In this episode I talk to my friends Matt Barber and Josh Williams about the dark side of growing up in American Christian churches. All of us were products of 90’s and 2000’s church culture; I was raised in the Lutheran church and they were raised in the Nazarene church. They share some of the stories, both funny and serious, about the weird, frustrating, and harmful experiences they had growing up in the church, and we discuss the awkward relationship that Christians have with American culture. We also explore the direction of the church and how we wound up where we are today. As an added bonus, we debate whether or not Adam had a belly button. If you were ever surprised, hurt, intrigued, or weirded out by church culture, this episode is for you. Enjoy!

Media Referenced:

Matt Barber episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/future-christian-higher-education-dr-matthew-barber/

Josh Williams episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/the-power-of-stories-leaving-ministry-changing-beliefs-podcasting-josh-williams-podbless/

PodBless YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxeNCR8iQwItepJVh6vPU2Q

X: @podbless

PodBless website: https://linktr.ee/PodBless

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The 

In my third-annual ‘six books’ Christmas special, I present the six books that had a major impact on my thinking that were published in 2024. I have read a lot of great literature this year and it was very difficult to condense my list to only six. Here are the 2024 essential books finalists:

Trump’s War on Capitalism, David Stockman

National Divorce, Jason Fry

Paul and Imperial Divine Honors, Clint Burnett

Christmaker, James McGrath

Jesus and His Promised Second Coming, Tucker Ferda

The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, James Crossley and Chris Keith

 I have interviews with five of the six authors, and the first book, Trump’s War on Capitalism, I covered extensively in an episode I recorded on Trump. Links to all the books and the interviews below. Enjoy!

Media Referenced:

Trump’s War on Capitalism, David Stockman: https://a.co/d/bRxtwQH

Episode on Trump: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-156-the-libertarian-case-against-donald-trump/

National Divorce, Jason Fry: https://a.co/d/dfY4NIX

Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-161-national-divorce-and-peaceful-secession-with-jason-fry/

Paul and Imperial Divine Honors, Clint Burnett: https://a.co/d/coy5tDs

Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-125-paul-imperial-divine-honors-and-the-roman-empire-with-clint-burnett/

Christmaker, James McGrath: https://a.co/d/j5uje0d

Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-134-john-the-baptist-with-james-mcgrath/

Jesus and His Promised Second Coming, Tucker Ferda: https://a.co/d/1IEIIMn

Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-159-jesus-and-his-promised-second-coming-with-tucker-ferda/

The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, James Crossley and Chris Keith: https://a.co/d/ekFExPf

Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-169-the-next-quest-for-the-historical-jesus-with-james-crossley/

Six Essential Books 2023: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-97-six-essential-books-of-2023/

Six Essential Books 2022: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/six-books-that-shaped-my-political-thinking-and-theology/

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this episode I talk with Amity Dolby, a lifetime member of the Libertarian Party who serves as the treasurer of the LP of Central Virginia. Amity had been a life-long protestant, but recently converted to the Catholic church. We talk about her upbringing in the protestant world, her dissatisfaction with several protestant churches and the inconsistencies she saw in their teachings, and her interest in the Catholic faith. She describes her conversion, going through RCIA, and the spiritual depth and community she experiences as a Catholic. We also talk about her libertarian activism, the role of the LP, the controversies surrounding Trump and the Mises Caucus, and the prospects for libertarian success in the future, as well as how her Catholic faith intersects with libertarian philosophy. 

Media Referenced:

Amity on X: @amitylee13

The Coming Home Network: https://chnetwork.org/

Let Them Live: http://letthemlive.org/

The Lamb’s Supper: https://a.co/d/gegMX4N

Catharine Pakaluk on Catholic social teaching: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-103-the-social-and-economic-teachings-of-the-catholic-church-with-catharine-pakaluk/

Michael Pakaluk on Catholic teaching: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-122-what-protestants-misunderstand-about-the-catholic-church-with-michael-pakaluk/

Catharine Pakaluk on large families: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-123-why-women-are-choosing-to-have-more-children-with-catherine-pakaluk/

Trent Horn on Catholic teaching: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-148-a-catholic-take-on-the-reformation-sola-scriptura-economics-and-more-with-trent-horn/

Matthew Leavering on Catholicism: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-149-roman-catholicism-the-pope-mary-the-eucharist-and-ecumenicism-with-matthew-levering/

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this episode I talk with Dr. James Crossley, who teaches at Cambridge in England and MF Oslo in Norway. He explains the goals of the ‘Next Quest’ for the historical Jesus, which is an attempt to outline the next phase of historical Jesus research. He contributes the opening article in the new book The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, out now on Eerdmans, where he outlines the goals of the Next Quest. He discusses his frustrations with historical Jesus research over the last several years and the problems with previous attempts to reconstruct Jesus. Instead of attempting to find an uninterpreted Jesus behind the gospels, the Next Quest will emphasize the material and cultural forces that lead to the production of the sources we have about Jesus. It will also offer a new analysis of issues like class and economics, attempting to reconstruct the social world in which Jesus operated, as well as bringing in ideas from other fields such as religious studies and the humanities. It will place a heavy emphasis on the reception history of Jesus scholarship and analyze the social context of Jesus scholarship to see what impact the context of Jesus researchers has on their work. This is an important and insightful attempt to push historical Jesus research in a new direction.

 Media Referenced:

The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus: https://a.co/d/bgZtkxA

James Crossley Cambridge Bio: https://www.divinity.cam.ac.uk/staff/professor-james-crossley

James Crossley MF Oslo Bio: https://mf.no/en/staff/james-crossley

CenSAMM: https://censamm.org/about/people/crossley

James Crossley on X: @thejcmort

Helen Bond on the Gospels as Biography: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-167-the-gospels-as-biography-with-helen-bond/

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

This is a recording of a sermon I preached on Sunday, November 10, 2024. It is a part of our sermon series on the ‘Fruits of the Spirit’ in Galatians 5:22-23. I preached on ‘faithfulness’ a few weeks before (link below in the show notes), and in this sermon I explain ‘kindness’. I discuss the lack of kindness among Americans today and why Christians should not give into the temptation to be unkind. I explain how the Greek word that is translated as ‘kindness’, chrestotes, is a rare term in the New Testament, and then explore two passages in Ephesians that use this term. The first, Ephesians 2:1-7, describes God’s kindness towards us, which is known by God’s good intentions for us and His willingness to act on those good intentions. I then explain how our kindness towards others is modelled on God’s kindness towards us, which is based on Ephesians 4:25-5:2. I then reflect on how we can develop an attitude of kindness towards others. 

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this episode I talk with Dr. Helen Bond, professor of Christian Origins and New Testament at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and cohost of the Biblical Time Machine podcast. She has a chapter in the new book The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, out now on Eerdmans, where she argues that the gospels need to be understood as an expression of ancient Greek biography. Dr. Bond explains how ancient biography works as a genre, that the goals of ancient biography are to recount the life of a great person so that others can imitate them, and why the goal of ancient biography isn’t simply historical accuracy but rather representing the ‘gist’ or the ‘impact’ that the subject had on those who encountered them. She also explains how the gospels contain anecdotes that were skillfully woven into a narrative by the writers, how the gospels reflect the oral culture of antiquity, and why we should be less concerned about determining whether individual stories and sayings in the gospels happened exactly as they were told and more concerned with the overall impression of Jesus the gospel writers are trying to impart. We then discuss the Next Quest and how recovering the gospels as biography will help move historical Jesus research forward. 

Media Referenced:

Helen Bond Bio: https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/persons/helen-bond

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001HMRULC/allbooks?ingress=0&visitId=62f6a737-f5de-43aa-aa9c-5d5dc01d12b6&ref_=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1

Biblical Time Machine Podcast:

Listen on Apple Podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/biblical-time-machine/id1648738323

Listen on Spotify 

https://open.spotify.com/show/7cNljZzhe4w3zL9t0MaOZH?si=9G0vB9NVRDe5XZZVDfOGVg

The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus: https://a.co/d/6oqI7qd

Craig Blomberg Interview: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-162-johns-gospel-and-the-historical-jesus-with-craig-blomberg/

James Crossley on the Next Quest: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-169-the-next-quest-for-the-historical-jesus-with-james-crossley/

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this bonus Thanksgiving episode I read an article entitled The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West by legendary New Testament scholar Krister Stendhal. Originally published in Swedish in 1960 (published in English as a chapter in his book Paul Among Jews and Gentiles), Stendhal argues that the west has missed the historical context in which Paul was writing. The western tradition, starting with Augustine and reaching its height with Luther, has assumed that Paul was extremely introspective and found relief from the guilt of his sin through the grace of Jesus. Stendhal argues that this isn’t the case; based on several claims in Paul’s letters that he was a devout, faithful, and upright Jew, there is little indication that Paul had a guilty conscience. The real historical context of Paul is the relationship between Jews and gentiles, and the extremely important 1st century issue of gentile believers in Jesus and law obedience. This article had a massive impact on New Testament studies, anticipating both the New Perspective and the Paul Within Judaism school, and I find his article extremely convincing and compelling. I hope you enjoy it!

Media Referenced:

Article PDF: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/569543b4bfe87360795306d6/t/5a4d41fa085229a032376713/1515012617149/01Stendahl.pdf

Paul Among Jews and Gentiles: https://a.co/d/bdACCuW

Henry Cadbury Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/henry-cadbury-anti-war-biblical-scholar-warned-against-modernizing-jesus/

Woodrow Wilson and Medieval Scholarship: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-91-how-woodrow-wilson-invaded-medieval-europe/

NT Review Podcast on Stendhal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ury30mLfcLU

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this episode I talk with Dr. Christopher Holmes, the Director of Biblical and Theological Education at Frist Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, about his brand-new book Unspoiled Endings: Reclaiming the Book of Revelation from Misuse and Neglect, out now on Fortress Press. The book is an accessible introduction to the book of Revelation, and in this episode he explains the historical and practical significance of Revelation. He describes the challenges of reading Revelation, understanding it as a part of the genre of apocalyptic literature, reading strategies that help us interpret difficult passages, its prophetic nature, what it says about the church, judgement, worship, evil, and hope, and much more. This is the perfect introduction to a complex but important book that will help you better understand and apply the urgent message of Revelation. If you have ever been confused or scared about the contents of Revelation, this one is for you!

Media Referenced:

Unspoiled Endings: https://a.co/d/hey8Ryn

Chris Holmes Staff Bio: https://www.firstpresatl.org/staff

YouTube: @revdrchrisholmes

Office Hours Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMlp8n6T3aAoxB-uw5kn2NAdqv8M9q7i4&si=q3qmdQVuvrrgN--H

TPLP EP 3 on Revelation: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ludwig-von-mises-vs-christian-scholar-round-1-michael-gorman/

John Walton on Prophecy: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-109-understanding-old-testament-prophecy-with-john-walton/

Sermon on Revelation: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-136-the-book-of-revelation-sunday-sermon/

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

In this episode I speak with Dr. Teresa Morgan, the McDonald Agape Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at Yale Divinity School, about her brand-new book Trust in Atonement: God, Creation, and Reconciliation, out now on Eerdmans Press. In this book, Dr. Morgan argues that the Greek word pistis, which is generally translated as ‘faith’ or ‘belief’, should often be understood as ‘trust’. She outlines a new model of atonement, compatible with other models, in which trust is central to understanding God’s at-one-ment with humanity. Atonement, Morgan contends, is the restoration of trust between God and humanity based on the trustworthiness of Christ. We explore the way in which trust helps reconcile God, humanity, and creation, trust as a process, how Jesus mediates trust, and the powerful potential for trust to reshape the world. 

Media Referenced:

Trust in Atonement: https://www.eerdmans.com/9781467466912/trust-in-atonement/

Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/e2OUhMC

Teresa Morgan Bio: https://divinity.yale.edu/faculty-and-research/yds-faculty/teresa-morgan

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

This episode is a sermon I preached at my church on Sunday, October 27, during a series covering the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23. My topic for the week was faith and faithfulness. I explore how the concept of faith is central to Galatians and the rest of the New Testament, and why it would make sense for Paul to incorporate it into his list of spiritual fruit. When then look at the Greek word behind faith/faithfulness, pistis, and explain how it is a dynamic term that can be translated in many different ways. While pistis generally denotes faith/faithfulness in English, Biblical scholar Nijay Gupta argues that it is understood as ‘belief’, ‘trust’, and ‘obedience’ in various New Testament passages. We explore faith as ‘belief’ in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, faith as ‘trust’ in Romans 1:16-17, and faith as ‘obedience’ in James 2:14-26. I also explain how ‘faith’ is what brings us into a relationship with God but is developed and refined by the Holy Spirit if we allow Him to help us grow. 

Media Referenced:

Nijay Gupta, Paul and the Language of Faith: https://a.co/d/gduqK89


The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at [email protected].  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and Youtube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!