20 Questions with Pastor Mike (Episode 49)

BibleThinker

Mike Winger

Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.9 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 24 September 2021

⏱️ 84 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Question Time Stamps for Quick Reference:1. 0:10 {How to Support a Recovering Spouse} My husband is a recovering alcoholic, now beginning to attend AA meetings. As a wife, what are the most practical ways I can support him while encouraging him to begin leading our home in a biblical way without overwhelming him?2. 7:00 {Where did Lazarus Temporarily Go?} Where were people who died and later got resurrected located in that period? Do they go to Heaven or Hell and get snatched back to Earth after they’re resurrected (e.g., Lazarus, Dorcas, Eutychus etc.)?3. 10:50 {Our Own Thoughts vs. the Holy Spirit} In something like pursuing a relationship, or even in general, how do you tell the difference between the Holy Spirit and your own anxiety telling you not to do something?4. 18:42 {How to Biblically Grieve Painful Loss} My only son died from an overdose last year. I was angry at God and walked away from Him for a bit. I told Him “If I am to serve you, I want the real God.” Isaiah 43: 18-19 says to get over it. How do I get over it?5. 23:28 {Can Horror Movies & Secular Music Invite Demons?} What are your thoughts about Christians having to be careful so that they don’t invite demons into their lives through watching horror movies or listening to secular music? Is this biblical?6. 27:50 {About Evidence & Belief} Imagine if someone asked you, “Would you be willing to disbelieve in God if the evidence led there?” What would your response be? Are we obligated to say yes? Does that dishonor God?7. 34:07 {About the “Golden Rule”} Is the Golden Rule objective or subjective? For example, I tease my friend and he teases me back because we think it's funny, but I won't do it to others because they don't think it's funny.8. 35:58 {Are All of God’s Actions Infallible?} How do I approach a conversation with someone who doesn't believe God is infallible? He believes in the God of the Bible, but he doesn't think all of God's actions are "good," like in the book of Job.9. 43:44 {Identifying & Rejecting False Teaching} What's up with all the bad hermeneutics out there? How can those of us without formal training avoid bad interpretation/application of Scripture by ourselves and be able to spot them in sermons, etc.?10. 46:21 {Does God Hate Satan?} Does God hate Satan and the demons?11. 48:01 {What Did Jesus Mean by “Be Perfect”?} What did Jesus mean when He said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" in Matthew 5: 48? Wouldn't that mean we're all condemned since we sin every day/week?12. 54:39 {About Jacob & Esau} Why didn't God punish Jacob and his mother for stealing Esau's birthright and blessing (Genesis 27)? In fact, why does He love Jacob and hate Esau (Malachi 1)?13. 57:53 {About “Unknown”/ Tongues in 1 Cor.} What do you make of the added word “unknown” in 1 Corinthians 14:2-3, which is not in the original Greek? Could it mean that it is not a different sort of tongues, rather, that no one understands them?14. 1:00:27 {A Difficult Passage – Ezekiel 45} Is Jesus offering sin sacrifices in Ezekiel 45?15. 1:03:23 {Should we Worship Using Instruments?} Should we use instruments in congregational church worship? Why or why not? The early church did not use instruments.16. 1:07:54 {What to Do When a Church Member is Out of Line} What should I do if a member of my fellowship with some mental issues has been making several false prophecies every day, saying literally "hear me for the lord speaks”?17. 1:09:27 {Book Recommendations?} What are some good books for important topics like systematic theology, hermeneutics, complementarianism, etc.?18. 1:11:50 {About the Subordination of the Son} How do you explain the subordination of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:3; 15: 28) to the Father within Trinitarian theology? I explain it via incarnational subordination (Philippians 2:5; Hebrews 29; 5:8).19. 1:1...

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This is the Friday Q&A, I'm Mike Winger, and I'm here to answer your questions about Christianity, the Bible, God, all that kind of important stuff, helping you learn to think biblically about everything.
0:10.0	Our first question today is an anonymous question, a very challenging one. I hope I can give some counsel to the lady who sent it in.
0:17.0	This is an anonymous question that asks, my husband is a recovering alcoholic, now beginning to attend AA meetings.
0:25.0	So wife, what are the most practical ways I can support him while encouraging him to begin leading our home in a biblical way without overwhelming him?
0:34.0	Let me say several things to start off with. First off, your attitude is beautiful, is wonderful, right? Like you want to support him, you want to help him, you want to...
0:47.0	There's a lot of reason to be bitter that you've got, that you could be bitter, right? Like good reasons, as far as the world's concerned.
0:56.0	But as a Christian, you look to the cross and you look at Jesus and you say, hey, I'm trying to set aside those things, and that's a beautiful thing, that's a wonderful thing.
1:03.0	And I encourage you for that attitude, and just holding that attitude, how can I help without being overwhelming, like that is an incredibly humble and gracious and kind attitude.
1:12.0	Let me share a few things with you, because I can't give you all the details of your situation, because I think somebody will have to live life with you, so to speak, or spend a lot of time counseling you to do that.
1:21.0	But one of the things I want you to know is this, very important, it is not your responsibility for your husband to stop drinking.
1:29.0	This is really important, and this has nothing to do with the bitterness stuff, as a Christian you lay aside all bitterness, anger, wrath, malice, like it says in Ephesians.
1:37.0	You said all that stuff aside, so it's not clouding your judgment, not messing up your thinking.
1:41.0	But you also need to set aside the idea of the thought, if you have it at all, that it's your responsibility to make your husband stop drinking, or that his sobriety depends upon you.
1:53.0	It's great that he's an AA, it's great that he's like taking steps, I don't know some people really don't like AA, I don't have a much of opinion either way about it, but I'm glad he's taking steps to try to recover, to try to grow, to try to change.
2:06.0	That's very good things, but yes, please know, this is very important as the division of responsibilities that we understand this as Christians.
2:14.0	I am not responsible for other people's behaviors, I am only responsible for mine.
2:20.0	And the reason why I would encourage you with this is because oftentimes, and it may or may not be true in your situation, but oftentimes in a family where there's dependence going on, someone has alcohol dependence, drug addiction, that kind of thing, they will often create an environment because of their behavior where everyone around them starts to feel responsible for that person's attitudes and actions.
2:42.0	And that's a very unhealthy and un-Christian thing, and so I would encourage you to resist that. Now while you're resisting that, while you're saying, you know, I'm going to do whatever I can to help my husband, but it's not my job, it's not like actually my role for him to stop drinking, that's his role.
2:56.0	He's the one that puts the drink through his lips, it's up to him.
3:00.0	But while you're doing that, you didn't also want to avoid that potential bitterness that comes in.
3:05.0	Sometimes, especially when a spouse starts to reform, and they have godly behavior where they've had really ungodly behavior before, sometimes this is an opportunity for the enemy to come in and start bitterness.
3:18.0	I know it's weird, it may not affect your life at all, but it has affected many people where they're like, well now that they're acting better, I feel like I have freedom to be angry about the past now.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Mike Winger, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Mike Winger and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.