Stand to Reason Weekly Podcast

Why Weren’t We Made Sinless in the First Place?

Greg answers questions about why we weren’t made sinless in the first place, the morality of using donor sperm to conceive, whether we would conclude the Holy Spirit is equal to the Father and Jesus without the Nicene Creed, how God knows the future, and baptism for the dead.

 

Topics:

1. If our evil will be removed in Heaven, why weren’t we made that way in the first place? (02:00)
2. Would it be morally wrong for a Christian married couple to use donor sperm to conceive a child if the husband is infertile? (23:00)
3. Would we come to the conclusion that the Holy Spirit is equal to the Father and Jesus Christ without the Nicene Creed, and if early Christians didn’t believe in the Trinity, were they not saved? (31:00)
4. Does God only know the future simply because he plans the future? (41:00)
5. What are your thoughts on the reference to baptism for the dead in 1 Corinthians 15:29? (47:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Submit a question on the Open Mic Line

Why Does Jesus List Heart, Soul, and Mind Separately?

Greg answers questions about why Jesus lists heart, soul, and mind separately in Mark 12:29–30, whether the Bible is written for laypeople rather than scholars, responding to someone who thinks life is a simulation, and whether it’s wrong to forgive someone who hasn’t repented.

 

Topics:

1. What’s the difference between heart, soul, and mind, and why does Jesus list them separately in Mark 12:29–31? (02:00)
2. Was the Bible written for laypeople, or does it need to be interpreted by people with scholarly or divine knowledge? (15:00)
3. How would you respond to someone who thinks that this life is just a simulation? (33:00)
4. Was it wrong for Erika Kirk to forgive Charlie’s murderer without his repentance (see Luke 17:3–4)? (44:00)
5. How are we supposed to think about forgiving those who don’t repent if Christ doesn’t forgive the unrepentant, and how can our own souls move on from being wronged if we don’t forgive? (46:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Submit a question on the Open Mic Line

Will We Be Held Responsible for Not Warning Non-Believers of the Coming Judgment?

Greg answers questions about relationships between former offenders and the offended on the new earth, applying Ezekiel 33:1–9 to Christians, handling a Sunday school situation, reading enough to get the author’s intent, and deceased loved ones communicating with us.

 

Topics:

1. Given that Christians are required to forgive but not to reconcile with each other, what will relationships between former offenders and the offended be like on the new earth? (02:00)
2. Should the passage in Ezekiel 33:1–9, where Ezekiel is appointed a watchman, be applied to believers today such that we’ll be held responsible for not warning non-believers of the coming judgment? (11:00)
3. Do you have any advice for how to handle a situation where a child in my wife’s Sunday School class was very upset about his parents fighting? (25:00)
4. How much of Genesis 1 do you have to read to get the author’s intent? (34:00)
5. Do deceased loved ones communicate with us from the dead, and if not, how can a loving son confront his parents about their belief in this after the death of their daughter? (50:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• #STRask podcast with Greg and Amy

Has God Always Been Father, Son, and Holy Spirit?

Greg answers questions about whether God has always been Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, his thoughts on women in ministry, how a layperson who isn’t into apologetics can defend the idea that Jesus is the only way, and how to approach loved ones who are following a false prophet.

 

Topics:

1. Has God always consisted of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, was Jesus always intended to come in the same form of those created in his image, and does it necessarily follow that if God were to create anything, it would have to include beings made in his image? (02:00)
2. What are your thoughts on women in ministry? (16:00)
3. Do you have any ideas on how a layperson who is not into apologetics can defend the idea that Jesus is the only way? (38:00)
4. How should I approach loved ones who are in a house church that follows a “prophet” who teaches things that are contrary to classical Christianity and even the gospel? (46:00)

Related Links:

• Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves
• Should Women Teach in Church? by Greg Koukl
• Jesus, the Only Way: 100 Verses by Greg Koukl
• One Way or Any Way? Part 1 and Part 2

Objections to Last Week’s Shows on Antisemitism

Greg responds to objections to last week’s shows on antisemitism, talks to a caller who objects to the term “antisemitism” and says it’s not hateful to notice patterns about people, and responds to a question about whether our justice system should also allow for substitutions like God does.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Objections to last week’s shows on antisemitism (00:00)
2. If you say you can’t recognize patterns from certain groups of people because it’s hateful to do so, then doesn’t that go against reason and logic? (27:00)
3. Should our justice system work the way God’s justice works (i.e., should it allow substitutions)? (50:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – April 24–25 in Los Angeles, CA
• Last week’s episodes: A Response to the Rising Antisemitism and How Should Christians View and Treat the Jews?
• The Middle East Problem by PragerU

Interview: Scott Keith – Being Family

Greg interviews Scott Keith, author of Being Family: Passing Down the Faith Through the Generations, discussing the beauty and importance of the Christian vocations of marriage and family and how God works through both.

 

Topics:

1. Interview: Scott Keith, author of Being Family: Passing Down the Faith Through the Generations (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Scott Keith
• Being Family: Passing Down the Faith Through the Generations by Scott Keith
• Being Dad: Father As a Picture of God’s Grace by Scott Keith
• The Thinking Fellows – Podcast
• 1517 – Website
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – April 24–25 in Los Angeles, CA

Related Links:

• God Placed You Where You Are for a Reason by Amy Hall
• Let Your Worldview Shape How You Do Your Work by Amy Hall
• Why You Don’t Need to Choose Between Glorifying God and Enjoying Life by Greg Koukl and Amy Hall

How Should Christians View and Treat the Jews?

Greg and Amy continue their discussion about antisemitism, explaining what Romans 9–11 has to say about how we ought to view and treat the Jews and answering questions about the meaning of Revelation’s reference to the “synagogue of Satan” and whether Jews worship a different God.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: How should Christians view and treat the Jews? (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• The Bible: Fast Forward – DVD (Also available as a digital download or audio)
• Romans 9–11
• What is the Synagogue of Satan in Revelation? by Sixbert Sangwa

A Response to the Rising Antisemitism

Greg and Amy talk about the antisemitism spreading among young conservative men and begin a discussion about what the Bible says about God’s relationship with the Jews and how Gentile believers in Christ ought to treat them.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: A response to the rising antisemitism (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• The Bible: Fast Forward – DVD (Also available as a digital download or audio)

Your Salvation Doesn’t Depend on Following the Old Testament Laws

Greg talks about a card he received from a group saying we have to follow the Old Testament laws to be saved, then he answers questions about what happens to everyone who doesn’t trust in Jesus, making a case God sustains the universe, and a couple in a celibate same-sex marriage serving in a church.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Your salvation doesn’t depend on following the Old Testament laws. (00:00)
2. If Jesus really is the only way, does that mean everybody else goes to Hell? (31:00)
3. How can I make the case that God sustains our contingent universe without referencing the Bible? (45:00)
4. What do you think about a couple in a same-sex marriage who live together celibately functioning as worship leaders in a church? (51:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Better Together Conference – April 17–18 in Phoenix, AZ
• Upcoming events with Stand to Reason speakers
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – April 24–25 in Los Angeles, CA

Related Links:

• One Way or Any Way? Part 1 and Part 2

Interview: Stephen Meyer – The Story of Everything

Greg talks to Stephen Meyer about The Story of Everything, a film based on Meyer’s book Return of the God Hypothesis, discussing the two competing stories of reality in our culture—one materialist and one theist—and scientific evidence that points to God.

 

Topics:

1. Interview: Stephen Meyer discusses The Story of Everything, a film based on his book Return of the God Hypothesis. (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Stephen Meyer
• The Story of Everything – In theaters April 30–May 6
• Return of the God Hypothesis: Three Scientific Discoveries That Reveal the Mind Behind the Universe by Stephen Meyer
• Stephen Meyer’s books
• Mind & Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature is Almost Certainly False by Thomas Nagel
• Undeniable: How Biology Confirms Our Intuition That Life Is Designed by Douglas Axe
• Unlocking the Mystery of Life
• The Privileged Planet: How Our Place in the Cosmos Is Designed for Discovery by Guillermo Gonzalez and Jay Richards