Search — Theology Explorer

eschatology readiness premillennialism

Q&A: How should Christians prepare for the end of the world?

Question from Bethany Cole Baum. Mike answers from a premillennial perspective.

Mark 13:32 Second Coming no one knows the day or hour Mark 13:32

Q&A: Why does Jesus now know the day/hour when he said he didn't while on earth? — Kenosis and the limitation of incarnation

Question from Marlin Thea. Mike answers cautiously and flags it for next week.

false prophecy David Mead Harold Camping

Why do predictors keep trying to predict despite the clear scriptural prohibition? Possible motives: excitement, arrogance, novelty-seeking in Bible study

Part of the same Q&A exchange; Mike speculates on motivations.

John the Baptist Matthew 11:14 Malachi 4:5 prophecy interpretation Elijah John the Baptist

Q&A: Partial and multiple fulfillment of prophecy — the Elijah/John the Baptist example

Question from William Toy about whether Mike sees prophecy as having partial and multiple fulfillment.

Second Coming hermeneutics eschatology

Closing exhortation: test all end-times claims by whether they come from clear Scripture or from Bible-to-symbol-to-math-formula chains; be ready rather than predict

Mike closes the Q&A and the entire session with a pastoral summary.

spiritual maturity responsibility vs. desire Jesus as example

Godly maturity is marked by prioritizing responsibilities over desires

Expanding on Tip 2. Mike makes a theological claim about spiritual maturity.

Revelation 2-3 calling self-examination Revelation 2-3

Tip 3: Take a good long look at yourself — evaluate what you have done, not what has been done to you

Third of seven tips. Mike distinguishes victim-oriented thinking from personal accountability.

Revelation 3:17 Laodicea self-deception spiritual blindness

The seven churches in Revelation were shocked by Jesus's assessment of their spiritual condition

Illustration within Tip 3 about distorted self-perception.

Matthew 6:33 godliness priorities Matthew 6:33

Matthew 6:33 — 'Seek first the kingdom of God' as the foundation for prioritizing godliness above all else

Biblical grounding for making godliness the top priority in annual evaluation.

Luke 22:36-38 Luke 22:49-51 John 18:10-11 Luke 22:36-38 Luke 22:49-51 John 18:10-11

Q&A: Jesus's swords passage — 'have a sword but don't use it' and the principle of Christian self-defense

Live chat question from Ryan White about Luke 22:35-38 and Luke 22:49-51 / John 18:10-11.

Joseph Smith God was once a man King Follett Sermon

Joseph Smith teaches that God lived on another earth, was born, lived, died, and was resurrected — just like Jesus — before becoming God.

Continuation of the King Follett Sermon quote, extending the doctrine that God was once a man by drawing an explicit parallel with the life of Jesus.

hermeneutics proof-texting Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith misuses a Jesus quote to argue that the Father 'laid down his body' just as Jesus did — Mike identifies this as 'bad Bible study.'

Mike critiques Smith's exegetical method in the King Follett Sermon, where Smith splices two separate Jesus quotes to derive the doctrine of the Father's mortality.

Trinity Christology incarnation

Christian definition of Jesus: the eternal God made flesh, second person of the Trinity, one with the Father in being.

Second vocabulary comparison: the word 'Jesus.' Mike establishes the orthodox Christian Christology before presenting the Mormon alternative.

Mormon Christology pre-existence spirit children

Mormon definition of Jesus: born in the pre-existence as a spirit child of Heavenly Father and his wife, one of many spirit children — and Satan's brother.

The Mormon Jesus was not eternally pre-existent as God but was the first spirit-born child of the physical Heavenly Father and Mother.

eternal progression Mormon Christology Jesus became a god

In Mormon theology, Jesus became incarnate partly to become a god — Jesus has only been a god for ~2,000 years and is one of three gods in the Mormon Trinity.

Extension of Mormon Christology — Jesus's divinity is recent and earned, not eternal.

Christian-Mormon dialogue monotheism Mormon polytheism

Christian monotheism: 'there is only one God' — meant literally. Mormon missionaries and teachers claim to affirm this, but use a different definition.

Fourth vocabulary comparison: the phrase 'only one God.' Mike recounts personal conversations with Mormon missionaries and seminary teachers in Utah.

polytheism McConkie Mormon worship practices

Recent LDS leader McConkie argued Mormons should not worship Jesus, only the Father — revealing internal tension over polytheistic implications.

Mike notes an internal LDS controversy where a leader tried to resolve the polytheism problem by restricting worship to the Father alone.

Mormon afterlife telestial kingdom LDS soteriology

Mormon telestial kingdom: lowest level, for the wicked who may burn off sin in hell before arriving; no access to God the Father or Jesus, only the Holy Spirit visits.

Details of the lowest tier of the Mormon afterlife.

Mormon afterlife terrestrial kingdom LDS soteriology

Mormon terrestrial kingdom: middle level for 'lukewarm Mormons'; Jesus and Holy Spirit present, but no access to God the Father.

Details of the middle tier of the Mormon afterlife.

Mormon soteriology LDS grace universal resurrection (LDS)

Mormon view of 'saved by grace': Jesus earns your resurrection (basic bodily resurrection), but full salvation requires burning off sin and earning one's way upward.

The Mormon concept of grace is limited to resurrection — much less than what Christians mean by grace.

Christian soteriology gospel faith

Christian definition of the gospel: the good news of forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ's death and resurrection — sufficient for complete salvation.

Ninth vocabulary comparison: 'the gospel.' For Christians, the gospel is straightforward good news requiring faith, not works.

apologetics Mormonism vs. Christianity interfaith categories

Conclusion: Mormonism and Christianity use the same vocabulary but are completely opposed in meaning — Mormonism is a false Christianity that fails historically, biblically, and rationally.

Mike summarizes the entire vocabulary comparison section and delivers his conclusion about the categorical incompatibility of the two faiths.

1 Corinthians 7 1 Corinthians 7 divorce and remarriage adultery

Q&A (off-topic): Divorced woman who was cheated on and physically abused asks if remarrying would be adultery after her ex-husband has now married his fifth wife.

Viewer question from 'Truth Watch' about remarriage after divorce involving infidelity and abuse.

evangelism pastoral ethics prayer for Mormons

Closing prayer: asking God for love and compassion toward Mormons, wisdom in conversation, and for Mormons to find the true grace of Christ.

Mike leads a closing prayer for Mormon people, including those watching the video who may be doubting their faith.

James 2:14 dead faith James 2:14 easy believism

James 2:14 introduces 'easy believism' — the person who says 'Jesus is my Savior but not my Lord'

Identifying the theological problem James 2 addresses

James 2:19 dead faith saving faith James 2:19

James 2:19 — 'Even demons believe and shudder' — intellectual assent alone is not saving faith

Verse-by-verse analysis of James 2:19

Ephesians 2:10 works as result not cause Ephesians 2:10 good works

Ephesians 2:10 — 'created for good works which God prepared beforehand' — saved FOR works, not BY works

Using Ephesians 2:10 to show the role of works in salvation

Catholicism Virgin Mary Marian apparitions

Q&A: apparitions of the Virgin Mary — Mike is skeptical; Catholic Marian devotion (shrines, altars) seems pagan and non-biblical

Viewer question about Catholic Marian apparitions

Matthew 5 repentance sanctification salvation and sin

Q&A: can someone have saving faith yet commit murder? — Mike argues sin is not binary; Jesus elevated even hatred and lust to the level of murder and adultery

Viewer question about faith, repentance, and serious sin

Matthew degrees of sin Mosaic Law judgment

Degrees of sin — some sins are worse than others; the Law has different consequences; Jesus said some will suffer greater judgment

Within the Q&A on murder and saving faith

Acts Paul apologetics Acts

Paul's apologetics in Acts — consistent use of reasoning from Scripture in synagogues demonstrates apologetics is a biblical method

Biblical evidence for the legitimacy and effectiveness of apologetics

1 Corinthians 3:10-11 Paul discipleship Jesus Christ

The foundation metaphor: Jesus Christ is the foundation; building on it = post-salvation ministry to believers

Exegesis of 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 and the nature of building on the foundation

purgatory 2 Maccabees 12:38-46 Apocrypha

Second passage: 2 Maccabees 12:38-46 — a non-canonical book used by Catholics to support purgatory

Introducing the second Catholic proof-text for purgatory

First problem with 2 Maccabees: the book is not accepted by the Jews, not part of Jesus's or Paul's Bible

Canon-based objection to using 2 Maccabees as proof of purgatory

Paul Jesus Apocrypha

hermeneutics Jesus biblical clarity

Q&A — Why didn't God make the Bible's message so clear that everyone interprets it the same way?

Philosophical/theological question about biblical clarity and interpretive diversity

atonement Jesus purgatory

Q&A — If purgatory exists, did Jesus still need to die? Catholic distinction: eternal vs. temporal consequences

Question on how purgatory relates to the atonement

Luke 23:43 John 20:17 Mary Magdalene Jesus resurrection

Q&A — Luke 23:43 and John 20:17: Jesus eating post-resurrection and 'do not cling to me'

Viewer asks about the relationship between two post-resurrection passages

John 20:17 John 20:27 Mary Magdalene Jesus resurrection

Thomas touching Jesus in Luke — touching is fine, clinging is what was forbidden in John 20:17

Clarifying John 20:17 by comparison to the Thomas passage

apologetics resurrection resurrection deniers

Preview of next week's livestream: responding to resurrection deniers and the excuses they give

Closing announcement for the next session

resurrection apologetics skepticism

Video framing: not just presenting resurrection evidence but specifically examining how skeptics dodge it

Opening statement of purpose for the livestream

apologetics Christian worldview love God with your mind

Livestream is framed as an exercise in loving God with the mind — building the Christian worldview intellectually

Introduction to the weekly Tuesday livestream format

atheism Matt Dillahunty David Hume

Named skeptics to be examined: Matt Dillahunty, David Hume, Sam Harris, Dan Barker, Richard Carrier, Bart Ehrman

Roster of specific atheist/skeptic thinkers Mike will analyze

resurrection Lost Tomb of Jesus Da Vinci Code

Annual wave of low-scholarship anti-resurrection media (e.g., 'Lost Tomb of Jesus', Joaquin Phoenix Mary Magdalene film, Da Vinci Code)

Mike critiques popular culture's repeated attacks on the resurrection using sensationalism rather than solid scholarship

resurrection historical method evidence-based apologetics

The evidence-based case for the resurrection is historically grounded, not merely faith-based

Mike distinguishes the scholarly historical case for the resurrection from a purely religious 'believe it because we say so' position

resurrection William Lane Craig historical method

Five historically-accepted facts about the resurrection summarized as the acronym ALIVE

Mike introduces his mnemonic framework for presenting the resurrection evidence

resurrection historical method crucifixion

First fact (A): Death by crucifixion — historically documented and generally agreed upon

First point of the ALIVE acronym

resurrection empty tomb criterion of embarrassment

Second fact (L): Women/ladies found the tomb empty — criterion of embarrassment supports authenticity

Second point of the ALIVE acronym

resurrection historical method post-resurrection appearances

Third fact (I): Independent post-resurrection appearances of Jesus accepted by the vast majority of historians

Third point of the ALIVE acronym

apostles resurrection apostolic martyrdom

Fourth fact (V): Violence endured by the Apostles — dramatic transformation from hiding to dying for their message

Fourth point of the ALIVE acronym