Features
#102: Err Apparent: God’s Truth, Biblical “Mistakes,” and What Inerrancy Really Means
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the doctrine of inerrancy. They consider so-called “literary devices,” ask whether or not it’s important the Bible be inerrant, and suggest that a little faith in God might go a long way.
Glorify Him At Once
And so we see that love is both common—not the least bit grand or glorious or exalted or transcendent—and impossible. It is such a good thing that God didn’t command you to ‘love’ yourself because you don’t even do that.
#101: You Winsome You Lose Some: Kindness, Culture, and Scripture
Jady and Nick join the “winsomeness” discourse, trying to find clarity and truth, and hoping to add something by looking at some relevant Bible passages.
All Of Them
Imagining that God the Father has nothing to say, no gift to give to the Son, doesn’t bring about a gracious, nor a “flourishing” life for women.
#100: Molech’s Last Legs? SCOTUS, Abortion, and the Sacramental Life
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the recent draft Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, discuss the evangelical conversation around abortion, and describe the way in which culture reverses the sacraments of the church.
How Many Did You Expect?
What do you think is going to happen when you go into ministry? That you’ll be such an amazing preacher that thousands of people will crowd in to hear you and you’ll have to beam yourself into another campus? That you’ll be invited to share the stage with the Important Evangelicals? That your budget will grow to include less hideous carpet in the sanctuary?
#99: Eviction Notice: Lawsuits, Church Buildings, and Whether it’s All Worth It
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the recent ruling in the South Carolina Supreme Court regarding ACNA congregations and their buildings.
If You Don’t Know What To Do With Yourself
They woke in the cheerless dawn and discovered that the person who had most influenced them, and for whom they had sacrificed everything, was dead and in a tomb. Imagine being so deluded.
#98: No Substitute for Substitution: Jesus, the Cross, and the Wrath of God
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss some common criticisms of Penal Substitutionary Atonement and interact with the ideas of some of its well-known detractors.
Sorrow and Sighing Shall Flee Away
Well, it’s been a busy week, to misunderstate it, and there are miles to go before I crash. I hadn’t thought I would be up at this hour, and had even considered forgoing the Sunday post in a fit of sanity, but the cat is sitting on my face and I am all the way awake,...
#97: Three Big Days: A Guided Tour of the Triduum
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the monumental “three days” of Holy Week. They look at the liturgies, the remembrances, and the theological underpinnings of each celebration.
The Rise and Triumph of Jesus
Wouldn’t you feel excited? Wouldn’t you retweet? And then post it in some groups? And text it to someone? The modern equivalent of throwing down your cloak and waving your palm branch in enthusiastic relief? Finally, everything is going to be ok. The shift, the solution is finally here.
#96: Building New Things: Christians, Culture, and What Happens Next
Matt, Jady, and Nick revisit the question of Christian engagement with culture in light of the recent revelations about the Walt Disney Company and the explicit conversations and curriculum in public schools.
Why We Are the Way We Are
A number of ACNA leaders and people are “recovering” from very rigid fundamentalist pasts where their heads were packed with lots of scripture but their hearts were left cold.
Totalitarian Moments XI: Mit Brennender Sorge
Both the idolatry of the state and the idolatry of race are idolatry to be banished…
No Contest
How do I know that Israel was the vineyard? Did I just make that up? Is it a secret? Isn’t the Bible very hard to understand? Can’t you make it mean whatever you want to? I suppose you could try, but in the middle of the chapter Isaiah says this
#95: Three Non-Biologists: Big Lies, Little Kids, and the Truth About Womanhood
Anne, Liza, and Ralinda answer the question of the moment: what is a woman? They discuss telling the truth, how kids are getting trapped by lies, and why it’s Good News that God is the only creator.
Who Is Forgiveness For?
Who is forgiveness for? What a question! It is for you. It is for anyone who calls on the name of the Lord to be saved. It is for the crushed, the brokenhearted, the canceled, the hopeless, the offender.
#94: Imago Me: Sin, the Shimmering Self, and the Image of God
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the odd ways that modern Christians sometimes talk about the image of God. They then discuss what that phrase means, and how it relates to the Good News about Jesus.
Matthew 25 Initiative Vilifies Christians Wanting to Stop Mass Illegal Immigration
Perhaps the Matthew 25 Initiative should use Lent to confess their own sins instead of inventing others’ sins.

#102: Err Apparent: God’s Truth, Biblical “Mistakes,” and What Inerrancy Really Means
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the doctrine of inerrancy. They consider so-called “literary devices,” ask whether or not it’s important the Bible be inerrant, and suggest that a little faith in God might go a long way.

#101: You Winsome You Lose Some: Kindness, Culture, and Scripture
Jady and Nick join the “winsomeness” discourse, trying to find clarity and truth, and hoping to add something by looking at some relevant Bible passages.

#100: Molech’s Last Legs? SCOTUS, Abortion, and the Sacramental Life
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the recent draft Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, discuss the evangelical conversation around abortion, and describe the way in which culture reverses the sacraments of the church.

#99: Eviction Notice: Lawsuits, Church Buildings, and Whether it’s All Worth It
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the recent ruling in the South Carolina Supreme Court regarding ACNA congregations and their buildings.

#98: No Substitute for Substitution: Jesus, the Cross, and the Wrath of God
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss some common criticisms of Penal Substitutionary Atonement and interact with the ideas of some of its well-known detractors.

#97: Three Big Days: A Guided Tour of the Triduum
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the monumental “three days” of Holy Week. They look at the liturgies, the remembrances, and the theological underpinnings of each celebration.

#96: Building New Things: Christians, Culture, and What Happens Next
Matt, Jady, and Nick revisit the question of Christian engagement with culture in light of the recent revelations about the Walt Disney Company and the explicit conversations and curriculum in public schools.

#95: Three Non-Biologists: Big Lies, Little Kids, and the Truth About Womanhood
Anne, Liza, and Ralinda answer the question of the moment: what is a woman? They discuss telling the truth, how kids are getting trapped by lies, and why it’s Good News that God is the only creator.

#94: Imago Me: Sin, the Shimmering Self, and the Image of God
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the odd ways that modern Christians sometimes talk about the image of God. They then discuss what that phrase means, and how it relates to the Good News about Jesus.

#93: Continuing the Conversation: Abuse, Truth, and the ACNA
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss several recent statements about the on-going abuse investigation in the Diocese of the Upper Midwest. What can a Christian make of what’s happened, and where can Good News be found?

#92: The Hole in Holistic: Abortion, Politics, and Being Pro-Life
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the “holistic” approach to abortion opposition in light of the Texas heartbeat law and the new Florida abortion ban.

#91: It’s Out There: Truth, Cynicism, and Preaching for Today
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the lack of trust in institutions. They discuss what might be done to restore that trust, the importance of telling the truth, and the need to proclaim the Good News into a cynical world.

#90: Finger Painting? Ash Wednesday, Lent, and Playing at Sacerdotalism
Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the observances of Ash Wednesday and Lent and discuss whether or not they can be celebrated in line with the Gospel, avoiding sacerdotalism.

#89: ACNA Origins: The Rev. Dr. Jon Shuler (Part 2)
Matt and Nick continue tracing the beginnings of the ACNA with Dr. Jon Shuler. On this episode, he tells the story from the foundations of the AMIA in the late 1990s to the Jerusalem GAFCON meeting in 2008.

#88: ACNA Origins: The Rev. Dr. Jon Shuler
Matt and Jady talk to Jon Shuler, founder of NAMS. Dr. Shuler shares his story of ministry in the Episcopal Church, creeping revisionism, and the road toward the ACNA.

#87: Revoice 21: Identity, Orientation, and the Gospel
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the recent Revoice conference and talk about whether Revoice’s claims and critiques are biblical or apt to lead people away from Christian orthodoxy.

#86: Compassion and Truth: Accusations, Abuse, and the Church
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss an ongoing abuse investigation in the ACNA, the impact of “trauma-centered” responses, and whether or not it’s still possible to have difficult conversations.

#85: Forbidden Therapy? Christianity, Conversion, and the Good News
On this episode of the Stand Firm podcast, Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss Canada’s new anti-“conversion therapy” law, some Finnish criminal charges, and the centrality of conversion to the Christian Gospel.

#84: Dirty Work(s): Good Deeds, Justification, and the 39 Articles
Matt, Jady, and Nick unpack Articles 12 and 13, talk about how a Christian should think about good works, and discuss what God thinks of the “good” works of non-believers.

#83: Revenge of the Nerds? Credentialism, Expertise, and the Pastor’s Lane
Matt, Jady, and Nick discuss the tendency to defer to qualifications in a debate, what getting a doctorate really means, and what a pastor’s “lane” really is.