The Gallup Poll reports that church membership is notably down from just two decades ago. Why? What is going on inside the church to cause this decline? As a remedy, if not only as ballast, to what did Jesus call us? What kinds of things are distracting and side-lining the Church today? Come and think both critically and constructively with me.
What are the biblical perspective and the Jesus perspective on wealth and riches? Is it sinful to be rich? How was wealth gained in the first century? How did the ancient Jewish world seek to span the wealth gap between the rich and poor? What was the central issue for Jesus concerning wealth? What's all that mean for today?
Was Jesus anti or pro nuclear family? More carefully, what did Jesus believe was the center of family? And just why today is family so under assault? Me, I have had many experiences of non-family folks who felt more like family than some family! Why is that? What are some of the most famous TV shows about family?
There are so many misunderstandings, mis-truths, about the resurrection—even among Christians! What is it decidedly NOT? Per the four Gospels, what decidedly IS it? What does it mean for your self, your body? How do crucifixion and resurrection go together? What would I do with Christianity if the resurrection were not true?
We all know Jesus was crucified, but what did a crucifixion symbolize for ancient Romans? What kind of capital punishment did Dracula impose, a method that the Romans believed was not enough? What are some amazing theological truths about Jesus' crucifixion? What does the common biblical hermeneutic do to both our reading of the New Testament and our understanding of Jesus? Come and go deeper with me about Christ's passion!
The too-common Christian assertion is that in light of Jesus the Old Testament law is no longer effective, or necessary. But is that really what Jesus taught? Is that what the apostolic community espoused? Were Jesus and Paul the apostle on the same page about the OT law? Or furthermore, if those Old Testament laws are meaningful, how is that the case? What should Christians believe and do about the Law? (I also weigh in on the Joe Biden touching controversy.)
Jesus argued over tradition with the Pharisees: they each focussed on different elements. Does that mean he was opposed to all tradition? Did he come to extinguish all rituals? What does the Lord's supper tell us about Jesus' view of ceremony? And then, how do we contemporaries get wrapped up in everyday tradition? Just what does the Lord want from us?
What kind of out-of-the-box things did Jesus do regarding women? Were those specific things approved by Jewish culture? Was Jesus only kind and gentle toward women? Still more, was Jesus a feminist? Should the Church embrace feminism in order to bless women?
What is the doctrine of election? How did Augustine formulate his doctrine of election? How does that compare to the Bible's presentation of election? Are you one of the elect? How should we think about election? When I was young, how did I think about election? What did Jesus teach about election? I explore this important, if often confusing, doctrine.
Did Jesus avoid causing division? Was Jesus opposed to all power? Did he appear to end all use of power? Did Jesus come to affirm us just as we are? And, did Jesus come to eliminate all authority or restructure it? To find answers I walk us through several Gospel stories. There is a big difference between Authoritah and Authority!
If we saw him in his context we'd see that Jesus was fierce, confident, bold, and even male. But was his maleness toxic? How can we know? What do we see about Jesus of Nazareth when we consider his maleness? Is it true that he was everywhere affirming everyone? Was his mission one of pure inclusivity?
Miracles are not logical, so what does that suggest about the Christian life? Why didn't Jesus blast people with the miraculous? What do miracles point us toward? And, what is an indirect miracle? Finally, did Jesus use symbolism to make his points? Why or why not?
What were Jesus' temptations about? How did Mordor tempt Jesus in ways specific to Jesus' own wiring? What does that suggest about our own temptations? Is Jesus like our own era: a big teddy bear? How did Jesus confront Mordor? Why does the enemy always seem to respond in kind to God's presence?
We have no biography about Jesus' boyhood. We do, though, have boat loads of info about life in the ancient world. What would it have been like to live then? What advantage did Jesus have for living in that world? And then, what was the meaning of Jesus' baptism? Did he need forgiveness of sins? Subsequently, what is the meaning of our water baptism?
What does Jesus' entrance into reality say about him, about God? What was that entrance like? Why would God choose to hide his majesty? What does it mean to say God is a gentleman?
What's it like to grow up in the desert? What's it like to be an Eastern Orthodox Christian? Can one really experience the Holy Spirit? Is the devil real? Can church contain the God of nature? Why are you so busy? And, to what end are you so busy? Come listen to a fairly normal, but not-normal, conversation I have with my mother, Valerie.
Common remarks on the Bible: a) It's just trying to wreck our fun; b) it was written to protect a bourgeois, bougie, societal structure; c) it was written to benefit faceless powerbrokers; d) it was passed along to benefit upper-class white men. Those remarks purport the Bible is mere propaganda. But, really, if we look closer, is that true? And, just what is propaganda? (I also predict the Super Bowl winner.)
083 The Event That Redirected My Life
When I was a teenager I was in an horrific automobile accident. It was awful, injurious, and painful. How did God use it to re-direct my life? What things have I, across 40 years, taken away from that accident? What might those things mean for you?
What does it mean to be a peacemaker? Is it about political balance? Is it about silent love? Dr. Charlie Self is a peace-making thinker, teacher, pastor, and social media post-er. In this interview I ask him where he gets his courage to be a peacemaker in a volatile society like ours.
We live in an unprecedented era of flourish, but there's an ugly underbelly: too frequently we live existentially tormented lives. Why? What's going on? What drove us collectively to make an enormous subjective turn? (What things do I worry about?)