Theology in the Raw

 Dr. Russell Moore is Public Theologian at Christianity Today and Director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project. Dr. Moore is the author of several books, including The Courage to Stand: Facing Your Fear Without Losing Your Soul, Onward: Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel and The Storm-Tossed Family: How the Cross Reshapes the Home. A native Mississippian, he and his wife Maria are the parents of five sons.

Russ has been very public about addressing the crisis of sexual abuse scandals in the church. In this episode, we talk about what leads to such scandals, why and how they are covered up, how the church needs to move forward in addressing such scandals (and abuse in general), and how we should think about the otherwise good content produced by Christian leaders (books, sermons, music) who later come out as abusers. We also talk about the polarized cultural moment we’re living in and what the future holds.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
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Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

In this fourth and final episode in our “scandal of Christmas” series, New Testament scholar Dr. Joey Dodson walks us through parallel birth narratives in the Greco-Roman and Jewish environment of the New Testament. Reading the biblical birth narratives in these contexts helps us read the story in HD, or through a 3D lens, so that we can better understand the author’s intention in how he’s telling the story. 

Dr. Joseph (Joey) Dodson is associate professor of New Testament. He studied at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and the University of Tübingen in Germany. In addition to many academic and devotional essays, he has written a number of articles for top-tier, peer review journals such as Harvard Theological Review, Novum Testamentum, the Journal for Jewish Studies, and Catholic Biblical Quarterly,. His most recent books include The Things I Want to Do: Romans 7 Revisited (forthcoming), A Little Book for New Bible Scholars with E. Randolph Richards (2017) and a co-edited volume with David E. Briones, Paul and Seneca in Dialogue (2017). Dr. Dodson’s current research includes a Romans commentary in the Brill Exegetical Commentary Series and a Colossians-Philemon commentary in The Christian Standard Commentary Series. Most importantly, Joey is my best friend.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

In this third part of our four part series, New Testament scholar Dr. Lynn Cohick walks us through the significance of women in the birth narratives. We talk a lot about Mary, Elizabeth, Jesus’s genealogy (which contains 5 women), how the appearance of women in the genealogy has been misunderstood, and we also discuss the woman at the well in John 4 and how she was not a sexually promiscuous woman.

Lynn currently serves as as Provost and Dean of Academic Affairs of Northern Seminary in Lisle, Illinois. Lynn received her bachelor’s degree from Messiah College in Grantham, PA, and her Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. After 18 years as professor of New Testament and Biblical Studies at Wheaton College (serving as department chair and dean toward the end of her time there), Lynn accepted the invitation to join Denver Seminary as their Provost / Dean. She also taught at Messiah College (Grantham, PA), and Nairobi Evangelical Graduate School of Theology (Nairobi, Kenya) in the 80s and 90s, respectively.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

We often think of Luke 1-2 and Matthew 1-2 when we think about the Christmas story. But what about Revelation 12? Is this angle a strange, fringe way of looking at the birth of Jesus, or is a primarily lens? In this episode, Dr. Bird and I look at this less-than-familar way of reading the Christmas story. It’s an angle where the bird of a peasant-King is a battle against the socio-political powers to be, powers that are demonically influenced and stand opposed to the upside down kingdom of God on earth. 

Michael Bird graduated with a BMin from Malyon College (2001) and Honours and PhD from the University of Queensland (2002, 2005). Michael taught New Testament at the Highland Theological College in Scotland (2005-9) before joining Brisbane School of Theology as lecturer in Theology (2010-12). He joined the faculty at Ridley as lecturer in Theology in 2013. He is the author of 30 books, including the volumes The Gospel of Lord: How the Early Church Wrote the Story of Jesus, Evangelical Theology, and with N.T. Wright, The New Testament in its World. Michael is married to Naomi and they have four children and together they live in Melbourne, Australia.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

I’ve invited 4 different New Testament scholars on the podcast to talk about the Christmas story. In this opening episode, I talk with world renown NT scholar Dr. Craig Keener about Luke 1-2, the politics and sociological scandal of Christ’s birth, his earthly vocation (as a tekton...woodworker? mason? None of the above?), the location of Christ’s birth, Matthew 1-2 (and the differences between Luke and Matthew), the problem of genealogies, and much, much more. 

Dr. Keener did his Ph.D. work in New Testament and Christian Origins at Duke University and is known for his work as a New Testament scholar on Bible background (commentaries on the New Testament in its early Jewish and Greco-Roman settings). Well over a million of his thirty-plus books are in circulation and have won thirteen national and international awards. His award-winning, popular-level IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (now in its second edition [2014], and available in a number of languages) has sold over half a million copies.

Craig is married to Médine Moussounga Keener, who holds a Ph.D. from University of Paris 7. She was a refugee for 18 months in her nation of Congo, and together Craig and Médine work for ethnic reconciliation in the U.S. and Africa. Craig is ordained by the National Baptist Convention, an African-American denomination, and for roughly a decade was one of the associate ministers at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in Philadelphia. Craig and Médine’s story together is Impossible Love: The True Story of an African Civil War, Miracles, and Hope Against All Odds (Chosen Books, 2016).

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

Aaron is gay and so is Liz. They’ve been married for over 15 years and have had an interesting journey. Both are solid Jesus followers and have done a fantastic job helping the church engage LGBTQ related issues with truth and grace. In this podcast conversation, Liz and Aaron share their story and talk about what it’s like being in a queer marriage--a term they prefer over “mixed orientation marriage,” since their orientations aren’t really mixed. 

Links talked about on todays show
https://revoice.us/community-groups/

https://indyoasis.org

Sponsor links

ivpress.com/TITR

Upcoming Events

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

Okay, so if you’re easily offended (and white), then you might want to change the channel. Dr. Tim Gombis is a no-holds-barred honest scholar, who’s not afraid to go to the hard places and challenge the status quo. And that’s exactly what we do in this episode. We discuss the undiscussables; say the quiet things out loud, and push over sacred cows as we seek to get to know Jesus all over again. This episode is a mix of exegetical exploration and cultural analysis (or critique). 

Tim is a long-time friend, a fellow biblical scholar with a Ph.D. in New Testament from St. Andrews University in Scotland, and an all around great dude. He’s written tons of books including the Story of God Commentary on Mark and the recently released Power in Weakness. He’s been a professor of Bible and Theology at Cedarville University and Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, and he currently hosts the Faith Improvised podcast. 

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

Jay Stringer is is a therapist, author, and speaker who guides men and women to outgrow unwanted sexual behaviors. He’s the author of Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing, a book that is based on Stringer’s groundbreaking research on over 3,800 men and women addressing the key drivers of unwanted sexual behavior, be that the use of pornography, infidelity, or buying sex. If you want to find freedom from sexual brokenness, it begins by identifying the unique reasons that bring you to it.

In this episode, Jay and I talk about the source of sexual brokenness--what causes people to watch porn or have an affiar. There are deeper, more complex, issues at work, and until those issues are addressed, we’ll only be putting out the the fires of behavior management. We also talk about the prevalence of sexual abuse--nearly ⅓ of people have been sexually abused and most have not healed from this trauma in healthy ways. This is a huge discipleship issue. And then you have the perpetrators of this sin--perhaps 5-10% of the people we preach to each week are the abusers. Have you ever thought about this? (The ⅓ have...probably every week.)

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

In the midst of polarized conversations about race, Dr. George Yancey is a breath of fresh air. He’s a huge proponent of active listening--being genuinely curious about another another person’s perspective and getting outside your echo chamber to consider other points of view. In this podcast episode, we talk a lot about his forthcoming book: Beyond Racial Division: A Unifying Alternative to Colorblindness and Antiracism, which published by IVP (March 2022).

Dr. George Yancey (PhD, University of Texas) is a Professor of Sociology at the Baylor University. He has published several research articles on the topics of institutional racial diversity, racial identity, academic bias, progressive Christians and anti-Christian hostility. His books include Compromising Scholarship (Baylor University Press) a book that explores religious and political biases in academia, What Motivates Cultural Progressives (Baylor University Press) a book that examines activists who oppose the Christian Right, There is no God (Rowman and Littlefield) a book that investigates atheism in the United States, and So Many Christians, So Few Lions (Rowman and Littlefield) a book that assess Christianophobia in the United States.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.

Greg gave a killer talk at this year’s Revoice conference. If you missed it--here it is! Here’s the blurb: What does it mean to adore Jesus in a world that sees our adoration as scandalous? Taking our cues from a few of the Bible’s most notorious worshippers, we’ll celebrate together the stabilizing power of worship — a power no one can take from us.

Greg is the author of Single, Gay, Christian (InterVarsity Press, 2017) and No Longer Strangers (InterVarsity Press, 2021). He holds a PhD in English from Penn State and lives in Idaho's Treasure Valley, where he works as a writer and speaker. Greg is a Senior Research Fellow at The Center for Faith, Sexuality & Gender and curates most of his creative activities at gregorycoles.com.

Interested in designing the conference T-shirt for the Theology in the Raw “Exiles in Babylon Conference?” Submit your design to [email protected]
The top 3 designs will get free access to the conference (in person or virtual) and the #1 selected design will get free access to the conference and the afterparty and dinner at my house. 
Designs must be submitted to Chris by November 26th.

Feel free to use various slogans like “Exiles in Babylon,” “Exiled,” “Theology in the Raw,” “Raw Theology,” or other one-liners like “Allegiance to a kingdom not a political party,” “Jesus is political not partisan” or whatever. Or use no wording at all.

Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon
At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race theory, hell, transgender identities, climate change, creation care, American politics, and what it means to love your democratic or republican neighbor as yourself. Different views will be presented. No question is off limits. No political party will be praised. Everyone will be challenged to think. And Jesus will be upheld as supreme.

Support Preston
Support Preston by going to patreon.com
Venmo: @Preston-Sprinkle-1

Connect with Preston
Twitter | @PrestonSprinkle
Instagram | @preston.sprinkle
Youtube | Preston Sprinkle

Check out Dr. Sprinkle’s website prestonsprinkle.com

Stay Up to Date with the Podcast
Twitter | @RawTheology
Instagram | @TheologyintheRaw

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review.