In an age when authenticity, personal potential and the fulfilment of that potential is so highly valued, the virtue of self-control seems counterintuitive. In contrast to the world, the Bible tells us that the good life is not located in unbounded self-expression, but in purposeful self-restraint.

Why is self-control so necessary to the Christian life? What does the Bible say about it, and how can we cultivate it within ourselves? Furthermore, does the deliberate curbing of desire really play a key role in our self-actualisation?

In this episode, we bring you a recording of our recent event in our series on virtue in the Christian life in which Moore College lecturer David Höhne helps us think through how to live as Christians, living self-controlled lives in a world that so values self-actualisation.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-104/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

What does John’s Gospel have to say about the Christian life? Famously, John tells us why he wrote at the end of his Gospel: so that we might “believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31). We can easily read John’s Gospel and think that it’s only about understanding who Jesus is and believing in him. Those are important, but the problem is we might not think that John’s Gospel is a rich resource for living the Christian life and thinking about Christian ethics.

In this episode of the CCL podcast, Tom Habib, lecturer in New Testament at Moore College, helps us to think about what it means to live the Christian life from the perspective of John’s Gospel.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-103/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

What is the value of the Old Testament for the Christian life? It might seem like an obvious question. We read the Old Testament, we draw comfort from the Psalms, and we can read the Ten Commandments. But in this episode of the CCL podcast with Professor Desmond Alexander, we’re going to focus on the first five books of the Old Testament and think about how they help us to understand the person and work of the Lord Jesus, and how they help us to respond appropriately to him.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-102/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

The Christian life is filled with all kinds of challenges and trials that easily raise questions about the goodness of God and what it means for us to continue on in faith, even in the face of hardship. In this episode of the CCL podcast, Chase Kuhn and Peter Orr discuss how good our God is and why we can entrust ourselves to him as we continue in the life of faith.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-101/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

Narcissism and vanity characterise the spirit of our age—particularly when it comes to social media, where we’re tempted to promote ourselves, make ourselves look good, and present a certain image of ourselves to the world. But when faced with the glory of God, Scripture calls upon us to exhibit a different attitude: humility.

What does it mean to be truly humble? What does it mean to humble oneself before the Lord? If we’re serious about giving all glory to God, what should this look like in the Christian life? In this special edition of our podcast, we bring you the audio from the recent lecture Professor David VanDrunen gave for the Centre on “The glory of true humility” on 7 June 2023.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-100/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

Our most recent live event from our series on “A virtuous life” focused on true virtue in an age of virtue signalling. Our presenter was Professor David VanDrunen of Westminster Seminary California.

In this episode of the Centre for Christian Living podcast, Professor VanDrunen joins us again in a special follow-up episode to answer some of the questions that arose during the event. I hope that this discussion will be of good help to you as you continue to reflect on what it means to walk in the newness of life that we’ve been given in Jesus.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-099/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

In the information age and the advent of cancel culture, public morality has taken an interesting turn. Virtue is signalled by what we approve publicly or cancel publicly. The deep irony is that this virtue signalling is most often not backed by _true_ virtue. This is seen in the fierce and cutting remarks too common on social media.

The danger for Christians is that they follow the culture and become no better than whitewashed tombs. At this cultural moment, it’s all the more pertinent for Christians to cultivate true virtue. The Bible often encourages believers that their character is to match their calling.

In this special edition of our podcast, we bring you the audio from our recent live event from our 2023 series on “A virtuous life”. In this episode, we hear from Professor David VanDrunen about “Virtue in an age of virtue signalling: Christian culture in a characterless society”.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-098/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

Motherhood is not something that we all know directly in our lives, but we all, at least, experience it indirectly: we’ve all been born of a woman. This is something common to humanity and is one of our deepest bonds with Jesus, our brother, who was born of the Virgin Mary. Motherhood can be viewed poorly. It can be seen as something to be endured, an interruption to life and a career, or something terribly painful and questionable in its goodness.

But when we think about motherhood theologically, we see it differently. It’s something that God has designed with great purpose and goodness. It’s a beautiful thing that marks one of the distinctive roles of women in society. It’s something to celebrate, even in its pain and risk. Furthermore, in the expectation of life that pregnancy holds, there is a great picture of our expectation of eternal life.

In this episode of the CCL podcast with Jodie McIver, we consider God’s purposes in pregnancy and birth.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-097/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

It’s sad that over the last century, so much division among Christians has come from different beliefs about the Holy Spirit. Perhaps what’s even more sad is that these differences are, at their core, about God himself. Who is the God we worship? What is the work that he does in our lives? How does he work, and to what end does he do this work? The tragedy is that the Holy Spirit is promised to us as the bond of peace among Christians (Eph 4:3). Indeed, it’s in spiritual unity that we confess one Lord, one faith and one baptism, as Paul says in Ephesians 4:5.

In this episode of the CCL podcast with Phillip Jensen, we look a little bit more closely at what the Scriptures say about the Holy Spirit. In particular, what does the gift of the Spirit mean for us in our Christian lives?

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-096/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/

Christians often think about evangelism in terms of what we say. It can easily become a formula of the right words spoken in the right way that amounts to faithfulness. In many ways, this is an entirely appropriate way to think. However, it’s also an incomplete way to think: our witness to the world is not just with our words, but also with our how we live our lives. We testify to the gospel as we live transformed lives.

As we think about reaching cross-culturally with the gospel, _how_ we live is often as important as anything else. People want to see that following Jesus is a liveable way of being. This, of course, doesn’t mean that everything in life will be easy. But even in hardship, in the real cost of discipleship, we can demonstrate the goodness of God in Christ, living with real hope.

In this episode of the CCL podcast with Clive and Ben, we consider the significance of the Christian life as we reach out to Hindus with the gospel.

For an edited transcript and show notes, visit https://ccl.moore.edu.au/resources/podcast-episode-095/

Send us your ethical questions using the contact form on our website: https://ccl.moore.edu.au/contact/