THEOTIVITY | Theology, Creativity & Culture

What is a fool? When the Bible uses the word fool - it is not simply engaging in name-calling. It is describing for us some specific characteristics of foolish living so that we can avoid it. It is preparing us to live a life of wisdom. Thus, it is important for us to see the picture the Bible paints of foolish living. This episode is a bit of a mini-systematic theology of foolishness as we glean...

If there ever was a contender for God's favourite Bible verse, it would probably be Psalm 110:1. It is the most quoted verse in the New Testament - and for good reason! Psalm 110 is one of the clearest Messianic Psalms and also one which clearly shows us the victory of Christ over all his enemies. Some have even called it the most Postmillennial Psalm of the Bible... In this episode, we take a loo...

What's the difference between our secular culture's concept of "Social Justice" and the Bible's true concept of justice? Since the rise of the Black Lives Matter Movement in the wake of the George Floyd riots of 2020, Social Justice has been a hot topic in the cultural conversation. Whether it be through reparations and affirmative action policies, mandatory Equity, Diversity and Inclusion trainin...

Abortion is one of the evilest scourges to plague our modern world. It results in the deaths of over 70 million innocent babies worldwide every year. It is the intentional destruction of life in the womb, made in the image of God and endowed by God with inherent worth, dignity and value. Yet so many today are silent on this horrendous issue. Even many Christians speak "softly" about the hard truth...

One of the greatest challenges to God's total sovereignty over all things is the problem of evil. Is God sovereign over evil, and if so, doesn't that then make Him responsible for evil? In this last episode of this series, we'll consider this conundrum through the lens of Scripture itself to see what God's Word has to say on the topic. We'll also consider some important implications of this doctri...

Who's choice is ultimate in salvation? God's or man's? This is the question we'll be tackling in the second episode of this series. We'll be taking a look, especially at Paul's teaching on the topic in Romans 8-10 and also from the lips of Jesus in John 6. We'll also consider what other relevant passages of Scripture have to say on God's and our roles in salvation. We'll then contemplate what this...

If God is sovereign, then how can we have free will? This is a question that has puzzled Christians and kept theologians debating for centuries now. On the surface, it seems like a conundrum. Some argue that we must be totally free otherwise we would be like robots. Others have argued for a type of hard determinism that resembles pagan fatalism and fate. Many just throw up their hands in frustrati...

The Rapture is one of the most popular beliefs held by many Evangelical Christians today. Yet, it is a doctrine that is relatively new in church history and based on some very shaky foundations. In this episode, as we end off this series in Matthew 24, we examine this doctrine historically and biblically to see if it is actually true. Like good Bereans, we must search the Scriptures thoroughly to...

Jesus predicted "the coming of the Son of Man" in Matthew 24. Many Christians believe that he was referring to his final coming in glory at the end of history. However, is this what he was referring to? In this episode, we consider what Christ meant by looking at what the Bible teaches about the "coming of the Son of Man" by comparing it with other Scriptures that Jesus was referring to. We also l...

What is the "Abomination of Desolation"? This question has puzzled many students of the Bible. Many think that it refers to an End-Times Anti-Christ figure who will precede the final days. However, is this what Jesus meant to communicate? In this episode, we consider what Scripture has to say about the "Abomination of Desolation" and what it actually means. We also take a look at the testimony of...

Depending on the circles you're in, it's not too infrequently you hear someone look at some disaster or report of war on the news and remark, "you know, it's the sign of the times..." referring to them as End Times signals. However, was this what Jesus had in mind? In this episode, we consider the signs that Jesus predicted would happen before "this generation" passed away in Matthew 24 and whethe...

What was Jesus talking about in Matthew 24 when his disciples asked him about the end of the age? Many people assume that Jesus was prophesying about the end of the world in Matthew 24. Yet, is this actually what he was referring to? Could it be that we have mistaken what he was speaking about because of our ignorance of the Bible and history? In this episode, we consider from Scripture what "age"...

Many have debated what Jesus meant when he said "this generation" in Matthew 24. Did he mean: "the Jewish race"? "This type of people"? or the people contemporary to his time? How long is a generation? When is the time period referred to as the Last Days? The answers to these questions have major implications for how we understand Jesus's prophecies about the End of the Age and your view of eschat...

The topic of eschatology - the study of last things - is an area of theology that is often considered highly controversial, debatable and divisive.  A lot of Christians in the Evangelical church today consider eschatology an unimportant part of their doctrine, categorizing it as a secondary or tertiary issue. “We just need to all agree that Christ is coming back” can be a polite dismissive wa...

Should Christians be trying to Christianize the world? Well, we certainly shouldn't be trying to secularize it - that's for sure! Many today doubt whether the world could actually be won for Christ. Yet, when Jesus commissioned his disciples, he told them to go disciple all the nations - that's a pretty comprehensive mission! Could it be that we've not taken him at his word serious...

In this episode, I have a conversation with my brother-in-law, Josh Ankenmann to talk about his theological journey toward a more optimistic eschatology and the implications that have had on his life and faith. We also discussed the book, Live Not By Lies by Rod Dreher and some of the important and urgent warnings it brings to us today as we see governments grow more controlling over the lives of...

You can read the article version of this episode here . Wokeness is a big issue in our culture today and it is seeping into the Church. Yet many don't realize just how insidious and dangerous this ideology really is to the Church and the Gospel. This episode builds on our last episode - "Wokeness, Social Justice and the Church" - to dive deeper into the underlying worldview issues. Woke ideology h...

You can read the article version of this episode here . Social Justice is an often misunderstood, hot-button issue these days. Yet it is one which the Church must grapple with. However, instead, many churches have succumbed to it, adopting anti-biblical doctrines and woke ideologies, they have forfeited biblical justice for the world's secular version of social justice. In this episode, we take a...

You can read the article version of this episode here . There is a lot of dating advice out there today. Some of it helpful. Some of it... not so much. Oftentimes, Christians can simply go along with how the culture approaches finding a mate. However, are there some Biblical principles that we can apply to dating and finding a spouse? Following up on our last episode on why men should seek a young...

You can read the article version here . Many Christians today simply go along with the ways our culture approaches dating and finding a mate. Yet we are to submit all of our lives, even our romantic pursuits to God's Word, seeking His wisdom on all matters of life. In this episode, we consider what the Bible's teaching about a godly father's headship should mean for a young man seeking to pursue a...

This is an audio narration of the article, "Dietrich Bonhoeffer | Pastor, Theologian, Spy, Martyr... Evangelical?" The life and works of Dietrich Bonhoeffer have inspired many Christians over the years from various denominations and theological persuasions. However, he remains somewhat of an enigmatic figure to us. Some Evangelicals want to claim him as their own hero, while Liberal and Progressiv...

Nazi Germany was one of history's greatest examples of the deplorable depths of depravity that humanity can sink to... yet many today have forgotten its lessons. During the reign of Hitler and the Third Reich, the German Church was caught unprepared and unready to take necessary action to stem the totalitarian dictatorship that would take the lives of over 6 million Jews and millions more as it le...

You can read the article version of this episode here . "Cultural Marxism" is a hot topic these days that has generated no small amount of controversy. The term itself has been disputed, but the ideas it represents are valid concerns of a dangerous ideology that has spread throughout our Modern Western societies. It has often been called "wokeness" and is related to concepts such as Social Justice...

Have you ever noticed that we often express our opinions with "I feel that..." instead of "I think that..."? This shift in how we reason culturally has not come without its consequences.  Today, many people make decisions by means of their feelings and emotions and our Postmodern culture encourages it with its slogans: "do what feels right" and "you've got to trust your gut!" Additionally, ou...

We've probably all experienced it... when someone takes your words or actions and assumes motives wrongly on you. They end up misinterpreting your heart and it leads to conflict. Yet, this phenomenon seems to be becoming more and more common in our culture. Why is that?  Perhaps part of the reason is that we've moved from a society that puts primacy on judging intent to rather only looking at...