Answering Questions From Live Chat Today on Theology, Apologetics and the Christian Life

Question: Did Jesus claim to be the Father in John 14:9?

Jacob Seiler asks why Jesus said he was the Father in John 14:9.

John 14:9 context: Philip asks to see the Father; Jesus responds with a revelation claim, not an identity claim.

Mike walks through the narrative context of John 14, noting the Last Supper setting and Philip's request.

Hebrews 1 supports the distinction: Jesus is the radiance/imprint of God, not God the Father himself.

Mike cross-references Hebrews 1 to reinforce that seeing Jesus reveals the Father without Jesus being the Father.

John 14:10 reinforces Trinitarian distinction: Jesus is "in" the Father, not identical to the Father.

Continuing the John 14 exposition.

Prosperity preachers and false prophecy: prophets whose utterances focus on wealth and success are false prophets.

Question from "First Last" about whether God wants believers to be wealthy and whether to trust wealth-focused prophets.

Prosperity gospel critique: misappropriates OT promises to Israel, ignores Jesus's teachings on suffering and cross-bearing.

Continuing the prosperity gospel discussion.

Distinction between being wealthy and pursuing wealth; Matthew 6 "seek first the kingdom" as the proper framework.

Wrapping up the prosperity gospel question.

Question: Does "repent" (metanoia) mean godly grief/sorrow?

Christopher White asks about a video by Creation Liberty Evangelism claiming metanoia means godly grief and sorrow.

Strong's Concordance is not a thorough Greek resource; Bible software lexicons provide better word definitions.

Mike explains methodology for Greek word study.

Metanoia definition: a complete change of thought, attitude, and behavior regarding sin and righteousness — not inherently grief.

Reading the lexical definition from Bible software.

Metanoia encompasses both attitudinal and behavioral change; Luke 3:8 and Acts 26:20 illustrate the distinction.

Further nuance on the meaning of repentance.

Bible study tip: spend more time reading the text itself before turning to commentaries.

Joey Fisher asks for study tips for going deeper in the Bible.

How to use commentaries well: seek their reasoning, not their conclusions; read multiple commentaries.

Continuing Bible study methodology advice.

Blue Letter Bible (blueletterbible.org) recommended as a free online resource for Bible study.

Practical resource recommendation in the study tips section.

Matthew 27: saints raised from the dead at Jesus's death — why do only Matthew mention it?

Insects Are Cool (an atheist regular on the channel) asks why only Matthew mentions the resurrection of saints in Matthew 27.

Argument from silence is a poor historical method: uniqueness to one Gospel does not discredit the account.

Responding to the implicit skeptical argument behind the Matthew 27 question.

Collaboration project: 20 videos with Cameron Bertuzzi (Capturing Christianity) and John McCrae (What Do You Meme) releasing daily.

Mike announces a collaborative YouTube project.

Hovind vs. Falk (BioLogos) debate moderated by Mike: the debaters talked past each other on different topics.

Justin Barnes asks Mike about the debate he moderated between Kent Hovind and a BioLogos evolutionist.

1 Corinthians 6:9 lists sins (including homosexual practice) that preclude inheriting the kingdom; false teaching on these sins subverts the gospel.

Leanne Waters asks whether those who teach homosexual relations are okay are rejecting the true Jesus and true gospel.

Greek terms in 1 Corinthians 6:9 absolutely refer to homosexuality; attempts to claim otherwise are propaganda.

Addressing revisionist interpretations of 1 Corinthians 6:9.

Easy believism: allowing people to remain in lifestyle sin while claiming salvation is a false gospel.

Mike argues that teaching sexual sins are acceptable amounts to leading people to hell.

Secular and archaeological evidence for the Exodus exists but Mike cannot present it in detail; early vs. late dating debate.

Patrick Mosher asks if there is secular historical or archaeological evidence for the Exodus.

Proper epistemology for trusting Scripture: demonstrate Bible is from God, then trust it — rather than requiring external proof for every claim.

Mike's methodological note on the Exodus question.

1 Timothy 2:11-15 context: instructions to men (avoid anger/quarreling in prayer) and women (modesty, inner vs. outer beauty).

Lady D asks about 1 Timothy 2:11-15 regarding women being silent and not having authority.

1 Timothy 2:11-12 — women learning quietly with submission refers to the teaching context, not a prohibition on speaking at all.

Exegeting 1 Timothy 2:11-12.

1 Timothy 3 qualifications for overseers (bishops/pastors/elders — synonymous terms) flow directly from 2:11-12 and use masculine language.

Mike shows the literary connection between 1 Timothy 2 and 3.

1 Timothy 2:12 — "teach" and "exercise authority" may be two aspects of the same role, not two separate prohibitions.

Exegeting the grammar of 1 Timothy 2:12.

Women speaking in Acts and prophesying in church shows 1 Timothy 2 is not a ban on women speaking at all.

Clarifying the scope of the women/quietness prohibition.

Difference between ability/capability and calling: women may be skilled teachers but are not called to the pastoral role.

Addressing the emotional objection that restricting women from pastoral roles implies lesser capability.

1 Timothy 2:15 — "saved through childbearing" does not refer to eternal salvation but to restored/elevated status.

Addressing a commonly misunderstood verse.

Genesis establishes equal image-bearing of men and women; Galatians 3:28 establishes equality in salvation — different roles do not imply different value.

Broader biblical framework for gender equality and distinct roles.

Pre-trib rapture and early church fathers: Mike acknowledges not knowing the answer and references Brian Brodersen's book.

Ian Connolly asks whether the pre-trib rapture was a recent invention not believed by early church fathers.

Using materials from false teachers: distinction between promoting a false teacher's work vs. using theologically sound songs/content from a problematic source.

Question about whether to stay in a church that uses materials from false teachers.

Tongues in the New Testament: multiple types — tongues with interpretation (public) and tongues without interpretation (private).

Tanya Baltzer asks about tongues — actual languages vs. unknown languages.

Ephesians 5:18 — "be filled with the Spirit" is a CONTRAST to being drunk with wine, not a comparison; "drunk in the Spirit" is a misreading.

Mike addresses "drunk in the Spirit" and "slain in the Spirit" claims.

Slain in the Spirit is unbiblical; drunk/slain/shaking in the Spirit are all contrary to "self-control" as fruit of the Spirit.

Continuing the critique of charismatic practices.

Personal testimony: Mike first encountered charismatic practices as a teenager and was confused; discovered 1 Corinthians 14 had rules for tongues much later.

Mike shares his personal experience with charismatic churches.

Are ghosts real? Mike's view: likely evil spirits, not the spirits of the dead.

Jim McGregor asks whether ghosts are real or evil spirits.

Witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28): the appearance of Samuel was an exception, possibly demonic; the medium herself was shocked it worked.

Continuing the ghosts discussion with a biblical example.

Rapture and the Third Temple: Mike believes in a future Third Temple but sees no necessary connection to pre-trib rapture timing.

Christian Lubin asks about the connection between the rapture and the building of the Third Temple.

Women teaching men in a pastoral/leadership role: Mike reiterates his complementarian position.

Emily Espinal asks the biblical view on women teaching men in a pastoral role.

How to evangelize pantheists: demonstrate Christianity is true rather than directly refuting pantheism.

Michael Gilbert asks how to evangelize to pantheists and polytheists and prove their views false.

Evangelizing Hindus: ask why they believe, listen to their evidence/reasons, then compare with the reasons for Christianity.

Continuing the evangelism methodology for polytheism/Hinduism.

Upcoming debate with Matt Dillahunty on April 11 on the resurrection of Jesus.

Mike announces the upcoming debate as a prayer request.

Baptism of the Holy Spirit: Mike believes it can happen both at salvation and after; distinct from the indwelling.

Zach Bradley asks whether the baptism of the Holy Spirit happens at salvation or after.

John 20:17 — Jesus says "my Father and your Father, my God and your God": Jesus as mediator connects believers to the Father.

Rodriguez asks why Jesus refers to the Father as "my God" in John 20:17.

1 Timothy 2:5 mediator concept underlies John 20:17 — Jesus is the one mediator between God and man.

Continuing the John 20:17 discussion.

Preterism: all/most Bible prophecy fulfilled by 70 AD — initially appealing but breaks down under scrutiny.

Lindy Z asks about preterism.

Full preterism vs. partial preterism: full preterism claims the second coming already happened and leads to heresy.

Distinguishing varieties of preterism.

Head coverings for women: Mike holds tentatively that they are not necessary today, but acknowledges he wants to study the passage more.

Riatoon asks whether Christian head coverings are biblical.