TAGcast: Recent Episodes
Jonathan Burian
Jenee and Jonathan attend the same Home Church and have each been involved in various ministries for decades. They have come together to collaborate on addressing faith, doctrine, and the hot-button topics in our culture through the lens of Truth and Grace.
Throughout the Bible it says to fear God, and the Bible itself has become the revered word of God. How do we treat the Bible then in light of the notion of fearing God? The Bible is living and active and reveals itself to us as we spend time in it and allow it to become what it's intended to be instead of what it becomes we put expectations on it.
Our society is becoming more and more unclear as to what our religious beliefs should look like. Sometimes we are expected to keep our beliefs to ourselves and yet other times we are expected to participate in a wide variety of corporately active belief systems. As we take a truth and grace look at this idea we'll discover that the Bible paints a picture that it is actually some sort of balance of both.
If Hell is real how can a loving God actually send people there? Jenee and Jonathan take a Truth and Grace look at what the Bible has to say about eternal separation from God. When it comes down to it, when the Bible talks about hell it's actually a gift of grace to warn people of what really happens when we remove God from His throne in our lives, offering a word of caution and an invitation to return to right relationship with God.
There is a growing trend in churches, especially in the west, that is spreading throughout the globe that is allowing for teachings that aren't biblical to be paired with those of Jesus, even some that undermine his teachings altogether. Is it important to be able to discern the difference between biblical teachings and those that are contrary, and is it important to be able to identify which teachings are actually false? Jenee and Jonathan take a truth and grace look at what's being taught in church.
Is the church a building, a denomination, or something more? Jenee and Jonathan take some time to offer a truth and grace look at what the Bible defines as the church and what it looks like for people to be a part of it? The church is made up of the people of God and is meant to be lead by God the Holy Spirit who dwells within these believers in Christ.
Sometimes it's easy to wrap our heads around Jesus being God because we can see the works he did in the Bible. We might be able to grasp the idea of God as Father because of our own family experiences. But who is this Holy Spirit and what role does he play in our lives?
The phrase 'Pro-Life' is often solely associated with the anti-abortion movement, but at its core what it means for someone to truly be Pro-Life encompasses so much more. God values life on all and every level, from the development of a person in the womb, the orphan, those in abusive relationships, human trafficking, and the widow deemed a burden on society. In this truth and grace episode, we try to take a biblical look at how deep a Pro-Life worldview really goes.
One of the most challenging concepts in the world is trying to understand how a good, loving, and all-powerful God would allow, or even cause bad things to happen. Between natural disasters, genocide, and abuse there are so many concerning activities going on in the world that leave us frustrated and wondering if God is even real. We want to try and take a Truth and Grace look through the Bible to understand if it is even possible for God to be Sovereign AND Good while allowing evil to exist and even thrive.
Surrogacy began as an effort to have children when growing one's family was otherwise impossible and has become a means to try and rectify the pain of infertility, sterility, and inconvenience. Does the Bible have anything to say about this method of growing a family? Is it healthy, or is it a source of more brokenness in our world? Can we take a moment to look at this incredibly sensitive and delicate issue through the lens of truth and grace?
The Bible tells us that the Godhead is made up of three persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But what does it mean that God is Father? We can hear a good sermon about it, or maybe we've learned to view God through our earthly experiences of our own fathers, but when did God define Himself as Father and what does He mean by that?
Do modern idols really exist today? We certainly don't see any temples to Zeus or other pagan deities, at least not notably in the west. But is there more to it? We can see a variety of modern idols permeating our culture, even the church. From the gods of comfort, ego, and entertainment, to our expectations of what the church should look like. Let's take some time to explore what modern idols look like through the lens of Truth and Grace.
Is there a difference between us pursuing the good things in life we want for ourselves and our families when compared to the good things God wants for us? Jenee and Jonathan take some time to approach the idea of making decisions and chasing after our personal goals through a biblical lens of truth and grace.
We want to try and unpack how we can possibly continue on in our journey when life throws curveballs at us that make us feel like God has completely turned His back on us. We can site chapter and verse when looking for the truths about God's promises but we want to walk through a perspective of grace and we explore and share some intimate struggles we've had and how we're still learning how to trust God is with us even when we seem to be alone.
There seems to be a lot of talk about what biblical marriage SHOULD or SHOULD NOT look like but... what is the Bible trying to teach us about marriage and what it actually was meant to accomplish? Let's take a Truth and Grace look at not just what it looks like but what purpose it really serves in society.
Even Jesus said (in essence) "I'd rather be dead than walk through the suffering that's in front of me" (right before he was crucified) and yet he knew that the value of going to the cross was immeasurable compared to the pain he would experience. What does the Bible say about our ability to choose when and how we die?
We can see a significant difference in the way the people of God are expected to behave between the Old and New Testaments. Is the Bible changing? Who gets to decide which parts to keep and which to throw out? Is it God's standard or our own?
If God created all things He has authority over it, so the wrestling match becomes what kind of authority is God exercising over creation? Did He just set things in motion or does He actually have purpose and intention in the way He set everything in motion with an end goal in mind?
We're taking the time to look at the fact that there are innumerable religions in the world and that at their core each one is trying to give meaning and substance to the way we understand reality. Is there a way to know if one is right and if so which one? How does grace make room for us to walk through this dilemma?
The way the OT reads seems to be very different from how the NT reads and how God interacts with people and their sin. Did God change His mind in how He thinks and feels about sin or is there a thread of consistency that maybe we've missed?
In this episode, Jenee and Jonathan take some time to lay the groundwork for the entire podcast. Every time a topic is going to be talked about it will be done through the lens of Truth and Grace as both are portrayed in the Judeo-Christian Bible as how God views and interacts with people. It can be easy to want to view the goings on around us through a strict worldview but to really see things the way the God of the Bible does we will need both Truth and Grace.
Here's an intro to Jenee' and Jonathan as they embark on a journey to explore scripture, culture, and the world through the lenses of Truth and Grace. Meet their spouses and get a snapshot background into why they might have something to say.