Stand to Reason Weekly Podcast

Tips for Discipling Your Children

Jon and Robby talk about habits and values they’re trying to develop in their kids and give general tips for raising kids to love Jesus and have a Christian worldview.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Tips for discipling your children (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Blue’s Clues Pride Parade Song

Advice for Apologists

Robby, Tim, Jon, and Amy discuss the mistakes we can make as apologists and give advice for how we can stay balanced in our study, treat people with dignity, exhibit the kind of character that reflects Christ when interacting with others, improve our skills, and more.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Advice for apologists (00:00)

Related Links:

• For the Student Who Wants to Be a Christian Apologist by Amy Hall
• How Should We Interact with the Uncivil? by Amy Hall
• Eight Lessons on Being an A-Paul-ogist by Tim Barnett
• Proverbs for Apologists by Amy Hall
• You Want to Be a Good Apologist? by Amy Hall
• Apologetics Aren’t Enough to Connect You with a Person by Amy Hall
• Do You Convey a Sense of the Reality, Centrality, and Desirability of Jesus with Your Apologetics? by Amy Hall
• A Daily Prayer for This Cultural Moment by Amy Hall

A Grad Student Taking a Stand

Greg reads a note from a student whose grad school program is requiring that he join an association that explicitly promotes values he disagrees with, then he answers questions about leaving a church if they won’t let you serve, trusting God to bring another “gardener” into a person’s life, and what people will know in Hell.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: A grad student taking a stand (00:00)
2. Should I leave a church that won’t let me serve because of sin in my past? (27:00)
3. Do you have any advice about trusting God to bring another “gardener” into a person’s life when my opportunity is gone? (37:00)
4. Do people in Hell want to get out, do they know God exists, and do they remember their lives on earth? (47:00)

Related Links:

• Harvester or Gardener? by Greg Koukl

Just Ask the Question

Greg tells a story about what happened when a pastor he was dining with asked the waiter a question, then he takes two calls about reparations for slavery and answers a question about translating some Christian terms into everyday language when talking to non-believers.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Just ask the question. (00:00)
2. How should I respond to someone who says they’re owed reparations because of slavery? (12:00)
3. A response to Greg’s comments on reparations (35:00)
4. How would I translate “miracles” and “God's glory” into everyday language when talking to non-believers? (48:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reparations: A Critical Theological Review by Kevin DeYoung
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA

Slavery in the Bible

Greg answers questions about slavery in the Bible, whether men wrote the Bible to control people, the biblical definitions of love and judgment, and whether Jesus is still both fully man and fully God now that he’s been resurrected.

 

Topics:

1. Can you help me understand the verses in the Bible that talk about slavery? (05:00)
2. Did men write the Bible to control other people? (17:00)
3. Another note on slavery (25:00)
4. What is the biblical definition of love and the biblical definition of judgment? (29:00)
5. Is Jesus still fully human now that he’s been resurrected, or was his humanity temporary? (47:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Is God a Moral Monster? by Paul Copan
• Interview: Paul Copan on Slavery in the Bible
• Street Smarts: Using Questions to Answer Christianity’s Toughest Challenges by Greg Koukl
• Amazing Grace film
• Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions by Greg Koukl
• The Chalcedonian Creed

Related Links:

• Did God Condone Slavery? by Amy Hall

Abortion Is Not Merely a Political Issue

Greg talks about a crisis pregnancy center that’s having trouble getting help from churches because the pastors don’t want to be “political,” then he answers questions about the Passion Translation and Jesus’ human nature and sinlessness.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Abortion is not merely a political issue. (00:00)
2. Do you have any advice for explaining the problems with the Passion Translation of the Bible to someone who’s promoting it? (27:00)
3. Was Jesus a real human being if he didn’t have a human father, and how could he have been sinless if he was human? (51:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Information about the Passion Translation

Visions of Mary, Yoga, and Prophecies about Jesus

Greg answers questions from callers about visions of Mary, the biblical view of yoga, how we can know Hosea 11:1 is really a prophecy about Jesus, and whether people are misusing prophecies about earlier events to make a case for Jesus. 

 

Topics:

1. Do you have any insight on why Mary reveals herself to people through visions rather than Jesus? (03:00)
2. What is the biblical view of yoga? (28:00)
3. How do we know Hosea 11:1 is really a prophecy about Jesus as Matthew says? (42:00)
4. Are the verses people claim are prophecies about Jesus really just examples of people misusing prophecies about earlier events to make a case for Jesus? (50:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA
• Upcoming events with Stand to Reason speakers
• Interview: Melissa Dougherty – Christians and New Age Beliefs

Is It Appropriate to Ask God for a Sign?

Greg answers a question about whether it’s appropriate to ask God for a sign to indicate his approval of a decision, then he gives a caller advice about how to interact with a family member who now says he’s gay.

 

Topics:

1. Is it appropriate to ask God for a sign to indicate approval of a decision? (10:00)
2. Can you give me advice as to how my family and I should interact with my brother now that he’s told us he’s gay? (35:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA
• Upcoming events with Stand to Reason speakers
• Becket Cook’s website
• Christopher Yuan’s website
• Rosaria Butterfield’s website
• The Gospel Comes with a House Key: Practicing Radically Ordinary Hospitality in Our Post-Christian World by Rosaria Butterfield

Can’t I Just Appreciate the Bible’s Moral Value without Taking It Literally?

Greg answers questions about whether one can just appreciate the Bible for its moral value without taking it literally, whether a worship leader attending a gay pride fundraising event indicates a problem with the church, and what the Bible has to say about free will.

 

Topics:

1. How would you respond to someone who says the Bible doesn’t need to be taken literally and we can just appreciate it for its moral value? (08:00)
2. Should I be concerned by the fact that one of the main worship leaders in my church attended a gay pride fundraising event? (25:00)
3. Many scientists claim free will is not a reality, but what does the Bible have to say about this? (42:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• STR U Online Training
• Upcoming events with Stand to Reason speakers
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA

Related Links:

• “Forced Love” Is the Wrong Way to Look at It by Amy Hall

Design or Adaptation?

Greg reflects on the amazing design evident in the way largemouth bass feed, then he answers a question about the roots of the label “evangelical” and responds to a caller’s concerns about things he’s seeing in the large, multi-campus church he’s attending.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Design or adaptation? (00:00)
2. What are the roots of the label “evangelical,” and what is the classical definition? (28:00)
3. What should I do when I’m seeing so many things to be concerned about in the large, multi-campus church I’m attending? (44:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• STR U Online Training
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA