The Deep Thoughts Podcast with Matt Shantz

Over the last few decades a phenomenon has been taking place on Tuesday nights at Texas A&M University; thousands of students fill the basketball arena to worship Jesus and receive Bible teaching. Brian McCormack serves as the Executive Director and together with his wife Emilie they steward this incredible ministry with faith, vision, and humility.  Breakaway's purpose is any and every student taking their first or next step with Jesus.In this episode they discuss: What an Aggie is (and how to pronounce it) (7:00); how redemptive it is that Brian preaches on the Reed Arena basketball court every Tuesday night (10:00); the movement that is Breakaway (11:15); how the faith questions of young people have changed over the years (14:30); how to reach the rising generation (20:00); what we’ve been praying for is happening (26:00); what it means for those of us in the church to embrace the moment with faith (31:00); sympathizing with those who find church hard (39:00); and the McCormack’s best stuff on raising kids in our moment (45:00). Also, Matt and Brian new best friends? TBD.ABOUTBrian McCormack is the Executive Director of Breakaway. He is a speaker, writer, and Bible teacher who uses words to tell people about Jesus. He’s also the unofficial president of the Emilie McCormack fan club. Together they have 5 kids and lead the movement that is Breakaway on the college campus of Texas A&M. Both are worth a follow on Instagram so you can catch a glimpse on the ground floor of what the Lord is doing in and through this rising generation in our moment.

We all long for a life worth living. So when we receive news of a frightening diagnosis, suffer heartbreaking loss in our family life, or get trapped in a cycle of our own sin, we might wonder about God. Where is He when we need Him most?In this episode Ray explains that Jesus can be hard to find in the comfortable lives we prefer. Instead, He meets us at rock bottom―where He is waiting for us with open arms. If you’re facing hardship or heartbreak, here is some good news — the Man of Sorrows is there to meet you where you need Him most.Matt and Ray talk about “Good News at Rock Bottom” as well as Ray's “Jesus Revolution” days in California in the 70’s and their sense that renewal is coming again; his book The Death of Porn and why porn is a justice issue; and how gospel culture is the necessary and beautiful expression of gospel doctrine in our lives and churches.ABOUTRay Ortlund is the president of Renewal Ministries, the pastor to pastors at Immanuel Church in Nashville, and a canon theologian with the Anglican Church in North America.He is a contributor to the ESV Study Bible (the study Bible Matt recommends most!) and the author of several books, including:Good News at Rock Bottom: Finding God When the Pain Goes Deep and Hope Seems LostThe Death of Porn: Men of Integrity Building a World of NobilityYou’re Not Crazy: Gospel Sanity for Weary Christians (co-authored with fellow Deep Thoughts guest Sam Allberry)To The Tenth Generation: God’s Heart for Your Family, Far into the Future (co-authored with his wife Jani)The Gospel: How the Church Portrays the Beauty of Christ Marriage and the Mystery of the Gospel

To celebrate 100 episodes worth of deep thoughts, Matt is joined by original producer of the podcast, Jordan Esau, for a trip down memory lane as they talk about the humble beginnings of the podcast, some favourite episodes and guests, and more.Then Matt tackles some of the deepest listener-submitted questions to close things out.A trip down memory lane (1:00)Where did Old Testament believers go when they died? (20:40)What are your views on the old earth and young earth creationist perspectives? (24:00)Since Samson killed himself and was favoured by God, is suicide a pardonable sin? (36:10)How important and healthy do you think it is for a church’s small groups to be intergenerational? (44:05)A big thank you to Jordan Esau for joining Matt for this episode and for his instrumental help in starting the podcast, to Andy Boldt and Landon Johnston for their fantastic work on the episodes since, Heath Robertson for the graphic design, Emily Shantz for the cult following you amassed, and all the fantastic guests over the years who are the reason that the podcast hits such gospel depths. Most of all, thank you to everyone who listens, engages with the podcast, and passes episodes along to others in your life. I truly hope it helps you in fostering deep faith.Disclaimer: This podcast addresses a question about suicidal ideation, which may be distressing for some listeners. The information communicated is about the Bible and pastoral in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you or someone you know is struggling, please seek support from a qualified medical or mental health professional or contact Talk Suicide Canada: 1.833.456.4566

For many of us, despite having the best intentions, we struggle to reach out effectively with the gospel. Jeff Medders joins Matt to talk about fostering a genuine evangelistic culture in our lives and churches.ABOUT Jeff Medders is the Director of Theology and Content for Send Network and the General Editor for New Churches. He is also pursuing his Ph.D. at Southern Seminary in biblical spirituality under the supervision of Dr. Donald S. Whitney. Jeff is a writer, a preacher, a podcaster, and an unashamed coffee snob. He is a native Houstonian and the author of several books including Rooted: Theology for Growing Christians; Gospel Formed: Living a Grace-Addicted, Truth-Filled, Jesus-Exalting Life; Humble Calvinism: And If I Know the Five Points, But Have Not Love; Risen King: 40 Devotions for Easter; and the main topic of the podcast conversation, The Soul-Winning Church: Six Keys to Fostering a Genuine Evangelistic Culture.

In August of 2011, Cameron Horner had a diving accident that resulted in a spinal injury and immediate paralysis. His story is one of faith and perseverance.   In this episode, we talk about a theology of suffering and the topics of disability and the church and disability and eschatology. Resources referenced in the episode: Ten Dimensions of Belonging (Erik Carter) My Body Is Not A Prayer Request: Disability Justice In The Church (Amy Kenny) ABOUTBecause of the work that God did before, during, and after Cameron's injury, a ministry began as churches, schools, and other groups began asking him to come share his journey of faith and perseverance. Cameron has a unique take on suffering and desires for the church to grow in their understanding of how to relate to the pain that we all experience in life.Cameron also has a heart for helping churches with the topic of disability. He has experienced the good and the not so good when it comes to church tolerance, accessibility, messaging, etc., and is a resource for churches and other organizations as they desire to better understand how to minister to the disabled community.Cameron was recently married to Annie, who “sort of” met at the Exiles in Babylon Conference Matt was attending as well in 2023.You can watch Cameron’s appearance at the Exiles In Babylon Conference and on The 700 Club. You can find him at cameronhornerministries.org and on Instagram.

Today in the west, many consider the church to be dead or dying. Christianity is seen as outdated, bigoted and responsible for many of society’s problems. This leaves many believers embarrassed about their faith and many outsiders wary of Christians and their movement. But what if the Christian message is not the enemy of our modern Western values, but the very thing that makes sense of them? Matt talks with Glen Scrivener, author of The Air We Breathe: How We All Came To Believe In Freedom, Kindness, Progress, & Equality. Those are distinctively Christian ideas. Christianity didn’t just turn the ancient world upside down, but continues to underpin the way our society thinks about life, worth, and meaning In other words, Christianity has impacted our culture so profoundly that we don’t notice it’s in the very air we breathe.  ABOUT Glen Scrivener is an evangelist who is passionate about people meeting Christ and equipping Christians to share their faith. He’s often found speaking at Churches and Universities, in the studio producing online media or in his office, writing books and other evangelistic material. He is an ordained Church Of England minister, author, speaker and filmmaker, and director of the charity Speak Life. In addition to The Air We Breathe, Glen has also written How To See Life; How To Speak Life; and Long Story Short: The Bible in 12 Phrases

Matt Chandler is convinced that you were made for this exact moment in human history. Things may look gloomy, and you may feel discouraged, but because of the promise and hope found in Scripture, you can be brave, confident, and victorious today. We’re built to overcome, to find joy not tied to our circumstances but rooted in our relationship with Jesus. The Matts sit down to talk about preaching (3:15); Multi-site churches (23:15); and the wildly encouraging Book of Revelation (33:45) that is the premise of his new book The Overcomers: God’s Vision For You To Thrive In An Age Of Anxiety And Outrage. ABOUT Matt Chandler has served over 20 years as the Lead Pastor at The Village Church in Flower Mound, TX which recently transitioned its 5 campuses into their own autonomous churches. He is also the Executive Chairman of the Acts 29 Network, a large church planting community that trains and equips church planters across the globe. Matt is known around the world for proclaiming the gospel in a powerful and down-to-earth way and enjoys traveling to share the message of Jesus whenever he can.His latest book draws on the Book of Revelation to remind us that in Christ, we are Overcomers.

Many Christians are deconstructing their faith because of unvoiced questions—questions that, when not voiced, can feel like they’re too much for God. In this episode — and her new book Can I Say That? — Brenna Blain addresses questions about her own wrestlings with what felt like “unsafe questions” on the issues she’s faced in her life like mental health challenges, suicidality, same-sex attraction, church hurt, miscarriage, and more. ABOUTBrenna Blain is a contemporary theologian from the Pacific Northwest and is most passionate about God’s involvement in our pain and personal struggles, including mental illness, same-sex attraction, and abuse. In her book, Can I Say That? she brings her fresh voice to those who feel unsafe or unwelcome in the church, acknowledging the incongruity between the church's actions and believers' lived experiences. As a Bible teacher and an advocate for those who have experienced abuse, molestation, and mental health crises, she creates space for readers to be radically honest and ask tough questions—Am I safe here? Why does your presence feel so lonely, God?—while pointing them to biblical, foundational truth.

The promise of technological advancement seemed to be that work and life would be simplified. The promise of social media was limitless possibilities of connection and deep friendship. In reality, the technologies of our day seem determined to keep us scrolling and swiping at all costs, plugged into a feedback loop of impatience, comparison, outrage, contempt, and algorithm-built echo chambers. Blind to the dangers, we enjoy its temporary pleasures, unaware of the damage to our minds, bodies, and souls.  In this episode, Matt talks with Jay Kim about the ways the digital age and its values affect the Christian life and church life. And as you can guess from the title, Jay advocates for analog faith in the midst of our digital world. ABOUT Jay Kim lives with his family in Silicon Valley, California and is Lead Pastor of WestGate Church. He’s the host of IVP’s Digital Examen Podcast and Barna’s Making Space Podcast.He’s the author of Analog Church; Analog Christian, and his most recent book, Listen, Listen, Speak — all of which we explore in this episode.

This is the fourth Q+A episode where Matt attempts to answer some of your deepest listener-submitted questions. Why don’t we all get the same thing out of God’s Word? [2:05] What if I’m not actually saved? [9:55] Does God love Satan? And if Satan changed his mind and wanted to go to heaven would God let him? [15:30] How should I make school choices for my family? [22:30] If only Sheol existed in the Old Testament, how does hell suddenly appear in the New Testament? [29:30] As modern Christians do we believe that angels and demons constantly surround us? [32:00] How do we know if something is random chance, circumstances, or answered prayer in keeping with God’s will? [39:25]

Scott Thomas talks about the beauty and brokenness of the local church by speaking transparently about his own challenging experiences with the church and why he still loves it so much.Topics include planting and replanting churches (5:30); the Rise and Fall of Mars Hill and our own susceptibility to fall (10:00); church hurt (19:00); embodying the welcome and warmth of Christ (26:00); gospel culture (33:00); emotional intelligence (37:30); and the promise of Jesus for His Church (50:00). ABOUT Scott is the Director of Multiplication at Great Commission Collective and Lead Servant of Church Planting Partners. He served as Executive Pastor at Immanuel Church in Nashville, TN, Associate National Director of C2C Network, President of Acts 29, and Scott served as a lead pastor for 17 years. He is the author of a number of books including: The Gospel Shaped Leader; and Gospel Coach. Scott and his wife Jeannie live in Nashville, TN.

We are experiencing the largest and fastest religious shift in North American history. It is faster than the First and Second Great Awakenings and revivals combined, but in the opposite direction. It wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that everyone listening to this episode either has people in their lives who have left the church in recent years or you've left the church yourself. Jim Davis, co-author of The Great Dechurching, chats with Matt about the findings of their major research project that spawned the book, who’s leaving, why they’re going, and what it will take to bring them back. The findings and opportunities are more hopeful than you’d think! ABOUT Jim Davis (MDiv, Reformed Theological Seminary) is teaching pastor at Orlando Grace Church (Acts 29), and a Council member of The Gospel Coalition. He is the host of the As In Heaven podcast and coauthor with Michael Graham of The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back?. He and his wife, Angela, speak for Family Life’s Weekend to Remember marriage getaways.

The issue of gender has roared onto the scene so quickly, the concept has evolved so rapidly, the level of importance deemed so integral, that you would be hard-pressed to find a more pressing, confusing and divisive subject. Enter Dr. Abigail Favale. Her book, The Genesis of Gender is insightful, wise and timely. Abigail is an expert in areas of post-modernity, gender studies, and feminism and her radical re-conversion to Christianity has led her to take everything she has learned about gender and apply it through the lens of the Bible.  ABOUT Abigail is a writer and professor whose work lies at the intersection of Catholic theology, literature, and women’s studies. Her abiding interest as a writer and scholar is the meaning and dignity of woman, and her work explores sexual difference and embodiment in the Catholic imagination. She holds a concurrent appointment in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, where she teaches on topics like Edith Stein’s Theology of Woman and Religion & Literature. Abigail has a bachelor's degree in philosophy from George Fox University, as well as a master's degree in Women, Writing and Gender and a Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. She is the author of multiple books including, Into the Deep: An Unlikely Catholic Conversion (Cascade 2018) and The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory, which was published in 2022 and has already been translated into multiple languages. She lives with her husband, Michael, and their four children in South Bend, Indiana.

Andrew Wilson joins the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about special needs, the case for eucharistic and charismatic worship in the life of the church, and why the year 1776 was such a big deal and how the West is now post-Christian because of it. ABOUT Andrew Wilson (PhD, King’s College London) is the teaching pastor at King’s Church London and a columnist for Christianity Today. He’s the author of several books, including the three they talk about in this episode: Remaking the World, Spirit and Sacrament, and The Life We Never Expected. He’s a part of the Mere Fidelity podcast, co-hosts the “Post-Christianity?” podcast with Glen Scrivener, and regularly writes on the Think Theology website. Andrew is married to Rachel and they have three children: Zeke, Anna and Samuel. He is also a great follow on X/Twitter.

Statistically, only about 9% of those who make New Years Resolutions actually complete them, with the vast majority of people failing within the first week and month. David Mathis refers to the spiritual disciplines of Bible reading, prayer, and commitment to a local church as habits of grace and asserts that they are paramount for relationship with and enjoyment of Jesus. As we embark on a new year, resolve to know and enjoy Jesus through these habits of grace. In this episode Matt sits down with David Mathis to talk about leadership in the church (6:30 mark) and habits of grace (31:00 mark). ABOUT David Mathis serves as senior teacher and executive editor at desiringGod.org, a pastor at Cities Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and an adjunct professor at Bethlehem College & Seminary in Minneapolis. He and his wife, Megan, have four children. He is the author of several books, including the two talked about in this episode: Habits of Grace: Enjoying Jesus through the Spiritual Disciplines and Workers For Your Joy: The Call of Christ on Christian Leaders.

The nativity stories from the gospels of Matthew and Luke are familiar to everyone. Baby Jesus in a manger, Mary and Joseph, the little town of Bethlehem, the shepherds, and wise men. We’re less familiar with Revelation’s nativity story found in chapter 12 that includes a seven-headed dragon. But it is one of the Bible’s telling of the Christmas story nonetheless. In this brief episode Matt explains why this cosmic Christmas story is worth including in your nativity.

Today we’re told to be true to ourselves, look within for answers, and follow our hearts. But when we put our own happiness first, we experience record-breaking levels of aimlessness, loneliness, depression, and anxiety. In Don’t Follow Your Heart, Thaddeus Williams debunks the “ten commandments of self-worship” and points to a life beyond the self-defeating dogmas of self-worship to a more meaningful life centred on Someone infinitely more interesting, satisfying, and awesome than ourselves. Thaddeus Williams is back on the podcast, this time to tell us not to follow our hearts but to follow God’s heart!  ABOUT Thaddeus J. Williams (Ph.D., Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam) loves enlarging students’ understanding and enjoyment of Jesus at Biola University in La Mirada, CA, where he serves as associate professor of Systematic Theology for Talbot School of Theology. His previous appearance on Deep Thoughts, to talk about Confronting Injustice Without Compromising Truth (episode 36) is one of the podcast’s most popular episodes. He has also taught Philosophy and Literature at Saddleback College, Jurisprudence at Trinity Law School, and as a lecturer in Worldview Studies at L’Abri Fellowships in Switzerland and Holland, and Ethics for Blackstone Legal Fellowship the Federalist Society in Washington D.C. He resides in Orange County, CA with his wife and four kids.

Let’s face it: When people complain that masculinity is toxic, they often point to evangelical men as their prime example. But findings from the social sciences debunk those charges. Research shows that committed Christian men who attend church regularly test out as the most loving and engaged husbands and fathers. These facts show that Christianity has the power to overcome toxic behaviour in men and reconcile the sexes—an unexpected finding that has stood up to rigorous empirical testing. We should be bold in bringing it into the public square. In her new book, The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes, Professor Pearcey explains how secularism has villainized the concept of masculinity and how Christian men shatter the negative stereotypes. ABOUT Nancy Pearcey is the author of The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes, as well as Love Thy Body, The Soul of Science, Saving Leonardo, Finding Truth, and Total Truth. She is professor and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University. She has been quoted in The New Yorker and Newsweek, highlighted as one of the five top women apologists by Christianity Today, and hailed in The Economist as "America's pre-eminent evangelical Protestant female intellectual."

Evangelicals are known today for culture-wars, politics, conspiracy theories, and moral failures as much or more as the historic pillars of evangelical identity. In this brief episode Matt defines evangelicalism and explores how we might get that clear and compelling evangelical vision back. ABOUT Matt Shantz is the Lead Pastor of Central Community Church, a vibrant multi-generational church that meets across 5 campuses in the beautiful eastern Fraser Valley, BC Canada. Matt loves to introduce people to Jesus, teach the Bible, and raise up the whole church to be ministers of the gospel.

Unclear on God’s purpose for the family? This episode is for you! In 2012 Jefferson Bethke released a spoken word video to YouTube called, “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” that went viral and changed his life forever. Viewed over 35 million times and followed up with New York Times bestseller, Jesus > Religion, now Jeff and his wife Alyssa have written a number of books and lead a number of ministries, including Family Teams, which they talk about with Matt in this episode. Alyssa and Matt are in a Western Seminary Global Masters Cohort together. Apparently Jeff was in the same cohort years ago but unlike Alyssa and Matt, he’s a quitter. Alyssa is the author of Satisfied, and together they’ve written, Love That Lasts and others. Jeff and Alyssa live in Maui, which was hit this summer with the deadliest wildfire in the US in over 100 years. For ways you can help right now and provide resources for those in need—go to hopechapelmaui.com  ABOUT Alyssa Bethke is a mother of three children, Kinsley, Kannon, and Lucy, and a dog named Aslan. She and her husband, Jeff Bethke, live in Maui, and are bloggers, YouTubers, and hosts of The Real-Life podcast. Alyssa is the author of  Satisfied and together with Jeff wrote, Love That Lasts. They are passionate about encouraging and strengthening families at familyteams.com, an online initiative equipping families to live as a multigenerational team on mission. They live in Maui with their daughters, Kinsley and Lucy, and son, Kannon.Jefferson Bethke is the New York Times bestselling author of Jesus > Religion and It’s Not What You Think. To say hi or to learn more, go to jeffandalyssa.com