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The Way of Christ for Men and Women Very often, the conversation around women leading and teaching in the church gets mired in partisan and entrenched positions rather than centering on a careful examination of the Scriptures. In his latest book, 'True Complementarity: the Way of Christ for Men and Women', our guest on this episode of TheoDisc, Andrew Bartlett, argues for a mutuality between men and women, acknowledging their beautiful differences while maintaining that men and women are equally gifted and released into ministry and leadership and ministry by the Spirit. We hope this conversation gives you plenty to think about. Get Andrew’s Books: HERE Read Andrew’s articles hosted on Terran Williams’ website: HERE

Supralapsarian Christology for Faith and Practice On this episode of TheoDisc we are exploring the question: "Which came first: creation or or the incarnation?" Could texts like Colossians 1, which says that all things were made through Christ and for him, or that he is the firstborn of all creation, could they hint at a different story? That’s the claim of our guest on this episode, Professor Edwin van Driel, who argues for a supralapsarian Christology, which is the idea that creation exists because God first intended to be incarnate. This conversation may bend your thinking, so have a seat, get comfy, and settle in for a thought-provoking exploration of the incarnation. SHOW NOTES Purchase Edwin's book: HERE Find out more about Edwin: HERE

Hésed - Understanding God’s relation to humanity in the Old Testament In our quest to understand the old testament scripture, we tend to look for themes around which we can plot the narrative, like tent poles that hold up the biblical story. But what if, instead of hinging our understanding on singular themes, the Old Testament could be understood as emerging from a relational seed from which the story grows and expands? Dr Jennifer Matheny has identified the Hebrew concept of hesed as that seed which enables possibilities in human relationship with God while maintaining the complex and rich nature of the Hebrew Scriptures. Her latest book, Hesed, the Seed of the Biblical Story, is the basis for this episode of TheoDisc. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Get Jennifer’s Book: HERE Find out more about Jennifer’s work: HERE

Working with God for deeper renewal in your church Does the Holy Spirit still move in signs and wonders in the church today? If the Spirit does, is it possible for us to hold the tension between responsible exercise of gifts and open-handedness for what the Spirit wants to do, even if that makes us uncomfortable? And where can we look to learn how to participate in this work of the Spirit without hype and with deep pastoral care? Well, one such place is the new book by Paul Harcourt called Spirit Filled Churches, where he lays out a biblical, theological, pastoral, and practical approach to being open to the renewal of the Spirit in our churches for the sake of the mission of the Kingdom of God. We’re going to talk about that renewal in our conversation on this episode of TheoDisc. SHOW NOTES Purchase Paul's book, Spirit-Filled Churches HERE

A conversation about Thomas Aquinas and the infused moral virtues How does the grace of God change a person? And how can we account for the times when grace most definitely has not changed a person? Thomas Aquinas, spoke of virtue, both natural and supernatural, that helped form a Christian’s moral character. In Prof Angela Knobel's book, Aquinas and the Infused Moral Virtues, she navigates a path to help us understand the relationship between those virtues we can develop in our own right, and those gifted to us by grace, as she aims to help us see the root of the challenges we face in our Christian formation. She joins Kenny on this episode of TheoDisc as they talk about the virtues and Aquinas. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Get Angela’s book: HERE Listen to Angela lecture on Aquinas and the infused moral virtues: HERE

Why the church needs artists again Our guest on this episode of TheoDisc, Martin Young, says that the seeds of prophetic re-engagement with the arts are starting to bloom within the church today. In this conversation, Kenny and Martin talked about his theme book for Spring Harvest called No Greater Life, how Mark’s gospel contains enormous dramatic potential, and how creatives can have a place in the church where their giftings contribute to and enhance our kingdom mission. We hope you enjoy this conversation around No Greater Life, the Gospel of Mark, and the prophetic potential of the arts. SHOW NOTES Get Martin’s book: HERE Get the Leader's Toolkit: HERE Visit Spring Harvest: HERE Find out more about Saltmine Theatre Company: HERE

Dallas Willard’s Formational Theology and Missional Vision The late Dallas Willard has had a profound impact on the way many Christians have understood the kingdom of God, discipleship to Jesus, and spiritual formation. His book, The Divine Conspiracy has been deeply revered and discussed ever since its publication. Yet, Dallas’ main concern, that Christians would belong to church communities where they would be taught as apprentices to Jesus, growing in Christlikeness in preparation for sharing in God’s good rule, has not always been fully embraced. Recently, Dallas’ work has increasingly been the subject of academic study, and one such example is the recent publication from Dr Keas Keasler entitled Kingdom Apprenticeship: Dallas Willard’s Formational Theology and Missional Vision. In this study, Keas draws together all of the strands of Willard’s work on formation to present a holistic picture of his vision for Christian discipleship. SHOW NOTES Find Keas' book HERE

'The Good Life' in Relation to the Christian Faith When you think about the apostle Paul writing his letters to the churches, what do you think of as his primary aim? His letters are so filled with deep theological truth that they are often taught as if Paul’s main concern was that the churches believed the right things. This is almost certainly part of what Paul was aiming at. But to what end? What if Paul was not just teaching right belief, but how Christians should live ‘The Good Life’, and that good life as God defines it in Christ rather than how the surrounding philosophies and cultures defined it? That’s the contention of our guest on this episode of TheoDisc, Dr Joshua Jipp. SHOW NOTES Find Joshua’s books: HERE Find out more about Joshua: HERE

The Spirituality and Lived Experience of Black British Pentecostal Women For those who are in the majority of a majority culture, practices, language and values are often considered to be the neutral baseline, the normal where everyone starts from. As a result, the experience, wisdom, and perspectives of people of different cultures can go unconsidered, or be framed as ‘outside the norm’. This is as true in the church as it is in wider society. One such perspective is that of Black Female Pentecostals, whose lived experience has much to teach the church about spirituality and vibrant faith. Our guest on this episode of TheoDisc, Dr Marcia Clarke, has worked to draw attention to the faith expression of African-Caribbean women in the Pentecostal tradition in the UK, and what we might learn from their powerful witness. We do hope you enjoy this episode!   SHOW NOTES Get Marcia’s book: HERE Visit Marcia’s website: HERE

What the Book of Numbers Teaches the Church About Leadership We have all skipped Numbers when reading through the Bible, but in this episode of TheoDisc, Kenny speaks with Michael Morales about how the book of Numbers contains some of the most vital elements of Israel’s story. His two volume commentary on the book proves there is more to it than a series of lists! Michael maintains that at the core of the book are lessons on leadership, including crises and failure – something which the western evangelical church needs to heed in our present moment. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Michaels’ Numbers Commentary: HERE Find Michael’s books: HERE

An exploration of the person of Blandina, martyrdom, and the visibility of the glorified Christ in witness of Christians. On this episode of TheoDisc, Kenny is joined by Dr Amy Brown Hughes, who talks about early Christian martyrs, particularly a woman called Blandina. She helps us see that not only did these martyrs identify with Christ in their sacrifice, but Christ also identifies with them. Blandina shows us that, in our sufferings for Christ, He identifies so closely with us that people see him when they look at our faithfulness. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Purchase Amy's book, Christian Women in the Patristic World: HERE Listen to OnScript podcast: HERE

A Scholarly Discussion on Women, Leadership, and the Church Preston Sprinkle's latest book, From Genesis to Junia: An Honest Search For What The Bible Really Says About Women In Leadership takes an exegetical journey through the Scriptures, and Preston’s consequent change of mind from a default complementarian position to the belief that women can lead and teach in the church without restriction. Some women responding have offered critique while remaining thankful for Preston’s overall work in the book, including Beth Allison Barr, who published a response on her Substack which Preston has engaged with. We wanted to invite both of them onto TheoDisc to have a scholarly conversation where agreements and disagreements could be aired, and Preston could respond and clarify. That’s the conversation we have on this episode of TheoDisc. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Get Preston’s books, including ‘From Genesis to Junia’: HERE Theology in the Raw podcast: HERE Get Beth’s books: HERE Watch our previous interview with Beth: HERE

The Theology of Life as a Christian The Christian world is awash with ideas around Spiritual Formation and what it means to live life as a Christian. Often, these ideas focus on our initiation of disciplines, practices and rhythms of life in order see Christ at work in our everyday living. But our guest on this episode, Kelly Kapic, says that our life in Christ must ultimately be grounded in the life of the Trinity, a life we are invited to share in through our union with Him. This is, Kelly claims, how Christian life, no matter your denomination or tradition, is sustained. SHOW NOTES Buy Kelly's books: HERE Visit Kelly’s website: HERE

How the church participates in the ongoing healing work of the Holy Spirit On this episode, Kenny speaks with Dr David C Wang about Trauma, the Holy Spirit, and Spiritual Formation. How does Trauma affect us as whole beings, and how does the Holy Spirit offer us hope for spiritual formation when we experience its long term effects? What if those effects include spiritual trauma that damage our relationship with the church and with God? May this episode be helpful to you. Read David's paper 'Trauma, the Holy Spirit, and Spiritual Formation': HERE Find out more about David and his work: HERE

Reclaiming the importance of the ascension Jesus’ incarnation, death and resurrection are core to our understanding of the gospel. But his ascension can often be treated as a postscript, or even a kind of sad ending to the gospel narratives where Jesus disappears–to where we’re not entirely sure–and we are left with the hope he will one day return. Our guest on this episode, Ross Hastings, has observed that the ascension is not often taught or preached about, and consequently, we miss the magnitude and implications of all that it consummates in Jesus’ kingdom mission, all that it continues to mean for us now, and all that it promises in the future. His book, The Glory of the Ascension, threads numerous theological themes through this event in an attempt to reclaim its importance for Christian communities. Enjoy! SHOW NOTES Find Ross’ books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Ross-Hastings/author/B00DWG2L3I Follow Ross on Social Media: https://x.com/WRossHastings