year -old young man in a relationship with his trans roommate.

The evidence tying him to the shooting includes his DNA on the rifle, a note, and text confessions linking him to the crime.

Prosecutors have charged him with aggravated murder and other felonies seeking the death penalty.

He has yet to go on trial. Video of the shooting began circulating on social media immediately after the assassination.

Many mourn the loss of Kirk, but as you can certainly imagine, there were many others who celebrated his death as well.

There have been widespread firings and investigations into people who posted critical or celebratory comments about Kirk's death on social media.

Kirk was largely considered a conservative Christian influence, despite the fact that he had made comments in the past defending homosexuals, calling them conservative.

And in an interview with Dave Rubin, who is a homosexual, he told Rubin, I think it's great that you're married.

To a man, mind you, Rubin was married to a man, which is not really marriage. And Kirk said, it's great if Rubin wanted to adopt children.

Granted that quote was from 2018. In more recent years, Kirk has become staunchly

Christian, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ at every open -air stop that he made on college campuses.

His videos on TikTok, many of which told people to believe in Jesus Christ, were viewed over 2 billion times before he died, and many more times after.

Kirk is viewed by many conservatives and Christians as a martyr. And I've said so even on this broadcast.

My beliefs are even more staunchly Christian than Kirk's were, my views even more conservative than Kirk's.

And if Kirk would be killed for what it was that he believed and proclaimed, I certainly would be assassinated for it as well by that same group of people.

Kirk and his wife, Erica, had been married for four years, and they had two children, a daughter born in August of 22, and a son born in May of 24.

Kirk died at the age of 31. This was the video that I did looking at some of the things that were going on on social media following the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and was one of my most watched

What Videos of 2025. Every once in a while, some major event will happen that kind of wakes up the public conscience, and people will begin to see, man, it's really bad out here, and surely there is more to life than this.

Charlie Kirk was assassinated just a few days ago, and since then, I mentioned this on the chat, but I'm hearing the gospel on social media more than I can remember.

And a lot of that is coming through these clips of Charlie Kirk engaging with people on college campuses.

I have 30 seconds left to live. I'm dying from a gunshot wound. What would you actually wanna tell me if I have 30 seconds left to live?

Boy, you got 30 seconds. In 30 seconds, you're about to meet eternal judgment, and there's only one way that you can get bailed out of that, and it's not all the good things you did or the moral scorecard.

It's whether or not you have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. And so, you got 10 seconds left.

You're dying from a gunshot wound, and you ask the question, who is Jesus Christ? And the answer to that singular question, who is

Jesus Christ, is the most important question for everyone in the audience. Not how much money you have, not how much good stuff you do.

It is, who is Jesus Christ? You might say, oh, Jesus was a teller of good tales, or Jesus was a good person, or Jesus was a historical figure.

None of that's gonna cut it. It's whether or not you repent and you ask Christ to come in as your

Lord and Savior. That's the only thing that will save you from eternal damage. He shares the gospel more succinctly than many preachers

I've heard. When did you accept Christ? Fifth grade at Christian Heritage Academy. What happened? I heard a hot gospel, and I heard what happens if you don't give your life to Jesus.

And it's very important that when we share the gospel, the modern gospel is, God has this beautiful, amazing, wonderful life for you, and if you give your life to Christ, your life will infinitely improve.

That is somewhat true, but it's very misleading, because you're basically trying to sell people on Christianity of a life without difficulty, where the better way to teach the gospel is, here's the 10 commandments.

How many of these are you violating? Oh, you deserve to go to hell, and you probably will, unless you give your life to Christ. That is the proper way to evangelize.

And so I realized the stakes. In fifth grade, I was like, oh my goodness, I'm a sinner, I'm selfish, I'm broken, and only thanks to Jesus's perfect sacrifice, coming and living a perfect life, that I get something

I do not earn, but has been given to me, this free gift of eternal life. It's what he said he wanted to be remembered for.

How do you want to be remembered? If I die? Everything just goes away. How would you, if you could be associated with one thing, how would you want to be remembered?

I want to be remembered for courage, for my faith. That would be the most important thing.

Most important thing is my faith. And many of these debates he will have with students will cover a wide range of topics.

Sometimes those arguments can get pretty heated, but he still tells people, even people in his own camp, even people who are there to hear him, he will tell them to be respectful.

Everybody, do me a favor, please be respectful, okay? And no matter who the person is across from him, no matter what they've been talking about, a lot of times he tries to bring it back to sharing

Christ with them. Archer, thank you for coming up and I hope you have a great day. Thank you so much. Thank you for clarifying. And let me just say one last thing.

I could tell you probably have a negative impression of Christianity, maybe. I hope one day we can earn back your support to making

Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior. This was a man who loved God, loved his family, loved his country.

You don't have to agree with Kirk on every subject. I didn't, and even brought some of that out on the podcast.

But all of that aside, this man shared Christ. He stated truth, he spoke respectfully, and he was hated for it and murdered.

2 Timothy 3 .12 says, "'Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life "'in

Christ Jesus will be persecuted, "'while evil people and imposters "'will go on from bad to worse, "'deceiving and being deceived.'"

Now this movement may eventually be overrun by conspiracy theorists, by people trying to radicalize you to their agenda, and by liars and false teachers.

But for now, we have this opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ and speak the truth in love.

And we should take it. It's dangerous, but eternal souls are at stake.

The danger didn't stop Charlie Kirk, and it shouldn't stop us. The number 25 story of the year was on September the 21st.

And this one connected with the last story. This was the Charlie Kirk Memorial Service that was held in Phoenix, Arizona.

The memorial service for Kirk was held on Sunday, September 21st at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, drawing nearly 100 ,000 attendees.

The 73 ,000 capacity stadium reached full capacity and then overflow crowds met across the street.

It was one of the largest public tributes ever for a private citizen of the

U .S. Organized by Turning Point USA just 11 days after his assassination, the event blended evangelical worship and American patriotism with over two dozen speakers, including

President Donald Trump, Vice President J .D. Vance, Tucker Carlson, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and others.

Apologist Frank Turk shared a solid gospel presentation, though there were some not so sound comments about Christianity as well.

Worship music was led by Chris Tomlin, Brandon Lake, Phil Wickham, and others. There were calls for spiritual revival, framing

Kirk as a martyr for American freedom and a warrior for the Christian faith. Though there were many big names, including the keynote speech that was delivered by the

President of the United States, the speech that got the most attention was from Kirk's widow,

Erica, who forgave her husband's killer. Let me go ahead and play that clip of Erica saying that as she spoke at her husband's memorial.

My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men just like the one who took his life.

Young man, on the cross, our Savior said, Father, forgive them for they not know what they do.

That man, give him.

Following her husband's death, Erica was named the CEO of Turning Point USA and promised to continue her husband's work, urging young people, especially men, to embrace true manhood and family values.

The service was widely described as an evangelical revival, with some calling it a potential third great awakening.

While Kirk's influence has certainly had a huge cultural impact for Christ, especially in his death, calling the present movement a revival is quite premature.

That aside, Kirk's organization, Turning Point USA, has reported surges in campus chapter requests in the tens of thousands of new chapters of Turning Point USA going up in schools all over the country, high schools, in college campuses, community colleges, universities.

His social media following grew dramatically and posthumous honors emerged, including proposed street renamings and memorials.

Also, it has been often said that when a champion of some liberal cause dies, such as Michael Brown or George Floyd, for example, people riot in the streets and the left will burn down entire city blocks.

But when a conservative Christian gets assassinated, people peacefully mourn and fill up churches.

And that's certainly been the response since the death of Charlie Kirk. Pray that those who had been affected by his death and were awakened to the reality of evil that exists in our culture would turn to Jesus Christ, would put their faith and trust in him and be saved.

And many of those who have turned to Christ in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination would continue faithfully in it, growing in the

Lord and finishing the race strong. The 26th big story of the year was on September the 23rd.

And that was when Jen Hatmaker released her memoir, Awake. Jen Hatmaker was once one of the most influential

Christian women speakers alongside teachers like Beth Moore, who was considered

Hatmaker's mentor. And Hatmaker at one point was thought of as the heir apparent to Beth Moore's influence.

Also Lisa Turkist, Jenny Allen, Priscilla Shire, all kind of part of that same group. And Jen Hatmaker was right there with them.

She had written New York Times bestselling books, some of the bestselling books among Christian women. And she had a reality

TV show on HGTV. As she grew in widespread popularity, she did an interview with the

Religion News Service in 2016, in which she came out as fully

LGBTQ inclusive. She and her then husband, Brandon, expressed support for same -sex marriage.

And in response to this news, the Christian bookstore chain, Lifeway, immediately discontinued selling her books.

Later in 2020, Jen had her daughter Sydney on her podcast in which the 18 -year -old revealed that she was a lesbian.

It was that same year that Hatmaker divorced her husband, Brandon, after she caught him drunk and sending romantic voice texts to other women.

She detailed in her latest memoir that this led to finding other evidence of long -term infidelity.

While the book mentions dealing with the aftermath of her divorce and backlash after she expressed support for same -sex marriage, what her new memoir,

Awake, gained most attention for was her disdain for the church.

"'I still love Jesus, but church is hard for me,' she said. She stopped attending in 2020 when she and her husband got divorced, and she isn't sure she will ever return.

"'I'm a complicated person because I'm still a big fan of Jesus,' she said, but I guess I don't like many of his folks.

Imagine telling Jesus, "'I like you, but I hate your bride.' Jesus will not take very kindly to that."

Besides, the Jesus that Jen Hatmaker claims to be a fan of is not the Christ of the Bible, but a

Jesus of her own making. Her memoir, Awake, immediately went to the top of the

New York Times bestseller list. It ranks as Amazon's number one best -selling memoir in 2025 and number seven on all book charts overall.

The number 27 big story of the year was on September the 30th, when the

TV show, The Chosen, became the most translated television series in world history.

The Chosen is the first ever multi -season serial about the life of Jesus and his disciples.

In 2025, they finished filming their sixth of seven seasons. The sixth season will debut later this year.

Jonathan Rumi, by the way, who plays Jesus is 51 years old. They still have one more season to film and he looks 51 years old.

He does not look like Jesus in his young 30s. I've talked about at length how unbiblical this show is and leading people into error.

That was the whole reason why I wanted to teach through the three synoptic gospels in order, as I've been doing on the podcast.

We're now in the book of Acts to start 2026. What else did The Chosen achieve in 2025?

Well, they set a Guinness Book of World Record for being the most translated series ever made.

The Chosen is currently available in nearly 100 languages. When the fifth season launched in 2025, it was launched in 50 languages.

Creator Dallas Jenkins has a goal of having the show translated into 600 languages.

The Chosen universe is also set to expand with more Bible stories, including

Joseph of Egypt that will probably release sometime within the next year.

As I mentioned in part one of this countdown of the biggest stories of the year,

The Chosen also debuted a kid series on Amazon, an animated version of the show, voiced by many of the same actors that are in the well -known

TV show. The number 28 story of the year was on October the 3rd.

For the first time in history, the Archbishop of Canterbury is a woman.

The Church of England announced on October the 3rd that Dame Sarah Mullally, the

Bishop of London, would be the next Archbishop of Canterbury, marking the first time that a woman would be appointed to the position.

This historic decision following the resignation of Justin Welby amid a safeguarding scandal was confirmed by King Charles III and celebrated as a milestone for gender equality within the church, especially since women were only allowed to become priests in 1994 and then bishops in 2015.

But there were many within the Anglican communion that also opposed the decision, including many African and Global South churches, arguing that it further erodes biblical authority, which commands a male -only episcopate.

Amen to that. It's crystal clear that only men can be pastors, according to the pastoral epistles.

1 Timothy 2, verses 11 through 3, verse 7, and then also in Titus 1.

The Apostle Peter also speaking of this in 1 Peter 5. The position of the Archbishop of Canterbury predates the existence of the

Church of England itself. The first Archbishop was said to be St. Augustine of Canterbury, who assumed the role as a missionary from Rome in 597

AD. It has continued an unbroken line of succession for more than 1 ,400 years.

Mullally is the first woman ever to be given the role in nearly a millennia and a half.

The number 29 story of the year was on October the 7th, when Jelly Roll performed at the

Dove Awards. The number one Christian song of the year in multiple categories was

Hard Fought Hallelujah, sung by Brandon Lake and Jelly Roll, also co -written by heretical preacher

Stephen Furtick, Chris Brown and Benjamin William Hastings. It won the Dove Award for Song of the

Year and was also the K -Love Song of the Year, according to their fans.

It has also won an award for best music video and best country music song. It was certified platinum with over 1 million units sold and it is nominated for a

Grammy Award, which will be held later on on February 1st of 2026. Jelly Roll is the stage name of Jason Bradley DeFord.

He spent much of his youth and early adulthood in and out of prison. In 2025, he received a governor's pardon for his past offenses and he was inducted as a member of the

Grand Ole Opry by his country music hero, Craig Morgan. Jelly Roll has credited

Jesus with all of his success and has said that Jesus has taken away all of his sins, encouraging people to live out their faith.

However, Jelly Roll's lifestyle is not very Christian. He hasn't given up getting drunk or smoking pot.

He just doesn't do it to the self -destructive excess that he was doing it before. He has been in an open, adulterous marriage with his sex worker wife who hosts a perverse podcast and she put out a book in 2025 where she's naked on the cover.

This is who Brandon Lake performs with. This is who the Dove Awards let perform at their show and they gave an award to.

In July, Lake addressed the controversial decision to perform with Jelly Roll saying, the bigger the opportunities

I get, the more hate it seems I've gotten from religious folks, he said. But the last time

I checked and I've been reading my Bible, God calls us to run into the darkness, carrying our light and not be afraid of the darkness because here's the truth.

Every single one of us were once in the darkness. I love this scripture in 1 Peter 2, 9. He says, we are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation set apart that we may sing the praises of him who took us out of darkness and pulled us into his glorious light.

Amen, I love that scripture. I even quoted it in church this past Sunday, but it doesn't mean what

Brandon Lake says that it means. Lake is referencing the verse to say that we should partner with people who are still in darkness.

It quite actually means that you be set apart from those who are in darkness and walk in the darkness no more.

If Jelly Roll is still in darkness, which it seems like Lake is saying, then he's not a

Christian and he has no business singing this song or performing it at any Christian music event.

What Ephesians 5, 6 through 11 tells us is this. You may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure or who is covetous, that is an idolater, has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

That was actually verse five. Verse six says, let no one deceive you with empty words for because of these things, the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

Therefore, do not become partners with them. For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the

Lord. Walk as children of light. For the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true.

And try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.

For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible.

Make no mistake, Lake and Jelly Roll are leading people into error, giving people permission to continue in serious sins that God has promised he will judge.

The number 30 story of the year was on October the 9th, the persecution of churches in China who were arresting pastors and shutting down Protestant churches.

Chinese authorities conducted one of the largest crackdowns on underground Christians in four decades back in October, detaining nearly 30 pastors and leaders from Zion Church, one of the country's biggest unregistered house church networks.

Pastor Mingri Ezra Jin, the founder of Zion Church, was arrested at his home in Beihai along with others as part of efforts to suppress independent faith communities not sanctioned by the government.

In November, 18 of the Zion Church leaders were formally arrested and charged with illegally using information networks, and they faced potential prison sentences of up to three years.

These aggressive detentions have raised global alarms about the escalating hostility toward unregistered

Protestant groups. This persecution reflects broader patterns where pastors of house churches, such as those from Zion and earlier cases like the

Early Rain Covenant Church, face raids, arrests, and long -term imprisonment for refusing state control over their worship and teachings.

China wasn't the only one to crack down on unregistered churches. Russia did this also with unregistered

Baptist churches, charging them with unlawful missionary activity. Churches have been sealed off by the

Russian government, and gathering of those congregations at any other location is strictly banned.

So be praying for Christians who are being persecuted right now in China and Russia, that they would remain steadfast in the midst of this persecution, and that the

Lord would show them grace and mercy. They would have an opportunity to gather and worship again.

Praising our God and Savior, who was persecuted on our behalf, that by faith in Jesus Christ, we would be forgiven our sins and have eternal life.

If we pray that that message of the gospel continues to speak boldly and loudly, even in the midst of these trying places.

The number 31 story of the year was on October the 10th, President Trump's peace deals.

President Donald Trump and his administration achieved or advanced several high -profile peace agreements and cease fires in 2025.

In late September, Trump unveiled a 20 -point comprehensive plan to end the violence in Gaza amid the war that ravaged the region since Hamas attacked and instigated this conflict with Israel on October 7th, 2023.

The plan's first phase involved Hamas releasing all living hostages, exchanging

Palestinian prisoners, increasing humanitarian aid, and installing temporary governance overseen by an international body chaired by Trump.

That plan was to go into effect on October 10th. In August, the U .S. also brokered a deal signed at the

White House that ended decades of conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. By the way, the

When We Understand the Text podcast occasionally shows up as the number one

Christian podcast in Azerbaijan. I don't know why, but we apparently have a few listeners there.

And so we thank you for listening and are praying for you in your war -torn country. The deal normalized relations and opened borders in the

South Caucasus, while also including bilateral U .S. agreements for trade and energy. Trump has also labored to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which

I had addressed in the first half of these big stories of the year. Trump views his efforts to end global conflicts as a chance to earn his way into heaven.

In a phone interview with Fox & Friends in August, he talked about how ending the Russia -Ukraine war might get him there.

I want to try and get to heaven if possible, he said. I'm hearing I'm not doing well. I hear I'm really at the bottom of the totem pole.

Many ministers have written open letters to Trump in light of his comments, saying, it's by faith in Jesus Christ that you were saved.

Put your trust in him. It is not by your works that you are going to get into heaven but only by faith in Jesus.

The number 32 big story of the year was on October the 16th, when the Trump administration announced a two -part initiative on in vitro fertilization,

IVF, focused on reducing the cost of select IVF drugs. Since Donald Trump came into office at the beginning of 25, he has been advancing through executive orders and policy decisions the expansion of in vitro fertilization.

This is a widely used assisted reproductive technology where a woman's eggs are retrieved from her ovaries and fertilized by sperm in a laboratory dish.

That's where the name in vitro comes from. It's Latin for in glass. So all of this happening in a dish outside of the body.

Any opposition against IVF is almost always on religious grounds. Most Christians tend to be against it for several reasons.

First, it's said to be an unnatural practice of producing children, separating procreation from sex in the marriage bed.

Homosexual couples have taken advantage of this technology, sometimes renting the womb of another woman in whom the fertilized eggs can grow.

Another basis of opposition is the increased chance of abortion. IVF involves the creation of multiple embryos, many of which are discarded, frozen indefinitely, or destroyed, treating early human beings as disposable rather than persons with inherent dignity.

In October, the Trump administration announced a major initiative to discount key

IVF medications and also create a new legal pathway for employers to offer standalone fertility benefits directly to their employees.

Additionally, the FDA was directed to expedite review of lower cost fertility drugs and include one in a priority voucher program to foster competition and innovation.

These steps build on Trump's campaign emphasis on supporting family formation by aiming to make

IVF more affordable and accessible. Also in October, the FDA under the

Trump administration approved a new generic version of the existing abortion medication,

Mifepristone, the primary drug in medication abortions. At a time when the

Trump administration has been asked to review and ban such drugs, they gave approval to a new one and expanded its availability.

At the present, it is estimated that more than 60 % of abortions are done by the abortion pill.

On a related note, also in 2025, the father of the abortion drug, RU486, the man who invented the drug and put it in pill form, died in Paris.

He was 98 years old. The number 33 story of the year was on October the 17th.

American churchgoers are becoming less sure about what the Bible says regarding abortion, sex, and gender.

The Family Research Council did a survey over the summer and released the results in October, revealing that American churchgoers are becoming less sure about what the

Bible says regarding abortion, human sexuality, and gender. Of those surveyed, 65 % said that the

Bible is clear and decisive about the definition of a legitimate marriage, which is down from 75 % in 2023, a 10 % drop.

Roughly 8 % said the Bible doesn't speak to the issue at all. Only 47 % of participants indicated that the

Bible is clear and decisive about whether homosexuality is morally acceptable, with 26 % saying that the

Bible does not speak to the issue. In 2023, it was 63 % who said that the

Bible was clear and decisive on the issue. In 2025, 40 % of those surveyed said that the

Bible is clear and decisive about whether transgenderism is morally acceptable, down from 52 % in 2023.

Approximately 51 % said that the Bible is clear about the morality of aborting an unborn child, which is down from 65 % in 2023.

By the way, it was also in 2025 that N .T. Wright, the theologian and former

Bishop of Durham, said that God is okay with abortion as long as it is handled early.

The number 34 big story of the year was on November the 4th, when Zoran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City.

Being an odd -numbered year, this was not a big election season, but there still were some significant elections in a few places in the

United States. On November the 4th, Zoran Mamdani was elected New York City's first Muslim mayor, just shy of 25 years since Muslim terrorists attacked

New York City, killing over 2 ,700 people and destroying the World Trade Center buildings on 9 -11 -2001.

Not only is Mamdani a Muslim, he is a communist. He has been a member of the Democratic Socialists, but his rhetoric is reflective of many of the communist thinkers and leaders in the past.

In his inaugural speech, which was held just a little over a week ago, Mamdani said that he would replace the frigidity of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism.

This same comment has been made by former Marxists, such as Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Bernardo Mussolini, the latter of whom defined fascism as the negation of individualism in favor of the collective state as an ethical whole.

Many Jewish leaders say that Mamdani's rhetoric and associations are anti -Semitic. Other people have cheered his progressive and pro -Palestinian stances.

At the end of the year, Mamdani announced that he would appoint former Al -Qaeda lawyer Ahmed al -Darbi to be the city's chief counsel.

Now, who could have seen that coming? Said brother Daryl Harrison of the Just Thinking podcast, quote, fundamentally

Mamdani isn't the problem. The problem is the people who will naively vote for him despite who he is.

They're the real problem. They completely ignore the fact that communism offered with a smile is still communism, unquote.

Harrison also said, quote, make no mistake, Mamdani is running for mayor of New York to make

New York a majority Muslim city. That he is a socialist is secondary to that, unquote.

Also elected on November the 4th was Jay Jones, named attorney general in Virginia, despite that he was exposed sending text messages about how he wanted to shoot former house speaker

Todd Gilbert, and he would choose to kill Gilbert over Hitler and Pol Pot. Furthermore, he said that if Gilbert's children were to die, it might cause

Gilbert to change his conservative views. And these things are direct attacks on Christianity and our biblical ethics.

You will see that come to light more and more as Mamdani makes the changes that he is going to be making in New York City.

This city will become less and less friendly toward Christian occupants.

The number 35 story of the year on November the 20th, artificial intelligence in ministry.

Now it's hard to pick a date on where to put this because artificial intelligence has been talked about all year long and is gonna continue to be a hot topic even in 2026, as it pertains to its use in ministry.

But I chose the date November the 20th because that date was when a new artist named Solomon Ray topped the

Christian charts on Spotify and iTunes. Ray's Spotify profile describes him as a

Mississippi -made soul singer carrying a Southern soul revival into the present. But Ray doesn't hail from Mississippi.

In fact, he doesn't come from anywhere. Solomon Ray is not real, he's

AI. In October, the Christian Post hosted an event at Colorado Christian University titled

AI for Humanity, Navigating Ethics and Morality for a Flourishing Future.

Pat Gelsinger, a Christian and former CEO of Intel said that AI is neither good nor bad.

Quote, it's how we shape it, how we use it, how we form it. And we as the Christian community, we as believers, will we be shaping technology as a force for good?

Are we going to show up to be bending the arc of technology for good? Unquote.

But there have been many ways this year that AI has been used in ministry for the bad. Jack Graham, who is a pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, was preaching a sermon on a

Sunday after Charlie Kirk was assassinated. And in the middle of the sermon, he said, hear what

Charlie is saying happened to him this past week. And then

Graham played audio from Charlie, encouraging people to pick up your cross and get back into the fight.

This was not a message that Charlie Kirk recorded before he died. It was rather an

AI generated message. And Charlie Kirk's voice said to be him speaking from beyond the grave.

And the audience responded to this message by breaking out into applause. No, my brethren, this is necromancy.

This is no better than what the Roman Catholics do, claiming that we can appeal to departed saints, pray to them and hear from them.

If there is going to be a constructive use for AI and ministry, this is not it.

As said in Deuteronomy 18 .10, there shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering.

Anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead.

For anyone who does these things is an abomination to the Lord. News story number 36 was on December the 3rd when

Chick -fil -A celebrated same -sex marriage. It was on Wednesday, December 3rd that the

Chick -fil -A restaurant in Orem, Utah, by the way, this is the same town in which Charlie Kirk was assassinated.

They posted on their Facebook page, congratulations to the happy couple. Who was this happy couple?

Dougie and Toby, two men that this Chick -fil -A restaurant announced recently got married and we are so beyond happy for them."

Well, as you can imagine, this blew up among Chick -fil -A supporters. It was back in 2012 when

Chick -fil -A was attacked for being anti -LGBTQ after then president and CEO, Dan Cathy, the son of founder

Truett Cathy, made public comments supporting the biblical definition of family, specifically that marriage was meant to be between one man and one woman as God had created it.

The LGBTQ faction of the American culture responded with a boycott against Chick -fil -A, but conservatives and Christians in America countered that boycott with huge support, even organizing a

Chick -fil -A appreciation day on August the 1st, 2012. As a result,

Chick -fil -A reported a 12 % increase on the year all for standing firm on their biblical principles.

But those principles are no more. Now, lest anyone say, but wait, that was just one

Chick -fil -A restaurant. Surely that doesn't reflect the entire chain. Well, after thousands of angry customers reacted online to the gay marriage announcement, the company finally responded.

This did not come from one standalone location, but from corporate headquarters. They said, quote, "'Thank you for contacting

Chick -fil -A Cares. Chick -fil -A embraces all people regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender identity," unquote.

They went on to say that they were, quote, "'Committed to being better at together by embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion,

DEI, in everything we do," unquote. Yep, this was a corporate confession that Chick -fil -A has bought into the lie.

They're like most other fast food chains now, just closed on Sunday. As a result of the news,

I will be using up the remainder of my points on my Chick -fil -A app, and then I plan on not eating at Chick -fil -A anymore in 2026.

In my community, there's an In -N -Out Burger right next door, and I plan on eating there instead.

The number 37 big story of the year was on December the 5th, when Kirk Cameron changed his opinion about hell.

Kirk Cameron became famous in the 1980s, playing the character of Mike Seaver on the

ABC sitcom, Growing Pains, Acting in sitcoms runs in the family. As you may know,

Cameron's sister, Candace, more widely known as Candace Cameron Bure, starred in the sitcom,

Full House. Anyway, Kirk Cameron became a Christian in the late 80s, and as a result of his

Christian convictions, there were things that he refused to do as an actor. The most famous example was when a

Playboy model, Julie McCullough, joined the cast of Growing Pains as Mike Seaver's love interest.

The two characters got engaged, and the showrunners planned for a wedding episode. As the story goes, this is mostly according to McCullough, Cameron learned of her history in porn and refused to do any romantic scenes with her.

So at the start of season five, the wedding episode turned into a story where Mike Seaver got left at the altar, and McCullough's character was written out of the show.

Cameron later met his wife, Chelsea Noble, on the set of Growing Pains, and they were married in real life in 1991.

Since then, Cameron has done a lot of work expressing his faith as an actor, and has been involved in many ministry ventures, most famously doing open air evangelism with Ray Comfort, and the two of them progressed the way of the master ministry together.

Anyway, to cut to the actual news story at hand, at the end of 2025, Cameron came on his podcast and said that he no longer believed that hell was eternal conscious torment.

Rather, he now takes what is called the annihilationist view, meaning that at some point the condemned soul is just obliterated and ceases to exist.

Not that they burn forever in an eternal barbecue, as Kirk put it. This blew up online, garnering responses from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Albert Moeller, Justin Peters, Gavin Ortlin, and even made secular news headlines given

Cameron's high profile recognition. He just recently filmed a round table discussion on this topic with Chris Date, who is another annihilationist.

I was actually invited to debate Chris Date earlier in 2025, but I turned it down because I just didn't have the time.

Dan Patterson is also on this round table discussion, Paul Copan and Gavin Ortlin, and you'll see that round table discussion coming out soon.

The number 38 story of the year was on December the 16th. There has been a rapid rise in antisemitism among young men in 2025.

Anti -Jewish hostility is often referred to as antisemitism, and it has become hugely popular in 25, especially among self -avowed white

Christian nationalist young men. Andrew Torba, a young entrepreneur who is the founder of the social media site

Gab, has referred to Jews as Jewish overlords, and his social media sites, while claiming to be conservative, have been hotbeds for antisemitism.

He launched a website intended to be the central homepage for all things Christian nationalism, and among the resources he recommends, the top resource is a podcast called

Stone Choir, hosted by Corey Mahler and Ryan Dunperth. Reported World Magazine about the podcast, quote, the hosts have promoted

Holocaust revisionism and other antisemitic and racist messages, unquote.

Said Dunperth, who goes by the name Woe, quote, there is no such thing as a repentant

Jew, unquote. In addition to Stone Choir is Right Response Ministries, hosted by a

Texas pastor named Joel Webben. He has also taken a position of doubting the history of the Holocaust and blaming

Jews for many of society's ills. Webben has made comments like the Bible is antisemitic, and Christians should righteously despise

Israel. Should be noted that in 25, Webben was exposed as having fornicated with a woman in his church in California years earlier when he was a young pastor, but he remains undisciplined and still holds his position at his church outside of Austin, Texas.

Webben has become quite smitten with a social media influencer named Nick Fuentes, who is outspokenly anti -Jewish and very foul and pornographic in his rhetoric.

His army of followers, which are probably made up of mostly bots, are referred to as groipers.

In addition to Webben, Michael Spangler, a Presbyterian minister and school administrator in North Carolina, has also made antisemitic comments, saying,

Jews are your enemies, the Bible says this. Spangler has said that he supports the

Stone Choir podcast and encourages fellow reformed Christians to do the same. Guys like Fuentes and podcasts like Stone Choir appeal to chronically online young men, often referred to as the manosphere.

Said Pastor Joel Ellis of Apache Junction, Arizona, combating this hatred is going to require loving, personal, relational, but relentlessly biblical confrontation to continue to try to inoculate people against these ideas, unquote.

Now, it is true that Judaism is not Christianity and a person who is a

Jew, but not a Christian, is not going to go to heaven. However, we do not need to have this attitude of antisemitism toward those who are ethnically

Jewish. As said in Romans 11, verse 17, if some of the branches were broken off, and you, speaking to Gentile Christians, although a wild olive shoot were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches.

If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.

That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith.

So do not become proud, but fear, for if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you.

Note then the kindness and the severity of God, severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness, otherwise you too will be cut off.

And this growing strain of antisemitism is anything but kind or loving.

Pray for those who are Jews, that they would turn from their sin to the Lord Jesus Christ and live.

But this antisemitism is not of Christ. The 39 biggest story of the year was on December the 25th,

Christmas day, when Trump attacked Nigeria over the persecution of Christians.

Several times toward the end of the year, Donald Trump pressured the government of Nigeria to do something about the genocide of Christians going on within their borders.

Muslims have been committing mass slaughter with thousands of Christians killed and millions more displaced.

This has been going on for so long that I've reported on the massacre of Christians in Nigeria in this end of year podcast every year since I started doing this.

On Christmas day, 2025, President Donald Trump announced that he had directed the US military to launch airstrikes, specifically powerful cruise missile strikes using

Tomahawk missiles against the Islamic State, ISIS, in Northwestern Nigeria, particularly in Sokoto State.

The strikes were coordinated with the Nigerian government, which provided intelligence and described the operation as a joint counter -terrorism effort against ISIS enclaves.

US Africa Command, AFRICOM, confirmed that multiple ISIS terrorists were killed in camps in the region.

Be in prayer for the Christians there in Nigeria who have been heavily persecuted and slaughtered for their faith.

And like, as I mentioned earlier, regarding China and Russia, that these Christians would remain steadfast, holding to the truth of the gospel and not be afraid of those who kill the body, but rather fear

God, who after killing the body can also destroy the soul in hell. Yes, I say, fear him, as Jesus said in the

Gospel of Matthew. May the fear of God strike the hearts of the people even who are persecuting

Christians, and they would turn from their wickedness to Jesus Christ and live. And finally, last story, number 40, which

I've dated for December the 31st, the last day of the year. The year 2025 is the year with the highest number of Bible sales in history.

According to recent data from Circana, Bible sales rose another 11 % in 2025, breaking the record of Bible sales that was previously set in 2024, and continuing a steady climb that has accelerated since the pandemic years.

Nearly 20 million copies of the Bible were purchased in 2025 in the US alone, including an astonishing 2 .4

million just in September. Circana is a major American market research and technology company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

It specializes in providing in -depth data, analytics, and insights on consumer behavior, retail sales, market trends, and industry performance to help brands, retailers, and manufacturers drive growth.

In case you're curious, Circana reports that the English Standard version was the best -selling version of the

Bible in 2025. Children's editions also remain strong in sales, as do niche products like the women -oriented

She Reads Truth Bible. Now, while this is amazing news, I'd already reported to you earlier that Christians in America have become less

Christian in their convictions, and that includes less Bible reading and prayer. The American Bible Society's annual

State of the Bible report says that about 41 % of Americans qualify as Bible users, meaning that they read scripture at least three times a year outside church services.

Only one in five professing Christians would be considered deeply scripture -engaged.

At the same time, a Gallup poll released in mid -November that found fewer than half of Americans now view religion as important in their lives, continuing a long downward trajectory.

Also in 2025, it was reported by Barna that men are now outpacing women in church attendance.

Barna had also reported that for the first time in decades, younger adults, specifically Gen Z and millennials, are now the most regular churchgoers.

Gen Z would also include today's teenagers and young 20 -somethings, and millennials are late 20s to young 40s.

Now, in saying that Gen Z and millennials are the most regular churchgoers, that does not mean that Gen Z and millennials are the most number of people attending church.

Rather, it means that they most regularly attend church. Of those who are in Gen Z and the millennials that go to church, they attend more regularly than Gen X or baby boomers, but the

Gen X and the baby boomers are still the most number of people.

The largest percentage of those generations attend church, more so than Gen Z and millennial.

Church attendance has dropped way off for the younger generations. Among those churches that have seen the most growth, according to groups like Pew Research and Barna, Pentecostal and charismatic churches are considered the fastest growing segment of Christianity globally.

Next are non -denominational and independent evangelical churches, followed by evangelicals and other

Protestant churches more broadly. Roman Catholicism is shrinking in the West, but their declining numbers are offset by their increasing numbers on the continent of Africa.

The traditional mainline denominations are shrinking in North America and Europe due mostly to their embracing of liberalism, but they won't admit that that's the reason.

Regardless, Bible sales have reached record highs, said the Roman Catholic website,

Zenit. Whether the increase in Bible sales marks the beginning of a spiritual reawakening or simply a cultural search for stability is an open question.

What is certain is that in 2025, the Bible has found its way back into America's hands, even as faith wavers in its heart.

Let's make 2026 a year that we get out with more evangelism, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to a dark and dying world, so that many others may hear the truth of the gospel, turn to Jesus Christ for the salvation of their souls and live.

I thank you once again for listening to this program. And if you wanna contact us with any email or questions that you may have, maybe you have a correction to something that I mentioned here.

I've received a couple of corrections. I might get those at a later time, maybe a future Q &A. But you can send those corrections and questions to whenweunderstandthetext at gmail .com.

And don't forget the website, www .utt .com, where you can also record for us a voicemail, www .utt

.com, if I said that right. Happy New Year. Welcome to 2026, as we're already headlong into the year and studying in our

Bibles. And I'll be back on Monday with more study in the book of Acts, God willing.

God bless you all. This is When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. There are lots of great

Bible teaching programs on the web, and we thank you for selecting ours. But this is no replacement for regular fellowship with a church family.

Find a good gospel teaching Christ -centered church to worship with this weekend and join us again Monday for more