John is Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. He has pioneered the study of Ancient Near Eastern cosmology and its impact on our understanding of the Old Testament—and the work of Moses and Genesis in particular. This kind of study has only been possible in recent years as vast treasures of ancient texts and inscriptions are being discovered and translated. The result is that we understand the cosmology of ancient peoples in far more depth than previous generations.

John is Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. He has pioneered the study of Ancient Near Eastern cosmology and its impact on our understanding of the Old Testament—and the work of Moses and Genesis in particular. This kind of study has only been possible in recent years as vast treasures of ancient texts and inscriptions are being discovered and translated. The result is that we understand the cosmology of ancient peoples in far more depth than previous generations.

John is Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. He has pioneered the study of Ancient Near Eastern cosmology and its impact on our understanding of the Old Testament—and the work of Moses and Genesis in particular. This kind of study has only been possible in recent years as vast treasures of ancient texts and inscriptions are being discovered and translated. The result is that we understand the cosmology of ancient peoples in far more depth than previous generations.

John is Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. He has pioneered the study of Ancient Near Eastern cosmology and its impact on our understanding of the Old Testament—and the work of Moses and Genesis in particular. This kind of study has only been possible in recent years as vast treasures of ancient texts and inscriptions are being discovered and translated. The result is that we understand the cosmology of ancient peoples in far more depth than previous generations.

In this talk, we look at the existential aspect of Trinitarian growth—the inner journey. We get quite practical and offer a structured meditation technique based on learning from experience, not on confession and sin. Tony gives personal examples of the way he has used journal writing for many years to stimulate the inner journey. So many of our models for growth are based on defeating sin—but in this important talk, we offer a new paradigm for inner growth that is not based on sin but grace and growth.

In this talk, we look at the 'situational' aspect of our growth and calling. How do we act in this world? Christians through the ages have been torn between the 'monk' and the 'merchant' for their choices. We offer a paradigm shift by going back to Genesis and grounding our answer in the creational mandate. We link this mandate with kingship and then try to modernise that term by equating it with transformation and design. This is a groundbreaking topic, and we are only beginning the dialogue in this talk but I think it launches us on a healthy trajectory.

In this talk, we look at the 'normative' aspect of Trinity thinking. Our learning goal is to have our minds transformed to God's agenda rather than ours. We look at the typical evangelical interpretation of the gospel and reveal its shortcomings. Tony does that by synthesising the four spiritual laws onto a one-page architecture which reveals its shortcomings. He then asks, "Is there a better way?" and finishes by offering an alternative framing of the gospel that blows open the scope of Christ's achievement and lifts our thinking to awesome heights. A must listen talk!!

Tony argues that we have narrowed Christian growth by framing it as a religious effort. He spends the first part of this talk, diagnosing the religious mindset and explaining how it distorts the gospel. But the question becomes, "Is there a better way to frame our growth journey?" Tony turns to the structure of the Trinity as the architecture for what makes us truly human and thus truly Christlike. He offers a simple but powerful Trinitarian model to guide our growth agenda—as a life agenda rather than a religious agenda.

Ron moves on to the topic of cosmology—ie what is the origin of the universe. This is mind-boggling stuff and dwarfs the more conventional 'evolution' debates. He explains the anthropic principle that is fast emerging among scientists and which is ironically putting this little old earth back at the centre of attention. He describes the earth as the ark of humanity—a wonder of life in the midst of a barren universe. He contrasts the scientific view of cosmology with the Jewish view. Listen for some of the great discussion here—particularly as we develop the metaphor of the car to explain all of this.

Ron confronts the question, "How well does Genesis 1 fit in with the new science?" Most people wonder whether Genesis fits with evolution, but Ron takes a far broader view and compares the implications of Genesis with cosmology—the theory of relativity and the origins of the universe. He concludes that Genesis is surprisingly modern, although it does not try to be a science textbook. Then he compares the whole secular and Greek view of reality with its great rival the Jewish tradition—a topic he will develop in his next talk.