Is God emotionless and unchanging? Many systematic theologians have long argued that God is completely impassible—meaning He cannot feel, suffer, or be influenced by creation. But is this truly what the Bible teaches?

In this episode, Dr. R.T. Mullins joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to challenge traditional ideas about God’s nature, emotions, and engagement with the world. He explains how philosophy has often shaped theology more than scripture, why systematic theologians ignore biblical descriptions of God’s emotions, and what it actually means to call God all-powerful and all-knowing.

Dru and R.T. explore the hidden assumptions behind classical theism, why ancient theologians rejected the idea that God could suffer, and whether modern theology needs a reset. Mullins also discusses how our view of God shapes how we pray, worship, and think about suffering.

If you’ve ever wondered why theology sometimes feels disconnected from the Bible, or why certain doctrines sound more like philosophy than scripture, this episode will challenge you to rethink how we describe God.

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00:00 Understanding the Doctrine of God

What if the way we format and structure the Bible is actually making it harder to read? In this episode, Alex Goodwin joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to discuss how chapter breaks, verse numbers, and footnotes—while useful for study—can actually disrupt the natural flow of Scripture.

Alex shares his journey from marketing to Bible publishing, how his first exposure to serious theology transformed his faith, and why modern Bible formatting has fundamentally changed how people engage with Scripture. He and Dru explore how early Christians and Jews experienced the Bible (hint: it wasn’t through personal quiet times with a study Bible), why reading big sections matters, and how removing unnecessary “additives” can help us better understand the biblical story.

This episode also tackles the difference between Bible literacy and Bible fluency, the power of listening to Scripture, and why engaging the Bible in community leads to richer understanding. If you’ve ever struggled with Bible reading, this conversation will challenge and inspire you to rethink how you interact with Scripture.

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00:00 From Marketing to Ministry: A Journey of Faith

Are we mistaking media consumption for political engagement? In this episode, Kaitlyn Schiess joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to challenge the way Christians think about politics, faith, and media. She explains why binge-watching C-SPAN or endlessly scrolling Twitter doesn’t make us politically engaged—but actually forms us into people less capable of real advocacy.

Dru and Kaitlyn discuss the modern obsession with national politics, why Christians ignore their local communities, and how the church provides a model of meaningful engagement. Instead of trying to "change the world" through social media outrage, Kaitlyn argues that real political involvement means knowing your neighbors, understanding local government, and prioritizing embodied relationships.

They also explore the role of Christian media consumption, asking whether 24-hour news, partisan social feeds, and political influencers have become a form of secular discipleship. How can Christians discern which voices are trustworthy? And how can the church offer a healthier alternative?

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00:00 Misunderstandings in Political Engagement

What if the Bible isn’t meant to be neatly packaged and easily explained? In this episode, CHT Fellow Hakeem Bradley joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to discuss how engaging scripture means leaning into tension rather than eliminating it. He explains why asking better questions leads to deeper understanding and why forcing Jesus into every Old Testament passage can sometimes do more harm than good.

Bradley also shares his personal story—growing up in the Five Percent Nation, a movement that sees the Black man as divine, and how a surprising mentorship relationship led him to faith in Jesus. His journey from deep skepticism to biblical scholarship gives him a unique perspective on how to approach scripture without assumptions or shortcuts.

The conversation explores how biblical authors thought, why Jesus himself had to read scripture in context, and how reading the Bible as a tension-filled conversation—rather than a collection of easy answers—can reshape faith and theology.

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Who decides what worship songs we sing in church? It turns out, worship music is a massive industry, and the way songs make it from a Nashville songwriting room to a Sunday morning service might surprise you.

In this episode, Marc Jolicoeur joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to break down the business of contemporary worship music (CWM). He explains how four major megachurches dominate the industry, why most modern worship songs are written by teams of professionals rather than individual artists, and how CCLI licensing and copyright structures shape what gets sung in churches.

But is this market-driven approach shaping worship in unhealthy ways? Dru and Marc discuss whether the emotional tone of worship music has shifted, why lament and imprecatory psalms are almost absent from today’s songs, and whether churches should return to singing scripture itself.

Is the worship music we sing today more about marketing than theology? And what would happen if the Psalms were reintroduced into Sunday services?

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00:00 Introduction

Most of us read the Bible with our eyes—but what if we’re missing something essential by not listening to it? In this episode, Dr. Dru Johnson challenges the modern tendency to engage Scripture primarily as a written text, arguing that the Bible was designed to be heard. From the Torah readings of Moses to the public proclamation of Paul's letters, Scripture has always been an aural experience—one meant to be absorbed in community rather than private, silent reading.

Dr. Johnson explains why listening changes how we understand Scripture, uncovering literary structures like repetition, parallelism, and chiasms that are far easier to hear than to see. He also explores the cognitive science behind reading vs. listening, showing why oral engagement helps us retain and interpret biblical texts more deeply.

Could reclaiming the practice of hearing Scripture together revolutionize the way we experience the Bible? This episode dives into why the church should return to communal listening, what ancient Jewish and Christian traditions teach us, and how modern worship services might be reshaped by putting Scripture at the center—not just as a text to analyze, but as a living word to hear.

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What if much of what we believe about the end times is shaped more by modern speculation than by biblical theology? In this episode, Dr. Matthew L. Halsted joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to debunk common misconceptions about eschatology, including the rapture, the mark of the beast, and the role of the Middle East in biblical prophecy.

Halsted and Dru Johnson explore how American Christianity has often read Revelation through a me-centered lens, focusing on personal fears rather than the broader biblical narrative of renewal and justice. They discuss the history of end-times speculation, tracing it from the 16th century to modern prophecy teachers, and why discipline in reading scripture is crucial to avoiding theological confusion.

Drawing from his book The End of the World as We Know It, Halsted unpacks how early Christians understood eschatology and why the Bible’s emphasis is not on escaping the world but on God’s renewal of creation.

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How does the Bible interpret itself? In this episode, Dr. Brent Strawn joins The Biblical Mind Podcast to explore intertextuality—the ways biblical authors intentionally or unconsciously connect their writings to earlier texts. Strawn breaks down different types of intertextuality, from direct citations (like Jesus quoting Psalm 22) to subtle patterns that only emerge when we read scripture holistically.

Together with Dru Johnson, Strawn unpacks how intertextuality deepens biblical meaning and why recognizing these connections can transform the way we understand scripture. They also discuss the surprising link between Solomon and the Mark of the Beast (666) and how Revelation critiques imperial power using the legacy of Israel’s wealthiest king.

Strawn argues that biblical authors weren’t just making random allusions—they were teaching us how to read scripture well. If we can recognize these hyperlinks, we can move beyond surface-level readings and grasp the depth of biblical theology.

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What if Christian nationalism isn’t a head problem but a heart problem? In this thought-provoking episode, Dr. Dru Johnson speaks with Caleb Campbell, author of Disarming Leviathan, about the rise of Christian nationalism in America and how Christians can engage this movement missionally rather than combatively.

Campbell discusses the anxieties that drive people to embrace Christian nationalism, highlighting the fear of pluralism, the longing for safety, and the allure of worldly power. Drawing from his experience as a pastor and cultural observer, he argues that many Christian nationalists are not inherently motivated by hatred but by a deep desire for rest and stability in a changing world.

The conversation delves into themes of hospitality, humble subversion, and the transformative power of the cross, challenging listeners to rethink how they approach those with opposing views. Campbell offers practical steps for engaging Christian nationalists, emphasizing the need for curiosity, safety, and scripture-centered dialogue.

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In this episode, Dr. Dru Johnson interviews Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm about a provocative interpretation of the Joseph narrative: Joseph’s brothers did not sell him into slavery. Rabbi Lamm explains that while the brothers planned to sell Joseph, they never completed the act. Instead, Midianite merchants discovered Joseph in the pit and sold him to Ishmaelites, creating ambiguity in the biblical text.

Rabbi Lamm delves into the narrative techniques of the Hebrew Bible, emphasizing its minimalist yet profound storytelling. He discusses how key Hebrew words and repeated motifs, such as “sell” (Machar), link the Joseph story to broader biblical themes of chosenness, rejection, and familial dynamics. Joseph’s perception of rejection by his father, Jacob, is also explored, tying his emotional journey to the larger narrative of Genesis. The discussion highlights the development of key characters, including Judah’s moral growth and Reuben’s failure to lead.

These arcs foreshadow the future roles of the tribes of Israel, underscoring Genesis’s role as a foundational text for understanding biblical theology and history. This episode invites listeners to engage deeply with scripture, appreciate its narrative sophistication, and consider alternative interpretations that illuminate its enduring relevance.

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00:00 Introduction