Will Turner grew up in a Presbyterian Church, but when the Jehovah’s Witnesses came calling, he had to admit they made a lot of sese. They got him to question the Trinity and heaven-at-death. He almost joined, but there were a few issues that made him keep his distance. Find out what they were and Read more about 670. I Almost Became a Jehovah’s Witness… Then I Found Biblical Unitarians (Will Turner)[…]
Are you using artificial intelligence? I bet you are. I certainly do. I find AI chatbots to be incredibly helpful. In today’s discussion with Sam Tideman, we discuss what AI chatbots are actually doing. We cover how to use them well for research and Bible study as well as some of their limitations. We also Read more about 669. How Should Christians Use AI? (Sam Tideman)[…]
What do you do when you’ve tried to quit something over and over and still can’t get free? My guest today is Jody Rodriguez who fell into a life of regular substance use from her teenage years onward. By the time she was nearing thirty she had been to jail and rehab but still couldn’t Read more about 668. How I Got Clean from Heroin and Found God (Jody Rodriguez)[…]
Mina grew up in a poor village in South Korea in the 1950s. She faced many hardships due to her abusive alcoholic father who loaned her to another family to work as a servant. Although Mina escaped from that situation, she found herself in something much worse. She got entrapped by sex traffickers and forced Read more about 667. How God Healed Me from the Shame of Prostitution (Mina Hacker)[…]
Jeremy Martin is a complicated man. Although raised in a Christian home, he chose a different path. At eighteen years old, he embraced the party lifestyle of drinking alcohol and using drugs of various kinds. Before long, he found himself sucked into a criminal lifestyle, including an eight-year stretch where he earned his living from Read more about 666. I Quit Weed and Video Games to Serve God (Jeremy Martin)[…]
Last time we learned about software engineer Alex Ticer’s terrifying health crisis and the healing he received. This set him on a quest to dedicate his life to serving God, but how? He had no idea what he was supposed to do. So, he quit his job and intensified his study of the Bible and Read more about 665. Why I’m Starting a Church in Texas (Alex Ticer)[…]
Alex Ticer had It all: a degree from UCLA, a job as a software engineer, financial security, a beautiful family, a house in Texas, but something was terribly wrong. It was something he couldn’t fix with money or intelligence or grit. He had a genetic disease that would cause him to waste away no matter Read more about 664. Engineer Risked Everything to Find the One God[…]
Are you under the impression that everyone believes in the Trinity? Most denominational creeds, seminary requirements, and church statements of faith begin with a confession that there is one God who exists in three persons. Perhaps you think that this means that American pastors believe in the Trinity and they faithfully teach it to Read more about 663. The Trinity Now a Minority Belief in America (Dustin Smith)[…]
It’s recited in churches all around the world in many languages. It’s the standard by which all modern Christians are measured. It’s an artful and eloquent expression of doctrine. What am I talking about? Of course, it’s the Nicene Creed. But what if I told you that this creed wasn’t from the Council of Nicea Read more about 662. The Nicene Creed Is a Forgery (Sam Tideman)[…]
What is the true nature of God? How should we understand monotheism? What about heresy? In today’s interview, I ask Dr. Dale Tuggy about his new book, Monotheism, Heresy, and the Bible, published by Theophilus Press. Our discussion ranges from handling proof-texts that call Jesus “God” to the role of logic in sorting out doctrine to Read more about 661. Monotheism, Heresy, and the Bible (Dale Tuggy)[…]
How do you know God exists? What reasons do atheists have to doubt God’s existence? Can you arrive at certainty? These questions are among the most significant that you can ask. If God exists, there are huge implications for your daily life. If not, then you can more or less choose your own adventure, making Read more about 660. Debating God’s Existence (Andrew Drinkard)[…]
Are all your beliefs equally important? If not, how do you rank them? By what standard do you say, “This belief matters” and “This one is less important”? My guest today is Michael Hughes who has been working on these very questions. He’s written a couple of papers addressing levels of evidence. In his more Read more about 659. How Important Is That Doctrine? (Michael Hughes)[…]
Are you looking for a biblically-grounded albeit easy-to-read introduction to theology? Well, look no further, because I’m excited to announce the publication of Pastor Will Barlow’s book, Explore What We Believe. He goes through what the Bible teaches about God, humanity, covenants, the kingdom of God, Jesus, salvation, Israel, the church, the spirit of God, Read more about 658. Explore What We Believe (Will Barlow)[…]
I have a new book out and I’m excited to tell you all about it. In order to do that, Anna Brown is hosting Restitutio today and putting me in the hot seat. In this interview, she asks me about Read the Bible for Yourself, a book I’ve been working on for the last three years. Read more about 657. Read the Bible for Yourself (Sean Finnegan)[…]
Jesus said, “Make disciples of all nations” (Mat 28:19). How are you doing on this? Are you currently mentoring someone in the faith? Are you under the impression that this work is only for pastors, those in church leadership, or those with the gift of evangelism? You may say to yourself, “I don’t have a Read more about 656. Follow the Way of Jesus (Victor Gluckin)[…]
To whom was God speaking in Genesis 1.26 when he said, “Let us make humanity in our image”? My guest today, Sam Mansfield of Adelaide, South Australia, has found six different answers to this question. In the following interview, I ask him about his recent presentation at the inaugural Australian Unitarian Christian Alliance conference, called Read more about 655. God Spoke to Himself in Genesis 1.26 (Sam Mansfield)[…]
Many Bible-believing churches are ridged keepers of tradition. They have a statement of faith, a historic confession, or old creeds that determine what people should and should not believe. There’s very little space for people to genuinely ask questions, investigate competing doctrines, and honestly change their minds over time. Today I’m speaking with Matt Lovegrove Read more about 654. The Plight of a Restorationist (Matt Lovegrove)[…]
Paul Robson was an upstanding Christian leader in a Bible-believing church when his friend upended his world by revealing that he no longer believed the Trinity was biblically true. Although Robson initially reacted negatively to such a departure from the norm, he eventually came to change his mind based on a thorough study of Scripture. Read more about 653. Why I’m Convinced That Jesus Is the Human Messiah (Paul Robson)[…]
This is a follow up to our 5-part response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Have you ever found yourself in a conversation with a coworker, acquaintance, or family member trying to explain who Jesus is? Every wish there was a simple acrostic that could guide you through a brief yet thoughtful presentation Read more about 608. Six Quick Points on the Genuine Jesus (Brandon Duke)[…]
This is part 5 of our response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Today in our fifth episode in this series critiquing the book, The Incarnate Christ and His Critics, we broach the topic of thrones. If Jesus sits on God’s throne, does that make him God too? If so, isn’t that two Read more about 607. Did Jesus Really Sit on God’s Throne? (Brandon Duke)[…]
This is part 4 of our response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Only God has power over nature. Jesus walked on water. Therefore Jesus must be God. Right? Does that line of reasoning convince you? How about this one. Only God has power over nature. Elijah called down fire from heaven. Therefore Read more about 606. Did Jesus Really Do What Only God Can Do? (Brandon Duke)[…]
This is part 3 of our response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Today we get to the heart of the case for the deity of Christ to see if it holds up to scrutiny. In addition to considering whether the name “Jesus” and the title “son of God” implies divinity, we look Read more about 605. Does the Bible Really Give Jesus Divine Titles? (Brandon Duke)[…]
This is part 2 of our response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Most of us understand of what deity means. Generally we think to be God is to be eternal, uncaused, and indestructible. This gets at the word aseity, which is a fancy philosophical term for a being that doesn’t depend on Read more about 604. Did Jesus Really Have All the Divine Attributes? (Brandon Duke)[…]
This is part 1 of our response series on The Incarnate Christ and His Critics. Today we’re shifting gears. We’ve had an eighteen-episode class delving into biblical and contextual study of 1 Corinthians. Then last time we had an interview with someone struggling with mental health. For the next several weeks we’re going deep into Read more about 603. Did Jesus Really Receive Divine Honors? (Brandon Duke)[…]
Suicide is such a sad part of our world today. The latest stats from the CDC indicate someone dies of suicide every eleven minutes in the United States. 30 times more people attempt suicide than die from it annually. And a staggering 12.8 million seriously think about it. Sheila is one of these people who Read more about 602. Abused, Kidnapped, and Suicidal—Finding Hope After a Lifetime of Trauma (Sheila Kalpakidis)[…]
As we left things last time, Vaughn Madsen of New Zealand had been on a quest for biblical truth that resulted in repeated rejection from churches and Bible studies. Apart from his kids, Vaughn was alone. He met a couple of random people in street evangelism who agreed with him about Jesus, but that was Read more about 583 Not Alone Anymore (Vaughn Madsen)[…]
Vaughn Madsen was a simple kiwi farmer who subscribed to evangelical Christianity in New Zealand. No, he wasn’t farming kiwis. A kiwi is what you call someone from New Zealand. Anyhow, like I said, he was a devout member of his local church when he came across a presentation by Warren Prestige about the state Read more about 582 Kiwi Farmer Pursues Biblical Truth (Vaughn Madsen)[…]
Cayce Fletcher is the host of A More Beautiful Life Collective, a blog, a YouTube channel, and a podcast. She releases a new show each week on making theology practical and developing a more beautiful life. As a wife, mother, and homemaker she appeals more to women than men, but I personally–as a man–have found Read more about 575 A More Beautiful Life Collective (Cayce Fletcher)[…]
This is part two of my conversation with Bob Carden who served as the lead pastor of Grace Christian Fellowship for decades before retiring. (The church is now called Align Ministries, led by Garrett Bova.) Continuing on the topic of healing and deliverance from last week, we begin by talking about evil spirits and pornography Read more about 571 Give God a Shot (Bob Carden)[…]
People need the touch of God in their lives. People are broken, wounded, and sick. Jesus Christ has already come and made available deliverance from sin and its consequences. He did this throughout his ministry and continues to bring healing through his church today. Bob Carden shares about his own journey of faith from Catholicism Read more about 570 My Journey into Healing Ministry (Bob Carden)[…]
Seneca Harbin became a Christian later in life through reading the Bible. However, when he was attending a megachurch in Indianapolis, he starting hearing the pastor preach about Christ in a way that seemed bizarre and unbiblical. To his surprise Seneca discovered that the vast majority of Christians held to these extra-biblical speculations about multiple Read more about 569 The Cost of Truth (Seneca Harbin)[…]
Last week Dustin Smith and Sam Tideman discussed the intermediate state–what happens after death but before resurrection on the last day. Although most Christians affirm the folk idea of going immediately to heaven or hell at death, Smith and Tideman argue that the Bible teaches the dead are in Sheol or Hades. However they disagree Read more about 568 The Witch of Endor and the Rich Man and Lazarus Parable (Dustin Smith, Sam Tideman)[…]
Dustin Smith and Sam Tideman discuss whether people are conscious in the intermediate state (between death and resurrection). Interestingly, neither of them think the deceased are currently in heaven or hell. Smith affirms the sleep of the dead, seeing all the dead, whether good or bad, as unconscious and unaware of the passage of time. Read more about 567 Are the Dead Conscious? (Dustin Smith, Sam Tideman)[…]
Last month the Unitarian Christian Alliance put on the first conference in Europe. A mixture of British and American speakers presented on various aspects of unitarian Christianity. In today’s episode I speak with Daisy Jones, one of the main coordinators of the event as well as Mark Cain who assisted in planning and in recording Read more about 561 United Kingdom UCA Conference Review (Daisy Jones, Mark Cain)[…]
Last week Joshua Michael Smith began sharing his testimony from childhood to his college years when he changed his mind about Jesus’s identity. In part two he talks about cage stage unitarianism–where one seeks to confront everyone about this important truth regardless of their interested or antagonism. Smith shares how he matured while continuing to Read more about 559 Youth Ministry Matters (Joshua Michael Smith)[…]
Joshua Michael Smith grew up in northern Florida in a Baptist church. In this interview he shares his journey of faith, including how came to Christ as well as how he ended up in ministry training at Word of Life before earning a bachelors at Tennessee Temple University in Chattanooga. While there, he began questioning Read more about 558 Courageous Baptist Seeks Biblical Truth (Joshua Michael Smith)[…]
Many believe there is 400 years of silence between the Old and New Testament. My guest today is Professor George Athas, director of research and senior lecturer in Hebrew, Old Testament, and Early Church History at Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia. He’s the author of Bridging the Testaments, which covers four major periods, including Read more about 557 Bridging the Testaments (George Athas)[…]
Christians have approached the first chapter of Genesis differently over the centuries. There are those who hold to young earth creationism, day-age theory, gap theory, and progressive creationism, just to name a few. Oftentimes defenders of a particular view will provide biblical, scientific, and historical evidence for their position. Our focus today is on the Read more about 556 Recruiting Ancients for the Creation Debate (Andrew Brown)[…]
Scholars and pastors regularly point to specialized “technical” language in Paul’s epistles to make the case that Paul was intentionally subverting Roman power by applying to Jesus terms that the ancients commonly applied to the Caesars. My guest today has done the hard work of analyzing the inscriptions, coins, and material remains of several key Read more about 555 Was Paul Really Subverting Caesar? (Clint Burnett)[…]
Something is going on in New Zealand…and I’m excited to tell you about it. In today’s interview I speak with Zach Mayo who along with his wife, Kayla, were serving as youth pastors at an evangelical church when they came to change their minds on the doctrine of the Trinity. Now they’re organizing a conference Read more about 554 Biblical Unitarian Christians in New Zealand (Zach Mayo)[…]
Kermit Zarley was a professional golfer who had an interest in studying the Bible about the end times when he came across a disturbing verse. Reading Jesus’s words in the Olivet Discourse, he noticed that only the Father knew the day and hour of the end. Neither the angels nor the son of God were Read more about 553 Pro Golfer Turned Christologist Tells All (Kermit Zarley)[…]
From her childhood in a Jewish family to a 7-year stint with the Jehovah’s Witnesses to attending evangelical churches, Susanne Lakin never felt comfortable with the doctrine of the Trinity. She signed up to attend Phoenix Seminary, a conservative evangelical school, thinking they would help her finally get to the bottom of it. She was Read more about 552 Seminary Convinced Me the Trinity Is Wrong (Susanne Lakin)[…]
As the dust continues to settle from last week’s debate between Dale Tuggy and James White, reviewers are coalescing on a rather exciting conclusion. Tuggy handedly won the debate! Rumor has it that James White has even requested a rematch! We’ll have to wait and see if anything happens on that front, but requesting a Read more about 540 Dustin Smith’s Take on the Tuggy-White Debate[…]
We’re taking a break this week from our class on Reading the Bible for Yourself. By the way, did you know that there’s a separate podcast just for classes without any interruptions like this? You can find it if you search your podcast app for Restitutio Classes. Anyhow, I had an opportunity to speak with Read more about 539 Dale Tuggy’s Thoughts on the James White Debate: Is Jesus Yahweh?[…]
I’ve been putting out podcast episodes on Restitutio since 2015. I’ve interviewed many authors in that time. However, I’ve never been interviewed as an author. That changed a couple of days ago when Sam Tideman of Transfigured had me on his show to talk about my new book, Kingdom Journey. We discussed the biblical idea Read more about 535 Kingdom Journey Interview (Sam Tideman)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Today my guest is Thomas Gaston who’s book is called Dynamic Monarchianism: the Earliest Christology? Dr. Gaston earned his Ph. D. from Oxford University and this book one of the fruits of that labor. In this interview we talk about the earliest Dynamic Monarchians, including Ebionites Read more about 528 Dynamic Monarchianism: The Earliest Christology (Thomas Gaston)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Should Christians celebrate the birth of Christ? If so, where should we draw the line with respect to ancient pagan customs like bringing an evergreen tree into our houses or giving presents to each other? How much pagan practice is too much? My guest today is Read more about 527 Should Christians Celebrate Christmas? (Dale Tuggy)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts It’s the holidays and many of us are seeing family members and coworkers and neighbors at parties. Sometimes the topic of Christianity comes up, and you may be having conversations about your beliefs. You may find yourself defending your belief in Jesus in general or even Read more about 526: The Role of Assumptions in Bible Conversations (Jeff Deuble)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Do the Gospels give you the impression that the kingdom of God is about to arrive? My guest today is Troy Salinger who wrote an interesting article called, “The Postponement of the Kingdom – A Response to Preterists and Anti-Missionary Rabbis.” His idea is that the Read more about 524 Kingdom Postponed (Troy Sallinger)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts For centuries heresy hunters have labeled those who deny the pre-existence of Jesus “adoptionists.” This ancient category was based on the idea some Christian groups denied the virgin birth, thinking instead that Jesus became the son of God at his baptism when God adopted him. Modern Read more about 523 Rethinking Adoptionism (Jeremiah Coogan)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Ignatius of Antioch lived in the first generation of Christians after the apostles died during the late first and early second century. Modern day apologists regularly point to Ignatius’ letters to prove the antiquity of the deity of Christ and one-bishop church governance (monarchical episcopate). But Read more about 522 Problematizing Ignatius of Antioch’s Middle Recension (Nathan Massie)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Philippians 2.6-11 has generated an immense amount of scholarly literature such as journal articles and monographs not to mention blog posts, video lectures, and podcasts. What does the enigmatic phrase “in the form of God” mean? Did Paul intend us to think Jesus refused to grasp Read more about 520 In the Form of a God (Andrew Perriman)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts My guest today is Dr. Andrew Perriman of London who will discuss his recent book In the Form of a God, which is part of the Studies in Early Christology series. (Read Perriman’s helpful summary of the book here.) The focus for our conversation is looking Read more about 519 No Pre-Existence in Paul? (Andrew Perriman)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts We’ve all heard plenty of stories of Trinitarians who begin questioning their received teaching and eventually become Unitarian. However, today, we’re bringing you a story that’s a little different. My guest is Rick Naviello who held a biblical unitarian view of Jesus for decades before attending Read more about 518 Tried to Believe in the Trinity (Rick Naviello)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Have you ever read miracle stories in the bible and asked yourself, “I wonder if this happens today?” My guests today are Josh and Daisy Jones of the UK who share their testimonies of God intervening in and through their lives. Hear about Josh’s miraculous healing Read more about 517 Walking with God (Josh and Daisy Jones)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Recently Tom Huszti interviewed me for his YouTube channel, the Unitarian Anabaptist. We talked about the importance of geography, archeology, and Greco-Roman history for interpreting the bible, especially the New Testament. Next we delved into early church history, starting with the earliest forms of Jewish Christianity Read more about 516 Sean Finnegan on Restoring Authentic Christianity (Tom Huszti)[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts I’m so delighted to present you with an interview I did with Professor Nancy Pearcey, an author whose books have significantly helped me understand and live out my faith better. Today we’re talking about masculinity. Have you noticed the critical and uncharitable tone in our culture Read more about 515 The Toxic War on Masculinity (Nancy Pearcey)[…]
Although he’s one of the lesser known Christian authors of the fourth century, Aphrahat is extremely important for our understanding of early Persian Christianity prior to the advent of Islam in the region. Amazingly a full-length book of his survives, called The Demonstrations. In today’s interview I ask about Aphrahat’s beliefs in general and his Read more about 514 Aphrahat and Early Persian Christianity (Sam Tideman)[…]
Have you heard of the quests for the historical Jesus? This has been going on for two and a half centuries. It has produced a massive amount of literature and occupied the minds of some of the most impressive biblical scholars over the years. What’s all this about? Why do we need to search for Read more about 513 The Historical Jesus and the Gospel of John (Craig Blomberg)[…]
We continue in our conversation on the topic of healing from bullying. This episode applies not only to those who suffered in school, but also should prove helpful to any who have suffered abuse later in life as well. Jon Nessle taps into Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount to gain practical advice on what to Read more about 512 Healing from Bullying – 2 (Jon Nessle)[…]
Were you bullied in school? How did you deal with it? Do you still harbor feelings of bitterness and vengefulness in your heart towards those who mistreated and abused you? Today my guest is Jon Nessle who faced ruthless ridicule and physical abuse from kindergarten to the tenth grade. He shares seven points to help Read more about 511 Healing from Bullying – 1 (Jon Nessle)[…]
Today we are continuing where we left off with part 2 of my interview with Kegan Chandler. In our last episode we spent most of our time talking about UAPs and the evidence that has come to light for their existence as well as non-human origin. Today, we are shifting gears to focus on the Read more about 509 Theological Options for Understanding Non-Human Intelligence (Kegan Chandler)[…]
Last month, the US Congress held a hearing with three whistle-blowers who provided testimony about UFOs. Yes, I just said UFOs. No, I haven’t lost my mind or started subscribing to the tabloids. This is a topic that has moved from the fringes of conspiracy land right into serious public hearings in the US government. Read more about 508 Are UFOs Real? (Kegan Chandler)[…]
Today we are picking up where we left off with Dr. Steven Nemes. We’ve been talking about communion (also called the eucharist or the Lord’s supper). He’s been presenting a case for memorialism. Today we begin with the words of institution, which Jesus gave at the last supper. What did he mean when he said, Read more about 507 Eating Christ’s Flesh – 2 (Steven Nemes)[…]
What do you think happens during communion? In my interview today, Dr. Steven Nemes provides a biblical, historical, and theological defense for memorialism–the idea that the eucharist memorializes what Christ has done (and will do) for us rather than actually becoming Christ in some metaphysical sense. Thus, the bread and wine signify or represent Christ’s Read more about 506 Eating Christ’s Flesh – 1 (Steven Nemes)[…]
This is part two of a two part series refuting the opening statement of a debate on the question “Is Jesus Yahweh?” This week Brand Duke and I are going to critique Samuel Nesan’s opening statement in his recent debate over the question, “Is Jesus Yahweh?” Nesan has a Master of Christian Studies at Seminari Read more about 492 Refuting Samuel Nesan’s Case That Jesus Is Yahweh[…]
Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts This is part one of a two part series refuting the opening statement of a debate on the question “Is Jesus Yahweh?” This week and next week we are taking a little break from our Early Church History class to do discuss a recent debate about Read more about 491 Refuting Kyle Essary’s Case That Jesus Is Yahweh[…]
How do you engage with culture? Are you aware of how culture is shaping your sensibilities about meaning, power, morality, religion, and aesthetics? Do you blindly reject everything in the culture so that you can remain separate from the world or do you blindly accept everything so that you remain relevant? My guest today is Read more about 480 Interpreting Your World (Justin Bailey)[…]
When COVID first broke out many endeavored to put their extra time to good use. Tom Huszti began listening to podcasts. He was intensely curious about theology. Huszti came to question several key beliefs he had imbibed as a lifelong Anabaptist, living in rural Ohio. Eventually he saw that the church’s God and the bible’s Read more about 478 Unitarian Anabaptist (Tom Huszti)[…]
Dr. Steven Nemes is an analytic philosopher and theologian who uses a phenomenological approach to reading scripture and constructing theology. In this interview I ask him about his unique approach to evaluating doctrine, especially the Trinity, from a phenomenological perspective. We also discuss restorationism as a common ground and delve into Church history extensively. In Read more about 477 Questioning the Trinity (Steven Nemes)[…]
Renowned Historical Jesus Scholar and Princeton Theological Seminary Professor, Dale Allison’s life changed forever when he was just sixteen years old. In fact, he has chronicled nine profound spiritual experiences throughout his life. These extraordinary moments of transcendence led him to a comparative study to learn more about what is happening to people all around Read more about 468 Touching the Supernatural (Dale Allison)[…]
Have you heard of the Gospel of Thomas? What about the Gospel of Philip or Judas? Although most Christians are only familiar with the four Gospels contained in the Bible, ancient Christians wrote quite a few other Gospels as well. How do we know which Gospels are to be trusted? My guest today is Dr. Read more about 461 The Gospel and the Gospels (Simon Gathercole)[…]
Last week Dale Tuggy discussed William Lane Craig’s theory about the Trinity for an hour. In one sense this was a momentous occasion when two heavy-hitting philosophers got into the ring to duke it out. In another sense, the limited constraint of one hour barely gave either much time to warm up or process the Read more about 453 Dale Tuggy Comments on Debate with William Lane Craig[…]
Whereas last time we examined 6 interpretations people hold for Hebrews 1.10-12, today we look at just one–the 7th. Jerry Wierwille is my guest again and in this episode he explains his take on Hebrews 1.10-12. He delves into wisdom christology to show how these verses speak of Jesus protologically as wisdom that created the Read more about 451 Wisdom Christology in Hebrews 1.10-12 (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
Have you heard of historiography? Your historiography is the method you employ in doing history. This is especially relevant when the scholars who make the rules for doing history decide to exclude any supernatural events from their historiography. Today, my guest, Aaron Shelenberger, continues his rebuttal to Ehrman’s three main objections to the historicity of Read more about 446 Resurrection Objection 3: Supernatural Inaccessible? (Aaron Shelenberger)[…]
Today my guest, Aaron Shelenberger, and I are tackling a second scholarly objection of Bart Ehrman against the resurrection of Jesus. We’re taking a deep dive into the historian’s use of probability to establish whether a particular event happened. Are miracles by definition improbable? Does the rarity of miracles preclude the historian from talking about Read more about 445 Resurrection Objection 2: Improbable Miracles? (Aaron Shelenberger)[…]
Aaron Shelenberger who studied under Mike Licona at Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina, shares about his research on the historicity of the resurrection. In particular, his thesis tackled three main objections brought forth by popular author and anti-Christian Bart Ehrman. Now, I realize this episode and the next two that follow are a Read more about 444 Resurrection Objection 1: Unreliable Gospels? (Aaron Shelenberger)[…]
Last time Pastor Daniel Calcagno spoke to us about the older generations. Today we’ll get into discussing Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z. We explore pivotal events in each of these younger generations as well as how Christianity uniquely appeals to them. Hopefully this conversation will spur some thoughts for you, regardless of your age, Read more about 443 Generational Differences 2 (Daniel Calcagno)[…]
Daniel Calcagno serves as the pastor of Glad Tidings Church of God in Fonthill, Ontario (just west of Niagara Falls). He is the owner of MessianicNiagra.com along with the associated YouTube channel, which has several thousand subscribers and a video with over 400,000 views. Today he’s talking to me about generations based on a sermon Read more about 442 Generational Differences 1 (Daniel Calcagno)[…]
Eric Miller begins by covering Alexander and Thomas Campbell’s beliefs about the Trinity. Then he talks about his own experience as a non-Trinitarian in the Independent Christian Churches community. He explains how the Christian Churches have become stricter on this issue in recent years. We discuss the possibility of reforming his church to be more Read more about 440 Non-Trinitarian History in the Stone-Campbell Movement (Eric Miller)[…]
Have you heard of the Restoration Movement? In today’s interview Eric Miller recounts the history of Barton Stone and Alexander Campbell as they initiated the movement to get back to the Bible over against denominational divisions. He explains the differences between the Disciples of Christ, the A Capella Churches of Christ, and the Independent Christian Read more about 439 The Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement (Eric Miller)[…]
Are you in a high control group? How would you even know? Lori Jane shares her story of waking up after attending Kingdom Halls for thirty years as a Jehovah’s Witness (JW). Although the Watch Tower organization claimed they were the one true church, Lori discovered in Pioneer School the many “corrections” that had been Read more about 437 High Control Groups and Judging Other Christians (Lori Jane)[…]
Have you heard of the Integrity Syndicate? No, not a crime syndicate, the Integrity Syndicate–the online ministry of Theophilus Josiah, my guest today. Abused and neglected by his parents and raised in a California orphanage, Josiah met God in his youth resulting in a new course for his life. Through a series of providential events, Read more about 435-Holistic Biblical Unitarian Christianity (Theophilus Josiah)[…]
Have you heard about the upcoming Unitarian Christian Alliance conference (or as I like to call it, UCA-con)? It’s going to happen next month from October 15-17. My guest today is Dr. Dale Tuggy, the chairman of the board of the UCA. Listen in as he discusses what’s on the docket for our inaugural UCA Read more about 410 Thomas Emlyn and the Unitarian Christian Alliance Conference (Dale Tuggy)[…]
Nearly a year ago, I interviewed Pastor Jeff Deuble from Sydney, Australia about his journey of discovering the genuine Jesus of the first century. At the close of that interview, he mentioned that he had written a book that makes a case for his understanding of the biblical Christ. Well, I’m happy to say that Read more about 408 Christ before Creeds Book (Jeff Deuble)[…]
This is the third and final part of our series on conditional immortality with Warren Prestidge. Although most Christians today believe hell is a place where the dammed suffer eternal conscious torment, the bible teaches that the lost will perish. For example, the most famous verse in the bible says, “For God so loved Read more about 406 Difficult Texts for Annihilationism? (Warren Prestidge)[…]
Last time Warren Prestidge walked us through a case for conditional immortality. Today, we’ll delve into some of the key texts that proponents of natural immortality employ to make their case, including these four texts: Luke 23.43; John 14.2-3; 2 Corinthians 5.8; and Philippians 1.23. In each case, Prestidge appeals to the context of the Read more about 405 Difficult Texts about the Intermediate State (Warren Prestige)[…]
What happens when you die? This is such a big question for all of us. Do we go somewhere like heaven or hell? Do we stay on earth as a disembodied spirit? Or are we unconscious? My guest today is Warren Prestidge of New Zealand, who contends that we should embrace the biblical language of Read more about 404 What Is Conditional Immortality? (Warren Prestige)[…]
This is part three of our Biblical Giving Series. In this third and final interview with Will Barlow, we’ll spend some focused time looking at Malachi 3 to understand what this passage meant in it’s original context and how it relates to us today. Next we’ll take a look at three myths about Christian giving: Read more about 386 Christian Giving Today (Will Barlow)[…]
This is part two of our Biblical Giving Series. Today Will Barlow continues to lay out a comprehensive biblical theology of giving. First he looks at three areas of continuity between the Old and New Testaments: regarding ourselves as stewards of God’s wealth giving to the poor giving to ministers Next, Barlow explains three ways Read more about 385 Giving in the New Testament (Will Barlow)[…]
This is part one of our Biblical Giving Series. Having grown up with a prosperity theology, Will Barlow begins by sharing about his background regarding tithing before tackling five myths about giving: The tithe was monetary and applied to all Israelites. The tithe was the first fruits of the harvest The tithe was always 10%. Read more about 384 Giving in the Old Testament (Will Barlow)[…]
Growing up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Timypaul Lupe came face to face with poverty, hunger, and even war. However, his relationship with God provided him with stability and strength through the hardest of times. In this interview, you’ll hear about what life was like in Africa, how Timypaul came to America as Read more about 383 Coming to America (Timypaul Lupe)[…]
Have you ever attended an online bible study? Would you like to start one, but don’t know how? In our episode today, John Paola Ely share about their own journey of faith and how they have come to appreciate the interactive bible study model of fellowship. Not only does this type of meeting help attendees Read more about 382 Salt & Light Study Night (John and Paola Ely)[…]
This is part 7 and the final episode in our holy spirit series. Are you on a journey with God or have you arrived? Are you still willing to learn and grow and try new things or have you erected boundaries around your current understanding and practice? Today my guest is Kevin Guigou, a full-time Read more about 381 Bible Fed, Spirit Led (Kevin Guigou)[…]
This is part 6 of our holy spirit series. Today we hear a new perspective on the manifestations of the spirit from Carlos Jiménez who stakes out what he calls an “evidentialist” position. He is neither a cessationist nor a continuationist, but someone who retains a certain level of skepticism towards reports of spiritual activity. Read more about 380 Test the Spirits (Carlos Jiménez)[…]
Today we enter into part 5 of our series on the holy spirit. We’ve seen a couple of perspectives, but my guest today is bringing in a third view to our exploration of this important topic. Growing up with the belief that tongues were the only evidence of salvation, Pastor Victor Gluckin eventually changed his Read more about 379 Gifts of the Spirit for the Common Good (Victor Gluckin)[…]
This is part 4 of our holy spirit series. Today we continue to hear John Truitt and Greg Deuble discuss speaking in tongues. If you haven’t listened to the previous three episodes in this series, it would be good to do that before listening to this one. Also, if you want to get the most Read more about 378 Speaking in Tongues Discussion 2 (Deuble, Truitt)[…]
This is part 3 of our holy spirit series. Do you know what I don’t hear enough of today? Dialogue–honest-hearted, biblically-informed, respectful dialogue. So often we silo ourselves off in echo chambers with our doctrinal comrades, occasionally lobbing malotov cocktails at the other side, never taking the time to understand them, much less ask the Read more about 377 Speaking in Tongues Discussion 1 (Truitt, Deuble)[…]
Last week John Truitt explained why he believes the gifts of the spirit are still available for Christians to experience. Today, Greg Deuble pulls on his own biblical research and personal experience to present an opposing case. What’s fascinating about Deuble is that he believes in God’s miraculous activity in the world today. However, he Read more about 376 Tongues Have Ceased (Greg Deuble)[…]
Restitutio exists to restore authentic Christianity and live it out today. As a restorationist, it really does matter to me how the earliest Christians practiced their faith. A question I ask myself is if I jumped in a time machine and went back to the late first century and attended a house church meeting, would Read more about 375 Gifts of the Spirit Are Available Today (John Truitt)[…]
Today in our fourth and final part of our series on postmodernism Pastor Jacob Ballard explains four key guidelines for cross-cultural ministry. Always change the language, but never change the message Exchange meta-narrative for personal narrative or community narrative Exchange certainty for humility, clues, hints, and mysteries Exchange absolutist morality for personal accountability and communal Read more about 373 Postmodernism 4: Cross-Cultural Conversations[…]
Today, in part three of our series on postmodernism we ask the question, “How is postmodernism affecting our world today?” Pastor Jacob Ballard explains how narrative, experience, community, and subjective truth are key ways that postmodern-minded people go about making sense of reality. Then he shows how movements like Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights Read more about 372 Postmodernism 3: Postmodernism’s Effect Today (Jacob Ballard)[…]
In our last episode, Pastor Jacob Ballard explained what worldviews are. Today he covers the two major worldviews: modernism and postmodernism. Although many today still approach life from a modernist mindset, postmodernism is here in increasing force. What are we as bible-believing Christians to do about this? The first step is to become aware of Read more about 371 Postmodernism 2: Modernism vs. Postmodernism (Jacob Ballard)[…]
Have you noticed the shifts happening all around us in our culture? Skepticism of traditional institutions from the government to the media to churches is at an all time high, while increasingly we’re told to discover our authentic self and live it out courageously. Universal truth claims sound like power grabs while individual personal truths Read more about 370 Postmodernism 1: Worldview (Jacob Ballard)[…]
Have you noticed the shrill tone that permeates public discourse in our time? It seems like everyone is on a hairpin trigger ready to rage and vent at their ideological enemies. What is a Christian to do? Should we stand up for our beliefs, morals, and politics? Should we disengage from conversation about controversial issues? Read more about 369 Civil Discourse (Peter Miano)[…]
Did you know the Unitarian Christian Alliance just launched a podcast? In this interview, Mark Cain explains what he aims to do with this newest addition to one God podcasts and how the UCA podcast is different from the others. Ultimately, he wants to see unitarian Christians carry ourselves with confidence, knowing that our faith Read more about 368 Introducing the UCA Podcast (Mark Cain)[…]
Sam who asked me not to use his last name for fear that he will get kicked out of his current church, tells his story of navigating evangelical Christianity as a biblical unitarian. He shares two sad stories of excommunication from a college ministry and a local church. As you might suspect, this harsh treatment Read more about 367 Excommunicated for My Beliefs (Sam)[…]
Pastor Jeff Deuble of the Churches of Christ in Sydney, Australia shares his journey to uncover the genuine Jesus from scripture alone. After his brother Greg challenged him to understand Christ from a Jewish perspective, Jeff set out on a quest, reading through all of scripture to see what it really said about the Messiah. Read more about 366 Who Was Christ before the Creeds? (Jeff Deuble)[…]
This is the second part of a conversation where Jerry Wierwille challenges Brandon Duke’s soul-making theodicy. In particular, Wierwille raises the following questions: Why is hiddenness and epistemic distance considered a necessity for moral development considering the biblical examples where people experienced God and still retained their ability to make real moral choices either to Read more about 365 Challenging Soul-Making Theodicy 2 (Brandon Duke, Jerry Wierwille)[…]
In our last two episodes, Brandon Duke laid out his way of answering the question of why God allows so much suffering in our world. He did so by putting forward a modified version of the late John Hick’s soul-making theodicy. In this episode, Jerry Wierwille pushes back on a few issues with soul-making, preferring Read more about 364 Challenging Soul-Making Theodicy 1 (Brandon Duke, Jerry Wierwille)[…]
In part one, Brandon Duke laid out some of the important groundwork for thinking about how a good and powerful God might have a world capable of experiencing immense amounts of evil and suffering. In our conversation today, we’ll delve further into the idea of soul-making to explain why suffering like death, damage, decay, and Read more about 363 Why God Allows Suffering 2 (Brandon Duke)[…]
If God is so good and powerful, why is there so much evil in our world? Although you might retort, “It’s because humanity fell into sin and we are all suffering the consequences.” Such an answer merely pushes the question back one step, since God is the one who determined just how fallen our world Read more about 362 Why God Allows Suffering 1 (Brandon Duke)[…]
When Joshua Anderson left home and attended a secular college, the environment bombarded him with skepticism and criticism of Christianity. He internalized the general attitude manifested on campus from professors, students, and text books to such a degree that he began doubting his faith. He fell into a two year period of existential despair as Read more about 361 Paralyzed by Doubt (Joshua Anderson)[…]
I love hearing people’s stories–especially people of faith. In this episode you’ll get to know Bob Jones, a professor at the Atlanta Bible College. He’s equally adept teaching chemistry or physics as he is Old Testament or Systematic Theology. Now in his seventies, Jones looks back on his life to see how God led him Read more about 360 The Making of an Old Testament Professor (Bob Jones)[…]
Although powerful preaching, serving the poor, and missionary work often take the lime light in Christian ministry, the truth is that home groups, churches, and especially denominations will fall to pieces without competent and consistent administrators. The job isn’t glitzy or glamorous and it is often beset with equal parts of tedium, stress, and failure, Read more about 359 Faithfully Serving the Church of God (David Krogh)[…]
We’re delving into a topic rife with controversy, polarization, and intense emotion. We’re asking the question, how should bible-based Christians respond to the Black Lives Matter movement. No doubt, some of you will answer that we should all be out marching in full support while others think BLM is itself racist and should be resisted. Read more about 358 A Christian Perspective on Black Lives Matter (Russell Brown)[…]
Last December the Coronavirus pandemic began spreading from Wuhan, China across the world. As of today, globally we know of approximately 30 million cases across 188 countries and territories resulting in 941,000 deaths and 20.3 million who have recovered. The United States has the most cases with 6.7 million infected (roughly 2% of the population) Read more about 357 A Christian Perspective on COVID-19 (Russell Brown)[…]
Today, we’ve got three more texts to look at in our selection of unitarian Bible translations. Unlike last time where we focused on Christologically interesting passages, today, we’ll examine Luke 23.43, John 7.53-8.11, and 1 Thessalonians 1.3 to look at a punctuation issue, a textual issue, and a grammatical issue. By the end of this Read more about 356 Unitarian Bible Translations 3 (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
Last time we reviewed six unitarian Bible translations, covering some basic information about where each came from and their overall strategy for translation. Today, we’re going to analyze how they translate three key texts, including Philippians 2.6, John 1.1-3, and John 8.58. Our goal is to measure these translations against what the Greek says as Read more about 355 Unitarian Bible Translations 2 (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
In our last episode, I recommended some mainstream Christian Bible translations, but I would remiss if I didn’t also review some important unitarian Bible translations. Although often overlooked, these versions are important because they have the opposite bias when it comes to passages commonly offered as proof texts for the Trinity. Also, I asked Dr. Read more about 354 Unitarian Bible Translations 1 (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
This is part four of our series on original sin. Last time Kegan Chandler and Jerry Wierwille discussed their different views of original sin and the resultant human condition. In this final part of our series, we circle back to Romans 5 one last time and both explain how they understand it. What drives our Read more about 324 Original Sin Debate 2 (Kegan Chandler vs. Jerry Wierwille)[…]
This is part three of our series on original sin. In part one, Kegan Chandler discussed the history of Augustine’s doctrine of original sin, arguing that the whole idea is post biblical. Last time Jerry Wierwille responded to Chandler, explaining that we do have solid biblical grounding to believe in some form of inherited original Read more about 323 Original Sin Debate 1 (Kegan Chandler vs. Jerry Wierwille)[…]
In our last episode Kegan Chandler presented his case against the classic doctrine of original sin. Today we are going to hear a critique from Jerry Wierwille of Chandler’s presentation. Wierwille makes the case for a middle position between Augustine and Chandler on the basis of the flow of thought in Romans 5.12-21. He agrees Read more about 322 Inherited Sin in Romans 5 (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
Today we are beginning a new series on original sin based on Kegan Chandler’s presentation from last year, entitled, “Origins of Sin: The New Heretics and the Metaphysics of Disobedience.” I’m excited about this four part series for a couple of reasons. First off, I’m glad to host a place where we can discuss genuine Read more about 321 Origins of Sin (Kegan Chandler)[…]
Have you ever heard of Bethany Christian Services? They are a large Christian adoption agency in the USA and internationally, working hard to find good homes for babies. In this interview I visit my local branch in Latham, NY and speak with adoption specialist Renee Rogowski about how adoptions work. I’m so impressed by the Read more about 314 Adopting with Bethany Christian Services (Renee Rogowski)[…]
How much control should Christian groups exercise over their people? Should people be free to research and diverge from past ways of thinking? In this interview, I talk with William Barlow who grew up in the Way International, but ran into problems when he started suggesting changes to the administrators at the Way Corps leadership Read more about 313 Questioning Way International Doctrines (William Barlow)[…]
Last week John Truitt began discussing the theological framework of dispensationalism, especially the “mid-Acts dispensationalism” taught by the Way International. He pointed out some flaws that got his attention and made him explore the issue more deeply. In the course of his research, Truitt discovered another way of approaching scripture known as covenantalism. In this Read more about 312 Evaluating Dispensationalism 2 (John Truitt)[…]
Have you ever been on a long drive in the summer when you wore sunglasses for hours and hours? It’s getting dark and then suddenly you realize you’re still wearing sunglasses. You take them off and the whole world brightens and you realize it’s not nearly as dark as you thought? This is the nature Read more about 311 Evaluating Dispensationalism 1 (John Truitt)[…]
Are spiritual gifts available today or did they cease after the original apostles died? In this interview, I talk to Dr. Sam Storms about his own personal experience with speaking in tongues, his biblical case for why gifts are available today, and how he makes room for them in his church services. Before delving in, Read more about 310 Are Gifts of the Spirit Available Today? (Sam Storms)[…]
Today, we are publicly announcing the launch of a new para-church organization called the UCA or the Unitarian Christian Alliance. This is a new ministry that I’ve been working on with Dale Tuggy, Kegan Chandler, and Mark Cain for months and I believe it will help all of us, but especially those who don’t live Read more about 309 Introducing the Unitarian Christian Alliance (Dale Tuggy, Kegan Chandler, Mark Cain, Sean Finnegan)[…]
This is part 6 of our Foreknowledge and Free Will series. Last time Dr. Sean Cole introduced the Calvinist understanding of God’s foreknowledge and the limitations on our freedom as a result of our fallen nature. This time I ask Cole about unconditional election and how that compares to a lottery. After all, if God Read more about 308 Foreknowledge and Free Will 6 (Sean Cole Defending Calvinism)[…]
This is part 5 of our Foreknowledge and Free Will series. We’ve considered Open Theism and Arminianism and now we are going to begin thinking about Calvinism. This way of conceiving of God’s foreknowledge argues for both exhaustive foreknowledge and meticulous providence. Thus, no one comes to Christ apart from God’s predestination since our natures Read more about 307 Foreknowledge and Free Will 5 (Sean Cole Introducing Calvinism)[…]
This is part 4 of our Foreknowledge and Free Will series. Last time Dr. Leighton Flowers of the Soteriology101 podcast laid out his commitment to both God’s complete knowledge of all future events as well as humanity’s ability to freely choose. Rather than explaining philosophically how that is possible, he suggested that we do not Read more about 306 Foreknowledge and Free Will 4 (Leighton Flowers Defending Arminianism)[…]
We are now in part 3 of our Foreknowledge and Free Will series. We’ve considered Open Theism–the idea that God’s foreknowledge is limited to what he plans to do as well as what he can ascertain from past and present conditions. In a couple of weeks we’ll examine Calvinism, which holds that God not only Read more about 305 Foreknowledge and Free Will 3 (Leighton Flowers Introducing Arminianism)[…]
Last week we began our Foreknowledge and Freewill series with Dr. Dale Tuggy who gave us an overview of the various positions. He also commended Open Theism as a view that triumphs where others suffer from logical contradictions. Now, today in part two, Tuggy will further explore and defend Open Theism against a number of Read more about 304 Foreknowledge and Free Will 2 (Dale Tuggy Defending Open Theism)[…]
Today we are beginning an exciting new series on one of the most interesting ongoing controversies within Christian theology. Does God have exhaustive foreknowledge of the future? Does he know everything that is going to happen before it happens? If so, what does that mean for human free will? What are the various options within Read more about 303 Foreknowledge and Free Will 1 (Dale Tuggy Introducing Open Theism)[…]
Are you sold out for God? Would you move to a foreign land if he called to the mission field? Well, Stan and Pam Chee of Australia have done just that. In this interview, they share about their lives of service to God and Christ. They grew up in Australia but have been serving in Read more about 300 Christian Disciples with a Mission (Stan and Pam Chee)[…]
Abortion has been and remains a hot-button issue in our culture at large and even within some corners of Christianity. In this episode Jerry Wierwille will explain the issues with the only biblical text that directly addresses this subject (Exodus 21.22-5). In addition to exegeting this confusing passage, Wierwille also draws on evidence from Psalm Read more about 299 Does the Bible Support Abortion? (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
Scott Shay is an interesting man. He’s a succesful business man and banker who co-founded a bank in 2001. He even has a TEDx talk where he spoke on Wall Street on the theme, “More Banks, Fewer Problems.” However, he’s also an orthodox Jew who is passionate about his faith. In this interview we talk Read more about 298 Orthodox Jew Defends God, Bible (Scott Shay)[…]
I’ve got a fascinating interview for you with Becket Cook. Now some of you may recognize his name from the interview I did with him two years ago (Interview 18). In that episode Cook shared his amazing testimony of how he went from a committed gay production set designer in Hollywood to experiencing God in Read more about 292 A Change of Affection (Becket Cook)[…]
This is the third and final part of our series, God at Work in Kenya with Maurice Chahilu of Kingdom Life Ministries. We’ve come to see so much about what is going on over there, but there’s still more to learn. Last time I had asked bishop Maurice about his greatest challenges and what he Read more about Interview 59 God at Work in Kenya 3 (Maurice Chahilu)[…]
This is part two of our series on God at Work in Kenya with a focus on Kingdom Life Ministries and Maurice Chahilu. In our last episode we saw how Maurice got started in his ministry. (If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, go back and listen to it first). Today, we’ll hear about Read more about Interview 58 God at Work in Kenya 2 (Maurice Chahilu)[…]
God is doing something in Kenya and churches are forming and growing rapidly. Today we are beginning a series of shows on the work of Kingdom Life Ministries and the visionary who began the work there, Maurice Chahilu. A few weeks ago I went to Africa to visit Maurice and the churches he oversees. I Read more about Interview 57 God at Work in Kenya 1 (Maurice Chahilu)[…]
Today is the second and final part of my interview with Leah Fronczek on detoxing your brain. See part one here. We begin by talking about the importance of free will in effecting change before getting into the specifics of how to combat toxic thinking. Learn about multitasking, daydreaming, community, forgiveness, and honesty as ways Read more about Interview 56 Detoxing Your Brain 2 (Leah Fronczek)[…]
At the beginning of each year, we have a young adult event called Revive in Connecticut. This year Leah Fronczek was one of the workshop leaders. Her topic was detoxing your brain and I asked her to come on Restitutio to share with you what she learned in studying this topic. This is so important Read more about Interview 55 Detoxing Your Brain 1 (Leah Fronczek)[…]
Last Saturday while I was attending a Christian festival in Ohio, a 21 year-old man entered a Walmart in El Paso, TX and murdered 22 people, injuring 24 more, making it the 7th deadliest shooting in modern US history. What’s so crazy about this, is that walking into a huge store like Walmart and shooting Read more about Interview 54 Beating Guns (Shane Claiborne and Mike Martin)[…]
Bill Schlegel lived in Israel for 34 years, much of that time spent studying and then teaching about the geography of the scriptures. In this interview he provides three reasons why every bible-student should study the land of Israel: historical accuracy archeological accuracy geographical accuracy He also talks about his upcoming tour to Israel (March Read more about Interview 53 Why Knowing the Land of Israel Matters (Bill Schlegel)[…]
What do you know about Palestinians? In this eye-opening interview with Gloria Olivier, we discuss the plight of Palestinians today. Did you know that thousands of Christians live in the West Bank today under Israeli occupation? In this interview, you’ll learn a little about the history of this conflict as well as what conditions are Read more about Interview 52 The Plight of Palestinians (Gloria Olivier)[…]
Are you curious how Dale Tuggy thinks he did on the Trinity debate with Michael Brown? In this post-debate interview I ask him about his strongest points as well as what he thought Brown’s strongest arguments were. I ask Tuggy about Brown’s Trinity theory and he explains the “one self” version of the Trinity as Read more about Interview 51 Dale Tuggy Post-Debate Review[…]
Are you curious how Michael Brown thinks he did on the Trinity debate last weekend? In this post-debate interview I ask him about his strongest points as well as what he thought Dale Tuggy’s strongest points were. We talk about his reticence to use traditional trinitarian language in light of his own unique heritage and Read more about Interview 50 Michael Brown Post-Debate Review[…]
Greg Deuble grew up in the Church of Christ in Australia, went to N.S.W. Bible College in Sydney, and spent fifteen years serving as a pastor and evangelist. One day he attended a meeting during which Anthony Buzzard challenged him on his belief in the deity of Christ. Rattled, Deuble began on a quest to reassess Read more about Interview 49 They Never Told Me This in Church (Greg Deuble)[…]
For more than a decade, Sam An has faithfully served as an administrator and teacher at the Korean Extension of the Atlanta Bible College. In this interview, you’ll learn about his own story of faith as well as what God is doing through his ministry to touch Koreans both in America and in South Korea. Read more about Interview 48 Korean Ministry (Sam An)[…]
Have you heard of the Christian Disciples Church? They are a biblical unitarian group scattered throughout Asia primarily. In this episode Calvin Chan, who has been with the disciples since the beginning, will tell you the story of how this group got started as a student disciple movement. He also shares about how the founder, Read more about Interview 47 Christian Disciples Church and the Only True God (Calvin Chan)[…]
This is the fourth and final part of our Misunderstood Texts about Jesus series with Bill Schlegel. In this episode he offers remarks on Philippians 2.5-6, Colossians 2.9, and Revelation 1.17. After this, I ask him one of the biggest questions on this subject: if Jesus isn’t God then how can his sacrifice possibly pay Read more about Interview 46 Misunderstood Texts about Jesus 4 (Bill Schlegel)[…]
In parts one and two, we examined ten misunderstood verses in the Gospel of John. In part three, we’ll examine seven more texts from the rest of the bible: Genesis 1.26 Isaiah 9.6 Matthew 2.2 Matthew 28.9 Matthew 28.19 (cf. 2 Cor 13.14) Romans 9.5 Acts 20.28 Repeatedly, Bill Schlegel calls us back to understand Read more about Interview 45 Misunderstood Texts about Jesus 3 (Bill Schlegel)[…]
This is part two of my series with Bill Schlegel, former professor of the Israel Bible Extension and long time bible teacher and geography expert. Last time we discussed five major texts in the Gospel of John and this time we cover four or five more: John 10.30 John 10.33 John 13.18-19 John 20.28 1 Read more about Interview 44 Misunderstood Texts about Jesus 2 (Bill Schlegel)[…]
Today we are beginning a new series called “Misunderstood Texts about Jesus” with Bill Schlegel. Professor Schlegel lived and taught the bible and geography in Israel for more than three decades. Recently, he came to change his mind on the deity of Jesus, seeing him now as God’s man rather than a God-man. Since he Read more about Interview 43 Misunderstood Texts about Jesus 1 (Bill Schlegel)[…]
Kenneth LaPrade lives in El Paso, Texas, on the border between the United States and Mexico. His wife is Mexican and many of the folks in his house church are from Mexico. In such a context, immigration is always a touchy subject, but lately some Christians have baptized certain political rhetoric and presented it as Read more about Interview 42 Christian Solidarity vs. Polarizing Politics (Kenneth Laprade)[…]
Robin Todd has faithfully served as the director of the Worldwide Scattered Brethren Network for the last 10 years. He helps biblical unitarians find each other all over the United States as well as some other countries. In this interview, we talk about how he got started, what it takes to get on his list, Read more about Interview 41 The Scattered Brethren Network with Robin Todd[…]
How much does truth matter to you? In particular, how should we think about Christians who hold very different views on key subjects? For example, I’m a biblical unitarian, someone who believes that we should take Jesus literally when he called his Father “the only true God.” Of course I believe Jesus is God’s only Read more about Interview 40: How Much Does Truth Matter? (Chuck Whitlock)[…]
Are you looking for a Christian blog to encourage you in your faith? In this short interview Kirk Walden shares about his new website, 1stfaith.com, and the work he and his team are doing to live out 1st century Christianity in the 21st century. First Faith aims to simplify and strengthen your faith so you Read more about Interview 39: First Faith (Kirk Walden)[…]
Kirk Walden has been advocating for the lives of the unborn since 1991 when he became the director of a small pregnancy help center in Auburn, Alabama. Over the last 17 years, he’s focused on fundraising for Heartbeat International, which supports pregnancy centers, adoption agencies, and maternity homes. In this interview I ask him about Read more about Interview 38: Advocating for the Unborn (Kirk Walden)[…]
Last time, Jerry Wierwille explained the concept of covenantal nomism–the idea that rather than seeking to earn their salvation through perfect obedience, Jews at the time of Christ looked at the Law as a covenant God graciously entered into with his people. They enter that covenant by birth and then need to remain faithful to Read more about Interview 37: A New Perspective on Galatians (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
How did Jews at the time of Jesus understand their relationship to the Law? Did they believe in “works righteousness”–the idea that only by obeying the commandments of Torah could they earn salvation? Did they believe in grace? Jerry Wierwille leads us through this important issue so that we contextualize the epistles of Paul within Read more about Interview 36: Paul and Covenantal Nomism (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
Pastor Daniel Calcagno lays out a his case for what he calls a positive view of Torah. He believes that the cleavage with Judaism in early church history is something the apostles never envisioned. Sadly, this parting of the ways led to confusion, doctrinal drifting, and persecution. Although Calcagno does not believe Gentiles need to Read more about Interview 35: Should Messianic Jews Keep Torah? (Daniel Calcagno)[…]
Born to Italian immigrants, Daniel Calcagno grew up in Canada, near Niagara Falls and attended a Pentecostal church. After he began taking his faith seriously, he started researching the Jewish people–especially those who believe in Jesus. Over time he founded Messianic Niagara, a local home group with a website that promoted audio teachings. However, Read more about Interview 34: From Pentecostal to Messianic Unitarian (Daniel Calcagno)[…]
Having believed in the permanence of salvation for 46 years, Dan Gallagher recently changed his mind to believe in what he calls continuance in faith–the idea that those who fail to continue in faith can be lost. The whole process took about fourteen years from when a book introduced him to a number of verses Read more about Interview 33: Can You Lose Your Salvation? (Dan Gallagher)[…]
Are you longing for fellowship with other like-minded believers? In this interview, John Truitt of Kentucky shares how he uses video conferencing to have interactive and encouraging virtual fellowships. Whether you want to join in with what he does or you want to start your own, this conversation is loaded with helpful guidance on how Read more about Interview 32: Virtual Fellowship for Isolated Believers (John Truitt)[…]
Bill Schlegel, professor and cofounder of The Master’s University extension program in Israel (IBEX), was studying the phrase “Son of God” and came to understand the term did not correlate with the traditional “God the Son” teaching, but instead meant God’s heir, the king he has designated to rule the world. Although he had taught Read more about Interview 31: Master’s University Prof. Finds Son of God, Loses Job (Bill Schlegel)[…]
Have you ever noticed that pastors tend to get called to bigger churches over time, usually with better pay. However, after fifteen years of serving at a church in rural South Carolina, Pastor Alan Cain heard God calling him to move to a smaller church that was having financial difficulty. Although he took some convincing, Read more about Interview 30: When God Speaks (Alan Cain)[…]
John McCave has faithfully served God as a minister for 36 years. In this interview he shares his story of how God brought him from a hardened tough guy to a humble servant, motivated by love. McCave also shares key insights he’s gained along the way, especially with regard to his wife, Mary without whose Read more about Interview 29: God’s Faithful Minister (John McCave)[…]
Why are there so many divergent beliefs about what the bible teaches? Partially, this results from mistakes we make when reading scripture. In this interview, Dr. Jerry Wierwille enumerates seven typical fallacies that bible students commit when reading: Root Fallacy Time-Frame Fallacy Misusing Parallels Fallacy Single Meaning Fallacy Word-Concept Fallacy Disjunctive Fallacy Lexical Fallacy Avoiding Read more about Interview 28: Exegetical Fallacies (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
What do you know about the book of Proverbs? It can be quite difficult to understand what’s going on without some knowledge of how Hebrew poetry works. In this episode Jerry Wierwille, serves as our guide to get a better grip on what Proverbs is all about. He explains the poetic structures, general approach, and Read more about Interview 27: Understanding Proverbs (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
What is faith? To some it is believing in something without evidence. To others it is a means by which to attain God’s blessings like prosperity and health. John Schoenheit explains how neither of these definitions best encapsulates the biblical understanding. Instead, he shows how faith is really just trust in what God says, whether Read more about Interview 26: Word of Faith vs. Trusting in God (John Schoenheit)[…]
Sean Holbrook was attending a typical evangelical church when he heard a series of sermons teaching the Trinity. Ironically, these very messages, designed to bolster faith in the doctrine, ended up inspiring Holbrook to question the age old dogma. As a result, he set out to study the topic more and watched James White debates Read more about Interview 25: Studying the Trinity, Discovering God Is One (Sean Holbrook)[…]
Do you know what the Trinity is? Could you explain it to someone else or is it just a confusing collection of impenetrable statements hidden under a cloud of fog? In his recent book, Professor Dale Tuggy seeks to clarify everyone’s perceptions of the various Trinity theories so that we can have productive conversation on Read more about Interview 24: What Is the Trinity with Dale Tuggy[…]
Are you interested in online ministry? Would you like to reach more people? Ryan Maher shares what he’s learned about combining his love for God and graphic design into his bible lock-screen app. Once Instigram came out, he jumped on board and developed a following that numbers around a million people. In this interview Maher Read more about Interview 23: Bible Lock-Screens with Ryan Maher[…]
J. Dan and Sharon Gill are part of a growing movement of bible students who have concluded that the Father of Jesus is the only true God. They’re so passionate about this truth that in 2008, they launched their website, called Twenty-First Century Reformation (21stcr.org). To date they’ve received over 700,000 views on YouT ube, Read more about Interview 22: The 21st Century Reformation (J. Dan and Sharon Gill)[…]
Sir Anthony Buzzard has led a fascinating life. He grew up in the Church of England in the 1930s and 40s. While at Oxford, he attended a “get saved” meeting and went forward. Next he joined Herbert Armstrong’s Worldwide Church of God, but then left and studied with the Christadelphians, before joining the Church of Read more about Interview 21: Anthony Buzzard, Tireless Herald of Jesus’ Gospel and Creed[…]
Let’s face it; it’s difficult to talk about pornography, especially among Christians. We get overwhelmed with feelings of shame and embarrassment while fearing how others will regard us with disgust or disdain. However, this issue is a huge struggle for a ton of Christians (and non-Christians) in the world today. Drawing on some of what Read more about Interview 20: How To Quit Pornography (Blake Cortright)[…]
What spiritual disciplines do you practice? We’re all familiar with reading our bibles and prayer, but there’s so much more available. In this interview, Blake Cortright guides us through his own journey into discovering ancient Christian disciplines that can help us today, including prayer, fasting, meditation, bible study, simplicity, solitude, submission, service, confession, worship, guidance, Read more about Interview 19: Spiritual Disciplines (Blake Cortright)[…]
Meet Becket Cook. He’s a very well-connected gay fashion set designer who has traveled the world, attended the Oscars, Golden Globes, Emmys, etc., and rubbed shoulders with Hollywood’s A-list actors. One day he saw Christians reading their bibles in a trendy coffee shop in LA and engaged them in conversation. One of them invited Cook Read more about Interview 18: God Woos Fashion Set Designer from Gay Lifestyle (Becket Cook)[…]
How does salvation work? Is Israel still God’s chosen people or are they on the same footing as everyone else now that the Messiah has come? In Off Script episode 17, Is Jesus the Only Way to God?, Brian wrote in, inquiring if a Torah-observant Jew could be saved even if he or she didn’t Read more about Interview 17: Will All Israel Be Saved? (Matthew Elton)[…]
Back in Interview 11, Joe Martin talked about how he was soon to step down from his leadership position at the Church of God (General Conference). In this episode, you’ll hear from Seth Ross, who has taken up the mantle and who casts his vision for the future. You’ll learn about his background, his twenty Read more about Interview 16: Church of God Vision (Seth Ross)[…]
Claudia Scott is one of the pillars of our church, a woman of faith who carries herself with dignity and poise. Growing up, she’s been an example to me of faithfulness and passion for God. Having only known her over the last twenty or so years, I was clueless about how much she had been Read more about Interview 15: Healing from Abuse and Abandonment (Claudia Scott)[…]
What do you believe about baptism? In this interview, I ask Ken LaPrade, a house church pastor in El Paso, Texas and Juarez, Mexico, to share his baptism journey. Coming from a Way International background, LaPrade learned that spirit baptism had replaced water. As a result he had interpreted the water baptisms in Acts to Read more about Interview 14: Ken LaPrade’s Baptism Journey[…]
How are you at handling conflict? Do you withdraw and avoid conflict at any cost? Do you rush in headlong, eager to set the other person straight? Are you a compromiser who looks at everything like a contract where both parties inevitably have to make trade-offs to get some advantage? As with so many really Read more about Interview 13: Caring Enough to Confront (Jerry Wierwille)[…]
What is the gospel? Growing up, Jacob Rohrer heard about Jesus dying for his sins so he could go to heaven. However, he’s come to see that this way of thinking is not only wrong, but goes against what Jesus himself taught. Listen in to Rohrer as he explains the five elements of the gospel, Read more about Interview 12: Jacob Rohrer on the Gospel (Jacob Rohrer)[…]
Dr. Joe Martin has taught at the Atlanta Bible College for over 25 years. He’s worked as an adjunct professor, full-time professor, academic dean, and the president. In this interview he talks about his favorite class to teach, his greatest challenge as a teacher, and his advice to those interested in going into ministry. He Read more about Interview 11: Joe Martin, Looking Back on His Service at the Atlanta Bible College[…]
Joe and Rebekah Martin have labored for twenty years in Africa to bring the gospel and humanitarian aid to some of the poorest people in the world. They minister primarily in Malawi and Mozambique, though the work in Kenya is now gaining traction as well. In this interview, you’ll hear how a single tract led Read more about Interview 10: Twenty Years of Missions in Africa (Joe and Rebekah Martin)[…]
Kegan Chandler joins me once again to talk about the history of theology. If you haven’t yet heard his story, check out Interview 8: A Restorationist Finds the God of Jesus. In this episode, I ask Chandler about his book, The God of Jesus in Light of Christian Dogma. If you are at all interested Read more about Interview 9: Pagan Influences on the Development of the Trinity (Kegan Chandler)[…]
Kegan Chandler grew up as a bible-believing Christian in Texas. His grandfather, Pat E. Harrell, was a leader within Church of Christ who founded their Restoration Quarterly publication. As a result of his grandparents’ and parents’ passion for God, Chandler grew up in a family steeped in bible study and theological reflection. One day the Read more about Interview 8: A Restorationist Discovers the God of Jesus (Kegan Chandler)[…]
In my previous interview with Professor Dale Tuggy, we discussed his journey of faith. In this conversation I ask him to discuss logical and biblical problems with the Trinity. This is a higher level conversation, but well worth the listen if you are at all curious about the Trinity or are interesting in hearing how Read more about Interview 7: An Analytic Philosopher Unleashes Logic on the Trinity (Dale Tuggy)[…]
In this interview with philosopher Dr. Dale Tuggy, I ask him questions about his personal spiritual journey. Dr. Tuggy is an analytic philosopher who works on world religions and the doctrine of the Trinity. He’s a tenured professor of philosophy at the State University of New York at Fredonia. Furthermore, he runs a popular website Read more about Interview 6: Dale Tuggy’s Journey[…]
Brian and Rochelle Allen of Vermont share their journey of faith, including how they became discontent with the traditional evangelical doctrines they grew up believing. In this interview they discuss how recontextualizing the bible in its Hebrew thought-world opened their eyes to understand Jesus so much better. He is the Jewish Messiah sent to redeem Read more about Interview 5: Seeking Truth Wherever It Leads (Brian and Rochelle Allen)[…]
Some say faith-healing is a charade, concocted by charlatans to build their empires on the backs of the afflicted and suffering. Others think that Christians who reject healing contradict what Jesus said and did, preferring the comfort of tradition instead of unleashing God’s mighty power. What do you believe about supernatural healing? Listen in to Read more about Interview 4: Spiritual, Emotional, and Physical Healing (Bill and Anne DeNenno)[…]
Today Hugh Knowlton joins Restitutio to talk about how to handle important doctrinal differences with other Christians. So often such intra-Christian discussions generate more heat than light. Does that mean we should all just ignore our differences, forcing smiles and hoping that no one peers beneath our thin veneer of unity? Or should we charge Read more about Interview 3: A Letter to a Trinitarian (Hugh Knowlton)[…]
Have you ever struggled to interpret the bible? Although many today think only professionals who are trained in seminaries can understand the bible, the truth is that every reader is a theologian to some degree. The moment you pick up the book and begin reading, you also begin interpreting what you read. The only question Read more about Interview 2: Jerry Wierwille on Hermeneutics[…]
Drawing on the work of Peter Scazzero, Jerry Wierwille discusses how we can avoid some of the common unhealthy emotional pitfalls. No matter if you are new to the faith or someone who has persevered for decades, this subject will make you examine yourself to see if there are issues you need to overcome. Access Read more about Interview 1: Emotionally Healthy Spirituality (Jerry Wierwille)[…]