Search — Theology Explorer

abortion pro-choice propaganda Tatiana Gill

Mike introduces a response to pro-choice artist Tatiana Gill who drew images of Jesus supporting abortion using the phrase "with you always." She blocked Mike when he reached out privately for clarification.

Introduction — responding to pro-choice art

dehumanization abortion pro-choice propaganda

Analysis of two abortion artwork images: both completely omit the baby. Image 1 shows Jesus as a clinic escort blocking protesters. Image 2 shows Jesus holding a woman's hand during an abortion. The missing baby is the central issue with pro-choice propaganda.

Art critique — the missing baby

abortion bodily autonomy pro-choice propaganda

The pro-choice movement systematically avoids mentioning the baby — the elephant in the room. "Bodily autonomy" framing ignores that there's another body involved. A firefighter has bodily autonomy but can't drop someone into a fire.

The elephant in the room — ignoring the baby

Bernard Nathanson NARAL when life begins

Scientific consensus: 95% of 5,502 biologists from 1,050 institutions affirm human life begins at fertilization, including pro-choice and atheist biologists. Bernard Nathanson (co-founder of NARAL) confirmed the early embryo is indisputably a human being.

When does human life begin — scientific consensus

dehumanization pro-choice propaganda euphemisms

Pro-choice language like "clump of cells," "remove the pregnancy," and "evacuate the uterus" are propagandistic euphemisms designed to avoid acknowledging that a living human being is being killed.

Dehumanizing language in the abortion debate

pro-choice propaganda Joseph Goebbels

Fourth artwork shows Valentine candy hearts with pro-choice slogans: "abortion is freedom," "abortion is normal," "shout your abortion." The strategy: repeat loudly and often enough until people believe it.

Propaganda through repetition

dehumanization slavery human rights

Historical parallels: Nazi propaganda dehumanized Jews as "sub-humans" and "rats"; eugenics movement called people "imbeciles"; slavery defenders used intelligence to justify treating people as less than human. Abraham Lincoln's argument against dehumanization applies directly to abortion.

Historical parallels — dehumanization and atrocities

abortion human rights human rights

Every argument for abortion in the womb can equally justify killing a baby five minutes after birth — the baby is just as dependent, just as unaware, just as small. The moral distinction collapses.

No principled distinction between pre- and post-birth

Isaiah 5:20 Isaiah 5:20 Isaiah 5:20 pro-choice propaganda Isaiah 5:20

The pro-choice movement needs a victim (the pregnant woman) to distract from the real victim (the baby). This is a propaganda tactic seen in every historical atrocity — the oppressors create an alternative victim narrative.

Propaganda tactic: creating a counter-victim

abortion inverted morality

Both pro-life and pro-choice movements believe they hold the moral high ground. The pro-choice movement has inverted morality — helping a woman kill her offspring is seen as a moral good. The conversation breaks down because they're talking past each other.

Inverted morality — both sides think they're right

abortion Incarnation and atonement

Jesus's death on the cross demonstrates that he values the hopeless, the dregs, the dependent — the very categories used to justify abortion. Jesus would rather die than kill the vulnerable.

The cross as commentary on abortion

Even if you're unsure about early-term abortion, the "maybe" should compel you to oppose it — you wouldn't demolish a building that "maybe" has people in it. And if you draw the line anywhere, you should be fighting for that line instead of voting for unrestricted abortion.

The building demolition analogy and fighting for your convictions

abortion Born-Alive Act

Mark Spence pro-choice propaganda Mark Spence Tatiana Gill

Mike reads his private message to Tatiana Gill — respectful, seeking understanding, asking specific questions. She blocked him within 15 minutes. This reflects the pro-choice movement's tendency to silence opposition rather than engage.

The blocking incident — silencing the opposition

Romans 8 Romans 8 witness of the Holy Spirit witness of the Holy Spirit

Q&A: The witness of the Holy Spirit is not primarily an emotion but a witness (like testimony) — the Spirit confirms truths like "I am a child of God" (Romans 8). It can come through Scripture, prayer, or ongoing experience and can be temporarily quenched.

Q&A — witness of the Holy Spirit

abortion pro-life single-issue voting

Q&A: Single-issue (pro-life) voting is legitimate because abortion is a deal-breaker moral issue. Mike would vote for a pro-life candidate with bad economic policies because saving lives outweighs financial pain.

Q&A — single-issue voting on abortion

1 Peter (wives and husbands) 1 Corinthians (church discipline) family vs fellowship 1 Peter (wives and husbands) 1 Corinthians (church discipline)

Q&A: Family members with distorted gospels — separate fellowship/church from family. 1 Peter teaches a wife should stay committed to an unbelieving husband. Family is not the same as church partnership; maintain relationship while not partnering in false ministry.

Q&A — family with distorted beliefs

Ezekiel (sins of the father) abortion rape and incest Ezekiel (sins of the father)

Q&A: Rape/incest don't justify abortion. Ezekiel teaches the child won't die for the father's sin. If a one-month-old baby were discovered to be a product of rape and incest, no one would say it's okay to kill it — so what's different about the same baby six months earlier?

Q&A — abortion in cases of rape and incest

slavery abortion pro-life

Q&A: The abolitionist vs. pro-life division. Mike supports showing graphic abortion images with wisdom. Abortion should be illegal going forward (not retroactively punished), like slavery was abolished without prosecuting former slave owners.

Q&A — abolitionist vs pro-life movement

abortion pro-life human rights

Q&A: The pro-life movement doesn't need to provide free healthcare to oppose murder. You don't need to build houses for Holocaust victims to tell Nazis to stop. The pro-life movement does help women through pregnancy and beyond, but that's separate from the moral argument.

Q&A — pro-life movement and healthcare

abortion life of the mother exception

Q&A: When the mother's life is in danger and both will die, abortion to save the mother is the one exception most pro-lifers accept. Analogous to separating conjoined twins when one is dying — saving one life rather than losing both.

Q&A — life of the mother exception

ultrasound pro-choice to pro-life conversion

Reason 1 (Sherry): Her 8-week ultrasound. She didn't see a clump of cells — she saw her child. "My choice was to keep her alive or kill her." Ultrasound compilation shows parents instinctively calling the image "he" or "she," never "the fetus."

Reason 1 — ultrasound revelation

imago Dei when life begins scientific consensus on life

Reason 2 (Teaser Money): Learning that scientific consensus (95% of biologists) affirms human life begins at conception. Since he already believed humans are made in God's image, the biological confirmation made the moral conclusion obvious.

Reason 2 — scientific consensus + imago Dei

Genesis 9:5-6 imago Dei abortion human rights

Reason 3 (Josh): He naturally leaned pro-choice but realized there's no good reason for it from a Christian moral standpoint if human life is sacred. Genesis 9:5-6 establishes that murder requires a reckoning because humans are made in God's image — a universal command to all mankind, not just Israel.

Reason 3 — human life is sacred (Genesis 9:5-6)

Genesis 9:5-6 abortion when life begins Genesis 9:5-6

Objection: Genesis 9 mentions "blood" — does that mean life only begins when blood forms? No — blood represents life (used in Levitical sacrifices, "cleansed by the blood of Christ"). But even if you took it literally, blood forms at day 21, making virtually all known-pregnancy abortions murder.

Objection — blood and the beginning of life

dehumanization abortion pro-choice propaganda

Reason 4 (Sirius Supernova): Realizing "all the choice is decided by one person when in reality there are two people involved." Pro-choice propaganda systematically hides the second individual through euphemisms: "terminate" instead of "kill," "remove a pregnancy" instead of acknowledging a living child.

Reason 4 — two people, not one

Anthony Levatino Live Action D&E procedure

Reason 5 (Dominic Kalana): Reading a description of partial-birth abortion. Mike shows three Live Action videos from Dr. Anthony Levatino (who performed 1,200+ abortions before becoming pro-life) describing third-trimester, second-trimester (D&E), and first-trimester medical abortion procedures in clinical detail.

Reason 5 — learning what abortion actually is

abortion Planned Parenthood Live Action

Reason 6 (The Seeker): Discovering there's a market for dead fetuses — people make millions from abortions. Live Action video debunks Planned Parenthood's "3% of services" claim: 1 in 8 patients gets an abortion, PP does 30.6% of the nation's abortions but only 1.8% of breast exams.

Reason 6 — the abortion industry and Planned Parenthood

abortion double homicide maternal instinct

Reason 7 (The Real Hope): Becoming pregnant and experiencing the maternal drive to keep the baby alive — it was intuitive, not theological. Mike shares a story of standing outside an abortion clinic when a car accident happened nearby involving a pregnant woman, and the irony of everyone caring about that baby while babies were being killed across the street.

Reason 7 — maternal instinct and the car accident irony

abortion human rights human rights

Reason 8 (Logos Apologetics): Realizing all pro-choice arguments apply equally to a one-year-old. The SLED test: Size, Level of development, Environment, Degree of dependency — none of these justify killing a baby in the womb without also justifying killing a one-year-old.

Reason 8 — SLED test destroys pro-choice arguments

abortion Incarnation and atonement

Mike's closing appeal: abortion is not a women's rights issue — it's a human rights issue. For those who've had abortions: Jesus died for sinners, not just people with minor issues. The cross offers full forgiveness. Don't hide from guilt; take it to the cross.

Closing — gospel appeal

Job 14:4 Job 14:4 vaccines and abortion

Q&A: On vaccines containing cells from aborted babies — morally wrong if true. Job 14:4 ("who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?") is about Job's mortal condition, not vaccines. Jesus DID bring clean from unclean. The health safety of vaccines is a separate question from the abortion ethics question.

Q&A — vaccines and abortion

John Walton Genesis interpretation Inspiring Philosophy John Walton Inspiring Philosophy

Q&A: On theistic evolution and Inspiring Philosophy (Michael Jones) — he's a brother in Christ doing his best to interpret Genesis. Mike is personally on the fence about Genesis interpretation, distinguishing the text question (what does Genesis say?) from the science question. John Walton's functional creation view isn't convincing to Mike but it's an in-house Christian debate.

Q&A — Genesis interpretation and theistic evolution

abortion pro-life life of the mother exception

Q&A: Pro-lifers don't need to provide free healthcare to oppose murder. You don't need to build houses for Jews to say stop the Holocaust. The life-of-the-mother exception: if both will die, save whoever you can — this is triage, not elective abortion. Some doctors say this scenario essentially never happens in practice.

Q&A — healthcare burden and life of the mother

Luke 14:33 Luke 12:33 Luke 14:33 Luke 12:33 Lydia (seller of purple)

Q&A: Luke 14:33 ("renounce all you have") and Luke 12:33 ("sell your possessions") are hyperbolic expressions of total dedication to Jesus, not literal commands for universal poverty. Lydia continued her business after conversion and used profits to support missionaries.

Q&A — sell everything and follow Jesus

Mike opens a general theology and apologetics Q&A livestream, taking questions from live chat.

Introduction — Q&A format

apologetics

Genesis interpretation Genesis interpretation Noahs flood scope of the flood

Q: Was the flood global or local? Mike is on the fence. The Hebrew word "earth" often means dry ground/land, not planet — even in Genesis where "everyone throughout the earth" comes to Egypt during the famine, it clearly doesn't mean globally. The theology (God judging sin, picture of Christ) is unaffected by scope.

Q&A — scope of Noah's flood

Markan sandwich Mark 11 fig tree cursing Markan sandwich temple cleansing

Q: Why did Jesus curse the fig tree (Mark 11)? It's a Markan sandwich — the cursing of the fig tree frames the temple cleansing. The fig tree represents Israel: no fruit (not ready for Messiah), so judgment comes. The temple similarly had no spiritual fruit. The temple was destroyed in 70 AD, but Israel will be restored per NT prophecy.

Q&A — cursing the fig tree (Mark 11)

John 3:5 Acts 10 Cornelius John 3:5 born of water baptism and salvation

Q: What does "born of water" mean in John 3:5? Two interpretations: (1) physical birth (water/amniotic fluid) vs. spiritual birth — two births, not three; (2) "water and spirit" as one birth in Greek, referring to the spiritual reality baptism represents, not literal water baptism. Cornelius (Acts 10) proves baptism isn't required for salvation.

Q&A — born of water (John 3:5)

Romans 1:20 general revelation total depravity general revelation

Q: Does Romans 1:20 refute total depravity? Not directly. Romans 1:20 says everyone has received sufficient revelation of God's existence through creation, making them without excuse. Mike disagrees with Calvinist "total inability" (inability to respond even with Holy Spirit's calling) but doesn't think this verse addresses it.

Q&A — Romans 1:20 and total depravity

John 14:15 loving God John 14:15

Q: How do you love God more? (1) Obey his commands — Jesus said "if you love me, obey my commands"; (2) prioritize him above everything; (3) delight in his Word. Obedience IS love. Priority means choosing Christ in any conflict of allegiance. "Hate father and mother" is a selection term, not literal hatred.

Q&A — loving God more

Galatians (walk in Spirit) spiritual warfare spiritual warfare prayer and fasting

Q: Feeling attacked by the enemy. Read Galatians on victory over the flesh (crucified with Christ, walk in Spirit vs flesh). Prayer and fasting (Jesus said "this kind only comes out by prayer and fasting"). Deal with obvious sin areas. Trust God even in situations beyond your capacity.

Q&A — spiritual warfare

eternal security eternal security apostasy

Q: Can you lose your salvation? Mike is genuinely unsettled on this. The question is about apostasy (rejecting Christ), not just sinning. He doesn't have a public teaching on it because he hasn't fully worked through the relevant Scriptures to his own satisfaction.

Q&A — losing salvation

Romans 5 (peace with God) faith alone works as evidence faith alone

Q: Does "saved by faith alone" mean you can sin and still be saved? In one sense yes — salvation is grounded on grace, not works (Romans 5: "having been justified by grace, we have peace with God"). But genuine salvation produces the Holy Spirit, which works out into good works. Works are evidence of salvation, not the means of maintaining it. A person living in reckless sin may never have been saved.

Q&A — faith alone and ongoing sin

false teachers false teachers essential vs secondary doctrines

Q: Difference between a false teacher and someone you disagree with? False teachers violate essential Christian truths (e.g., denying Christ's deity). Secondary issues (like inerrancy debates) are in-house disagreements, not false teaching. The line can get blurry on some issues.

Q&A — false teachers vs disagreement

Q: Nudity in art. Mike opposes it. The argument "it's art so it's okay" fails: if a bad drawing of nudity is wrong, making it skillful doesn't change the morality. Rome and Las Vegas dress sin up beautifully. We honor the human form by covering it due to human sinfulness. Possible exception: medical textbooks.

Q&A — nudity in art

nudity in art

virgin birth inspiration of Scripture virgin birth

Q: Evidence for the virgin birth? Not as strong as resurrection evidence, but that's okay — not every doctrine needs the same burden of proof. Mike believes it because Scripture teaches it. The argument chain: resurrection → inspiration of Scripture → virgin birth. The central claim (resurrection) carries the secondary claims.

Q&A — evidence for the virgin birth

Acts 4:32-37 Pentecost Pentecost Acts 4:32-37

Q: Acts 4:32-37 communal living — why don't churches do this? Context: Jews from around the world came to Jerusalem for Pentecost, got saved, and didn't want to leave. They sold possessions to pool resources and learn from the apostles. This was a unique situation, not a policy — it doesn't appear in Ephesus, Corinth, or Antioch.

Q&A — Acts 4 communalism

1 Timothy 4:1 demon possession 1 Timothy 4:1 demonic powers

Q: What powers do demons have? From Scripture: possession (even multiple demons), controlling actions, causing insanity (Mark 5), influencing thoughts (Satan put it in Judas's heart to betray Jesus — before possession), inspiring false doctrines ("doctrines of demons"), receiving worship through false religions and idol worship.

Q&A — demonic powers and abilities

Q: Why can an atheist be a "better person" than a Christian? Because humans have free will. But our standard for "good person" is skewed — we judge by how someone treats us, ignoring whether they love God. Rejecting the Creator is a massive moral failure regardless of philanthropy. We evaluate select pockets while ignoring what matters most to God.

Q&A — atheists being "better" than Christians

free will free will