Not Safe For Sunday School

What if Hitler genuinely repented at the end of his life? Could he go to heaven? And what about someone who spends their entire life doing good but never follows Jesus?

Those questions expose one of the biggest misunderstandings about Christian salvation: the idea that heaven works like a points system where good deeds have to outweigh the bad. In this conversation, we explore why Jesus presents grace, repentance, and justice very differently. Salvation isn’t about saying the right “magic words,” building the right spiritual resume, or earning enough points to get into heaven. It’s about a transformed heart, receiving grace, and trusting that God ultimately sees both evil and its victims and will bring justice.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is it really like to serve as a woman pastor?

Pastor Becca shares the personal story behind her calling to ministry, the challenges she's faced as a woman in church leadership, and why representation matters for future generations. Rather than revisiting the theological debate, this conversation explores the human side of ministry: calling, leadership, mentorship, church culture, and how Christians can disagree with grace while still listening to one another.

Matt and Becca also discuss:

• Why the title "pastor" matters
• Growing up without female pastoral role models
• Leadership styles, gender stereotypes, and church culture
• How to have healthy conversations about women in ministry
• Why diverse voices strengthen the church
• The importance of emotional health, compassion, and learning from one another

Whether you agree, disagree, or are simply curious, this episode invites you to move beyond assumptions and toward understanding.

What has shaped your perspective on women in ministry? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If God is real, why doesn’t he just prove it to everyone?

Why no giant voice from the sky? Why no worldwide miracle broadcast? Why does faith feel so uncertain sometimes?

In this episode, we wrestle with one of the biggest modern objections to faith: God’s apparent hiddenness. But instead of treating it like a simple logic problem, we explore the emotional, psychological, spiritual, and even physical limitations that shape how humans experience reality.

We discuss:

• Whether God is actually hidden, or if humans are tuned to the wrong “frequency”
• Why overwhelming proof might not create genuine faith
• The psychological “backfire effect” and why people double down even when confronted with evidence
• Why Jesus’ ministry spread through relationships instead of domination
• Moses, Gideon, and the danger of demanding signs
• How ego, certainty, and control can become barriers to hearing God
• Why Christianity spreads person-to-person instead of through coercion

This episode is less about “winning” a debate and more about asking whether we’re actually open to being changed if God did reveal himself.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do bad things happen to good people?

In this episode, we wrestle with one of the oldest and hardest questions in faith, philosophy, and human experience. Instead of offering shallow answers or easy clichés, we explore the question from three angles: philosophy, real life, and emotional healing.

We discuss:

• Whether good and evil are objective or subjective
• Why free will inevitably leads to suffering
• Why God may not be the “author” of pain
• The parenting analogy that changes how we think about suffering
• Why Christianity uniquely centers on a God who suffers with humanity
• The difference between intellectual answers and emotional healing
• Why resurrection and restoration matter more than pain itself

This conversation isn’t about “winning” an argument. It’s about honestly wrestling with suffering while holding onto hope, compassion, and the possibility that pain is not the end of the story.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why would God place a forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden if he already knew Adam and Eve would eat from it?

In this episode, we unpack one of the oldest and hardest questions in the Bible through the lens of ancient Hebrew storytelling, parenthood, free will, innocence, wisdom, and human nature.

We explore:

• Why the “tree of knowledge of good and evil” may be about maturity, not information
• Whether God was withholding wisdom or protecting humanity
• Why free will matters if love is real
• The repeating Eden pattern throughout the entire Bible
• How the Genesis story mirrors our own struggle for control, autonomy, and trust
• Why the Bible is designed more like a story to wrestle with than a science textbook to decode

This isn’t about proving Genesis scientifically. It’s about understanding what the story is trying to reveal about humanity, God, and ourselves.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can you separate worship songs from the churches and artists behind them? In this episode, we talk about Hillsong, Bethel, Elevation, theological baggage, church scandals, and how worship leaders can choose songs with wisdom instead of fear.

We also get into why popular songs are not always the best songs for congregational worship, when a lyric becomes a problem, and why the goal is not to cancel every song but to worship with clarity, honesty, and discernment.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many Christians avoid the Old Testament because it raises uncomfortable questions:

Did God actually command genocide?

Why does God seem violent in the Old Testament but loving in the New?

In this episode, we wrestle with biblical violence, hyperbole, ancient literary styles, translation issues, and how Jesus changes the conversation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Sandy and Becca for Part 3 of The Women of the Bible as they discuss two badass women, Mary (who raised and taught Jesus) and Mary Magdalene (who supported Jesus's Ministry). The fact that these women take a prominent role in the gospels is defying ancient cultural barriers!

Part 1: https://shows.acast.com/not-safe-for-sunday-school/episodes/the-women-of-the-bible-exodus-judges-acts

Part 2: https://shows.acast.com/not-safe-for-sunday-school/the-women-of-jesuss-lineage-tamar-rahab-ruth

Mary, the Mother of Jesus: https://youtu.be/SFZEr3YxNbA?si=Rg6RqqyLuIk5fasn

Not Safe For Sunday School is a podcast by Matt Ridings (@punpastor) as a part of the ministry of Fremont Community Church (@fremont.church). Our goal is to create Christian content that is true to scripture while also fun and engaging. Don't forget to leave us a review and share with a friend!

Music by Bensound.com

License code: SPFLQA9CT9CLLRNW

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Sandy and Becca for Part 2 of The Women of the Bible as they discuss some badass women in the lineage of Jesus. From Tamar to Rahab as well as Ruth, there's a lot packed into this episode!

Part 1: https://shows.acast.com/not-safe-for-sunday-school/episodes/the-women-of-the-bible-exodus-judges-acts

Not Safe For Sunday School is a podcast by Matt Ridings (@punpastor) as a part of the ministry of Fremont Community Church (@fremont.church). Our goal is to create Christian content that is true to scripture while also fun and engaging. Don't forget to leave us a review and share with a friend!

Music by Bensound.com

License code: SPFLQA9CT9CLLRNW

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Matt and Ty in part 2 of this conversation as they discuss concerns the Church has historically had surrounding Dungeons & Dragons and their reasoning for not only playing D&D, but running games of D&D for others as an opportunity for community and healing.

Not Safe For Sunday School is a podcast by Matt Ridings (@punpastor) as a part of the ministry of Fremont Community Church (@fremont.church). Our goal is to create Christian content that is true to scripture while also fun and engaging. Don't forget to leave us a review and share with a friend!

Music by Bensound.com

License code: SPFLQA9CT9CLLRNW

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.