Renewtheology

We know this isn't the podcast episode you were expecting. And to be honest, neither were we. But our lives have had some (good) changes and we want to share a bit out what the Holy Spirit has been doing in our lives.

As season 4 of the Thrive Theology podcast draws to a close, we wanted to take some time for a more casual chat and review the last few months of podcast episodes. We discuss our favourite episodes, why researching the social justice series was difficult,  and what we're looking forward to about season 5 (and give you a sneak peek of what's coming in February!). See you in February 2022!

If you grew up in the evangelical world of North America, there's a good chance you attended a Christian event at some point that involved an altar call, complete with a passionate plea for repentance and emotionally evocative music. In the final episode of our series on soteriology, we discuss the history of altar calls and why they were disputed in the early stages of evangelicalism. We also discuss the benefits and problems with the idea of "asking Jesus into your heart" and explain the different viewpoints of whether someone can lose their salvation.

In part two of our series on the doctrine of salvation, we take a look at different atonement theories and how Calvinism and Arminianism both answer the question of how God's sovereignty works with man's free will to achieve salvation. Plus, we take a close look at the history of the "born again" phraseology in the modern evangelical movement and discuss its impact on the North American church.

C. S. Lewis once said that what makes Christianity different from all other religions is God's grace towards us. For this first episode in our three-part series on the doctrine of salvation, we discuss the doctrines of redemption, justification, and sanctification. Also, is baptism required for salvation? And does a person have to actually make a decision to be saved?

Perhaps best known for his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," Jonathan Edwards is the feature historic figure of this week's podcast episode. He was a devoted Calvinist theologian and preacher, becoming a significant leader in the Great Awakening because of his vocation. He was also a wonderful husband and father, but his life was not without its blindspots.

Have you ever wondered how preaching & sermons became the focal point of the Protestant Church? Starting with the Middle Ages, we explore the history of preaching in the Church—from how the Reformation forever changed the focus of religious assemblies to the technology that profoundly shaped evangelism in the 1800s.

If you've been listening for a while, you know that Emily & Bethany have walked very different paths regarding marriage and singleness. In this episode, Bethany shares what she's learned about walking with the Lord through her season of singleness, and they both discuss the different lies that singles believe and truths to replace them. We hope you're encouraged by this episode—whether you're single or married.

The Trinity has always been difficult to define, and heresies about the nature of the Trinity started gaining popularity as early as the second century. We establish the traditional orthodox view of the Trinity, then give the background and beliefs of the various heretical descriptions about the Trinity and the two natures of Christ.

We’re back with the second part of our interview with Lisa Hensley to discuss the ideas of biblical manhood & womanhood. Is this something that’s as clear in Scripture as we think, or is there more to it? We discuss the cultural blinders that both complementarians and egalitarians carry into popular gender passages of the Bible. Plus, Emily & Bethany share the story of strangers crashing their church service to rebuke the “Jezebel spirit” in the congregation and Lisa shares her thoughts on whether women in leadership pose a threat to Christian orthodoxy.

Whether you’re complementarian or egalitarian, asking the right questions about women in church leadership roles is important. Lisa Hensley joins us to discuss some of the most common objections to women in leadership positions, including “Adam was made first,” “Women are more emotional,” and “What about Eve being deceived?” Lisa also explains why the eternal subordination of the Son (ESS) heresy is dangerous & how it’s linked to hyper-complementarianism, as well as whether husbands will have to answer for their wives on Judgment Day and what this means for women.

Sometimes Christians tend to use the Bible to attack socialism, not capitalism; but the truth is, the Bible really supports neither. In this week's episode, we discuss how the Bible doesn't side with a particular socio-economic model, whether or not the Bible supports repenting for cultural sins, and how to read the parable of the good Samaritan in light of first-century racial tensions.

When we think of justice, we often think of retributive justice–punishing someone for a crime done. But Scripture spends a lot of time talking about restorative justice. God is clear that justice and righteousness go hand-in-hand; we cannot be in right relationship with God and others without creating and maintaining justice. In God's ideal economy of ancient Israel, we find His heart for justice; and it doesn't look like any of our modern economic models, regardless of where you land in your socio-economic views.

Throughout Christian history, there have been various events that have shaped the doctrines we know today. The Protestant Reformation that began in 1517 is one of those: it gave way to the "five solaes" that have become core doctrine in the majority of Protestant denominations today. In this episode, we discuss the different Roman Catholic Church heresies the five solaes were formed to contradict, as well as a review of the history of the Reformation.

In a lovely post script to our series on the image of God, we have the honour of telling the story of Corrie ten Boom, World War 2 resistance worker, concentration camp survivor, and Christ-proclaimer. She is a beautiful example of what a heart submitted to Christ and earnest about loving His people looks like and how it can be a blessing to the world. Join us as we walk through her life and the legacy of godliness she left.

In the final instalment of our series on the image of God, we explore five more perspectives on the image of God and how humans actually represent God on the earth. We also take some time to discuss how Jesus affirmed the image of God in every person He met, especially to the “least of these.” We conclude by sharing some of our own final thoughts on what we’ve learned about the image of God and what it means for us as believers in Christ.

In part two of our series on the image of God, we explore what it means for Jesus to be the true image of God and our example to follow. We also dip our toes in the gender conversation. Many wouldn’t say that women are lesser images of God than men, but unfortunately, there are theological viewpoints that inadvertently teach this. We finish up by introducing our first view of the imago Dei and discuss how an extreme version of it could allow Christians to passively sit back through the slave trade, the Holocaust, and abortion.

We’re kicking off season 4 of the podcast with a 3-part series on the image of God. In this episode, we explain why pagan kings and rulers were feared and worshipped by their citizens & courts, why Israel’s golden calf wasn’t as simple as trying to just replace Yahweh, and why humanity’s sin against God hasn’t only been that we view ourselves as more than God created us to be, but also less than He created us to be.

Update! An important announcement regarding the new release schedule for the Thrive Theology podcast, plus we share which episodes have been our favourite to record, as well as some of our personal podcast listening recommendations.

In our final part of this series, we talk about covenant theology and what it means for us in the Church today. We take an in-depth look at the history of covenantal theology and the role the Reformation played in its development, as well as whether the sign of the New Covenant is the Cross or the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the two versions of covenant theology, and how covenantal theology changes the symbolic meaning of baptism.