In this episode, Dylan and John interview Dr. Lee Irons on the New Perspective on Paul- what is it, how do they understand the righteousness of God, how does this impact the church, and much more!

For an introduction to who Lee Irons is: listen to this interview with him on union with Christ- https://anchor.fm/john-sweat/episodes/Imputation-and-Union-with-Christ-with-Dr--Irons-e106lno

Lee Irons Website- https://upper-register.typepad.com 

Interview Outline: 

I. What is the New Perspective on Paul?

II. How do we interpret "the righteousness of God" in Romans 1:17?

III. How is the heart of the New Perspective on Paul impacting the local church? 

IV. The Importance of federal theology in defending the gospel. 

V. Interpreting Romans 2:13.

VI. The Legal Nature of Justification

Lee Irons Website- https://upper-register.typepad.com 

Resources on New Perspective on Paul: 

Guy Prentiss Waters on the NPP

https://www.amazon.com/Justification-New-Perspectives-Paul-Response/dp/0875526497/

Fesko's book on Justification:

https://www.amazon.com/Justification-Understanding-Classic-Reformed-Doctrine/dp/1596380861/

Michael Horton's two volumes on Justification:

https://www.amazon.com/Justification-Two-Set-Studies-Dogmatics/dp/0310597250/

My review of Seyoon Kim's book, Justification and God's Kingdom:

https://www.academia.edu/39277944/Justification_and_Gods_Kingdom_by_Seyoon_Kim_A_Review_Article

My paper on Romans 2:13:

http://www.upper-register.com/papers/Rom213.pdf

"Is Righteousness a Relational Concept in the Hebrew Bible?" (summarizing one of the chapters of my dissertation):

https://www.academia.edu/11674489/_Is_Righteousness_a_Relational_Concept_in_the_Hebrew_Bible_In_Reflections_on_Lexicography_Explorations_in_Ancient_Syriac_Hebrew_and_Greek_Sources_Edited_by_Richard_A_Taylor_and_Craig_E_Morrison_Gorgias_Press_2014

Another episode from 1 Peter in the series Wandering through Peter

Peter moves from reminding Christians of their hope to then calling them to holiness. He calls them to holiness not first by beginning with the command itself but first by orienting their gaze to the hope of the gospel that purifies the Christian and equips them to pursue holiness.

In this episode, John and Dylan interview Dr. Gonzales on the theology of Genesis. Dr. Gonzales is the Dean of Reformed Baptist Seminary and author of the book Where Sin Abounds: The Spread of Sin and the Curse in Genesis with Special Focus on the Patriarchal Narratives. Dr. Gonzales discusses the structure and function of Genesis in relation to the Bible as a whole and how the book of Genesis gives us a foundational structure for how the gospel unfolds in Scripture. He also shows how Genesis lays out a Christian worldview and reveals  who God is in relation to who man is. 

Resources: 

https://www.amazon.com/Where-Sin-Abounds-Patriarchal-Narratives/dp/1606087479/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=robert+gonzales&qid=1633306546&sr=8-1

Robert Gonzales, "Cosmic Treason: The Fall Narrative Revisited"

_______, "Man God's Visible Replica and Vice Regent 

_______, "The Covenantal Context of the Fall: Did God Make a Primordial Covenant with Adam" 

Hope is a powerful thing and the Christian's hope is unshakeable because of who it is grounded in. The Christian hope is grounded in Christ, who is their sure and steady anchor. Peter reminds the wandering Christians of their hope as they suffer and pursues holiness in this evil age. Here is the way we outline the text in the episode: 

I. Born Again to a Living Hope 3-5 

Predestination by God v3

Preservation by God v5

II. Joy in Suffering 6-9

III. Grace Promised to You 10-12

In this series John and Dylan will look at the Dutch Theologian Herman Bavinck's writings and discuss how Bavinck can help us to think more clearly and biblically about theology. In this episode we talk about Dogma: what it is, what is its authority, and who is dogmatic. Those who oppose dogma do not oppose dogma itself but rather they simply oppose dogmas they do not agree with. The question  is not are you dogmatic but rather is your dogma consistent with God's revelation. Episode Outline: 

I. What is Dogma?

A. Definition

B. Authority

II. Dogmatic Responsibility of the Church

A. Recognizing and Confessing Dogma- Smoke but not the fire

B.  The Pillar and Buttress of Truth- recognize, explain, preserve, and defend

C. Theologian and Student of Creeds

III. The Necessity of Dogma

A. Dogma is inescapable

B. A Non-Dogmatic Christian is an illusion

C. Unbelief is dogmatic

IV. Application

A. Rightly Situating Divine Authority and Church Confessions

B. The Church’s Ongoing Pursuit of Dogmatic Fidelity

C. Everyone’s a Theologian

Sean DeMars joins Dylan and John to talk about the mission of the church, the philosophy, and tactics that are to be used in achieving that mission. Jesus gave a specific mission to his church and particular methods to be used in fulfilling it. Yet many churches today treat the methods as inconsequential or they confuse the mission with the creation mandate or great commandment. What does a Christian do if they find themselves in a church like that? 

Sean DeMars is the pastor of 6th Avenue Community Church in Decatur, Alabama. He is one of the hosts of the Defend and Confirm Podcast and is in the documentary The American Gospel on Netflix. 

www.watchagtv.com/defend-confirm-podcast-russell-berger-sean-demars

Is the community in your church built upon the gospel or common grace? In other words, is it a result of the power of the gospel or a result of common love that does not require the gospel at all? We can build relationships on a plethora of things that do not require the gospel to be true, and if your church community is built upon these things rather than the gospel, then your church community is no different from the community that can be found in the world. Your church community rather than revealing the supernatural power of the gospel mirrors the common “love” that can be found anywhere in the world. In this episode, John and Dylan discuss how the power of God is made manifest in the local church and how we must intently safeguard against anything that would move us off the gospel and God's glory being displayed in the local church. 

Book Resource: 

Mark Dever and Jamie Dunlop, Compelling Community: Where God's Power Makes a Church Attractive 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1433543540/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1433543540&linkCode=as2&tag=oftheblood-20&linkId=5e5cb996b11a8ac7faad1a2174dde24f

Does the Christian merely work for the weekend? Is their vocational employment an obstacle to the "real Christian life"? Who does the Christian work for and what is the goal of their work? In this episode John and Dylan discuss how the Christian should view their employment from a biblical worldview. 

In this episode, John and Dylan talk about the Bible's position on war, self-defense, and pacifism as they seek to answer the question- Can a Christian serve in the military? This one will get you thinking and show how a Christian should consider ethical questions with biblical principles.

This is a short trailer that briefly unpacks what the podcast is along with short clips from some of the episodes in season 2.