Ask Dr. E

Q: I have a question about Heaven. I have a desire to have a home near water. It doesn’t matter if it is an ocean, river, or mountain lake. I would also like it to be big enough to host people for dinner or as a retreat. My dad had a desire to have a big home where the whole family could gather and we would have plenty of room for everyone. He went to Heaven before he was able to have that house....

Today's question is a follow-up to our recent episode about infant baptism. Based on comments Hanna and Michael both made during that episode, the question: Health, cultural or traditional reasons aside, should Christian parents have their sons circumcised for religious or theological reasons? Do you have a biblical or theological question? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at...

Q: Regarding the "lost sheep" and our Good Shepherd Who goes after even one: is that referring to unbelievers, or to someone who has strayed from the flock, and do they both "know His voice"? A great question! Do you have a biblical or theological question? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: Why are censuses usually considered a sin in the OT? For example, 2 Samuel 24:9-10 says, “Joab gave the king the total of the registration of the troops. There were eight hundred thousand valiant armed men from Israel and five hundred thousand men from Judah. David’s conscience troubled him after he had taken a census of the troops. He said to the Lord, 'I have sinned greatly in what I’ve done....

“Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” Matthew 16:28 This week's question: Can you please put into context the meaning of Jesus’s comment found in Matthew 16:28: “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in...

"And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is Elijah who was to come." Matthew 11:14 Q: Wait a minute, was John the Baptist Elijah? A question more than a few careful students of scripture have pondered. Hear Dr. E's answer in this episode. Do you have a biblical or theological question? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: Why did God create people who would reject Him? A complicated question with an answer that's perhaps simpler than you'd think. "If we say that God created man to destroy him, we make God capricious and malevolent. If we say man has complete free will, we brush up against the doctrine of election/predestination..." Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelinconte...

Today's question: Is There a Biblical Argument for Christians to use Self-Defense? Find resources mentioned at michaelincontext.com. Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

A great question prompting a candid discussion about performative prayer, gossip, and the Biblical instruction to bear one another's burdens. Q: My question has to do with the idea of asking others to pray for whatever. I follow several Christian social media groups, for example. I find myself overwhelmed by the requests for prayer, often for “Unspoken needs” as “God knows.” I have been dealing wi...

Q: The Bible says we will have an accounting for everything on the day of Judgement. If we are saved aren’t we spared from all the sins we’ve committed with Jesus standing by our side stating HE took our sins? Or are we still given an account of our life both good and sinful? Along with this is- what about all the horrible sins committed by Christians while they were Christians- ie slavery, treati...

A number of terms become part of our vernacular as believers. We use these terms freely among fellow believers, non-believers, seasoned Christians, and those new to the faith. But we seldom stop to define these terms, which is why we love today's question: What is Sanctification? Do you have a question for Dr. E? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.c...

We've got a lot of new Ask Dr. E's listeners around these parts and we thought we'd give Michael 10 minutes to tell you a little bit more about himself and how he came to know the Lord. Do you have a question for Dr. E? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: My question is about the L in TULIP - limited Atonement. I have had trouble wrapping my mind around this and reconciling it with some of scripture. RC Sproul's term definite atonement has helped me and I think it is probably a more accurate term. But would like to hear what Dr. E has to say about this doctrine and scripture to support it. Head to our show notes for all of the resources mentione...

Q: Jesus breathes on the disciples (John 20:22) and they receive the the Holy Spirit. Seems like creation account when He breathed life into Adam. It seems like a picture of we’re dead in our sins but when forgiven because of the cross, we receive new life, abundant and eternal life and the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Why does John 20:23 seem to imply Jesus also conferring power to forgive sins...

Q: In light of Elon Musk's twitter purchase, Shane Claiborne posted, "If people of faith practiced the biblical Jubilee, there would be no billionaires. Every generation was to forgive debts, free slaved, and redistribute property. (Leviticus 25) It was God's Way of systematically dismantling inequality." Is this for real?

Q: "Moreover, your little ones who you said would become a prey, and your sons, who this day have no knowledge of good or evil, shall enter there, and I will give it to them and they shall possess it." (Deuteronomy 1:39) Is "no knowledge of good or evil" a call back to the tree of knowledge of good & evil in Eden? This seems like language that would've brought that to an Israelite's mind immediate...

Q: Why would God tell Moses that none of Aaron's descendants who had physical defects could come near to present offerings to the Lord (Lev. 21:16-24) but Jesus would later interact with, heal, and even touch the lame, blind, and crippled? Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: Why do some Christian denominations practice infant baptism while others only practice believer baptism? What do practitioners believe infant baptism does/does not mean or accomplish?

Dr. E answers: How do you reconcile moments when you lack faith or don't trust God? We can't overstate that we are fallen creatures in a fallen condition. We're going to doubt. I don't want to say it's normal and we should be okay with it, but I will say it's normal and it's okay. He loves you and me when we fail. God can handle our doubtful prayers. Faithfulness is the objective, not success.

Q: What's so wrong with the instruction to "ask Jesus into your heart?" Call or text us your question at 615-281-9694 or email at question@michaelincontext.com.

Q: Are (or why are) issues like homosexuality and transgenderism "hills worth dying on" for believers? Can't we agree to disagree with, for example, the Episcopalians, over differing interpretations of Scripture? Don't let the culture define your identity in Christ. I'm going to defend the scripture. Christians are afraid to say, "I'm not mad at you, I don't hate you, but that's not what the Scrip...

Part 2 of Dr. E's answer: Q: I'm looking to buy a new Bible. What do you recommend? Let's talk about translations, cross-references, footnotes, and other features within a Bible: what's best? What's helpful for personal study, and what might be extraneous?

Q: I'm looking to buy a new Bible. What do you recommend? Have you ever wondered what the difference is between all of the options for binding styles or materials used in available Bibles? Does it make a difference? What makes a Bible last longer, or makes it easier to use? Dr. E shares practical tips for what and where to look for a new Bible. 

This week's question comes from a caller wondering about legalism, separatism, earning God's approval, being judgmental. Dr. E offers advice on how to reframe the Christian life from living by a set of rules to living by the discipline and leading of God's Word, God's Spirit, and God's People. Q: I grew up in a legalistic Baptist church... My question is about separation—[the church I grew up in]...

Q: I’ve always thought community happens when you embrace the people God has put in your life and you choose to do life together with them. Some insist that you should join a “community group” with your church to properly do life with fellow believers. I find it difficult to join a group of people you don’t have anything in common with when you have people in your life already that you don’t see e...