The Bible Lab

There have been many epic showdowns on the big screen: Godzilla v. King Kong, Luke v. Darth Vader, etc. You could probably name a few as well. What about Paul v. Jesus? Setting Paul's words against Jesus' words is a trend in modern scholarship. What's the deal? Do we need to see them in opposition or can we reconcile them? What does the Bible have to say on the topic? On this week's episode, Ryan...

This world is deadly, and in more ways than one. Yet, in Philippians 1, we read about the Apostle Paul having joy and confidence in saying: "to live is Christ, to die is gain." That sort of peace doesn't come naturally in the world, it can only come by way of the grace of Christ. In this week's episode, Ryan and Jake discuss how living for Christ can bring us joy even in a deadly world.

As we start a new series on Philippians, we take a look at the opening of the letter and what the Apostle Paul's greeting tells us about the nature of Gospel friendships. In this episode, Ryan and Jake discuss Gospel friendship and why it is both unique and needed in a world in a world that experiences loneliness.

Words have power. We know that. Whether it's movie quotes or lines from famous books, some words just seem to stick with us. None, however, compare to the words of Jesus. In this episode, Ryan and Jake discuss the resurrection of Lazarus in John 11; how we might understand Jesus' call to leave the grave behind and how post-modern metaphor/narrative driven interpretation does damage to our understa...

Why do we celebrate Palm Sunday? Is there a reason that days like this are important on the Christian calendar? And what does the story of Lazarus have to do with it? This week on the Bible Lab, we examine the lead-up to Jesus' triumphal entry in John 11. Ryan and Jake discuss wrestling with God's timing in times of suffering, and how God makes His glory known in our lives by pointing us to Christ...

Resilient systems are systems that are challenged constantly. Our faith is the same way: it grows and adapts when provoked. In Nehemiah 13, we read about spiritual decline that results directly from a lack of resilience. In this week's episode, Ryan and Jake discuss how we can grow a resilient and enduring faith.

In this week's episode, Ryan and Jake talk through Nehemiah 13, and the controversy that erupts when Nehemiah revisits Jerusalem after some time away. When he arrives, he finds things in disarray and one of his fiercest enemies has made himself an apartment in the temple courts. How could this happen? Small compromises and creeping sin. God's Word gives us an action plan for evicting the things in...

In this week's episode, Ryan and Jake talk about Nehemiah 12 and the importance of Gratitude. You might think that gratitude is a popular and empty hashtag for Instagram, but it is more than a fuzzy, cliché feeling. It's a subversive rebellion against the selfishness of our world. It's also a duty of mankind to express gratitude toward God as our creator and sustainer. Yet, even gratitude itself i...

What does redemption mean and where does it come from? In this episode, Jake and Ryan examine Nehemiah 11 and what it communicates about God's redemptive vision for our lives and communities.

Vision is a nebulous word that gets thrown around a lot. It's used in organizational leadership and in terms of personal goal setting. In Church, it's vaguely to talk about dreaming big dreams for your life. Is vision a Biblical term? What does it mean to have a vision for you life, and what sort of a vision should we seek to be living out? In this episode, Ryan and Jake explore Nehemiah 10 and ta...

Confession is an intimidating prospect. Why would we ever share the things we're bad at? Why would we ever let anyone see our failures or weaknesses? Culturally, it doesn't make a lot of sense. Yet, in Nehemiah 9, that's exactly what we see God's people doing. The passage sets an important precedent for the church today; that there is blessing and freedom awaiting if we will confess our sins in th...

Resurrection is the heartbeat of the Christian life. It animates our hope and informs our living. In this week's episode, Jake and Ryan explore the themes of 1 Corinthians 15 and why resurrection is not simply a future reality, but a present experience that is at work in the lives of all those who believe in Jesus.

February 2022 Rerelease Why do we make the Bible so important in our church, lives, and even our podcast? In our inaugural episode of The Bible Lab, we handle some big questions about the Bible, including: where does the Bible come from? What do we believe to be true about the Bible, and where do those beliefs come from? If I love Jesus, why do I have to love the Bible too? Jump in with us as we e...