Ask Dr. E

Full Q: I would love to know your thoughts about how we should take the series, The Chosen?  So many Christians, we know, are watching it and there have been over 400 million views worldwide.  We love the idea of Jesus and the Disciples going viral, but have a few problems with our kids seeing some of the creative additions, such as: Jesus appearing to practice, to get his words right, before havi...

Full Q: I’ve heard a lot of people say “let Jesus take the wheel,” meaning Jesus takes control of your life and “steers” it where he wants. I have also heard someone compare it to Jesus being in the passenger seat. He tells you where to go, and you can either obey him or go your own way. I kind of feel like “Jesus take the wheel” isn’t realistic because you aren’t forced to obey him. What do you t...

Full Q: I’m having a hard time with responding as to why I can’t attend a gay wedding… I have a friend that’s gay, she’s getting married and she’s invited me. I’ve declined, but she would like to know why I cannot attend… she’s not a believer. I stumble upon my words because I see from a worldly perspective how it can be interpreted as judgmental and non loving. I’m really struggling…she’s express...

Full Q: What are some good resources for understanding the culture and society of the Old Testament times and the New Testament times? Links mentioned: Life and Times of Jesus The Messiah by Alfred Edersheim Dr. Tom Constable's Notes  Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth E. Bailey Talk Thru The Bible by Kenneth Boa and Bruce Wilkinson The Words and Works of Jesus Christ by J. Dwight Pentec...

Full Q: Are we able to see any of the stones of remembrance that the Bible talks about? I’ve always wondered if they have found piles of stones in the Holy Land that might be stones of remembrance. Read the full show notes here.

Full Q: Is There a Possibility That God Created Life on Other Planets? And if so, would salvation look the same or would the life on that planet even receive salvation? Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Question: "No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning". "No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him". What does it mean when we repent from a sin (repeatedly) but just cannot seem to “shake it“, in light of these verses?  Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

 I was conflicted recently hearing that "forgiveness is conditional"; that we are to forgive like God forgives, giving the scripture 1 John 1:9; that it would be unfair to Christ to forgive without the offending person repenting. Is forgiveness conditional? Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Full Q: To expand on the question “Can our loved ones see us from heaven” will we see our loved ones when we get to heaven? Will the relationships still be the same? Will we remember our lives on earth with each other? Will we still love them or will all our love be redirected to only Christ? I have breast cancer and my grandmother died of breast cancer when I was two. I have no memory of her but...

Full Q: Why does Jesus tell the man to do something (wash the mud off his eyes) when in other places like Matthew 9:30, He just heals people without them doing anything?  Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: My husband and I were driving and passed by a church where the sign said the church was led by "Apostle So-and-so." It made us wonder, are there still apostles today? Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: When we are faced with decisions and seeking the Lord through prayer and His word, how often should something be prayed about?  Resources Mentioned: Barbara Brand inContext episode  Cindy Easley inContext episode Robert Morgan inContext episode  Kenneth Boa - Handbook to Prayer Kenneth Boa inContext episode  Arthur G. Bennett - The Valley of Vision Read the full blog post here. Call or text us...

 I have a question specifically about the verse Proverbs 13:22 which reads a good man leaves his inheritance for his children’s children. This verse is haunting to us as we are in the middle of restructuring our living will here in Tennessee and our grown son is not wise with money and has no wherewithal or interest. Basically, we are leaving our legacy to the church. How do we grapple with this v...

Question: I’ve always been fascinated with biblical archaeology. Is it a waste of time to speculate over such things? Resources Mentioned J. Randall Price and H. Wayne House - Zondervan Handbook of Biblical Archaeology The Bible and Spade Magazine Biblical Archaeologist Read the full blog post here.

Q: If Satan was cast out of Heaven, can we (being believers after death and during our eternal lives in heaven) also be cast out of Heaven? If we struggle with pride, selfishness, and greed now, what’s to say we are or aren’t going to be capable of falling like Satan? Read the full blog post here. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: Could you explain the concept of "testing God with your offerings"? Does God "return favors" to us? Where is the line with the prosperity gospel in regards to offerings? Resources Mentioned: Joyce Baldwin- Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi Lewis Sperry Chafer- Systematic Theology Craig A. Blaising, “Malachi,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures Read the full episode b...

I’ve often heard churches and pastors tell believers that the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) is binding on all believers. It is often the explicit or functional mission statement of churches. That all seems good. But I have wondered… If this is the case, why is it so difficult to find any Epistles clearly repeating this command or commanding Christians to evangelize and baptize disciples dire...

Q: I don’t see anywhere in the Bible where after the description of Jesus sharing bread and wine during the Passover meals that it says that this should become a ritual… As in something that you do in church or at a gathering. I’ve often wondered why we don’t just do this at home every day. It’s like when we break bread at suppertime and have our drink why don’t we just say it and remember that Ch...

Q: You always say we must take the word at its word. We don’t add or take away. You say not to worry about what we “think” it means, but what it does mean. A few weeks ago you mentioned that the Proverbs 31 woman was not really about what a woman should want to be but was about wisdom. This was a little surprising to me because since I’ve read it as a little girl it seems very cut and dry. It’s a...

Question: What do you think of Christians using pronouns for themselves and others who demand we address them with their preferred pronouns? I feel like by using pronouns for myself and others; I'm conforming to the culture and, in turn, humoring those individuals that identify as they/them and other opposing pronouns that don't line up with their biological sex. I don't want to make them feel dis...

Before the fall, God invented sex as a form of intimacy to be a blessing within marriage. Therefore, we have always been sexual beings. It is important to know that within God’s purpose, it is not sin, but outside of this purpose, it is sin. Sexual intimacy is a gift of God to a husband and wife, and it is a wonderful blessing.  Check out the blog post here. Resources Mentioned: Ed Wheat- Intended...

Q: If everything happens for a reason, and things are predestined to happen, then why do we pray? How does prayer change things? I struggle with this area in my Christian life, and I think partly because I don’t understand and don’t know if my prayer makes a difference. Resources Mentioned:  The Handbook To Prayer By Ken Boa Andrew Murray- With Christ in the School of Prayer Arthur G. Bennett- The...

Q: How Do I Know if I Am Actually Growing? Resources Mentioned: The Handbook To Prayer By Ken Boa Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com. Read the Blog Post

What does it mean to “lift up your horn” like in 1 Samuel 2:1a: “Hannah prayed: My heart rejoices in the Lord; my horn is lifted up by the Lord.”? Resources mentioned are all in our Show Notes. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: After listening to your episode on women in pastoral leadership (which I completely agreed with), I was wondering if you could answer another question from the same passage… Scripture seems a little unclear on the service position of a deacon, at least compared to the office of an overseer/elder. So, were deacons an actual “office" in the first church, or were they simply servants/volunteers as...