Why do Christian leaders fall? And are major public scandals more prevalent in our day, or is that merely a perception? 

It’s true that the rise of the internet and social media has created an entirely new level of intimacy and celebrity. But despite these realities, the root issues that lead many astray are not new. 

How should we respond to the public fall of a beloved leader or teacher? And what kinds of actions are disqualifying in the first place? How do we not lose heart when hypocrisy seems so commonplace? 

These are heavy questions. And regardless of the nature of the scandal, the impact on believers and unbelievers alike can be far-reaching and disastrous.  

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Don Rice and Keith Neubert discuss these questions and how Christians are called to respond and live in light of them. 

“When you’re being applauded and loved and adored and you can do no wrong and people are constantly coming to you for advice — you become more than just an under-shepherd, you can become a god-like figure to people, and if you’re not careful, you can unwittingly start to believe their own press, and believe you are impervious and justify sinful behavior.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Don Rice

Keith Neubert

Links

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The Social Dilemma

Charles Spurgeon

Carl Lentz

Ravi Zacharias

James MacDonald

Mark Driscoll

Darrin Patrick

Tullian Tchividjian

Acts29

Sojourn Network

SBC

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“Church hopping” is an almost entirely modern phenomenon. Until very recently, most towns had one church. Maybe two, if it was a really big town. 

But with the advent of the automobile, and the growth of a transient and autonomous American Dream, people’s ideas of what the church is and what it’s for have changed. The church has become a consumer-oriented institution, feeding people’s desires for self-actualization and entertainment.

But it’s not all bad news. Healthy, biblical, gospel-focused churches also continue to grow and multiply. 

So, the question arises, should Christians ever leave their church? And, if so, what are some legitimate and illegitimate reasons to do so?

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Adam Powers and Renee Young dig into these questions and talk about if and why a committed Christian should ever leave their church. 

“There’s probably going to come a time when you leave a church. Whether you move away, you get married, come from college, or you have to leave because of negative reasons. And Galatians 5 (the fruit of the Spirit) should rule our lives in these situations. That should be true of the leadership in a church, as well as members.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Adam Powers

Renee Young

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

SonRise Community Church

C. S. Lewis

Matt Chandler

The Village Church

Tim Keller

Redeemer Church

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The discussion around homosexual marriage is nothing if not divisive in our day. And today we are tackling the topic of homosexual weddings — specifically, is it sinful for a Christian to attend a homosexual wedding? 

Is it an issue of sin or a matter of conscience? It is possible to attend a celebration of something many Christians believe to be sinful in a way that displays love and grace to people without condoning or encouraging sin?

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Adam Powers and Nate Currin talk about attending homosexual weddings, how Christians are called to engage with the LGBTQ+ community, and, as always, what the Bible has to say about these topics.

“In our day, love has come to mean affirmation. And that’s not even a philosophical definition, let alone a biblical one. We can’t affirm any pattern of sin, even the ‘acceptable’ ones. And that’s an important distinction to make. We can truly love someone without affirming behavior that is anti-biblical.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Adam Powers

Nate Currin

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

SonRise Community Church

The Deadly Se7en Sermon Series

Romans 1

Is God anti-gay? by Sam Allberry

Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was, and Who God Has Always Been by Jackie Hill Perry

The Gospel Coalition

Rosaria Butterfield

The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution by Carl Trueman

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Few people would deny that racism exists in the world today, even in the church. And in such cases, it should be rejected and repented of. 

But the issue of systematic racism gets a lot more complex. Does systematic racism exist? Is there a  difference between racism, systematic racism, and cultural racism? And if these things do exist, how do we, as individuals, combat them? 

Our hope in this episode is to discuss these issues with grace and compassion, and more than anything else, show how Christians can converse around heavy topics in a godly way. 

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Dashawn Cousins and Sara Haynor talk about the issue of systematic racism in the world and in the church, and how we can stand for truth with compassion, both individually and corporately as the body of Christ.

Guest Hosts

Dashawn Cousins

Sara Haynor

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

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Should you be a member of a local church? It’s a hot-button topic depending on who you ask. 

It’s important to understand the difference between the universal church and the local church. Every true Christian is part of the universal church, but not necessarily part of a local church body — though we believe that every true Christian should be part of a local church.

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Adam Powers and Dani Van talk about church membership, what it means, why it’s important, and why some people believe it’s possible to love Jesus, but not the church.

“In the simplest terms, being part of a local church means being part of a family. Just like when I look at my family, and there are authority structures, responsibilities, benefits, etc. — that’s what it means to be a member of a local church.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Adam Powers

Dani Van Nortwick

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

SonRise Community Church

John Piper

C. S. Lewis

Augustine

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With more than 500 million books sold, the Harry Potter series is far and away the highest-selling series of books in history.

Though Rowling claims to be a Christian, and has said that her books are meant to expose the same truths as classic fantasies such as The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia, many Christians have objected to the stories for their perceived promotion of witchcraft.

And this raises questions about the nature of fantasy, and entertainment in general. Is there a difference between the witchcraft condemned in the Bible and what is depicted in these stories? And, if so, what?

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Adam Powers and Jeffrey Singer talk about the world of fantasy literature and entertainment in general, and how Christians should think about and approach these topics.

“If we’re going to use the word witchcraft, and we’re going to condemn it, we need to make sure that the witchcraft written about by Rowling or Tolkein is the biblical witchcraft that is condemned in Scripture. I would argue strongly that it’s not inline with any biblical definition of sorcery or witchcraft, even though they use the words witchcraft or wizardry.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Adam Powers

Jeffrey Singer

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

SonRise Community Church

Harry Potter

The Lord of the Rings

John Milton

Andrew Peterson

The Pilgrim’s Progress

John Piper

J.K. Rowling

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There’s a lot of discourse around the Enneagram, its roots, and how popular it has become in modern progressive Christianity. But what exactly is it? Can it provide true insight into what makes us tick? Or is it a lot of smoke and mirrors?

More than that, does the bible have anything to say about our personalities and what role the study of personality types should play in our lives?

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest-hosts Whitney Tragos and Danielle Currin talk about the history of the Enneagram, it’s pros and cons, and what it should play in our lives as Christians.

“Our primary identity is as Christians. There are so many things pulling for our identity in our day. I like all these things, but it’s very easy to get rooted in this is who I am, rather than I am righteous in Christ, I’m a child of God..” ~ Aaron Currin 

“They’re not perfect. They’re not inspired. But they are helpful tools, even as a Christian, to help identify things that are going to cause friction in our lives and relationships and that we need to work on. And we work on these things no by the power of the spirit, not the power of discovering our true selves —by the power of the spirit to mortify sin and walk in humility with Christ.” ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Whitney Tragos

Danielle Currin

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

The Enneagram

Myers-Briggs

StrengthsFinder

Harry Potter

Richard Rohr

Ian Cron

16 Personalities

Out of Oz Episode 005: Is Social Justice Biblical?

Gospel Enneagram 

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It’s a heavy topic, but one of the most asked questions pastors receive. What is the ultimate fate of babies and the mentally handicapped? 

Historically, there has been much debate around this topic due to its emotional weight, and the lack of scriptural clarity. Yet, it touches many Christian doctrines, from the depravity of humanity to the character of God.  

This week, Peter, Aaron, and guest hosts Rick Reumann and Adam Powers discuss various approaches to this topic and how Christians should think through difficult themes in scripture.  

Guest Hosts

Rick Reumann

Adam Powers

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube

SonRise Community Church

Canons of Dort

Calvinism

Arminianism

Universalism

Covenant Theology

Westminster Confession of Faith

The Faith of Christopher Hitchens - Larry Taunton

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While vaccinations have been a hot-button issue for the last couple of decades, the COVID-19 vaccination has sparked a lot of controversy in and outside the church.

How should Christians look at the pandemic as a whole, and how should that affect our decisions about things like vaccinations or masks?

And with the spread of so much misinformation, how do we know what is true? In this context, what is our duty as Christians, and what does it look like to love our neighbor?

This week, Peter and Aaron are joined by guest hosts Megan Long and Renee Young. Megan is a pharmaceutical rep,  and Renee is an RN with a focus on emergency and critical care medicine. Together, they discuss the complicated issue of the COVID-19 vaccination, how to think about it, where to find credible information, and more.

“There are always going to be risks. And the way physicians look at it is, do the benefits outweigh the risks? That’s going to be different for every person. With the vaccine, there’s a lot of fear-mongering that exists — a lot of websites that are incorrect. I’ve already seen so many things being passed around on social that just aren’t true.” ~ Megan Long

“When we think about the vaccine, I think Megan has brought up the most legitimate argument for taking the vaccine, especially if you’re young and healthy. You would be taking it for others. I’m not saying we should take it, but what we are called to do as Christians is to think of the good of others — to live in a selfless, sacrificial way for other people (Philippians 2). That doesn’t mean that we don’t think of ourselves at all, but there is a legitimacy to a Christian who would argue that others should get this so that those who are compromised are more protected. “ ~ Aaron Currin 

Guest Hosts

Megan Long

Renee Young

Links

John MacArthur Q&A

Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine

NIH.gov

Vaccines and the Christian Worldview - Albert Mohler

Focus on the Family

Philippians 2

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2020 brought with it a lot of pain and uncertainty. Whether political, personal, or cultural, it was a year of division. There’s a strong “us vs them” undercurrent to almost everything happening in the world right now. 

One of the things we heard often repeated was a call to defund the police. Where trust in governing authorities was nearly universal in generations past, we’re living in a day when the default position is one of skepticism, distrust, and even fear. 

As Christians, we’re called to respect our governing authorities. But how far does this extend? Does supporting your police department mean you’re supporting police brutality? And, if not, how do we show proper respect, while also not condoning evil?

This week, Peter and Aaron are joined by Jason Haynor, a local firefighter, and Mike Trill, a local police officer, to discuss these questions, and how Christians are called to think about them. 

“The text that comes to mind when we deal with this is Romans 13. It says, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God.” We need to keep that in mind. Police officers, politicians — they are his representatives. They’ve been put there for a reason. Even if they’re not honoring him in their works, God is the one ultimately who has put them there.” ~ Aaron 

Guest Hosts

Mike Trill

Jason Haynor

Links

Watch Out of Oz on YouTube 

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