In the Shadow of the Cross

"Hit them with the Truth right between the eyes!" Christians are often not very good at sharing truth. Ever had someone steamroll you with that new thing they learned? Ever seen someone blast another person with both barrels of their Bible gun? How did that work out? It failed with incredible confidence, right? Michael, Steve, and Loren discuss why sharing truth is often a total disaster and what we can do to better help people grow in their understanding of Jesus and his ways.

Many people are taught that the way you gain an understanding of God is by going through the Bible and finding all the verses containing attributes of God. Then you list all those attributes and you'll have an accurate picture of God. Here a verse, there a verse, everywhere a verse, verse. Michael Hardin calls this, "Old MacDonald theology." Michael, Steve, and Loren discuss why this is problematic and where we turn to get an accurate picture of our Heavenly Father.

Are you unteachable? Ever noticed it's always the other guy that is unteachable? "I've got it down! They need to listen to me!" Some Christians have even gone so far as to embrace anti-intellectualism while they claim to be the authority on understanding the Bible. How is it possible to be the authority on a book written in other languages, in other cultures, thousands of years ago yet never have studied ancient Greek or Hebrew, ancient middle Eastern culture, or ancient history? Did the Holy Ghost download ancient Greek into your brain? Steve, Michael, and Loren discuss the history of anti-intellectualism in the church and then turn to real life applications on how we can walk along side our siblings in Jesus who don't see things the same way we do.

Numerous believers question if Paul believed in the resurrection because of some of the words he used in his letters, particularly in his letter to the Philippians. The words translated into English as "if" and "might" cause some confusion for many people. Michael, Steve, and Loren take an in depth look at Paul's words to the Philippians to shed some light on his thoughts on the resurrection.

In this special episode, we remember our dear friend and fellow podcaster, Jim Durkin Jr. We put together a highlight reel of Jim from some of the past episodes of the podcast so you can join us in remembering our wonderful friend.

In light of some sad news we share at the start of the podcast, Michael Hardin, Loren Rosser, and our new host, Dr. Stephen Crosby discuss the resurrection. Surprisingly, this is often a hot topic that can cause tempers to flare. But the three point out that this being a more speculative topic, when Christians discuss these things, we need to be generous of spirit. What is the hope that we have in Jesus? What do we have to look forward to? And how has platonism impacted the views many Christians have of the after life?

The Bible can be used in terrible ways. But the Bible is not the problem. The problem is the way of perceiving and using scripture that is the exact opposite of the whole point of why we have the scriptures. A flat reading of the Bible in which all voices are attributed to being the voice of God, rather than rightly DIVIDING the scriptures produces people who look more like Saul on his zealous mission to imprison people than people who look more like the forgiving crucified One.

The good news that announced the end of scapegoating has been taken captive and become the sacred justification of scapegoating. The very thing the Gospel ends has been converted into sacrificial religion. This is not some new trend but something that began centuries ago. This captivity twists our understanding of the beautiful Father Jesus revealed and turns him into all the other pagan gods who cry for blood, vengeance, and violence. The Gospel that reveals has been mutated into a message that conceals. It hides our Father and it hides who we are as human beings. This leaves the door wide open for Christians to accept sacred violence, vengeance, and scapegoating. The captive gospel flows with the world rather than against its mindsets and systems. Michael discusses with Loren his important work on this topic.

Is anyone thirsty? What does it mean to thirst? Why are so many Christians thirsty while proclaiming the One who said if we drink of the water He gives we will never thirst again? Jim, Michael, and Loren discuss how our "like" driven, influencer pursuing, crowd pleasing, AI developing culture promises satisfaction but leaves us thirsty. The good news is Jesus gives us water that quenches that thirst.

When tragic things happen in our lives is God the one coordinating those events? What about when wonderful things happen? Is God the big controller in the sky working out some master plan and we're all chess pieces on his board? Michael, Jim, and Loren discuss the sovereignty of God and our delusions that cause us to play God.