Did God command genocide in the Old Testament? Tremper Longman joins me on What in the Word? to discuss the Canaanite conquest.
Follow the show on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more.
Ethics
From Womb to Tomb: On Being Pro-Life for the Whole Life (with Karen Swallow Prior)
What does it mean to be pro-life? Is it simply being anti-abortion (pro-birth)? Or is it something more? Karen Swallow Prior joins us to share, not only why we as Christians oppose abortion, but also how the same ethic that forms this opposition entails consistent care for human life.
Access the episode here. (Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and more.)
Contemporary Sexualities & Gender Identities — Discussion Questions
The following is a list of discussion questions composed for a CrossWay Community Church small group, Christ & Culture, for use throughout November and December 2018.
Same-Sex Sexuality:
- What does the Bible have to say about same-sex sexuality?
- Is same-sex sexuality sinful?
- What Biblical or theological questions do we have about this issue?
- If someone is — as one might say — “born gay,” than how can we condemn their same-sex sexuality as sinful?
- Can someone be same-sex attracted and Christian?
- Is same-sex attraction a choice?
- Is same-sex attraction itself sinful? Why is this distinction (if valid) important?
- If someone is same-sex attracted and becomes a Christian, what should we expect their discipleship and sanctification to look like? For example, should we expect their same-sex attraction to go away? Why or why not?
- Should same-sex attracted Christians embrace the label or self-identification of being gay (e.g., “gay Christian”)? Why or why not?
- How should we evaluate the cultural phenomenon of linking one’s sexuality with one’s identity?
- Are same-sex attracted individuals, by nature of being same-sex attracted, called to a life of celibacy?
- What can we do as a church, as believers, to better help those in our midst or those in our community who are same-sex attracted? What has the church previously done well in this matter? Done poorly?
- Many same-sex attracted Christians who choose a life of singleness can be susceptible to a sense of loneliness. How can we as a church help, encourage, and be more mindful of them?
- Self-professing Christians disagree on this question — is homosexuality sinful? Is this an area where we can just “agree to disagree” and still maintain unity?
- How can we help children (our own, or those in our church) navigate this topic in a culture that is increasingly affirming (and with insistence) of same-sex sexualities?
- What should Christians make of “gay marriage”?
- Should Christians support or oppose the legalization of gay marriage?
- Should Christians attend their homosexual friends’ wedding ceremony?
- Should Christians in certain professions (e.g., bakers, photographers) refuse to provide services for same-sex marriages?
- How should we counsel someone who is in a homosexual marriage (according to law) and becomes a Christian?
- How can we winsomely communicate our convictions to non-believers?
Transgenderism & Gender Dysphoria:
- What should we make of “gender dysphoria”? Is transgenderism a choice, sin, disorder, and/or valid expression of self-understanding?
- What does the Bible have to say, if anything, about gender dysphoria or transgenderism?
- How can we help those experiencing gender dysphoria or self-identifying themselves as transgender?
- Should we accommodate and use individuals’ “preferred pronouns” even if they conflict with their known biological sex?
- How should we counsel someone who becomes a Christian and previously underwent sex reassignment surgery?
Questions for a Christian Analysis of Civil Disobedience
What is civil disobedience?
Civil disobedience is the intentional breach of legal duty. It is breaking the law. Those who engage in such disobedience lack the legal right to do so, i.e., their behavior is illegal, not legal. However, this sort of disobedience is to be distinguished from mere defiance, rebellion, or criminality. It is disobedience on the grounds of some claimed moral justification or duty.
One expression of civil disobedience is [a] the refusal to comply with and obey a law based on conscience — it is thought that to obey the law is to do evil, thus justifying (or even demanding) disobedience. The perceived evil may be “sin of commission” (being commanded to do wrong) or “sin of omission” (being commanded to refrain from good).
Question: Is Just War Theory Impossible in Practice?
Question: If just war theory acknowledges that not all military action is justifiable or acceptable, then how does this get worked out practically for individual Christians involved in military service.
It would be (at worst) naive and (at best) presumptuous to assume that one’s nation and military will, without exception, engage in actions and ventures that are deemed allowable according to the strict criteria of just war theory. Inevitably, some things (more likely: most all things) will not meet just war theory’s rigorous criteria.
If this is the case, then how can the just warrior participate in military service if it will potentially (likely; assuredly?) mean becoming complicit in unjust military action? Can you conscientiously object to certain actions, missions, wars, and tactics and not others, i.e., only the ones that you deem “just”?
How does this get worked out? Or is just war theory just an ideal, and we admit we are willing to do unjust things, or at least become complicit in them, because “It’s better than the alternative”? (Honest question)
People often point out the perceived practical problems with pacifism; but the difficulties — as far as I see them — seem to be of equal opportunity.
Kirk E. Miller 