Search — Theology Explorer

Pharisees Sabbath analogy fence around the Torah

Pharisee fence analogy: how far do we extend rules about gender roles?

Mike uses the Pharisees' approach to Sabbath rules as an analogy.

practical application women president personal conviction

Mike would vote for a woman president if best option but not celebrate it as a victory for equality

Mike shares his personal application.

women in ministry church roles elder definition

Transition to detailed guidelines for women in ministry — defining church roles

Mike shifts to the church ministry application section.

1 Corinthians 7 1 Corinthians 7 women in ministry principles elder function limit

Two simple principles for women in ministry: (1) greatly involved; (2) limit is elder function

Mike states the two governing principles for all ministry questions.

Easy cases: women as ushers — clearly permissible

Mike begins answering specific role questions, starting with easy ones.

ushers easy cases

John 4:28-30 evangelism John 4:28-30 woman at the well

Women evangelizing men: easy case — the woman at the well, women at the resurrection

Mike addresses women doing evangelism toward men.

1 Timothy 2:12 1 Timothy 2:12 children's ministry defining manhood

Children's ministry leader: any ministry not to adult men is an absolute no-brainer

Mike states a clear principle about non-adult-male ministry.

youth ministry defining manhood puberty

When does a boy become a man? Puberty too young, 18 workable, adulting principle preferred

Mike works through the age/manhood question for ministry application.

youth ministry pastoral function facilitator vs pastor

Women in youth ministry: depends on whether the role functions as pastoral

Mike addresses women leading youth ministry with older teens.

Michael Heiser non-elder teaching Bible college teaching

Teaching Christian doctrine at conferences and Bible colleges — probably permissible

Mike addresses women teaching theology outside Sunday services.

elder-like function conference speaking practical advice

Advice to women conference/college speakers: take steps to ensure it doesn't become elder-like

Mike gives practical advice to women in teaching roles.

Sunday preaching Baptist tradition ordination

Teaching on a Sunday morning — the hardest case; various approaches churches take

Mike tackles the most contested ministry question.

Joni Eareckson Tada women on Sundays interview format

Various approaches to women speaking on Sundays: interview format, guest speaker, testimony, non-teaching topics

Mike describes different ways churches navigate this question.

worship leading pastoral worship music ministry

Women worship leaders: depends on whether the role becomes pastoral

Mike addresses women leading worship music.

spiritual development Christian grace cost of restriction

The cost of over-restriction: limiting ministry and spiritual development of women

Mike warns again about the unintended consequences of excessive restrictions.

2 Kings 22-23 women pastors Philip Payne King Josiah

Encouragement to women pastors who have changed their minds

Mike directly addresses women currently in pastoral roles who now agree with his conclusions.

Mike Winger idea 2023-11-22

Introduction to 'saved through childbearing' (1 Tim 2:15): the most difficult verse

Mike introduces the five views on the enigmatic statement 'she will be saved through childbearing.'

1 Timothy 2:15 dia 1 Timothy 2:15 saved through childbearing

Mike Winger idea 2023-11-22

Mike's personal disappointment with egalitarian arguments

Mike shares his personal experience studying both sides of the debate.

intellectual honesty personal testimony egalitarian arguments

Mike Winger idea 2023-11-22

Preview of Part 13: application questions about women in various ministry roles

Mike previews the final video in the series which will address practical application.

Natasha Crain practical application Part 13 preview

Mike Winger idea 2018-01-10

Matthew 24 context: Temple destruction and two distinct questions

Understanding what Jesus is actually answering

Matthew 24:1-8 Matthew 24:1-8 Temple destruction AD 70

Bill Johnson hermeneutics christocentrism

The central theological pillar of Bethel: 'Jesus is perfect theology' — everything in Scripture must be filtered through Jesus and inferior revelations discarded

Mike identifies the one foundational doctrinal distinctive driving all of Bethel's theology

Bill Johnson hermeneutics healing theology

Book of Job handled dismissively by the Bethel movement: Johnson's position is 'Job is the question, Jesus is the answer'

Mike discusses how the movement deals with the theological challenge posed by the book of Job

1 Samuel 5:6 Bill Johnson thorn in the flesh healing theology

Bill Johnson Q&A answer on whether God causes sickness: 'You can't give what you don't have — God doesn't have cancer, so He can't give it'

Mike plays and critiques a specific Q&A response from Bill Johnson

2 Corinthians 12:7-9 prayer 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 thorn in the flesh

Q&A — Is lack of faith why we cannot heal? Mike: faith is one factor, but not the only one — Paul's thorn in the flesh demonstrates God can say 'no' even to a man of great faith

First Q&A question from Elizabeth Hernandez

James 1 1 Peter 1 Bill Johnson healing theology James 1

Q&A — Bethel's view of sanctification through hardship: they do teach righteous living and learning through trials, but avoid applying the 'refining fire' principle to sickness

Q&A question from 'Truth and Grace'

2 Corinthians 12:7-9 2 Timothy 4:20 Acts of the Apostles 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 healing theology 2 Timothy 4:20

Q&A — Did Jesus ever say no to healing? Mike: Not in the three-and-a-half years of recorded ministry, but Jesus did say no through Paul's thorn and other NT instances

Q&A question from Elizabeth Hernandez

Matthew 28:19 Bill Johnson eschatology dominion theology

Q&A — Bethel's eschatology: they hold a dominion theology, believing the church should 'disciple the nations' — meaning transform entire nations, not just individuals

Q&A question from Don Schneider about end-times views

John MacArthur James White John MacArthur RC Sproul James White

Q&A — Recommended teachers for biblical thinking: James White, Michael Brown, RC Sproul, John MacArthur, Leighton Flowers, Greg Koukl

Q&A question from Judah Matthews

Matthew 21:21 James 4 1 John 5:14 prayer faith Matthew 21:21

Q&A — Matthew 21:21 ('if you have faith you can move mountains'): must be interpreted alongside other prayer scriptures — faith, right motives (James 4), and God's will (1 John 5:14)

Q&A question from Judah Matthews

evangelism Bill Johnson gospel

Q&A — Has Mike ever heard Johnson preach a clear gospel message? No — he's heard Johnson affirm the gospel but it's always followed by a pivot to signs and wonders

Q&A question from Chavita

Bill Johnson salvation Trinity

Q&A — Do they teach against the non-negotiables (Trinity, grace through faith, virgin birth, etc.)? Not explicitly — most are present but the Trinity and virgin birth are rarely discussed

Q&A question from Karl Wellborn

John 1:14 Bill Johnson Kenneth Copeland Word of Faith

Q&A — Does Johnson teach 'little gods' theology? No — he teaches something more subtle: 'the Word becoming flesh again' in believers as they speak prophetically and heal

Q&A question from Rona, comparing Johnson to Kenneth Copeland

Mormonism Joseph Smith fraud

Mike opens by claiming Joseph Smith perpetrated a fraud that undermines Mormonism's foundations

Introduction to the livestream topic

Mormonism apologetics LDS Church

Overview of Mormonism's scale and the testability question

Setting up the apologetic challenge

Deuteronomy 18:20 Deuteronomy false prophet Joseph Smith Deuteronomy 18:20

Deuteronomy 18: the test for a false prophet — a prophet who speaks in God's name what God has not commanded shall die

Scriptural framework for evaluating false prophecy

Joseph Smith Book of Abraham Joseph Smith diary

LDS apologist claim that Smith received direct revelation (not translation) is refuted by his own diary

Responding to a viewer question about the LDS apologetic counter-argument

Mike Winger idea 2018-02-21

Colossians 2:16-20: the JW misapplication of 'let no one judge you' to justify their blood refusal, when the passage actually condemns submission to regulations about food and drink as worldly.

Mike refutes a common JW counter-use of Colossians 2 to defend their blood doctrine.

Colossians 2:16 Colossians 2:20-22 Christian freedom food law abrogation Colossians 2:16

Mike Winger idea 2018-02-21

No single alternative to blood transfusions exists for all clinical scenarios; the medical community is working toward blood independence but has not achieved it.

Response to a viewer question about blood transfusion alternatives.

bloodless surgery blood transfusion alternatives blood supply

discernment healing fraud psychological manipulation

The child's facial reaction after the supposed healing reveals discomfort and distress, not joy — suggesting he knew nothing had changed.

Analyzing the aftermath of the first healing video.

Todd White healing fraud leg lengthening

Fifth video: Todd White heals a boy's leg outdoors on a gridded sidewalk. Mike notes the advantage of using the sidewalk grid lines as fixed reference points to track actual foot movement.

Analysis of another Todd White leg-lengthening video with unusually good reference points.

Todd White psychological manipulation social pressure

Todd White's consistent pattern of asking questions and answering them for the subject ('You feel better now? Yes, you're totally better') is manipulative and suppresses honest reporting.

Pattern identification across multiple Todd White healing videos.

healing fraud psychological manipulation suggestive questioning

Rushing to confirmation rather than allowing honest, pressure-free self-reporting is a key problematic tactic in these healing ministries.

Critique of the question methodology in the eye-healing video.

prophecy confirmation bias cold reading

People forget wrong guesses and remember right ones — the psychological principle behind why cold-reading / divine guessing appears more accurate than it is.

Explanation of the cognitive bias that makes Todd White's guessing seem supernatural.

Todd White cold reading word of knowledge

Todd White's 'divine knowing' is undermined by the guessing game that precedes it — if he already knew, why ask multiple wrong questions first?

Logical critique of Todd White's prophetic claims.

discernment healing Todd White

Key challenge to Todd White: why are the only visible physical healings the ones (leg lengthening) that are easiest to fake, and the ones that fall apart under examination?

Direct accountability question posed to Todd White.

Galatians 5:22-23 charismatic movement holy laughter fruit of the Spirit

Q&A: Discussion of 'holy laughter' — Mike applies a spectrum approach, differentiating between Spirit-inspired joy and loss of self-control, the latter being inconsistent with the fruit of the Spirit.

Viewer question about holy laughter from DecideScroll.

Matthew 7:21-23 discernment healing Matthew 7:21-23

Q&A: The Bible supports both sides — go out and pray for healing confidently, AND Jesus warned that false healers will claim to have cast out demons and healed in his name while he never knew them.

Viewer question about whether fake healing is condemned in the Bible.

Romans 14 Revelation 3 lukewarm Romans 14 Revelation 3 weak brother

Q&A: Distinction between a 'weak brother' (Romans 14) and a 'lukewarm brother' — the weak brother thinks something sinful that isn't; the lukewarm brother's love for God is waning.

Viewer question from TruthWatch about terminology from a previous video on being on fire for the Lord.

prayer healing personal testimony

Q&A: Mike shares his own experience witnessing apparent miracles, including a cancer that disappeared after prayer — while acknowledging the difficulty of definitive verification.

Viewer question from Cas asking if Mike has personally witnessed miracles.