Worldview Legacy | The Think Institute

*****Enjoy this BONUS EPISODE***** We are changing up the regular routine of weekly podcasts in order to post this bonus episode offering (what we hope will be) a really useful resource. ***** The other day I received a comment on one of my posts from a friend of mine who identifies as an atheist. He was offended by my post (it was about how science is not accounted for by atheism), and his comment really made me think. My goal isn't to offend anyone, but in the course of putting so much content out on apologetics, it's bound to happen.  I want to equip believers to be ready for any questions that they encounter about their faith. I talk about how to answer questions a lot, but in this episode I want to change things up a little bit, and talk about how to go on the "offensive" without being unnecessarily "offensive," and ask a few questions of our own. Of course, it’s common for Christians to be confronted with questions and objections from non-Christians about the Christian message. We need to be ready for such questions (1 Peter 3:15). But we also need to be equipped with questions of our own. After all, we aren’t the only ones presenting a worldview. The atheist, agnostic or skeptic also has a worldview. And like most everyone, there are likely to be aspects of that worldview he or she hasn’t fully thought through. Encouraging an unbeliever to really examine their own worldview can be a powerful apologetic tool. The goal is not to win the argument but to engage in meaningful dialogue, to seek "truth in conversation" (the Think Institute motto) and, if the Lord gives the opportunity, to point the person to the Good News about Jesus that alone can give them forgiveness and eternal life. I hope you enjoy this and, of course, "I hope it makes you think."  ***** Help us spread the word about the podcast and get more listeners, so we can equip, encourage and engage more Christians to know, share and defend their Christian faith. If you like the Think Podcast, give us a 5-star rating and write a review on Apple Podcasts. It takes one minute and really has a big effect on our visibility. We may never reach the popularity level of Joe Rogan or Serial, but we can't help but think that the more believers we can get our content in front of, the greater impact we can have for Christ's kingdom. ***** truthinconversation.com  Facebook: http://fb.me/thethinkinstitute Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethinkinstitute/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThinkInst

Science & Religion: BFFs or best frenemies? This is a topic that I've been getting very much into lately, and that is the intersection of science and biblical faith. We talked about how the biblical worldview provides the foundation for scientific inquiry by way of a three-fold basis: the cosmos which was given in order to be studied, the human mind which was given in order to study it, and God's revelation which was given in order to make sense of them both. In true Presuppositional fashion, we examined the biblical data first, then we stepped into the unbelieving worldview for the sake of argument, demonstrating that it does not provide the basis for its own conclusions (namely that it is possible to do science and to know that God does not exist). We also saw how the same Bible that reveals the basis for science also reveals our sin and our need for the Savior, so we got into the Gospel a little as well. For further reading: The Story of the Cosmos: How the Heavens Declare the Glory of God (Paul M. Gould and Daniel Ray, general editors): www.amazon.com/…/ref=sr_1_1_ssp… The Physics of Einstein: Black Holes, time travel, distant starlight, E=mc^2 (Jason Lisle): www.amazon.com/…/B0…/ref=sr_1_1… "An Argument From Science" (Joel Settecase): settecase.wordpress.com/…/this…/ If you enjoyed this episode, please help us get the word out about the content we're creating each week. "Like" the Think Institute page and share it with your friends.

Taylor Swift's new single, "You Need to Calm Down," calls out social conservatives and (especially in the video) Christians for opposing the freedom and dignity of her friends.  We look for the presuppositions being brought to the table and what kind of worldview best supports the values she promotes in her song, then we commend the biblical worldview and the Gospel.  The hope with this episode is that believers will be encouraged to talk about these issues with their non-Christian friends, and that nonbelievers who listen would hear the truth, that sin is a serious matter, but there is true freedom and abundant life with God, through Jesus.

We're back after a week off. In order to defend the Christian message, you have to know what that message is. In tonight's episode Joel gives an introduction to the biblical worldview. It's part one in an extended series on what Christians believe. We hope it makes you think. For the Think Institute's worldview and apologetics training resources, go to https://thethink.institute/print-resources. Theme song: Whiskey on the Mississippi. Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

It's the premier of the SONS OF THUNDER, a podcast-within-a-podcast that has been years in the making. In this "unnecessarily inflammatory" (and much longer than usual) episode, Joel and Parker Settecase lay down the groundwork for talking about apologetics--the defense of the truth of the Christian faith. They get into how to get apologetics wrong and how to do it right--in a way that stays true to Scripture and honors Christ. This episode delivers way more content than "This Is Apologetics" typically goes, but sometimes it's fun to drink out of a firehose (or so they tell me). Music from filmmusic.io: "Killers" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licence: CC BY (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

How can you prepare your children to have the kind of faith today that will answer tomorrow's challenges? We look at three keys: Principles, Practice and Prayer.  A shorter episode tonight, but packed with a lot of really practical recommendations. A sampling of them: Catakids (Kindle): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SW1SQ9F  The Rizers (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/user/therizers Dana Dirksen (Amazon Music): https://music.amazon.com/artists/B0014B3006?ref=dm_sh_0f6d-b88e-dmcp-f935-291bd&musicTerritory=US&marketplaceId=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Did you know nearly one out of every 3.5 people on earth is a Muslim? Christians have been commissioned to disciple the nations, yet historically we have sent precious few resources to bring the Gospel to this incredibly massive portion of the human population.  In episode 10, Joel Settecase and N. G. (name withheld to avoid it coming up in search results) pull up a couple of chairs to discuss the goal, motivation and method of sharing the Gospel and defending the Christian message to Muslims. They get deep and wide in this conversation, which ranges from the theological to the practical. We hope it makes you think.

Does Christian hypocrisy mean that Christianity is false? Some initial comments related to recent pro-life legislation and a now infamous tweet about Christian hypocrisy that unleashed a massive conversation last week. Then I do an internal critique from the biblical perspective of the idea that hypocrisy discredits the messenger or voids the message, and then analyze whether the unbelieving worldview can account for the kind of moral standard needed in order to condemn hypocrisy as immoral. Theme song: Whiskey on the Mississippi Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

My old friend, Pastor Brandon Cooper (Cityview Community Church) joins me to discuss what makes the Christian worldview stand out from all the rest. We get into metaphysics, the exclusive claims of Christianity and Pluralism, Hinduism, eschatology, and why the biblical Gospel is truly unique. If you're a Christian, this will help you articulate and defend what you believe. If you're not, it will challenge your assumptions and encourage you to entertain new ideas you perhaps hadn't considered. Either way, I hope it makes you think.

Talking to strangers can be a scary thing. But for Christians, it can be a very rewarding endeavor. We introduced what spiritual conversations are and why we ought to seek them out. Then we looked at some biblical examples and two or three examples from my own life. Finally, I shared two stories of spiritual conversations I had recently, both on airplanes and discussed the benefit of having a "captive audience."