Has global missions strayed from a biblical foundation?

In this episode of The Missions Show, Alex and Scott talk with Pastor Jerry Slate Jr. to discuss the theological foundations and practical realities of faithful missionary work. The conversation centers on the question of what sustains missionaries through hardship, rejection, and long seasons of discouragement.

Jerry, Alex, and Scott emphasize the central role of the local church in sending, vetting, and sustaining missionaries, warning against outsourcing this responsibility entirely to parachurch organizations. The episode highlights the need to tether missiology firmly to historic Christian theology, confessional faith, and biblical ecclesiology.

Check out Jerry Slate Jr.’s new book, Reforming World Missions from Founders Press. Jerry pastors Berean Baptist Church in Powder Springs, Georgia. Find sermon audio here.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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Do you believe miracles can still happen?

In this episode of The Missions Show, Scott is joined by Dr. Darren Carlson—pastor, author, and founder of Training Leaders International—to discuss the ongoing work of God as revealed in the book of Acts and experienced around the world today. Drawing from Carlson’s new book, Witness: Missional Devotions from the Book of Acts, the conversation explores whether Acts should be viewed merely as a historical account or as an invitation to expect God’s continued unusual activity through the church.

Scott and Darren wrestle honestly with the tension between miracles and the “grind” of everyday ministry. Through global mission stories, pastoral experiences, and personal encounters, Carlson emphasizes that God is actively at work—often beyond our narrow expectations. By telling true stories of God’s work, the church is strengthened, believers are made glad, and hope is restored even amid suffering, persecution, and apparent setbacks.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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What does missions look like in a global city like Paris, France?

In this episode of The Missions Show, Alex and Scott are joined by pastor Billy Bean to discuss A City of Light, a short documentary exploring gospel work in Paris, France. Often overlooked as a missions field, Paris is presented as a strategic global city, shaped by history, migration, and secular ideology, whose influence extends far beyond Europe.

Billy explains how missionaries and pastors in Paris seek to connect with deeply held French values—such as beauty, freedom, identity, and intellectual rigor—while confronting their limits and fulfilling their deepest longings through the gospel.

View the film and learn more at https://christcovenant.com/acityoflight

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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New year, new name. The Missions Podcast is now The Missions Show.

Why the change? We’re stepping into a video-first world. The show is now on NRBTV, with Lighthouse TV launching soon in central Pennsylvania. We’ve been on YouTube for some time, and this rebrand reflects a move beyond audio-only podcasting to serve a wider audience.

What hasn’t changed is the heart of the show. We’ll keep the same format and the same purpose—answering hard questions in missiology, theology, and practice to help goers think and thinkers go.

Thanks to everyone who’s been with us since we launched in October 2017. We’re grateful for the last eight years and excited for what’s ahead.

In this week's episode, Alex and Scott welcome pastor Aaron Menikoff (Atlanta, USA) and pastor Harshit Singh (Lucknow, India) to discuss how evangelism and missions function through the local church, particularly in the Indian context. Drawing from their book Prioritizing Missions in the Church, Menikoff and Singh argue that missions should not be treated as a side program but as an outflow of ordinary, faithful church life.

They emphasize that preaching, prayer, discipleship, and the ordinances—when practiced consistently—form the foundation through which God raises up and sends missionaries to the nations. The conversation highlights how this church-centered approach applies across cultures, including settings with limited resources and growing opposition to Christianity.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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In this episode of The Missions Podcast, Alex welcomes returning guest Matt Rhodes—missionary, church planter among Muslims, and author to discuss his new book Persecution in Missions: A Practical Theology. Together they discuss that persecution is not an anomaly but a normative feature of Christian life and global missions, especially in unreached contexts.

While Western Christians may experience lesser forms of opposition, believers in Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist-majority regions often face severe social, legal, and physical threats. Rhodes emphasizes that persecution profoundly shapes missionary strategy, discipleship, and the lived faith of new believers, often acting as a major barrier to people even hearing the gospel. Drawing from Scripture and church history, Rhodes cautions against both romanticizing martyrdom and avoiding suffering altogether.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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Come celebrate another year of The Missions Podcast!

In this special end-of-the-year episode, Alex and Scott recall their favorite discussions from 2025 and important takeaways from each. They also discuss how they are using this holiday season to celebrate the incarnation of Christ.

Become a Missions Podcast Premium Subscriber and get access to our exclusive Overtime episode where Alex and Scott talk about their LEAST favorite episodes from the past year.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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What's the spiritual climate like in Bangladesh?

In this week's episode, Scott interviews Pastor Prodip Das, a Bengali church planter in New York City with ABWE's EveryEthne ministry. Together, they discuss the unique nature and conflict of Christianity and Islam within Bangladesh.

Prodip tells his personal testimony and what it is like growing up in a Christian family in the country. Prodip also talks about his ministry within New York City and discipling Muslim-background believers.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

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Why is Japan the graveyard of missionaries?

In this episode, Alex talks with veteran ABWE missionary Bill Petite, who reflects on 35 years of ministry in Japan. Bill gives an honest look at the spiritual, cultural, and emotional realities of serving in one of the world’s least-reached nations.

Bill Petite also speaks candidly about the emotional and spiritual toll of long-term missions, sharing seasons of deep depression, discouragement, and even suicidal thoughts—contrasted with stories of God’s surprising providence.

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How does the gospel transcend cultural understandings like guilt/innocence, honor/shame?

In this episode, Alex is joined by longtime friend of the show, Dr. E.D. Burns, a missionary, author, and ABWE’s Executive Director for Training & Development. E.D. argues that many modern missionary methods fall into error by beginning with culture rather than Scripture. When missionaries adapt the message to perceived cultural needs: fear of spirits, desire for honor, community belonging, they risk redefining the gospel according to those felt needs instead of the Bible's central categories of sin, wrath, substitutionary atonement, and the imputed righteousness of Christ.

Dr. Burns illustrates how hyper-contextualized approaches can subtly blend works and faith, especially in cultures comfortable with karmic or performance-based religion. True gospel communication, he argues, must highlight penal substitution, justification by faith alone, and the supernatural transformation of the heart.

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The Missions Show is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email [email protected].