Much of our external circumstances differ from how they were 2,000 years ago — largely, to our benefit. However, our internal lives are surprisingly similar. Our desires for money, sex, and power — and the extreme lengths we’re willing to go to get them — remain.

In this episode, you’ll hear from best-selling author and New Testament Scholar, N.T. Wright (Oxford). He suggests that the sacrifices we make for a “ideal” life are, in a way, worship. Our sacrifices may not be the burnt incense of ancient times, but, he says, our hearts are captivated by money, sex, and power just the same. 

This Forum was held at Northwestern University in 2012 and originally titled “What Gods Do We Believe in Now?” Since then, it’s earned over 100,000 views on YouTube. Watch the full Forum — featuring great discussion with Dr. Gary Morson of Northwestern — here.