Breaking Christian News on The Gospel Herald

A Christian film about John Newton’s role in the slave trade and the abolition movement is expected to be released in Australia and New Zealand next week. “Freedom” stars Cuba Gooding, Jr, who plays a slave fleeing to Canada via the Underground Railroad while being pursued by vicious slave hunters.

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group, which has been killing Christians and others who refuse to convert to Islam, has threatened to conquer the United States in the name of Allah.

Throughout the week, NBA star Jeremy Lin has been hosting contests and interacting with his fans around the globe in an effort to thank them for all of their support throughout the years. The new Los Angeles Lakers addition did a Facebook Q-and-A for an hour Thursday evening for Day Four of Fan Appreciation Week and encouraged participants to ask creative and unique questions.

On day three of Jeremy Lin’s Fan Appreciation Week, the NBA star challenged fans to create a “Dunk Cam” video. While Lin has yet to name a winner, his own #JLinDunkCam video has gone viral on social media.

Christian author and retired pastor John Piper expressed his respectful disagreement with the pre-tribulational rapture viewpoint, which is depicted in “Left Behind,” Nicolas Cage’s upcoming movie release - “Left Behind? Nine reasons Christians will not be taken from the world before the Final Tribulation,” the theologian tweeted Tuesday.

For day two of Jeremy Lin’s fan appreciation week, the new addition to the Los Angeles Lakers team posted a multiple choice quiz via Twitter for a chance to win an autographed pair of shoes.

Today kicks off Jeremy Lin’s second Fan Appreciation Week, beginning with a Facebook photograph caption contest on Monday. Tuesday will feature a multiple choice quiz via Lin’s Twitter account, and on Wednesday fans will get to post their best videos on Instagram for a shot at a prize. Thursday will feature a Q-and-A on Facebook and on Weibo, and Lin will host an art contest on Friday.

Meriam Ibrahim was greeted upon her arrival in the United States Thursday at the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport by cheering friends, relatives, and fans. The Christian mother’s safe exit from Sudan has been cause for celebration around the world.

Christian pastor and author Timothy Keller took some time earlier this week to do a question-and-answer session on Twitter, and gave several pearls of wisdom for dating, marriage, apologetics, and evangelism.

Despite the way that Jeremy Lin was treated recently by the Rockets, the NBA star says is thankful to have matured as a Christian and as a player during his two-year-stint in Houston and is looking forward to playing with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Government officials have authorized the removal of crosses from more than 130 Chinese Christian churches in the Zhejiang province. The government has demolished or partially destroyed hundreds of church buildings in the region, claiming that they have violated building codes.

Meriam Ibrahim and her husband met with Pope Francis in the Vatican Thursday after being escorted from Sudan by the Italian minister for foreign affairs. Ibrahim’s husband is a United States citizen, and her family plans to fly to America after their stay in Rome.

Matthew Durham is being charged with engaging in sexual activity with several young children in an orphanage during recent trips to Kenya.

The body of Yoo Byung-eun, owner of the company which operated the Sewol ferry in South Korea and cult leader who was charged with embezzlement and tax evasion, was recently identified after being found lying dead in an orchard in Suncheon, South Korea.

President Obama amended two executive orders Monday morning which will make it illegal for the federal government and its contractors to discriminate against their employees on the basis of gender identification. CBS News reports that the orders do not give exemption for religious organizations; however, such entities are allowed to exclusively hire employees who share their faith.

The Security Council of the United Nations convened recently and called for an international investigation of the crash involving Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. Rescue workers have found 181 bodies in eastern Ukraine fields where the passenger plane was shot down on Thursday by what was believed to be a surface-to-air missile.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine Thursday, carrying 295 people. The New York Times reports that the Boeing 777 might have been shot down by a Russian antiaircraft mechanism on its way toward Kuala Lampur, Malaysia from Amsterdam. No survivors have been reported.

A mother of three, Holly Fisher began receiving death threats after posting photographs in support of Christianity, the unborn, and the right to bear arms on Twitter.

Archie Andrews will leave his friends at Riverdale in “Life With Archie” this Wednesday after taking a bullet for his gay best friend. The Archie comic book series, which was once influenced by Christian artist Al Hartley, will conclude the following Wednesday.

In a recent interview with CNS News, Jase Robertson spoke freely about the disrespectful way that GQ Magazine’s Drew Magary approached the infamous interview with his father Phil in December of 2013. In his newly released book, “Good Call: Reflections on Faith, Family, and Fowl,”Jase mentions that he and several others in the family walked out of the interview because Magary was so disrespectful toward them.

Ron Lee Haskell, the man accused of killing six members of his ex-wife’s family in Spring, Texas on Wednesday, collapsed in court as charges were read against him this morning.

The Philadelphia 76ers have agreed to take on Jeremy Lin’s $15 million contract if the Houston Rockets are able to sign a major player like Chris Bosh, and it is believed that Bosh will take the max deal of $88 million offered by Houston if LeBron James decides to leave the Miami Heat. Some expect James to make his decision before traveling to Brazil for the World Cup game this weekend.

The Houston Rockets have reportedly offered Chris Bosh a four-year $88 million contract for his consideration, and would likely trade Jeremy Lin to free up cap space if the Miami Heat star accepts the offer.

Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl champion quarterback Russell Wilson’s younger sister Anna helped the United States’ U17 basketball team win the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship for Women this weekend in the Czech Republic. Team USA beat Spain Sunday by just a two-point margin to achieve its third championship in a row.

Former Olympian and World War II veteran Louis Zamperini died Wednesday at 97-years-old. "After a 40-day long battle for his life, he peacefully passed away in the presence of his entire family, leaving behind a legacy that has touched so many lives," a family statement reads, released this morning. USA Today reports that the beloved national hero had been suffering from pneumonia.