Stand to Reason Weekly Podcast

More Responses to Popular Pro-Choice Memes

Guest Host: Tim Barnett

 

Tim and Alan continue their discussion about responses to popular pro-choice memes that say the Bible gives instructions on how to perform an abortion, if you don’t support requiring vasectomies for men, you shouldn’t support controlling women’s bodies, and nobody has the right to use your body against your will.

 

Topics:

1. More responses to popular pro-choice memes. (00:00)
2. The only time the Bible mentions abortion is to give you a magic potion to perform one. (02:00)
3. If you don’t support giving every young man a reversible vasectomy, then don’t support controlling women’s bodies. (12:00)
4. It doesn’t matter when life begins because nobody has the right to use your body against your will. (17:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Did God Ordain Abortion as Punishment for Infidelity? by Alan Shlemon

Related Links:

• Pro-Life Crash Course by Amy Hall
• Only One Question (What Is the Unborn?) by Greg Koukl
• Does This Bible Verse Support Abortion? by Tim Barnett (Red Pen Logic)
• Do Pro-Lifers Want the Government to Regulate a Woman’s Body? by Alan Shlemon
• Unstringing the Violinist by Greg Koukl
• A New Response to the Violinist Argument by Amy Hall

Responding to Pro-Choice Memes

Guest Host: Tim Barnett

 

Tim and Alan make a quick pro-life case then chat about responses to some popular pro-choice memes that claim life begins at first breath, a fetus is only a potential human, you can freeze an embryo because it isn’t alive, saving one newborn vs. five embryos, no brain activity means legally dead, if you think abortion is wrong, don’t get one, and more.

 

Topics:

1. Responding to Pro-Choice Memes (00:00)
2. Life begins at first breath. (14:00)
3. You can only ban safe abortions. (25:00)
4. An acorn is only a potential tree, so a fetus is only a potential human. (29:00)
5. You can freeze an embryo but not a baby because an embryo isn’t alive. (35:00)
6. Would you save one newborn or five frozen embryos? (39:00)
7. A person who doesn’t have brain activity is legally dead, so a heartbeat doesn’t mean the embryo is alive. (46:00)
8. Meme: If you think abortion is wrong, don’t get an abortion. (52:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• The Matter of Life film
• Red Pen Logic – YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook

Related Links:

• Pro-Life Crash Course by Amy Hall
• Does the Bible Teach That Life Begins at First Breath? by Tim Barnett
• Does Human Life Begin When We Take Our First Breath? by Amy Hall
• Fetal Personhood: It’s Simple by Greg Koukl
• Does the Fertility Clinic Illustration Disprove the Value of Human Embryos? by Greg Koukl
• Toddlers or Embryos: Which Would You Save? by Tim Barnett (Red Pen Logic)

Interview: Mark Mittelberg – Contagious Faith

Guest Host: J. Warner Wallace

 

J. Warner Wallace talks to Mark Mittelberg, author of Contagious Faith: Discover Your Natural Style for Sharing Jesus with Others, about the five styles of evangelism people’s personalities and gifts generally fit into, the book’s curriculum, and the Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics.

 

Topics:

1. Interview: Mark Mittelberg, author of Contagious Faith: Discover Your Natural Style for Sharing Jesus with Others (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Mark Mittelberg
• Mark Mittelberg’s books
• Contagious Faith: Discover Your Natural Style for Sharing Jesus with Others by Mark Mittelberg – Book’s website
• Contagious Faith curriculum
• 5 Contagious Faith Styles – Assessment of your style of evangelism
• Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics (Colorado Christian University)
• STR U Online Training

How Should We Respond to Pride Month?

Greg reflects on the strangeness of designating a month to celebrate some people’s sexual appetites, then he answers questions about a tactical way to address pride banners in the workplace, Exodus 21:22, whether it’s a violation of 1 Corinthians 5 to be a pastor in the United Methodist denomination, and more. 

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: How should we respond to Pride Month? (00:00)
2. What’s a tactical way to talk to my bosses about not putting up pride banners in our workplace? (09:00)
3. Can you respond to this interpretation of Exodus 21:22 that differs from yours? (23:00)
4. Am I violating 1 Corinthians 5 by being a pastor in the United Methodist denomination? (39:00)
5. When Jesus speaks in the Gospels, is he speaking to the Jews specifically or in a more universal way to all people? (47:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• What Exodus 21:22 Says about Abortion by Greg Koukl
• Article by pro-life Christian philosopher Matt Flannagan referenced in the second call

Interview: Guillaume Bignon – Confessions of a French Atheist

Greg talks to former atheist Guillaume Bignon about his book telling the story of his conversion to Christianity, Confessions of a French Atheist: How God Hijacked My Quest to Disprove the Christian Faith.

 

Topics:

1. Interview: Guillaume Bignon, author of Confessions of a French Atheist: How God Hijacked My Quest to Disprove the Christian Faith (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Confessions of a French Atheist: How God Hijacked My Quest to Disprove the Christian Faith by Guillaume Bignon
• Guillaume Bignon’s website
• Guillaume’s Bignon’s previous book: Excusing Sinners and Blaming God: A Calvinist Assessment of Determinism, Moral Responsibility, and Divine Involvement in Evil
• Why I Am a Christian – David Wood’s video about his conversion

A Response to Tim Keller’s Tweet Thread

Greg responds to a tweet thread by Tim Keller about Christianity and politics, then he answers questions about defining knowledge as justified true belief, the meaning behind a supernatural experience, and how to start a conversation with an agnostic who has already heard arguments for Christianity.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: A response to Tim Keller’s tweet thread (00:00)
2. If knowledge is justified true belief, how can I know which of the things I’m confident about I actually know? (27:00)
3. Can you explain why I had this seemingly supernatural experience many years ago? (42:00)
4. How can I start a conversation with an agnostic who has already heard arguments for Christianity? (51:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Tim Keller’s tweet thread

Abortion Is Not an Act of Love

Greg responds to a woman’s Instagram post that said it would be an act of love to have an abortion rather than give a “brown child” to white evangelicals, then he answers questions about how we can have the joy of the Lord during this difficult time and whether Jesus caused his disciples to believe he would return in their lifetime.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Abortion is an act of love? (00:00)
2. How can I have the joy of the Lord during this difficult time? (27:00)
3. Did Jesus cause his disciples to believe he would return in their lifetime, and if so, what does this mean for us today? (49:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – September 23–24 in Orange County, CA; October 14–15 in Seattle, WA; November 11–12 in Minneapolis, MN; February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA
• The Instagram post about abortion being “an act of love” 

Jesus’ Brother’s Belief Is Evidence for the Resurrection

Guest Host: Robby Lashua

 

Robby talks about how the fact that Jesus’ brother James came to believe in Jesus’ divinity is evidence for the resurrection, Starbucks’ new policy of paying for employees’ travel expenses for abortions, and how God matures us through suffering, not miracles.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: Jesus’ brother’s belief is evidence for the resurrection. (00:00)
2. Commentary: Starbucks is paying employees’ travel expenses for abortions. (30:00)
3. Commentary: God matures us through suffering, not miracles. (41:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – September 23–24 in Orange County, CA; October 14–15 in Seattle, WA; November 11–12 in Minneapolis, MN; February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA
• What Convinced James His Brother Was God? by Robby Lashua
• Starbucks to cover employees’ travel expenses for abortions, gender-affirming surgeries

Interview: Titus Kennedy – Excavating the Evidence for Jesus

Guest Host: Robby Lashua

 

Robby talks to archaeologist Titus Kennedy, author of Excavating the Evidence for Jesus: The Archaeology and History of Christ and the Gospels, about archaeological evidence for Jesus.

 

Topics:

1. Interview: Titus Kennedy, author of Excavating the Evidence for Jesus: The Archaeology and History of Christ and the Gospels (00:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Titus Kennedy
• Titus Kennedy’s Instagram
• Excavating the Evidence for Jesus: The Archaeology and History of Christ and the Gospels by Titus Kennedy
• Reality Student Apologetics Conference – September 23–24 in Orange County, CA; October 14–15 in Seattle, WA; November 11–12 in Minneapolis, MN; February 24–25, 2023 in Dallas, TX; March 24–25, 2023 in Philadelphia, PA; April 21–22, 2023 in Augusta, GA
• James Ossuary

How the Claims about Jesus Differ from Claims about Peter Pan

Guest Host: J. Warner Wallace

 

J. Warner Wallace talks about how the claims about Jesus are historical and can be tested (unlike claims about Peter Pan), then he answers a question about whether one should be happy that a child has entered into a homosexual relationship and is no longer depressed.

 

Topics:

1. Commentary: How the claims about Jesus differ from claims about Peter Pan (00:00)
2. If my son, who recently told me he’s bisexual, finds a man to be with and is no longer depressed, should I be happy that he’s happy? (19:00)

Mentioned on the Show: 

• Sean McDowell and Matthew Vines on the Bible and Homosexuality
• Christopher Yuan
• Becket Cook

Related Links:

• A Response to Matthew Vines: The Bible Doesn’t Support Same-Sex Relationships by Amy Hall
• An Evaluation of the Dialogue between Sean McDowell and Matthew Vines 
• Answering Matthew Vines’s 40 Questions
• A Reformation the Church Doesn’t Need Part 1 and Part 2 by Alan Shlemon
• Be Willing to Submit to Our Good God on the Issue of Homosexuality by Amy Hall
• What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? by Kevin DeYoung