Tallman Bible Church, Tallman, NY

01/19/2026

If you know English and would like to have your spiritual life changed... Consider teaching in rural Mongolia.

12/01/2025

Meet the Minchner family - some of the most awesome missionaries in Mongolia!

On December 14 at 10 AM, we will be honored to host Hillary and Michael and Michael Wayne and Hannah Ruth.

These are the kind of people who inspire you to live more for the Kingdom as you observe their faith and hear their stories. After visiting with us, they will be flying out to Mongolia. If you miss them here, you need to fly about 20 hours and 12 time zones to catch them on the mission field.

12/01/2025

Musicians desired

We are looking for some musicians who could be part of our worship once a month (to start with). Modest stipend available.

If interested, please contact [email protected]

10/23/2025

The person who avoids accepting blame misses out on the greatest blessings of life. Seeking forgiveness is not about trying to go back to the status quo. God's model of forgiveness is that it is the vehicle for replacing a broken relationship with one in which we are made whole and elevated as a son or daughter of the King. Thus the greatest failure does not lie in being declared at fault. Instead, the greatest failure is to not seek reconciliation and to hold on to an ever growing amount of pain and distance.

09/14/2025

A reflection on current events

A lot of opinions have been put forth online regarding the assassination of Charlie Kirk. It is a tremendous loss to see anyone murdered based on their politics and/or religious beliefs. It degrades discourse (which was already in a poor state), promotes fears and moves people further away from dialogue and understanding.

There are two main perspectives that are being set forth online. The first is the Charlie was a courageous martyr; a brilliant speaker and leader; and a great example of the Christian faith; and a hero. The other perspective that I have seen at length is that Charlie was a racist; anti-LGBTQ; neither a martyr nor a hero; and someone who had no Christian character.

It is worthwhile to look at this from a practical and a Biblical perspective. First and foremost, there is no justification for his killing. We can speak clearly about actions that are wrong. We can also do so without wading into charges of hypocrisy or immediately talking about gun control as a corrective. Those discussions can come later.

The next item to deal with is whether or not Charlie was a martyr. There is actually little point in debating this. From Oxford Languages, the definition of martyr is as follows "a person who is killed because of their religious or other beliefs." The only aspect that is not clear at this point is which of his beliefs he was killed for. It may have been political or religious. Only the sniper can fully answer that question but it will not change the description of Charlie's death.

As for him being a leader, the size and scope of Turning Point USA indicates a high level of organization skill. Had Charlie been a terrible or ineffectual leader, it is doubtful that someone would have assassinated him.

The basis of Charlie's success centered around him being a provocateur. This means that employed rhetoric that was jarring (at times) to make his point. This generated publicity which helped build a large following. The challenge with provocative language is that some people will never look beyond the words to get to the message. In the day of instant memes and sound bites this is both effective for publicity and effective for generating strong negative reactions. Those who perceive a message that they agreed with forward and share the memes being inspired by the courage of someone who gives voice to their sentiments. Those was are offended do the same in disgust and publicity builds.

His notoriety leads into the strongest reactions. These focus on whether or not Charlie can or should be identified as a Christian leader. Those who argue most strongly against this come from certain perspective of Christianity which is referred to as Social Justice Doctrine. This doctrine tends to view the entire scope of the Bible as addressing the issues of equality and fairness. Because Charlie had statements that did not adequately speak to the plight of the poor, the oppressed, the minority, the disenfranchised, etc, he could not possibly be a real Christian.

I would suggest that we have to be extremely careful when we set out to evaluate whether or not someone is a "real" Christian. Did the thief on the cross who joined Christ in paradise have a sufficient theology? He was never baptized nor confirmed. He never even yet to Vacation Bible School.

One of the criteria that Christ set forward for a follower of his (in Matthew 10:32) was as follows:
“Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven." It is clear that Charlie Kirk did this on several hundred occasions without hesitation.

There is an argument as to whether or not Charlie was simply invoking Christ for the sake of building a following. These sorts of concerns are nothing new. They were actually confronted by Paul in the book of Philippians. He concludes a question about the motives of those preaching about Christ in Philippains 1:18 "But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice."

If we apply Paul's perspective, it would seem to be tremendously beneficial that tens or hundreds of thousands of college students were exposed to a message of salvation through Charlie's actions. I cannot perceive of a corrective. Do we forbid people whose theology is deficient in our eyes from talking about Christ? The only entity that would have the authority to do this would be the government which would inexorably lead to state sanctioned religion.

The final question then is who retains the authority to set aside someone's self-identity as a Christian? Ultimately, that authority rests with the perfect Judge - God Almighty. We have to exercise tremendous care that we do not end up trying to usurp the authority of God because we vehemently disagree with someone's politics, beliefs or even behaviors. The wonder of Christianity is that we all fall short of God's glory and yet He extends mercy to those who call on His name.

Thus whether we would lionize or demonize Charlie, he now stands before the same judge that we will see.

For those whose are in deep mourning, we pray that they are comforted. For those that are encouraged to be more bold in their faith, we thank God for the example of fearlessness that Charlie displayed in declaring his faith - regardless of any perceived shortcomings. For those who celebrate his assassination, we pray that they are brought to a place where they realize that their hatred comes from internal darkness and not righteous anger. For his assassin, we pray for transparency and eventual remorse on this side of eternity.

10/28/2024

Great Anniversary Celebration

I would like to extend gratitude to everyone who was able to attend our 150th Anniversary celebration. By God's provision, we were able to have so many changes to the church completed literally days and hours before the Anniversary.

It was a great pleasure to see some old friends and church family members.

We look forward to what God has in store.

Please mark your calendars for October 30, 2124 when we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of Tallman Bible Church. There is a distinct chance that I may no longer be pastor at that point.

Best Regards in Christ,

Pastor Joseph

10/24/2024

150 Years of Tallman Bible Church

Come celebrate with us on Sunday @ 11:00 AM

10/15/2024

09/07/2024