Worldview Legacy | The Think Institute

Worldview Wednesday is back after several weeks. And the guys are a little rusty. But God’s word is still good, and still true, and we can all be grateful for that. In this Worldview Wednesday episode you’ll see a theologian and a pastor dissect the latest headlines from France, where President Macron and others are concerned about the influx of woke ideology and the destructive impact it’s having on French society. Specifically, you’ll find out… Joel’s working man’s definition of wokeness. Why Macron considers wokeness an American export. What he suggests as a solution (and why Joel and Pastor Raef don’t like it). How God’s word and the Gospel in particular overcome evil ideologies like wokeness and white supremacy/white nationalism, and bring about true unity in Christ. You’ll also see what happens when the guys discover in real time (as they’re recording) that one of the websites they’re referencing turns out to be… ahem… problematic and hear them denounce it on air. So that’s fun (we didn't write the article, don't endorse it or the website it was posted on, and immediately disavowed it when we saw it might be bad, so cool it Wokies). Here's that Disrn article we discuss: https://disrn.com/news/french-president-macron-says-social-and-racial-theories-entirely-imported-from-the-united-states-are-destroying-french-culture Get more from Raef at raefchenery.com, and be sure to subscribe to his podcast, “The Christian Optimist!” SUBSCRIBE to get equipped to explain, share and defend the Christian message! http://youtube.com/c/thinkinstitute. The Think Institute’s mission is to equip believers to explain, share and defend the Christian message. Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast.

Joel Settecase is a Christian, and Ethan Micheal is… not. However, their differences in belief have not kept them from having robust conversations about God, knowledge, morality and other big questions of life. And in this episode of the Think Podcast, they are back for round four. In 2020, Joel Settecase debated Ethan Micheal, AKA “Your Friendly Neighborhood Atheist” on the topic of morality (you can watch that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wc9i97A-PT4). This led to another conversation on Ethan’s channel about knowledge (here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mymLIvvnrxk), followed by yet another discussion on the Think Podcast (here: https://thethink.institute/.../interview-with-ethan...). Do you have an interest in spiritual or theological matters? When was the last time you had a thoughtful, theological dialogue with someone who believed very differently from you? Do you have someone in your life with whom you’d like to share the Gospel, but aren’t sure how to bring it up? These would all be good reasons to catch this episode of the Think Podcast with Joel Settecase. In today’s episode you’ll see a lifelong Christian and a self-professed atheist going head-to-head on why one of them believes in Jesus, and the other doesn’t. Specifically, you’ll find out… Whether or not Ethan still considers himself an atheist, and what he means by that term. Why he chose to make his channel’s anniversary celebration a fundraiser, and how he chose the organization. If Joel and Ethan can agree on whether there is an “atheistic worldview.” What it looks like for a Christian and a skeptic to converse together without lobbing insults or throwing stones. Joel’s guest today is Ethan Micheal, founder of the Your Friendly Neighborhood Atheist YouTube channel and Facebook page, which focuses on “friendly discourse and positive skepticism.” Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast

The journey to defending your faith continues. In this brief episode, Joel Settecase explains when apologetics should begin. Specifically, you’ll learn… How evangelism leads to apologetics. How apologetics is meant to get you back to evangelism. What the apologetic cycle is. SUBSCRIBE to get equipped to explain, share and defend the Christian message! http://youtube.com/c/thinkinstitute. The Think Institute’s mission is to equip believers to explain, share and defend the Christian message. Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast

The journey to defending your faith starts here. In this brief introduction to apologetics, Joel Settecase explains what apologetics is and shares a crisis of faith that he experienced. Specifically, you’ll learn… Why Joel Settecase struggled with his faith at age 15, and how he overcame that crisis. The definition of apologetics according to theologian and apologist John Frame. Joel Settecase’s own definition of apologetics. SUBSCRIBE to get equipped to explain, share and defend the Christian message! http://youtube.com/c/thinkinstitute. The Think Institute’s mission is to equip believers to explain, share and defend the Christian message. Get the full show notes here: https://thethink.institute/podcast.

Have you ever driven past your local abortion facility and thought, “Man, I know what’s going on inside there, and I wish I could do something about it; but what can I do?”? Or have you seen a group of people gathered outside a Planned Parenthood, praying, holding signs or preaching, and wondered if they were crazy… or if you should be out there with them? Well, today’s episode is going to answer a lot of your questions. Specifically, you’ll find out… What Joel’s recent experience ministering outside a local Planned Parenthood in Aurora, Illinois, was like, and whether his experience was typical. Why some Christians stand outside of abortion clinics like Planned Parenthood, and what they hope to accomplish. What their message is for the moms and dads entering (and exiting) the facility, as well as for the staff and volunteers (escorts or “deathscorts”). Whether you should start doing abortion mill ministry, and how to get started. Joel's guests today are Glenn Bilkis and Tyler Turdici. Tyler is an associate pastor at the Oasis Church in Aurora, Illinois, a husband married 8 years, and a father of two young ones. He was also a California transplant before it was cool. Glenn is a maintenance mechanic, married 24 years with one son. Both men are veterans of the abortion mill ministry world, and they helped introduce Joel to that world when he joined them recently. You will hear Glenn and Tyler explain "What You Can Do To End Abortion.” Glenn and Tyler share their experiences, what obstacles they’ve faced, whether they’ve seen the same kind of success as other abortion mill ministry groups, and why—in spite of the hardships—they persevere. We will also be taking questions from viewers, live. Get the full show notes here: https://thethink.institute/podcast.

“If God is real, where’s the evidence?” This is one objection that I hear a lot as a Christian apologist. And on the surface, it seems like a totally fair question. After all, we live in a scientific age, a rational age (at least, supposedly), and we have come to expect a certain standard of evidential accountability from those who make truth claims. And certainly, the existence of God is a truth claim. However, what if the question of God’s existence is not something that can be answered using evidence, but rather is a a prerequisite for even believing that evidence is meaningful at all? In other words, what if atheists, skeptics and unbelievers have the issue completely backwards? That’s what Joel Settecase and Sye Ten Bruggencate discuss in this first-ever episode of “Answer Anyone with Sye Ten Bruggencate.” Specifically, you’ll find out… What apologetics is. What evidence is. Why the very use of evidence presupposes God’s existence. How a presuppositional approach to apologetics can answer the question of God’s existence best, and why Joel and Sye don’t typically use that phrase. How Joel first started using Sye’s material back in the day, and what was the response of his youth group students. Much, much more. This episode is packed! Support this show! https://patreon.com/answeranyone Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast

Believers, when was the last time you had a theological conversation with an self-proclaimed atheist or skeptic?    It may seem that meaningful dialogue between people who diametrically disagree with one another about fundamental issues is growing increasingly rare, but when the opportunity does arrive, will you be ready? On today's episode, get ready to see just such a dialogue, as Travis Pangburn joins Joel Settecase on the Think Podcast.    Travis Pangburn is a philosopher, producer and YouTube personality. His channel has many important discussions between great philosophical and scientific minds, most notably Sam Harris vs. Jordan Peterson. Travis is currently finishing his first book which seeks to explain unknown components of emergent mind properties.   You can learn more about Pangburn at Pang-burn.com   Specifically, Joel and Travis will discuss…   His backstory, whether he had any religious upbringing, and how he came to embrace atheism and skepticism.   Why Travis Pangburn is not a Christian.    The biblical worldview and Joel and Travis's variant approaches to it.   The biblical Gospel and Travis's response to it. Whether atheism or biblical Christianity better makes sense of the world.   SUBSCRIBE to get equipped to explain, share and defend the Christian message! http://youtube.com/c/thinkinstitute.   The Think Institute’s mission is to equip believers to explain, share and defend the Christian message. Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast.

In light of recent events (the January 6 storming of the United States Capitol, the Big Tech purge, the locking down of D. C. and deployment of the National Guard ahead of Biden's inauguration, and the appointment of self-proclaimed "transgender" Rachel Levine as Biden's Assistant Health Secretary—not to mention the the gubernatorial mandates of the last 10 months) many Christians are thinking about the topic of tyranny. I make no predictions about what a Biden regime will bring. I'm not a prophet. But I do have God's word, and that word does give us instructions for how to live faithfully under tyranny. I'm not saying whether or what kind of tyranny is coming. I'm saying that, should tyranny increase, we have examples and teaching from Scripture to tell us how to handle it.   Specifically, you’ll find out…   How the Hebrew people faced extreme tyranny in biblical history.   How two exemplary women defied tyranny in obedience to God, and how they were rewarded by God for doing so.    What major obstacle keeps us from obeying God in the face of tyranny.    How the Gospel overcomes that obstacle.    How we should live in the face of tyranny, and why it will all be worth it in the end.   The Think Institute’s mission is to equip believers to explain, share and defend the Christian message. Get the full show notes and blog post here: https://thethink.institute/articles/how-should-christians-respond-to-tyranny. 

Ready to get equipped to understand, explain, share, defend or live out your faith? Apply for a Hammer & Anvil Cohort today! The events of January 6 are still fresh on our mind, and 2020’s Antifa and BLM riots are fading from memory for most of us. This, then is the perfect time to bring out this Worldview Wednesday episode from the archives for your auditory enjoyment and edification. In it, Joel and Pastor Raef discuss the Christian view of civil government, and when (or if) it is ever appropriate for Christians to resist, oppose or rebel against that government. Specifically, you’ll learn about… A biblical view of civil government, its role, and whether insurrection is ever right. What the Bible has to say about rebellion and revolution. How believers should really think about Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who forwarded a plot to kill Adolf Hitler. Much more. You don’t want to miss this. SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel to get equipped to explain, share and defend the Christian message! Get the full show notes here: https://thethink.institute/podcast.

If, like me (Joel Settecase), you are someone who is in regular conversation with people who don’t believe the same things you do, you know that sometimes those conversations can get heated. In fact, they can become all-out, head-on collisions of worldviews—your Christian worldview vs. their non-Christian worldview. And of course this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Healthy, robust, respectful debate has been a hallmark of Christian evangelism for hundreds of years. However, it does bring up some needs. One, you need to have a strong confidence that God’s word is actually true. Two, you need to possess skills to express the truth of God’s word in a way that will “demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Co 10:4b-5). And three, you need to root your communication in biblical love—of God and your discussion partner. So then, wouldn’t it be great if there were an argument that allowed you do all three? In this episode of the ThinkPod, you’ll hear me interview noted apologist, Sye Ten Bruggencate, about exactly that kind of argument. If you’re already familiar with Presuppositional Apologetics, you will appreciate how he expresses the approach in a way you probably haven’t heard before. If you’re brand new to Presup, though, this may prove a great starting point to get into this way of defending the truth of the Christian message. Specifically, you’ll learn why “The fear of the Lord” is so important, and how it factors into not only epistemology (knowledge) but also apologetics (defense of the faith). Check out Sye Ten Bruggencate’s website here for more apologetics resources. I especially like the “Other Worldviews” section. Get the full show notes here: https://thethink.institute/podcast.