#STRask

Questions about Greg placing his faith in his personal assessment of which truth claims best match reality rather than in the revelation of God in Jesus and a personal encounter with the Spirit, and how to fight thoughts that God isn’t real when you know he is real.

 

• Please respond to this critique of Greg Koukl: “Those who place their faith in their personal assessment of which truth claims best correspond to reality are placing their faith in something other than the revelation of God in Jesus Christ and a personal encounter with the Holy Spirit.”
• I struggle with thoughts that God isn’t real even though I know he’s real. How do I fight this?

Questions about the claim that if Christians really want to be open-minded, they need to read and study other religions before committing to Christianity, and with so many paths claiming to be the sole path, what is to be said about those who choose incorrectly?

 

• How would you respond to someone who says, “If Christians really want to be open-minded, they need to read and study other religions before committing to Christianity”?
• With so many paths claiming to be the sole path, what is to be said about those who choose incorrectly?

Questions about whether it’s possible there’s a being that’s greater than God and that’s outside of God’s comprehension and omniscience, and how to explain to people who don’t believe in the spiritual realm or the existence of God that we have eternal souls.

 

• Is it possible there’s a being that’s greater than God and that’s outside of God’s comprehension and omniscience?
• How do I explain to relatives who don’t believe in the existence of God or the spiritual realm that we all have an eternal soul? They say that if they see God do a miracle, then they’ll believe, but isn’t that why it’s faith?

Questions about whether we should be praying for our souls rather than for material things, why we need to pray about decisions, whether the devil can hear our prayers and tempt us with “answers,” and whether it’s okay to pray for someone’s death rather than healing.

 

• Shouldn’t I be praying for my soul rather than for material things such as a house or a new job—i.e., a diet version of the prosperity gospel?
• If I’m faced with a decision to do something that’s a good thing and doesn’t violate anything in Scripture, why do I need to pray about it to see if it’s something God wants me to do?
• Can the devil hear our prayers, and if so, will he tempt us with “answers” to those prayers?
• Is it okay to pray for someone’s death—i.e., for God to release them from suffering rather than for his miraculous healing?

Questions about why we should pray if God already knows what’s going to happen, how the effectiveness of prayer is measured, and whether or not things would have happened the way they did if no one had prayed for them.

 

• Why should we pray if God already knows what’s going to happen?
• How is the effectiveness of prayer measured—e.g., would Christopher Yuan have been saved if his mother hadn’t prayed fervently?

Questions about why we should think Jesus is not a created being, and what it means to say God became fully human if part of being human means not being God.

 

• Prove to me that Jesus is not a created being, that “begotten” doesn’t mean he was created, and that he has always existed.
• What does it mean to say God became fully human if part of being human means not being God?

Questions about good books on Christian apologetics, philosophy, and theology with more in-depth information and ideas, and resources to help an intellectually-inclined person with spiritual formation and developing the non-cerebral side of living a Christian life.

 

• As a high school student, I have read many baseline books on Christian apologetics, theology, and philosophy, so could you recommend good books with more in-depth information and ideas?
• As someone with a passion for intellectual pursuits such as apologetics, theology, and philosophy, what resources might be helpful for spiritual formation and developing the non-cerebral side of living a Christian life?

Questions about whether there’s an issue with churches advertising on social media, whether it’s weird if we pray along with a YouTuber, and whether Christian social media influencers are going against Matthew 6:1–2 when they film themselves doing good deeds.

 

• What are your thoughts on churches advertising on social media?
• Is it weird that I often find myself praying along with a YouTuber when he ends his videos with a prayer?
• Are Christian social media influencers going against Matthew 6:1–2 when they film themselves doing good deeds?

Questions about Christians condemning LGB people just because of how they love, how God can expect someone to be celibate when others are free to marry and have happiness, and why Christians seem to hate people today.

 

• If God sent Jesus to die for our sins, and all who believe in him are accepted into Heaven, why are so many Christians condemning LGB people just because of how they love someone?
• How can God expect you to be celibate when others are free to marry and have happiness?
• Can you explain the hate I see from Christians today?

Questions about how to answer the challenge that God doesn’t need a “pound of flesh” to forgive sins but can simply forgive, and whether the claim in Romans 10:13 that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved contradicts Matthew 7:21.

 

• How do you answer the challenge that God doesn’t need a “pound of flesh” to forgive sins but can simply forgive?
• Romans 10:13 says everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, but Matthew 7:21 says not everyone who says “Lord, Lord” will be saved. Can you help me understand this contradiction?