Peanut butter and jelly, Starsky and Hutch, Chips and queso, Cagney and Lacey, tea and honey, Dolly and Jelly Roll…there are some partnerships that just make sense, like they were absolutely made for each other. Well on today’s bonus conversation on Back Porch Theology, we get to introduce y’all to a new friend that fits us like a glove called Sight and Sound Theatre. Sight and Sound – or S’squared, which is the cool nickname Alli and I have cooked up for them! – is an awesome organization with a purpose and passion for bringing stories to life that reveal the power of the Gospel. What began as one couple’s prayer and a single slide projector fifty years ago has since grown into two live theater locations, an online streaming platform, and a feature film studio, reaching audiences around the world with stories from the pages of scripture and history. And since there’s not much we love more here on BPT than telling stories about who God is and the faithful things He does, we fell pretty hard for these folks because showcasing His redemptive mercy is their primary motivation too! We can’t wait for you to meet them, so please grab your Bible and a cup of something iced and caffeinated – I don’t start drinking hot coffee until the weather starts cooling down because there’s just something about holding a steaming beverage while my sweaty thighs are sticking to the seat that grieves me – and come prop your feet up on the porch with us.

The older I get, the more convinced I am that admittedly flawed sinners are the most credible witnesses of the Gospel, because blemished believers can’t fake moral superiority. Our scars make it glaringly apparent that we couldn’t protect ourselves from harm. Authentic Christian warriors with scabby knees, bruised hearts, and even track-marked arms, who sometimes stumble yet always grab onto the arm of Holy Spirit in order to stand up again and again, exemplify the redemptive power of divine grace. We prove how miraculous and restorative the love of God really is. We know we can’t make it by ourselves and can only keep ourselves together because of the miraculous redemption King Jesus provided for us on the cross. In his book, Ruthless Trust, Brennan Manning wrote, “On the last day, Jesus will look us over not for medals, diplomas, or honors, but for scars.” Today on Back Porch Theology, Alli, Dr. Howard and I are rolling up our sleeves to show you our scars in the hopes they’ll help you lean more fully into the embrace of Jesus – the One with the loveliest nail prints in His hands and His feet.

Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is kind of a Christmas come early for me because we get to hang out with my dear friend Kristi McClelland, who’s a Bible teacher, author, scholar, college professor, massive Narnia fan, as well as a human colander who leaks Gospel joy everywhere she goes! We’re covering a wide range of topics today eventually landing in Luke’s Gospel account and let me encourage you to lean in and turn up the volume a tad because some of what may initially sound like extraneous small talk is riddled with spiritual gold. Her experience and explanation regarding the transition from dutiful submission to God’s will – that is obeying what He tells us to do through the imperatives in His Word and the guidance of the Holy Spirit – to surrendering to God’s will with peaceful agreement and anticipatory hope is a wise template for spiritual maturity and intimacy with our Creator Redeemer. This is another one of those “bring your notebook to the porch” episodes because much like you need two paper plates to carry the glorious weight of a burger and baked beans and corn on the cob and potato salad and a big slice of watermelon at a barbeque, the litany of biblical truisms Kristi shares are too heavy for most of us to carry with our memories alone! So please grab a tumbler of iced oat milk with a heavy splash of cream and mocha, or a Stanley filled to the brim with sparkling water and a squeeze of fresh lime, or whatever your favorite summer beverage is and your Bible – unless you’ve got both hands wrapped tightly around a steel wool scrubber trying to scrape barbeque grime off your Blackstone like I did this past weekend, of course – and come prop your feet up on the porch with us, we’re absolutely delighted to get to spend this time with you. 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to continue exploring the Old Testament historical narratives, as well as the biblical significance of both banquets and barren places. We’re going to talk about what it really means to be adopted into God’s family and assured a seat at His family table. And Dr. Howard’s going to give us a much more hopeful and holistic understanding of the theological term soteriology because putting your hope in Jesus Christ is so much better than a one and done moment at youth camp or a single step on some ethereal ladder of religiousity! The supernatural atonement Jesus made available to us through His suffering and subsequent death on a cross, followed by His bodily resurrection is a 360-degree experience of divine grace – He really is making all things new, y’all! So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or participating in a hotly contested thumb war, of course – and come hang out on the porch with Alli, Dr Howard and me.

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Back Porch Theology Goes Home-Christian Tour to Israel-March 21-31, 2023 

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re going to dive into a crazy Old Testament family drama more colorful than an episode of Yellowstone and in so doing we’re going to highlight what Dr. A.W. Tozer said many years ago: It takes humility to worship God acceptably. There’s a lovely little Hebrew word in the Old Testament pronounced kah-vode that can mean two things: “glory” as in God’s glory, and “weight” as in the waistline of someone who’s been indulging in too many Krispy Kremes. And this one little word packs quite a punch in our convo today because it leads us to the conclusion that human shoulders aren’t nearly broad enough to carry the weight of God’s glory – spiritual leadership and Christian celebrity are not remotely synonymous. As my friend Christine Caine wisely and soberly says, “If the light on you in brighter than the light of Christ in you, it has the potential to kill you.” So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or in the final stages of putting together a Lego replica of the Millennium Falcon, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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Back Porch Theology Goes Home-Christian Tour to Israel-March 21-31 

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re going to wrestle with the question: “Is true happiness actually the absence of sadness” and in so doing we’re to delve into the theological territory of “theodicy.” We’re also going to talk openly and honestly about the false assumption that when you put your hope in Jesus, He’ll make life easier – possibly even painless. The Biblical text and compelling true story we’re diving into is found in the Old Testament Historical book of First Samuel. And since it goes without saying that Alli & I are rabid Dr. Tim Keller fans, we’ve chosen this quote from Dr. Keller as the tantalizing intro for today’s convo on the porch: “While other worldviews lead us to sit in the midst of life’s joys, foreseeing the coming sorrows, Christianity empowers its people to sit in the midst of this world’s sorrows, tasting the coming joy.” So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or practicing math on an abacus, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to delve into a very colorful Old Testament story that illustrates the symbiotic relationship between blessing and boundaries. History proves over and over again that without the life-giving promises AND parameters of Scripture, we lose our bearings – ultimately our identity and our dignity. Now speaking of boundaries, because the historical context of the Biblical narrative we’re going to peruse in this episode is spicy – it reads more like HBO than the Hallmark Channel - I want to encourage y’all to make sure there aren’t any little ears listening along with you. Please make sure your kids, grandkids, neighbor’s kids or pre-teen passersby are out of earshot, then grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or arranging a charcuterie board, of course – and come hang out on the porch with Ally and me.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to lean into another Psalm, which if you listened to last week’s episode, you know entails listening intently to one of the tunes on God’s proverbial Spotify list since all of the Psalms were originally penned as song lyrics. The particular Psalm we’re focusing on today is Psalm 42, which is a bluesy kind of tune and technically classified as a Psalm of Lament. It’s also essentially an engraved invitation to mature into a more honest relationship with our Creator Redeemer. To trust Him enough to confess our disappointment, grief, and despair as a raw and unfiltered act of worship. Because from our emotional ashes, God can build a pathway to more secure hope, deeper joy and steadfast peace. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or sheering sheep of course, and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to exhale into a green Scriptural pasture that church father and ancient theologian, John Calvin, described as “an anatomy of all parts of the soul.” The Psalms. Every emotion in the human continuum is expressed somewhere in these 150 Psalms that were all originally composed as songs. These biblical lyrics record both the dancing and the weeping of God’s people. As a matter of fact, they contain more bluesy kind of tunes than anything else, proving that our Savior doesn’t require us to sanitize our emotions or cull out the dark ones before we approach Him. God’s love for us is immutable…it doesn’t change regardless of what kind of emotional season we’re in. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or docking a boat of course, and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to apply John’s observation in Revelation 12:11 where he tells us that satan - that lying lizard whose sole purpose is to rob, steal, kill and try to destroy humanity – is defeated by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. In other words, when we talk about how God compassionately pulled us out of pits we dug ourselves and how He’s currently revealing His grace and faithfulness, we effectively twist the sword in that nasty dragon’s chest. The enemy of our souls simply can’t stand it when we talk about how good our Creator Redeemer is, y’all – our God stories are his kryptonite! And today’s testimony-teller is none other than my five foot twelve sister from another mister, the Shirley to my Laverne, the Laurel to my Hardy, the Oats to my Hall – well, you get the picture. Today’s all about Alli! So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or pumicing your heels of course, and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to dive into the twelfth book of the Minor Prophets & the very last book ~ in canonical order ~ of the Old Testament, Malachi. Or as one of my Italian friends teasingly transliterates: Malachee! This post-exhilic book is unique in its format, which scholars describe as rhetorical disputation ~ which basically means a literary debate. In other words, this OT narrative depicts the Israelites ~ our spiritual ancestors ~ with their fists raised in the air fussing with the Creator of the Universe. Yet, despite their flagrant disobedience, Malachi also underscores God’s immutable ~ which is a fifty-dollar word that simply means unchanging ~ compassion. If you’re anything like me and struggle with trust ~ maybe because you’ve been abandoned or deeply wounded in the past, I think today’s conversation might help you lower your guard with God. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or doing origami of course, and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to explore the second half of Hosea’s prophetic story, which reveals the difference between the often emotive charade of counterfeit repentance – which may look and sound like someone who’s contrite yet whose behavior remains sinful and self-indulgent - and the posture of a believer who’s truly turning from spiritual rebellion back toward a right and reconciled relationship with God. The biblical model of repentance has never been primarily about assuaging our guilt, much less about getting attention or sympathy y’all; instead, it’s about the honest awareness of how our sin separates us from our Savior, followed by a humble appeal for God’s mercy. Which is surely the only thing powerful enough to repair the chasm we create between us and our Creator Redeemer when we choose to give anyone or anything other than God the lion’s share of our attention and affection. The takeaway from today’s pitstop in the Minor Prophets might include a smidge of conviction, but mostly we’re going to marinate in the miracle of God’s kindness, which Apostle Paul tells us facilitates repentance. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or juggling cacti of course, and come hang out on the porch with Ally, Dr. Howard and me.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to begin exploring a 12-book section at the tail end of the Old Testament called The Minor Prophets. I used to think they were called “minor” prophets because the men who wrote them were diminutive, Paleo-eating kind of men but the real reason these twelve books are referred to as the “minor” prophets is simply that they’re not as long-winded as prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah! Yet in spite of their brevity – most are no more than a few chapters in length – the Minor Prophets are full of passion, intrigue and unforgettable images of God. And my favorite image of God is presented in the very first book of the twelve Minor Prophets – a shocking love story that serves as a biblical harbinger of the Gospel about a good guy named Hosea – whose name literally means “Yaweh has rescued” or “salvation” - and a bad girl named Gomer. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or shaping a bonzai tree of course, and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re back in the saddle with Dr. Trevin Wax. Okay, that’s the first time I’ve ever employed the phrase “back in the saddle” and I think I kind of like it! Anyway, Trevin is an old friend and former colleague who just so happens to be a brilliant leader, academic scholar, and theologian. Much like our beloved Dr. Howard, God has given him the refreshing gift of putting the proverbial cookies of profound biblical truisms on the lower shelf so that laypeople like us can better enjoy, understand, and apply them. His latest book, The Thrill of Orthodoxy, is a fantastic read because he expertly contrasts the dull, regurgitated principles of heresy masquerading as modern religious enlightenment with the radical and redemptive truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We’re living in an era when personal preferences are often paired with a pretty picture and a catchy tune and presented as sound doctrine on social media. But no matter how many likes our particular viewpoints get, if they’re not built on biblical scaffolding, they’re not really true, they won’t stand the test of time, they won’t satisfy our hungry hearts, and they certainly won’t bring living hope to a lost world. Today’s episode is sort of like a second honeymoon for orthodoxy because it's going to help us recapture the radical beauty of sound doctrine and more importantly, it’s going to help us fall deeper in love with Jesus. Because remember, the end game of good theology isn’t to acquire more cognitive information about God; instead, it’s about developing a more intimate relationship with our Creator Redeemer and as a result learning to extend some measure of the unconditional love He lavishes on us to the precious people around us. So please take a couple of deep breaths, then grab your favorite beverage and snack, prop your feet up, open your Bible and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here.  

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, I have the HUGE privilege of introducing you to one of my living heroes of faith – the man who introduced me to grace. I’ve been attending church since I was in utero and have been reading the Bible – or having it read to me - from my earliest memories but the concept of grace – of God’s unmerited favor - was always like wet soap to me – it was hard to hang on to. Until I moved to Nashville at the age of 21 and began attending a church led by a Birkenstock wearing pastor named Scotty Smith. It’s not hyperbolic to say that the Holy Spirit used Scotty to create a seismic shift in my heart toward Jesus – the long season I enjoyed as a member of his church, and ultimately as one of the students he mentored at Covenant Theological Seminary is what built the spiritual scaffolding that supports my belief system, as well as the intimacy I now have with Jesus. I love and respect this man so much that if I had a son, I’d probably name him Scotty – of course, that implies getting married and having this old jar of clay restored back to its pre-menopausal vitality, so I digress! The bottom line is, I’m beyond happy to have Pastor and Professor Scotty Smith here today so please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible, unless you’re driving or shelling peas of course, and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re continuing our “Sizzling Summer” series with more hang time on the porch with biblical culturalist, Professor Kristi McLelland. Her first visit to BPT was so revelatory and resonate that we begged her to come back so that we could keep swimming in life-giving passages like Genesis 2 and Luke 8 and Romans 16 that prove the significant – not subjugated - role women play in biblical narrative, in Jesus’ incarnate life and ministry, as well as Apostle Paul’s and the early churches’ mission to share the Living Hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. Now since this is a part-two kind of message and this episode compliments the one before like queso does chips – they’re much better in tandem! Therefore, if possible, please listen to last week’s episode “What God Says About Women” first and then grab a ginormous cup of coffee, a notebook, your favorite pen, your widest grin and your Bible – unless you’re driving or tying macrame knots for a plant hanger of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re kicking off our “Sizzling Summer” series by getting up close and personal with an awesome chick whose job title is: biblical culturalist. Her training at Dallas Theological Seminary, coupled with her extensive boots-on-the-ground training in multiple Middle Eastern countries with world-renowned archeologists, historians and rabbis have honed her incredible gift of helping others better understand the historical, cultural and linguistic context of Scripture. Every single time I have the privilege of hanging out with this particular professor, I not only learn something new about God and His Word, I find myself falling even more in love with Jesus! Much like Miracle Gro accelerates the growth of tomatoes in my garden, I guarantee Kristi McLelland will accelerate your hunger for Holy Writ! So please grab a big cup of coffee, a notebook, your favorite pen and your Bible – unless you’re driving or tweezing your brows, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to talk about the massive shift that took place in that motley crew of disciples in the 50 days between Passover and Pentecost. And in so doing we’re going to talk about the difference between performance and devotion. How spiritual disciplines like reading the Bible or engaging in worship can either be dutiful smokescreens that hide the broken, numb and even angry places in our hearts and minds or they can actually be the genuine overflow of a believer who remains cognizant of the cross and therefore finds themself gobsmacked with gratitude by what Jesus has already done for us through His sacrificial death on the cross and glorious resurrection. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or eating freshly steamed crab-legs, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to talk about the genesis of relational evangelism and how Jesus modeled relational intimacy. Our Savior wasn’t some aloof, pensive carpenter apprentice who always wore a contemplative expression and spoke in hushed tones, He was a supernatural ROCKSTAR when it came to relating with people from wildly diverse backgrounds. We’re also going to talk about the deep comfort and transformational security we can draw from a tiny little adverb in John’s Gospel account that’s all too often overlooked. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or peeling some string cheese, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to honestly discuss seasons when you feel like you’ve just flat run out of faith. I so appreciate late great church father and theologian Charles Spurgeon, who admitted there were seasons in his life when he felt like he was in a dungeon underneath a castle of despair. Perky is not a spiritual fruit, y’all but God’s Word does have a lot to say about perseverance. I think this episode is going to be especially encouraging for those of you who’re feeling like you’re in a season when the hope has all but been pummeled out of you and you’re down to the very fumes of faith. We’re going to explore the stories of several stumbling saints like Gideon and Samson whose real-life struggles give us some deeply assuring takeaways about how our Creator Redeemer responds when His sons and daughters on their last legs. So please grab a cup of coffee with an extra spoonful of sugar and your Bible – unless you’re driving or chatting with a neighbor via Morse code, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology, we’re going to basically do happy dances in the studio recounting some of the amazing things God did at our Kerygma Summit a few weeks ago. And then after a few minutes of old-school testifying about the GREAT things He has done we’re going to dive into the tricky waters of trinitarian theology. St. Augustine himself admitted the Trinity was a mystery, difficult for the finite human mind to grasp and yet rather than being some obscure doctrinal issue we can secretly scootch to the edge of our belief system, is the foundational wall of our Christian belief system, the very heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, it matters today every bit as much as it mattered in the 4th century when it was the focus of the Nicene Council and the Council of Chalcedon when ancient church leaders were first grappling with each other and the Holy Spirit to figure out what were the bedrock imperatives and standards of biblical orthodoxy! So please grab a big cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or eating bugles of your fingers, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to debunk the idea that faith should be a private matter displayed and discussed only among like-minded individuals toting quilted Bible covers and clad in pastel sweater sets. We’re also going to explore two evangelistic accounts in the Book of Acts that clarify the difference between contextualizing the Gospel out of sincere respect for the culture of the people we get to share the Living Hope of Jesus Christ with and capitulating to culture, which all too often equates Christian evangelism with self-righteous or mean-spirited proselytizing. Dr. D.T. Niles – a gifted and humble ecumenical leader and evangelist from Sri Lanka who passed away in 1970 - taught that compassion must be the catalyst for sharing how we came to find ourselves in God’s embrace and his simple definition is my all-time favorite, “Evangelism is just one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread." So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or practicing the yo-yo, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s episode on Backporch Theology we’re going to discuss how choosing not to pay the high price of discipleship will ultimately cost us the abundant life Jesus promises in John 10:10. Christianity isn’t a spectator sport, y’all, it’s participatory and actionable and sometimes even downright dangerous, leaving believers with bloodied expectations and bruised hearts. Our Savior wasn’t being hyperbolic when He said, “In this world you will have trouble.” But Dietrich Bonhoeffer – who is perhaps the most prolific of leaders when it came to preaching and modeling the willingness to sacrifice everything for the sake of Christ – exemplified the, “But take heart because I have overcome the world” part of Jesus’ proclamation when he preached these words right before he was hanged in 1945 as a result of his faith in God and passionate opposition to the Nazi regime: “This is the end - for me, the beginning of life.” Today’s conversation might just be both convicting and compelling so please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or making balloon animals, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to peruse parabolic symbolism, as well as Jesus’ admonition to stay faithful and alert during a seemingly delayed Parousia, which is a fifty-dollar seminary word with a super simple definition! And we’ll do so by exploring part of the Olivet Discourse toward the end of Matthew’s Gospel, which underscores how every single step of our lives – even the especially long and arduous ones – will reveal themselves to be inherently valuable when viewed through the lens of a perfectly consummated relationship with our Creator Redeemer. In other words, even when it’s hard to stand firm in the messy middle of our walk of faith, it will all be worth it in the end. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or working as a mime, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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You know those party game questions where you’re asked if you could have dinner with anyone – dead or alive – who would you choose? Well, this is my party game answer come true because I had the hugely undeserved privilege of sitting down with seven of my theological HEROES – Dr. Jim Howard, my spiritual mentor and a Denver Seminary professor; Dr. Lynn Cohick, distinguished professor of NT and director of Houston Theological Seminary, formerly the provost of my alma mater – Den Sem; Dr. Scot McKnight, acclaimed NT scholar, author of more than sixty books, who’s been a seminary professor for many decades and guest teaches at Oxford; Dr. Dorian Coover Cox, a world renowned expert on Exodus and Israel’s journey from captivity to Canaan and beloved professor of Old Testament at Dallas Theological Seminary; Dr. Eva Bleeker, a licensed counselor and chaplain, bereavement expert, and professor at Denver Seminary as well as one of the kindest, most empathetic scholars you’ll ever meet; Dr. Craig Keener, a palpably humble, albeit world renowned biblical scholar, author of the IVP Bible Background Commentary which is on the shelves of pretty much every minister I know as well as eight Bible commentaries, 37 books and over a hundred academic articles, he’s a professor in the doctoral program at Asbury Theological Seminary; and finally the gentleman who’s the main reason I chose the doctoral program at Denver Seminary, Dr. Craig Blomberg, who’s a world renowned NT scholar, has authored and edited many, many academic works like The Historical Reliability of the New Testament and Interpreting the Parables, he was on the translatory team for the most recent edition of the NIV Bible, has served as a research fellow at Cambridge and recently retired from Denver Seminary but continues to teach a few classes in his role as professor emeritus of the NT. The credentials held by this dream teaching team are unstinkin’ believable y’all but their humility, kindness, and generous willingness to help the rest of us fall deeper in love with Jesus eclipses their academic resumes. This perfectly numbered crew of seven scholars became a family of spiritual big brothers and sisters to us at Kerygma and I trust you’ll come to feel that way as well as they open your eyes even wider to the God who loves us more than we can ever ask or imagine. You’ll want to bring a notebook along with something caffeinated and your Bible to the porch today, welcome to this special scholars edition of Back Porch Theology!

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to explore the theological concept of God’s self-sufficiency, which means He possesses within Himself every quality, ability and divine attribute endlessly. In other words, God wants for nothing and lacks nothing; He is complete in and of Himself. Yet when we pair His self-sufficiency with our lack thereof, a miraculous amalgamation occurs allowing us to dance upon the very waves we thought might drown us! Speaking of waves, we’re also going to wade into the wild waters of pneumatology, which is the branch of theology concerned with the Holy Spirit. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or thumb-wrestling, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re going to explore the juxtaposition between choosing to live a relatively anonymous life so as to make Jesus the Hero of our stories and the reality of living in an age where the proliferation of social media seems to reduce individual image-bearers to their selfie angles, number of followers, or how rhythmic they are on Tic Toc. Please know we aren’t going on any anti-social media rants today, but we are going to get really rowdy about the spiritual value of humility! And we’re going to do so by examining the rich lives of some women who are somewhat obscure in biblical history but are surely famous in Heaven, starting with a dynamic duo in Exodus that I don’t think has gotten nearly enough press through the ages, which might be a result of their oh so unfortunate names: Shiphrah and Puah! So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or baiting a fishhook, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to talk about how trusting God in the dark is imperative if we want to walk in the light. In Luke chapter 12, we find the verse: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” That term “little flock” in verse thirty-two is so unique, this is the only place it can be found in the entire Bible. It comes from a double diminutive word coupling in Greek and can literally be translated: little, little flock. Most commentaries skip right over that tender phraseology but from where I’m standing it’s what really drives the point of why we don’t have to be ruled or rocked by fear home. Little, little flock. Only a Shepherd who absolutely adores His sheep would use that term. And that’s the Shepherd I’ve finally learned to run to when I’m scared. If you’ve ever struggled with fear or anxiety, I really hope you’ll grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or parasailing of course – and come hang out on the porch with us!

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During today’s episode of Backporch Theology, Allison gleefully traps me into a proverbial corner and attempts to squeeze out every drop of the good stuff I can possibly remember from my doctoral program at Denver Seminary! Mind you, I’m 58 years old now, so every part of my body leaks including my brain but we’re going to start with the parameters of biblical orthodoxy, delve into lots of theos – theology, theocracy, theophanies, theocentrism – and we’ll spend some time exploring the difference between the Greek word gnosis – that can loosely be defined as “head knowledge” – and epignosis – a term Paul uses often in the New Testament, that can loosely be defined as heart knowledge or knowledge with understanding. This is going to be one of those really fun, really fast, drinking from a firehose kind of conversations so please grab a double espresso and your Bible – unless you’re driving or hand-jiving of course – and come hang out on the porch with us!

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re going to talk about the immutable – which is a fifty-dollar word that simply means “unchanging” – love of Jesus Christ. How He really is the friend who sticks closer than a brother. And not only is His devotion to us immutable – it doesn’t wax and wane like the moon or ebb and flow like ocean waves or shrink and swell like my feet on a long flight - it’s not based on our deservedness, either. Thankfully, Karma and divine compassion aren’t remotely related! My platonic theological crush, C.S. Lewis says it best, “God loves us: not because we are loveable but because He is love, not because He needs to receive but because He delights to give.” So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or practicing for the handbell choir of course – and come hang out on the porch with us!

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology, we’re going to wade into the refreshing waters of eucharisteo – which is a Greek word sprinkled throughout the New Testament that means “to give thanks.” There have been numerous scientific and psychological studies that back up the Bible’s encouragement to develop our gratitude muscle – it’s actually been proven that people with higher gratitude levels show more activity in the hypothalamus, which leads to improved rest, less physical discomfort, and lower stress and anxiety, y’all. That means the conversation we’re about to have might just lead to the best night’s sleep you’ve had in a long time, baby! So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or doing Pilates of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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Theology, we’re going to explore the theological concept of theodicy, which is defined as: the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil. In other words, our Creator Redeemer is good and does good even when our lives are anything but. I once had a surgeon tell me I was a bad patient because I tried to gut it out instead of being honest about the. pain I was experiencing. He said my stubborn refusal to admit how much I hurt reflected my lack of trust in his competence as a healer. Here I was thinking it was heroic of me to hang tough when all I’d done was put distance between myself and the kind doctor whose main goal was to mitigate my pain! What would it look like to actually admit our ache, trust in God’s goodness, and lean into His presence even when it feels like our heart’s in pieces? We’re about to dive deep into that question, so please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or deboning fish, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to dive deep into the pool of desire and talk about how to get our emotional needs met by Jesus. Brennan Manning wrote: The deepest desire of our hearts is for union with God. From the first moment of our existence our most powerful yearning is to fulfill the original purpose of our lives – “to see Him more clearly, love Him more dearly, follow Him more nearly. We are made for God, and nothing less will satisfy us.” We’re also going to have a blast digging into two Greek words – homoousios and hypostasis – which are the building blocks of the foundational walls of Biblical orthodoxy. If you don’t have a firm grip on these two concepts, your theological scaffolding is going to come crashing down faster than a bowling ball help up by Twizzlers! So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving, or cleaning fish of course! – and please come hang out on the porch with us! 

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology we’re kicking off the conversation with a profound observation from my imaginary theological boyfriend, the late great A.W. Tozer who said, “Left to ourselves we tend immediately to reduce God to manageable terms.” About 15 years ago I came to the sad realization that I’d unwittingly sanitized and emasculated Jesus into a mild-mannered, passive, kinda guy not unlike the Biblical iteration of Clark Kent, which left me less than compelled to worship Him! Today we’re embarking on a journey to reimagine the REAL Jesus – He’s the Prince of Peace AND He comes with a sword to cut away everything that threatens our intimacy with Him; He embraces lepers and flips tables. He is infinitely more compelling, interesting, mysterious, and provocative than our flannel graph boards of old have allowed us to depict Him. So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or rock-climbing of course – and please come hang out on the porch with us!

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During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology, we’re going to consider the gentle command found at the top of Hebrews chapter 3: Consider Jesus. In other words, think about our Savior. Focus your attention on our Redeemer. Concentrate on the King of all kings. This simple command to meditate on our Messiah is the answer to every tangled relational web we’ve ever been caught in, every steep circumstantial hill we have to climb up, and every deep valley of depression that has left us gasping for hope. Plus, Jesus’ not so gentle attributes of majesty, power and authority extend well beyond our finite human comprehension so we hope to jumpstart some good, old-fashioned awe and wonder on today’s podcast too! So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or practicing with your roller derby team of course! – and please come hang out on the porch with us.

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All of the conversations we have the undeserved privilege of engaging in on BPT are special to Ally, Dr. Howard, and me because the point of our conversations – even if it takes a while for us to get there – is always the immutable goodness and compassion of our Trinitarian Creator Redeemer, God the Father, God the Son and God the Spirit. However, this particular conversation which we taped live at Kerygma a few weeks ago with one of my all-time theological heroes, New Testament scholar Dr. Scot McKnight, is a very personal and poignant milestone for me because God used one of Dr. McKnight’s books – The Blue Parakeet – like a merciful scalpel in my life to cut away some corrosive shame that had compromised my mind and heart and ministry efficacy for decades. The back cover copy of The Blue Parakeet reads: In this bold, engaging reexamination of reading the Bible, Scot McKnight calls all Christians from both ends of the spectrum to stop taming the Bible and to let it speak anew to our hearts. In other words, his exegetical brilliance will recharge our passion for both reading Scripture and relating to God’s redemptive narrative in increasingly intimate and personal ways. If you’re a Bible banger like me and your Bible is one of those precious possessions you’d be sure to grab if your proverbial ship was sinking OR if you’ve secretly and guiltily thought the Bible was boring and have a hard time engaging with it, this conversation is right up your alley, baby! So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – whether the pages still stick together from so little use or whether it’s tattered and stained – that is unless you’re swinging a broom at those nasty cicadas, of course – and come hang out on the porch with us.

During today’s conversation on Backporch Theology, we’re going to explore how God’s supernatural sovereignty reconciles with our human understanding of the time and space continuum and we’re also going to explore a story in Mark’s Gospel account that proves Romans 8:28 – all things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to His purpose – is not hyberbolic but 100% true! We really can trust that God’s providence will never take us to a place where His grace will not be sufficient for us even in those dark seasons when we can’t see around the corner of our circumstances, y’all. So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving or enjoying a manicure – and please come join us out here on the porch with us. 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to talk about the difference between simply being delivered from our sins and God truly delighting in us. There’s a memorable scene in the movie Notting Hill when Julia Roberts says to Hugh Grant: Don’t forget, I’m also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her. The only time I’ve ever identified with Julia Roberts is when I watched her character, Anna Scott, speak those words of unrequited love to a man who’d essentially just explained that she wasn’t worth the trouble of pursuing. I know what that feels like. But that’s so not the Gospel, y’all. In fact, according to the Bible, our divine bridegroom King Jesus is utterly mad about us and might even get a little weak in the knees when He sees us!

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to dive into some divine drama in the book of Acts and talk about risky faith, radical love and the willingness to kick comfort to the curb for the sake of the Gospel. Dr. Martin Luther King once lamented how the church used to be a thermostat that had the power to change the temperature of culture, but how it was losing its urgency and efficacy and was becoming a thermometer that simply measured the climate of culture. I think it’s time for Christ-followers to turn off our passivity, turn up our spiritual passion and get to work fanning the flames of revival in this great, big beautiful and broken world, don’t you?

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re talking about the necessary synergy between orthodoxy – that is what we believe to be true of God – and orthopraxy – that is how we live in light of what we believe to be true of God. Obviously, we’re all sinners and nobody’s faith walk is flawless this side of glory but the gap between what we profess and how we live is a seedbed of hypocrisy that has the power to shred communities and families, as well as empower those who insist Christianity isn’t credible because its practitioners are a bunch of liars and fakes. And frankly, y’all, our detractors have some valid points. If what we believe to be true of God is simply printed on a mission statement and hung on a wall but isn’t lived out with conviction, authenticity and love, then our faith isn’t legitimate. 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re talking about how God’s redemptive plan for humanity is set in the context of community. Our Creator Redeemer is a trinitarian God – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit - and since we were made in His image, we are divinely hard-wired for relationship. Plus, the huge majority of biblical imperatives are about “we” instead of “me.” The bottom line is we’re much better together and Western Culture’s tendency to over-privatize Christianity inevitably leads to loneliness and faith-fatigue.

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to explore the cultural context of a familiar story in John’s Gospel account, which includes one of my favorite Greek words in the entire New Testament cannon…this is one of two passages that taught me how to linger in God’s embrace.

We’ll also be chatting with one of my favorite seminary professors, Dr. Jim Howard, about the concept of imago Dei, and how every single human being, regardless of ethnicity, gender, culture or creed is made in God’s image and therefore inherently valuable and worthy of respect. It’s going to be great, galvanizing conversation, so grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us!

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re peeling off our emotional Spanx and diving deep into a couple of Psalms to talk about the necessary sacrament of confession. Of saying, “I’m sorry.” In his book, A Sacred Sorrow, Artist and theologian Michael Card explains it this way, “There can be no worshipful joy of salvation until we have realized the lamentable wilderness of what we were saved from.” So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us! 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re going to explore an encounter in Luke’s Gospel account that illustrates how the heart of God is moved by the wounds of humanity…how our ache accelerates His compassion. We’re also going to have an awesome encounter of our own with one of my favorite seminary professors, Dr. Jim Howard, who will explains how human dignity is a uniquely Judeo-Christian concept. So grab a cup of coffee and your Bible – unless you’re driving, of course! – and come hang out on the porch with us. 

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Before we begin our very first conversation, I want you to know that it’s a bit of an anomaly – kind of like me eating kale or pausing between sentences – because normally we’ll be doing deep dives into biblical narrative and chewy theology but since this is our first podcast date, I thought it’d behoove us to get to know each other before we start really tangoing with sacred text. In other words, this is kind of like the handshake before the hug. So please grab a cup of coffee – unless you’re driving, of course! – and come hang out with us on the porch. 

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You're invited to hang out on Lisa Harper's back porch and enjoy conversations about all things Jesus, theological anthropology, biblical orthodoxy, Spanx, the merits of Tex-Mex and more!

We believe this podcast will help you dive deeper into God's word, understand that the gospel is good news for everyday life, not just when viewed in the light of eternity, and that God is for us, that He's always been in the process of redeeming our inherent value as imago Dei and restoring us into a vibrant, intimate relationship with Him.

And rest assured, this won't be a one-sided conversation because throughout the podcast, Lisa will be inviting friends, including some brilliant theologians and academics to join her in substantive but decidedly unstuffy segments. So come on, y'all grab some coffee or sweet tea and make sure to subscribe so you can join us on the back porch every week, the fun starts Monday, Jan 17! 

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During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology Alli and I have the profound privilege of hanging out with two women who are spiritual heroines to us – Dr. Dorian Coover Cox, a professor of Old Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, and Dr. Lynn Cohick, a Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Director of Houston Theological Seminary at Houston Christian University. I’ve known Dr. Cohick for many years because she was the provost at Denver Seminary and within five minutes of meeting her, I began plotting how to talk her into becoming one of my mentors! She’s one of the first people I shared my dreams about Kerygma to and has been part of it since the inception. In fact, I told her a few weeks ago that she’s now part of the proverbial living room furniture in my life, so she’d better never think about leaving! And while I’ve known of Dr. Coover Cox for years because she’s one of the spiritual mentors of BPT’s very own Dr. Howard, this year at Kerygma was the first time we got to hang out with her in person, and within 5 minutes she got grafted into the family too! Dr. Coover Cox is an expert on Exodus and Dr, Cohick is an expert on Ephesians so we’re going to glean from these two saints’ wisdom and camp out in those two books of Holy Writ today and let me encourage you to bring a notebook along with your coffee and your Bible, because you’re going to want to take notes on the porch today, baby!

During today’s episode – which is number 124, so we’re well past the two-year mark – I watched my “five-foot-twelve spiritual wing-woman” – it tickles me every time Alli says that but it’s a gracious exaggeration because she and I fly this plane called BPT together and I’d surely crash without her. Anyway, I watched my dear friend put her head on the table and weep because she was so overwhelmed by the palpable goodness of God. Alli’s a beautifully authentic woman y’all but she’s also a consummate professional and is rarely rendered mute. But you know how sometimes divine grace interrupts your consciousness in such a dramatic way that it forces a “selah” moment? A sacred pause when we can’t help but gape at God’s grace. Frankly, I think Christ-followers need to pause and gape at our Redeemer’s grace on a regular basis. In my experience, when too much time passes between gaping at grace sessions, our hearts become susceptible to the deadly virus of unbelief. Wonder is a necessary praxis if we want to actually experience the abundant life Jesus died to give us access to. We all need to be reminded of just how miraculous it is that the transcendent Creator of the Universe condescends to redeem and restore and unconditionally LOVE the likes of mistake prone yahoos like us. We recorded today’s conversation recently, at the very end of the Kerygma Summit here in Franklin, TN. It was kind of like our Swan Song of this year’s summit and it was the first time Alli met my friend Kyle. She said she’ll never be the same after hearing his story and I don’t think you will be either. So please grab a cup of coffee, your Bible, and a box of tissues and come gape at the amazing grace of God on the porch with us.

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Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology took place very recently at The Kerygma Summit here in Franklin, TN and this particular conversation was kind of the “chips and queso” moment of the whole weekend for me because I had the undeserved privilege of sitting down with some of my favorite female Christian leaders from around the country and gleaning from their collective wisdom. I framed the question that I posed to all of them like this: At sixty I know much less about God than what I thought I knew about Him at forty and what I pretended to know about Him at twenty. But what I now know to be true of God – namely His unconditional love and immutable faithfulness – I know in the very marrow of my bones. Then I asked each of them – many of whom are leading large ministries – what they now know to be true of God in the marrow of their bones. Their answers were gut-level honest, deeply encouraging, appropriately convicting at times, and always God and others honoring. This conversation was a living example of Psalm 68:11 - the Lord announces the word, and the women who proclaim it are a mighty throng. Plus, since these saints came from various streams of the church, it was also a master class in unity and it reminded me of Jesus’s response to John’s question in Mark 9: “Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. Christian unity is not the same thing as uniformity, y’all. We don’t have to agree on every, single jot and tittle of what is theologically nuanced, but if we can agree on the fact that faith in Jesus Christ is the only way sinners like us can be reconciled with God, as well as the authority of God’s Word, we’re family. Remember the Bible also reveals that a divisive spirit is one of the six things that God hates (Proverbs 9) and whenever possible He calls us to be at peace and harmony with each other (Romans 12). Today’s conversation is going to be like spiritual Gorilla Glue, it’s going to fasten us tighter to our Creator Redeemer and tighter to the community of faith so please grab a cup of coffee or a glass of sparkling water with a wedge of lime or a thimbleful of wheatgrass juice and your Bible – unless you’re trimming your roses, of course; mine have sprouted out with more enthusiasm than Einstein’s eyebrows during the past few weeks of warm weather – and come hang out on the porch with us.

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Do It Anyway is available wherever you buy books.

Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is a really special one and it’s especially rowdy too because it took place just a little over a week ago at The Kerygma Summit here in Franklin, TN where almost 1,500 women from across the country – as well as some other countries, I got to meet a lovely backporcher from Tanzania – gathered together to learn more about God and His Word. The teaching team at Kerygma this year was a veritable Who’s Who of Bible scholars, seminary professors and theologians including some of the engaging and enlightening friends we’ve previously connected with on the porch like Dr. Craig Keener and Dr. Scot McKnight. Brooke Ligertwood led worship all weekend, and y’all I can’t wrap words around what happened when she ushered us toward the throne room of Jesus on Friday night, except to say it felt almost transcendent. God’s Spirit revealed Himself to us in a way that left a redemptive mark on my heart, which I hope never fades. You know those moments in time when God effectively wipes the blurred glass that Apostle Paul says exists between us and Glory in a way that allows us to see Him more clearly? He made His presence so accessible this weekend, I’m still in kind of a discombobulated fog of wonder and gratitude. In retrospect, I should have taken off my shoes because it was just that holy. Well anyway, this conversation took place during the course of Kerygma, so I need to warn you that there’s a lot more ambient sound than usual because we were smack dab in the middle of a giant family of faith instead of a controlled studio environment. And I also want you to know that we delved into sensitive subject matter because I explained in detail about how God used a community of believers to save my life when I wasn’t sure I could keep living it. Which means some of the moments we’ll share today are too mature for little ears, therefore I encourage you to wait until after you’ve dropped the kids off at school to join us. That being said, please bring your Bible and a big cup of coffee – unless you’re up to your elbows in suds because that darling Doodle tangled with a skunk again - and come hang out on the porch with us!

The Joy of the Trinity is available wherever you buy books.

Every girl deserves a faith-filled adventure click here for the NIV Kingdom Girls Bible

Do It Anyway is available wherever you buy books.