Bona Fide Ministry: Recent Episodes
Steven C. Hunter
A minister who questions his own preconceptions and studies Scripture and history in search of the truth on current events, doctrine, and a host of other topics.
Often, this issue is reduced to a simplification of bumper sticker sayings. There's actually greater complexity to the matter for both sides, and if we'd only take time to listen to one another, we might find a viable solution. Yet, we must remember that we can't make everyone happy. We're not chocolate.
Sometimes even Christians find themselves in handcuffs. The charges may also be personally abhorrent. However, do we as ministers allow our humanity to rule our response, or the Spirit of God?
One way to grow as a Christian is to be challenged. To always be comfortable doesn't result in growth, but to be challenged pulls us closer to God.
Some folks lose their faith when they take pursue Bible-oriented degrees of higher learning. Yet, it's not entirely the university's fault for this outcome. Sometimes the church is too simplistic in its views of Scripture. Preconceptions can be challenged, but they need not be destructive.
We all have particular lenses through which we view Christianity. Depending on our views, we may or may not be practicing Christianity rightly.
I’ve spent every day in the last month in the critical care waiting room, ministering to the family of one of our members who passed away. This is that story.
This process results in a paradigm shift. How you view everything may change, but it's for the good.
There are a variety of views about Christmas in the churches of Christ. While not all answers are given, we do explore this topic and how we might best regard it.
Whatever you do, listen all the way till the end, especially if you're pro-choice. This is meant to be an explanation of why Christians are pro-life -- versus pro-birth -- and the end entails how we would answer common objections to the pro-life stance.
Show notes: https://sc-hunter.com/2021/12/08/early-christian-views-on-the-life-of-unborn-children/
I'm sure Ken Ham wouldn't approve, but there are historical realities to the flood story as well as hyperbole. What really is the point of this story, though?
I grew up reading Genesis literally, trying to age the earth and debunk evolution. However, that wasn't how an ancient audience read the book, so take a journey with me through Genesis.
There are things I used to do before the coronavirus. I used to be purposeful in evangelism, but everything has changed. I haven't been as outward-focused, as a minister, as I should be. I haven't preached and urged the brethren to focus on lost souls either. We have to get beyond the excuse of the pandemic and get back to doing the work of Jesus. We have to be the church.
The paradigm through which we read Revelation determines how we understand it. I try to understand it historically as a book of prophecy, borrowing language from the prophets. When we do that, I think we learn something anew and that some of our preconceptions aren't correct.
With the spread of COVID, so many believers have attributed one thing or another to the Mark of the Beast. Is this true? Give this episode a listen and stay tuned for future episodes that will survey the entire book of Revelation.
Just when things seem to get better, they seem to take a turn for the worst. We've lived with a pandemic for over a year, and many of us are tired of it all. We're weary.
The sermon mentioned in this episode can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wjOmM1j13s
If you want to only listen to the sermon, fast-forward to 36:33.
After having had a month off, I'm eager to tell you about how my sabbatical benefited me.
When you think about or hear mentioned the churches of Christ, the one thing that pops in many people's minds is that we don't use instruments in our worship services. This episode explains why.
Cover art by photographers Cindy and Saylor Mills (www.cindyandsaylor.com) and pictured is Keith Lancaster (http://www.praiseandharmony.com/blog).
In some traditions of Christendom, the saints and Mary play a central role. However, we who limit our faith to a Scriptural foundation, repudiate such things. When did this begin? That's what we focus on in this episode.
When you study church history, the New Testament has a rather unanimous view when it comes to how Christians were made. As history went on, however, things changed and went from apostolic to traditional. Here's a look at those changes.
In the New Testament, we don't read about a pope or even a bishop of Rome. In this episode, I explain the history behind the papacy and the primacy of the Roman Church. Be sure to listen to the first episode so you don't feel lost :D
In local congregations, the New Testament teaches that there were elders, deacons, and ministers. However, things changed in the second century. This episode is an exploration of those changes.