Posted on Tuesday,

#13: Christians Can Ask the Hard Questions

Christians can ask the hard questions.

Questioning the Bible isn’t always comfortable. In fact, it can be downright scary.

If we dig underneath “because the Bible says so” what will we find? Have we based our lives on a bunch of fairytales?

How we view the Bible is no small matter. A lot is at stake.

The God of the universe may actually have spoken. If Christianity is true, then there are authoritative answers to life’s biggest questions.

As I read the Bible I find people asking the hard questions. My favorite example is Luke who was one of the earliest biographers of Jesus.

In a way, Luke was (more…)

Posted on Tuesday,

#12: What is Substitutionary Atonement?

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What is Substitutionary Atonement?

When it comes to understanding the Christian faith, there aren’t many ideas more central to grasp than this one.

Those words can sound intimidating, so let’s break them down. To “substitute” is to stand in the place of or take the place of.

To “atone for” is a multifaceted biblical term which means to “cover,” “forgive,” and “reconcile.”

This is the heart of the Gospel. Jesus died in my place, as my substitute, for my sins.

Peter, who saw Jesus raised from the dead, described (more…)

Posted on Tuesday,

#11: How Were People Saved in the Old Testament? [Podcast]

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How were people saved in the Old Testament?

That’s a good question and one that many of us wonder about. Was it by good works or was it by faith?

But here’s the big picture. When we look at the Scriptures, this is the pattern that emerges.

Salvation is always…

Offered by the grace of God
Based on the atoning death of Jesus Christ
Received by the exercise of faith
Applied by the work of the Holy Spirit

Until the time of Christ, (more…)

Posted on Tuesday,

#10: The Christian Life is Active Not Passive [Podcast]

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The Christian life is active, not passive.

It’s so easy to start letting life happen to us. There’s so much to do.

Information to process. Schedules to manage. Emails to check. Laundry to fold, practices to get to and homework to be done.

The pace is crazy. If we’re not careful, we can become passive observers in our own lives.

Here’s the problem: If we’re passive, then we’ll not be able to do all that God has called us to do. (more…)

Posted on Tuesday,

#9: Where Do Human Rights Come From? [Podcast]

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Where do human rights come from?

You may have noticed that everyone is not the same. Look around your classroom, workplace, or on social media and you quickly realize that people are, well, different…Men, women, big, small, different cultures and ethnic backgrounds—we don’t have equal abilities, power, talents, strengths, or intellect.

So why treat everyone the same if we’ re not?

It has to be something more than “we agree” or “we took a vote” that everyone is equally valuable because all it takes is for someone to disagree or take a new vote and equality goes out the window. (more…)