Faith in the Folds

Today I sit down with Dr. Rob O’Lynn, Dean of the School Of Distance and General Education, Director of Graduate Bible Programs, and Associate Professor of Preaching and Ministry at Kentucky Christian University; he is also Affiliate Associate Professor of Preaching at Fuller Seminary and is the Senior Minister at Beech Street Christian Church in Ashland, KY. Rob has published articles in Christianity Today, Christian Education Journal, International Journal of Homiletics, Restoration Quarterly, and others, and is a fellow Harding alumnus. Rob’s expertise in preaching from the whole Bible makes him an ideal conversation partner on two of the more underrated books in the New Testament, 2 Peter and Jude. Although generally ignored, Rob shows us how these books are still very relevant for the church today.

You can find one of Rob’s articles in Christianity Today here: https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/2018/april-web-exclusives/share-load-your-small-congregation.html

You can find Rob’s book, Practicing Presence, here: https://www.amazon.com/Practicing-Presence-Theory-Practice-Pastoral/dp/1490863192/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1S346I4Y9UVIC&keywords=rob+o%27lynn&qid=1648823309&sprefix=rob+o%27lynn+%2Caps%2C74&sr=8-1

Today I sat down with Reverend Dr. Dennis Edwards, Associate Professor of New Testament at North Park University in Chicago. Dr. Edwards and I talked about 1st Peter, strangely one of the more neglected books of the New Testament, but as it turns out this short letter is one of the most relevant for the #Church today: Peter deals with #persecution, households, and how Christians should respond to worldly #power. We had a great time talking about all these issues and more!

You can find Dr. Edwards’ commentary on 1 Peter here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VEYI3S2/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i1

Dr. Edwards has also written Might from the Margins: The Gospel’s Power to Turn the Tables on Injustice: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B085PZVS7D/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i2

His short guide to the Bible is also helpful: What Is the Bible and How Do We Understand It? https://www.amazon.com/What-Bible-How-Understand-Jesus/dp/1513805649/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Today I sit down with Dr. Ruth Anne Reese, Professor of New Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary where she also serves as the Chair of the New Testament Department. Dr. Reese is a perennial favorite among graduate and post-graduate students at Asbury, excelling at teaching both the technical knowledge inherent to studying the #NewTestament as well as being sensitive to the pastoral issues that arise in the NT. Reese is an expert on the General Epistles, and has written commentaries on 1--2 Peter and Jude (both available on Amazon), and serves on the board of the highly esteemed Institute for Biblical Research. We had a delightful time talking about one of my favorite books of the NT, the letter from #James to Jewish believers in Jesus.

Today I sit down with Dr. Ben Witherington, III, Jean R. Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. Ben has written over 60 books, numerous articles, he has led several tours to the lands mentioned in the Bible, and has appeared on dozens of television programs on PBS, CNN, and the BBC to discuss topics like Easter, the historical Jesus, and even Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code. I thoroughly enjoyed talking with one of my doctoral professors about a book many Christians don’t really know much about, the letter? sermon? homily? to the Hebrews.

You can follow Dr. Witherington on his Patheos blog: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/bibleandculture/

Dr. Witherington’s many academic and popular level books can be found on his Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Ben-Witherington/e/B000AP60HW?ref_=dbs_p_ebk_r00_abau_000000

Today I sit down with Dr. Shawn Craigmiles, Assistant Professor of Bible and Church Ministry at Warner University in Lake Wales, Florida. Shawn and I overlapped a few years at Asbury Seminary where we both completed our PhDs in New Testament. Shawn pastored at various churches in Illinois and Kentucky before beginning a teaching career in 2018. Shawn is an excellent teacher, a great communicator, and has a pastoral warmth about him that makes him an ideal candidate to talk about three of Paul’s lesser known letters, 1–2 Timothy and Titus, a collection also known as the Pastoral Epistles.

Today I sat down with Dr. Nijay Gupta, professor of #NewTestament at Northern Seminary. Dr. Gupta is known for his work on Christian formation and the life and writings of the apostle #Paul. He has written commentaries on #Philippians, Colossians, 1—2 Thessalonians, and other works on the concepts of worship and sin in Paul’s thought, as well as on the Sermon on the Mount and general New Testament studies. Check out his New Testament Commentary Guide which helpfully directs students and others interested persons navigate the potentially overwhelming mass of commentaries on the NT. I was so thankful to Dr. Gupta for being able to talk with me about one of my favorite books of the Bible, Paul’s short letter to the Philippians.

If you’d like to contact Nijay at Northern Seminary: https://www.seminary.edu/faculty/dr-nijay-gupta/

Check out Nijay’s blog, Crux Sola, on Patheos: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/cruxsola/

You can find many of Nijay’s books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Nijay-K.-Gupta/e/B004I4TYLA%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

Today I sat down with Dr. Lynn Cohick, Provost and Dean of Academic Affairs at Northern Seminary in Illinois. Dr. Cohick has taught in different venues across the globe for decades, she is an expert on #women in the world of the early church, and she has recently written a wonderful commentary on one of my favorite books of the Bible, Paul’s letter to the #Ephesians. I had a delightful time meeting and talking with Dr. Cohick about this short but powerful letter, and I hope you are blessed by what she has to say.

Dr. Cohick’s personal website is http://lynncohick.com.

You can find more information about Dr. Cohick’s from Northern Seminary: https://www.seminary.edu/faculty/lynn-cohick-2/

You can also find several of her books here: https://www.amazon.com/Lynn-H-Cohick/e/B001JSCKP0?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1643939858&sr=8-1

Today I'm joined by Dr. Fred Long, professor of New Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary. Fred is an expert in 2 Corinthians, having written extensively on the grammar and rhetoric of the letter. I was delighted to catch up with Fred and to talk with him about 2 Corinthians since this is one of Paul's letters I know relatively little about.

Today I sit down with Dr. Richard Oster, professor of New Testament at Harding School of Theology. Dr. Oster is one of my all time favorite professors, and offered some of the most challenging courses I've ever taken. He is an internationally acclaimed expert on the archaeology of the city of Ephesus, and has also published various articles on 1 Corinthians as well as a commentary. I really appreciated Dr. Oster's emphasis on #Paul as a #missionary to #Corinth and how we must keep that in mind as we read his letters.

For today’s episode, I strike out into the unknown with neither a guest nor a script! Instead, with naught but a rough outline of some ideas, I reflect on how the podcast and I have grown over 2021. I’m generally an introspective person, so reflecting on the lessons I’ve learned or re-learned during Covid made sense to me. I hope you will be encouraged by the two main takeaways from today’s episode: God often provides for us before we know we need it, and, when faced with difficulty, do the next faithful thing however small or seemingly insignificant that is. I appreciate each listener, subscriber, and follower—and as always, thank you so much for tuning in today.