Vox Podcast With Mike Erre

The Jewishness of the Gospel. Today, Mike and Tim sit down with Dr. Jen Rosner, to discus her new book “Finding Messiah: A Journey into the Jewishness of the Gospel.” Jen, who was born Jewish and later became a Christian, walks us through her own Journey and what she found in study as she reconciled the two traditions and bridges the ancient rift between Jewish identity and Christian faith. How do we so often forget that Jesus was Jewish? How did his Jewish identity inform his work, words, and witness? “When we begin to understand Christianity’s indelible relationship to Judaism, key aspects of the Christian faith come alive and the wonder of the gospel becomes clear in new and powerful ways. Rediscover the Jewish Jesus, and in so doing, experience a deeper and richer faith than ever before.” Dr. Rosner is an Affiliate Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology at Fuller Theological Seminary. You can connect with Jen and purchase her book HERE. As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. A

Image - Part Nine: Works - with Dr. Timothy Gombis. Gombis joins us again to offer his wisdom on the topic of ‘works,’ as we close out the Image series. What is the difference between works and deeds? How does that play out in day to day actions? How does ‘works’ play into ‘faith,’ ‘grace’ and ‘saved?’ We’re continuing our series on Imaging, focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Mike and Tim also spend some time responding to a few listener emails: What are we saying when we speak of having grace for ourselves? Is that an accurate use of that word? Should Christians avoid public office or do we need to have “godly” people in government? What does a posture of learning look like when you’re an older parent and have held one posture of unde

Uvalde, the SBC & Prayers of the People. Mike and Tim are joined by Executive Pastor and Elder of Journey Church Suzie Lind to discuss the events of the past week, including the sexual abuse report from the Southern Baptist Convention and the mass shooting in Uvalde Texas. It is a very raw conversation as everyone tries to sort out postures and directions forward. At the end of the conversation, Suzie, Mike and Tim engage in another 'Prayers of the People.'  Lord, we pray for the people and children who have been subjugated and abused by institutions or those in power, but specifically within your church. Lord that you would bring healing and peace and freedom to those who have been hurt and who have been hiding or have been made to feel shameful by their abusers. Father, we pray that there would be Justice and a complete dismantling of the church that hides and protects those that prey on others, that marginalizes and exerts power over. Lord have mercy. Father God, we pray for the families of Uziyah

Culture War Refugees. Today, Tim Gombis beams in from his porch to discuss a theological understanding of the culture wars and how we're supposed to posture ourselves in these times. How nuanced is the conversation? What is the history of these topics and where do we enter them? Why does the Church need to have enemies? How does that define us? If it isn't prudent or productive to engage in these "wars," how do we respond? Where is Jesus in this conversation?  As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio Follow us on Instagram: @voxologypodcast and "like" us on Facebook Follow Mike on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeerre Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford Instagram & Twitter: @Go

Image - Part Eight: What is Grace? Today, we talk about different understandings and interpretations of ‘grace,’ and how they’re to be understood biblically. Grace as God’s favor; as a gift or benefaction; as generosity. The American Understanding of Grace as free from prior conditions; without regard to worth or deserving. What is the OT understanding and how does it differ? What does Paul say? How does Santa fit into all of this? We’re continuing our series on Imaging, focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Mike and Tim also spend some time reading listener e, ails regarding the abortion conversation. And stay tuned for Voxology Radio this week. Mike and Tim take up new roles as DJ’s to soundtrack your day. As always, we encourage and wo

Culture Warring. Today, Mike and Tim discuss the idea of ‘Culture Wars’ in light of the leaked Roe V Wade decision. What’s the goal of a culture war? What does it mean to “win?” Does undoing a law such as this help to save lives? Or is it about the message? What does it mean to actually be ‘Pro Life?’ Is there Biblical permission for culture warring? It seems like Nobody wins a culture war. Either you lay down your weapons and seek peace together as neighbors, or you destroy the culture. The New Testament vision of the church is of these small and vulnerable communities, that venture out into the world to serve and that open up their communities and households to others (especially the marginalized) for encounters of mutual blessing. At the end of the episode, Mike and Tim try something new in 'Prayers of the People,' which is hopefully an active way of engaging in prayer and worship on behalf of brothers and sisters all over the globe.  We realize the sensitivity of these topics and our intention is to

Image - Part Seven: Gotta Have Faith, Faith, Faith. Today, Mike and a very sick Tim continue the conversation on Imaging, focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Previously, they established salvation as 'an embodied participation in the new heavens and new earth.' Today, the focus is on faith. How does it differ, scripturally, from the understanding most of us grew up with? What Faith is not:  Not the opposite of evidence assessment Not a leap in the dark Not the opposite of works Not optimism or a positive mindset that makes us passive Not a profession of Faith Not good theology What is faith? Faith has these three elements: Mental affirmation/intellectual agreement: certain enough to yield Professed fealty to Jesus

Deconstruction, Death & Depression. Today we take a break to digest all of the content from the Image series so far to sit with a few listener questions. First, Mike speaks to a comment that rubbed him wrong on his own 'deconstruction.' How do you talk about New Creation and the Gospel with someone on Hospice? If the idea of being 'saved' is so important and supposedly so easy to understand, why did it take us so many episodes and so much research to unpack? Can the ideas of New Creation and center focus be dialed down to a "Romans Road" style message of the Gospel?? All that and one long critique of both Mike and Tim from recent episodes. So much good stuff from the VOXOLOGY Community!!! As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify c

Image - Part Six: Time. Today, we wrap up the first part of our series on 'Imaging,' focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Saved is about Space & Time. As Jews thought about the Kingdom Of God, they used two grand eras: The Old Age, which was characterized by sin, death and evil, and the Age to Come, which was characterized by life, peace, justice and love. The Kingdom Of God was another way of talking about the age to come. In some ways, the two ages have overlapped. This is about Now and Not Yet. This is about how we Have Been Saved, We are Being Saved and We Will Be Saved. As we dig into these ideas, we are encouraged to avoid: Any theology that separates us from our bodies Any theology that is escapist Any theology that priva

BONUS EPISODE - How? Why? When? Today, Mike and Tim sit down with pastor, author and friend Bethany Nass Cseh. Together, they read through some heavy listener emails dealing with various questions about the Church, ranging from: Abuse. Bounded Mindsets. John MacArthur. Deconstruction/Reconstruction. Not hearing or feeling God. Cynicism towards the Church model. What posture is there to hold in all of this? Where is hope? What role does community play? Bethany's church can be found HERE Bethany's books, Stepping Into Lent & Stepping Into Advent, can be found HERE As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio Follow us on Instagram: @voxologypodcast and "like" us on Facebook Follow Mike on Twitte

Image - Part Five: Saved (From). What is wrath?!? Today, we explore God’s judgment, here and now, as this reality where wrath is simply a self-consumptive dynamic. Do people who engage in the oppression of others initiate these cycles of violence and oppression themselves? All the sinful practices that we could possibility engage in humanity wide, they all have us in their grip, making sure that we are dehumanized and dehumanize each other; it’s all part of this cosmic network that is wrath. It is self-consumptive. The whole thing is set aflame and will consume itself. Where is God in this? How do New Creation dynamics play into this? What does Paul say in Romans on all of this? Today, we continue our series on Imaging, focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in adv

Image - Part Four: Space. Today we continue our series on Imaging, focusing on the words of Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” How does the language in Genesis shape the human imaging project? How does worship factor in? What is the chaos God subdues? How does it come to define us and creation?? Mike and Tim also answer follow up questions on short term missions trips from the previous episodes. As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio Follow u

Image: Part Three - Saved, Continued. This episode, we continue the conversation on what being "Saved" means, as we dive into Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Today, we park in Romans for a bit to pick apart salvific language. What are we saved to? How does restoration play in? How do we image creation back to God, rather than image God to creation? We also respond to a listener email and to a question on criticism of mission's trips from last episode.  As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The V

BONUS Episode: Centered-Set Church. Today, in a bonus conversation, Mike and Tim are joined by the man himself, the author of “Centered-Set Church: Discipleship and Community Without Judgmentalsim,” Dr. Mark D. Baker! Dr. Baker was gracious enough to sit down and answer questions from the Unified Series that were sent in by y’all, the VOXOLOGY Community! Mark's book can be purchased HERE The video series he mentions can be found HERE As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio Follow us on Instagram: @voxologypodcast and "like" us on Facebook Follow Mike on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeerre Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford Instagram & Twitter: @GoneTimothy

Image - Part Two: Saved. We're continuing this series, looking at the grammar of the gospel, in particular the key words used in Ephesians 2:8-10, words that have come to define our faith and understanding of the journey we're on with Yahweh. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." In Genesis 1 and 2, God makes humanity in his image; that is, God constructs the world as God’s own temple and the image of God in the temple (just like an ancient temples, you go into the temple and there is the image of the unseen diety). In the temple that is creation, the image of the unseen God is humans. All of humanity. As we live lives of flourishing and continue to enjoy and spread the shalom of God within creation, God is glorified b/c that is what the 'Image of God' is meant to do: flourish, en

Image - Part One: Return of the King. We're starting a new series today that will help us renew the key words used in Ephesians 2:8-10, words that have come to define our faith and understanding of the journey we're on with Yahweh. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." To begin, what is the Kingdom of Heaven? How does it operate as an image of God himself? When the White House issues a statement, we all realize the actual White House isn't speaking. It is a symbol or image for the powers within. Everything Jesus said and did pointed to the Kingdom! “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Something is here that forces you to reckon and respond. As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com

Heavy Burdens. Today, we welcome back to the show author, professor and advocate Bridget Eileen Rivera to discuss her new book, Heavy Burdens: Seven Ways LGBTQ Christians Experience Harm in the Church. What are the seven ways that the LGBTQ community has experienced harm? What are direct traumas the church has committed? What are indirect ways?  How can we best repent of the harm caused? Bridget is a favorite guest of ours and we're excited to have her back. Bridget Eileen Rivera is a sociologist completing her Ph.D. at the City University of New York Graduate Center. A homeschool graduate and alum of Patrick Henry College, Rivera has become a leading voice on gay celibacy in the the church, helping Christians better grapple with gender and sexuality in a divided culture. She has worked with a number of faith-based organizations, including Revoice, Christians for Social Action, and Preston Sprinkle’s Center for Faith, Sexuality, and Gender, where she contributed to the Digital Leaders Forum. You can buy

Unified - Part Six: War & Centered Relational Dynamics. Today, Mike and Tim begin with a conversation about Ukraine and where we fit in. How are we to be peacemakers in this? What does that even mean? What does the Bible say about war? They then continue the series 'Unified,' and the dynamics of community in 'Centered' Churches (as first explored by Paul Hiebert, via Mark Baker).  Security: Stuart Murray: “Churches with healthy centers are secure enough to welcome those who are exploring faith and searching for authenticity." How the Bible is Used: Disintegrative shaming vs. reintegrative shaming - not all shaming is the same. Disintegrative shaming focuses on making an example of guilty offenders and ensuring they get what they deserve. It stigmatizes. Reintegrative shaming acknowledges that the social bond has been damaged and draws attention to the shameful action, but its goal is to heal relationships and reintegrate the offender to the group. Stigmatization is shaming the person rather than t

Mike and Tim sit down with a number of listener questions, comments and critiques!  As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology Podcast Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio Follow us on Instagram: @voxologypodcast and "like" us on Facebook Follow Mike on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeerre Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford Instagram & Twitter: @GoneTimothy

Unified - Part Five: Defining the Center. This episode, Mike offers thoughts on defining the "center" of the 'Centered Set' focus (as first explored by Paul Hiebert, via Mark Baker). Defining the center is the most important task of a Centered Focused Church. For christians, the center is the God revealed by Jesus Christ. But, saying that Jesus is the center is not a complete definition. Who is God (our conceptions about God will influence whether we do church in a bounded, fuzzy, or centered way, and the paradigm of our church will influence how we view God)? Who is Jesus?? Jesus was Jewish Jesus preached the Kingdom Of God Jesus preached and embodied the 'Great Reversal' The Kingdom Of God created conflict Jesus revealed the Father Cruciformity Eschatological bearer of judgment As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Always feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about the Voxology