Ask Dr. E

Q: Growing up in the 80s and 90s, having Christian ideals was about as common as speaking English.  Sunday lessons were “winsome”, and friends I invited usually came back. I never felt at odds with society, ever.  It was much easier to be a Christian, even when a few disagreed.  Those Sundays, Wednesday night bible studies, and church camps had a lasting positive effect on me. Fast forward 30- 40 years, and it seems much more difficult to speak openly about what we believe.  Our values are openly being targeted, and a Christian is wondering if the 90s playbook still works?  Should we respond to these attacks “winsomely”, with grace/peace?  Or should Christians go on the attack to get our values back?  How best to do this in 2024?  Appreciate your thoughts! P.s. We’ve been to several local churches over the last ten years.  In our experience, about 80% still use the winsome technique, while about 15-20% seem to be taking the Don’t Tread On Me approach.  What is “The Way”? Summary In this conversation, Dr. E and Hanna discuss the evolving nature of Christianity, the importance of effective communication within the church, and the resilience of the church despite cultural challenges. Dr. E emphasizes the need for clarity in messaging and the significance of being involved in the church community. Takeaways: Churches change, but Christ’s mission doesn’t. Biblical truth should be taught plainly, not watered down. The Church has always been messy, but God calls us to love. Less theological depth = weaker pulpits. Show up. Serve. Be part of the Church you want to see. God preserves His Church, no matter the attacks. Find more episodes of Ask Dr. E here. If you've got a question for Dr. Easley, call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Hey Hanna and Dr. E. I love your podcast. I have a quick question. Do we pray to God, do we pray to Jesus, or do we pray to both? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: My name is Samuel and I’m taking an evangelism class. One of our assignments was to role-play a believer and unbeliever with someone. I was playing the believer, and the lady playing the unbeliever asked me, ‘What does it mean that Jesus is the Lord of your life?’ I didn’t know how to explain that without using ‘Christianese’ like ‘get saved’ How should I answer that, and what are some other questions from unbelievers that Christians might struggle with? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Acts 15:5 says: “But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.” Since these ‘believers’ thought that salvation came by faith in Christ plus being circumcised and following the Law, were they really saved? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: What do you think about Christian families raising their kids to believe in Santa? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: I’ve started studying the temptation of Christ, focusing on the Scripture Jesus uses to rebuke Satan. The first verse, from Deuteronomy 8:3, was longer than I expected and includes more than just the reference to bread. However, I’m really stuck on the second verse Jesus quotes: ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve’; (Luke 4:8). All my Bibles reference Deuteronomy 6:13, but that verse says, ‘You shall fear the Lord your God and serve Him,’ not ‘worship’. Why would Jesus change the wording? Is it the same Hebrew word, and if so, why isn’t it translated the same way? I’m curious because I think understanding the correct terminology is important, especially since I’m studying Jesus’ response to apply it to my own struggles. I’d love to hear your thoughts—you know way more about this than I do! To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Deuteronomy 17 mentions not taking many wives so we are not led astray.  Where does it direct to have just one wife?  It seems in the Old Testament that men are allowed to have more than one wife but women must be monogamous. To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: I have chronic pain from chemotherapy damage to my nerves. Is there one thing that you learned in your three-year study of Job that helped you with chronic pain? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Was Mordecai “out of the will of God?” In a current study of Esther, one commentary described Mordecai as ‘out of the will of God’ because he stayed behind in Babylon. I have never heard this take on the uncle/cousin of Esther. Your thoughts, Dr. E? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Who are you voting for and how should Christians vote? What does the Bible tell us about making wise political decisions? Links Mentioned: Dr. Jeff Myers on inContext Jason Yates on inContext Dr. Cal Beisner on inContext David Closson on inContext Dr. Brian Baugus on inContext To read the show notes, click here.

Full Question: Should Christians participate in Halloween? Are we making a big deal out of nothing or are we engaging something that is evil? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Messianic Judaism puzzles me. You have Jewish religion, you have Christianity, then you have something created in between the two in the 1960’s with that said is messianic Judaism a valid thing--this is all weird to me. Didn’t all the apostles that were Jews convert to Christianity (believers in Christ)? Am I right in saying that they never went back to their Jewish traditions and Jewish worship? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: A work colleague of mine, and Church of Christ preacher on the side, often debate theology.  The biggest debate topic is the idea of that musical instruments do not belong in the church; a well known tenant of the Church of Christ.  I ask him what about David and his harp? And he quotes Amos 6:4-7. He says there is no mention of instruments AFTER Amos, so they shouldn’t be used in worship, and has alluded to me that I may not be saved if I do go to a church that has instruments. Other members of the Church of Christ have essentially told me the same thing, or at least try to cast doubt on my salvation because of the instruments. Would love for this all to be put in-context! To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: I am currently reading through Judges and came across the passage in 9:23 “Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem, dealt treacherously with Abimelech,” Since we have all sinned in the sight of God and are deserving of punishment, does this verse give credence to people who believe their struggles and trials are all some sort of punishment sent from God for their bad deeds? Obviously, our God is a God of justice, but also a God of grace who is in control of everything. Even the evil spirits of this world. Where do you feel the Bible lands on this issue? Are our tribulations a result of God sending punishment or just the aftermath of a fallen world? If the answer is both, how do we discern between the two and encourage others toward the truth? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: Was Simon the magician in Acts 8 saved or was his faith fake? Can we know for sure? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: When reading about “the new heavens and a new earth,” in Isaiah 65:17-25, I read, in verse 20, about the youth will die at the age of one hundred and the one who does not reach the age of one hundred will be thought accursed.” I wonder if this is support for the idea of a millennial kingdom, or does this refer to some other time? Because it speaks of death, I imagine it is not speaking of the heaven we experience after our resurrection, but I am not sure what was meant by this passage. (Other pastors have been happy to skirt this question, but I know you better than that.) Links Mentioned: Bible.org To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full question: I send out a weekly email with 1 Bible verse, 1 quote, 1 question each week…. Recently I sent out an email that included Mark 1:35 and I wrote a little commentary that said: If the God-man (remember He was FULLY God and also fully man) needed to get up early in the morning, get away from all the people, and spend time in the presence of His Father-- HOW MUCH MORE DO WE?! I got an email back that said this: Almighty GOD is not a man nor has he ever been. Read a little deeper in your Bible. Learn his name and differentiate between the father and his son who also is a god but the one and only ALMIGHTY GOD. So, I thought it’d be fun to bring this to you, mi padre, and see how you would respond to this person. Links Mentioned: Sign up for The Weekly One To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: How do I know that I love God? I read the Bible daily, I pray, practice spiritual disciplines, do all the things a Christian “should do” but how do I know that I really love God and am not just doing all those things because I know I’m supposed to or because I’m trying to earn His favor? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: What form is God the Father? If Jesus is the bodily man form, the Spirit is the spirit form, what is God the Father’s? Does He also have a body? To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Question: A friend of mine went out with a guy who believes that books like the book of Enoch and the suffering of Moses should be read along with the scripture and thus be treated as inerrant. Is this a new thing or have people always tried to include these books in scripture? Obviously in Catholicism they add books to the bible, so I’m guessing this is a similar situation. I’ve heard the teaching that Jude quotes the book of Enoch in his letter. So, should Christians study extra Biblical books? Links Mentioned: The Chicago Council on Biblical Inerrancy Defending Inerrancy by Norman Geisler and William Roach To read the show notes, click here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.