Life and Books and Everything

Kirk Cousins has been an NFL quarterback for 12 years. Before that he played at Michigan State (where he and Kevin met). Before that he was a barely-recruited teenager playing at Holland Christian. And before that, he was a kid in Chicago whose dad helped start Willow Creek (yes, that Willow Creek). If you want to know more of this story, and hear a lot of football talk, you won't want to miss this special LBE episode with the new Atlanta Falcons QB.

Books & Everything:

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

New Morning Mercies for Teens: A Daily Gospel Devotional

What are you doing with your life? Todd Rester is using a big chunk of his life to translate a seventeenth-century Dutch theologian's magnum opus (all 1.7 million words of it) from Latin into English. Join Kevin and Todd as they take a deep dive into the world of Latin translation, systematic theology, and church history. Who was Petrus Van Mastricht? What was his method? What did he teach? Why does he matter? Come swim in the cool, refreshing waters of Reformed scholastic theology and be encouraged to "live to God, through Christ."

Books & Everything:

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

ESV Systematic Theology Study Bible: Theology Rooted in the Word of God

Theoretical-Practical Theology

With everything the pastor must do—preach, pray, visit, raise money, organize meetings, write emails, study, write, marry, bury, and baptize—does he also need to be a leader? John Currie, in his new book The Pastor as Leader (Crossway), says yes. But don't fear, this is not about one more impossible task or another time burden for the pastor. Leadership is about living and preaching as a man of God for the people of God. In this practical episode Kevin talks with John Currie, professor of practical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, about what effective leadership in the church looks like (and doesn't look like). There is plenty of rich food for thought—both for the seasoned (and weary) pastor and for the young man just starting out in ministry.

Books & Everything:

The Pastor as Leader: Principles and Practices for Connecting Preaching and Leadership

The (Not-So-Secret) Secret to Reaching the Next Generation

Don’t Waste Your Life

For most of us, getting married and forging a strong family is the best way to build a prosperous, meaningful, and happy life. That's the message of Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization, the new book by University of Virginia professor Brad Wilcox. Listen in as Kevin and Brad talk explore why young people aren't prioritizing marriage, why elites don't preach what they practice when it comes to marriage, and why getting married is one of the best things you can do for yourself and for others.

Books & Everything:

Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization

ESV Bible App

Light + Truth Podcast

Have you ever wondered if King Arthur was justified in cutting off all four limbs of Monty Python’s Black Knight when he refused the king passage? If so, then you’ll want to listen to this episode of LBE with Eric Patterson. Eric is an author, an important leader in Washington, D.C. and an expert in the theology and history of the Just War Tradition. What are the right reasons for going to war? How should a just war be fought? Was the American Revolution a just war (or even a revolution)? What about the firebombing of Dresden in World War II? Join Kevin and Eric and they try to apply the insights of the Just War Tradition to military conflicts past and present.

Chapters:

0:00 Introductions

7:45 A Basic Guide to the Just War Tradition

15:45 What Makes a War Just?

29:45 Sponsor Break | Crossway

30:28 “It’s Only a Flesh Wound.”

35:25 A Just American Revolution?

46:39 MLK’s Just Cause

51:15 Sponsor Break | Desiring God

52:00 Current Events

Books & Everything:

Basic Guide to the Just War Tradition: Christian Foundations and Practices

Just War and Christian Traditions

Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulnes

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

With two smart British historians—one from Oxford (Andrew) and one from Aberystwyth (David)--and one curious American pastor (Kevin), you might say that this episode puts the "fun" back in fundamentalism. How did fundamentalism become a pejorative putdown? Are evangelicals and fundamentalists really all that different? What is a fundamentalist anyway? And, to paraphrase Harry Emerson Fosdick, did the fundamentalists win or lose the last century? Join in as Kevin interviews two evangelical scholars about their new edited volume, The Oxford Handbook of Christian Fundamentalism.

Chapters:

0:00 Introductions

6:45 Why So Little Written by Fundamentalists?

11:44 Defining Fundamentalism 

25:20 Fundamentalism & Evangelicalism

36:40 Sponsor Break | Crossway & DesiringGod

38:11 The Scopes Trial & Billy Graham

48:02 Evangelicalism & Politics in America

1:05:25 Did the Fundamentalists Win?

1:08:26 Until Next Time

Books & Everything:

Oxford Handbook of Christian Fundamentalism

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

Look at the Book

He must be one of Kevin's favorite historians and favorite guests, because Dr. Guelzo is back for an unprecedented third visit to the LBE book-cave. Although Dr. Guelzo's new book is about Abraham Lincoln, Kevin and Allen talk about much more than just Lincoln—everything from John Locke to Christian Nationalism to progressivism to a healthy does of Reformed anthropology. And no, Dr. Guelzo did not watch the Super Bowl.

Chapters:

0:00 Intro

6:40 The Lincoln Book

14:25 Democracy Consensus

29:28 Christianity & Government

46:45 Sponsor Break | Crossway & Desiring God

48:00 Has Virtue Disappeared?

59:51 Was Abraham Lincoln a Racist?

01:02:42 Lincoln: The Founder of Big Government?

01:09:16 What, then, is the Hope?

1:16:37 Until Next Time

In this extra-long episode, Kevin teams up with Justin and Collin to talk about something they were all deeply involved in: the movement known as the Reformed Resurgence, the New Calvinism, or YRR. What was this movement about? What went right? What went wrong? Why did the movement fracture? Is "Big God theology" in retreat or just flourishing in different ways? Stick around for reflections on these questions, plus some book recommendations and how to fix college football.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

0:48 Let's Start Where Everyone Wants Us to Start - Football

6:47 Let’s Go to the Books

19:41 Sponsor Break | Crossway

20:44 What Happened to Young, Restless, and Reformed?

1:19:03 Is the Movement Still Going Strong?

1:24:58 The Last Word

1:29:15 Until Next Time

Books & Everything:

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

Authority: How Godly Rule Protects the Vulnerable, Strengthens Communities, and Promotes Human Flourishing

Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American Experiment

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It

And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle

Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization

O Sacred Head, Now Wounded: A Liturgy for Daily Worship from Pascha to Pentecost

Reflections on the Evangelical Fracturing, Ten Years In

Light + Truth Podcast

Even though only Justin still lives in the Midwest, this episode has a distinctly Midwestern flare as the three amigos reminisce about favorite Christmas presents, Christmas places, and Christmas foods. You'll also hear about favorite books from the past year, some football banter, and a special section on the airing of grievances (note: Kevin had twice as many as the other two put together).

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:50 Don’t Skip the Sports Banter

15:20 An Airing of Grievances

31:18 Sponsor Break | Crossway

32:32 Favorite Books

51:25 Sponsor Break | Desiring God

52:41 Christmas Questions

1:44:20 Until Next Time

Books & Everything:

The Surprising Genius of Jesus: What the Gospels Reveal about the Greatest Teacher

Remaking the World: How 1776 Created the Post-Christian West

The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol. IV

Ordinary Man, An: The Surprising Life and Historic Presidency of Gerald R. Ford

Thoughts on Preaching

The Lord Jesus Christ: The Biblical Doctrine of the Person and Work of Christ

Lord Jesus Christ

American Visions: The United States, 1800-1860

Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

If you ever wanted to be in the room as two minister friends talk about preaching and pastoral ministry, this is the episode for you. Kevin asks Alistair about his “ordinary” preaching style, about whether he ever thought about leaving Parkside, and about whether he’s an American or a Scotsman. Plus lots of other questions about books, the state of the church today, and the shaping influence of Cleveland.

Books & Everything:

The Christian Manifesto: Jesus' Life-Changing Words from the Sermon on the Plain

Truth for Life: 365 Daily Devotions

Truth for Life: 365 Daily Devotions (Volume 2)

The Case for Life: Equipping Christians to Engage the Culture

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

Ask Pastor John Podcast

All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel

A Change of Affection: A Gay Man's Incredible Story of Redemption

Collected Writings of John Murray, Vol 1: The Claims of Truth

Collected Writings of John Murray, Vol 2: Systematic Theology

Collected Writings of John Murray, Vol 3: Life, Sermons, Reviews