Details

This evangelistic, and somewhat controversial, series is designed to start conversations with non-Christians by talking openly about the "fine-print" they see lurking behind the message of the Church. Originally this series had a question and answer session that happened for weeks 2-6 immediately following.

Week 1

This introductory talk sets up the theme of "Asterisk" and shows how Paul - even while saying controversial stuff - still calls the story of Jesus "good news". This talk is both an invitation for those who are Christians to join in on the conversation, and for Christians to invite their friends over the following weeks.

Week 2

This talk answers the question "does Christianity REALLY think it's the only true religion?" by looking quickly at other religious belief systems, their similarities with Christianity, the differences, and how at the end of the day we'd WANT Christianity to be true.

Week 3

This talk answers the question "how would Jesus vote?" by looking at how Jesus responded to the political/religious systems of his day. Ultimately, the talk points to the inadequacy of both poetical parties and the TRUE answer Jesus offers instead.

Week 4

"Is the Old Testament God pro-genocide?" This week looks unflinchingly at one of the hardest OT passages and asks "how do we as Christians believe in a God of love?" This is a broad-scoped talk that takes people through the history of Israel and ends with the redemption found in Jesus. This week especially is sure to leave people with questions to be discussed afterward.

Week 5

"Why is God so weird about sex?" Most non-Christians simply can't understand why God has such an "anti-sex" hangup. This talk uses the Bible - but also statistics and research from non-Christian sources - to show how God's plan for sex actually PROTECTS us from harm and leads to the best sex life possible. This talk is very straightforward about some uncomfortable topics.

Week 6

"Is homosexuality really a sin?" While this talk ends with the answer to this question, it's mostly about the role Jesus played in the story of the woman who committed adultery. It ultimately asks the question "are we as the church throwing rocks at the hurting, or PROTECTING the hurting?"