Tuesday, November 28, 2023

Dr. Lee Cronin & Dr. James Tour on Science and the Origin of Life, Cambr...

Who is Coming Over for Christmas? (John 1:1-5)


"Who is Coming Over for Christmas?" (John 1:1-5)
Among Us: A Christmas Story 
Sunday, November 26th

Discussion Questions:
Who is someone you are looking forward to seeing this Christmas season? 
Why is preparing our hearts so important for our deep enjoyment of the Christmas season. 
Jesus is the Eternal God - John 1:1 (What does it mean that Jesus is the Word?)
Jesus is the Creator God - John 1:2-3 (Why is it important to understand that Jesus is the Creator?
Jesus is the Living God - John 1:4-5 (How is Jesus the life and the light?) 
How would you explain the incarnation to someone who has never heard of it?
How does the incarnation affect your daily faith? Why does it even matter if Jesus is divine?
How can we pray for one another as we start this year's Christmas season."Who is Coming Over for Christmas?" (John 1:1-5) Among Us: A Christmas Story Sunday, November 26th Discussion Questions: Who is someone you are looking forward to seeing this Christmas season? Why is preparing our hearts so important for our deep enjoyment of the Christmas season. Jesus is the Eternal God - John 1:1 (What does it mean that Jesus is the Word?) Jesus is the Creator God - John 1:2-3 (Why is it important to understand that Jesus is the Creator? Jesus is the Living God - John 1:4-5 (How is Jesus the life and the light?) How would you explain the incarnation to someone who has never heard of it? How does the incarnation affect your daily faith? Why does it even matter if Jesus is divine? How can we pray for one another as we start this year's Christmas season.

Monday, November 6, 2023

Everyday Disciple: Walking with God through Suffering

"Walking with God through Suffering" (John 11:17-45)
Everyday Disciple
Sunday, November 5th
Discussion Questions
What does Jesus' weeping at the tomb of Lazarus reveal about his character?
Why did Martha and Mary doubt Jesus even though He had previously performed many miracles?
What is the significance of Jesus' statement that He is "the resurrection and the life"?
How does Jesus' raising of Lazarus challenge our understanding of death and dying?
What does the reaction of the Jewish leaders to Lazarus' resurrection tell us about their motivations?
How has your understanding of death and dying changed in light of Jesus' raising of Lazarus?
How can you be more like Jesus in your compassion for those who are grieving?
How can you be more open to sharing your faith with others, even when it is difficult?
How can you live your life in a way that brings glory to God?
How can we pray for one another this week? How can we practically support one another this coming week?
Resources for "Everyday Disciple: Walking with God through suffering"
Audio - https://rainiervalleychurch.com/latest-sermons
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LS4BupKnfo

Sunday, November 5, 2023

Divine Hiddenness: My Response to Alex O'Connor

Gavin Ortlund responds to @CosmicSkeptic Alex O'Connor on the argument from divine hiddenness. See Alex's dialogue with Lukas Ruegger from "Deflate" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Vc1A... See Alex's debate speech from his debate with Jonathan McLatchie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu2hv... Truth Unites (www.truthunites.org) exists to promote gospel assurance through theological depth. Gavin Ortlund (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) serves as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Ojai. SUPPORT: Tax Deductible Donations: https://truthunites.org/donate/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/truthunites FOLLOW: Website: www.truthunites.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/gavinortlund Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TruthUnitesP... MY ACADEMIC WORK: https://gavinortlund.com/mypublications/ PODCAST: https://anchor.fm/truth-unites DISCORD SERVER ON PROTESTANTISM Striving Side By Side: https://discord.gg/MdTt6d5PVs VISUAL DESIGN: Clau! | www.clau.uk CHECK OUT SOME BOOKS: https://www.amazon.com/Makes-Sense-Wo... https://www.amazon.com/Theological-Re... https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Right-... https://www.amazon.com/Retrieving-Aug... 00:00 - Introduction 01:54 - Description of the Hiddenness Argument 12:38 - History of the Hiddenness Argument 20:14 - Thesis 1: Expectations About Divine Love 27:32 - Thesis 2: Nonresistant Nonbelief Naivete 42:14 - Thesis 3: Hiddenness Has Its Perks 1:02:38 - Concluding Appeal

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

The Best Pastoral Theology Ever Written?

Frightening Abuses of Science: A Conversation with Wesley J. Smith

Experiments on the living unborn. Organ harvesting. Reckless biotech. Radical environmentalism. These are not horror stories playing at your local movie theater. They're playing out in labs, hospitals, and institutes across America. On this episode of ID The Future, host Andrew McDiarmid speaks with bioethicist Wesley J. Smith about frightening abuses of science being done in the name of progress. In this unnerving exchange, Smith discusses examples of biotechnology that are advancing faster than our ethical considerations, including synthetic human embryos, genetic engineering, and fetal farming. He unpacks recent attempts by environmental activists to give rights to non-living things like rivers and oceans. He explains the difference between animal rights and animal welfare, while exposing the animal rights campaign as an anti-human movement that inhibits human flourishing. Smith also discusses the latest fronts in the gender ideology crusade, and how the rush to affirm gender dysphoria in children is causing tremendous harm to our society. And before the nightmare ends, Smith explains the pernicious push from evidence-based medicine to "science-based medicine," a strategy that encourages censorship and totalitarian governance of the scientific enterprise. Timestamps: 00:00 Introducing Wesley J. Smith 03:04 A Culture of Death Tipping Point 05:41 Advances in Euthanasia and Organ Harvesting 07:51 Defining Human Exceptionalism 08:06 Examples of Reckless Biotechnology 11:09 More Powerful Than Atomic Energy 14:05 "Synthetic" Embryos from Stem Cells 17:05 Other Frightening Frontiers in Biotech 18:55 Animal Rights vs. Animal Welfare 22:16 Giving Rights to Rivers and Oceans? 23:49 From Professional Journals to Public Policy 26:00 How "Gender Affirming Care" Hurts Children 30:24 When Ideology Trumps Scientific Evidence 33:15 The Censorship That Stifles Science 36:41 The Humanize Podcast 38:04 You Are the Resistance Wesley J. Smith is Chair and Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism, where he hosts a podcast called Humanize. He is author of more than 14 books on human dignity, liberty, and equality, the most recent being an updated and revised edition of Culture of Death: The Age of “Do Harm” Medicine. Wesley has been recognized as one of America’s premier public intellectuals on bioethics by National Journal and was honored by the Human Life Foundation as a “Great Defender of Life” for his work against suicide and euthanasia. He has appeared on more than a thousand TV and radio programs, including national shows like ABC Nightline, Good Morning America, Larry King Live, CNN Anderson Cooper 360, and Fox News Network. His writing has appeared in Newsweek, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Telegraph, Western Journal of Medicine, the American Journal of Bioethics, and elsewhere. Read more about these and other abuses of science at www.humanize.today. #science #euthanasia #stemcell #biotechnology #humanity #medicine #halloween #animalrights ============================ The Discovery Science News Channel is the official Youtube channel of Discovery Institute's Center for Science & Culture. The CSC is the institutional hub for scientists, educators, and inquiring minds who think that nature supplies compelling evidence of intelligent design. The CSC supports research, sponsors educational programs, defends free speech, and produce articles, books, and multimedia content. For more information visit https://www.discovery.org/id/ http://www.evolutionnews.org/ http://www.intelligentdesign.org/ Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter: Twitter:   / discoverycsc   Facebook:   / discoverycsc   Instagram:   / discoverycsc   Visit other Youtube channels connected to the Center for Science & Culture Discovery Institute:    / discoveryinstitute   Dr. Stephen C. Meyer:    / drstephenmeyer