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Stand to Reason’s Greg Koukl and Amy Hall answer questions on ethics, theology, apologetics, and culture from a Christian perspective. Submit your questions on Twitter using the hashtag #STRask.
623 Episodes
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Questions about how to respond to the critique that Christians care more about ideology than people, and whether we have freedom in America because Christians are more civilized or because the Constitution doesn’t allow Christians to enforce their laws.
Can you respond to the critique that Christians care more about ideology than people?
Do you think we enjoy freedom in America because Christians are more civilized or because the Constitution doesn’t allow Christians to enforce laws like in Saudi Arabia?
1Questions about how the similarities between Krishna and Jesus could be a coincidence and whether there’s any proof to substantiate the idea that Jesus studied Buddhism during his “missing years.”
How could the similarities between the Krishna story and the Jesus story (e.g., a star at his birth, his father traveling to pay taxes, a transfiguration, etc.) be a coincidence?
Is there any proof to substantiate the idea that Jesus studied Buddhism during his “missing years”?
Question about how you can improve your informal writing (e.g., blog posts) when you don’t have access to an editor.
Do you have any thoughts or advice on how best to improve my informal writing (e.g., blog posts) when I don’t have access to an editor?
Question about the top three pitfalls to watch out for when you start using apologetics in conversations with others.
What are the top three apologist pitfalls—i.e., if you’ve just read Tactics, you’re ready to go, and Jehovah’s Witnesses show up at your door or your atheist coworker starts asking you about God, what are the top three things to watch out for?
Questions about whether “God the Father” is a sexist term that demeans women in general and mothers in particular, how long Hell has been there, whether God created it, and how to explain the kind of anger that would lead to the creation of Hell.
Can you respond to the critique that “God the Father” is a sexist term that demeans women in general and mothers in particular?
How long has Hell been there, and did God create it? I can’t imagine that kind of anger.
Questions about whether you should believe things you can’t fully comprehend, whether it’s just an arbitrary escape hatch to say God doesn’t require a cause, and how to respond to an atheist who grounds objective morality in an objective rule or criteria.
Should one believe things they can’t fully comprehend, and if not, at what level of comprehension of certain biblical truth statements ought they begin believing?
Why would God be immune to the infinite regress dilemma? It’s arbitrary to simply describe an object as needing no cause. It’s the escape hatch to a question you’ve been trapped by, but that doesn’t make it real or true.
How would you respond to an atheist who defends the existence of objective morality by grounding it in an objective rule or criteria like “Do to others as you would want them to do to you”?
Questions about whether Romans 14:23 means that doing the right thing is a sin if you truly believe it’s wrong, and how to reconcile Hebrews 10:16, which says God will put his laws on our hearts, with Romans 7:7, which says that if it weren’t for the Law, we wouldn’t know sin.
How should we view Romans 14:23 when it comes to people whose consciences have become twisted to the point where they start believing right things are actually wrong? Would doing the right thing become sin for them if they do it while truly believing it's wrong?
How do you reconcile Hebrews 10:16, which says God will put his laws on our hearts, with Romans 7:7, which says that if it weren’t for the Law, we would not know sin?
Questions about how a fisherman could have written the book of Peter, why people say that not mentioning the destruction of the temple indicates an early date for the Synoptic Gospels when John doesn’t mention it either, and why one should think the Bible is special.
How did Peter, being an uneducated fisherman, write the book of Peter, which seems levels above what someone with no education could do?
People reason that the Synoptic Gospels should be dated earlier than the destruction of the temple since it isn’t mentioned, but John doesn’t mention it either, and that book is dated AD 80–90.
Why should I pay any heed to the Bible when it’s just one of many ancient “holy” books? How can I trust it is special?
Questions about why, if it’s impossible to miss God’s voice, the disciples incorrectly told Paul “through the Spirit” not to go to Jerusalem, people mistook God’s voice for thunder, the Bible says God speaks in riddles, Daniel had to ask for an interpretation, and more.
If it’s impossible to miss God’s voice, why did the disciples incorrectly tell Paul “through the Spirit” not to go to Jerusalem in Acts 21:4–14?
Why did people mistake God’s audible voice for thunder in John 12:28–30?
Numbers 12:6–8 says that God speaks to prophets in dreams, visions, and riddles, so clarity is the exception here.
Even Daniel and Zechariah had to ask for interpretations (Dan. 7:15–16; Zech. 4:2–4), and James 4:2 says we do not have because we do not ask.
Scripture shows examples like Samuel, Revelation 3:20, and Jesus’ “ears to hear” sayings where God speaks clearly yet not all recognize it, suggesting that our attentiveness is needed. How do passages like these fit in with your view on how God speaks to believers today?
Questions about why, if we don’t need to learn to hear God’s voice, there’s a command to earnestly desire the gift of prophecy, why we would need to learn how to use other spiritual gifts but not this one, and why there are men who don’t perceive God’s voice in Job 33:14.
You say we don’t need to learn to hear the voice of God, but we’re commanded to “earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy” (1 Cor. 14:1) and to “earnestly desire to prophesy” (1 Cor. 14:39), and passages like these seem to be prescriptive texts (1 Cor. 14:37; 1 Thess. 5:20; Rom. 12:6).
Just as someone who has been given the gift of teaching by the Holy Spirit has to learn how to exegete a passage, so those with the gift of prophecy have to learn how to hear God’s voice.
If it’s impossible to miss God’s voice, why are there men who don’t perceive his voice in Job 33:14?
Questions about how to showcase God’s goodness when we’re really struggling in our suffering, an explanation of God’s response at the end of the book of Job, and whether we should conclude from Job that it’s inappropriate to ask God why we’re suffering.
How can we still glorify God and showcase his goodness when we’re really struggling in our suffering—exhausted, depressed, etc.?
I understand Satan attacking Job and why God allowed it, but I’m puzzled by God’s response to Job at the end of the book.
Should we conclude from Job that it’s inappropriate to ask God why we’re going through certain struggles and suffering?
Questions about how to pray for persecuted Christians in light of the fact that God wills that some will be martyrs, and how persecuted Christians who are being threatened and beaten know if they should stay and preach the gospel or leave and protect their family.
I have a hard time praying “Old Testament promises” for protection and deliverance for persecuted Christians since I know that, in some cases, God wills that there will be martyrs for Jesus. Any suggestions on how to pray?
Why don’t Christians who are being persecuted, threatened, beaten, etc. relocate if they are able, especially if they have a family? How do they know if they should stay and preach the gospel or leave and protect their family?
Questions about how to discern when it’s time to walk away from a conversation, and how to cope with people charging you with being prideful and legalistic when you’re doing your best to be humble, fair, and gentle while sharing the gospel and defending the faith.
How do you discern when it’s time to walk away from a conversation? If the person is hard-hearted, is it worth it to keep trying to sow seeds? When does it become “throwing pearls before swine”?
I do my best to be humble, fair, and gentle when I share the gospel and defend the faith, but I’m still frequently accused of being prideful and legalistic, which is painful because I actually care very much about people’s souls. How do you cope with this when you have similar experiences?
Questions about how to engage someone wearing a button that reads, “Jesus had two dads, and he turned out just fine,” and how to be kind and loving without compromising truth with someone in a Bible study who says her adult child goes by “they/them.”
How would you engage someone wearing a button that reads, “Jesus had two dads, and he turned out just fine”?
How can I be kind and loving without compromising biblical truth with a member of a Bible study group I lead who told me her adult child goes by “they/them”?
Questions about whether Christian business owners should provide a livable wage, whether doing a corporate sponsorship that promotes one’s business contradicts Matthew 6:3, and whether the parable of the rich fool refutes America’s approach to retirement.
Do Christian business owners have a moral responsibility to provide a livable wage?
Would doing a corporate sponsorship with an organization we have been working with and financially supporting contradict Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:3 about giving in secret since part of the motivation would be to promote our business?
Is the parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:13–21 a direct refutation of America’s approach to retirement?
Questions about leaving a church with biblical theology because they refuse to preach on divisive topics, whether it’s okay to write an apologetics book under a pen name out of fear of repercussions, and how to reconcile Romans 13:1–5 with rulers who are unjust.
Should I leave a church that has solid biblical theology but refuses to preach on divisive topics (LGBTQ, abortion, anything political, homosexuality, immigration, etc.) because they want to introduce those topics once the person is “comfortable”?
As someone who works in the public sector in Canada, where speech is heavily policed, am I wrong to write my apologetics book under a pen name to protect my identity and family out of fear of repercussions?
How do you reconcile Romans 13:1–5, which tells us not to resist authority, with rulers who are unjust?
Questions about whether Jesus lied in Mark 5:39, proving that lying can’t be a sin, when he said, “The child has not died, but is asleep,” and what Jesus meant when he said we need to be “born of water and the Spirit” in John 3:5.
Jesus never sinned. Jesus lied in Mark 5:39. Therefore, lying can’t be a sin.
What did Jesus mean by “born of water and the Spirit” in John 3:5?
Questions about whether the principle that a house divided against itself can’t stand would apply not only to Satan casting out demons but also to God allowing evil, whether or not God is the author of everything he permits for a purpose, and the primary sin of Eve.
Wouldn’t the principle in Mark 3:24–25 that a house divided against itself can’t stand apply not only to Satan casting out demons but also to God allowing evil?
If God is pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel, to permit something, having purposed it to his own glory, does that make him the author of that which he purposed?
What was the primary sin of Eve? Was it coveting? Pride? Curiosity?
Questions about giving a biblical perspective to a single friend who is a relatively new Christian and is planning to use IVF to have a baby, and whether or not it’s wrong to pray for a baby for a single Christian who wants to adopt.
A Christian friend who is relatively new to the faith confided that she isn’t sure marriage is for her and is planning to use IVF to have a baby. How can I talk to her about this from a biblical perspective?
Is it wrong to pray for a baby for my single, Christian friend who wants to adopt?
Questions about whether there’s a gracious way to explain to manipulative and demanding patients that they’re giving Christianity a negative reputation, and how to deal with friends who send a lot of end-time prophecy videos that take Bible verses out of context.
As a Christian nurse, is there a gracious way to explain to manipulative and demanding patients who claim to be Christians that they’re giving Christianity a negative reputation in my workplace?
How do we deal with well-meaning Christian friends who constantly send end-times prophecy videos that take Bible verses out of context and who respond to objections to their claims with, “It might happen—we can’t put God in a box”?
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I recommend this podcast. It is full of great information to use on atheists 🙏
🙏Thank you Mr Koukl. Your answers are always enlightening. You are a great teacher. I really appreciate you.