Last week Joshua Michael Smith began sharing his testimony from childhood to his college years when he changed his mind about Jesus’s identity. In part two he talks about cage stage unitarianism–where one seeks to confront everyone about this important truth regardless of their interested or antagonism. Smith shares how he matured while continuing to Read more about 559 Youth Ministry Matters (Joshua Michael Smith)[…]
How should those of us committed to a biblical sexual ethic treat those who are same-sex attracted or who identify as the opposite sex? In our polarized world, it seems like only two options are available to us: (1) we accept, approve, and celebrate LGBT+ lifestyles or (2) we deny, denigrate, and dismiss them. Either Read more about 407 Reaching LGBT+ People (Sean Finnegan)[…]
Today, in part three of our series on postmodernism we ask the question, “How is postmodernism affecting our world today?” Pastor Jacob Ballard explains how narrative, experience, community, and subjective truth are key ways that postmodern-minded people go about making sense of reality. Then he shows how movements like Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights Read more about 372 Postmodernism 3: Postmodernism’s Effect Today (Jacob Ballard)[…]
We’ve had quite a number of folks commenting in on episode 299, my interview with Dr. Jerry Wierwille, called “Does the Bible Support Abortion“. That episode was very limited to focusing on a couple of texts relevant to building a Christian perspective on abortion. Essentially, we concluded, as on several previous episodes, that abortion-on-demand doesn’t Read more about 301 The Bible’s View of the Body (Sean Finnegan)[…]
I’ve got a fascinating interview for you with Becket Cook. Now some of you may recognize his name from the interview I did with him two years ago (Interview 18). In that episode Cook shared his amazing testimony of how he went from a committed gay production set designer in Hollywood to experiencing God in Read more about 292 A Change of Affection (Becket Cook)[…]
Our culture longs for authenticity. We’re tired of fakers and phonies who say one thing and do another. People should just be true to themselves and have the courage to flout tradition when it holds them back from genuine self-expression. However, this mentality results in major individual and social problems from sexually transmitted diseases to Read more about 153 Be You — Colossians 3 (Sean Finnegan)[…]
Last weekend I presented at Restoration Fellowship’s 27th annual Theological Conference. Here’s an edited version of my presentation with the slides added in. To get the full paper, click here. Biblical Somatology: How the Bible’s View of the Body Cures Social Ills and Unleashes Human Flourishing Between the apathy and reductionism of those who think Read more about Biblical Somatology[…]
Biblical Somatology How the Bible’s View of the Body Cures Social Ills and Unleashes Human Flourishing Sean Finnegan (Restitutio.org) Presented May 6, 2018 27th Theological Conference Sponsored by Restoration Fellowship Introduction Between the apathy and reductionism of those who think our biological bodies don’t matter, and the vanity and superficiality of the celebrity culture that Read more about Biblical Somatology[…]
Several significant sexual harassment cases have come to light in the last few months. Now a whole range of behaviors have come under scrutiny as women (and some men) have felt emboldened to make public their experiences. In this episode we even out our Off Script panel with one more female voice, Terri Crowder, to Read more about Off Script 39: Sexual Harassment, A Christian Response[…]
Have you ever thought about what it must have been like for Adam and Eve have that conversation after the Fall, after they had become ashamed of what they had done and they had to come to grips with the new reality. In this stunning piece of poetry, written by Preston and Jackie Perry, we Read more about 123 The Fall by Preston & Jackie Perry[…]
Last time we saw that some influential Christians rejected the biblical teaching on the kingdom because the idea of living on earth forever seemed crude to them. This time, we look at how the ancients thought about bodies and bodily pleasures. As it turns out, from (at least) Plato onward, many philosophers tended to embrace Read more about 103 The Kingdom Is Too Hedonic (Kingdom of God 12)[…]
How should you steward your body? Are all bodily pleasures inherently sinful? In order to grapple with these questions, we take a tour through the bible from the Garden of Eden through to the time of Jesus to observe the balanced biblical perspective between asceticism (denying all pleasures) and hedonism (living for pleasure). As it Read more about Off Script 31: Stewarding Your Body[…]
Let’s face it; it’s difficult to talk about pornography, especially among Christians. We get overwhelmed with feelings of shame and embarrassment while fearing how others will regard us with disgust or disdain. However, this issue is a huge struggle for a ton of Christians (and non-Christians) in the world today. Drawing on some of what Read more about Interview 20: How To Quit Pornography (Blake Cortright)[…]
In the last episode (Boundaries for Same-Sex Attraction), we looked at what the bible says about same-sex attraction. In this one, we consider seven important questions about gay and lesbian Christians: How should same-sex attracted Christians think of themselves? Isn’t the Christian sexual ethic harmful to gays and lesbians? Is having same-sex feelings a sin? Read more about Podcast 83: Questions about Gay and Lesbian Christians[…]
Is it a sin to be gay? What does the bible say about same-sex attraction? In this episode you’ll become familiar with the relevant scriptures that talk about homosexuality. You’ll also learn what arsenokoitai (ἀρσενοκοῖται) means in 1 Corinthians 6.9, a key battleground text for discussions of biblical sexuality. Here the Apostle Paul pulls from Read more about Podcast 82: Biblical Boundaries for Same-Sex Attraction[…]
Jackie Hill-Perry used to dress like a boy to go out and pick up girls. She ended up in a long-term relationship with another woman, but then she came to a sudden realization that she was living a lie. She’s completely changed her life and now embraces her femininity and even got married to a Read more about Podcast 81: My Life as a Stud (Jackie Hill-Perry)[…]
Meet Becket Cook. He’s a very well-connected gay fashion set designer who has traveled the world, attended the Oscars, Golden Globes, Emmys, etc., and rubbed shoulders with Hollywood’s A-list actors. One day he saw Christians reading their bibles in a trendy coffee shop in LA and engaged them in conversation. One of them invited Cook Read more about Interview 18: God Woos Fashion Set Designer from Gay Lifestyle (Becket Cook)[…]
We all have competing impulses within us vying for our attention and expression. How do you know which ones to amplify and which to repress? How should we think of ourselves? Are we powerful and valuable creatures made in God’s image or accidental byproducts of time plus chance plus matter? In order to live out Read more about Podcast 74: Which You Are You? (Sean Finnegan)[…]
Apologetics 15: Gender and Sexual Ethics (Objection 3) This lecture covers some basic Christian sexual ethics, including marriage, divorce, pornography, homosexuality, cohabitation, and adultery. Sadly, since this was the last lecture, time did not permit a thorough analysis of these subjects. Even so, I touched on each briefly and biblically in an effort to stake Read more about Podcast 65: Christian Views of Sexuality (Apologetics 15)[…]