The PursueGOD Truth Podcast PursueGOD

Skeptics and scoffers love to stump Christians with this question: if God is good, why does evil exist?
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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
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Philosophers have framed the problem like this: 
If God is able to prevent evil, but not willing to do so, he is evil himself.If God is willing to prevent evil, but not able, he is impotent.
At first blush this paradox seems impossible to answer. But take a second look at the Bible and you’ll not just make sense of this difficult question… you’ll find an answer that can change your eternity. 
We’re going to find today’s answer in 2 Peter chapter 3, and we’ll get to that by the end of the lesson (I promise). But let’s frame this whole question with this verse:
2 Peter 3:3 (NLT) Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires.
A “scoffer” asks the question without really wanting to know the answer. They’ve already made up their mind, and they simply want to disprove.A genuine seeker is different. They ask the question in good faith, and have a heart that’s willing to submit to God. I hope this is the attitude you have as you approach the question. 
So let’s start with the first part of the question: God is good - this much we know for sure! From The Pursuit, Lesson 1:
Jesus shows us the truth: God is for you, not against you. Through his life and teachings, Jesus shocked the religious world with his attitude toward the lost and irreligious. He invited lowly fishermen and despised tax-collectors – not religious experts – to be in his inner circle. And then he went around rubbing shoulders with drunkards, healing the demon-possessed, and touching the untouchables. Jesus didn’t avoid the broken and the lost, he sought them out. Here’s a perfect example:Matthew 8:2-3 Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.” Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared.The leper knew that Jesus had the ability to heal – he just didn’t know if he had the willingness to do it. For most people, it’s easier to believe that God is powerful than to believe that he is good. But here’s the truth: he is both!And consider how Jesus healed the leper: he touched him. That was unthinkable in Jesus’ day.
Now to the second part of the question: why does evil exist? This will take some explaining. But consider this: God does eradicate some evil.
Genesis 6:5-8 (NLT) The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke

In this episode, Bryan, Bo and KD talk about how the Mormon church claims to have prophets who speak authoritatively for God. But is that really a thing anymore? If not, how do we hear from God? This podcast explores the answer to that question. They discuss the role of the Holy Spirit in the Old and New Testaments, the concept of worthiness in Mormonism, and the differences between capital P prophets and lowercase p prophets. They emphasize that every believer now has the Holy Spirit and that the Bible is God's authoritative Word. They also talk about the closed canon and the importance of testing everything against God's Word.
Takeaways:
There are two different types of prophets: a capital “P” prophet who speaks authoritatively for God, and a lowercase “p” prophet who speaks what God has already spoken. The canon of Scripture is closed, meaning that God is not going to speak authoritatively through prophets anymore.The Bible is God's authoritative word and does not need to be supplemented with new revelation from prophets.The gift of prophecy in the local church is about reminding people of what God has already spoken, not bringing new revelation.Believers should test everything against God's Word and hold on to what is good.
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The Unveiling Mormonism podcast pulls back the curtain on Mormon history, culture and doctrine. Join us for new episodes every Monday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/mormonism.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
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Some churches claim to have prophets who speak authoritatively for God. But is that really a thing anymore? If not, how do we hear from God? 
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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
Donate Now
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Does God Still Speak Through Prophets?
Let’s start with a passage that seems to answer the question:
Ephesians 4:11 (NLT) Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.
Seems clear, right? Prophets are still a thing.So the churches that claim to have prophets and apostles are the most biblical churches? Not so fast. Let’s look into this…
Prophets in the OT
Prophets in the OT were not mere fortune-tellers but messengers chosen by God to guide, comfort, and ultimately call people back to God. 
Exodus 3:9-10 (NLT) “Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.”Ezekiel 2:3-5 (NLT) “Son of man,” he said, “I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me. They and their ancestors have been rebelling against me to this very day. They are a stubborn and hard-hearted people. But I am sending you to say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says!’ And whether they listen or refuse to listen—for remember, they are rebels—at least they will know they have had a prophet among them.Hosea 1:2 (NLT) When the LORD first began speaking to Israel through Hosea, he said to him, “Go and marry a prostitute, so that some of her children will be conceived in prostitution. This will illustrate how Israel has acted like a prostitute by turning against the LORD and worshiping other gods.”Jonah 1:1-2 (NLT) The LORD gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.”
Prophets in the NT
In the NT the Holy Spirit was given to every believer, and this caused prophecy to take on a whole new meaning and purpose. 
Acts 2:17-18 (NLT) ‘In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants—men and women alike—and they will prophesy.(Pillar New Testament Commentary) Whereas the Spirit especially designated and empowered the prophets and other leaders of Israel under the Old Covenant, God promises that all his people will be possessed by the Spirit in the last days.(Pillar New Testament Commentary) The expectation from 2:17-18 is that all believers under the New Covenant would 'prophesy' (prophēteusousin), and so share to some extent in the prophetic role (cf. 19:6). However, it is clear that some

In this episode, Bryan, Bo and KD explore the differences between the Bible and the Book of Mormon, focusing on textual and historical evidence. They discuss how the Book of Mormon lacks archaeological evidence and contains anachronisms, while the Bible has extensive evidence supporting its accuracy and reliability. They emphasize that the Bible tells one unified story, written by multiple authors over 1500 years, yet remaining consistent. They also address the reliability of Bible translations, explaining that translations are accurate and reliable, and the Joseph Smith Translation cannot be considered a true translation. They conclude by highlighting the power and inspiration of the Bible as the Word of God.
Takeaways:
Mormons believe the Bible is the word of God, but it is not infallible and has errors.The Bible is ranked below the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price in Mormon canon.Christians believe in the verbal plenary inspiration of the Bible, meaning that divine inspiration extends to the very words themselves and all parts of the Bible.The Book of Mormon lacks archaeological evidence and contains anachronisms, while the Bible has extensive evidence supporting its accuracy and reliability.The Bible tells one unified story, written by multiple authors over 1500 years, yet remaining consistent.Translations of the Bible are accurate and reliable, and the Joseph Smith Translation cannot be considered a true translation.The Bible is the Word of God and can be trusted.
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The Unveiling Mormonism podcast pulls back the curtain on Mormon history, culture and doctrine. Join us for new episodes every Monday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/mormonism.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
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Why do so many churches and Christians make such a big deal of the Bible? Isn’t it just an out-dated, irrelevant piece of ancient literature? Shouldn’t we keep it on the shelf and use more modern books to teach us how to live? These are the questions we’ll explore today.
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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
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before we examine the Bible, let’s start with some fun trivia about all those other books on the shelf…
10 notable best-selling books of all time:
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss - 10.5 millionThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain - 20 millionThe Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - 29 millionTo Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - 40 millionThe Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle - 43 millionPurpose Driven Life by Rick Warren - 50 millionThe Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis - over 85 millionHarry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling - 120 millionA Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens - Over 200 million  Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes - Over 500 million
Top three best-selling books of all time:
The Quran - Estimated 800 million copies sold and distributed.Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-tung - Over 900 million copies sold.The Bible - Estimated 5 billion copies sold and distributed.
So, back to the question we’ll unbox today:
Q. Is the Bible Just Another Book?
Think about how all of those other books were written: 
All of those other books were the product of one or more clever mindsThey all followed a similar process:Come up with the conceptCreate a storyline, characters, etc.Do some research if needed for accuracy Write and re-writeMy favorite book on the topic: “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser“Simplify, simplify.”“There’s no minimum length for a sentence that’s acceptable in the eyes of God.”“Writers must constantly ask: what am I trying to say? Surprisingly often they don’t know.”"Ultimately the product any writer has to sell is not the subject being written about, but who he or she is."
But this is what separates the Bible from every other book: it is not the product of one person’s ideas or creativity. Nobody had to dream up the storyline or characters, and no one had to read “On Writing Well” to turn out the best chapters and verses. The Bible, Christians believe, is unique because it alone was inspired by God. Here’s how Paul explained it to Timothy:
2 Timothy 3:16 (NLT) All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.
See Where Did We Get...

In this conversation, Bryan, Bo and KD discuss the question of whether there is only one true church, specifically focusing on the Mormon Church. They explore the concept of a testimony in Mormonism and how it differs from the Christian understanding of a testimony. They also discuss the idea of the church as an organization, denomination, or building, and explain that the biblical definition of the church is the assembly of called out believers in Jesus. They conclude that while there may not be one true church in the sense of a specific institution or denomination, there is a capital C church that includes all true believers in Jesus throughout history.
Takeaways:
Mormons believe that the Mormon Church is the one true church, and this belief is ingrained from a young age.The biblical definition of the church is the assembly of called out believers in Jesus, and it is not limited to a specific organization, denomination, or building.A testimony in Mormonism is a memorized statement that focuses on the prophet, the church, and sometimes the family, rather than on Jesus.While Mormonism as an institution is not part of the one true church, individuals within the Mormon church can still have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.Core doctrines such as belief in the Bible, the Trinity, the deity of Jesus, salvation by faith, and life after death are important in determining if a church is part of the one true church.
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The Unveiling Mormonism podcast pulls back the curtain on Mormon history, culture and doctrine. Join us for new episodes every Monday.
Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/mormonism.
Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.
Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.
Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.
Donate Now
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Notes
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