MarsCast

What if the largest category of prayers in the Bible is one we've almost forgotten how to pray? In this conclusion to the series on walking with God through pain and suffering, launching on Thanksgiving morning of 2025, Rev. Paul Ipema challenges modern Christians to rediscover the ancient practice of lament, and to recognize that it's not faithlessness, but honest faith crying out to God....

When suffering strikes, where is God? In this conversation, Rev. Paul Ipema and Jared Luttjeboer explore one of faith's most pressing questions: how a sovereign God can be both in control and deeply compassionate in the midst of our pain. Moving beyond easy answers, they examine how the doctrine of the Fall reframes our expectations, why the cross reveals God's character in suffering, and...

Why does suffering feel so unbearable in our modern world? In this first installment of a three-part series, Rev. Paul Ipema joins host Jared Luttjeboer to explore how Western culture has left us uniquely unprepared for life's hardships. Drawing on Tim Keller's  "Walking with God Through Pain and Suffering ," they examine the stark contrast between past generations, who viewed ha...

In this final episode of our “Doctrines of Grace” series, host Jared Luttjeboer and Dr. J. Mark Beach turn to one of the most tender truths in the Christian life—the perseverance and assurance of the saints. Many believers quietly ask, Can I lose my salvation? or, What if I’ve fallen too far? With warmth and biblical clarity, Dr. Beach reminds us that perseverance is not about our grip on God, but...

When someone comes to faith, what’s really happening beneath the surface? Is belief simply a human choice, or the result of God’s sovereign work in the heart? In this episode of MARSCAST , Dr. J. Mark Beach joins Jared Luttjeboer once again to explore the doctrine of irresistible grace, or effectual calling: the Spirit’s life-giving summons that makes faith possible. Together, they unpack how God’...

In this episode of MARSCAST , host Jared Luttjeboer sits down with Dr. J. Mark Beach to take a closer look at one of the most discussed questions in Christian theology: For whom did Christ die? Together, they unpack what Scripture says about the extent and intent of Christ’s atonement, why it matters, how it shapes the way we share the gospel, and how it brings real comfort to believers who wrestl...

In this final installment of our three-part series, Dr. Marcus Mininger joins MARSCAST to explore how the warnings in Hebrews—though rooted in a unique historical moment—still speak powerfully to believers today. What does it mean to persevere in faith without falling into fear or despair? How can pastors preach the hard passages of Hebrews with both honesty and hope? Dr. Mininger offers deep bibl...

Hebrews has long been called “the riddle of the New Testament.” In this episode of MARSCAST , Dr. Marcus Mininger returns with host Jared Luttjeboer to unpack why this mysterious book has both captivated and confused interpreters. Together they explore the famous warning passages, especially Hebrews 6, and ask what it really means that it’s “impossible to restore to repentance those who have falle...

In this opening episode of a three-part series, host Jared Luttjeboer sits down with Dr. Marcus Mininger, New Testament professor at Mid-America Reformed Seminary, to explore the story behind his new book Impossible to be Restored? in the landmark New Studies in Biblical Theology series. Before delving into the rich and sometimes perplexing theology of Hebrews, this conversation takes a step back...

In this episode of MARSCAST , we feature Rev. Paul Murphy’s plenary address from the 2024 Center for Missions and Evangelism Conference. Speaking on what R. B. Kuiper once called “the forgotten office of the believer,” Murphy addresses how Christ not only rescues us in our brokenness but also calls every Christian into the mission of witness. Drawing on John’s account of Jesus and the Samaritan wo...

This episode features a message from our 2023 Center for Missions and Evangelism Conference, part of a special series leading up to the 2025 CME Conference on October 3–4 . Dr. Marcus Mininger challenges us to see Paul’s letter to the Romans not only as a masterpiece of theology but also as a missionary manifesto. Written to prepare the Roman church to become a sending base for Paul’s mission to S...

This episode features a message from our 2022 Center for Missions and Evangelism Conference, where Dr. J. Mark Beach explores what it means to love both “likely” and “unlikely” neighbors. Drawing from John 3 and 4, he contrasts those who seem most like us (the “likely neighbors”) with those on the margins (the “unlikely neighbors”). Through the example of Jesus, who ministers to both with gentlene...

In this episode of MARSCAST , Dr. Andrew Compton joins Jared Luttjeboer to explore the deep ache of homesickness. We tend to think of homesickness as a fleeting emotion, but our hosts go deeper. For Christians, could it be something more, perhaps a deep spiritual longing? Building on earlier conversations about the biblical story of home, they consider what it means to live faithfully in the tensi...

In this second installment of our series on a biblical theology of home, Dr. Andrew Compton joins Jared Luttjeboer to trace how the prophets and the New Testament deepen and fulfill the story of God’s dwelling with His people. From Ezekiel’s visions to Christ as the true temple, Scripture unfolds a beautiful story of how God Himself makes His home with us in Christ, and by His Spirit builds us tog...

In this opening episode of a three-part series, Dr. Andrew Compton joins Director of Marketing, Jared Luttjeboer, to explore the deep biblical theme of home . From Eden to exile, from the Tabernacle to the temple, Scripture tells a sweeping story of God’s dwelling with His people, a story that speaks directly to our own longings for belonging and stability. In a world often marked by uncertainty a...

What do you really know about the reformer of Geneva? In this conclusion to our series on the reformers, Dr. Alan Strange returns to explore the remarkable legacy of John Calvin. In this episode, we learn how Calvin’s reluctant return to Geneva after three years in Strasbourg shaped not only his theology but the very foundations of Reformed Christianity. Dr. Strange unveils Calvin’s greatest contr...

What drives a brilliant 27-year-old humanist scholar to abandon his promising legal career and pen one of history's most influential theological works? Join Dr. Alan Strange as he unravels the early life of John Calvin and explores the unexpected twists that led from French nobility's secretarial service to revolutionary religious thought. We'll learn how a father's excommunication, a sudden conve...

What happens when three brilliant minds clash over the meaning of Christianity's most sacred meal? In this episode, Dr. Strange and host Jared Luttjeboer examine one of the Reformation's most heated theological debates: the Lord's Supper. From Rome's doctrine of transubstantiation to Luther's mysterious "in, with, and under," from Zwingli's memorial view to Calvin...

In this episode, we explore the life and legacy of Huldrych Zwingli—a Renaissance-trained scholar who transformed worship, challenged papal authority, and sparked a movement that would shape Protestant Christianity for centuries to come. Dr. Alan Strange guides us through Zwingli's journey from peasant origins to becoming the people's priest in Zurich, where his bold biblical preaching ign...

Was Martin Luther right to compare the Roman Catholic Church to the legalistic Judaism of the Pharisees? In this episode of MARSCAST, Dr. Alan Strange and Jared Luttjeboer examine whether Luther's assessment was fair—or even accurate. From the theological foundations of the Old Testament to the modern "New Perspective on Paul" movement, this conversation uncovers the complex relation...

Step into the world of late medieval Catholicism and discover the spiritual crisis that shaped one of history's most influential reformers. In this episode, Dr. Alan Strange takes us through Martin Luther's early years—from his tormented life as an Augustinian monk to his life-changing encounter with Romans 1:17. We explore the complex religious landscape Luther inherited, where salvation seemed l...

In this episode, host Jared Luttjeboer finishes the conversation on the papacy with Dr. Alan Strange and Dr. Andrew Compton as they unpack the significance of the newly elected Pope, who, for the first time, hails from just down the road from Mid-America Reformed Seminary. Their conversation explores how this moment intersects with centuries of Reformed thought (from the fiery language of the West...

In this episode, host Jared Luttjeboer continues the series on the papacy with Drs. Alan Strange and Andrew Compton. As news breaks of a new Pope's election, the professors look closely into Rome's promise of certainty—examining why this intellectual security draws some Protestants to Catholicism, while revealing how these claims ultimately unravel under scrutiny. Against this backdrop, th...

In this episode, host Jared Luttjeboer sits down with church historian, Dr. Alan Strange, and OT Professor, Dr. Andrew Compton, to explore the evolution of the papacy throughout church history. While this episode was being recorded (May 8, 2025), the College of Cardinals was meeting in conclave to elect a new Bishop of Rome. In the episode, the professors unpack the historical foundations of papal...

How do Word and Sacrament bring comfort to the doubting heart? In this final installment of our series on assurance, Dr. Cornelis Venema explores how God's appointed means of grace provide concrete reassurance amid life's uncertainties. Dr. Venema unpacks how gospel-centered preaching—proclaiming what Christ has done rather than what we must do—serves as the foundation for genuine assurance. He pa...