Podcasts by Back Row Theologians

Spiritual Disciplines - Community from 2019-12-05T05:24:20

The gloves come off in the Season 3 Finale, as Andrew and Ian debate the definition of biblical community, as well as spiritual disciplines at large.

Grab a piping hot cup of cocoa and tu...

Spiritual Disciplines - Stewardship from 2019-11-20T06:00

How broadly can stewardship be defined? If nothing belongs to us, is it acceptable to steal?

Tune in to hear Andrew and Ian work through all this and more!

Spiritual Disciplines - Prayer from 2019-11-06T06:00

Andrew and Ian jump into the deep end of prayer as a discipline!
Besides discussing the action of prayer itself, you'll hear them work through prayer's relation to repentance, to God's creat...

Thoughts From The Back Row - 50th Episode Retrospective from 2019-10-30T05:00

What is a Back Row Theologian?
Andrew and Ian think back on the past 50 episodes, discussing the history of this podcast and their relationship over the years, before looking forward to what...

Spiritual Disciplines - Scripture from 2019-10-16T05:00

Andrew and Ian explore the spiritual discipline of studying Scripture.
Tune in to find out difference between ideas vs. ideologies, and which Back Row Theologian is more outraged!

Spiritual Disciplines - Introduction to Spiritual Disciplines from 2019-10-02T05:00

Andrew and Ian kick off a new series, defining a Theology of Disciplines and debating the purpose of spiritual disciplines in a grace-based faith.
There's also a brand new show structure, wi...

Thoughts on Revelation from 2019-09-18T05:00

How does God reveal himself to mankind?
Are there other sources of God's truth outside of his Word?
Is the last book of the Bible supposed to be plural?
Smash that play button to hea...

Thoughts on Church Order from 2019-08-28T05:00

Andrew and Ian discuss how different churches have historically structured and organized themselves. Press play to find out whether some branches of the faith act more like people on a beach or ...

Thoughts on Church Opportunities from 2019-08-07T05:00

If you don't listen to this podcast, are you morally culpable for that decision?

Is it better to be fed to animals or fed to Twitter?

What kind of writing assignment could melt Ian...

Thoughts on Church Challenges from 2019-07-17T05:00

This podcast is officially 2 years old! Ian and Andrew spend their tenured time discussing the challenges that are uniquely facing the modern Church in the West. Tune in to see if they have enou...

Church Practice - Preaching from 2019-06-27T04:33:49

Why does Andrew like pyramids? Why doesn't Ian like sermon applications?

Is preaching a sermon more like a sacrament or a TED Talk? Do we even need the church and all of its weird rituals...

Church Practice - Marriage from 2019-06-07T13:21:14

Discover why BRT is the "Type 8 of Theology Podcasts." Then Andrew and Ian discuss Marriage from the angle of a church practice. 

Thoughts on the Visible Church from 2019-05-15T07:00

If the church is primarily an invisible unity of all believers, what role does the visible church have to play? In this episode, Andrew and Ian discuss some of their thoughts on the visible church,...

Church Practice - Church Discipline from 2019-05-01T07:00

No one likes being told what to do, so what right does your church have to tell you how to live your life? In this episode, Andrew and Ian discuss what authority the church and its members have ove...

Church Practice - Leadership from 2019-04-17T07:00

Elders, Deacons, and Bishops, oh my! Andrew and Ian discuss church leadership in their contexts, and what the Bible says about different leadership positions in the church.

Church Practice - Baptism from 2019-04-03T07:00

Andrew and Ian immerse themselves in the topic of baptism, with a few other fun topics sprinkled in.

Church Practice - Death & Dying from 2019-03-21T07:00

Andrew, having recently returned from his Grandfather's funeral, enlists Ian's help tackling the practice around funerals and sickness, and how we proclaim the gospel in the face of death.

Church Practice - Eucharist from 2019-03-07T07:00

The Lord's Supper, Communion, The Eucharist. Just the difference in names shows how many different ideas about the practice there are. Andrew and Ian discuss the practice in their (very differen...

Church Practice - Sacraments from 2019-02-20T07:00

Andrew and Ian attempt to answer the big questions of "What is the church" and "What is a sacrament." Are some church practices more important than others?

Church Practice - Symbols from 2019-02-06T07:00

Ian is flying solo for the opening episode of Season 3 with Andrew out sick. He discusses the difference between a sign and a symbol and tries to illustrate how to distinguish between them in ch...

Thoughts on Rhythms in Life (2.20) from 2018-12-06T07:00

Merry Christmas back rowers! Speaking of Christmas, what value is there in celebrating holiday seasons anyways? We discuss this and rythms in life (plus a whole new take on the Circle of Life) in t...

Anthropology - Cultures (2.19) from 2018-11-21T07:00

If people are made in the image of God, what does that mean for groups of people? Are cultures set against God as institutions of sin, or a place where there is a spark of people's search for God. ...

Reformation Day Special (2.18) from 2018-10-31T07:00

Happy Reformation Day! In this episode, we talk about Luther, Melanchton, and Eugene Petterson. What do the Reformers have to teach us today?

Anthropology - Death (2.17) from 2018-10-17T07:00

Please fill out our 30 second survey: https://goo.gl/XZQEjS Also, we talk about the concept of death, and how it develops through the Bible. And ghosts!

Anthropology - Sexuality (2.16) from 2018-10-03T07:00

It's BRT's 30th episode! In this episode, Andrew and Ian discuss if our bodies even matter, and why God created as male and female, and not all the same. How does our sexuality factor into our unde...

Anthropology - Federal Headship (2.15) from 2018-09-20T07:00

The Dutch gave us more than wooden shoes and Tulips (and Stroopwafel). They also made a number of important theological contributions. In this episode, we discuss Federal Headship, and how it contr...

Anthropology - Historical Adam (2.14) from 2018-09-07T07:00

Right in the first chapter we are introduced to the first man, Adam. What are the challenges surrounding this person, and what difference does it make?

Anthropology - Imago Dei (2.13) from 2018-08-15T07:00

How do humans reflect the Trinity in a way that the rest of creation does not?

Anthropology - Body, Soul, Spirit (2.12) from 2018-07-25T07:00

Andrew and Ian try to figure out how many parts make up a human, and tackle the meaning of Body, Soul, and Spirit. Plus, a discussion about the "man on the island" who has never been told about Jesus.

Anthropology - Introduction (2.11) from 2018-06-27T07:00

In our 25th episode, we introduce some foundations for the study of Anthropology. What are humans, and what makes us unique? Also discussions on the ethics of blogging.

Thoughts on the Old Testament (2.10) from 2018-05-30T07:00

Never ones to show away from controversy, Andrew and Ian take on two in this episode. Being theologians though, they have to cast the issue in a theological light. First, they discuss covenants in ...

Mosaic Law - Sacrifice (2.9) from 2018-05-09T07:00

Does God really enjoy when his people wave bunches of cereal grains? Or was all of that a big joke? In this episode, we close out the series on the Mosaic Law by talking about the sacrificial syste...

Mosaic Law - Sabbath (2.8) from 2018-04-25T07:00

Are Christians supposed to keep the Sabbath? If not, what was the purpose? Is there more to the Sabbath than making sure to take a nap on Sunday? All this and more in this 22nd episode of the Back ...

Mosaic Law - Law Before Law (2.7) from 2018-04-11T07:00

Andrew discusses what the church can learn from video games and Ian ponders hope and musicals. Then, Andrew and Ian discuss how the narrative of Genesis prepares us for the giving of the Law Tune i...

Mosaic Law - Grace in in the Law (2.6) from 2018-03-28T07:00

Happy Holy Week Everyone. Easter is all about Grace, whereas the Law is all about, well, not grace, right? Maybe? That's what Andrew and Ian set out to discuss in this episode of BRT.

Mosaic Law - Case Laws (2.5) from 2018-03-14T07:00

What do Bruce Springsteen and the Torah have in common? Probably nothing, but we do talk about both on this episode of BRT. Also, try your hands at beating Andrew and Ian a "two true laws and a lie."

Mosaic Law - Decalogue (2.4) from 2018-02-28T07:00

Is "The Decalogue" a good name for a professional wrestler? That is just one of the many questions about the Ten Commandments we'll help you answer.

Mosaic Law - Purpose of the Law (2.3) from 2018-02-19T07:00

Why did God give the Mosaic Law? To prove you couldn't earn your salvation? To give timeless principles to live by? Have a seat on the back row while we discuss this age old question.

Mosaic Law - Introduction (2.2) from 2018-01-31T07:00

What should you do if you come across an ememy's ox wandering on the side of the road. This question, and many others, are discussed in our introduction to the Mosaic Law.

Thoughts on Chalcedon (2.1) from 2018-01-17T07:00

Why not tackle one of the more complex puzzles of church history? In this episode, Andrew and Ian give some thoughts trying to unravel the Council of Chalcedon, talking about what went on and why i...

Soteriology - Regeneration (1.14) from 2018-01-03T07:00

Happy New Year Back Rowers! What does it mean to be born again? We tackle that question in this episode. But first, some crazy ideas from Andrew.

Soteriology - Salvation and the Defeat of Evil (1.13) from 2017-12-13T07:00

Is there more to Christmas then just Jesus being born so that he could eventually die for our sins? We answer this question as we talk about the work of Christ through the lens of defeating evil. T...

ETS Special (1.12) from 2017-11-29T07:00

Hosts Andrew and Ian discuss their recent trip to the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, and the ideas they encountered there.

Soteriology - Election and Predestination (1.11) from 2017-11-15T07:00

In this episode, Andrew & Ian discuss the soteriology of Roman Catholicism and Easter Orthodoxy, Including what Evangelicals can learn from each, before exploring the difference between Election an...

Soteriology - Repentance (1.10) from 2017-11-01T07:00

Happy All Saints day everyone! In this episode, we discuss Andrew's recent bout with deadly diseases and the five solas of the Reformation. We end with a discussion of Repentance, and what role it ...

Soteriology - What is the Gospel? (1.9) from 2017-10-18T07:00

Hosts Andrew and Ian are joined by a host of guests to discuss the topic, "What is the Gospel."

Thoughts on Unity & Diversity (1.8) from 2017-10-04T07:00

Hermeneutics Summary (1.7) from 2017-09-20T07:00

In this episode, Andrew and Ian talk about the "name" of Jesus and the role of ordinances in the church. They end with a summation of the series on Hermeneutics.

Hermeneutics - Galatians & Inspiration (1.6) from 2017-09-06T07:00

Hermeneutics - Typology & Allegory (1.5) from 2017-08-23T07:00

Hermeneutics - Context Case Studies (1.4) from 2017-08-09T07:00

Hermeneutics - Meaning & Significance (1.3) from 2017-07-27T07:00

Hermeneutics - Introduction & Literal Hermeneutic (1.2) from 2017-07-05T07:00

Thoughts on Rest (1.1) from 2017-06-21T07:00