T4G Podcast: Recent Episodes
Together for the Gospel
The official podcast for Together for the Gospel, where you can hear main talks, breakout sessions, panel discussion, and other resources. See more at www.t4g.org.
Together for the Gospel exists for the sake of the glorious good news of Jesus Christ. Our goal is to call church leaders from across denominational traditions to stand together for the gospel of Jesus’ perfect life, substitutionary death, and sin-conquering resurrection.
Discussion Includes...
- Why T4G was started 15 years ago?
- What’s the difference between T4G and TGC?
- Why is this the last T4G?
- Can Mark and Ligon endorse all of their past talks and panels?
- Why did R.C. Sproul slap a hymnal out of Mark’s hand?
Encouraging the Pastor is a podcast miniseries from Together for the Gospel. You'll quickly notice that it’s not a fancy production. We don’t have cool sound effects. But each brother interviewed loves the Lord, loves his Church, and is evidently striving to care for the sheep he’s been given oversight. These men share what the Lord is doing in their churches, stories of lessons learned, and even find ways to scatter in a bit of humor. We hope you find the discussions edifying and encouraging.
Encouraging the Pastor is a podcast miniseries from Together for the Gospel. You'll quickly notice that it’s not a fancy production. We don’t have cool sound effects. But each brother interviewed loves the Lord, loves his Church, and is evidently striving to care for the sheep he’s been given oversight. These men share what the Lord is doing in their churches, stories of lessons learned, and even find ways to scatter in a bit of humor. We hope you find the discussions edifying and encouraging.
Panel: Albert Mohler, John MacArthur, Ligon Duncan, and Mark Dever.
In this panel, four close friends of the late RC Sproul reflect on his life and legacy. Sharing stories and lessons from his ministry, the panel celebrates the many ways God has used RC to strengthen and edify the church.
Panel: H.B. Charles, Mark Dever, Thabiti Anyabwile, Curtis Woods, Kevin Smith, and Mika Edmondson.
The panel discusses MLK’s life and ministry. After tracing his theological development, the panelists work through some of the more complex aspects of King’s life and doctrine. The session concludes with various lessons to be learned from King’s example and helpful resources for further study.
Panel: Albert Mohler, John Piper, Kevin DeYoung, Ligon Duncan, Mark Dever.
The panel reviews the day’s plenary sessions including: Antinomianism, divine immutability, and the church’s responsibility to judge.
Panel: Albert Mohler, Brian Davis, Ligon Duncan, and Sam Alberry.
Is there a core set of doctrinal beliefs required to be a Christian? How much theological agreement do we need to be fellow church members or partners in ministry? Anglican, Baptist, and Presbyterian panelists discuss the concentric circles of doctrine that undergird various levels of Christian unity.
David Platt, H.B. Charles, Ligon Duncan, Mark Dever, and Sam Alberry answer the question, "How do we love our neighbors well?"
The local church isn’t just the focus of the Christian’s holy life, but the principle means of attaining it. Mark Dever expounds on how pastors can lead their congregations to sustain and advance godliness together. Yet, the corporate pursuit of holiness must be undertaken in humble dependence on God and sure hope that he will do what he has promised.
H.B. Charles observes that when “leaning over to reach the world, the church is prone to fall in.” Through the exposition of 1 Corinthians 1:18-25, Charles argues that the church must carry out her holy vocation—faithfully and confidently preaching the message of Christ crucified. In other words, the church must be the church.
David Platt addresses the pressing topic of the church’s role in racial justice and reconciliation. A brief exposition of Amos 5:18-27 anchors Platt’s call to repentance from racist sin within the church. Moreover, he exhorts Christians to pursue multi-ethnic communities of faith united together in Christ.
How do we live morally without falling into moralism? Matt Chandler argues that Christians must live in holy conformity to God’s revealed will for human flourishing. Yet, this holy living comes from an internal transformation effected by the Spirit through the gospel. The Sermon on the Mount gives us a picture of what that grace-driven, Christ-centered, Spirit-empowered life looks like.
God’s people are called to be distinct from the world because God—in the perfect life of the Trinity—is distinct from the world. In a survey of various biblical and historical texts, Kevin DeYoung demonstrates how the perfection of divine immutability sets the Creator apart from his creation. The saints are eternally secure trusting in the promises of their unchanging God.
The church is in the world, but worldliness must not be tolerated in the church. Expositing 1 Corinthians 5:1-6:11, Albert Mohler teaches on the church’s responsibility to judge the sin in the camp in order to better represent the holiness of God. In so doing, the clarity of the Gospel is preserved in the community of saints washed by and waiting for the Lord Jesus.
We were created to live in complete obedience to our loving Creator, but in the fall, the whole of our being has been corrupted by idolatrous sin. Ligon Duncan traces the biblical storyline to show how Christ redeems his fallen people, renewing them to a whole-hearted obedience to the God of grace. Increasingly conformed to the image of Christ, Christians are to be distinct from the world in their love of God and neighbor.
How do pastors faithfully serve congregations that have been affected by worldliness? Thabiti Anyabwile mines the book of Jude for the answer. Pastors must look out for unsaved scoffers and look into the church, whose members keep one another in the love of God. Yet, in the midst of the struggle, pastors find assurance by looking to God who is able to keep them from stumbling.
In an exposition of Galatians 4:19, John MacArthur unpacks Paul’s pastoral heart towards the church in Galatia. He argues that the pastor’s central task is to increasingly conform the congregation into the image of Christ through the preaching of the Word. The pastor is not ultimately judged by the size of the church or the notoriety of the ministry, but the sanctification of the sheep.
What is the fundamental quality that sets Christians apart from the world? John Piper looks to the affections, arguing that through the gospel, we are given a new gladness in a new God. Thus, “the most basic distinction and essential distinction between the church and the world is not new decisions of the will, new deeds of the hands, or new doctrines in the mind, but a new delight in the heart in the glory of God.”
How does pastoral ministry intersect with biblical theology? Starting from a testimony from “The Return of the King,” Jim Hamilton clarifies what biblical theology is and is not. Further, Hamilton looks at 1-2 Peter and Jude to exemplify what biblical theology is and how the undershepherd should understand it.
The reality is that there is no place to hide given that we’re in a time of tremendous change. People don’t think like we’ve previously expected to think, even moral instinct has changed. In this breakout session, Al Mohler discusses how the culture has changed by reviewing hallmark dates and events—even within the same generation.
David Platt speaks to the need for local churches to be at the center of global missions. How can local churches and missions entities partner together? Why should local churches be at the center of global missions in reaching the nations? In this breakout session, David prays for every listener to to pray however God wants them to, to give however much God wants them to, and to go wherever God wants them to at any cost.
“shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly.” (1 Peter 5:2) Pastoral ministry not only involves the faithful proclamation of the gospel but it also calls for pleasing God in the privacy of the pastor’s heart. In this breakout session, C.J. Mahaney looks at 1 Peter 5 to help encourage pastors in their joy in ministry.
Martin Luther believed that congregational singing was absolutely critical to every part of what The Reformation was about. Why would Luther not let a man to preach or teach if he did not know the power of sacred music? Why is singing not only a command but a joy and a privilege? And what does this mean for the local church? Join Keith Getty as he discusses these issues and others.
Join Matt Chandler as he reviews the losses his church has taken for the sake of church planting and how those losses are actually joyous gains. Why should the end of evangelism or missions be the establishing of a healthy bastion of gospel light or, in other words, a church? In this breakout session, Matt Chandler discusses the work the Lord is doing through brothers his church has raised up and the beauty of seeing the gospel go forth.
How might we think through the history of race, reformed theology, and the Reformation? Given the sins of the past and the present, how might the body of Christ unite to represent the unity of God and the power of the gospel. Join Ligon Duncan and Jemar Tisby as they trace race theory, theological thought, and Christian practice and malpractice throughout history and the Scripture.
In this panel discussion, Phillip Jensen (author of the gospel tract, “Two Ways to Live”) and Mark Dever discuss the Reformation, the Catholic church, and other theological issues. Jensen contends that, “to say that the pope is the vicar of Christ is blasphemy; it’s a terrible error. The Holy Spirit is the vicar of Christ.” Why are the Catholic claims of the Pope blasphemy against the Father, the Son, and the Spirit?
H.B. Charles joins Mark Dever and Thabiti Anyabwile to discuss Thabiti’s latest book, “Reviving the Black Church.” What might the larger body of Christ glean from the strengths of the black church? What might we think about monochromatic churches given what Revelation depicts about God’s kingdom? As pastor H.B. says, “biblical discipleship is committed to reaching all the nations.”
In this panel, the four founders of T4G gather as they did in 2006 to review the day, laugh, and dive into various theological issues. Having just viewed God’s grace to T4G over the past 10 years in this video, Ligon Duncan, Albert Mohler, CJ Mahaney, and Mark Dever review God’s past faithfulness as they trust God for future grace. May we stand faithful and together in the gospel until our Lord’s return.
In this panel, Albert Mohler, John Piper, Ligon Duncan, Kevin DeYoung, and Mark Dever share stories from the Reformation and biographies that can lend courage to believers today in the face of opposition. May God give us grace to learn from those who have gone before us in the faith, to follow their examples in so far as these brothers and sisters followed Christ.
In this panel, Mark Dever, John MacArthur, Ligon Duncan, and Al Moher discuss the reform that is still needed in the church today. John Calvin once asked, “Everybody agrees that the church requires reform, but how urgent is that need?” At the very core of the church is the love for Christ that pastors ought to pray grows in their own lives and in the lives of their church members.
Is the Reformation over? Ligon Duncan suggests thattheReformation is not over. In fact, “the issues that werethefoundation of the Protestant Reformation are perenniallyimportant,and they’re especially important for us in our own dayand time.”Giving historical consideration to those issues, Duncanshows howthe issues at the bedrock of the Protestant Reformationapply to usand our churches today.
The key question that kept Luther on his knees was this: How aresins forgiven? In this talk, Dr. Albert Mohler reviews how sins areforgiven in Christ and in Christ alone and how sinners aretransferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.Martin Luther penned the 95 theses to make this truth clear.
At the heart of Martin Luther’s theology is the conviction thathuman beings are totally dependent on God’s omnipotent grace torescue us from the bondage of the will by creating and decisivelyfulfilling every inclination to believe and obey. Are the debatesabout the freedom of the will and the bondage of the willperipheral to the church? Were they during the Reformation? Is ourworking added to God’s working or is our working God’s working?Just how fallen and sinful are human beings? Piper exploressomething of the depths of human depravity in this talk.
Normally, when we consider the Reformers, we consider thetheological revolution they brought about; this consideration isgood and right. One aspect of the Reformers we often skip over,however, is that these men were fundamentally pastors. As such, theReformers lent great pastoral contributions that we can receivemuch encouragement from especially in the midst of our suffering.CJ Mahaney looks to the Reformation and to the book of Job for suchencouragement.
David Platt closed out T4G 2016 by reviewing the lives anddeaths of martyrs from the Reformation and applying their theologyof death and mission to the church today. Putting our pain inperspective, Platt reminded us that “your perspective of earthlyembers changes when you remember that you have been saved from aneternal inferno.” Platt continues to call the church to hasten theday of her Lord’s return by continuing to share the gospel with thelost and the unreached.
Matt Chandler only gets three words into this sermon’stextbeforestopping to exalt our sovereign God. Encouraging pastorstonot cowto cultural pressures, Chandler exalts in the strengthofGod’somnipotence. Chandler reviews a recent trip he took toRome,where hesaw how the world’s strongest empire—which triedtoexterminateChristians—lies in ruins yet Christ’s reignsinvictory. Thus,“Christian courage inflamed and informed bytheglory of God will bethe undoing of every empire againstthekingdom of God.” Take heart,brothers and sisters.
Mark Dever speaks to why endurance is such a necessary virtuefor the Christian minister. In this talk, Dever aims to exhortpastors to not miss out on the joys of ministry, such as the joy ofresting in the sufficiency of Scripture, the joy of hearing otherspreach better sermons than you, the joy of seeing others converted,and other joys. These joys are part of the fuel God intends hispastors to have to continue in their service. Why aredenominational growth awards paltry substitutes for healthychurches? What are the joys of the spotlight vs. the joy of theelder’s chair?
In this talk, focusing on Christ’s call to the churches in the first three chapters of Revelation, John MacArthur challenges church leaders and pastors to call their churches to repentance if need be. “We all like calling the nation to repentance,” MacArthur suggests, “but what about calling the church to repentance?” Have you ever heard of a church—a whole church—that repented? Have you ever been part of a church that openly, genuinely, and contritely repented for sins against its head—the Lord Jesus Christ?
We speak often of the Reformation recovering the doctrine of justification, which is fine and good, but that recovery was accomplished by the recovery of Scripture itself. This is important: We are not Reformed because the Reformers are our heroes. If we genuinely Reformed it’s because we believe that “Reformed” is an adequate summary of what the Bible teaches about key points of doctrine and a particular worldview. May God give us grace to be the kind of people who build our theology from the Bible up. May God’s word rule over us.
What is the relationship between good works, assurance of salvation, and the grace of Christ? Kevin DeYoung aims to show from God’s Word, exploring the history and theology of the church, how good works, good news, and Christian assurance are not opposed to each other and how these things do in fact go together. Despite the fact that we live in a day with the resurgence of gospel-centered thinking and teaching, DeYoung maintains that, “the essential Christian life is filled with weakness, yes, but capitulation, no.”
Every pastor is a kind of public theologian offering gospel-driven theology for their people and the broader culture. Why is this important when we consider what’s happening in the modern public square? In this breakout session, Owen Strachan strives to help pastors consider their cultural context and what they’re people are up against.
Owen Strachan is the Assistant Professor of Christian Theology and Church History at Boyce College in Louisville, KY. From 2008-2010, he was the full-time Managing Director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Associate Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center at TEDS. He holds an A.B. from Bowdoin College in History, M. Div from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is the author of six books and contributed to publications including The Atlantic, First Things, Christianity Today, and the Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology. Owen currently resides in Louisville with his wife, Bethany and their two children.
One of the key things that’s often said against apologetics is that you shouldn’t defend the Bible — as Spurgeon famously said, “Defending the Bible is like defending a lion.” But, holding that in tension and affirming our great desire for people to encounter the Scriptures, how does one rightly employ apologetics in evangelism so that people may come to know God? The apologist’s role is often to due away with enough prejudices so that people will come and hear the word of God, read the word of God, and, as Williams puts it, “to get out of the way so the lion can do his work.” In this breakout, Peter Williams and Simon Gathercole discuss the relationship between apologetics, biblical studies, and evangelism.
Simon Gathercole is a New Testament scholar, editor of the Journal for the Study of the New Testament, an elder at Eden Baptist Church in Cambridge, and Senior Lecturer in New Testament Studies and Director of Studies at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University in England. He was formerly Senior Lecturer in New Testament at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland for seven years. Gathercole received a MA at Cambridge, and later completed a MTh and PhD at the University of Durham. Some of Dr. Gathercole’s books include: Where is Boasting? Early Jewish Soteriology and the New Perspective on Paul, and The Preexistent Son: Recovering the Christologies of Matthew, Mark and Luke. He is an acknowledged expert on early apocryphal gospels, having written The Gospel of Judas: Rewriting Early Christianity.
Peter Williams is the current warden (president) of Tyndale House and a Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Aberdeen and a lecturer at University of Cambridge in England. Dr. Williams earned his M.A., M. Phil. and Ph.D. at Cambridge University studying ancient languages. He is the author of several books and publications including Early Syriac Translation Technique and the Textual Criticism of the Greek Gospels. His research includes the early history of translation with particular focus on translation of the Bible and textual criticism. He resides in Cambridge, England with his wife and two children.
What does it look like for churches to reach out and evangelize among the poor? Whose responsibility is this within the church and what does Scripture say about it? In this breakout, pastors Mike McKinley and Mez McConnell discuss what church planting in difficult contexts means for the local church’s evangelism.
Mike McKinley is the lead pastor of Sterling Park Baptist Church in Sterling, VA. He is the author of several books, including “Am I Really a Christian?” and “Passion: How Christ’s Final Day Changes Your Every Day”. Mike and his wife Karen have five children.
Mez McConnell, is the Senior Pastor of Niddrie Community Church, Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the founder of 20schemes and has been involved in full time pastoral ministry, both church planting and revitalisation since 1999. He has worked in inner city areas in England, Scotland and Brazil and has a passion for training men and women for ministry in this context. He has written 2 books: Preparing for Baptism: A Personal Diary (Grace Publications Trust), and Is There Anybody Out There? (Christian Focus).
Mez studied Missiology at Moorland Bible College, England and Pastoral Theology at Bryntirion Bible College, Wales. He has been married to Miriam for 15 years and has two lovely daughters, Keziah & Lydia.
How exactly does the church the multiply? How are disciples made? Who do we preach the gospel to? Leonce Crump looks at Acts 9:31 to answer these questions as he discusses what the evangelistic implications for local churches are today.
Leonce Crump is the Elder for Vision, Preaching and Leadership at Renovation Church in Atlanta, GA. Originally from Louisiana and raised Roman Catholic, Leonce began following Jesus at age 16. He is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and holds Masters degrees in Criminal Justice, with a focus on Case Law (University of Tennessee), Missional Leadership (Resurgence Theological Training Center), and is currently finishing his Masters of Divinity at Reformed Theological Seminary. At Oklahoma he was an All-American wrestler and played defensive end on the Sooner football team. After college he competed to make the world team in wrestling, played professional football for the New Orleans Saints and coached collegiate wrestling. In 2006, he felt called to plant a church and through prayerful seeking of direction settled on the under-served area of downtown Atlanta. Leonce and his wife, Breanna, have lived in Atlanta for over 4 years, and have two daughters.
When it comes to the topic evangelism, it’s safe to say that we all can feel inadequate — we all struggle with it. How does a pastor, then, encourage a congregation who corporately struggles with evangelism? What does a culture of evangelism look like in the local church and what should it look like in light of Scripture? In this breakout session, Juan Sanchez answers these questions and more.
Juan Sanchez has served as the preaching pastor and elder of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, TX since 2005. He was converted to Christ in 1983 at the age of 17. Juan earned an undergraduate degree in Music from the University of Florida. He later earned a Masters of Divinity and a Masters in Theology from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. He is currently completing his Doctorate of Philosophy degree from the same institution. Juan and his wife have five daughters.
On college campuses there are thousands of people open to talking about the gospel during one of the most pivotal seasons of their lives. How can the local church take advantage of these opportunities? How could a local church that’s a few hours away from a campus impact students? In this breakout session, Dave Russell explains what a rich opportunity evangelizing college students is and how local churches can mobilize to reach campuses.
Dave Russell is the Director for Campus Outreach DC, a college ministry based out of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC, where he also serves as an elder. God’s work in Dave’s life as a college student at UNC Charlotte, ultimately led him to desire to work in Christian ministry. For the last 14 years, he has worked with Campus Outreach to evangelize and disciple on college campuses. After 10 years of serving with Campus Outreach in North Carolina, Dave moved to Washington, DC in 2010 to start Campus Outreach DC. Dave is presently finishing up his Masters of Divinity at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He lives in Washington, DC with his wife, Carrie, and their four children.
What are the implications and characteristics of God-centered evangelism? What can we learn from the First and Second Great Awakening about this? In this breakout session, David Sinclair explains how our theology should affect our methodology when it comes to evangelism.
David Sinclair is the senior pastor of Clemson Presbyterian Church. David grew up in Greenville, SC and after graduating from Clemson University and Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, he returned to Clemson to begin a work with Reformed University Fellowship and help with the plant of Clemson Presbyterian Church in 1984. In 1997, he received his doctorate from Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi and was called as Senior Pastor to Lexington Presbyterian Church in Lexington, SC where he pastored for 10 years. Then in 2007 he accepted a call back to Clemson Presbyterian Church where he presently serves as Senior Pastor. David is married to Becky and they have three grown children and a daughter-in-law.
God’s Word is truth. What does this mean for missions? Discussing inerrancy and its importance for evangelism, especially global evangelism, Ligon Duncan and Albert Mohler lead this breakout session. Mohler gives a succinct definition for biblical inerrancy — he defines it by saying, “the Bible in whole and in all of its parts is the word of God written.” Or as B.B. Warfield puts it, “inerrancy simply comes down to the formula when the Bible speaks, God speaks.” That the Bible is completely true and completely trustworthy is something Christians should rejoice in, and we should strive that the world might rejoice in it too.
What are impending threats facing evangelicalism? Though the brothers on this panel discuss many, Mark Dever reminds us of the glorious confession that there may be none! Christ could return today, and at some point theological threats will be no more. Yet we still prepare to be ready to give an answer in season and out of season for the hope that we hold. We pray this panel encourages you as you do just that.
What are impending threats facing evangelicalism? Though the brothers on this panel discuss many, Mark Dever reminds us of the glorious confession that there may be none! Christ could return today, and at some point theological threats will be no more. Yet we still prepare to be ready to give an answer in season and out of season for the hope that we hold. We pray this panel encourages you as you do just that.
What do you say to an atheist questioning about God ordering the destruction of those who oppose Israel? What do you say to an unmarried couple living together, refusing to separate, but applying for church membership? How do you comfort a Muslim woman inquiring about Christianity, but who realizes her husband may be in hell? These are but a few of the questions asked of this panel — who we rounded together not really to stump, but to talk about questions that pastors are commonly stumped by.
Pastor, how do you encourage your people toward holiness while allowing their confidence to remain in their positional holiness before the Lord given to them in the person and work of Jesus Christ? What are the biblical motivations to pursuing holiness for those who are already in Christ? In this panel, hear how men in different ministries help clear the fog around this idea while lovingly exhorting the people charged to their care.
Al Mohler sits with Sam Alberry, author of “Is God anti-Gay?”, and Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberties Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, to discuss the issue of homosexuality. Mohler says that, “this issue is in many ways the frontline issue of our engagement with the culture and with people — some of whom struggle with this issue personally. Others struggle with how anyone can hold anything other than the position that the dominant culture says is mandatory.” Holding this in tension, these brothers discuss how this issue affects our evangelism and ministries.
What are some common misunderstandings about D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones? What was most of his ministry spent on? Mrs. Lloyd-Jones says, “No one will understand my husband, who does not know that he was first a man of prayer and then an evangelist.” Pastors Mark Dever and John MacArthur sit with Lloyd-Jones’ biographer, Iain Murray, and his grandson, Jonathan Catherwood, to discuss the life of this pastor-evangelist whom evangelicalism owes so much to.