The Present-Day Saint

0033 - Welcome back to our walk through the book of Galatians using Tim Keller's book, "Galatians For You" as our guide. In this episode we examine what Paul has to say about the law. If we are under grace and not under law then what is the purpose of the law? Is the law bad? Was there two systems of salvation in the Bible - works in the Old Testament and grace in the New Testament? Did the Mosaic Law abrogate the Abrahamic Covenant? What is the function of the law in a believers life today? How is the law good? These are all questions that we answer in examining this short piece of text. I hope you will listen and let God's word minister to you today.  

0032 - As we continue our march through the book of Galatians verse by verse we now come to Chapter 3 verses 1-14. In these verses Paul builds on what he has just challenged Peter with at the end of Chapter 2. The challenge is for all of us that are Christians. If we came to Christ through Faith then why are we now trying to finish the race through our own efforts. This is a very important message for Christians and for those that are caught in legalist religions. We come to God through faith (trust) - just like Abraham - and we continue in our relationship with God through faith. The law and faith are opposites. Either we are trusting in God by faith or we are trying to earn our place with Him by works. The last option leads to all kinds of problems and we address those in this episode. As always we are using the book "Galatians For You" by Tim Keller as our guide through the book of Galatians. 

0031 - In this episode we continue our walk through Galatians verse by verse using Tim Keller's book, "Galatians for You" as our guide. In the second half of Chapter 2 we learn how Paul opposes Peter with the gospel and not just with condemnation. After just standing together at the Jerusalem Council in the first half of Chapter 2, Paul now opposes Peter to his face. Why does he do that and how does he use the gospel to confront him? Check out the answers to those questions and more in this episode.

0030 - In this episode we continue our walk through Galatians by looking at Ch.2:1-10. In this series we are walking through the book of Galatians verse by verse while using the book "Galatians for You" by Tim Keller as our guide. In episode we zoom in on the Jerusalem Council and the true gospel. The question at the council was whether the apostles were going to make Titus get circumcised as the Judaizers were demanding. In the end they agreed that salvation was by grace through faith alone and that there was no additional steps that gentiles had to go through to become a Christian. We discuss all this and more as we walk through Galatians 2:1-10 verse by verse. 

0029 - In this episode we walk through "41 Unique Teachings of the LDS Church" by Sandra Tanner. Sandra was a former Mormon who converted to Christianity when she and her husband began investigating the truth claims of the LDS church. In this book Sandra presents 41 unique teachings of the LDS church that separate them from Christianity. Many people ask me what the main differences are between Christianity and the LDS church. Take a listen to this episode and you will see how stark the differences are. 

0028 - This is the second episode of our Bible study through the book of Galatians. We are using the book "Galatians For You" by Tim Keller, as our guide to walk through Galatians verse by verse. In this show we examine the second half of Chapter 1. We discuss the nature of the gospel and Paul's conversion. We talk about what Paul did immediately after his conversion and why that is so important. We discuss how the gospel will save us from religion just as much as it will save us from irreligion. Paul was a very religious man and yet he needed the gospel just like anyone. Whether you are very religious or not religious at all, the gospel is for you. I hope you will listen as we examine the book of Galatians.  

0027 - In this episode I begin a journey through the book of Galatians. We will walk through the book of Galatians verse by verse over the course of 13 podcasts. I will be using the book "Galatians for You" by Tim Keller as my main resource for this discussion. Please get a copy of this book for your own edification. In this first episode we see that Paul clearly states that there is only one gospel by which man can be saved. We are saved by grace, through faith, alone. Paul says that if he or an Angel from Heaven were to preach another gospel then they would be accursed. In these first nine verses we examine what the gospel truly is and how people can get it wrong. I hope you will study the Scripture with us as we follow Keller through the book of Galatians verse by verse.

0026 - In this episode of the Present-Day Saint I update listeners on the upcoming plans for our ministry here in Utah. We have decided to stay in Utah for at least one more year to continue to build the Ratio Christi Chapters at The University of Utah and Utah Valley University. I am also going to try and start a Christian Study Center with a Cafe near the campus of BYU. I explain everything in the podcast. Take a listen and let me know what you think. If you would like to talk about these ideas and how you can be a part of what we are doing out here in Utah, let me know and we can chat - [email protected].

0025 - In this episode Later-day Saint Kwaku El came on the show to discuss the recent debate he had with Evangelical Christian Aaron Shafovaloff (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMAKQ9g8zT8). In the beginning Kwaku shares a little about how and why he became a Mormon after converting from protestant Christianity. We then discuss each of the three main topics of the debate in detail. We discuss God's nature and Kwaku's view on God's sovereignty. We talk about God's relation to time in the LDS view and the Evangelical view. We discuss the Great apostasy and the afterlife. Kwaku also talks about why he does what he does on social media and what religion he would be if he came to believe that Mormonism was wrong. Overall it was a very interesting discussion and I learned a lot about how Kwaku thinks through these issues as a Latter-day Saint. 

0024 - In this episode I discuss verses from the Bible that are commonly taken out of context. I start with Jeremiah 29:11 and demonstrate that this verse is not a promise to you. I discuss how the context of the whole chapter shows us who the verse is intended for and how we should properly interpret Scripture. I discuss how people have turned the Bible into a series of pithy sayings that we can rip out of context and how that is destroying people's faith and the Bible. I use a book by Eric J. Bargerhuff called "The Most Misused Verses in the Bible" as a jumping off point for many of the verses I discuss.  Listen to why verses like Philippians 4:13, Matthew 7:1, Matthew 18:20, 2 Chronicles 7:14 and others don't mean what many people think they mean. I hope this will be an edifying podcast and help you think better about the truth claims of Scripture.