Bible Talk: A PCF Podcast: Recent Episodes
Princeton Christian Fellowship
Listen to the staff of Princeton Christian Fellowship as they have roundtable conversations about the Bible, following along with PCF's Bible study curriculum.
For our final study in the Drama of Redemption series, Skye, Brenaea, and Anna lead a discussion on the book of Revelation.
Anna, Skye, and Kristen continue their discussion of the book of Acts by reading from Acts chapters 1 and 2 and discussing the day of Pentecost, Peter's sermon, and the response of the listeners in Jerusalem.
Referenced resources on Pentecost:
- The Old Testament Roots of Pentecost - video from Chad Bird
- Why Christ Poured out the Spirit on Pentecost: The OT and Rabbinic Roots of Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks - article by Chad Bird
Anna, Skye, and Kristen read Acts 1:1-11 and discuss the calling of Jesus's followers after Jesus ascended back into heaven.
Anna, Sam, and Skye continue their discussion on the resurrection, addressing why the Resurrection is important for us as Christians.
Anna, Skye, and Sam discuss different theories about what might have happened after Jesus died, and why the idea that Jesus truly resurrected from the dead actually fits well with historical evidence.
Brenaea, Anna, and Skye continue our Bible study on the Drama of Redemption by talking through the passages from Matthew that tell the story of the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth.
In part 2 of this lesson Anna, Skye, and Kristen read through John 3:1-21 and discuss Jesus's conversation with Nicodemus, where Jesus challenges Nicodemus on how he thinks about entering the kingdom of God.
Links referenced:
- The Bronze Serpent and Jesus A helpful 22-minute talk by Chad Bird of the 1517 Project.
This episode is part 1 of a two-part discussion of John 3. In this episode, we give the background to Jesus's conversation with Nicodemus by explaining what it means that Nicodemus was a "Pharisee", what it meant that he was a "ruler of the Jews", and why he and Jesus immediately start talking about the "kingdom of God".
References from the podcast:
- “Who Were the Scribes and Pharisees” video by Chad Bird, a scholar-in-residence with the 1517 project.
- Link to the Britannica entry on the ruling council of the Jews, the Sanhedrin.
- “The Difference Between ‘Son of God’ and ‘Son of Man’” a helpful 5 minute video from R.C. Sproul, explaining the significance of these two titles.
- A six-minute video from the Bible Project on the title "The Son of Man".
Skye, Anna, and Sam continue our lesson on Matthew chapters 3-4, discussing the transition from the Old Testament to the New Testament and the beginning of Jesus's ministry.
Anna, Sam, and Skye continue our Bible study on the Drama of Redemption by looking transition from the Old Testament to the New Testament. This is part 1 of a two-part study.
Brenaea, Anna, and Skye talk about the characteristics of the New Covenant mentioned in Jeremiah 31:31-34 and Ezekiel 36:24-28 and 37:26-28.
The continuation of our discussion from 2 Chronicles, this time we look at the reign of Josiah and the restoration of the Temple and the recovery of the Law.
This episode is part 1 of our lesson on the place of the temple, the priesthood, and the Law in ancient Israel. We begin by looking at the high point of godly worship, by reading from the descriptions of the dedication of Solomon's temple. Then we skip forward three centuries and look at the state of worship in the reign of King Manasseh.
Cited in the podcast:
- Here is the link to a 4-minute video with a CGI representation of what Solomon's temple may have looked like, based on the Biblical descriptions we have.
- 2 Chronicles 5:13 reads "...the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying, 'For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.'" Here is the link to a Youtube video, that Anna mentioned in the podcast, which shows a much more recent scene of worship that uses this same phrase of praise to God. The video is from 20 years ago, which might seem dated to us, but it is amazing to reflect that the song they sing is the same sentiment expressed 3000 years ago at the dedication of Solomon's Temple!
Anna, Sam, and Skye continue our Drama of Redemption Bible study by considering the role of prophets in the Old Testament. We take a look specifically at the prophet Isaiah and how he could perceive and declare that Israel was not living up to its role as God's servant but that another Servant would come in the future to fulfill that role perfectly. We looked at Isaiah 42 in this podcast in preparation for our study of Isaiah 52-53 in small group this week.
Links to the charts mentioned:
- List of the Kings of Judah and Israel
- The timeline of Isaiah's ministry
In our next lesson, we look at the enormity of King David's sin recorded in 2 Samuel 11-12 and how David confesses his sin and sets us an example of looking towards the mercy of God in Psalm 51.
In this podcast episode, Anna, Brenaea, and Skye talk through three leadership roles that will define the experience of the nation of Israel throughout the Old Testament. They are the roles of the prophet, the priest, and the king.
If you want to follow along with the Bible passages we references in this episode you can find them here:
- Deuteronomy 18:15-22 (a prophet like Moses will be raised up)
- Exodus 30:22-30 (the anointing oil for consecration)
- Leviticus 8:5-12 (the clothing and anointing of the priests)
- Leviticus 9:6-7 (the priests making sin offerings)
- Leviticus 9:22-24 (the glory of the LORD appears and fire consumes the offerings)
- Deuteronomy 17:14-20 (instructions for the kings of Israel)
This episode is a recording of a special Zoom event that we held during Wintersession 2021. Anna Megill and Samantha Einspahr led a session on how to find out the will of God in decision-making.
Here are the list of resources mentioned at the end of the session:
- "All things work together to make us more like Jesus" - sermon by Pastor Jin Lee from Stone Hill Church on Romans 8:28-30
- Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to finding God's Will by Kevin DeYoung
- Step by Step: Divine Guidance for Ordinary Christians by James C. Petty
- Don’t Follow Your Heart: God's Ways are Not Your Ways by Jon Bloom
- Superplan: A Journey into God's Story by Chris Clayman
Listen to this week's lesson with Anna, Skye, and our PCF intern Kristen! In this episode we talk about why and how the people of Israel constructed the Tabernacle, and why the sacrificial system was put into place.
For a helpful visual recreation of the Tabernacle, check out this Youtube video.
Brenaea, Anna, and Skye continue their study of the drama of redemption by looking closely at Exodus 19 & 20 where God invites his people into a covenant relationship, after he has brought them out of Egypt.
What is the genre of the first five books of the Bible? Who wrote these books? How do we trust the Biblical authority of the Pentateuch? In this episode, Anna interviews Dr. Mark Catlin, of Union University, to find out his approach to these questions and others.
Mark Catlin grew up in Birmingham, AL, where he attended Samford University and majored in Classics. Mark has also earned a Master of Divinity and Master of Arts in Biblical Languages from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in the Boston area, as well as a PhD in Old Testament from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in North Carolina. In 2012, Mark moved to New Jersey to do campus ministry at Princeton University. In 2019, Mark left Princeton to join the faculty of Union University as Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies. He and his wife Kimberly currently reside in Memphis, TN with their four children Sam, Molly, Sara, and Andrew.
Resources Mentioned for Further Reading:
- From Paradise to Promised Land: An Introduction to the Pentateuch by T. Desmond Alexander
- Inconsistency in the Torah: Ancient Literary Convention and the Limits of Source Criticism by Joshua A. Berman
- The God Who Acts in History: The Significance of Sinai by Craig S. Bartholomew
- Genesis 1-15 (Word Biblical Commentary) by Gordon Wenham
In the episode, Skye, Brenaea, and Anna talk through God's paradigm for salvation, as it is shown in the book of Exodus and the New Testament. They discuss the contours of God's deliverance of the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt, and how it matches up with God's deliverance of humanity from their slavery to sin through Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
If you want a helpful summary of the Exodus story, before listening to this podcast (since we are covering a lot of the Bible in this episode in a short space of time!), we recommend this six minute video from The Bible Project.
Also, here are the points of the "salvation paradigm" that we draw out in this episode:
- God’s people are trapped in a situation where they are unable to save themselves
- God takes action
- God prepares an individual be the deliverer of his people
- God confirms his authority and identity through signs & wonders
- God defeats the spiritual powers that are keeping his people in bondage
- God provides a sacrifice to protect his people from his judgment on evil
- God accomplishes salvation and is victorious
- God's people remember this victory as a sign of God's faithfulness and love
- God's people live in light of the salvation God has provided for them
This episode is part 2 of a two-part series for Lesson #7 of the Drama of Redemption Bible study. In this lesson, Skye, Anna, and Sam talk through Exodus 3-4 which describes God's call on Moses to lead the people of Israel out of slavery, while Moses responds with many excuses and hesitations.
This episode is part 1 of a two-part series we recorded for Lesson #7 of our Drama of Redemption Bible study. In this lesson, Anna, Skye, and Sam talk through Exodus 1 and 2 and the situation of the people of Israel when they were slaves in Egypt.
Here is the lecture that was mentioned if you are interested in learning more about the archeology and how it connect to the dating of the Exodus. The lecturer, James Hoffmeier, is an Egyptologist and Archaeologist who currently teaches Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern History and Archaeology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
How do we react when the promises of God are delayed in their fulfillment? In this episode, listen to Skye, Brenaea, and Anna reflect on Abraham and Sarah's reactions to God's covenant promises, which were amazing promises, but which were not immediately fulfilled in their lives on the timeline they might have expected.
Come listen as Skye, Brenaea, and Anna talk through Lesson 5 from our Bible study on the Drama of Redemption. This lesson focuses on Genesis 12 and 15 and discusses the covenant that God made with Abraham, a covenant which sets the stage for the rest of the Old Testament story.
In Lesson #4, Anna, Brenaea, and Skye jump forward to the New Testament and to John 1, to show how Jesus - the Word - ties in with the creation narratives that we have been studying in the first three chapters of Genesis.
In this bonus episode, Anna talks with Debbie Boyce about her thoughts on Genesis 1-3 and the significance of the fact that God created human beings as male and female, that Eve was created out of Adam's rib, and what to make of the temptation and the curses that followed in Genesis 3.
Resources mentioned in this podcast:
- Are Women More Gullible? Blog post written by Debbie on 1 Timothy 2:14
- Book: Two Views on Women in Ministry edited by James R. Beck
- Book: Man and Woman in Christ: An Examination of the Roles of Men and Women in Light of Scripture and the Social Sciences by Stephen Clark
Listen to Anna, Skye, and Brenaea talk through Lesson 3 of our Bible study on the Drama of Redemption. In this episode, they discuss Genesis 3 and the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, the consequences of their sin, and the glimmers of God's promised salvation even in the midst of their condemnation.
Come listen to PCF staff as Skye, Anna, and Brenaea have a roundtable conversation about our second lesson in the Bible study series, "The Drama of Redemption."
This conversation covers Genesis 2 and discusses what it means that human beings are created in the image of God.
The "Drama of Redemption" study will cover the narrative arc of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, looking at how God has worked out his story of redemption from creation to today.
In this bonus episode, Anna goes into some of the considerations that we should take into account when reading Genesis 1, particularly in light of the creation vs. evolution debate.
Resources mentioned in the episode:
Recent statement signed by 6,000+:
A Christian Statement on Science for Pandemic Times
Not specifically mentioned in the podcast but worth listening to:
Can Faith and Science Coexist? Dr. Ian Hutchinson, MIT (Veritas Forum)
Very helpful 30-page pamphlet from Dr. Vern Poythress:
Christian Interpretations of Genesis 1
Websites with resources and articles from different interpretative perspectives on Genesis (not an exhaustive list):
Young-Earth Creationism
Evolutionary Creationism
Progressive Creationism/Old Earth Creationism
Come listen to PCF staff as Skye, Anna, and Brenaea have a roundtable conversation about our first lesson in the Bible study series, "The Drama of Redemption." This Bible study will cover the narrative arc of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, looking at how God has worked out his story of redemption from creation to today.
This first lesson covers Genesis 1, and discusses the importance and distinctiveness of God as the creator of the world.