Why can't we be friends?? In this episode we discuss the seemingly simple concept of friendship. What does it actually mean biblically to be friends? Are there conditions and what are they? Can Christians have enemies, and who are they? Can forgiveness be given unconditionally to restore a friendship? Can we be true friends with non-Christians? Join us as we unpack these questions. 

00:00 - Introduction
02:10 - Friendship as having conditions
05:55 - Communicating expectations in a friendship
10:44 - Conditional forgiveness, love, and enemies
18:05 - Loving your enemy from afar
21:34 - Withholding forgiveness vs. holding a grudge
27:53 - Analogy to God & us; the need for humility
30:18 - Friendship with non-Christians
38:00 - Closing thoughts

Having set the foundation of why Christians should care about Israel in the previous episode, we continue our discussion with Andrew about what this means in practice. How does caring about and for Israel look like? Who is Israel in the first place? Does it mean we condone all that Israel does? How do we pray for Israel?

Is Israel still important to God and His plans? Hasn't the Church replaced Israel? Should Christians care about Israel? How can we understand Israel in terms of God's missiology, His covenants with them, and the prophetic? We try to unpack these questions with our friend Andrew in this episode. In the next episode, we discuss what caring for Israel practically looks like today.

00:00 - Intro
04:25 - Israel in God's Missiology; Redemption not replacement
09:10 - Pauline objections?
14:12 - What is the value of Israel their Jewish tradition to the Christian?
17:43 - Old vs new covenant; Israel's eschatological relevance
24:15 - Scripture as the driving force of history; Example of Jeremiah 31
31:05 - Discussion about Jeremiah 31 and Pentecost; Partial fulfilment?
37:05 - Summary and closing

In this minisode, Derek shares some thoughts about environmentalism. Specifically, he notes two rather philosophical questions that need to be answered in any view on the environment: What is the relationship between humans and nature? Why should nature be protected and cared for? He explores different possible responses to these, which are implicit in the kind of messaging we hear today, before suggesting how the Biblical perspective can be of great relevance here.

In this episode, we wanted to tackle the issue of controversial "grey-area" practices for Christians. We invited a Christian friend who regularly takes pole dancing classes to zoom in on pole-dancing as one such practice. Does pole dancing dishonour the body? Should we steer clear of practices with questionable associations? Could pole-dancing eventually be accepted in the church like other forms of dance? If this is a matter of conscience, do the "strong" always have to give in to those with "weaker" faith? Would Mark ever take a pole-dancing class? Tune in to hear our discussion on these questions.

00:00 - 02:41   Intro
02:41 - 07:01   FAQ about pole-dancing (different types, clothing, etc.)
07:01 - 12:09   Doesn't it dishonour the body? What about its questionable associations?
12:09 - 16:15   How do we draw a line? Becky's experience
16:15 - 21:39   "Hiding" from other Christians; maintaining accountability
21:39 - 26:42   Stumbling other Christians; the strong and the weak in faith
26:42 - 30:04   Handles for a Christian community
30:04 - 35:15   Could pole dance be an acceptable cultural form in the church?
35:15 - 39:30   Towards mutual edification instead of who should give in.
39:30 - 41:33   Guarding against hypocrisy
41:33 - 44:54   Summary and closing

We are trying out a new format for our show! We are well aware that our episodes can be quite lengthy, with long intervals between them. We have also realised that a lot of content don't actually make it into our full-length episodes. Hence, minisodes. As the name suggests, these are mini episodes, and will feature content cut from our main episodes, or ideas that piqued our interest but did not lead to a main episode.

Our first minisode is a short exchange we cut from episode 13 ("Can We Lose Our Salvation"). In it, we discuss the issue of immaturity. What if a Christian is well-meaning but simply has an immature faith? Can we fault them for not having that transformed life that should arise from salvation? Is a plea of ignorance possible? Isn't transformation through grace and God-given revelation?

In this episode, we address a question every Christian has probably wrestled with in their lifetime. Is it possible to lose your salvation? How do we balance calls to be assured of our identity in Christ against warnings of ingenuine faith? If we cannot earn our salvation, does it even make sense to think about losing it? We try to gain some perspective on these issues in our discussion.

00:00 - Intro
02:08 - Definition of "Salvation"
04:30 - Where did the idea of "once saved always saved" come from?
10:00 - What is at stake?
14:15 - What should my response be?

• 15:00 - How much "works" is enough? "escaping through the flames'?
• 22:03 - Assurance in Christ vs. examining/doubting your faith
• 28:20 - Is it all too subjective?

33:45 - Encouragement and hope
38:34 - Closing words

Parts of the Bible suggest that things will only get worse before they get better - think conflicts, injustice, and lawlessness. However, Scripture also tells us that we ought to be stewards of the earth and God's agents for the Kingdom on earth. But if things are doomed to decline, what is the point? Join us as we try to find a response in this episode. We talk about Tolkien, bringing down the capitalist system, and how to live practically as Christians with regards to all this.

00:00  - Introduction
05:15 - Are we indeed meant to be agents of the Kingdom on earth?
12:05 - Fighting the long defeat and what defines success for us.
23:33 - What does it look like? What is too much? How do I decide where to start?
32:28 - Is it wrong to just focus on being a good in my own sphere, i.e. being a good student/worker?
36:10 - Should we just focus on the Great Commission? Going back to motivations.
39:00 - Conclusion

This is part two of our discussion on worship songs. Previously we talked about the provenance of songs; here we focus on their content. Are modern/contemporary worship songs shallow in theology? Are they too repetitive? Do they play on emotionalism and is that bad? Are their creative lyrics Scripturally unsound?

As we hit ten episodes(!), we kick off a special two-part series where we talk about contentious worship. In this first episode, we tackle the issue of worship songs of questionable sources. Can we disagree with parts of a church/organisation's theology and still listen to their songs? If a Christian artist is found out to have a significant moral failing, does that discredit their songs? Join us as we discuss these and more. And don't forget to follow us on Instagram @a.cross_perspective.s!