Prepared to Answer Podcast Prepared to Answer

Scott and Shawn tackle the question of why God allowed evil from three important angles. First, what’s a good ‘elevator’ response when someone confronts you with such a challenge but really aren’t giving you the time for a fully developed response? Second, what’s a quick response that’s often given that you should probably avoid? And third, what is the best biblical response to this question that, while maybe not resolving the tension, leaves the questioner to consider the truth about God’s ultimate purpose and destiny for his creation.

📖 Resources mentioned in this episode:
“Why Did God Allow the Fall?”, James N Anderson“If God is Sovereign, Why is His World Full of Suffering?”, John Piper“Confronting the Problem of Evil”, Joe Rigney⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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The first commandment God gave Israel was this: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). And the rest of God’s commands and revelations throughout the Bible are consistent with this. God, and only God, is to be worshipped. Only God can get the glory.

But the skeptic looks at this and asks: “If anyone else acted the way God acts, we’d call them a narcissist and accuse them of outright selfishness. Isn’t his demand for worship just a sign of selfish egotism?”

In this episode, Scott and Shawn sit down to talk through this objection, looking to God and his word to answer this challenge against God’s character. Tune in and discover that far from an act of selfishness, God’s command that we worship him only is born from his selfless love.
📖 Resources mentioned in this episode:
Kristi Burke’s video, “The Inherent Selfishness of the Biblical God”“What is the Relationship Between Apologetics and Theology?” by Scott Stein on YPTJohn Piper’s response in his book Life as a Vapor“Why Does God Command Us to Worship Him?” by John PiperReflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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No one can escape the reality of pain and suffering, but, as Christians, Jesus actually promised we’d suffer (John 16:33) and face persecutions for his sake (Mark 10:30). Whether it’s experiencing pain because of the brokenness of sin upon the world or hardships due to our loyalty to Jesus, we will all face suffering in this world to one degree or another. So, how do we ensure our faith endures through them?
In this episode, Scott and Shawn tackle this difficult subject of pain and suffering, but from the standpoint of Jesus’ own experience. Specifically, they probe the Scriptures to see what guided Jesus’ own mind as he journeyed through suffering. What they discover is both inspiring and hopeful.


⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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Out of necessity during the global COVID pandemic, most churches in countries with mandated restrictions needed to learn how to “do church” online. But even after COVID, this widespread experience of online church has caused many to ask if doing church online presents Christians with a viable alternative to in-person gathering. Could it be that technology presents us with a new way of doing church in which we gather as the church online?
In our final episode of our Dechurching Series, Scott and Shawn see if Scripture can shed some light on an answer, and what that answer might be.

📖 Resources mentioned in this episode:
“What Is a Local Church?”, by Jonathan Leeman on 9Marks“Is ‘Online Church’ Really Church? The Church as God’s Temple” by Ronald L. Giese on Themelios⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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In this episode, Scott and Shawn dive into the question of whether or not Christians need to belong to a local church. 

People feel the need to leave church for many reasons. Most often it is because the church, as they’ve experienced it, has not measured up to what they expect it to be. Sometimes this is due to churches not being what the church should be, and sometimes this is due to churches not being what we feel they should be. In either case, this is due to the church not measuring up to an ideal. But maybe part of the problem isn’t the church failing to meet the ideal, but our own vision of what that ideal is. 

In an era where Christian teaching, worship music, and resources are available to us through so many channels, Scott and Shawn look to the Bible to see if living a Christian life without belonging to an actual church is biblical—or possible! 
⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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The data over the past several years confirms a steady decline in church attendance and participation, even among committed Christians.

 In this episode in our Dechurching series, Scott and Shawn raise awareness about some of the cultural assumptions that may be skewing our perspective about church. For those wondering if being part of a church is necessary, rather than giving reasons for or against, Scott and Shawn take a dive into Scripture to answer a necessary first question: “What is the church?” 

If you’re thinking of leaving church behind, tune into this episode to learn about the nature of the church and what it really means. This may help you think more clearly about the role church has, and your place in it. 
⭐  Get access to “So Much More Than Sex” — a video-based Bible Study Series for young adults that is focused on rediscovering God’s eternal purpose for human sexuality.
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