Last episode of this series.

We discuss not merely having courage to stand up for Christian values in society, but also having courage to stand up when your "tribe" (political party, etc.), does, sends, or supports something unbiblical - even if you agree with the rest of what they do.

Part 3 of this series. In this episode we begin by looking at how evangelical Christians can be viewed as not caring about poverty issues because we're more concerned about things like eradicating abortion. But the fact is that we should be concerned about BOTH, and we can be - without giving up convictions about either. Here are some ways to display that concern.

During some sermon research a while back, Brian came across a message from another pastor that referenced "Wizard of Oz Christianity," which talked about various aspects of the Christian life impacting society around us.

Josh and Brian take that theme and run with it a bit, hoping to challenge the Church of Jesus to be intentional about having a church home, using the brains God gave us, having a heart for the people around us, and taking courage to speak up and act in ways that honor Christ and bring positive impact.

When Scripture tells of something that happened or that someone did, does that mean WE are supposed to do that or have that happen to US? Not necessarily. In this episode we take a look at four examples of Scripture that people have claimed to be applicable to us, and why that is not handling Scripture correctly.

Jesus commands us to love our enemies. But later Jesus goes even further in a discussion with a person trying to justify himself in his treatment of others.

In this episode, Brian describes what God has been talking to him about when it comes to interacting with people, specifically in the LGBTQ+ community.

Hint: they AREN'T enemies!!

If you let your opinions, thoughts, and beliefs be known, chances are you will receive some pushback from someone who disagrees (unless you only express yourself in the bubble of like-minded people).

Sometimes that pushback can be encouraging - when it is done graciously, with the intent of educating you on some point you've missed or hadn't considered. Other times it can be mean-spirited and ugly, just meant to berate. Sometimes it's a mixture of both...

Anyhoo...how do we respond in ways that show grace and Christlikeness? That's what we try to tackle today.

There is a line of thinking that says Christians shouldn't care what others think of us - particularly in terms of our positions on social/political issues. That we should just stick to the truth, because Christians have always been "hated" for what they believe.

However, Scripture very clearly says that a good reputation among those who don't follow Jesus is a must.

So how do we balance the two? Do we have to give up convictions for the sake of getting along? Our belief is no - but that our reputations in the community will go a long way to helping us positively influence the people around us.

"Every city has hungry people." That's a quote (or at least a close paraphrase) of a comment Brian heard during a morning radio broadcast to promote a joint effort between a local Catholic order of nuns, and other religious groups in town to gather food for local food banks. The point was that even with major theological differences, people of different faith backgrounds can come together to meet the immediate need of feeding hungry people.

This is also possible in the political spectrum. Brian references (although certainly imperfectly - Sorry to Senators Thune and Johnson...) how two senators from South Dakota came together in spite of their different political parties for the sake of helping the state's farmers and ranchers.

We believe this kind of thing pleases Jesus, and helps people see the gospel in action.

The flip-side of what we discussed the past two weeks. While we believe that we don't have to agree with someone's lifestyle, opinions, etc., in order to love them, we also believe that disagreement does not equal hate (or fear) toward that person or persons.

There is no question that there are Christians who are hateful toward certain people groups and population. That is not the model of Jesus. But how do we show people that the loud minorities of Christians do not represent all, or even most, Christians?