Kainos Project

Immigration is always a contentious issue in America, as well as in the evangelical church. In an election year and with the current crisis at the border, that is especially true right now. And while Christians have a rich history of caring for marginalized people, including refugees and immigrants, the current political climate has caused distrust or even disdain for migrants to creep into the church.  On this episode, we seek to develop a theology of immigration by looking at what the Bible has to say about immigrants. It may surprise you how often the topic arises! Then we dive into to some of the specific policy concerns that are driving the conversation today—not so much to give you an "answer" or tell you how to vote, but to set the rules of engagement for Christians seeking to advocate for immigration policies that are both compassionate and effective. READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

When it comes to the devil, plenty of misconception circulate not only in our culture but in the church as well. Some of what we believe about Satan is informed by the Bible. But a lot of it comes from cultural traditions and misinterpretations of what the Bible says. On this episode, we do a deep dive on what the Bible says about the devil. Who is he? What should we know about him? And what should Christians do to be prepared against him? READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

A recent Alabama Supreme Court decisions has ignited a passionate discourse about the morality of in-vitro fertilization (IVF), and pro-life Christians stand on either side of the debate. The case centers on a wrongful death lawsuit that was brought against a fertility clinic in 2020 after the embryos of a couple using the clinic's IVF treatment services were accidentally destroyed. The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that the suit has valid grounding, since an embryo is a human life. Many pro-lifers are hailing the ruling as a victory. Nevertheless, the precedent this ruling sets has implication well beyond this specific case, and fertility clinics have discontinued their IVF services for fear of legal exposure. If embryos are to be treated as humans, then fertility clinics could face civil or even criminal charges for destroying them, something that is a regular practice in IVF treatments. On this episode, we explore the moral complexities involved with IVF and other reproductive technologies. How can Christian think through these questions in a way that is theologically informed and compassionate toward potential mothers, as well as their future children? READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

From time to time, we receive questions from folks who are trying to figure out an important point of theology or biblical doctrine. And we enjoy getting to offer our thoughts in the context of those personal interactions, whether in-person or online.  While we don't always have great answers, we think it's important to faithfully wrestle with the questions we receive (and that we have ourselves). That's part of the heartbeat of our podcast. On this episode, we tackle some common questions that we hear, offering our thoughts on a range of theological concerns. Here are the questions we focus on: Is it wrong for a Christian to get cremated? What is a saint? Are only some Christians saints? Is suicide the unforgivable sin?  What is the “age of accountability”? If you have a question you'd like to hear us discuss on a future episode, email us at info@kainosproject.com! READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

As Christians, we look up to people who pray and read the Bible a lot. But the sad fact is that some of the people we think of as the most devout are actually suffering from a condition known as religious scrupulosity. Scrupulosity is a subset of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and is marked by the constant presence of intrusive thoughts about sin, hell, or blasphemy, resulting in compulsive religious activity. It can be extremely debilitating, and a lack of awareness about it can keep us from helping the people in our lives who may be suffering from it. On this episode, we explore what religious scrupulosity is, its symptoms, and how it differs from a healthy commitment to religious practices and spiritual disciplines. We also look at some of our heroes in church history through the lens of scrupulosity. Did some of them suffer from extreme anxiety that they compensated for with religious compulsions? We also discuss how our approach to theology can trigger or exacerbate feelings of religious scrupulosity, even among people who are relatively healthy. Are there ways we can adjust how we talk about biblical doctrines to better help us become both holy and healthy? READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Alistair Begg has become the subject of considerable criticism in recent weeks after he said that he had advised a woman to attend her grandson's wedding with a trans person. While Begg gave the advice with the caveat that the woman was clear that she had not changed her views on marriage and gender, he said that reaching hearts for the gospel would "take risks." Amid a bevy of criticism, Begg has stood by his comments. As a result, American Family Radio has pulled his "Truth for Life" program from 1,800 radio stations. On this episode, we discuss what exactly Begg said and whether we agree with him. We also explore broader questions about the relationship between the church and the LGBTQ+ community. What does it look like to walk in grace and truth when we disagree with the prevailing culture about such fundamental realities? READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

In a recent video that went viral, progressive Christian minister Brandan Robertson claimed that the problem with evangelicalism is that it focuses too much on the teachings of Paul and not enough on the teachings of Jesus. Robertson went on to claim that Paul even contradicts Jesus on a number of important points, and that when that happens, we should go with the teachings of Jesus instead of Paul's. What Robertson said was not unique. Rather, it is a common claim within the movement of progressive Christianity. In this episode, we discuss Robertson's specific claims and why we believe a number of things that he says are misleading or outright false. We also explore some of the tenants of progressive Christianity more generally and discuss how tethering ourselves to the historic Christian tradition helps us from coming up with innovative ways to arrive at old heresies. READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

President Joe Biden recently held a campaign event at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, denouncing white supremacy and casting his vision for a second term as president. Notably, Mother Emanuel has been a historic part of the Reconstruction era and Civil Rights movement. It is also the place where a racially motivated mass shooting claimed the lives of nine people in 2015. Remarkably, surviving members of the church went to court to offer forgiveness to the white supremacist killer. After the event, some conservative commentators were critical—but not at Biden. Instead, their ire was cast toward the evangelical leaders who in 2021 had denounced Robert Jeffress' First Baptist Church in Dallas for giving Donald Trump the microphone during a Christmas service but had nothing critical to say about Biden's event at Mother Emanuel AME Church. Are these two events the same thing? Or are there fundamental differences? This week on the podcast, we discuss. We also look ahead to what promises to be a politically volatile year in 2024. In our discussion, we grapple with how Christians should engage in politics as we look to the presidential election in November. READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Throughout the millennia, Jesus has been portrayed by artists across every conceivable medium. Some of these depictions of Jesus have sought to prioritize historical accuracy, while others have focused on conveying theological significance through artistic expression. Depending on the culture of the artist, depictions of Jesus have varied greatly. Nevertheless, for American evangelicals and other western Christians, the standard for how we think of Jesus' appearance has been set by artists who portrayed him as a western European. That hasn't been the case for everyone in the global church. In a recent photo essay published in Christianity Today, Victoria Emily Jones explored the ways in which Jesus' birth has been portrayed throughout the centuries in Asian cultures, providing insight into the unique ways in which depictions of Jesus have indigenized to those cultures. The article was met with stanch criticism, with a number of Christian leaders decrying CT as "woke" and "liberal." In this episode, we take a closer look at the article and explore why it caused such backlash. We also discuss artistic depictions of Jesus more generally. For example, is it okay that they are culturally defined? To what measure are we conscious or unconscious of the fact that our culture is defining our depictions of Jesus? And how much historical accuracy do we need in order to understand who Jesus is in a way that is theologically cogent? READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

After the fall of Roe v. Wade, pro-life Christians around the nation celebrated the nearly half-century of advocacy that led to the decision. However, a little more than a year after the Dobbs decision, national abortion rates are up. What's more is that Christians within the pro-life movement disagree about how best to move forward. On the one hand, you have mainstream, incrementalist pro-life movement, which has led in this conversation for the better part of five decades. And on the other, you have the emerging abortion abolitionist movement, which is advocating for total bans on abortion and criminal prosecutions for women who seek them. In this episode, we discuss how the abolitionist movement differs from the traditional pro-life movement. We express where we can find areas of agreement with abolitionists, as well as what we find troubling about the movement. READ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Visit kainosproject.com to find other resources to help you tackle ancient truths in everyday settings, and be sure to subscribe to our email list to get all of our fresh content delivered straight to your inbox.Subscribe on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.