Study of Col 2:8

It's it's fascinating to me how easily someone in one religion can find the fallacies and biases in another religion. I think that. What's fascinating you're raised you're razor sharp on your your your criticism of islam here.

Yeah, and but what I find fascinating jeff is that You recognize that with other religions, but you don't do it with your own because I that may be the case.

And and there's that confirmation bite coming up again. This is apologetics live to answer your questions your host from striving for eternity ministries.

Opening the Show and Taking Questions About God and the Bible

We are live. Apologetics live here to answer your most challenging questions you have about god and the bible. This is a ministry of striving for eternity. We are here. You can join us Every thursday night.

Well most thursday nights I should say where we will seek to answer any questions that you have about god and the bible. That is what we do. We seek to answer them and I will tell you right up front I can answer every single question that you have about god in the bible.

If you doubt that please join us. Just go to apologetics live .com. Come on in ask me your hardest question. Just remember one thing. I don't know is a perfectly good answer. I didn't say i'd give you a satisfactory one.

I just said I would answer it. With that, let me bring in my co-host from open air theology, which we are also streaming on.

Mr. Tom shepherd from open air theology. Welcome. Hello. How you doing? Andrew glad to be here.

Oh look. The bigfoot hillbilly is here. He haps addison. He says oh.

Yeah.

He's he's if if there ever was a bigfoot hillbilly that that's it right there.

That would. Yeah, he is proof that bigfoot exists. Yeah, you know, I bet.

There there's probably a movie on on that that subject. You know, I I wish I wish we had a movie buff that would just.

You know.

You know, oh hey, did somebody say movie. That's parker brown from the watch well podcast.

How's it going fellas. It's good to meet you buddy. Yeah. Nice meeting you, bro. Well, thanks for inviting me on.

And we are also streaming on on his feed as well at the watch well podcast another good podcast to be followed although we we should talk about the fact that out of the three of us did make it, uh into the into the the big brackets there the the Dead man walking every year has these brackets.

And he had the three of our podcasts in there.

Yes.

Now now you know Parker you you put up a good fight. You had some great videos against the ezer institute.

Uh, but you came up a little short it came up short, you know, I will say I was very proud of the race we ran. We, uh, we had them there for a while we were. It was like kind of going back and forth, you know, they were they were up I think like 53 percent and we were at 47 and we came back and then we were up by a couple percent.

And then we were tied for a while at 50 50. And that was with you know, 300 votes in and then they and then you know As it as it kind of got closer to the end they they took off and then they were up 10 percent.

But I was just glad that we were able to compete. We rallied the the uh, the twits on x the on twitter, we rallied the troops and. And uh, and and more than that. It was just a lot of fun.

Yeah, and open air theology was. But at least I mean parker you can at least you you you lost. To to a manly podcast though, right? That's right.

I heard you guys lost to women which means you can't be reformed, right?

Let me let me just say that egalitarianism is running rampant. It's rampant. I mean they're infiltrating Podcasts even now. They're you know I don't know if you notice but there are quite a few women podcasts now that are actually entered into the contest.

Most of them lost. But uh bright heart podcast whooped us like.

Matter of fact, it was 69 to 31. I will say I will say it's super interesting that that that you brought that up tom. Because there was a comment on the on the podcast bracket and this guy was actually serious and he said feminism will remain in the reformed christian space on social media while they.

While.

Female podcasters are allowed in the bracket and I was like dude, you got to stop taking yourself. So seriously.

I'll tell you, you know, what the interesting thing is is the open-air theology. We created a a cigar smoking, uh video. And it basically had a video and the first one starts out with the spc and it's a woman smoking a cigar.

I think we're. We're uh, we're getting in trouble there with that. But we go all the way through the reformed baptists and everything. What's you know who's smoking a cigar and all that but so funny i'm hoping i'm hoping that that video might put us through through one of the other prizes perhaps the uh Patriarchy cigar company.

I'm hoping to win that.

Yeah.

Well, let me put up let me put up a picture of the uh. Of the bracket here if I can this is some folks if you want to go out and check it out. You can go to uh, if you're on x. Um, it is. If you go to on x it's real d m w Podcasts that stands for dead man walking.

Real dead man walking Podcast. These are the brackets. It's I know it's hard to read. You're gonna just have to go to the website. Um, and so, you know some some may be wondering. Where our other co-host is here tom and and let me just put up his comment and you'll see why drew's no longer here.

He said I voted for my friend Jeremy of theana money. He voted against my rap report podcast. Voted for theana money. Which was the closest? Uh, at least the first day, uh, but he then tried to recover and say he voted for apologetics live.

So I actually have two podcasts in in here. Uh, and so both did make it to the second round. I was a little nervous with theana money. It it was pretty close.

But.

These folks every day is a new voting. So yeah, what you see here is listed day four down here. That's what is going on right now. So you can go out and vote and i'm going to give you. Uh, we're we're going to get into colossians 2 8.

Don't worry. Uh, that is the topic for today uh, and we're going to be answering your. You know, we're we're going to be answering your uh, your questions that you have. Oh, look drew's trying to save himself now.

He wants to come back on the show. I voted for theology throwdown today. That's another one of the christian podcast community. Uh, Uh podcast we we actually have a number of podcasts in the christian podcast community that are in here, uh apologetic live.

Uh matter of theology. The court. The caleb gordon podcast. Who's who is caleb's. Awesome. He's a rock star man.

Yeah, if he hasn't joined yet, he's he's um, he is part of the he's becoming part of the network of our community. Uh did it k with justin peters my rap report podcast squirrel chatter. He made it to the next round.

The second round. Religionless christianity reformed rookie was so close. It was like less than a percent. That's I think the closest one right now, but he lost that matt slick live lost in the first round.

I I think matt never got the email that I sent out that said that he was in the. In the there was in the podcast bracket theology throwdown. That's up today. Uh. It was really hard. I had to choose between truth spresso and uh doctrine matters they were both up against each other and truth be known.

Uh is in there. He's thoroughly equipped with melissa lex and then two more christian podcast communities podcasts that were against each other was um.

Uh truth love parent versus street talk theology that we have to go with our brother aaron though in that. He's on the show all the time. I actually I I actually.

Voted street talk theology at first to do the underdog and then realized he wasn't the underdog I was like, oh, can I take my phone back? Oh, no, so every day go vote now. I I gotta let you know. Uh folks, I i'm calling out an audible now.

I need your help because yes. This saturday i'm going up against the king. Mr. The king of our millennialism the one who has won this.

Contest in the past mr. Freight doug.

Harbor freight doug wilson, uh, keith foskey of the your calvinist podcast and I am going to need every Vote out there to get past keith foskey. Of course keith didn't make it last year passed a round against james white because james bowed out.

Because he figured he won this already. So why I. I think if you want my personal opinion I think that there was some some greasing of the palms going on last year. And I think that there was some money exchanged behind behind closed doors.

I don't know how fair that is, but james white bowing out two years in a row. I mean, I get it this year. He wanted a smaller podcast, but to keith. I.

I just don't buy it. I just don't buy it, but he did he did go on all the way. He won it all.

He did win it all.

I i'm just gonna say this, you know, I I did reach out to james. I said, you know, could you please give me a shout out for a vote for the rap report over keith foskey on saturday. Now if anyone doesn't know the way keith and and james know each other james needed was was really hungry.

And keith ran out and got a hamburger for him and came to his hotel room knocked on the door opens. The door was just like he hands him the the bag and he's just kind of said it outside. So.

So.

James is like do you want to come in? He's like, yeah, and he just sat there in silence watching james eat the burger.

That's hilarious.

So I said funny that that james had to teach him how to how to wear a bow tie as well.

Well, he did he did but so here's the thing.

So I said I I know I know. Uh, I have about as much chance of winning against him as I did against uh you. But let's at least make it fun if possible, please. I said i'll even bring you a burger to your hotel.

And his response was yeah i'm staying out of this this year. I tried I really tried.

That's so funny.

So so we do ask folks if you if you want to go to the on x go to uh, The dead man walking podcast you can find it at real.

Uh real.

Dmw podcast. So that is his handle. Go there and be be voting every day. He does it every day except sunday. So it's a new vote every day except sunday. And saturday, I will be needing your vote big time.

Uh, because yeah, it's going to be a tough if I can make it past this round.

You'll go pretty far.

I mean, you still have a chance with apologetics. Live too against. You know, we have another. You have another. Who are we going against up?

So apologetics live will be tomorrow against theology applied. Okay, and so i'd really like to see you know, I mean I got some good ideas there you know.

Um.

If it's me against haunted cosmos the winners from last year, you know I forget if it was haunted cosmos or king's car. It was it was the same guy I think it was the same guy that was in both. So. They were either first or second.

So I won't I won't win against them. I'm sure but I might be at least have some fun with it.

Absolutely. Maybe maybe they'll be haunted that year. Yeah. Yeah, maybe they'll get spooked out of it. That's right.

You know, you guys were talking about bigfoot at the beginning, right.

Haunted cosmos. You know, this is not good for them.

So so some of the things that we we could talk about and I I know you know. You guys probably watched the super bowl. I I kept with my tradition of not watching it. Um, i've actually watched the superbowl sort of once.

I I watched it because our church would have this superbowl part and I know you can't say superbowl. Sorry big game Superbowl is copyrighted. They're gonna flag me. Um. The uh, they they we would have a you know, go to some a house one Person in church had a big house and everyone that was really interested in watching the game would watch it in high definition.

And me and one of the deacons who had no interest in the game were in another room so we could just talk Privately but the tv was on in standard def. And we both at one point looked at each other and realized.

Oh.

There's a five second delay because we're like the tv's just on so we're kind of watching it and we're hearing when they're cheering. Like five seconds after our play. Or booing so we start like actually watching it just so we could cheer and boo at the plays until the other room knows That we have a there's delay.

So once they told us like will you guys stop it you're ruining it for us because now they're Eating it. So like all of a sudden there's a timeout like we he and I are doing hand signals. And like to cheer or to boo and so it was like we would like there'd be a timeout.

We're like, yes. Yes, yes, and then the other room's like all anticipating son. It's like time out and so. Once we we got them where they realized that we were now throwing them off. Hmm it was it was like two minutes before the end of the game and I did not know in football that.

The two minute warning is actually like 20 minutes later before the game's over. I thought two minutes was like two minutes, right?

Um.

So there's like this two minute warning. And I literally run into the other room and i'm thinking like what's the most bizarre thing I could come up with. I run in the room. I go. Did you see that? The guy intercepted the ball ran it all the way back tied it up and they won it in a field goal in overtime 20 minutes later.

That's what happened. That's insane. Everybody's like you ruined the game. You're not allowed to eat back at the party anymore. I'm like, it's a five second delay.

There's no way I could have guessed that. I mean at least there is a time stamp on football. I mean baseball could just keep on going. Yeah.

Which they're trying to change the last I heard.

I don't know. I didn't watch the football either this year again as as well. But I did hear about the halftime show. The whole he gets us thing the whole yeah. Yeah, that's what I want to talk about.

I didn't. I didn't see it, but I did predict. I did put a poll out on x.

You knew they were going to do something. Oh, yeah, I asked I said. How you know.

It was like actually I gotta go look and see what the percentage was. It was a large percent of people that knew that it was going to happen that I said. Okay, are they going to give some marxist talk about christianity needing to be more marxist and sure enough.

They did. Did either of you see that? He gets us campaign marxism.

Uh, no, I I did not see this one.

Okay, did you see it parker? Yeah, I saw it but it I Really wasn't paying attention. So you if you if you're playing it again, or I don't I don't know what your plan is.

I I wouldn't be I. I had no intention of playing a period. Yeah, I was like, I don't know if you want to play it.

I.

Think it really ties along with what you're going to be talking about in collages to eight talking about cultural christianity a social gospel um and how Worldliness has just gotten in the whole theme of it.

You know, he gets us is basically an idea where. Um god just gets us as we are and he's basically and again going to dismiss our sin. Because he gets us, you know, he's just all loving all tolerant. You can live any way that you want to live.

Christ gets us god gets us, you know, so that that's their premise and it's basically a false gospel leaving people right to hell.

Yeah.

And and you know, the thing is they do it under the guise of of christianity and that's the thing that I think is so. You know that we're going to get into later in the show. Is the fact that what you see and and you know, megan basham I've had her on my my rapper podcast talking about her book, uh shepherds for sale and and she nails it.

The fact that what you have is the marxists are buying they're buying christian big eva types to promote their You know their their Marxism. It is interesting the the he gets us I have yet to find out.

Who is behind it? They're really really secretive about that. And it's like oh we want to be anonymous. No, it's probably george soros and you don't want to admit it.

You know, that's a good question. Have you googled that?

There well when they first started we I did. I tried looking into it and they were. It was something that they just you couldn't find out who is behind it. They were like, oh we don't want it to be about who's behind the campaign.

We want it to be. You know. It's about jesus and and yet everything they teach about is is not about jesus.

So.

Um, it's something that. And we'll talk about the the empty deception.

So I I don't mean to cut you off andrew, but there was um, I actually I didn't want to speak before I confirmed. I just looked it up here. It says, um. The he gets us ad campaign is primarily driven by a non-profit organization called come near Uh, which took over the campaign in early 2024.

Prior to this It was operated by the servant foundation or yeah, the servant foundation also known as the signatory.

Um.

Come near is led by ceo. Ken caldwell and it has connections to the billionaire family behind hobby lobby.

Interesting.

That's interesting. That is interesting.

Now but I wonder who else might be behind like I. I wonder who started it.

And yeah, i'm not i'm not sure when I did my original. I remembered my original research last year. I remembered looking up and getting to hobby lobby. But then after that it was kind of cloak and behind the scenes in the shadows.

Like you were saying and you can always have people who are. You can have people who don't want their name known. Right. I mean my my uncle owned the la rams, but he was. He he didn't want his name out there.

So even though he was an owner. It was someone else that who who was seen as the owner, you know, and they they both had partnership in it, but.

Hmm, you know now now we know how you had that huge library of yours. Yeah, well under la rams.

You know, it's well, I maybe I could find the photo of the uh, when the la rams won the super bowl I got a photo of my of my you know, my uncle's house of the the trophy that they did but um, you know, it's funny you mentioned about the library and so i'm I I actually had a book not the Um that I pulled from the shelf just because this is the neat thing of having a library you inherit from others.

And uh, you know i'm selling my my library right now and maybe you'll start to see you see books week to week changing behind me because As i'm keep selling them i'm moving things around. So if anyone wants to get some good used christian books just go to my facebook wall.

Just andrew rapper on facebook find me and I got all my books out there. Just dm me what you want, but this is really neat. I got this book from a pastor who had Uh his after he passed away. His wife called me and asked, um.

Asked if i'd come by the office and I didn't go to the church, but I I you know, I knew him and.

Uh.

Basically In in his before he passed away. He told his wife That if he passes away He wanted me to inherit his library because he knew the books would get put to use. So one of the books that I had that I was able to return to the family was I have a book from john MacArthur's father jack macarthur and I returned that to the to john macarthur's family.

Uh, that was one. I didn't just sell or give away. I I figured it'd be best to keep that one in in the family. It had notes in there But this is kind of neat. I sometimes you get things like this. I got this this is from december 25 christmas 1996 this book was given as a gift from a daughter to her father Before I was born Two years before I was born and she's just like dear daddy I am.

I am not only giving this book as a christmas gift But also as a gift of appreciation for the many things that you have done for me over the years of my Child life. I know I haven't appreciated the things that you have that you did for me Many times but I realize now that it was done For my own good.

I also thank you for allowing me to have a christian mother to guide and and direct me In my daily christian life. I understand from mother that this book is one of the many books that you would like to have For your own.

I pray that this book will give you many Spiritual blessings as you read it and study Yours truly, uh, sorry your daughter trudy and I can't read the last name.

That's amazing. That's that's like.

It's that's the neat thing when I look at some of the books that I have on the shelf. That i've gotten from. I mean, I got some books from the from the 40s. You know, it's just kind of neat.

My wife and I went into dallas. This is a I don't know years ago, uh into a half price books and there was a pilgrim's progress in there. For five dollars and I went and I got it. It was the first year that they actually came out with colored illustrations for the pilgrim's progress.

Wow, we opened it up and she's very something so similar. It was a sunday school teacher that had given this book to To this little girl and it had a little note, you know. Just reading through the the pilgrim's progress and i've misplaced the book.

I don't know where it is now. But I mean stuff like that is just amazing. It's so neat to see.

So, you know parker doesn't understand this because he only understands movies, which I don't understand.

That's right. That's kind of true.

Kind of true except that not. So yeah, you know, you're studying the the the confessions and all. Right you're you're trying to. So folks, I mean you parker does, you know podcasts about movies and all but and he definitely knows the pop culture.

But he's also trying to memorize like early confessions. How about you guys try that?

I don't know about that. Let's not do that. Um, yeah, no, I uh, i've got a lot of friends i've met a lot of you know, interesting people and people that have become good friends. The last let's say what do you say andrew.

Maybe a last year between you and Keith foskey and greg more cory wing and cody fields from um, west minister effects podcast, uh doxology podcast and uh. Yeah, there's a there's a good mix of baptists and presbyterians and all kinds of different people so i'm actually going back and trying to learn the intricacies of you know, the the 1689 london baptist and the west minister and and trying to figure out you know, who's right so I can Be on the winning team.

Well, I I can tell you who's right. Yeah, I bet you can't everybody has an opinion on who's right.

Let me just let me make it easier for you, okay if you want to know who's right, okay. Oh boy. There we go. Here we go. Right over here. What do we believe there's the confession that you need to have?

Okay.

If you want to be right. Forget the west minster. Forget 1689. What do we believe. By andrew rapport. Go get yours driving for That. Hey look i'm I told someone uh earlier this week. They they were they they had said they don't like certain but they don't like the labels.

Yeah, the label, you know because labels are so misunderstood and he's like i'm getting away from using the term Reformed because it's just it's becoming such a bad label like everyone's just attacking and not understanding.

I said, well, that's why I always go by the label reportianism.

Right i'm a rapper so you know. Andrew, by the way, I I did get that book. Uh, I received that with the bible. I didn't he surprised me with that book. So thank you very much. I just opened it matter of fact a couple hours ago and realized that wow.

Hey, thank you very much. I got a systematic theology book by andrew rapport.

Yeah, that's that's a gift that i'm giving to everyone who's who buys books from my library. I'm, just giving them a copy of what do we believe is a gift? So an incentive. And actually I got a a shelf that has brand new books have not been read.

No markings in them at all that if anyone spends over 250. They get that so um, so yeah. So let's talk about um. Just one more thing before we get into colossians 289 folks if you have questions. There's two things you could do if you have questions.

You'd like us to answer. You can if you're watching on X or youtube you could put those into the chat and we can answer them. The other thing that i'd encourage you to do even better would be to join us go to apologetics live .com.

You just scroll down till you see a little duck icon for stream yard. Click that allow your browser to use your microphone and camera if you don't want to be on camera. That's fine. Just give access and you can there's a way you can just stop the camera and just use the audio.

But come on in and ask questions is much better that way. By the way, I should have mentioned from the beginning anyone who's who watched last week. We did have a guy that was very vocal in the chat. You know, basically telling us that he claimed to be an atheist.

That he was he could disprove christianity using catholicism. Uh, if you guys remember the end of the show last week, I I did dare him. I challenged him. I double dog dared him to come on in here this week.

Um, tom, do you see him backstage? I I he's he's missing. He did not show up. He might have gotten raptured. I don't know.

Yeah, yeah. And like kat is saying yes, he was vocal. Yeah, he was very vocal. He was a very vocal keyboard warrior. Saying he could demolish us. I love these guys that could demolish us, but don't come in here.

Yeah look. You know, I don't know about tom or parker. I'm a little fuzzball. I mean i'm not so bad.

You know the truth and love right. Andrew, that's right.

As vocal as he was I mean it was a loving challenge. You're welcome to come on. Let's talk about this and.

He's he's nowhere to be found licking his chops, right? Yeah, I look.

Greg morse dead man walking podcast thinks it's the funniest thing that I actually like it when people come in I when they're ready to debate me on a subject and I don't even know i'm doing a debate that night.

Yeah, I think that's fun. Well, I don't know what it is about me. That's so messed up That I think that's a fun thing.

I think that's uh, that's a place that Most christians should strive to get to because that means that you really know the word and you can you can stand on the word.

Well.

Well, you know I get asked a lot. Not that you're like this. Perfect, you know, I didn't mean it that way. I just know that's a good goal, you know.

It's a good it does. Say be ready always to answer me and to ask you the reason of the hope that is within you.

Yeah, and it does challenge us when when we have that we have to be ready and you know I'm asked often like how do we how do you prepare? I mean, how do you prepare for a debate when you're not prepared for a debate?

And.

You know, the thing is is that There's two areas that I study and when haps did had a class. He he was head of school. He was trying to start up their pet called passing the torch and I I taught I guess the last class.

That's what you get for inviting me as a teacher. I teach the class and and it's getting the school closes but I I was on it was on, uh, you know, a debate and apologetics and debate. And there's two areas that I study if i'm it when that happens.

It's hermeneutics. And it's logic now. Yeah. Yes. James white. He'll say Early church history and original languages, but I would say the early language the language is a part of hermeneutics and but Really if you if you know how to interpret the scripture whenever they code a scripture.

All you got to do is back up a couple verses. And start reading what it actually says and that's usually all you have to do.

Yeah, and then well and and keep a good faith mindset. Well, yeah, that's you know, I suggest or exegesis over eisegesis, right. Correct, but it's all but you're right with the you know.

We also have to have. You know, and I just recorded a podcast.

Um.

Uh, he's the reformed reagan, but I I forget the name of his podcast. He's in the in the um, Uh providential perspective. He's in the uh, he would actually he's in the bracket I think today. Um, and so I just recorded with him on this subject of how do you how do you deal with our differences on secondary issues and not Get nasty with one another and it's really we have to recognize that we're all wrong in our theology somewhere.

I mean, I don't know where i'm wrong. You know, yes Sister tara's right there, but you put up context as key. Um, but also logic. Knowing logic you don't have to know all of the logical fallacies. But and and you can take the class that I that I offered you can go to striving fraternities youtube channel and it's there.

Uh, you can watch it for free. It's only like eight classes. So kind of quick.

And.

You know, I walk through so you can identify. When there's a bad logical argument being made you don't have to know what fallacy it is. But if you can and there's I think I teach that in just one or two classes of identifying.

Well a good logical statement and a bad one. You know, and so if you know that You you you can point that out to me and folks think about this like we do apologetics live not just to do apologetics to show apologetics.

And so you'll see me do that when people come in and debate i'll just point out Hey, this is this is a logical fallacy because actually the opening of the show we did was with jeff. Who who was a professing atheist, right?

And he couldn't recognize his own atheism. He he couldn't write he could point out that I could point out errors in Other religions, but he didn't recognize in his own. He had to finally admit that might be my confirmation bias because I was pointing that out earlier in that show.

So.

You know, this is a thing we do apologetics.

Cultural Christianity, Marxism, and the “He Gets Us” Campaign

Yeah, so. You're gonna say sometime. No, i'm sorry. I was I was commenting on.