Exploring Faith, Pursuing Grace

E63: Romans 14 and Christian Liberties

Romans 14 (and 1Corinthians 8) are passages that have been misused by many Christians to insist that others need to either stop or start engaging in some behavior that is either considered offensive or essential, respectively. Some Christians will insist that a practice or behavior a brother or sister engages in must stop, that liberty must be curtailed so that their conscience won't be violated. 
Is Romans 14 and 1Corinthians 8 really about curtailing Christian liberty, or is there more to it than that? (Spoiler: there's more to it than that)
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Article referenced in this episode can be found here.
 
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E62: When Jesus was 'Corrected' - Josh Scott

Pastor Josh Scott returns to the EFPG podcast to discuss an interesting passage in Mt 15 when it appears as though Jesus is 'corrected' by a Canaanite woman. This is a passage well-known to many Christians, and in this conversation Pastor Josh, Kevin, and Lee take note and discuss some interesting contextual and cultural undertones that often go unnoticed by many students of the Bible (at least they went unnoticed by Lee before this episode).
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E61: Intentional Christian Community - Dr. Alden Bass

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Alden Bass, PhD to discuss Christian community, and pursuing community in an intentional way.
 
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E60: Tensions (Contradictions) in the Old Testament - Dr. Grant Testut

Often when a Christian comes across verses that contradict each other, that Christian looks to harmonize or reconcile those contradictions in order to maintain their faith. Sometimes, those tensions become insurmountable and that Christian's faith is shaken. Joining Kevin and Lee is Dr. Grant Testut, professor of Old Testament at Oklahoma Christian. 
In this conversation, Dr. Testut, Kevin, and Lee discuss some well-known (and not so well-known) tensions and blatant contradictions that are found in the OT, why they might be there, and why Christians shouldn't fear these tensions, but embrace them and accept them as a part of the scripture that God gave mankind.
Have questions? Holler at us at exploringfaithpursuinggrace@gmail.com
 
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Q&A 8: Is it Wrong to Cuss?

In this episode, Kevin and Lee discuss cuss words and their etymology, their use, and the concept of whether or not saying curse words is a sin or something Christians should do.
Due to the topic discussed, listener discretion is advised.
Have questions? Comments? We love hearing from you! Email us at exploringfaithpursuinggrace@gmail.com
 
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E59: Lessons from the Good Samaritan

The Good Samaritan is one of the most well-known of Jesus' parables, and within that story we find layers of truth that unfold before us. In this episode, Kevin and Lee discuss this parable, it's context, and some of the implications it may teach that often go unnoticed (at least they did to Lee prior to this episode).
 
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E58: "The Covering" of 1 Corinthians 11

Over the last several episodes concerning women's roles, Kevin, Lee, and our guests have all discussed or alluded to 1 Corinthians 11 in some way, especially verses 4 and 5, which imply/teach (in Kevin and Lee's estimation) that women experienced full participation in the public worship in the early church. One of the things Bible students will notice is that 1 Corinthians 11 is NOT directly speaking about that, but vv2-16 is instead discussing a principle that women who pray/prophesy should cover their heads, and Paul delivers a teaching that outlines why.The discussion Kevin and Lee have dives into what the covering actually is. Is it an artificial veil? Is it long hair? Is it UNCUT hair? Understanding the underlying context of this passage provides clarity to one of the most difficult passages in scripture.NOTE: Some of the context we discuss in this episode concerns ancient perspectives on human reproduction, and some might find that content distasteful. For that reason, listener discretion is advised.Have comments? Questions? Email us at exploringfaithpursuiniggrace@gmail.com, and join our facebook discussion board for great coversation about faith, life, and God's word.Articles referenced in this episode: 
https://www.psephizo.com/biblical-studies/head-does-not-mean-leader-in-1-cor-11-3/https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UrmXbcqzWh3aQ1wotzDhqRYf0swtvj8w/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/10k8YZEtt0YpCNQzbUYGaMj7JH2ora9QW/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1exEv41Maq8J-sGUSJunSUW6Bt4MLaslu/view?usp=sharingThanks for listening!

E57: The Cup in the Lord's Supper

In the early 1900's the churches of Christ experienced a division concerning the practice of communion; specifically, whether or not more than one cup may be used in the observance of the Lord's Supper. 
For over 15 years Lee was part of the one-cup group that arose from that division, and it has only been recently that he changed his position on that topic. For many, this is a silly thing to divide over, but for those in the one-cup community, the practice of the Lord's Supper is something that requires precise obedience to a divine pattern, and is no trivial matter. So what caused Lee to change his mind?
Listen to find out!
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Link to notes mentioned in this episode: https://freedominchrist.net/sermons-and-articles/?dir=673