Christian Questions Bible Podcast

We all need to be heard, and we all need to be acknowledged.   We all need that feeling of validation that comes with being personally recognized as having value, and all of this comes through the important tool of communication.  The problem is that we have become terrible at both the giving and receiving ends of the communication spectrum.  Somehow we think that posting, texting, tweeting and emojis can replace actual conversation, looking someone in the eye, feeling their emotions or touching their shoulder.  Whether it is our lack of attention span, our need for convenience, personal laziness or simply not knowing what we are missing, we have seemingly deserted real true person-to-person communication and replaced it with cold and emotionless technology.  So, what do we do?  How do we relearn both the giving and receiving ends of this invaluable and necessary tool for a fulfilled life called “communication”?
One of the first things to realize is that the Bible doesn’t use the word “communication” in nearly the same way that we do now.  In the Bible, communication is always about the idea of mutual support in a very tangible sense.  When the Apostle Paul thanks certain ones of the brotherhood for “communicating” with him (this is a phrase often found in the King James Version) he is thanking them for their physical support of him in the hardships he encountered while preaching.  They helped him by supplying food and the basic necessities of life – they helped support him as he supported others through the Gospel.  When we think of communicating, we think of touching someone’s heart or sharing the emotions of an experience.  Very different.  Both important.
What do we learn from this?  Most importantly, I think we can learn how deeply important it was for the early Christians to spread the Word of God and how their entire focus was on the work and not on how they felt about things.  This is not to say that we should ignore feelings, but it is saying that those things that we naturally view as primary communication areas are NOT the most important types of communicating we should be involved in.  Now let’s not get carried away here…just because something is not the most important primary objective of life does not mean that it should be ignored!
On the contrary, the Apostle Paul was a MASTER at speaking to people’s hearts and having those he spoke to actually listen and speak back to him!  How did he do that?  He did it by first taking the time to observe and learn about those with whom he was communicating.  After this he applied his communication with great respect for those he was speaking with – he met them where they were, found the good in them and then proceeded to deliver his message.  Whether this sounds easy or difficult to you, it truly is just scratching the surface of a matter that needs more than just scratching – it needs to be dug into!
Please take the time to check out our June 12, 2017 podcast, “Why Doesn’t Anyone Listen to Me?” and give yourself the opportunity to dig deeply into the fertile ground of communicating.  You just might walk away having planted seeds of understanding that can grow to feed your everyday communication and bring it to an entirely new level!

The world is systematically becoming a dark place.  It is not that people are purposely looking to dwell in darkness.  It is that people – many people – have come to believe in things that had their origin in darkness and treachery.  Wherever you look you can see the subtle creeping in of thinking, philosophies and actions that do not reflect the wholesome goodness of godly righteousness; but they rather engulf all in their path in a pervasive and deepening gloom that is labeled as a “new understanding” of what is good and acceptable. Jesus emphatically told his followers to be the “light of the world,” to be that “city set on a hill for the whole world to see.”  So, how are we doing with that?  Is Christianity truly the light of the world or have we misrepresented and failed the light of the Gospel?  Is the world supposed to see our light and come to it or are we simply off track in our understanding?
Almost everyone knows about the Beatitudes – the simple and profound teachings of Jesus to his followers given at the beginning of Matthew chapter 5.  “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy…”  These teachings are often referenced and quoted to show not only the essence of what Jesus was all about, but also what he focused his followers on being all about.  What most people don’t know or don’t think about is that right after these teachings – and actually a part of these teachings – were Jesus’ statements about being the” salt of the earth” and the “light of the world.”  Not only did Jesus give us a high standard to live up to in the Beatitudes, he also gave us the sober responsibility of being clearly observed examples of godliness to everyone around us.
Okay, so how do you that?  How do you become “the light of the world” and “a city set on a hill”?  Becoming light is not easy.  Think about it – each and every one of us is broken in one way or another, and any light that we might have naturally is certainly not the light that Jesus here speaks of.  Our natural light is earthly light and is therefore not capable of bringing anyone to the higher ground of godliness.  For us to be “the light of the world” requires that we first seek out spiritual light, and that we position ourselves so that spiritual light can shine upon us.  Where do we find this light?  Jesus said that he is the light of the world, so learning about, understanding and following Jesus puts us directly in the warmth of THE light.  Jehovah God’s light.  It is only once we absorb this light and allow it to work its change is us that we can even think of actually becoming light.
So, is true Christianity actually the light of the world?  Yes it is!  But the world is so dark!  Yes it is!  Then how do we harmonize the darkness of the world and the light of true Christianity?  Much more easily than you might think!  Check out our June 5, 2017 podcast, “Is Christianity REALLY the Light of the World?” and see how the pieces fit together.  It’s all good…and where there is light there is warmth and life!

We are not patient.  Not anymore.  It used to be just a few decades ago that when you needed to talk to someone far away, you waited until the day ended, went home, had dinner and then you tried to call them.  Several decades before that, you thought about what you wanted to say, wrote them a letter, sent it and waited…  Now we simply and instantly text them and usually get a pretty instant answer as well.  Not only do we not have patience, we have a hard time teaching it to others.  Our children have the privilege and problem of instant access, instant answers and instant fun which leads them to instant frustration when something doesn’t go as expected.  Patience – Jesus told us “in your patience possess ye your souls.”  Turns out that there is much more to that statement than meets the eye!  What is the Bible’s real message regarding patience for Christians?
The first thing to realize about patience is that there are a whole lot of applications for it.  Patience in its simplest form is waiting – we really want that cup of coffee – we really need that cup of coffee but it needs to brew – it won’t be rushed, so you simply need to wait.   This is probably the most common understanding of patience and when you think about it, it really shouldn’t be all that hard to master.  After all, we know that things sometimes just take time, yet in spite of that knowledge we still get frazzled!  Interestingly, the Bible has little to say about this kind of patience.  It’s almost like it is too basic to even comment on.
The Bible begins to have something to say as we look at a deeper kind of patience.  To be patient (according to Scripture) is to “be appropriate,” and this is so much harder than simply waiting.  Think about it:  You are a parent and your teenager is in one of those adolescent, verbally-destroy-everything-in-their-path moods.  You have already had a long and trying day and the second you walk in the door – bam!  You are the enemy.  You feel like snapping back – but you don’t because you understand that you are the adult here and you have an opportunity to set a great example!  So, you respond with appropriateness – you respond with grace and understanding.  Wait, that’s not how you would respond?  Well, then that’s just one of many great reasons to listen to this podcast, but more on that in a minute.
The Bible identifies two other types of patience that go far beyond simply waiting for something and being appropriate in circumstances that are common.  As a matter of fact, the deeper the type of patience, the more the Bible has to say about it.  Without going into details now on these deeper and more significant brands of patience, we already have a lesson before us that is profound: As Christians we are expected to be able to master the most basic type of patience, and we really need to learn and master the deeper kinds as they are necessary for our faithfulness.
Learn how with us!  Check out our May 29, 2017 podcast, “What’s Your Hurry?” and see what might be missing in your patience arsenal.  Who knows – understanding all of this might even help with your blood pressure!

 Revenge – the desire for it can be a powerful and even overwhelming emotion.  Sadly, thinking about revenge can be a fun, motivating and bonding experience, as it occupies our minds with creative and yet often diabolical means with which to carry out our purpose.  It is amazing how the development of such a negative action can spur such positive feelings.  So wait – if all of these positive feelings come from planning revenge then can we rightfully label revenge as wrong?  Absolutely!  Just because something makes you feel good or empowered or focused doesn’t mean that you are becoming a better person because of those things.  Remember, Satan felt good and was empowered and was focused when he rebelled against God – and we all know how that will turn out!  Can revenge ever be good?  How do we recognize, manage and direct our feelings of revenge?   Psychological studies clearly indicate that the human brain responds positively to thoughts of revenge.  Now, when the brain produces the chemicals that tell us something is good or desirable we obviously are attracted to it (revenge in this case) on a subconscious level.  This creates a real problem for us if we are trying to “walk the high road” and put revenge away, because our physiological “instinct” is to seek revenge - and that “instinct” is deeply persistent.  What do we do?  The first thing is to follow this “what if” equation of revenge out to its theoretical conclusion.  If planning revenge brings desirable reactions, then what about actually following through and getting revenge?  What does your brain tell you now?  Well, it tells you the exact opposite!  Psychological studies indicate that the act of revenge produces a negative response in our brains.  The findings indicate that carrying out revenge helps the original trauma for which we sought revenge in the first place to take a deeper residence in our brains, producing persistent negative feelings.  Essentially, getting revenge only makes the whole trauma worse and its negative effects more lasting and powerful! Our next stop in understanding and defeating revenge is to look at it in comparison to actual justice.  This is a revealing place to stop and think, because revenge and justice are entirely different.   Revenge is all about me.  It is all about retaliating in such a way as to make myself feel better.  I plan and do things that I feel will not necessarily even the score but will make a statement of my own strength or resiliency.  Justice is simply about doing that which is right – it is about an appropriate reaction to a wrong and not an emotional reaction to a hurt.  Thinking about revenge may be fun but following justice is right.  Boring?  Maybe.  The best answer?  Always! There is so much more to this.  Not only does the Bible emphatically teach us to run away from revenge, it also teaches us how to refocus the energy of revenge towards appropriate and positive responses.  Check out our May 22, 2017 podcast, “How Sweet is Revenge?” and see for yourself how our thoughts and feelings for revenge can be actually transformed!  You never know, listening may help you change your thinking!  

So, have you ever been or have you ever known someone who has been a victim of fraud?  You know, had their credit card number stolen or their bank account hacked or their social security number breached?  It is all quite real and it is all quite unsettling.  Now, have you heard the term “fake news”?  Think about it – fake news is fraud as well, since in its reporting we are led to believe something is true that isn’t.  This phenomena is quite real and it is quite unsettling.  Now, have you ever taken something from work that is not yours or “padded” an expense report or “forgotten” some income on your tax return?  These things are also fraud – they are quite real and they are quite unsettling.  The bottom line is, fraud is everywhere and we as Christians can be victims of it and we can also perpetrate it. So, what do we do?  How do we keep fraud from being a part of our lives? As a Christian, thinking about fraud is disturbing enough but thinking about being a perpetrator of fraud should really make us ask how this can be so.  How is it that I need to be on my guard against doing something that is so far removed from my Christian principles?  The answer to these questions can be easily summed up in one word...subtlety.  Because we have access to so much with such ease, because we have the ability to be pretty much anywhere in the virtual world with anonymity and because our culture has made most everything acceptable, we are faced with the opportunity to be fraudulent in a thousand ways with almost no external accountability.  Subtle. In the fraud prevention world there are three basic steps that should be taken by consumers who seek protection.  They are MONITOR, COUNSEL and RESTORE.  Many companies tell us that if we trust them for our fraud protection they will enact these steps on our behalf.  These three steps are not only in place to help prevent fraud, but they assume fraud will happen and are in place to fix an inevitable problem, as every fraud prevention company knows that no one can prevent all fraud. What if we took these three steps and applied them to our personal experiences?  What if we decided to MONITOR – to look into and around our decision making and determine where weaknesses might be lurking that would tempt us to engage in some action that compromises our highest values?  What if we decided to seek COUNSEL – to look outside of our own thinking and interpretations to find solid input and advice that can “keep us honest"?  What if we decided to RESTORE - to be truly committed to making and keeping our actions on a level of the highest integrity? Check out our May 15, 2017 podcast, “Does Your Mind Have Fraud Protection?” and not only learn what three ingredients need to be in place to perpetuate fraud but more importantly learn the many ways we can truly protect ourselves from getting into fraudulent situations in the first place.  MONITOR, COUNSEL and RESTORE – why not start now?  

Vengeance, indignation, burning anger and jealousy.  These are some of the words the Bible uses to describe God’s reactions to this present evil world.  To put it mildly, God is not happy.  Can you blame Him?  Look at us – look at what this world does, what it stands for and how we treat one another! God will not allow such sin and corruption to continue.  He will act and when He does, there will be no mistaking His response.  The Bible emphatically describes what look like world ending events – these events are called “The Day of Vengeance,” “Armageddon,” “The Time of Trouble,” “The Day of Wrath”…  So wait!  We are always talking about God being a God of love – how could this vengeance of God possibly be interpreted as an act of love?  Is God so vengeful and angry that He is going to squash us like bugs or is there another way to understand what His vengeance is, how it works and what it accomplishes? As we pursue understanding what it means to experience the vengeance of God we really need to ask some other far less obvious questions – how important is God’s vengeance in relation to the rest of His plan?  Is God’s anger the paramount factor in biblical teaching?  Obviously you will get a variety of answers depending upon who you ask, but consider the following as a starting point:  Christians all believe that Jesus is the centerpiece of the Bible’s message.  This means that we would cling to his teachings and example as the centerpiece of our lives.  That being the case, how often did Jesus focus us on God’s vengeance?  How much of a central theme was the "Day of Wrath” in his teachings?  The answer is...not much at all.  Outside of the prophecy he gave about his own return and the conditions surrounding it, the vengeance of God did not seem at all important. We can draw a profound lesson from this.  The prophecy of the Day of Vengeance and all that it stands for, while noteworthy, does not rise to the point of being a centerpiece of God’s plan.  Why is it not a centerpiece?  Because it is a specific prophecy about a specific and short period of time - simply a small piece in the puzzle of God’s grand plan for the human race.  Having said that, the Day of Vengeance IS coming and our understanding of it should be clear.  For most of us it is not.  Most of us assume the worst Hollywood depictions of a God whose furious and uncontrollable anger swoops down upon this sinful world to vengefully destroy it and all who abide there. Nothing could be further from the truth. God’s vengeance is NOT like our vengeance, for God’s character is above our human propensities for emotional outbursts and revenge-based actions.  To know what the Day of Vengeance is REALLY about, how it happens and what its results are can be an enormous awakening.  Check out our May 8, 2017 podcast, “Will God’s Vengeance Squash Us Like Bugs?” and follow along with us as we put God’s wrath, sin, the ending of social orders and what comes next into perspective.  You just might be surprised!  

You want to be happy.  I want to be happy.  Everyone wants to be happy, I mean, who wouldn’t want to be happy?  The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America talks about “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” as being unalienable rights of humanity.  What can we conclude from all of this?  Happiness is a central objective and desire that belongs to all.  Having said that...why aren’t we happy?  Why are so many of us frustrated, disappointed and anxious about our lives?  Why do we overeat, binge, eat chocolate, shop or do any number of other things to hide from our lack of happiness?  Why can’t we just be happy?  Why can’t we stop comparing, stop wishing, stop regretting, stop rationalizing and just start living today for the glory of it being our present?  There is hope because happiness is attainable!  We just need to know where and how to look for it and how to recognize it when we see it. The first thing we need to figure out about our pursuit of happiness is what kind of happiness we are truly looking for?  Do we want the kind that you get when you open a gift or have a day off or you get a bonus check?  That kind of happy is around and has the possibility of being attained periodically according to circumstances.  The issue is, that kind of happy comes with circumstances and then it goes with circumstances, so it is enjoyable but not enduring.  The other kind of happy is a different story, for when it comes, it tends to stay and positively affect your everyday life.  Though much more desirable, this kind of happy is more elusive, for it needs to be found in spite of our circumstances and is therefore often hidden from our everyday observations.  So, how do we find it? We find it by not looking for it.  We find it by realizing that it comes to us by way of our desire, determination and ability to be content.  Great!  I want to be happy but I shouldn’t try and find happiness because it will find me if I am content.  So what does it mean to be content?  Does it mean that I should stop striving to better myself or my circumstances or my habits?  Does being content mean I should give up on the future and just accept whatever the present is?  I’m confused and being confused doesn’t make me happy or content! Okay, let’s regroup.  The problem here is that most of us view happiness and contentment as things you put on and not as things that grow from the inside out.  The Bible defines contentment in a very unique way, and once we begin to understand contentment through this biblical lens the whole equation changes.  We begin to see how to think, what to do and why, so we can achieve a life of contentment and therefore invite happiness in as a permanent life fixture.  Check out our May 1st, 2017 podcast, “Why Can’t I Just Be Happy?” and learn what the secret of contentment is.  Take some solid steps towards making your life a truly happy one!

Never before have we been in such a place of insidious contradiction.  On the one hand technology has opened a once locked door of accessibility, for anyone with an internet connection can now reach that which was once thought to be unreachable regarding knowledge understanding and goodness.  On the other hand technology has given the world the opportunity to throw open the door of reckless indulgence and to have our curiosities draw us into a dark and powerful vortex of destructive sights, sounds and activity.  Sexual behavior, once considered a sacred behavior has become a mainstream and malignant tumor within our culture that quietly eats away at our humanity under the guise of freedom of expression.  Pornography with all of its degrading extremity, explicitness and violence has become the single most popular destination of the billions who search the web.  It is a web – a web of entrapment that leads to the ruining of countless lives and relationships.  What can we do about it?  What should we do about it?  Is there a way out of this godless web once you have become entangled? First and foremost, it needs to be said that God DOES DEEPLY care about such things, and if you are reading this as a Christian who uses pornography even occasionally, I hope this is the beginning of your wake-up call.  Yes, God does care - especially when those who claim to follow his son Jesus engage in works that are in every way disingenuous to godly behavior, desperately vulgar in their content and destructive in every possible way.  In short, the sex industry with all of its sensuality and temptation can easily be a ticket to misery, broken lives and loneliness for Christians, as well as anyone else for that matter. How can something as inherently human as sexuality be so bad?  Didn’t God create sex?  He did.  He created it as a sacred bonding part of the relationship between husbands and wives.  He created it as the way through which reproduction would occur and families would exist.  So, what happened?  How did we go from a sacred and private expression of love to worldwide instantaneous access to blatant acts that in most cases have zero resemblance to any act of love?  We got here because of sin – but that is not our focus right now.  Right now we need to focus on what to do, because so many people (especially men) get drawn into this world of dark destruction and cannot find their way out.  So, what do we do?  We find the truth.  We look at and absorb who pornography hurts (and this is shocking to see), we understand what happens to your brain when viewing pornography (and this is scary to learn) and we boldly look in the mirror and ask the hard questions about ourselves (and this is humbling to experience). Please check out our April 24, 2017 podcast, “Virtual Sex and Pornography – Does God Care?” At the risk of sounding like I’m begging – I’m begging you – listen.  What we uncover can fundamentally enlighten and change lives.  Even if you don’t ever go near anything pornographic yourself you need to hear this because chances are you know someone who is struggling with or even addicted to this stuff.  To know and understand the truth is to be prepared to stare evil down and fight it.  Please do this!

After the greatest act of love ever committed, Jesus lay dead in a donated tomb.  His loyal companions and followers were stunned, sickened by what they had witnessed.  But beyond the gory details of this death, they were hit with the uncomfortable thought that perhaps all they had known the past 3 ½ years was a lie, fake, delusional.  This man Jesus they had trusted and loved was dead.  He died like everyone else.  There was no last minute fire from heaven to kill the Roman soldiers or the angry mob of his own brethren demanding his death.  There was no angelic rescue team to pull him off that dreaded piece of wood.  He was dead.  For real.  No one was coming to save them from the Roman rule.  They would not be sitting on anyone’s right hand in the new government.  They had seemingly been duped.  Now what?  Well, three days later, it was imperative that the risen Jesus convince them beyond a shadow of doubt that all he had promised was REAL and was happening.  His followers needed to be 100% convinced and energized to tell the Good News at any cost to all who would listen.  The man Jesus was gone forever, but the spirit Jesus would have life within himself, and power to restore all of mankind back to his Father.  They needed to urgently tell that story to you and me.  How did they go from feeling ultimate betrayal and grief to absolute certainty and joy? Walking someone along a path of believing in something outside of their own circle of experience is hard enough.  Jesus was risen from the dead.  Just think about the import of that fact alone!  His disciples had seen Jesus raise other people from the dead before – but it was he who had raised them and it was he who had always assured them about all of his miracles.  Now Jesus was not only the one raised up to life, his nature was changed – he was different – he was spirit.  How do you walk someone down the path of not only observing such unorthodox and never-before-seen changes, but accepting them so thoroughly that they would be willing to stake their very lives on them? You do that in small steps, very small steps.  Jesus’ resurrection was announced by an angel, and this dramatic presentation of an event that Jesus himself foretold certainly got their attention.  He then needed to show himself – but how?  Remember, his followers had just days ago been through the most traumatic experience of their lives as they were all witness to the cruel, inhumane treatment Jesus was subjected to.  They watched in horror as he was brutally crucified, and some of them saw him die on that cross.  They were now panicked, hiding and unsure.  Jesus knew all of this so when he did show himself, he did it in such a way that he could ease them into a whole new level of faith.  Jesus did it step-by-step. Check out our April 17, 2017 podcast, “Jesus’ Resurrection – What Changed?” and walk with us through the thrilling and inspiring events that took place during the 40 days after Jesus’ resurrection.  Listen to how he methodically, unmistakably and compassionately revealed himself.  Surely this is a journey that you do not want to miss!  

Thinking about the death of Jesus always produces a variety of emotions. On one hand, we feel a deep sense of gratitude, hope and praise, for without his willing sacrifice and ignominious death, we would all remain under the sentence of sin with no possible way out. In short, we and the entire human race would be doomed to destruction. On the other hand, when we think of his death we feel the dull, persistent aching pain of sadness, because we know Jesus was an entirely innocent man who was subject to the most unfair and devious kinds of deception, mistreatment and torture. Did you ever wonder what was behind the events that brought Jesus to the point of crucifixion? Did you ever think about who did what and why to position the Savior of all mankind as an enemy of the state? To clearly understand the events that led to Jesus’ death, we can examine a really simple question – “Who crucified Jesus?”  The most obvious answers are “the Jews” as provoked by their leadership and “the Romans.”  These are two groups of people who were very much at odds with each other, and that just provokes another question – did they collaborate together on this or was there more to it?  Well, there was more to it – there was much more to it. Let’s start with the Jews of that time, specifically those in Jerusalem who had authority over their own people of Israel.  Being under Roman rule meant that their “authority” was very limited but that did not prevent major internal wrangling for power and influence among those who were in positions of perceived authority.  First you had the Pharisees, a group who elevated themselves above the people by way of generations of adding “oral traditions” to the original Mosaic Law, which made following the Law an impossible task.  Then there were the Sadducees who were supposed to be the “priests” among the Jewish people but instead focused themselves on politics – on expanding their political power as far as the Romans would allow it.  Pharisees and Sadducees did NOT agree on a lot and did NOT get along, yet in the end they joined forces to eliminate Jesus. Next we have Annas, a Sadducee who was supposed to be the High Priest over Israel at that time but was not allowed that title by Rome because he was a forceful, powerful man.  Annas, even without the title of High Priest, maintained major influence.  And then there was Caiaphas, also a Sadducee, who became the High Priest as an appointee of Rome.  Though he was the nephew of Annas, he was deemed a much more controllable man by Rome. When you combine these two groups and these two men you get a real mix of power and a great divergence of opinion and process in wielding that power.  Unity was not their strong suit, and yet they all united to eliminate Jesus, the most peaceful, apolitical and God-honoring man to ever walk the earth.  What did they do, how did they do it and most importantly how did they get away with it?  Mix Pontius Pilate and Roman rule into the picture and you find a tangled web of political influence and intrigue.  Check out our April 10, 2017 podcast, “How Were Politics Part of Jesus’ Crucifixion?” and trace the pieces and influences that led to Jesus’ death. If you are like me, you will find the whole thing to be astonishing!