Think Deeper

Many members of the churches of Christ struggle to feel "good enough" and often lack understanding of God's grace. Is there something unique to the church's teaching that creates this uncertainty?

We discuss:

The benefits of our strong emphasis on doctrine and obedience

Why the doctrinal precision in our fellowship's DNA can make members feel unsure of their salvation

How much do we have to get right in order to be saved?

How God's character can give us assurance even if we are falling short in our actions or our knowledge

and more!

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

Dr. Brad Harrub joins the show to talk about 'Arrows in the Hands of a Warrior,' the new book on parenting he co-wrote with his wife, Melinda!

Topics include:

- The importance of parents admitting mistakes
- Challenges previous generations of parents didn't have to face
- Why discipline has grown so misunderstood
- Navigating grandparent involvement
and more!

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

Pick up the book at Focus Press or Amazon today!

Join us on Focus+ for the Deep End bonus episode - focuspress.org/plus

And, subscribe to Think magazine - focuspress.org/think

Just because we're spiritual, it doesn't mean we don't have to be grounded in the reality of the physical here and now. So many of the platitudes uttered in Christianity today come off as tone-deaf, totally unconcerned with the world around us.

We discuss:

How heaven is over-emphasized in modern Christianity and makes us look cold and uncaring about people's problems here and now

What it looks like to be "so heavenly minded we aren't any earthly good"

The gross misunderstanding of what "Jesus is on His throne" means

How Gnosticism has crept into the church's view of being salt and light

Being realistic about the state of the world without being anxious or fearful

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

Join us November 16 in Burns, TN for Think Deeper Live! Register free at thinkdeeperlive.com

We revisit a long-running Think Deeper debate and discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly surrounding Halloween and the Christian. Topics include:

Where we draw the line on Halloween participation

The pagan influences surrounding the day

"All Saints Day" and the value of recognizing death

Whether Christians should consume Harry Potter and other magical fiction

Horror movies and haunted houses

THINK FAST: The Harding University controversies

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

Sometimes the Bible can be intimidating and you don't know where to start. Other times it can feel like we know all the relevant information already and don't have a lot left to explore.

This week we look at how to study the Bible more deeply and share some nuggets we've found that have helped the Bible come alive and drawn us into further study.

We discuss:

- Why Bible reading is underrated
- The joy of Bible study
- The right and wrong way to study topically
- How to get started in deeper exegetical study
- Useful tools
- How to exercise discernment in the resources you use, and which teachers to be wary of

and more!

Ads:

- Check out the rest of our podcast network at focuspress.org/podcasts

- Join us for Think Deeper Live on November 16! RSVP at thinkdeeperlive.com

We have some BIG announcements to share on this one to go along with this week's episode on the importance of grasping Bible terms.

Topics include:

- Sacrifice and offering and how the new system isn't as different from the old as we might think
- Justification and sanctification
- Faith and works and whether we're saved by "faith alone"
- Why repentance isn't just a "step" of salvation

and more!

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

Join us for Think Deeper Live on November 16! RSVP at thinkdeeperlive.com

The Christian's war is fought on the philosophical level, and modern day philosophy has done a great job slithering into churches today, often almost entirely undetected. We discuss what this philosophy is and how it undermines God's Word, including:

- The dominant philosophical tool of our day, its history, and how it presents itself
- How this philosophy uses Christian terms to seem Biblical while directly undermining God's authority
- How the inerrancy and sufficiency of Scripture are casually discarded in the face of these ideas
- Buzzwords and emphases that show how this philosophy has crept into a church's teaching and leadership style

and more.

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

As young parents we don't claim to be experts in terms of how-to advice, but we do have goals for our families. Those are the focus of this week's discussion, and topics include:

- Helping our kids learn to love the church

- Differing goals for our boys and our girls

- Lessons in self-discipline

- How we want to break them of the individualism of today's world

and more!

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

We examine what the Bible teaches about the Holy Spirit and His work today. Topics include:

- What the Spirit did in the Old and New Testaments
- The charismatic, the indwelling, and the "only through the Word" camps
- How indwelling works practically
- Why this topic is so uncomfortable

and more!

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie

This week we look at traditions in the church, including:

- Why traditions are important and necessary

- When traditionalism can become overbearing

- Navigating generational preferences for changing vs. maintaining traditions

- Debating traditional church practices

With Will Harrub, Jack Wilkie, and Joe Wilkie