Episoder
-
Have you ever wondered why church worship services, including yours, are they way they are? Are we really suppose to craft our worship services that appeal to unbelievers? Does God even care? What does the bible say about it all? Are you confused yet? Smash that play button to get in the thick of it and let's find out if some churches actually miss the mark entirely.
Also, DON'T FORGET to rate, follow, and share this episode with your friends and family!! And, don't forget to send in your questions to [email protected]
Discussion questions:
1) Does my Pastor preach the word in a way that gives me a better understanding of Christ? Additionally, do I hear the gospel every week?
2) Who is the church worship service for and who are we worshipping?
3) What do I do if I find out that my church is seeker sensitive?
__________________
SHOW NOTES AND LINKS: "The Bride of Christ" - The Refill - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/refill/id1530444143?i=1000523279029
Book recommendations:
"Ashamed of The Gospel" by John MacArthur https://a.co/d/4ncSqW1
"The Prodigal Church" by Jared C. Wilson https://a.co/d/8mEixtI
"Does God Care How We Worship" by Ligon Duncan https://a.co/d/cqQ18GJ
The Downgrade Controversy: https://www.spurgeon.org/resource-library/blog-entries/what-was-the-downgrade-controversy-actually-all-about/
-
Have you ever wondered what the purpose of life is? Throughout the centuries of human existence, this question has pondered the highly esteemed of thought and the most humblest of minds alike. What is our purpose? How do we define it...or how does it define us? This week, we discuss a few different ways to discover your purpose and compare that with the Biblical response of our purpose in life and our existence as humans in general.
Also, DON'T FORGET to rate, follow, and share this episode with your friends and family!! And, don't forget to send in your questions to [email protected]
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Why do you think our purpose is such a highly pondered concept?
2. Are some people 'born' to do or achieve something? How does that play in to finding one's purpose?
3. Can purpose be as simple as praising God and serving the Kingdom, or must there be more to it?
-
Manglende episoder?
-
You may have heard this question before, but it's still worth getting into it. Essentially, are there limitations to God? If He has limitations, doesn't that prevent Him from being omnipotent? and if He doesn't have limitations then doesn't that allow for logical impossibilities like making a boulder too big for even the all powerful God to lift? Well, heres a small spoiler...God does in fact have limitations, but they're not what you think! Listen and find out how the answer to this question will not only help you appreciate the character and perfect nature of God but also shine some light in our darkest moments.
ALSO, DON'T FORGET to Rate, follow, and share this episode with your friends and family!! And, don't forget to send in your question to [email protected] --
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Does it bother you to know that God has limitations?
2. Why does God allow us to experience pain and hardships?
3. If God is pouring hydrogen peroxide on your life right now, what is one truth about God's character you can hold on to?
-
There are many religions out there that believe God was created in some way or by some other powerful being. There are, however, fundamental issues with a God being created. In actuality, God must be uncreated else He would cease to exist. This is why I believe in an uncreated Creator. He is the uncaused-cause and is before all things. The God I believe in, the God of the Bible, is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. However, since using the Bible is an appeal to authority (an authority that some critics would not accept) I tried to answer using minimal Bible verses and appeal to logic and reason.
DON'T FORGET TO... Rate, follow, and share this episode with your friends and family!!
And also, don't forget to send in your question to [email protected]
--
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. We talked about another "being" creating God, but what about the universe? How does your response to this question change if God was created by the universe?
2. Read Exodus 3:7-14. Why do you think God choose to reveal His name as "I AM" in response to Moses?
3. Jesus says in John 8:58, "Before Abraham was, I am." How does this verse help us see Jesus more clearly?
-
In this episode, let's talk about heaven. What is it? Who gets to go to heaven? What are we going to do when we get there? To be honest, there aren't a ton of verses to answer these questions, but there are some generalities we can use to gain some assurance and confidence. But I think, more importantly, the question is...is heaven worth it? Find out when you get your refill. Got a question you want answered? Email us at [email protected] and put in the subject line “Questionalbles.” DISCUSSION QUESTIONS - 1. How often do you think about heaven and the afterlife? Do you think it should be more or less frequent? 2. Is it ‘fair’ that, according to the Bible, not everybody will go to heaven? 3. How does (or should) the reality of heaven impact how you live your life?
-
Send in your questions to [email protected] and be a part of the new series "Questionables." Season two starts October 6th!
-
Brenton and James team up to share highlights from Season 1 and discuss what the future of The Refill is going to be. We hope you join us for a fun time. Email us: [email protected] or follow us on Instagram @TheRefillPodcast
-
Do you think it's weird that we as Christians follow a book? I mean, the Bible was written thousands of years ago, covering a period of over a thousand years span, written by over 40 different authors, from different backgrounds, ages, and cultures so isn't it a little out dated? Well, there's a lot of reasons why Christians hold to biblical authority. In this episode, I want to not only give you confidence in the Word of God but also give you some answers to share with people who question you. And guess where I got that idea from...
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What is your favorite book of the Bible and why?
2. Do you believe the Bible to be inerrant? To what degree?
3. How have you explained your view of biblical authority in the past? What would you change after listening to this episode?
-
Baptism is a phrase we’ve often heard and maybe even witness or experienced in the church. There are differing views on how and what baptism really is and what it is not. As one of the two sacraments of the protestant church, it is imperative that we understand this part of Christ’s command to his people. Today, we will dive in and look at the two different modes of baptism, who the subject should be of that baptism, and if baptism saves you.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Were you raised credobaptist or paedobaptist?
What is your biggest concern with the other view of baptism?
What was the most helpful point in understanding the other view of baptism?
Does baptism save you?
LINKS AND RESOURCES
Living For God by Mark Jones: https://www.amazon.com/Living-God-Short-Introduction-Christian/dp/1433566257
Systematic Theology by John Frame: https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/frame_hs.pdf
The 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith: https://founders.org/library/1689-confession/
The Westminster Confession of Faith: https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/westminster-confession-faith/
Ligon Duncan (Presbyterian) discussing the differences between Credo/Paedobaptism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkqeQUFsBpg
What other errors does baptismal regeneration promote? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmkqS325eFw -
Welcome to church...now we want you to sing! How weird is it that we as a church sing out loud with hands raised and eyes closed? It's not that weird if you understand what music does to the heart of a worshiper. Our God is good, worthy of praise, and music is a beautiful way to learn theology, and attach heart to head.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What song is your favorite to worship to right now?
2. What style of worship do you prefer (principled or normative)?
3. Why is it that sometimes you hear a great sermon and walk away normally but yet completely be wrecked emotionally and spiritually by a song?
-
Let's talk about talking to the "Big Guy in the Sky." On the outside, it seems like prayer is just some mumbo jumbo, talking to yourself, wishful thinking to thin air. But to the Christian, prayer is essential. It is life giving and it is a continual practice that is done, both individually and corporately. And sometimes the best way to explain things is to do the grade school thing and ask who, what, why, where, when, and how. So, let's dive in and fall in love with the practice of prayer.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Where would you say prayer is on your spiritual priority list?
2. What is the weirdest way God has answered your prayers?
3. What is the hardest part of the Lord's Prayer for you to pray? Why?
-
Eating bread and drinking wine in remembrance of Jesus might seem weird to the unaffiliated but there's a great purpose to it all. It's one of the simple, yet complex, and completely beautiful traditions of the Christian church. This episode I'll dive into some of the biblical contexts for communion, who it's for, and even some of the different traditional views that are held across the broader range of the church.
Explanation of the four views: https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/transubstantiation-consubstantiation-catholic-protestant
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Do you think the church should observe the Lord's Supper weekly, monthly, or on another schedule?
2. Which of the four views of communion does your church hold and teach?
3. Does the church need to use unleavened bread and wine or can other elements be used instead?
-
Let's be honest...some of the things that we do in church and as a church might seem weird to other people, especially to those who were not raised in the church. So, let's make church not weird. Let's give some context and purpose to being the church, attending church, and living life as a part of the universal body of Christ.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How do you define a 'good' church?
2. Do you think the "5 Solas" is a good basic metric in identifying the Bride of Christ? Why or why not?
3. Do you think the church should be primarily focused on those in the body or those outside the body of Christ?
-
"Women, submit to your husbands and husbands love your wives." This verse is uncomfortable because there is a real issue of misinterpretations of this verse being taught. If you read this wrong you see men as bearing the incredible burden of complete responsibility to lead the family well and it teaches wives to just sit back and stay in their lane. But this isn't how marriage is supposed to be. So let's learn the truth of what a biblical marriage should look like and why marriage is such a huge blessing!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. If marriage is so profound and bears so much symbolism, why is it so difficult?
2. What would your marriage look like if you perfectly responded the way Paul is commanding you to?
3. What would living out Christ-like submission look like in your day to day life?
-
Sharing the gospel is the call of God on every believer, and when people are born again they join the Body of Christ. However, when they actually step foot in church for the first time they might be weirded out. That’s because some of the things the Christian church does regularly is kinda weird. (You just don’t think so because you’ve been doing it for a while!) So, this series is meant to unweird the weirdness of Christianity and make going to church make sense.
-
We have all heard that Christianity is just a list of "Do's and Don'ts," right? But is that true? This week's episode will talk about Christian Liberty and if it's okay for a Christian to enjoy a fine cigar, sip of bourbon, some new ink, or that new album that's topping the charts. It's not just a yes or no situation; in fact, it's a lot more than you think. Join us while we get a bit uncomfortable talking about things you've most likely been told were sin.
Discussion Questions:
Think of something you do that might fall into the category of Christian Liberty. Now ask yourself the following questions:
Is this something that's at odds with scripture? What does my Pastor or Church Elder say about it? Do the Historic Confessions speak to it? Is this something I can do to the glory of God? Is this something that will make a brother or sister in Christ "stumble"? Is this hindering my witness to an unbeliever? Is this becoming an addiction, or is it replacing my joy found in God? Has it become an idol that is now taken Lordship of heart and mind over God himself?Links:
London Baptist Confession of Faith - https://founders.org/library/1689-confession/chapter-21-christian-liberty-and-liberty-of-conscience/
Matt Slick (Legalism) - https://carm.org/about-the-church/what-is-legalism/
Michael Horton (Antinomianism) - https://www.monergism.com/holiness-wars-what-antinomianism
Ra McLaughlin (Leviticus Context) - http://reformedanswers.org/answer.asp/file/40113
Books on Christian Liberty:
Law and Liberty: A Biblical Look at Legalism - The Northampton Press
On Christian Liberty by Martin Luther
Quotes:
"Thus the essence of legalism is rooted not merely in our view of law as such but in a distorted view of God as the giver of his law." - Sinclair B. Ferguson
-
One of my favorite questions to ask people is, "if Hitler ever gave his life to Jesus, would he be saved?" This is uncomfortable for a lot of reasons, but mainly because it makes us question our own salvation. If Hitler cannot be forgiven, then when did he cross the line? What is that line? Essentially, it comes down to the topic of the unpardonable sin found in Mark 3 or Matthew 12. What does Jesus mean when he says that those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven? So, just how deep and wide and long is the grace of God? (EDIT — I say Pharisees a lot, but I meant Scribes. Sorry about that!)
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Does it make you uncomfortable to think of Jesus giving grace and mercy to someone like Hitler?
2. How does knowing that Paul was forgiven make you feel towards God's justice? His grace?
3. How can we have peace about the security of salvation when the enemy makes us question our salvation? -
Tithing is a sensitive topic. Some churches believe that all believers and members must give 10% of their paycheck in order to be in good standing with God. This comes from a reading of Malachi 3:10...but is this a correct interpretation? What about the other times tithes were given in the OT. Are we supposed to obey the tithing commands from the Mosaic Covenant. Do we need to tithe? What is a tithe anyway? More on that later. Finally, how does God command His believers on this side of the cross to treat their money? How can we be, as Paul says, "cheerful givers."
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Do you believe, either consciously or subconsciously, that a person should give a certain percentage?
2. Read Mark 12:41-44. In your giving, do you think you resemble the poor widow or the wealthy givers?
3. Do you give to a church or an organization? Why or why not?
-
Slavery is in the Bible. There, I said it. Many people though misinterpret the term and equate it with our modern view of slavery. Meaning we make the hermeneutical sin of importing our own culture and understanding of terms into the biblical narrative. So what does the Old Testament and New Testament actually mean when it says 'slave'? Is it this oppressive, inhumane interpretation that we have or is it something else? More importantly, does God condone slavery - since His people often participated in it? Do the NT writers approve of slavery as well? These are all great questions, but in reality there is a question behind the question, isn’t there? So, lets really get down to it. If we're being honest, when we ask what the Bible says about slavery, what we're really asking is if God is racist, if His people are racist...if Christianity promotes racism. Well, does it?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How difficult is it for you to see 'slave' as a neutral term rather than a negative one?
2. What does Paul's words, "see him more than a bond-servant but as a beloved brother" mean for us today? How can it be applied to our everyday life?
3. What does it mean to truly be a 'slave' to Christ? -
This week continuing in the series titled "Uncomfortable" guest host James O'Rear talks about how a sinful man who offered his innocent daughters to an angry mob for sex and then later becomes a victim of incestuous rape with those same daughters is viewed as righteous before God. It's weird, it's crazy, and it makes perfect sense, but not how you'd expect. How's that for click-bate? Join us as we journey through the bible to explore how we might find our own righteousness.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What was the most uncomfortable part of Lot's story in Genesis and why?
2. How do you see the parallels of Lot's story to you own faith journey?
3. How does Lot's story drive you to a deeper appreciation of God's grace and how will you respond to that regularly?
- Vis mere
