#STRask

What Do I Tell a Child Who Feels Guilty for Not Wanting to Read the Bible?

Questions about what to tell a child who feels guilty for not wanting to read the Bible because he finds it boring and confusing, what Bible was printed before King James published his version, and whether or not the original versions are available in English.

 

• What do I tell a child who feels guilty for not wanting to read the Bible because he finds it boring and confusing?
• Was King James greedy and power-hungry, and did he have a version of the Bible written to support the royal kingdom? What was printed before King James published his version, and are the original versions available in English?

What Would You Say in a High School Graduation Speech?

Questions about what we would say in a high school graduation speech if given the opportunity, how to talk to talk about eternity with a six-year-old who is disturbed by the thought of Heaven never ending, and where Jesus is now if he has a body.

 

• If you had the opportunity to give the high school graduation speech, what would you say?
• How should I talk to my six-year-old about eternity when she struggles with the thought of it never ending and says she wishes she would have never been born so she didn’t have to live in Heaven forever?
• If Jesus has a body, where is he?

If Holy People Are So Interested in Politics, Shouldn’t Churches Be Taxed?

Questions about whether churches ought to be taxed if holy people are so interested in politics and how to respond to the claim that conservative Christians changed their minds about slavery and segregation and will eventually also change their minds about LGBTQ+ rights.

 

• They ought to tax churches. If holy people are so interested in politics, government, and public policy, let them pay the price of admission like everyone else.
• Conservative Christians were once for slavery and segregation and against women’s suffrage, but they’ve changed their minds now, and they’ll eventually change their minds about LGBTQ+ rights too.

Why Think the Evidence for the Resurrection Is Strong if Saul Wasn’t Convinced by It?

Questions about why anyone should think the evidence for the resurrection is strong if Saul and the majority of first-century Jews found it insufficient, why Jesus came to to the Jews rather than another nationality, and how other nationalities came about through Noah.

 

• Why should educated non-Christians today trust apologists’ claims that the evidence for the resurrection is strong if Saul and the overwhelming majority of first-century Jews found it insufficient?
• Why did Jesus come specifically to the Jews rather than to a Chinese family or African or any other nationality, and how did those other nationalities come about through Noah?

Where Did the Essence God Is Composed of Come From?

Questions about where the essence God is composed of came from, whether God has the same choices other beings have and could choose not to exist, and how to convince a non-believer God matters if he’s undetectable and a non-interventionist.

 

• If things have to have a beginning, and God is something and not nothing, then where did the essence he is composed of come from? Can something create itself?
• Does God have the same choices other beings have, and could he could choose not to be, like other beings can, or is he somehow outside of being and non-being, thus not being a being at all?
• If God is undetectable and a non-interventionist, then how do I convince a non-believer he matters? Does he only matter because of the afterlife?

Isn’t It Better to Do Good for Goodness’ Sake?

Questions about it being better to do good for goodness’ sake rather than to earn approval and avoid punishment and a good initial approach to take with someone who rejects God based on his “violent” and “oppressive” character in the Old Testament.

 

• I want my children to do good for goodness’ sake. Doing it to earn my approval and avoid my punishment is the absolute worst outcome I can imagine, as is requiring them to relentlessly thank me for helping them find it—and I’m just a human!
• What's a good initial approach to take with someone who rejects God based on his “violent” and “oppressive” character in the Old Testament, regardless of good arguments about his being objectively moral?

How Is Access to God in the New Covenant Different from the Old Covenant?

Questions about how access to God through Jesus in the New Covenant differs from access in the Old Covenant, whether the salvation of Gentiles is just a means to the end of making Israel jealous, and the idea that theology is only personal and contextual, not objective.

• How is access to God through Jesus in the New Covenant different from the access Jews had to God in the Old Covenant?
• Is the salvation of Gentiles just a means to the end of making Israel jealous (see Romans 11:11–16)? How is this supposed to make us Gentiles feel?
• How would you respond to someone who said, “Theology is personal and interpersonal work, so don’t believe claims that any theology is objective; it’s all personal and interpersonal and contextual”?

Your Religion Prohibits You, Not Me

Question about how to respond to a meme that says, “Your religion does not prohibit me from anything. It prohibits you. Learn the difference.”

• How should I respond to a meme that says, “Your religion does not prohibit me from anything. It prohibits you. Learn the difference”?

Why Emphasize Evangelism When the Bible Only Mentions the Great Commission Four Times?

Questions about why evangelism is emphasized above other commands in the Bible, what to do when speaking the truth in love hurts someone’s feelings, and how to best love and share the gospel with a friend who rejects it because of bad experiences with Christians.

• Why is it hammered into us that Christians need to go out and evangelize when the Great Commission is mentioned only four times in the Bible and other commands spoken of throughout the Bible (love, servitude, humility, etc.) seem to get less exhortation?
• How should I deal with someone saying, “You hurt my feelings,” when I’m speaking the truth in love? What do I do when preaching the gospel hurts someone’s feelings because it exposes their sin, and how can I debunk the current worship of feelings?
• How can I best love a friend who has repeatedly rejected the gospel because of negative experiences she’s had in hostile Christian circles?

Is It Circular Reasoning to Say the Bible Is True Because God Says It’s True?

Questions about whether it’s circular reasoning to say the Bible is true because God says it’s true, how we can know when sarcasm or some other relevant tone is being used in the Bible, and whether tithing results in God’s faithful provision and financial blessings.

• Is it circular reasoning to say the Bible is true because God says it’s true (in the Bible)?
• How can we accurately read stories like 2 Chronicles 18:12–16, where it seems as if Micaiah was using sarcasm? How do we know when there is an important tone in play?
• Is it biblical for someone to say, “I’m so thankful for tithing and knowing God faithfully meets our needs because of our faithfulness”?
• Does the pouring out of blessings from Heaven when we test God with the tithe, spoken of in Malachi 3:10, refer to financial blessings?