#STRask

Questions about whether a deceased person’s soul can live on in the recipient of his heart, whether 1 Corinthians 15:44 confirms that babies in the womb have a soul, why bodies are important, how to explain the soul to a child, and how the spirit relates to the soul.

 

• Could the stories about recipients of donated hearts acting like the donors mean that if a person dies and his heart is donated to someone else, his soul lives on in the recipient?
• Does 1 Corinthians 15:44 confirm that babies in the womb have a soul when it says that if there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body?
• In light of your article “The Invisible Man,” why are bodies important?
• How would you explain the existence of a soul to a child or someone who has never heard of this idea?
• How does a person’s spirit relate to his soul?

Questions about what to say to someone who believes in “healing frequencies” in fabrics and music, whether Christians should use Oriental medicine that’s based on the concepts of qi, and how to respond to someone who says he’s sending “good vibes” your way.

 

• What would you say to someone who believes in “healing frequencies” in fabrics and music and claims there is biblical support for it?
• What are your thoughts on Christians using Oriental medicine specialists, who base their techniques on the concepts of qi, to diagnose and treat allergies?
• How would you respond to someone who sends “good vibes” your way when you ask for prayers?

Questions about why some churches say you need to keep the Mosaic Law and the gospel of Christ to be saved, and whether or not it’s inappropriate for Christians to celebrate Passover since it’s a celebration from Judaism and the Messiah has already come.

 

• Why do some churches say you need to keep the Mosaic Law and the gospel of Christ to be saved?
• Is it inappropriate for a Christian to celebrate Passover since it’s a celebration from Judaism and the Messiah has already come?

Questions about a resource for learning the vocabulary of apologetics, whether to pursue a PhD or another master’s degree, whether to earn a degree in general apologetics or to pick a specific topic to study, and how tactics can be used in written communication.

 

• I feel like I need a vocabulary lesson in Christian apologetics just to be able to keep up. Is there a reference guide you could suggest?
• I’m finishing up my MA in apologetics, and I’m not sure whether to pursue a PhD or another master’s degree.
• Do you recommend earning an advanced degree in apologetics or choosing a specific lane (theology, philosophy, science, etc.)?
• How can tactics be used in written communication? Is it possible to use your tactics in a digital written age?

Questions about whether the fact that some people go through intense difficulties and suffering indicates that God hates some and favors others, and whether someone is being abused because God doesn’t think she’s worshiping him enough.

 

• I constantly feel like God hates me because of a congenital defect that affects my career choices, my self-worth, and my bitterness towards God. Why does it seem like God hates some and favors others?
• If God lets Satan live to bring God glory and to test us, does that mean my friend is being abused by her mom’s boyfriend because God doesn’t think she’s worshiping him enough?

Questions about asking God for the repentance of someone who has passed away, how to respond to a request to pray for a deceased person, reconciling Hebrews 9:27 with people who have died twice, and whether we’ll be judged according to the revelation we received.

 

• What are your thoughts on asking God for the repentance of someone who has passed away?
• When asked to pray for a friend’s deceased mother’s soul, what is a compassionate response that may lead to an opportunity to share the gospel?
• How do we reconcile Hebrews 9:27, which says it’s appointed for each of us to die once, with people being raised from the dead by Jesus, Peter, and Paul and then dying a second time?
• Are people judged differently by God according to the revelation they received?

Questions about whether one can legitimately say evil is a privation of good, how the Bible can say sin and death entered the world at the fall if angels rebelled before man, and why God would judge Israel with a famine so great they would eat the flesh of their children.

 

• Saying that evil is a “privation” is simply wordplay. How is the privation of a thing not creating the result of that privation? If one is denied oxygen, he will die, but you would blame the one denying the oxygen for that death.
• Scripture says sin and death entered the world at the fall, but didn’t angels rebel before man? Wouldn’t sin have been introduced then?
• Why would God judge the Israelites for sacrificing their children to idols by pronouncing upon them a famine so great that they would eat the flesh of their children?

Questions about how secular books assist our Christian walk and how Greg studies the Bible.

 

• How do secular books like Atomic Habits assist our Christian walk?
• How do you personally study the Bible?

Questions about the Catholic Bible versus the Protestant Bible, whether or not the original New Testament manuscripts exist somewhere and how we would know if we found one, and the implications of not having the original manuscripts of the Bible.

 

• How do you know you have the right version of Christianity? The Catholic Bible was assembled closer to the time of Jesus, and your church just took books out of that Bible. If an all-powerful God can’t maintain the truth over time, he probably isn’t real.
• Do you think the original New Testament manuscripts still exist somewhere, and if we ever found one, how would we know it was the original?
• What do we mean when we say we don’t have an original copy of the Bible? Which parts aren’t right, and how would we ever know?

Questions about disappointment that the sign gifts of the Spirit seem rare, non-existent, or fake, whether or not believers can squelch the Holy Spirit, and whether 2 Peter 1:21 points to the Holy Spirit “impressing” us during prophecy.

 

• I came to faith because the gifts of the Spirit that seemed integral to church life in the Bible made God so real and personal, but now that I’ve found the gifts to be rare, non-existent, or fake, I have doubts I know anything about God.
• Can the squelching of the Holy Spirit be supported biblically, and can we, as believers, squelch the Holy Spirit?
• Does 2 Peter 1:21 point to the Holy Spirit “impressing” us during prophecy?