Church Theology

How do God's dealings in the Old Testament relate to Christ and the message of the New Testament? How does the whole Bible fit together? How are we to think about themes like kingdom, temple, land, etc.; and how do they help us better understand the scriptures as centered in Jesus? These are all questions that Biblical theology seeks to answer. In this episode, I sit down with Oren Martin, one of the authors of 40 Questions About Biblical Theology, to discuss what Biblical theology is and why it matters.

If we are to read each portion of scripture in view of the broader story of scripture, then what is that bigger story? What is the overarching storyline of the Bible? In this episode we cover the next three epochs of that overarching story: Jesus' arrival, the church and her mission, and Christ's second coming.

If we are to read each portion of scripture in view of the broader story of scripture, then what is that bigger story? What is the overarching storyline of the Bible? In this episode, we cover the next three epochs of that overarching story: the initial form of the kingdom in Israel, the exile, and the prophets’ messages of warning and hope.

If we are to read each portion of scripture in view of the broader story of scripture, then what is that bigger story? What is the overarching storyline of the Bible? In this episode, we cover the first few epochs of that overarching story: creation, fall, and the covenants.

We contend that a proper reading of any passage of scripture will necessarily include interpreting it in light of the whole of scripture as centered in the Christ-event. But what is the basis for this position? And what are the errors involved in failing to read all of scripture in view of Christ on the one hand, or, on the other hand, spiritualizing the text and bypassing its original meaning as we get to Christ?

Mike turned to drugs and alcohol at around eleven or twelve years of age. Later in life, he would end up homeless, pursuing a life on the streets. But one day, God miraculously opened his eyes to the good news about Jesus. And he's never been the same. He's now a member of his church where he faithfully serves as a deacon.

Bring up race and people tense up and dig their heals in. Why is this? Why is talking about race is so difficult, and no less in the church? In this episode, Isaac Adams sits down with Kirk to talk about talking: how can we have better conversations about race? Or even more fundamentally, why do we need to have better conversations about race? Based on Adam's recent book, Talking about Race: Gospel Hope for Hard Conversations (Zondervan, January 2022).

Out of all the parts of the Bible, many find the Old Testament prophetic literature to be among some of the most difficult to read and understand. The prophets can feel incredibly distant, addressing unfamiliar historical situations. Their writings can feel bizarre, using imagery that's hard to understand, or even unruly—"Can someone provide me a roadmap to these books?" And yet Eric Tully argues that the prophetic writings serve as an important junction in between God's foundational activity in the Old Testament (think Genesis-Chronicles) and how God will finally resolve that story in Christ (the New Testament). If we want to understand the Old Testament and Jesus(!) we need to understand the prophets.

Have you ever been reading in the Old Testament and wondered, what does this have to do with the larger story? Or maybe it's never even occurred to you that the Old Testament even has a larger story! Well, in this episode, Kirk sits down with a premier Old Testament scholar, Stephen Dempster, author of the stellar book, Dominion and Dynasty, to talk specifically about the theology and storyline of the Hebrew Bible.

What does it mean and look like faithfully to preach the Bible itself rather than use the Bible as a launchpad for our own message? In this episode, Kirk sits down with seasoned pastor Mike Bullmore to talk about what's called "expository preaching" and why it's so important.