Empires of the Future

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The Revival of the Ipod Is there a good use for old(er) tech?  For many, that answer is turning out to be “absolutely”.  Tired of the many distractions that come with using a cellphone for everything, many are picking up their old devices again seeking the peace and quiet that was associated with many kinds...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Should we use AI in Christian Worship? The predictions concerning the capabilities of Artificial Intelligence are as varied as they are confusing.  It may bring on an age of plenty.  It may take every human job, eventually.  It may open up opportunities undreamt of by previous generations, if it doesn’t kill...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The Lure of Danger and the Price of Achievement Alex Honnold is a name some of us have come to know in the past few years for his death-defying climbs of both man-made and natural wonders.  His "free solo" climb of natural wonder El Capitan with no safety gear leads us to ask important questions about danger...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Don’t Have it Your Way, Against Consumer Spirituality How should someone formulate his (or her) view of the world?  In an article by Brett McCracken for The Gospel Coalition, he documents the emergence of what he calls “metamodern” Christianity.  This is not “modern”, meaning dedicated to an abstract idea of...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Seven Reasons to Celebrate Advent What is Advent?  Many christians struggle with the busyness and the feelings of loss that often accompany the lights and trees at this time of year.  How should a Christian feel about how we “do” Christmas in our consumeristic age, and how do we make sure Christmas stays abo...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.   We are at the front end of a wave of churches closing in the United States.  But what does it mean when a local church closes its doors? What can be done about it? In this episode, we examine an article from Axios.com by Russell Contreras and consider these questions and more. https://www.axios.com/2025/10/...

This is Empires of the Future, Conversations to Encourage the Church in a Time of Change Tyler Robinson and the Violence of Pornography The availability and depravity of porn is among the many challenges and toxic elements of the twenty-first century, but one that many adults are not aware of in terms of its subtlety and propensity to twist young minds.  The connection between Tyler Robinson, the...

Smart glasses are coming.  This new technology will enable not only easier interaction with the internet and augmented reality, but a greater capability to record everything we see, whether people around us might know it or not.  We talk about all this in this episode of Empires of the Future, dealing with this article by Austin Gravley for the Gospel Coalition.  https://www.thegospelcoalition.org...

Christians are generally in agreement that baptism is an important practice, but there is considerable disagreement on many other aspects of baptism.  In this video we discuss the rise of infant baptism in the church and the teaching of the New Testament on baptism.   Gavin Ortlund's video on "How did Infant Baptism Begin?: "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WE0Ea2ke_c Infant Baptism Rap Battle by...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  How can we best prepare ourselves and our children for the challenges they will face in the world?  What does it take for a young person to grow up, accept responsibility, hold down a job, and all the rest?  One answer to that question is to take a “gap year”, meaning to take a year off after high school to...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The First Sexual Revolution Much has been written about the sexual revolution, and in past podcasts we’ve mentioned a recent book by Louise Perry called “The Case Against the Sexual Revolution”, and believe she makes a strong case that the sexual revolution was actually bad for men, women, and children.  In...

The Problem of Sexual Extortion Sexual extortion, or “Sextortion” as it is sometimes called, is a new and growing problem.  In the 21st century, there have been various problems related to the “connectedness” that being online offers, and sometimes these problems are not evenly divided among the sexes.  Sexual extortion is one of the newer ones.  Young men seem to be particularly susceptible not j...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Sheol, Death, and the Grave “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’: the grave, the barren womb, land, which is never satisfied with water, and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’  Proverbs 30:15 “Sheol”, here translated “the grave” is a complex concept in the Bible.  W...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  On Gentle Parenting In this episode, we discuss an article by Trevin Wax for the Gospel Coalition entitled “The Church’s Opportunity When ‘Gentle Parenting’ Crashes.”  We agree with Wax that Gentle Parenting is lacking in some key areas, and examine the philosophy behind gentle parenting, what it assumes abo...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan Beginning in 1678, Puritan John Bunyan published The Pilgrim’s Progress, a religious allegory that took the English-speaking world by storm and remains one of the most read books in the English language.  According to the Encyclopedia Brittanica, it is the most famous Ch...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Why Don’t Men Sing in Church? Some men do sing in church, to be sure.  But many don’t.  A great deal of ink has been spilled about contemporary worship music and whether or not it encourages men to get involved in the corporate gathering, but we want to ask a few different questions in the four parts of this...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Beauty and the Eye of the Beholder In this episode, we consider the article “Gaming’s Uneven Progress Toward Diverse Female Figures” by Jamal Michel for the New York Times.  https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/18/arts/video-games-women-gamergate.html  In addition to considering how women have been and should be...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  What are the benefits of an Ivy League education?  Recently in his newsletter, Rob Henderson brought attention to one benefit that is rarely thought of: marrying an Ivy League spouse. The Hidden Marriage Market: The college sorting machine has replaced traditional arranged marriages by Rob Henderson, July 14...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The Anxious Generation By Jon Haidt, Part 2 - A Plan of Action Can childhood be salvaged?   “After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s. Rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rose sharply, more than doubling on most measure...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  The Anxious Generation By Jon Haidt, Part 1 - Defining the Challenge “After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s. Rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rose sharply, more than doubling on most measures. Why?” - The Anxious...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  Law Amendment, In Vitro, Sex Abuse Reform - SBC Annual Meeting 2024 Recap What is the SBC Annual Meeting? ·         Messengers are elected from churches, starting at 2 per church and adding more dependent on giving to the cooperative program, with a maximum of 12.  Link to kentuckytoday.com summary: https://...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to encourage the Church in a time of change.  We will all suffer.  Life is not suffering, but suffering is a part of life.  In this episode, Jackson interviews Matt Higgins, the worship pastor of Northwoods Church on the north side of Evansville concerning the Doctor of Ministry that Matt is working on at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisvi...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to understand culture and encourage the Church in a time of change.  “What Good are Children?” In a recent New York Times opinion piece called “The Birth Dearth and the Smartphone Age”, Ross Douthat speaks to the precipitous fall in the birthrate that marks all of the western world in our day.   https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2024/04/06/opinion/th...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to understand culture and encourage the Church in a time of change.  “10 Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health” by Donald Whitney Donald Whitney, popular author of Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, also wrote this very helpful book called Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health.  Here are his 10 questions:  Do you thirst for Go...

This is Empires of the Future, conversations to understand culture and encourage the Church in a time of change.  “Rest - What it is and How to Do it” What’s the difference between “rest” and “sleep”?  Why, with all of our modern conveniences and with all the advances in medical care that have taken place over the last hundred years are we seeing such increases in anxiety and struggles with stress...