Search — Theology Explorer

Ephesians Ephesians abortion heaven

Heaven and miscarriage — Scripture does not specify the state or 'age' of those who die before birth

Q&A — question about the state of aborted or miscarried children in heaven

abortion human rights pro-life argument

Rape exception — the child is not morally culpable for the father's crime; killing the child does not undo the evil

Q&A — question about whether abortion is acceptable in cases of rape

Jeremiah Jeremiah 1:5 Jeremiah hermeneutics pre-existence

Jeremiah 1:5 — 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you' refers to God's plan for Jeremiah, not pre-conception literal existence

Q&A — question about whether life begins even before conception, citing God's foreknowledge in Jeremiah 1:5

pro-life bioethics mother's life exception

Mother's life exception — ectopic pregnancy and similar cases are not 'abortion' by definition; they are pro-life decisions

Q&A — question about whether abortion is acceptable when the mother's life is at stake

consistency argument abortion SLED acronym

Overpopulation argument fails — if it justifies killing the unborn, it justifies killing anyone

Q&A — claim that overpopulation justifies abortion

1 John Leviticus 1 John typology biblical interpretation

Brief digression — 'the sin that leads to death' in 1 John and Leviticus typology are likely unrelated

Q&A — off-topic question about 1 John's 'sin that leads to death' and Leviticus typology

pro-life mother's life exception abortion definition

High-risk pregnancy (lupus) scenario — saving the mother is a pro-life position, not abortion by definition

Q&A — question about a mother with lupus whose life is endangered by pregnancy

Paul rejection 119 Ministries Rhetorical manipulation

119 Ministries asks "can truth become not-truth?" — Mike identifies this as a misleading question that conflates truthfulness with universal applicability

Mike quotes and critiques a rhetorical question 119 Ministries poses to destabilize the traditional Christian position.

John 15:10-12 Love command Commandments of Jesus Walking as Jesus walked

John 15: the commandment of Jesus is to love one another as he loved us — Mike applies this to the "walk as he walked" question

Mike reads John 15:12 as further confirmation that the commandment Jesus gives is love, not Torah-keeping.

Torah observance Gentile believers Sola fide

Torah-observant Christians who hold sola fide — Mike's gracious but firm assessment

Q&A question: what about Torah-observant believers who genuinely hold that salvation is by grace through faith alone?

1 Corinthians 3 Revelation 22:12-14 1 Corinthians 3 Revelation 22:12-14 Heavenly rewards

Revelation 22:12 — "repaying each one for what he has done" does not teach levels of heaven or works-based salvation

Q&A: questioner asks whether Revelation 22:12 implies different levels or places in heaven based on works.

Bible translation recommendation: Mike favors ESV and NASB, and advises reading multiple translations when a passage turns on a single word

Q&A: questioner asks which Bible translation Mike recommends, especially given the Hebrew/Greek issues discussed.

ESV NASB NKJV

Galatians 6:2 John 15:12 Greg Koukl Love command Context in interpretation

Galatians 6:2 — "the law of Christ" means bearing one another's burdens, which Mike identifies with love

Q&A: questioner asks about "the law of Christ" in Galatians 6:2.

Galatians 6 Tithing Giving (NT) Galatians 6

Tithing is not required for NT believers, but giving is — Mike outlines NT giving principles

Q&A: questioner asks whether tithing applies to NT believers.

Torah observance Hebrew Roots Movement Jewish ancestry claim

Hebrew Roots claim that most believers secretly have Jewish ancestry — Mike dismisses this as convenient and self-serving

Q&A: questioner relays that her Hebrew Roots friends claim most people have Jewish ancestry they are unaware of, which is why the law applies to them.

Romans (series) Kingdom of God Dispensationalism Replacement theology

Dispensationalism: Mike rejects the label but holds a modified view — national Israel has a distinct future in God's plan; he rejects full replacement theology

Q&A: questioner asks about dispensationalism and kingdom of heaven vs. kingdom of God.

Leviticus 24:22 Zechariah 14:16 Leviticus 24:22 Zechariah 14:16 Sojourner

Leviticus 24:22 — "same rule for sojourner and native" does not require Gentile Torah-observance; it is case law about judicial fairness in civil punishments

Q&A: questioner asks about Leviticus 24:22 and Zechariah 14:16 as texts allegedly requiring Gentiles to keep OT law.

Zechariah 14:16 Passover Zechariah 14:16 Gentile Torah-observance

Zechariah 14:16 — Feast of Tabernacles observance by nations does not mean those nations are under the law

Follow-up point on the same Q&A question about Gentiles under OT law.

Hebrews 11 John 5 John 6:53-63 Abraham Hebrews 11 John 5

John 6:53 — "eat my flesh and drink my blood" is symbolic, not a basis for the Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist

Q&A: an ex-Catholic questioner asks whether John 6:53 has legitimate Hebrew roots or is scripture-twisting in support of the Eucharist.

John 1:1 Revelation of God Logos Jesus as the Word Pre-existence of Christ

John 1 Logos — what it means for Jesus to be the Word: Jesus is God's self-revelation, not the Bible itself

Q&A: questioner asks Mike to elaborate biblically on what it means for Jesus to be the Word.

Hebrew Roots Movement Andrew Roberts Beginning of Wisdom (channel)

Andrew Roberts / Beginning of Wisdom channel — recommended as a Hebrew Roots research resource

Mike plugs the channel that helped him prepare for this video.

Hebrew Roots Movement Paul rejection Dietary laws

Pastoral counsel for those with family members in the Hebrew Roots Movement — distinguish unnecessary restrictions from the deeper spiritual danger

Q&A: a viewer's mother is deeply in the Hebrew Roots movement; asking if the movement is the way to be close to Jesus.

Colossians Colossians 2:16-17 Colossians Colossians 2:16-17 Gentile believers

Colossians recommended as a direct scriptural answer to questions about Sabbath and the fourth commandment for Gentiles

Q&A: questioner asks how Gentiles grafted into the vine should handle the fourth commandment (Sabbath).

secondary issues false teaching gospel

Heresy accusations between Christians: two extremes to avoid

Q&A question about how to handle accusations of heresy between Christian brothers.

1 Corinthians 13 prophecy word of knowledge 1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 13 "the perfect" does not refer to the completed canon — cessationism refuted

Q&A question about whether 1 Corinthians 13 latter half refers to the completed canon of Scripture.

Romans 8 Revelation 2 Peter Romans 8 sons of God eschatology

Book of Revelation and the new heavens and new earth

Q&A question about what Revelation says about the new heaven and earth.

false teaching heresy Rob Bell

When should a pastor call out another pastor as a heretic?

Q&A on the pastoral responsibility to call out heretical teaching from other pastors.

evangelism apologetics Josh McDowell

Recommended apologetics resources: websites and books

Q&A asking for top suggested books and sources for apologetics and evangelism.

1 John 2 baptism faith in Christ 1 John 2

Baptism does not secure salvation; it is an outward expression of inward faith

Q&A on whether post-baptism sin causes a loss of the security received at baptism.

Revelation eschatology Revelation once saved always saved

Open theological questions Mike personally still has

Q&A asking what theological questions Mike still has unanswered.

Mark 13:32 second coming Trinity Mark 13:32

Mark 13:32 — Jesus not knowing the hour does not threaten his deity

Viewer question about the Trinity and whether Jesus' limited knowledge in Mark 13:32 undermines his divinity

Islam Jehovah's Witnesses Trinity

Defending the Trinity against Jehovah's Witnesses: Mike's teaching video addresses their specific objections

Viewer asking for Bible verses to defend Trinity against JW challenges

Genesis 1 Genesis 9 dominion mandate Mormonism Genesis 1

Image of God (imago Dei): grounds human value, authority over creation, and raises questions about communicable attributes

Viewer asking what it means to be created in the image of God

resurrection Gospel of Mark Trinity in Mark

Planned Gospel of Mark series to cover theology, apologetics, and resurrection debates

Response to viewer question about where the Trinity is in Mark

Genesis Psalm 6 hermeneutics Genesis genre

Literal vs. plain-sense biblical interpretation: read as intended, not mechanically literal

Viewer asking how literally to read the Bible, especially Genesis and Old Testament

Matthew 22:30 Christ and the Church eschatology resurrection

Marriage does not exist in heaven; relational bonds persist but are not exclusive spousal bonds

Second part of viewer's marriage question about afterlife

Richard Bauckham Josephus historical method

Ancient historians' three-tiered hierarchy of sources: first-person, interrogated eyewitness, written account

Historical methodology framework used by ancient historians, applied to understanding Papias.

Papias ancient historiography eyewitness interrogation

The Greek word for "inquired" (anakrinō/ekzētein) in Papias carries judicial connotation

Greek word study on the term Papias uses for his method of questioning witnesses.

Matthew 11:21-24 salvation mental disability and accountability Matthew 11:21-24

Q&A: Salvation of severely mentally handicapped people — accountability proportional to awareness

Q&A segment begins; first question about soteriological edge cases.

Hebrews 11:32 Samson salvation saving faith

Q&A: Why is Samson in the Hebrews Hall of Faith? Was Samson saved?

Q&A question about Samson's presence in Hebrews 11.

Markan priority biblical inerrancy Markan priority Q source

Q&A: The Q document — does it matter if Gospel writers used written sources?

Q&A question about the hypothetical Q source document.

Matthew/Levi biblical inerrancy Mike Licona Gospel contradictions

Q&A: Do the Gospels contradict each other? Mike's strong stance on harmonization

Q&A follow-up on Gospel contradictions from the same atheist questioner.

Hebrews 4:15 Christology impeccability of Christ peccability of Christ

Q&A: Can Jesus sin? Physically capable but character-incapable; peccability vs. impeccability debate

Q&A doctrinal question about the sinless nature of Christ.

Pontius Pilate eyewitness testimony Gospel historicity

Q&A: How did the Gospel writers know about private conversations (Jesus and Pilate)?

Q&A on the epistemological question of how private Gospel scenes were recorded.

Bart Ehrman Gospel reliability harmonization

Q&A: Bart Ehrman's claim that harmonizing Gospels means writing a new Gospel — video reference

Second pass at the harmonization question with a specific resource recommendation.

Isaiah 53 Psalm 22 Pentecost apologetics fulfilled prophecy

Q&A: Did New Testament writers invent Gospel narratives from OT prophecies? — Refuted by extra-biblical confirmation of historical facts

Q&A from a persistent atheist questioner (Doug) suggesting Gospels were reverse-engineered from OT texts.

John 14:9 Trinity John 14:9 Jesus and the Father

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 Revelation vs. Identity distinction Trinity Philip 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 1:1-3 Trinity Hebrews 1:1-3 Radiance of God

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.