Theology For the Rest of Us | Quick Answers to the Questions About God and the Bible

Contemporary western society is becoming increasingly more hostile towards the Gospel and increasingly more accepting of alternative lifestyles. People who stand for traditional Biblical morality and orthodox Biblical convictions are going to be called all sorts of derogatory names. There is no genre or topic in which this will be more applicable than in the arena of sexuality, especially any topics related to the LGBTQ community. How should Biblical Christians respond? Many people may ask, "Why do you hate gay and lesbian people?" The truth is not that we hate, but rather that we stand for Biblical truth, and God's ideal for marriage and the family. We orthodox Biblical Christians are going to labeled bigots, homophobic, hateful, old-fashioned, oppressive, etc. because we are seen as hating gay men and women. In this episode, Kenny clearly outlines how we ought to respond in those moments, when we are labeled as being bigots. Should we get angry? What should we do?

The cultural stigma around homosexuality has lessened significantly over the past few years in Western society, but certainly still remains. And the cultural stigma that is around homosexuality and same-sex relationships seems to be different than the stigma around any other sins or other sexual behaviors. There are many sexual choices that conservative Evangelical Christians would typically label as being outside of God's ideal design, but homosexuality seems to be viewed differently (or even sometimes viewed as being worse). But is this a Biblical idea? Is homosexual activity different than other sins? Is it worse? Is being gay or lesbian worse than other things outside of God's ideal design? In this episode, Kenny explains that all sins have some level of equality in their eternal consequences, but not all sins are necessarily completely equal in terms of the ramifications they have on our lives. Kenny then explains: 1- Sexual sin is unique from other sins, which includes homosexuality and gay lifestyles, but sexual sin also includes all forms of lust, objectifying any human being, adultery, pornography, bestiality, pedophilia, and certain forms masturbation (or the inappropriate thoughts that typically the accompany masturbation). 2- Homosexuality is unique from many other sins because the view about it has changed rapidly in our culture and being gay or lesbian is now being celebrated by large portions of the population in Western culture.

There has been a moral revolution in America over the last few years, changing how people view homosexuality and other related topics. One recent expectation is the idea of complete "tolerance" of all sexual perspectives. But doesn't the Bible tell us that certain sins are an "abomination" to the Lord? If so, how should we feel about the culture shift? And how should we feel towards sexual sin such as homosexuality? In this episode, Kenny launches a mini-series about homosexuality, answering several questions brought up by regular listeners. The first question Kenny tackles is the idea of hating homosexuality. Is it Biblical to hate homosexuality? Should we hate it more or less than other sins? Kenny answers this by giving us four insights: 1- We should want people to experience God's best for them, and our passion for God's design in sexuality should supersede our passion to be against homosexuality 2- We should hate all sin and should find all sin disgusting 3- We should ask God for his grace and power to see a person separate from their sin; we ought to seek to separate a person's sinful choices from that person's identity 4- We ought to hate our own sin more than another person's sin Recommended Resources:  What's the Meaning of Sex (Denny Burk) Transforming Homosexuality (Denny Burk & Heath Lambert) What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? (by Kevin DeYoung) God and the Gay Christian (multiple authors, edited by Al Mohler) Tim Keller's Response to Matthew Vines & Ken Wilson Resources from Rosaria Butterfield Christopher Yuan's Response to Justin Lee's "Torn" Christopher Yuan's Response to Matthew Vines Is Gay the New Black? (Video) How Can Homosexuality Be Wrong If It Doesn't Harm Anyone? (Video)

Parenting is one of the greatest privileges, and one of the greatest responsibilities, that God has given to human beings. If you are a parent you know how hard parenting can be, and how tough it is to feel like you're being a good spiritual leader to your kids as well. But even the little mundane tasks can be used by God for His glory and for the good of your kids. In this episode, our host Kenny interviews author and blogger Catherine McNiel about viewing parenthood (more specifically, motherhood) as a spiritual discipline. The busyness of parenting feels like it encroaches on our ability to practice spiritual disciplines, but the tasks of being a good parent themselves can be spiritual and sacred if we choose to view them that way. As a mother of three, Catherine knows how it feels to miss out on your "quiet time" with the Lord. She even confesses to occasionally escaping to the bathroom, just to get a few minutes of alone time. But what if we viewed the mundane tasks of parenting and motherhood as being spiritual? How would that change our lives and our families? Get a copy of Catherine McNiel's New Book: Long Days of Small Things Check out Catherine McNiel's website: CatherineMcNiel.com

Typically, American Evangelicals are conservative in their theology and conservative in their politics as well. That means that most American Evangelicals support the typical conservative position which endorses capital punishment (aka: the death penalty). In this episode, Kenny explains that he is overall very conservative in both his politics and theology, but herein he outlines why he differs from his conservative friends in this one arena of politics.

In this episode, Kenny answers an email from a regular listener about the desire for death. Kenny first responds with some pastoral wisdom for anyone feeling this way. Then Kenny reminds us of the importance of remembering the fact that we are made in the image of God and the importance of promoting a culture of life.

In this episode, Kenny explains the concept of being "orthodox" and why we ought to evaluate the beliefs that were embraced by previous generations of Christians.

Often, critics of Christianity challenge the idea that "God is good" because it seems that God does things that He has told us not to do. Some people even claim that God is a moral monster because He chooses to do things that may seem wicked to us (from our human vantage point). Why is it that God seems to be allowed to break His own rules? This episode is inspired by two recent correspondences that Kenny has had; one was with a fellow air passenger and the other was with a listener of the podcast. In this episode, Kenny dives into the idea of God's goodness and justice and morality. In addition, Kenny also tackles the idea that we ought to refrain from judging God by the same set of rules that we judge humans, and with that in mind, Kenny answers this question: "By what standard should we judge God at all?" Kenny responds to this question by challenging listeners to understand that, if we ever determine that God is wicked, then our "measuring stick" is broken and needs a Biblical course correction.

In this episode, Kenny interviews pastor and author Tim Carson about the concept of liminality, its importance to our faith journeys, and its transformational power in our lives when appropriately embraced. Check out Tim's book: Liminal Reality and Transformational Power  

Is there ever a set of circumstances where it is appropriate for a Christian to file a lawsuit against the government, a corporation, or a non-believing individual? In our previous episode (#204) Kenny covered the concept of Christians abstaining from suing other believers, but what about non-Christians or non-religious entities? In response to an email from a regular listener, Kenny answers this questions by addressing the problem with our contemporary societies becoming overly litigious, but Kenny also explains that God loves justice, and that there might indeed be scenarios where a lawsuit might be the best option to bring forth justice.

Should a follower of Christ ever file a lawsuit against another follower of Christ? Does the Bible address this? Is there ever a scenario wherein it would make sense or be appropriate for one believer to sue another believer? In the minds of many, this is a tough question, with many potential "grey" areas to consider. In response to a very sensitive email from a regular listener, Kenny answers this questions by giving pastoral advice and then by highlighting the words of the Apostle Paul from 1 Corinthians 6.

Curiosity is such a childish word, right? Well, not so fast. Just because we grow up doesn’t mean we should lose our inclination towards curiosity. In this episode, Kenny interviews Barnabas Piper about his recent book "The Curious Christian" wherein Piper challenges Christians to keep their wonder of the world and the people around us. Barnabas Piper is an author, blogger, marketing guru, podcaster, father, and fan of Minnesota sports teams. Follow Barnabas Piper on Twitter: @barnabaspiper Check out Barnabas' Website: www.barnabaspiper.com Get a copy of Piper's new book: The Curious Christian Check out the "5 Leadership Questions" Podcast Check out the "Happy Rant" Podcast

The Holy Spirit is often discussed and disputed by many Evangelical Christians. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, and He plays a vital role in our lives. As we evaluate the Scriptures, it appears that the Holy Spirit functioned differently in the Old Testament than He functioned in the New Testament. Is there truly a difference between how the Holy Spirit operated before Jesus came to planet Earth versus how he now operates after Jesus. Kenny dives into this vital topic here in the episode.

Many people claim to experience the grace and presence of God, even those who do not necessarily profess faith in Christ. Is this possible? In response to an email from a regular listener, Kenny addresses the idea that all people experience God, and he specifically highlights the doctrine often referred to as "common grace" which is available to all people.

In response to several recent personal conversations, Kenny addresses the idea of having a "dry" season, wherein we feel far or distant from God. What should we do when our passions or affections for God have faded? Kenny boldly answered this question, challenging listeners to be proactive in their faith.