Over the past month, I have spent around six hours sitting on panels in which Christians ask the “Hard Questions.” What I have discovered is that Christians of all ages, all backgrounds, and all social classes have questions for which they want to hear honest and biblical answers. Our two hour panel at First Baptist Columbia was well-received, and we ran out of time long before we ran out of questions. Our panel at Lakeland Baptist Church in Carbondale brought a flood of texted questions from high-school students in southern Illinois. At Super Summer, we spent three hours answering questions, and left a mountain of questions unaddressed simply due to a lack of time.
The questions on these panels have covered such a wide variety of topics, theological, ethical, moral, philosophical, etc., that it is nearly impossible to summarize any one discussion. Some types of questions have included:
· How can we trust the Bible?
· Why does God consider homosexuality a sin?
· Can a Christian lose his or her salvation?
· Is listening to Christian heavy metal OK?
· Which is true, free will or predestination, Calvinism or Arminianism?
· How should I understand dinosaurs from a biblical perspective?
· Questions about end-times, the rapture, the antichrist, etc.
· Does a man who never hears the gospel get a second chance to receive Jesus after his death?
· Is this or that activity morally wrong?
So, faithful blog readers (both of you), I’d like to hear from you. What would you like to hear biblically answered? If your church had a “Hard Questions” panel, what would you ask? What questions do you hear other Christians really wanting to know an answer to?
Leave a comment, and let me know. Perhaps I’ll even try to tackle some of your suggestions in a future post.
Pastor Travis Peterson 