Navigating Faith and Struggles

Taking live questions from the YT live chat! Every Friday at 1 p.m. Pacific time. While I don't pretend to know all the answers, I hope to offer some thoughts that will help you in the direction of thinking biblically about things.

The BibleThinker mugs can be found here. $5 per mug will go toward supporting different ministries I choose. For the time being, it's supporting refugees driven from their homes by ISIS.
https://www.zockollpottery.com/product-page/new-bible-thinker-mug

Here is Restoring Faith, the ministry helping refugees in the name of Christ: https://www.restoringfaithinc.org/

My website: https://BibleThinker.org

1. 0:17 {Did Jesus Consider the OT to be Scripture?} You said in a past Q&A session that Jude references Enoch, and your best explanation is that it's just to make a point, not to say that Enoch is canon or inerrant. But that's also my conclusion about when Jesus refers to the Old Testament. Isn’t it the same for when Jesus refers to the Old Testament?
2. 5:18 {If I Don’t Read Scripture, am I Still Accountable?} Romans 1:8-2: 16…Responsibility? I'm afraid to read/not read the Scriptures. So I read/don't read, sometimes feeling physically ill/deeply anxious/even empty. Is it normal to feel like this?
3. 10:16 {Discussing a Confusing Verse} What are your thoughts about Matthew 26: 13? You taught earlier that this specific action is not even recorded in all the Gospels, so what does Jesus mean?
4. 13:42 {How did OT Punishments Display God’s Love?} What was the point of capital punishment in OT, which was way too harsh to the point that it was not strictly followed back then? How does it display God's love when people are killed for not obeying?
5. 22:19 {Reconciling Two Verses} How does Ecclesiastes 9:4-6 reconcile with Paul’s statement that “to live is Christ and to die is gain”? Am I misreading it?
6. 27:01 {Overcoming Condemnation/Embracing God’s Grace} I have a good understanding of God’s Love and forgiveness in my head, but I have trouble living as though I believe it in my heart, and I still feel condemned at times (1 John 4: 16-18). Any advice?
7. 32:36 {About Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh} What is your opinion on Paul's thorn in the flesh? I heard it was his eyes, maybe from his encounter on the road to Damascus? 1) He had Luke, a doctor, with him during his travels 2) He had others write his letters.
8. 40:00 {How to “Walk in the Spirit”} From Galatians 5, what is does it mean to “walk in the Spirit”? And do you have any pastoral advice for a new disciple on this subject?
9. 47:46 {Difference: Doubt vs. Unbelief} What is the difference biblically between doubt & unbelief? Are either of them a sin?
10. 52:48 {How is the Holy Spirit Received?} How does receiving the Holy Spirit work? In Acts, there are two times the HS is poured out: Jews (Ch. 2) and then Gentiles (Ch. 10), but every other time is passed by laying on of hands (Acts 8: 14-18, 19:6, etc.).
11. 56:27 {Advice for a Difficult College Situation} I have to read “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” for school, but Oprah did a movie on it. Since she denied that Jesus is the only way, I don’t know if I should drop the class. Thoughts?
12. 58:24 {About the Timing of our Death} Are our deaths appointed to us in both time and manner? If a person dies being hit by a car on the corner of Times Square, was it always going to end that way?
13. 1:02:20 {How to Handle Online-Only Congregants} How should churches handle their local online only congregants? This is a big dilemma in my church's leadership right now. (Let's assume that it is safe to return to in-person church.)
14. 1:04:13 {About the “Day of the Lord”} What is the day of the Lord?
15. 1:06:16 {Was Jesus Created? Answering JWs} How would you respond to a JW who says that Revelation 3: 14 proves that Jesus was created when it says He is the “beginning of Creation”?
16. 1:09:48 {Using Apologetics to Reach Friends} How do you recommend bringing up apologetics with unbelieving friends?
17. 1:12:48 {Are Non-Believers Morally Superior?} How should I respond to the attitude of, “So-and-so is moral without a belief in God - therefore, they are better than someone who needs religion to be good”?
18. 1:17:30 {Can Preaching the Truth Harden Hearts?} What is a Christian’s role to speak truth on cultural issues to non-Christian society? Just preach good news & individual hearts get changed? It seems like preaching against homosexuality hardens hearts.
19. 1:24:48 {Is Receiving Imputed Righteousness Just?} How/why can our sins be imputed to Jesus? I'm confused about the "transfer." If God is just, how can He let someone else step in for our sin? And how valid is the sacrifice if He was going to rise again?
20. 1:31:28 {Is God the Branch, or the Vine?} A few times in the OT, Jesus is referred to as the Branch (Zechariah 3:8, 6: 12, Jeremiah 23:5). Why then is He referred to as the Vine and us the branches in John 15:5?