Off Stage with Greg and RD

In this introduction to their podcast, RD and Greg share their heart and reason behind starting the podcast, and discuss some of the special episodes they will have throughout the podcasts, like Deep Dive and Rapid Response.Deep Dive will be a more in-depth, longer podcast episode in which RD and Greg will break down a  specific Bible text, and Rapid Response will take a current story in the news and discuss it from a Christian standpoint, to help the listener better know how to discuss the topic in their everyday life.Through their podcast, Greg and RD will be showcasing how theology and culture intersect, with the hope that it not only brings the listener closer to Christ but encourages Christians to engage with and talk about cultural and theological subjects in confidence.

Arguments over Hannah's walk with Jesus began back in July, after an episode aired where Luke P. challenged Hannah's Christianity by asking her about her sexual history. In response, Hannah said, "I have had sex, and honestly, Jesus still loves me." Not only was this a controversial conversation, but it showed a shift in The Bachelorette, as this season is the first in which Christianity has played a part. The producers of the show have since said that they were angling for this conversation between Luke and Hannah to happen, and wanted things to blow up.Knowing this about Hannah and The Bachelorette, RD and Greg take time to establish that Jesus does love all sinners, but He asks His followers to walk in obedience with His commands; the two reference passages such as Luke 6 and John 14. RD also references Matthew 5, where Jesus talks about even looking at someone lustfully is wrong.Their discussion also turns to how the Church used to have a lot of societal authority on all kinds of subjects (such as the prohibition of alcohol), but now, it seems society places an over-emphasis of Jesus as a savior and a de-emphasis on Jesus as Lord (meaning people can say things like, "How I behave doesn't change or affect how Jesus feels about me").RD and Greg's talk culminates with RD sharing a story from his past, where a woman at a party asks him if he really believes having sex before marriage is wrong.

After Hannah Brown's comments about her sexual history, Christians took to social media to share their opinions, both negative and positive towards Hannah. In light of this, Greg and RD spend this follow-up episode talking about the distinction between God's love for us and Christians walking in obedience with God.This obedience to God is different from Legalism, which is often tied to the Pharisees. RD and Greg stress that there is a difference between following God's Word and saying to someone, "You're not a Christian because you didn't do x, y, and z."In looking at what a healthy pursuit of God and holiness looks like, Greg shares the four non-negotiable things that all Believers need to be doing: Studying the Bible, praying, being in fellowship with other Believers, and engaging in corporate worship. He and RD also discuss how we are given the Holy Spirit and the fruits of the Spirit to help guide us, but to be careful to use the Bible's definition of what these are, not our own definitions.Greg and RD also discuss using the fruits of the Spirit as a way to approach your brother or sister in Christ who is not walking in obedience. Both pastors admit that this is a hard thing to do, but that it is our responsibility as we are all one Body in Christ.

Greg and RD jump right into this Deep Dive episode by talking about Sola Scriptura, or the idea that Scripture alone governs faith and practice, and is the supreme authority over the Church. After spending some time in the ideas behind Sola Scriptura, they discuss the three things that Sola Scriptura rests on:1. Inspiration - the human authors of the Bible were inspired by God2. Inerrancy - God has perfectly communicated the Bible to us3. Sufficiency - The Bible has everything we need for faith and practiceBased on these truths, we can't look at the Scriptures and think "What does this passage or text mean to me?" By looking at the Bible this way, we could be misinterpreting or missing what the text actually means. Instead, we need to focus on what the Bible actually says.This idea leads Greg and RD to discuss perspicuity, or the truth that the teachings of the Bible are fundamentally clear. This is an important thing to remember because we can make the Bible unclear by the things we bring to the Bible, like our predispositions and expectations.From there, Greg and RD discuss Rob Bell's book Velvet Elvis, and the danger this type of thinking can do to the Bible.Lastly, RD and Greg hone in on the concept of unity of the Bible, that the Bible is not whimsical or a fairytale, but a living, breathing Word of God that is clear and without error.

Greg and RD jump right into this Deep Dive episode by talking about Sola Scriptura, or the idea that Scripture alone governs faith and practice, and is the supreme authority over the Church. After spending some time in the ideas behind Sola Scriptura, they discuss the three things that Sola Scriptura rests on:1. Inspiration - the human authors of the Bible were inspired by God2. Inerrancy - God has perfectly communicated the Bible to us3. Sufficiency - The Bible has everything we need for faith and practiceBased on these truths, we can't look at the Scriptures and think "What does this passage or text mean to me?" By looking at the Bible this way, we could be misinterpreting or missing what the text actually means. Instead, we need to focus on what the Bible actually says.This idea leads Greg and RD to discuss perspicuity, or the truth that the teachings of the Bible are fundamentally clear. This is an important thing to remember because we can make the Bible unclear by the things we bring to the Bible, like our predispositions and expectations.From there, Greg and RD discuss Rob Bell's book Velvet Elvis, and the danger this type of thinking can do to the Bible.Lastly, RD and Greg hone in on the concept of unity of the Bible, that the Bible is not whimsical or a fairytale, but a living, breathing Word of God that is clear and without error.

"I have learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages." RD referenced this quote by Charles Spurgeon in a sermon he preached back in August, and it is the perfect summation of this podcast episode. Using RD's sermon as a springboard, Greg and RD consider suffering and the ways in which Christians can misinterpret the Bible's teachings on suffering. Right away, Greg and RD relate that Fellowship Church does not subscribe to the "name it and claim it" gospel. Instead, Fellowship teaches that God is working for your good, as the Bible teaches, even if we never understand how He is working or even if we don't see the good God is doing. Greg is quick to state that there are truly evil things that happen to Believers, but that we must still say "God is sovereign over everything" and believe that He is bringing about His glory through our suffering; we cannot waiver on the goodness of God. If we start to question God's goodness, we are entering a man-centered theology realm instead of a God-center theology. RD also references Genesis, where we are told that what man meant for evil, God used for His good. This leads Greg and RD to examine the misconception that God owes us an explanation for our suffering. While God sometimes will show us the reason for our suffering, He does not owe us, nor does He ever promise us, an explanation, and we have to be okay with never knowing why, and trusting that everything, including our suffering, is for God's glory.  When we are walking with someone in their grief, we need to find a balance of reminding them that their suffering is for God's glory but also weeping with those who are weeping, just as Jesus wept with Mary and Martha, even though He knew He would shortly be raising Lazarus from the dead. However, Greg warns that there is a way in which we have to match the place a person is in when they are grieving, but still not let grief get in the way of calling out someone's sin (the example of someone sinning during grief Greg uses is when someone is lashing out in anger at God during suffering). Greg and RD end with encouraging words of how God is committed to walking through things with you. And as we walk through it with God, we must learn to worship Him through the suffering. A great example of this is in Joni Eareckson Tada, who has said that the first thing she will do with her restored body in Heaven is "to suddenly drop to my knees and not move… [this] will be my joy and a real sacrifice." Along with Tada, others like Katherine and Jay Wolf, Tim Keller, and C. S. Lewis also share that it is through suffering that God grows us and reveals His glory. If you have questions about suffering and grief, or would like to reach out to Greg and RD, email them at offstage@fellowshipknox.org

A quick internet search on deconversion will show you how prevalent an issue it is in our society today; from popular Christian authors like Joshua Harris and Hillsong worship leader Marty Sampson announcing their departure from faith to John Piper saying goodbye to author Rob Bell due to Bell's current theology.sharing their deconversion stories. With its growth in popularity, questions are more and more being asked: "Is once saved always saved a true statement?" "Can you truly lose your salvation, or did you just not have real salvation in the first place?" "Is deconversion or apostasy the unpardonable sin?"Right off the bat, RD and Greg affirm John MacArthur's comment "If I could lose my salvation, I would. I can't keep my salvation, and neither can you. God must hold onto it for us." Greg follows this comment by MacArthur by stating that there is a difference between deconversion and having questions about your faith - deconversion is the willful decision to walk away from Christianity, whereas wrestling with questions about the Bible and your faith is normal and healthy in the context of a personal relationship with Jesus. Jesus is not threatened by your questions, He is bigger than any question you could have. However, if you are asking questions, you have to remember that you can't reject the goodness of the Bible, and you have to trust in the Bible even through your questions.On the subject of losing your salvation, RD quotes Hebrews 6, to which Greg clarifies that we should still be praying for our lost friends and family because only God knows their hearts and where they are spiritually. Just as it says in Jude, we have to be merciful to those who doubt.This leads RD and Greg to discuss why, in their own experiences, they have seen people walk away from God. Greg describes how the main reasons he has witnessed people leave Christianity are either because that person was asking questions without God as their theological center, or because there is a sin in that person's life that they wanted to justify but they couldn't. These two reasons are vastly different than someone simply asking questions while still trusting in God's sovereignty. RD chimes in that the church should be a safe place where people can wrestle with questions and grow in wisdom in Christ through their questions. Two of these questions that are prevalent right now in the Christian community are:1.      How do you follow a God who allows so much suffering?2.      How can we love the LGBTQ community if we think that the lifestyle is sinful? Aren't we creating an exclusive community by doing that?With both of these questions, Greg is quick to mention that most people follow these up with, "How can a good and loving God send people to hell?" but no one ever asks, "How can a just and righteous God allow people into heaven?" Greg also voices that God Himself rejects and excludes people in the Bible. We cannot put inclusivity as the highest feature of God, or give God boundaries by saying things like, "I can't believe in a God who would do x, y or z." When God says in the Bible that something is wrong or sinful, we cannot pretend we are wiser and know more than God and say that thing is right. That leads to a postmodernism way of thinking ("This is my truth and that is yours") and a Dunning-Krueger Effect way of thinking, and makes you lose your anchor. It also can lead to wanting the Kingdom of God (meaning the peace, love, kindness, etc. that Christianity offers) without the King (meaning you forget about the God who is just, righteous, and jealous for His people).In this same vein, RD and Greg expound on the discussion and talk about how we as Christians have to learn to not be afraid of the outside world. Obviously we need to learn what things of the world are okay and what are not okay, but we need to approach how we let outside things into our world in wisdom and not in fear. This goes back to the concept of having trust in the Bible and an anchored theology.To offer real-life examples of everything they have been discussing, RD and Greg end the podcast sharing their own backgrounds and walks with the Lord over the years.

God has no limits. This central idea is what Greg and RD repeatedly come back to in this week's episode. If you say that God has more important things to think or care about than sports, hobbies, or how you feel today, then you are putting limitations on God. God cares about every single part of every single person's life.Not only does God care about these things but He wants us to care about them, as well. Both Greg and RD assure listeners that God has given each of us passions in our lives for different hobbies, and God cares about our passions.With this in mind, Greg and RD do caution that if the success of a sports team is more important to you than the players' salvation, or if you pray more during a football game than you ever do for your neighbors or friends, that is where the passion has crossed into unhealthy. Likewise, if we pursue our passions and hobbies without God in mind or allowing Him to be a part of it with us, we have made our passion a sinful thing. Like Greg discusses in this episode, we cannot pursue our passions to the point of sin.In going back to the idea that we cannot put limitations on God, Greg and RD consider the question of "Does God care more about relationships than football?" Greg strongly disagrees with this question as a whole because he asserts that even asking the question is limiting God. God infinitely cares about relationships, but He also infinitely cares about football. It's not about what God cares about more, it's about God caring about every single aspect of our lives.As an example of this, Greg brings up the film Chariots Of Fire, based on Eric Liddell's time as an Olympic runner. In the movie, Eric tells his sister that while God made him to be a missionary to China, God also made him fast, so he knows that pursuing the Olympics is not a bad thing but pleasing to God.

Do faith and work really go hand in hand? Does God really care about what you vocationally do from 9 to 5? Or is the Secular Sacred Divide a Biblical thing that affects what we do vocationally?Greg and RD set out to prove that while God does care about your volunteer work, how you help the church on Sundays or Wednesdays, and how you tithe your time to ministry work, He also equally cares about your vocation, and all types of work you do, because all types of work bring glory to God.The idea of work is not something that man invented that God just goes along with; God Himself invented work pre-Fall, by giving Adam and Eve work in the Garden. RD reminds listeners that even in Heaven, we will have some kind of work, even if it's not what we think of work here on earth. One reason for this is because our work - vocational, relational, all of it - directly affects our relationship with God, since everything we do should be giving God glory.It doesn't matter what type of work we do, it all will give glory to God, just as John Coltrane found out in 1957, RD explains. Before he released his album that year, Coltrane had what he called a "spiritual awakening," where he asked God for the "means and privilege to make others happy through music." Coltrane realized that he didn't have to become a monk or minister to give God glory through his work, he could use the talents God had already given him to lead people to God. In a similar story of using your vocation, or whatever is happening around you, for God's glory, Greg shares how Louie Giglio once came to a Fellowship Crossroads events and spoke about Heather Mercer, who was held captive by the Taliban when she was a missionary to Afghanistan. Giglio ended the talk by saying, "How does a Taliban prison guard hear the Gospel unless someone goes there?" Just as Paul sends Onesimus back to Philemon, Mercer was able to use her circumstances for the glory of God.RD warns that no job is perfect, no matter what vocation you are in. Frustrations or annoyances in a job is completely normal. There is no such thing as a "perfect job" and that is not the point of work, anyways. The point of work, as Greg and RD state throughout the episode, is to bring glory to God.RD ends the episode by sharing the plot of Leaf By Niggle, a short story by J. R. R. Tolkien. The story symbolizes how we may be frustrated by our work here on earth, or think that it doesn't matter or doesn't contribute to any bigger picture, but God sees our work and it matters to Him, no matter what it is.

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." This verse from Jeremiah is maybe the most quoted verse by those who believe in and follow the Prosperity Gospel. But if you read the rest of the chapter, you'll see that there is so much more to this passage; God is not promising us today that He will bless us with good things, He is talking to the Israelites who are in captivity.This is often the case with texts used to support the Prosperity Gospel - they find their roots in Old Testament promises to the Israelites and try to put them in modern-day Christianity and claim them as promises to us today, taking the actual promises out of context. At its core, the Prosperity Gospel takes the perspective of a loving God and only focuses on that personality of God, while also preying on our desires for comfort and ease. It works almost like a contract: You do x, y, and z for God, so He owes you blessings.In thinking about the Prosperity Gospel, RD and Greg are quick to point out that the whole concept of the Prosperity Gospel is based on the individual, not God. The emphasis is on the individual getting glory through their self-righteous belief, not God showing His glory through His blessings to us. By doing this, we are setting ourselves up for failure when we don't get the blessings. Greg discloses that he often talks to believers who feel they have failed in their faith when they pray for a blessing and God doesn't give it to them.RD brings up Tim Keller's take on the Prosperity Gospel when Keller talks about the Israelites crossing the Red Sea. Keller explains that you're not saved from the strain of your faith, but the object of your faith, Jesus. RD also warns to not mistake the provisions of God (like His blessings to us) for the presence of God. We can pray for blessings and gifts, but we can't say we are owed anything, or have God in our debt because of our faith or how hard we prayed. That, Greg points out, is Debtor's Ethic. RD also examines how the Prosperity Gospel started in the Garden, when God had given Adam and Eve everything, but they still wanted more. God gave them gifts, but they looked at the tree and saw it as something else they could get; they elevated the gift above the Giver.So what does prosperity look like for a believer? Greg responds to this question with another question: What is God's purpose for your life? From that question, both Greg and RD reference Paul when he says "I have learned the secret of being content." That is the place where we all need to get in our relationship with God; no matter where He takes us, we will face it with joy with Him.

How do we know that Christianity is the only true religion? This question is at the heart of Greg and RD's podcast this week.Christianity is the only true religion, Greg explains, because it's the only religion where God has instituted a code of rules (the law) which God Himself has lived out perfectly, and then He suffered the punishment for everyone who hasn't lived them out perfectly. Throughout the whole Bible, God is showing us the magnitude of His perfection, but also the magnitude of His mercy and grace. But, He cannot do this without being exclusive. Exclusive in the context of the Gospel is not a negative thing; it is God being a just and righteous God and demanding a sacrifice for our sins, but also showing tremendous mercy by allowing us to come to Him through Jesus.Exclusivity in the Bible is not something that starts in the New Testament with the passage in John where Jesus says He is the only way to God; it actually starts in Genesis 3 when God tells Adam and Eve that they must leave the Garden. Throughout these passages, and really all of Scripture, our tendency can be to think that God should be striving to make everyone happy, but in reality, it's not about our happiness, it's about God putting His glory on display. As RD discusses, we can't put people first before God because the most important part of Christianity is God, not people.Both RD and Greg bring up that one of the biggest questions they get about exclusivity is how is it fair when someone who's never heard the Gospel dies and goes to hell? Greg tackles this question by explaining that when we say fair, we mean just. Salvation is never about justice, it's about grace and mercy. If God was fair then everyone would be going to hell because of their sin. Paul talks about this in Romans 2, and RD references Tim Keller's comments on it, as well.RD shares that even if this is a hard subject for us to grasp or come to terms with, that is okay because there need to be some things about God that we don't understand - that shows how He is an all-knowing God and we are not.As a final way to show how Christianity is the only true religion, RD explains how most religions say "Here's how to find God," but Christianity says "here's how God finds us."

Around 50 years ago, when the topic of homosexuality became something the church could no longer ignore, it split into two ways of thinking: The Progressive Camp. This group feels like the Bible is not as harsh towards homosexuality as we have thought or said in the past, and we need to instead focus on God's love and inclusivity. Historic/Traditional Camp. This group, which Fellowship subscribes to, believes that all sexual activity is reserved for a man and a woman only, in the context of marriage. With these two camps in mind, RD and Greg dig into what exactly the Bible teaches about homosexuality, and why it teaches what it does. RD and Greg focus mostly on Romans 1 for this episode, but Greg does reference Romans 1-3, as these are the chapters where Paul builds a case against humanity so that he can then say that no one is righteous and we have all sinned. Through these chapters, Paul shows that all sin flows from rejecting God as Creator.Thinking of how we've rejected God as Creator brings up the idea that the gender differences between Adam and Eve are fundamentally important. God created Adam and Eve to form a marriage by giving them a complimentary nature that forms a unified whole. Paul's argument is about Natural Relations, meaning he's not arguing about desires, he's saying that the male and female sexual organs are designed for one another by our Creator, and by acting in homosexual ways, we are denying the way the Creator made us.Paul makes a point to bring all of this up in Romans because homosexuality was rampant in first century Rome; Roman culture in Paul's time had both homosexuality relationships and marriages. So the argument of, "The Bible is referring to homosexuality in prostitution or unhealthy interactions, not committed, loving relationships," is not a valid argument based on historical facts of the Roman culture in that time period.A second argument that Greg and RD have heard against the Historic/Traditional Camp way of thinking is that the Bible isn't reliable, or we shouldn't base someone's lifestyle on a few verses in an old book. To this, Greg counter-argues that if you say this, then you must also say that everything in the Bible isn't reliable; you can't pick and choose what you think is right or wrong in the Bible. RD cautions getting into arguments about homosexuality with people who think about the Bible or homosexuality in this way because the underlying problem is that their center of authority is not God, and that problem would have to be addressed before you could ever show them the truth about the Bible's teachings on homosexuality.A third argument Greg and RD consider is when people say that if God truly was against homosexuality, He wouldn't allow that desire to be in Christians, or anyone for that matter. To this, Greg stresses that God never promised or promises He will take away your fleshly desires for sin when you become a Christian. Even Paul says that he has a thorn in his flesh. If God's grace shines greater because of our struggle with a sin, then we have to be willing to say, "Your will be done." In reference to this, RD quotes Wesley Hills' book, which breaks this argument down and shows how he as a celibate gay Christian walks in faith, even with his desires.Finally, RD and Greg address probably the two most common arguments for accepting homosexuality that go hand in hand: Jesus never talked about homosexuality. If you read Mark 7, Jesus uses the Greek word "porneia," which means anything that goes against the prevailing sexual code. By this, Jesus is affirming all the Old Testament passages about homosexuality. If you're against homosexuality, then you have to be against shellfish and bacon. First, in the book of Acts, God gives Peter a vision telling him to not reject the use of certain animals for food on a religious basis (meaning eat what you want because that does not affect your salvation). Second, the New Testament is extremely clear that the only part of the Old Testament that goes into Christianity are the moral commandments, not civil and ceremonial laws.  In speaking about Believers who struggle with homosexual desires, Greg clarifies that there is a distinction between how men and women were created, and how they were born. He makes this distinction because it's important to remember that we are born into sin and born with sin; we are not created for sin. There are some Believers who will struggle with same-sex attraction their whole life because it is a sinful desire they were born with, because we are born into sin. This is such a crucial point to make because the church has done damage by not always believing this, but Greg is quick to point out that homosexuality is a sin nature, just like anger, pride, or any other sin.To avoid hurting Believers who struggle with same-sex attractions but to still show them that acting on these attractions are wrong, RD affirms that how you say homosexuality is a sin is imperative. He mentions Sam Albery's book as a reference for how to do this. RD also asserts that it's not someone's faithfulness to their partner that matters or indicates their salvation, it's their faithfulness to God and Scripture.RD and Greg end the episode by acknowledging that if you're same-sex attracted, that does not condemn you. And if you're heterosexual, that doesn't save you. Only Jesus and His gracious salvation can save you.For more resources on same-sex attraction and how to talk about it and walk through it as a Believer, RD recommends People To Be Loved, Out Of A Far Country, A War Of Loves, and What Does The Bible Really Teach About Homosexuality. 

Should I go to my gay friend's wedding? How does Fellowship handle same-sex attraction within their body? Can I ever get married if I'm same-sex attracted? What do I say when my child comes out to me? Why do we have to talk about sexuality so much? These are the questions that Greg and RD tackle in this episode, in rapid fire question-and-answer style.Q. Why are we constantly talking about homosexuality, and sexuality in general?A. Because right now, our culture is trying to tell us that you are not whole unless you are sexually fulfilled, which is not Biblical. Yes, God made sex and He made it good, but we have to follow His guidelines for it. We talk about it so we can combat what society and our culture tries to make us believe.Q. Should I attend my gay friend's wedding?A. The first thing you have to ask when you are deciding whether or not to attend the wedding is are my friends Believers or Unbelievers? Greg stresses that if "In Jesus' name" is going to be uttered at the wedding, then you cannot attend because by that phrase, they are saying that God is in agreement with the wedding, which is not true. While Jesus eats with sinners, He does not condone their behavior, and He does not eat with Pharisees who claim to be Believers but are living in sin. RD chimes in and reminds us that while the church is a safe place for sinners, it is not a safe place for sin. On the opposite side, if it's a wedding that has nothing to do with God and is a marriage between two Unbelievers, then attending or not is up to your personal convictions, but be careful that you are not supporting the marriage by attending.Q. How does Fellowship respond when they have same-sex couples attend? A. RD begins this answer by expressing that Fellowship doesn't check anyone's sexuality at the door. Fellowship welcomes people who have same-sex attractions, or are living a homosexual lifestyle, just as Jesus welcomed sinners. But RD does warn that Fellowship won't shy away from being vocal about our stance on homosexuality just because there could be same-sex couples in the congregation. Both Greg and RD also discuss how Fellowship would maintain that a person lay down their same-sex lifestyle in order to become members or elders, just like any other sin.Q. How do I handle never getting married because I'm same-sex attracted?A. Fellowship teaches that just because you are not married or never will get married doesn't mean you are a lesser Christian. You deserve just as much teaching, knowledge, and guidance as anyone else.Q. How do I have a conversation with someone about sexuality and gender?A. We have to talk about those things in a way that honors the Creator for His way of making creation. You have to be willing to have a long conversation with someone about this, and listen more than talk. Then, you can show them from Genesis to Romans about how God created us in a specific way, and that God knows what is best for His people and His creation, no matter how hard that is for us to grasp.Q. How do I respond when my child/family member comes out to me and says they are embracing the lifestyle?A. RD implores you to not kick them out or abandon them. Instead, acknowledge that you're thankful they shared it with you and begin the conversation there. Don't sacrifice your conviction, but think about your relationship with that person, and think about how to walk alongside of them in love even though you are making it clear that you disagree with them.

On September 17, Union Seminary tweeted a picture of them confessing sins to plants during their chapel. Despite criticism across the board, Union Seminary defended their actions, saying that this was "a beautiful ritual."  RD and Greg start this episode by explaining that Union Seminary got one thing right: God has entrusted the planet to humans, and we have not done a good job of honoring and respecting that. But this idea, this sliver of truth, has been taken to an extreme. Union Seminary also said that they were confessing "to the beings who sustain us," but there is only one Being Who sustains us, and that is God. Greg is quick to point out Romans 1, which talks about a people exchanging the glory of God for other things. Fundamentally, Union Seminary is calling into question the Imago Dei theology by thinking that we can confess to plants instead of God or each other. Plants (and animals, for that matter) can't be sinned against because they are not created in the image of God. However, people can be sinned against, because they are created in God's image. Greg breaks down this idea further by discussing four different aspects of Imago Dei:1.      Being self aware of our existence 2.      Having a higher thinking3.      Having the ability to know what truth and beauty and goodness are4.      Knowing a moral order Even with this knowledge that people can be sinned against, it's important to see that ultimately, all sin is against God. When we don't acknowledge God as creator and to whom we sin against, we can fall prey to thinking that humans are wise enough to become our own God, and we can assign value to each other and follow that as our moral code instead of what God has set into place. 

When Joker was released, it was met with both praise and dislike. But there were some who fell in between and saw it as a tale of what society and the individual can become.Greg and RD take this approach with the film, and try to answer, or at least discuss, the question of which came first, society creating individuals or individuals' actions creating a society?Through two characters in Joker - Arthur Fleck and his coworker Gary - the filmmakers show that despite society's treatment of us, we are still responsible for our actions. In Joker, Arthur reacts in an exceptionally negative way towards society and allows his actions to grow increasingly worse and worse, feeling his actions justified because of his treatment by society. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Gary is pushed down and made fun of constantly by society, and yet he is the only moral and good character in the entire film. So one deeper message to pull out of Joker is that while society holds a responsibility to the individual, the individual also holds a responsibility to society.This idea of responsibility being on both society and the individual is absolutely Biblical. While the Bible clearly states that we are responsible for our own actions, God also tells His people to pray for the cities in which they are residing because they have a religious obligation to make society better. If Christians are not trying to make society better, if we are not showing God to society, then society will make their own gods, as Gotham does for the Joker. But just as Gotham needed a savior in Batman, our society needs a savior, Jesus Christ.In thinking about an individual's responsibility to society, Greg and RD bring up that loving our neighbors, as Jesus commanded, is thinking through how we engage everyone in our society. We as Christians have a personal and moral obligation to love everyone, including the outcasts or those who might be hard to love (someone like the Joker). While God made a good world, sin has fractured the good world He made, and even though it's only Jesus who can put the world back into place, we as Christians are commanded to try and mend the world, little by little.With this in mind, Greg is quick to mention that there is more than one way to help mend the world, so we need to be open to ways that we might not have thought of and work together. He references the age of prohibition and how the religious conservatives and the social progressives of the day had to work together in order to amend the constitution.In closing, RD quotes some of Acts 16, where Paul heals a slave girl of a demon in her, which lead to her masters becoming angry at Paul, as her demon was making them a profit. RD uses this as an example of how the girl was responsible for her actions, yes, but she needed Paul and the Gospel to free her from society's chains in order to turn her life around.

When Kanye West released his recent album Jesus Is King, Christian reactions were across the board; from complete acceptance to confusion to total distrust, despite many of the lyrics being very Biblically based. In lieu of this hot topic, Greg and RD jump into conversations about conversion, centered around Kanye's spiritual journey.Because we live in a time of emotionally-charged ministries, some people respond to services or Christian events out of emotion only. RD calls these false conversions, in that the conversion was just for a moment, not a life change. There are some who claim that Kanye's conversion is exactly this, but before we as Christians jump to this conclusion without knowing Kanye's heart , we need to remember Paul's letter to the church in Corinth where he tells them that love "believes all things." While we are called to press into other Christians' spiritual lives, we have to do so in love and with grace.With this in mind, we do need to be careful of who we are allowing to be spiritual leaders. It's irresponsible to take a brand-new Believer and tell them to go be a small group leader or pastor; brand new Believers need time to grow and cultivate their faith, and learn from people who have been in the faith a long time. When you become a Christian, you do not immediately stop sinning overnight, nor should you be held to that kind of standard. So it's not fair to expect someone like Kanye to know everything about Christianity, or just immediately drop all of his sins. We also need to remember that Kanye is having to live out his spiritual life in front of the whole world, so anytime he falls or sins, it's going to be incredibly public, and he's going to need grace.Throughout their conversation, RD and Greg remind listeners that you cannot compare your spiritual walk to anyone else's journey. No matter what your story is, God can redeem you and bring you to Him, and even the most unlikely person can become a Christian. In fact, it's an absolute miracle that God brings anyone to Himself. The notion of "it was easier for God to forgive me than you because I sinned less" is ridiculous; God has to give us all enormous amounts of grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

Creationism: What are the differences of opinions, how do we handle them, and what are the things we must believe (1:45) What do we mean when we say “God’s glory" (14:49) What are our favorite book of the Bible and why (21:34) Suicide (25:33) What does it mean to have a personal relationship with Jesus (34:34) The differences in Bible translations (38:52) Enneagram (42:28) God as “she” (47:05) Can someone be Christians and hold non-Christian positions (49:55) Do babies go to heaven (54:27) How do you deal with feeling overwhelmed by culture, and when it seems like justice is absent (situation in Syria, sex trafficking etc) (57:29) Universalism, Narnia, and Tash (1:05:13) Podcasts RD and Greg are listening to / Christmas movies to watch (1:12:17)

Do we go straight to heaven when we die? Will everyone we love be there? What does heaven look like? What will I look like in heaven? RD and Greg tackle all these questions and more in this episode.In the early days of Christianity, many people picked up ideas and ideologies from things like Greek mythology and popular opinions of the day. For example, the idea of Gnosticism entered the Roman world and tried to twist our understanding of who Christ was. So a lot of our societal understanding or way of thinking about heaven is actually incorrect. Heaven is not a place of clouds and harps and angels with wings flying around like it's depicted in movies. In fact, the phrase "go to heaven when you die" is not even in the Bible. While we don't know everything or even a lot about what heaven looks like from the Bible, we do know that heaven is a place where we will be with God; Jesus told His disciples that He was preparing a place for them there. We also know that this place is where we will go (at least for a time before the New Heavens and New Earth) when we die, as Jesus tells the man on the cross next to Him.While we know these things about heaven, the Bible doesn't seem concerned with what heaven looks like or how it functions; the Bible is much more concerned about us being aware of our eternal reality and putting our trust in Jesus no matter what. Throughout the Bible, we are told that we should be living for the Kingdom now, because the Kingdom is where God rules and reigns forever. Our life with God now is preparing us for our life with Him later in the Kingdom.Once Greg and RD set these thoughts and facts about heaven straight, they take the time to answer some common questions they receive about heaven.34:52 - Will I get an answer or know why this particular thing happened to me?Paul says that in heaven, we will know as we are known. While there is nowhere in the Bible that explicitly states that God will answer all of our questions in heaven, this passage from Paul does lead us to believe that we will understand why things happen to us because God will explain it to us.40:02 - Will this particular person be in Heaven?We know that all those in Christ will be with Him in heaven. Through stories in the Bible like that of Abraham, we can see that it is more about believing God's promise and about believing God saves you than about if someone lived before or after Jesus was alive. So if someone believes that it is God alone who saves them and puts their trust in Him, then they will be in heaven.42:10 - What's going to happen with the New Earth? What will heaven be like?All we really know is that the New Earth will be God setting things right. However, we can read books by authors like Randy Alcorn to get an idea of what the New Earth could be.43:58 - Will we know each other in heaven? And what will we look like? Will we have jobs in Heaven?We know that the disciples knew who Jesus was in His resurrected body but besides that, we don't know exactly what we will look like. We can guess that the New Earth will look something like what we have now, except perfect.

When John MacArthur responded to a question about his feelings towards Beth Moore by telling Moore to "go home," Christians responded in a number of different ways. Some people took a hard stance on women not being allowed to preach in churches, while others took to Twitter to affirm Moore and her ministry. Moore herself responded via Twitter and said, "I did not surrender to a calling of man… I surrendered to a calling of God… You don't have to let me serve you. That gets to be your choice. Whether or not I serve Jesus is not up to you… One way or the other, I esteem you [MacArthur] as my sibling in Christ." The controversy of MacArthur's remarks began a conversation among many Christians not only about the place of women in ministry, but how men and women, and husbands and wives, should treat each other in general. Some Believers have pointed to Titus' words in the Bible, saying that the woman or wife's place is at home, as MacArthur said. Others have looked to Paul's texts and feel that women should stay silent in churches. To these passages, Greg affirms in this episode that we have to take the texts of the New Testament in social context; the early Christians were trying to not stick out or bring about massive social revolutions. Instead, they wanted to be known for how and Who they loved. With this knowledge, we need to remember to work together as Christians for the sake of the Gospel instead of tear each other apart, or harshly say what some can do and some can't do. From the beginning, God created Man and Woman, Adam and Eve, to work together and be a partnership. We need to remember that it is not an "either or" when it comes to men and women working together in ministry, it's a "both and." It's also not about what we think are our rights or what we think we deserve from God vocationally, it's about what God has called us to individually, for His glory and wisdom. With this in mind, RD confirms that a church has to have ways to grow men and women equally, since they are both made in God's image and thus equally important to bringing the Gospel to the world. To help having a well-rounded conversation around these topics, Greg and RD bring in their wives, Jen and Emily, to the episode. Jen, Greg's wife, shares that she grew up in a ministry family, and felt the call to ministry when she was in her 20's. When she started studying the Bible for herself, she tells listeners that she found freedom as a woman in ministry, and has had lots of encouragement from men in the church to think outside the box in ministry and lead in lots of different ways. Jen explains that it's not about "the cause," it's about serving Jesus. Emily, RD's wife, shares that she is passionate about keeping the "main thing" the main thing, and doesn't want to focus on women's ministries, but instead she wants to focus on Jesus and His ministry. She explains that she has had people in her life who have fostered and encouraged her to be a leader in her own individual way. Throughout their conversation, RD, Greg, Emily, and Jen keep coming back to the idea that society has formed a lot of what Christianity has taken on as gender roles. For example, there is nothing Biblical about who has to do what in the home and in a marriage; society has put ideas in our heads like the wife has to stay home and cook dinner, and the husband handles the money. In our culture, this is what submission in a marriage looks like, but this is not what Biblical submission looks like. 

On January 26, Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, along with seven other people, were killed in a tragic helicopter crash after making the decision to fly in foggy conditions. Stunned at the sudden death, fans, friends, and celebrities alike mourned the loss of everyone on board. Bryant had a career in the NBA for 20 years and was considered an NBA superstar, but he was also a family man, having been married to his wife Vanessa Laine for 19 years and having four children together.In this episode, Greg and RD take time to break down the response to Kobe's death; when a celebrity who seemed to have the world at his fingertips and so much life left to live dies, it reminds the world of how little control we have over our own lives.From there, RD and Greg pivot from Bryant to talk more broadly about how our current culture approaches death and grief, and how the Bible shows us a deeper and more profound way to approach them. The best example of this is Jesus Himself; throughout His ministry, we see a man who was acquainted with grief and sorrow, who wept, and whose life ended when He was only in His 30s. In all of these things, Jesus models a way for us to confront death, embrace grief as part of our healing process, and hold onto a hope in Jesus that is stronger than death itself.