Have you ever been taught that being a faithful Bible reader means dividing the Old Testament from the New?Second Timothy 2:15 gets quoted for that very purpose, Paul’s charge to Timothy to “rightly divide the word of truth.” Where did that reading actually come from, and is it really what Paul had in mind as Timothy faced false teachers unsettling the church in Ephesus? Wes and Marcus trace this phrase back further than most people expect, and ask whether a common, well-intentioned interpretation might be doing exactly what Paul warned against.What does it really mean to “cut a straight path” with the word of truth? Is the Old Testament something Christians should set aside, or does it hold the story that makes the gospel make sense? And how does getting this right change the way we love people?Links and Resources* Extended Free Trial of Logos Bible Study Software* Books by Wes McAdams* VidAngel Special OfferThis description contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we genuinely believe in. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.radicallychristian.com
What if your favorite life verse was not written about you?Isaiah 41:10 gets quoted before exams, hard conversations, and hospital waiting rooms: fear not, for I am with you. Wes and Marcus ask what happens when we lift a promise made to a nation still recovering from exile and hand it to ourselves as a private guarantee. It’s the same instinct that turns Jeremiah 29:11 and Philippians 4:13 into fortune cookies, and it says something about how we read Scripture, and about who we think the story is really about.So who is the servant in Isaiah 41 actually referring to? Israel, the Messiah, or somehow both? And if we’re not the main character of our own Bible reading, what changes when we realize how we fit into the story of the Bible?Links and Resources* BibleProject: Isaiah Part 1 (chapters 1–39)* BibleProject: Isaiah Part 2 (chapters 40–66)* Extended Free Trial of Logos Bible Study Software* Books by Wes McAdams* VidAngel Special OfferThis description contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we genuinely believe in. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.radicallychristian.com
Does taking the Bible literally mean believing the earth is flat? It’s a question more Christians are asking than you might expect, and the passages people point to are real: God laying the earth’s foundations, stretching out the heavens like a tent, describing the “circle of the earth.” Wes and Marcus sit with a listener’s question about flat earth theology and what it means for how we read Scripture. They talk about ancient Near Eastern cosmology, the difference between poetic and scientific language, and how conviction about a hyperliteral reading can become its own kind of danger.What do you do when someone insists a plain reading of the Bible requires rejecting what you can observe with your own eyes? And what does it mean to take Scripture seriously without demanding it answer questions it was never written to address?Links and Resources:* Extended Free Trial of Logos Bible Study Software* Books by Wes McAdams* VidAngel Special OfferThis description contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we genuinely believe in. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.radicallychristian.com
Why do we struggle so much to remain united? On this episode, Wes and Marcus dig into why division spreads so easily inside the church. Underneath the arguments over politics, worship styles, and personal convictions, there is often something more personal: fear, cultural blind spots, and the belief that being right is what keeps us safe with God. Is unity the same thing as agreement? What’s the difference between a conviction worth defending and one we’ve quietly turned into a test of fellowship? Marcus even introduces a memorable way of sorting theological issues (borrowed from his wife) that might just change how you think about your own dividing lines and what it really means to walk in unity with people who see things differently.Links and Resources:* Extended Free Trial of Logos Bible Study Software* Books by Wes McAdams* VidAngel Special OfferThis description contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we genuinely believe in. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.radicallychristian.com
How much of your spiritual life happens on a screen? Wes and Marcus turn the podcast on itself this week, asking hard questions about online worship, podcasts, and social media (the very tools they’re using to talk to you right now). Is live-streaming church a gift for the homebound and a front door for the curious, or a subtle invitation to become a spiritual consumer instead of a disciple? They dig into what happens when anyone can be a teacher with no elders holding them accountable, why comfort and discipleship rarely coexist, and what gets lost when friction and pushback disappear from our spiritual conversations. This isn’t a rulebook for what to do or not do online; it’s an honest look at what these platforms are forming us into, and whether that’s actually making us more like Jesus.Links and Resources* The Democratization of American Christianity by Nathan O. Hatch — Referenced as background on why the restoration movement’s anyone-can-preach spirit took hold in American evangelicalism.* The Gospel in a Pluralistic Society by Lesslie Newbigin — Cited for Newbigin’s insight on adapting the gospel’s presentation to different audiences and contexts.* Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture by Lesslie Newbigin — Cited alongside the above for Newbigin’s work on Paul’s strategy of contextualizing the gospel.* Extended Free Trial of Logos Bible Study Software* Books by Wes McAdams* VidAngel Special OfferThis description contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we genuinely believe in. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.radicallychristian.com