Podcasts about christlike

This is the tenth lesson in Dr. Camden Bucey's Reformed Academy course, Defending Our Hope: An Introduction to Christian Apologetics. Apologetics is not merely intellectual—it's spiritual warfare. In this lesson, we consider how to stand firm in the face of opposition, clinging to the truth of God's word and the hope we have in Christ. You will learn how to engage others with boldness and Christlike character, especially in moments of suffering or ridicule. We explore the role of the heart, the importance of gentleness and respect, and the need for readiness to follow conversations wherever they lead. Grounded in 1 Peter 3:15, this lesson prepares you to endure with faith and to speak the truth in love amid a hostile world. 01:53 Encountering Opposition 05:43 Engaging with Christ-like Character 09:04 Finding Confidence in the Word 12:43 The Apologetic Context of Suffering 16:21 Ready to Go Wherever the Conversation Leads 18:47 Seeking Apologetic Encounters 22:22 Summary and Conclusion   Register for this free on-demand course on our website to track your progress, download supplemental resources, and assess your understanding through quizzes for each lesson. You will also receive free access to more than two dozen more video courses in covenant theology, apologetics, biblical studies, church history, and more: https://reformedforum.org/courses/def...  Camden Bucey (MDiv, PhD) is Executive Director of Reformed Forum and a minister of Hope Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Grayslake, Illinois. He is the author of Karl Rahner (Great Thinkers) and Lamentations, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah: A 12-Week Study.   Your donations help us to provide free Reformed resources for students like you worldwide: https://reformedforum.org/donate/   #apologetics #evangelism #presupp

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

How do we raise daughters who reflect the humility of Christ in a world that rewards self-promotion? How do we steer their hearts away from “me first” and toward “others first”? In this powerful weekend episode, Raising Godly Girls host and American Heritage Girls Founder & Executive Director Emeritus Patti Garibay welcomes character education expert and author Jill Garner to explore how parents can guide girls from self-absorption to selflessness through intentional heart training.  Jill Garner, founder of Manners of the Heart, brings decades of insight on shaping young hearts through respect-based education rooted in Biblical truth. As the author of Raising Respectful Children in a Disrespectful World and StrongHeart: Cultivating Humility, Respect, and Resiliency in Your Child, Jill offers a clear and compassionate voice for parents seeking to raise daughters of integrity—girls who are resilient, gracious, and grounded in their identity in Christ.  Together, Patti and Jill explore the cultural currents pulling girls toward vanity, entitlement, and independence from God—and contrast them with a Spirit-led path of humility and service. With practical advice, personal testimony, and a heart for transformation, this conversation is a must-listen for parents raising daughters in today's me-centered world.  In this episode, you'll learn:  Why selfishness begins early—and what it reveals about the heart  What “Heart Education” is and how it can be a game-changer in your parenting  How to cultivate Christlike humility and respect in your daughter's everyday life  Encouraging tools and Scriptures that anchor your family in a God-honoring character journey  How to partner with schools, churches, and AHG to reinforce selflessness and servant leadership  Key Scriptures Highlighted:  Philippians 2:3–4 – “In humility, value others above yourselves…”  Proverbs 11:25 – “Whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”  James 3:16 – The warning against selfish ambition and its impact on community  If you've ever asked, “How do I lead my daughter to think of others first—and love them well?” this episode will equip you with both the truth and the tools to begin that work today.  Learn more about Jill's work and explore helpful parenting resources at mannersoftheheart.org.  Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com.    To find or start an AHG Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org.   

Unity isn't uniformity—it's Christlike humility. In Romans 15, Paul calls us to bear with one another, to sacrifice preferences, and to glorify God with one voice. Want to be a unifier in your church? Start by thinking less of self and more of Christ.

From toddler tantrums to teen drama, it's easy to spot the signs of self-focus in our daughters—but it's harder to correct that trajectory in a culture that rewards self-obsession. This episode of the Raising Godly Girls Podcast gently but boldly tackles the uncomfortable topic of selfishness and entitlement, equipping moms with Biblical tools to shepherd their daughters into a Christ-centered life of humility and service.  Co-hosts Rachael Culpepper and Natalie Ambrose offer heartfelt insight, Scripture-based truth, and real-life reflection on how selfish habits form—and how to break them with grace. From the sassy toddler mimicking grown-up behavior to the teen seeking praise and power, this conversation walks alongside moms who want to train up daughters who reflect Christ, not the culture.  You'll also hear from American Heritage Girls Founder & Executive Director Emeritus Patti Garibay in a timely Raising Godly Girls Minute, pointing parents to Proverbs and practical ways to help girls become refreshers of others rather than rulers of their own tiny kingdoms. If you've ever struggled to set boundaries, discipline with love, or navigate your girl's “attitude,” this episode will meet you right where you are—and call you higher in your parenting.  In this episode, you'll discover:  Why early entitlement, if left unchecked, leads to lasting relational damage  How to guide your girl from “what I want” to “what others need” using empathy and training  Biblical wisdom from Philippians 2 and James 3:16 that redefines confidence as Christlike humility  Practical parenting phrases and questions to use when disciplining or redirecting selfish behavior  How service and discipleship lead girls out of self-focus and into Kingdom purpose    Scriptures Highlighted:  Philippians 2:3-4 — “Do nothing out of selfish ambition…”  James 3:16 — “Where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder…”  Proverbs 11:25 — “A generous person will prosper…”  If you're ready to raise a girl who shines for Christ, not for the applause of the crowd, this episode will help you lay the groundwork. It's not about squashing her confidence—it's about redirecting her heart toward something greater: a life lived for others, rooted in the example of Jesus.  Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com.    To find or start an AHG Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org. 

As we send our kids back to school and college, Bible teacher Carol McLeod challenges us to think about our continued learning.  Take a class in a different language! Learn a new skill!  But most importantly, continue learning from God as revealed His Word.  Let it continue to transform you! Paul Hoffman, author of "AI Shepherds and Electric Sheep," helps us see where artificial intelligence can impact our lives, including in church.  If the goal is our flourishing, that is to be more Christ-like, there are ways AI can help us do research and organization, but it can't give us a shortcut to that truly Christ-like life.   Faith Radio podcasts are made possible by your support. Give now: Click here  

The pastors of Grace have witnessed many, many marriages in our spiritual family facing trials, challenges, and even collapse. From our vantage point, we have seen one common denominator appear too many times to count: selfishness. Whether it's a mentality that says, “what I want/need is most important,” or an addiction to control, or an aversion to doing the difficult work of conflict resolution because it's just too uncomfortable, a focus on self damages marriages faster than almost anything else. In Romans 12, however, Paul calls Christ-followers to take a different approach: one of self-giving love. In v.10 he says, literally, “outdo one another in showing honor.” The mental image of running a race with your spouse to outdo them in love and honor as they do the same (rather than looking for what love and honor they'll give you), is a powerful one. If we adopt this posture, we can reverse the corrosive influence of selfishness in our marriages and replace it with Christlike love which can bring healing and long-term fulfillment. Marriage is a race to the bottom.

The desire to be liked is natural—but left unchecked, it can quietly shape your daughter's identity in unhealthy, even addictive ways. From the playground to the group chat, the pressure to earn approval can steal her joy, distort her view of self, and distance her from the truth of who she is in Christ.  In this must-listen episode of the Raising Godly Girls Podcast, co-hosts Rachael Culpepper and Natalie Ambrose dive deep into the social and spiritual undercurrents of girls' need for affirmation. Together, they unpack how a girl's early development can fuel her craving for praise—and how loving, intentional parenting can redirect that desire toward the One whose love never wavers.  You'll hear candid personal stories from both hosts, powerful Scriptural truths, and timely insights from American Heritage Girls Founder & Executive Director Emeritus Patti Garibay in the Raising Godly Girls Minute. You'll also learn how to reframe your daughter's attention-seeking behavior, not as manipulation, but as a longing to be seen, known, and loved. This episode doesn't just name the problem—it offers the Christ-centered path out.  In this episode, you'll explore:  How girls' early need for affirmation can spiral into an identity crisis if left unaddressed  The “Hawthorne Effect” and what it reveals about your daughter's desire to be seen  The difference between “fitting in” and standing out for Christ (Philippians 2:15, Romans 8:5)  How to help your girl root her confidence in Colossians 3:2 living—setting her mind on things above  Practical steps to break the approval addiction and reestablish her identity in Christ    Scriptures Referenced:  Philippians 2:15 — “...shine like stars in the sky.”  Romans 8:5 — “Those who live according to the flesh...”  Colossians 3:2 — “Set your minds on things above...”  John 15:5 — “Abide in me and I in you...”  This episode reminds you that your daughter's desire to be liked isn't the problem—it's where she looks for that affirmation that matters most. Help her turn from the fleeting approval of the world to the everlasting love of her Heavenly Father. And as a mom, be encouraged: your voice, your presence, and your daily words of truth are shaping the next generation of confident, Christlike women.  Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com.   To find or start an AHG Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org. 

James Forsyth1 Corinthians 13:1-13Outside PeopleAugust 10, 2025

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

In this week’s digital Bible Study, Rev. Trudy and Rev. Brittany continue to explore the costs and risks of following Jesus, this time by examining Luke 17:11-19, the story of Jesus venturing into the borderlands to touch (and heal) unwell people. Their in-depth and insightful conversation uncovers the risks we must all take to travel to, see, interact with, and touch those on the margins to help them access what they need to live a full and healthy life. As well as the risks we must take in order to be touched by others to change our lives for the better. The two female pastors of First UMC of San Diego have a lot to say, breaking down: What is means to live in the borderlands The real risks that Jesus and those who had contracted leprosy were willing to take for the healing story Modern-day examples of outcasts and marginalized living in borderlands and constructing their own society Our modern misunderstanding of “healings” and unwillingness to do the hard work to be part of the healing And that’s just the beginning of the wisdom that’s available to unpack! You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: When do you feel like you’re in the borderland? In what ways do you get in the way of your own healing? Do you say thank you enough? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

In this week’s digital Bible Study, Rev. Trudy and Rev. Brittany continue to explore the costs and risks of following Jesus, this time by examining Luke 17:11-19, the story of Jesus venturing into the borderlands to touch (and heal) unwell people. Their in-depth and insightful conversation uncovers the risks we must all take to travel to, see, interact with, and touch those on the margins to help them access what they need to live a full and healthy life. As well as the risks we must take in order to be touched by others to change our lives for the better. The two female pastors of First UMC of San Diego have a lot to say, breaking down: What is means to live in the borderlands The real risks that Jesus and those who had contracted leprosy were willing to take for the healing story Modern-day examples of outcasts and marginalized living in borderlands and constructing their own society Our modern misunderstanding of “healings” and unwillingness to do the hard work to be part of the healing And that’s just the beginning of the wisdom that’s available to unpack! You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: When do you feel like you’re in the borderland? In what ways do you get in the way of your own healing? Do you say thank you enough? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows I’ll name six problems with old-creation readings before laying out why a new creation approach makes sense. I presented this talk at the 2025 Unitarian Christian Alliance (UCA) conference in Uxbridge, England. Scroll down to see the full-length paper. For those listening to the audio, here’s a quick reference to Colossians 1.15-20 Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here’s Randy Leedy’s New Testament Diagram Here are the slides in the original PowerPoint format Download [13.82 MB] Here are the slides converted to PDF Loading... Taking too long? Reload document | Open in new tab Download [3.16 MB] To read the paper, simply scroll down or read it on Academia.edu.   Listen on Spotify   Listen on Apple Podcasts —— Links —— Check out these other papers by Sean Finnegan Support Restitutio by donating here Join our Restitutio Facebook Group and follow Finnegan on X @RestitutioSF Leave a voice message via SpeakPipe with questions or comments and we may play it out on the air Who is Sean Finnegan?  Read his bio here Get Finnegan’s book, Kingdom Journey to learn about God’s kingdom coming on earth as well as the story of how Christianity lost this pearl of great price. Get the transcript of this episode Intro music: Good Vibes by MBB Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Free Download / Stream: Music promoted by Audio Library. Below is the paper presented on July 25, 2025 in Uxbridge, England at the 2nd annual UCA UK Conference. Access this paper on Academia.edu to get the pdf. Full text is below, including bibliography and end notes. Colossians 1.16: Old Creation or New Creation? by Sean P. Finnegan Abstract  How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows, I will explain the difficulties with the various old creation readings of Col 1.16 along with five reasons for a new creation approach. Then I'll provide a new creation reading of Col 1.16 before summarizing my findings in the conclusion. Introduction  Colossians 1.15-20 is a fascinating text of great importance for Christology. Commonly understood to be a hymn, it is fascinating in its cosmic scope and elevated Christology. Although many commentators interpret Paul[1] to say that Christ created the universe in his pre-existent state in Col 1.16, not all scholars see it that way. For example, Edward Schillebeeckx writes, “There is no mention in this text of pre-existence in the Trinitarian sense.”[2] Rather he sees “an eschatological pre-existence, characteristic of wisdom and apocalyptic.”[3] G. B. Caird agreed that Paul's focus in Col. 1.15-20 was not pre-existence (contra Lightfoot), rather, “The main thread of Paul's thought, then, is the manhood of Christ.”[4] In other words, “All that has been said in vv. 15-18 can be said of the historical Jesus.”[5] James Dunn also denied that Paul saw Christ as God's agent in creation in Col 1.15-20, claiming that such an interpretation was “to read imaginative metaphor in a pedantically literal way.”[6] James McGrath argued that “Jesus is the one through whom God's new creation takes place.” [7] Andrew Perriman likewise noted, “There is no reference to the creation of heaven and earth, light and darkness, sea and dry land, lights in the heavens, vegetation, or living creatures,”[8] also preferring a new creation approach.[9] To understand why such a broad range of scholars diverge from the old creation interpretation of Col 1.16, we will examine several contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. While explaining these, I'll also put forward four reasons to interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. Then I'll provide a fifth before giving a new creation reading of Col 1.15-20. But before going any further, let's familiarize ourselves with the text and structure. The Form of Col 1.15-20  To get our bearings, let me begin by providing a translation,[10] carefully structured to show the two strophes.[11] Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here I've followed the two-strophe structure (1.15-18a and 18b-20) noted more than a century ago by the classical philologist Eduard Norden[13] and repeated by James Robinson,[14] Edward Lohse,[15] Edward Schweizer,[16] James Dunn,[17] Ben Witherington III,[18] and William Lane[19] among others. By lining up the parallel lines of the two strophes, we can clearly see the poetic form. Strophe 1 15a who is (the) image… 15b firstborn of all creation 16a for in him were created all things… 16e  all things have been created through him… Strophe 2 18b who is (the) beginning, 18c firstborn from the dead … 19 for in him was pleased all… 20a and through him to reconcile all things in him… Such striking repeated language between the two strophes means that we should be careful to maintain the parallels between them and not take a grammatical or exegetical position on a word or phrase that would disconnect it from the parallel line in the other strophe. Some scholars, including F. F. Bruce,[20] Michael Bird,[21] David Pao,[22] among others proposed vv. 17-18a as an independent transitional link between the two strophes. Lohse explained the motivation for this unlikely innovation as follows. Above all, it is curious that at the end of the first, cosmologically oriented strophe, Christ is suddenly referred to as the “head of the body, the church” (1:18a κεφαλή τοῦ σώματος τῆς ἐκκλησίας). Considering its content, this statement would have to be connected with the second strophe which is characterized by soteriological statements. The structure of the hymn, however, places it in the first strophe.[23] For interpreters who prefer to think of the first strophe as cosmogony and the second as soteriology, a line about Christ's headship over the church doesn't fit very well. They restructure the form based on their interpretation of the content. Such a policy reverses the order of operations. One should determine the form and then interpret the content in light of structure. Lohse was right to reject the addition of a new transitional bridge between the two strophes. He called it “out of the question” since vv. 17-18a underscore “all things” and “serve as a summary that brings the first strophe to a conclusion.”[24] Now that we've oriented ourselves to some degree, let's consider old creation readings of Col 1.16 and the problems that arise when reading it that way. Old Creation Readings  Within the old creation paradigm for Col 1.16 we can discern three groups: those who see (A) Christ as the agent by whom God created, (B) Wisdom as the agent, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. Although space won't allow me to interact with each of these in detail, I will offer a brief critique of these three approaches. As a reminder, here is our text in both Greek and English. Colossians 1.16 16a      ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη τὰ πάντα 16b                  ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, 16c                  τὰ ὁρατὰ καὶ τὰ ἀόρατα, 16d                  εἴτε θρόνοι εἴτε κυριότητες εἴτε ἀρχαὶ εἴτε ἐξουσίαι· 16e      τὰ πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται· 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 1. Christ as the Agent of Creation Scot McKnight is representative in his claim that “The emphasis of the first stanza is Christ as the agent of creation … and the second is Christ as the agent of redemption.”[25] This view sees the phrase “in him were created all things” as Christ creating the universe in the beginning. However, this position has six problems with it. Firstly, the context of the poem—both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22)—is clearly soteriological not cosmogonical.[26] By inserting vv. 15-20 into the text after vv. 13-14, Paul connected the two together.[27] V. 15 begins with ὅς ἐστιν (who is), which makes it grammatically dependent on vv. 13-14. “It is widely accepted,” wrote Dunn, “that this passage is a pre-Pauline hymn interpolated and interpreted to greater or less extent by Paul.”[28] By placing the poem into a redemptive frame, Paul indicated how he interpreted it. The fact that God “rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son” is the controlling context (v. 13).[29] As I will show below, I believe vv. 15-20 are ecclesiology not protology, since ecclesiology naturally flows from soteriology. Rather than remaining in the old domain of darkness, vulnerable to malevolent spiritual powers of this age, Colossian Christians are transferred into the new domain of Christ. The context makes it more natural to interpret the creation language of vv. 15-16 in light of Christ's redemptive work—as references to new creation rather than old creation. Doing so retains the contextual frame rather than jumping back to the beginning of time. A second problem arises when we consider the phrase “image of the invisible God” in v. 15. Although some see a Stoic or Wisdom reference here, I agree with F. F. Bruce who said, “No reader conversant with the OT scriptures, on reading these words of Paul, could fail to be reminded of the statement in Gen. 1:26f., that man was created by God ‘in his own image.'”[30] Immediately after making humanity in his own image, God blessed us with dominion over the earth. Philo also connected humanity's image of God with “the rulership over the earthly realms.”[31] But if the Christ of v. 15 is the pre-existent son prior to his incarnation, as the old creation model posits, “How can he be the ‘image of God,'” asked Eduard Schweizer, since “the one who is thus described here is not the earthly Jesus?”[32] It is precisely by virtue of his humanity that Jesus is the image of God not his pre-existence.[33] Thus, image-of-God language points us to the creation of a new humanity. A third problem is that “firstborn of all creation” prima facia implies that Christ is a member of creation (a partitive genitive). This is how Paul thought about Christ as firstborn in Rom 8.29 when he called Christ “firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Clearly he saw Christ as a member of the “ἀδελφοῖς” (brothers and sisters). Furthermore, “πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως” (firstborn of all creation) in v. 15 parallels “πρωτότοκος ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν” (firstborn from the dead) v. 18. Although the former (v. 15) can be taken as a genitive of subordination (firstborn over creation) or as a partitive genitive (firstborn of creation), the latter (v. 18) is unambiguously partitive. Because v. 18 includes the word ἐκ (from/out of), instead of a multivalent genitive, it must mean that Jesus was himself a member of the dead prior to his resurrection. Likewise, he was the firstborn member of creation. To take v. 15 as a genitive of subordination and v. 18 in a partitive sense allows theology to drive exegesis over against the clear structural link between v. 15b and v. 18c. In fact, as the BDAG noted, Christ is “the firstborn of a new humanity.”[34] He is chronologically born first and, by virtue of that, also preeminent.[35] Fourthly, the phrase, “ἐν αὐτῷ” (in him), implies soteriology not protology as it does throughout the Pauline corpus. The prepositional phrases “in Christ,” “in the Lord,” “in him,” and others that are similar occur more than a hundred times in Paul's epistles. McKnight elucidated the sense nicely: “This expression, then, is the inaugurated eschatological reality into which the Christian has been placed, and it also evokes the new-creation realities that a person discovers.”[36] Creation in Christ is not likely to refer to Genesis creation. In fact, apart from Col 1.16, there is no text within Paul or the rest of the Bible that speaks of the origin of the universe as something created “in Christ.”[37] Sadly translators routinely obscure this fact by translating “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “by him.”[38] Amazingly, the NASB and ESV render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in every other usage apart from Col 1.16![39] For the sake of consistency, it makes better sense to render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” and let the reader decide how to interpret it. Fifthly, the line, “and he is the head of the body, the Church” (v. 18a) clearly roots the first strophe in redemptive history not creation. Our English translations follow Robert Estienne's verse divisions, which confusingly combine the last line of the first strophe (v. 18a) and the first line of the second (v. 18b), obscuring the native poetic structure. As I made the case above, the structure of the text breaks into two strophes with v. 18a included in the first one. As I mentioned earlier, vv. 15-20 are a pre-existing poem that Paul has modified and incorporated into the text of Colossians. Ralph Martin pointed out that the poem contains “no less than five hapax legomena” and “about ten non-Pauline expressions.”[40] Additionally, there appear to be awkward additions that disrupt the symmetry. These additions are the most explicitly Christian material. It is likely that the original said, “and he is the head of the body” to which Paul appended “the church.” Edward Schillebeeckx commented on this. In Hellenistic terms this must primarily mean that he gives life and existence to the cosmos. Here, however, Colossians drastically corrects the ideas … The correction made by Colossians is to understand ‘body' as a reference to the church, and not the cosmos. This alters the whole perspective of the cultural and religious setting … The cosmic background is reinterpreted in terms of salvation history and ecclesiology. In fact Christ is already exercising his lordship over the world now … however, he is doing this only as the head of the church, his body, to which he gives life and strength. Thus Colossians claims that the church alone, rather than the cosmos, is the body of Christ.[41] If this is true, it shows Paul's careful concern to disallow a strictly old creation or protological reading of the first strophe. For by inserting “of the church,” he has limited the context of the first strophe to the Christ event. “The addition of ‘the church,'” wrote Dunn, “indicates that for Paul at any rate the two strophes were not dealing with two clearly distinct subjects (cosmology and soteriology).”[42] Karl-Joseph Kuschel wrote, “The answer would seem to be he wanted to ‘disturb' a possible cosmological-protological fancy in the confession of Christ … to prevent Christ from becoming a purely mythical heavenly being.”[43] Thus Paul's addition shows us he interpreted the creation of v16 as new creation. Lastly, theological concerns arise when taking Col 1.16 as old creation. The most obvious is that given the partitive genitive of v. 15, we are left affirming the so-called Arian position that God created Christ as the firstborn who, in turn, created everything else. Another thorn in the side of this view is God's insistence elsewhere to be the solo creator (Isa 44.24; cf. 45.18). On the strength of this fact, modalism comes forward to save the day while leaving new problems in its wake. However, recognizing Col 1.15-20 as new creation avoids such theological conundrums. 2. Wisdom as the Agent of Creation Dustin Smith noted, “The christological hymn contains no less than nine characteristics of the wisdom of God (e.g., “image,” “firstborn,” agent of creation, preceding all things, holding all things together) that are reapplied to the figure of Jesus.”[44] Some suggest that Col 1.15-20 is actually a hymn to Wisdom that Paul Christianized.[45] The idea is that God created the universe through his divine Wisdom, which is now embodied or incarnate in Christ. Dunn explained it as follows. If then Christ is what God's power/wisdom came to be recognized as, of Christ it can be said what was said first of wisdom—that ‘in him (the divine wisdom now embodied in Christ) were created all things.' In other words the language may be used here to indicate the continuity between God's creative power and Christ without the implication being intended that Christ himself was active in creation.[46] Before pointing out some problems, I must admit much of this perspective is quite noncontroversial. That Jewish literature identified Wisdom as God's creative agent, that there are linguistic parallels between Col 1.15-20 and Wisdom, and that the historical Jesus uniquely embodied Wisdom to an unprecedented degree are not up for debate. Did Paul expect his readers to pick up on the linguistic parallels? Afterall, he could have just said “in her were created all things” in v. 16, clearly making the connection with the grammatically feminine σοφία (Wisdom). Better yet, he could have said, “in Wisdom were created all things.” Even if the poem was originally to Wisdom, Paul has thoroughly Christianized it, applying to Christ what had been said of Wisdom. However, the most significant defeater for this view is that applying Wisdom vocabulary to Christ only works one way. Wisdom has found her home in Christ. This doesn't mean we can attribute to Christ what Wisdom did before she indwelt him any more than we can attribute to the living descendants of Nazis the horrific deeds of their ancestors. Perriman's critique is correct: “The point is not that the act of creation was Christlike, rather the reverse: recent events have been creation-like. The death and resurrection of Jesus are represented as the profoundly creative event in which the wisdom of God is again dynamically engaged, by which a new world order has come about.”[47] Once again a new creation approach makes better sense of the text. 3. Christ as the Purpose of Creation Another approach is to take ἐν αὐτῷ (in him) in a telic sense. Martha King, a linguist with SIL, said the phrase can mean “in association with Christ everything was created” or “in connection with Christ all things were created.”[48] Lexicographer, Joseph Thayer, sharpened the sense with the translation, “[I]n him resides the cause why all things were originally created.”[49] William MacDonald's translation brought this out even more with the phrase, “because for him everything … was created.”[50] The idea is that God's act of creation in the beginning was with Christ in view. As Eric Chang noted, “Christ is the reason God created all things.”[51] G. B. Caird said, “He is the embodiment of that purpose of God which underlies the whole creation.”[52] The idea is one of predestination not agency.[53] Christ was the goal for which God created all things. A weakness of this view is that purpose is better expressed using εἰς or δία with an accusative than ἐν. Secondly, the parallel line in the second strophe (v. 19) employs “ἐν αὐτῷ” in a clearly locative sense: “in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell.” So even though “ἐν αὐτῷ” could imply purpose, in this context it much more likely refers to location. Lastly, Paul mentioned the sense of purpose at the end of v. 16 with “εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται” (for him has been created), so it would be repetitive to take “ἐν αὐτῷ” that way as well. To sum up, the three positions that see Col 1.16 as a reference to old creation all have significant problems. With these in mind, let us turn our attention to consider a fourth possibility: that Paul has in mind new creation. Reasons for a New Creation Reading I've already provided four reasons why Col 1.15-20 refers to new creation: (1) calling Christ the image of God points to the new humanity begun in Christ as the last Adam;[54] (2) since the firstborn of the old creation was Adam (or, perhaps, Seth), Jesus must be the firstborn of the new creation; (3) saying Jesus is the head of the church, limits the focus for the first strophe to the time following the Christ event; (4) the context of the poem, both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22) is soteriological, making an old creation paradigm awkward, while a new creation view fits perfectly. The Catholic priest and professor, Franz Zeilinger, summarized the situation nicely: “Christ is (through his resurrection from the realm of death) Lord over the possession granted to him, of which he is the ἀρχή (beginning) and archetype, … and head and beginning of the eschatological new creation!”[55] Additionally, a new creation paradigm fits best with Paul's elaboration of what visible and invisible things in heaven and on earth he has in mind. Once again, here's our text. 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him By specifying thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities, we discern Paul's train of thought. Form critics are quick to point out that v. 16d is Paul's addition to the poem. Without it, the reader may have thought of sky, land, and animals—old creation. However, with v. 16d present, we direct our attention to political realities not God's creative power or engineering genius. Martha King noted the two possible meanings for εἴτε: (1) specifying the “invisible things” or (2) giving examples of “all things.” Taking the second view, we read “in him were created all things, including thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities.”[56] Randy Leedy also presented this position in his sentence diagrams, identifying v. 16d as equivalent to v. 16c and v. 16b, all of which modify τὰ πάντα (all things) at the end of v. 16a. (See Appendix for Leedy's diagram.) Perriman pressed home the point when he wrote: The fact is that any interpretation that takes verse 16 to be a reference to the original creation has to account for the narrow range of created things explicitly listed. … The Colossians verse mentions only the creation of political entities—thrones, lordships, rulers and authorities, visible and invisible—either in the already existing heaven or on the already existing and, presumably, populated earth. What this speaks of is a new governmental order consisting of both invisible-heavenly and visibly-earthly entities.”[57] Understanding v. 16d as equivalent to “all things” in v. 16a nicely coheres with a new-creation paradigm. However, taken the other way—as an elaboration of only the invisible created realities—v. 16d introduces an asymmetrical and clumsy appendix. A New Creation Reading of Col 1.16 Now that we've considered some problems with old creation views and some reasons to read Col 1.16 from a new creation perspective, let's consider how a new creation reading works. New creation is all about the new breaking into the old, the future into the present. G. F. Wessels said, “Paul made clear that there is a present realized aspect of salvation, as well as a future, still outstanding aspect, which will only be realized at the eschaton.”[58] New creation, likewise, has future and present realities. Exiting Old Creation Before becoming part of the new creation, one must exit the old creation. “Our old humanity was co-crucified“ (Rom 6.6). “With Christ you died to the elemental principles of the world” (Col 2.20). “As many as were baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death” (Rom 6.3). We were “co-buried with him through baptism into the death … having been united with the likeness of his death” (Rom 6.4-5). Our death with him through baptism kills our allegiance and submission to the old powers and the old way of life “in which you formerly walked according to the zeitgeist of this world, according to the rule of the authority of the air, the spirit which now works in the children of disobedience” (Eph 2.2). Entering New Creation As death is the only way out of the old creation, so resurrection is the only way into the new creation. “You have been co-raised with Christ” (Col 3.1). God “co-made-alive us together with him” (Col 2.13).[59] By virtue of our union with Christ, we ourselves are already “co-raised and co-seated us in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2.6). The result of this is that “we also may walk in newness of life” (Rom 6.4). For those who are “in Christ, (there is) a new creation; the old has passed away, behold (the) new has come into existence” (2 Cor 5.17). “They have been ‘transported,'” wrote Schillebeeckx, “they already dwell above in Christ's heavenly sphere of influence (Col 1.13)—the soma Christou … that is the church!”[60] Community For the people of God, “neither circumcision is anything nor uncircumcision but a new creation” is what matters (Gal 6.15). Those who “are clothed with the new” are “being renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created, where there is no Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, (or) free, but Christ (is) all and in all” (Col 3.10-11). Through Christ God has nullified the law “in order that he might create the two into one new humanity in him” (Eph 2.14-15). Thus, within new creation, ethnic identity still exists, but it is relativized, our identity in Christ taking priority ahead of other affiliations and duties. Lifestyle When the lost become saved through faith, they become his creation (ποίημα), “created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Eph 2.10). This means we are to “lay aside the former way of life, the old humanity corrupted according to deceitful desires” and instead be clothed with “the new humanity created according to God in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Eph 4.22-24). Rather than lying to one another, we must “strip off the old humanity with its way of acting” and “be clothed with the new (humanity), renewed in knowledge according to the image of the one who created it” (Col 3.9-10). “The ones who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts” and instead “walk by the spirit” (Gal 5.24-25). Ultimately, All Creation Although new creation is currently limited to those who voluntarily recognize Jesus as Lord, all “creation is waiting with eager expectation for the unveiling of the children of God” (Rom 8.19). Because of the Christ event, the created order eagerly awaits the day when it will escape “the enslavement of corruption” and gain “the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (v. 21). Like a bone out of joint, creation does not function properly. Once Christ sets it right, it will return to its proper order and operation under humanity's wise and capable rulership in the eschaton. Eschatology God predetermined that those who believe will be “conformed to the image of his son, that he be firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Rom 8.29). Thus, the resurrected Christ is the prototype, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15.20). Whereas “in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive” (v. 22). We await Christ's return to “transform the body of our humble station (that it be) shaped to his glorious body according to the energy which makes him able to also to subject all things to himself.” (Phil 3.21). This is the end goal of new creation: resurrected subjects of God's kingdom joyfully living in a renewed world without mourning, crying, and pain forevermore (Isa 65.17-25; Rev 21-22). The Powers Taking Col 1.16 as a new creation text adds key information about the present governing powers to this richly textured picture. In Christ God created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities. He made these through Christ and for Christ with the result that Christ himself is before all things, and in Christ all things hold together (Col 1.17). He is the head of the body, the Church (Col 1.18). We find very similar language repeated in Ephesians in the context of Christ's exaltation.[61] Ephesians 1.20-23 20 Which [power] he energized in Christ having raised him from the dead and seated (him) on his right (hand) in the heavenlies 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come; 22 and he subjected all things under his feet and gave him (as) head over all things in the Church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in all. The parallels are striking. Both speak of Christ's resurrection, Christ's exalted position of authority over all the powers, Christ's role as head of the church, and both mention the fullness. It's easy to miss the connection between these two passages since most think of Eph 1.20-22 as ascension theology and Col 1.15-20 as creation theology. But, if we adjust our thinking to regard Col 1.16 as new creation, we see how the two fit together. In Ephesians we see Christ's ascension to God's right hand as the reason for a cosmic reordering of authorities with the result that all rule, authority, power, and dominion are subjected to him. (Though we may be accustomed to reading these powers in Eph 1.21 as only malevolent owing to Eph 2.2 and 6.12, the list here must be mixed, since only benevolent powers will survive the final judgement and continue into the age to come.) Instead of exaltation, in Colossians Paul employed the language of creation to describe Christ's relation to the powers. Perhaps lesser terms like reassign, reorder, or establish were just too small to adequately express the magnitude of how the Christ event has changed the world—both in heaven and on earth. The only term big enough to convey the new situation was “creation”—the very same word he routinely used elsewhere with the meaning of new creation.[62] We can gain more insight by considering what the powers of Eph 1.21 and Col 1.16 mean. McKnight saw them “as earthly, systemic manifestations of (perhaps fallen) angelic powers—hence, the systemic worldly, sociopolitical manifestations of cosmic/angelic rebellion against God.”[63] I partially agree with McKnight here. He's right to see the powers as both heavenly and earthly, or better, as the heavenly component of the earthly sociopolitical realities, but he has not made room for the new authority structures created in Christ. John Schoenheit helpfully explained it this way: Not only did Jesus create his Church out of Jew and Gentile, he had to create the structure and positions that would allow it to function, both in the spiritual world (positions for the angels that would minister to the Church—see Rev. 1:1, “his angel”) and in the physical world (positions and ministries here on earth—see Rom. 12:4-8; Eph. 4:7-11).[64] We must never forget that Paul has an apocalyptic worldview—a perspective that seeks to unveil the heavenly reality behind the earthly. He believed in powers of darkness and powers of light. In Christ were created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities (Col 1.16). He is “the head of all rule and authority” (Col 2.10). These new creation realities make progress against the old powers that still hold sway in the world outside the Church. Although the old powers are still at work, those who are in Christ enjoy his protection. With respect to the Church, he has already “disarmed the rulers and authorities” (Col 2.15). We can don “the armor of God that we be able to stand against the methods of the devil” (Eph 6.11) and “subduing everything, to stand” (v. 13). We find glimpses of this heavenly reality scattered in other places in the Bible. Peter mentioned how Christ “is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and power having been subjected to him” (1 Pet 3.22). In John's Revelation, he addressed each of the seven letters to the angels of their respective churches.[65] Although it's hard for us to get details on precisely what happened at Christ's ascension, something major occurred, not just on earth, but also in the spiritual realm. Jesus's last recorded words in Matthew are: “all authority in heaven and upon earth was given to me” (Mat 28.18-20). Presumably such a statement implies that prior to his resurrection Jesus did not have all authority in heaven and earth. It didn't exist until it was created. Similarly, because of his death, resurrection, and ascension, Christ has “become so much better than the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to them” (Heb 1.4). Once again, the text implies that Christ was not already superior to the angels, but “after making purification of the sins, he sat on the right hand of the majesty on high” at which time he became preeminent (Heb 1.3). Perhaps this also explains something about why Christ “proclaimed to the spirits in prison” (1 Pet 3.19). Another possibility is that Christ's ascension (Rev 12.5) triggered a war in heaven (v. 7) with the result that the dragon and his angels suffered defeat (v. 8) and were thrown out of heaven down to the earth (v. 9). Sadly, for most of the history of the church we have missed this Jewish apocalyptic approach that was obvious to Paul, limiting salvation to individual sins and improved morality.[66] Only in the twentieth century did interpreters begin to see the cosmic aspect of new creation. Margaret Thrall wrote the following. The Christ-event is the turning-point of the whole world … This Christ ‘in whom' the believer lives is the last Adam, the inaugurator of the new eschatological humanity. … Paul is saying that if anyone exists ‘in Christ', that person is a newly-created being. … In principle, through the Christ-event and in the person of Christ, the new world and the new age are already objective realities.[67] New creation is, in the words of J. Louis Martyn “categorically cosmic and emphatically apocalyptic.”[68] In fact, “The advent of the Son and of his Spirit is thus the cosmic apocalyptic event.”[69] In Christ is the beginning of a whole new creation, an intersecting community of angelic and human beings spanning heaven and earth. The interlocking of earthly (visible) and heavenly (invisible) authority structures points to Paul's apocalyptic holism. The Church was not on her own to face the ravages of Rome's mad love affair with violence and power. In Christ, people were no longer susceptible to the whims of the gods that have wreaked so much havoc from time immemorial.[70] No, the Church is Christ's body under his direct supervision and protection. As a result, the Church is the eschatological cosmic community. It is not merely a social club; it has prophetic and cosmic dimensions. Prophetically, the Church points to the eschaton when all of humanity will behave then how the Church already strives to live now—by the spirit instead of the flesh (Gal 5.16-25). Cosmically, the Church is not confined to the earth. There is a heavenly dimension with authority structures instantiated under Christ to partner with the earthly assemblies. God's “plan for the fulness of the times” is “to head up all thing in the Christ, the things upon the heavens and the things upon the earth in him” (Eph 1.10). Although this is his eschatological vision, Zeilinger pointed out that it is already happening. [T]he eschatological world given in Christ is realized within the still-existing earthly creation through the inclusion of the human being in Christ, the exalted one, by means of the proclamation of salvation and baptism. The eschaton spreads throughout the world in the kerygma and becomes reality, in that the human being, through baptism, becomes part of Christ—that is, in unity with him, dies to the claim of the στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου (2.20) and is raised with him to receive his eschatological life. The people thus incorporated into the exalted Christ thereby form, in him and with him, the new creation of the eschaton within the old! The body of Christ is thus recognizable as the expanding Church. In it, heavenly and earthly space form, in a certain sense, a unity.[71] The Church is a counter society, and embassy of the future kingdom shining the light of the age to come into the present in the power of the spirit with the protection of Christ and his heavenly powers over against the powers of darkness, who/which are still quite active—especially in the political realities of our present evil age (Gal 1.4). We bend the knee to the cosmic Christ now in anticipation of the day when “every knee may bend: heavenly and earthly and subterranean” (Phil 2.10) and “every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ (is) Lord” (v. 11). Christ's destiny is to fulfil the original Adamic mandate to multiply, fill, and have dominion over the earth (Gen 1.28). He has already received all authority in heaven and earth (Mat 28.18). God has given him “dominion over the works of your hands and put all things under his feet” as the quintessential man (Ps 8.6). Even so, “Now we do not yet see all things subjected to him” (Heb 2.8), but when he comes “he will reign into the ages of the ages” (Rev 11.15). Until then, he calls the Church to recognize his preeminence and give him total allegiance both in word and deed. Conclusion We began by establishing that the structure of the poetic unit in Col 1.15-20 breaks into two strophes (15-18a and 18b-20). We noted that Paul likely incorporated pre-existing material into Colossians, editing it as he saw fit. Then we considered the problems with the three old creation readings: (A) Christ as the agent of creation, (B) Wisdom as the agent of creation, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. In the course of critiquing (A), which is by far most popular, we observed several reasons to think Col 1.16 pertained to new creation, including (1) the image of God language in v. 15a, (2) the firstborn of all creation language in v. 15b, (3) the head of the Church language in v. 18a, and (4) the soteriological context (frame) of the poem (vv. 13-14, 21-22). To this I added a fifth syntactical reason that 16d as an elaboration of “τἀ πάντα” (all things) of 16a. Next, we explored the idea of new creation, especially within Paul's epistles, to find a deep and richly textured paradigm for interpreting God's redemptive and expanding sphere of influence (in Christ) breaking into the hostile world. We saw that new Christians die and rise with Christ, ending their association with the old and beginning again as a part of the new—a community where old racial, legal, and status divisions no longer matter, where members put off the old way of living and instead become clothed with the new humanity, where people look forward to and live in light of the ultimate transformation to be brought about at the coming of Christ. Rather than limiting new creation to the salvation of individuals, or even the sanctifying experience of the community, we saw that it also includes spiritual powers both “in the heavens and upon the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities” (Col 1.16). Reading Col 1.15-20 along with Eph 1.20-23 we connected God's creation of the powers in Christ with his exaltation of Christ to his right hand “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Eph 1.21). The point from both texts is clear: as “the head of the body, the Church” (Col 1.18; Eph 1.22), Christ is “before all things” (Col 1.17), “first in all things” (Col 1.18), and “far above all” (Eph 1.21), since God has “subjected all things under his feet” (Eph 1.22). Christ is preeminent as the firstborn of all new creation, “the new Adam … the starting point where new creation took place.”[72] Although the old powers still hold sway in the world, those in the interlocked heaven-and-earth new creation domain where Christ is the head, enjoy his protection if they remain “in the faith established and steadfast and not shifting away from the hope of the gospel” (Col 1.23). This interpretation has several significant advantages. It fits into Paul's apocalyptic way of thinking about Christ's advent and exaltation. It also holds together the first strophe of the poem as a unit. Additionally, it makes better sense of the context. (The ecclesiology of Col 1.15-18a follows logically from the soteriological context of vv. 13-14.) Lastly, it is compatible with a wide range of Christological options. Appendix Here is Col 1.16 from Leedy's sentence diagrams.[73] Of note is how he equates the τὰ πάντα of 16a with 16c and 16d rather than seeing 16d as an elaboration of τά ὁρατά. Bibliography Bauer, Walter, Frederick William  Danker, William F. Arndt, F. Gingrich, Kurt Aland, Barbara Aland, and Viktor Reichmann. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3rd ed. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000. Bird, Michael F. Colossians and Philemon. A New Covenant Commentary. Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009. Brown, Anna Shoffner. “Nothing ‘Mere’ About a Man in the Image of God.” Paper presented at the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Springfield, OH, Oct 14, 2022. Bruce, E. K. Simpson and F. F. The Epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians. The New International Commentary on the New Testament, edited by Ned B. Stonehouse. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1957. Buzzard, Anthony F. Jesus Was Not a Trinitarian. Morrow, GA: Restoration Fellowship, 2007. Caird, G. B. New Testament Theology. Edited by L. D. Hurst. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 2002. Caird, G. B. Paul’s Letters from Prison. New Clarendon Bible, edited by H. F. D. Sparks. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1976. Carden, Robert. One God: The Unfinished Reformation. Revised ed. Naperville, IL: Grace Christian Press, 2016. Chang, Eric H. H. The Only Perfect Man. Edited by Bentley C. F. Chang. 2nd ed. Montreal, QC: Christian Disciples Church Publishers, 2017. Deuble, Jeff. Christ before Creeds. Latham, NY: Living Hope International Ministries, 2021. Dunn, James D. G. Christology in the Making. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996. Dunn, James D. G. The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon. New International Greek Testament Commentary, edited by Gasque Marshall, Hagner. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996. Heiser, Michael S. The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019. King, Martha. An Exegetical Summary of Colossians. Dallas, TX: SIL International, 1992. Kuschel, Karl-Joseph. Born before All Time? Translated by John Bowden. New York, NY: Crossroad, 1992. Originally published as Beforen vor aller Zeit? Lane, William L. The New Testament Page by Page. Open Your Bible Commentary, edited by Martin Manser. Bath, UK: Creative 4 International, 2013. Leedy, Randy A. The Greek New Testament Sentence Diagrams. Norfolk, VA: Bible Works, 2006. Lohse, Edward. Colossians and Philemon. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1971. MacDonald, William Graham. The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament. Norfolk, VA: Bibleworks, 2012. Mark H. Graeser, John A. Lynn, John W. Schoenheit. One God & One Lord. 4th ed. Martinsville, IN: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, 2010. Martin, Ralph. “An Early Christian Hymn (Col. 1:15-20).” The Evangelical Quarterly 36, no. 4 (1964): 195–205. Martyn, J. Louis. Theological Issues in the Letters of Paul. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1997. McGrath, James F. The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009. McKnight, Scot. The Letter to the Colossians. New International Commentary on the New Testament, edited by Joel B. Green. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018. Norden, Eduard. Agnostos Theos: Untersuchungen Zur Formengeschichte Religiöser Rede. 4th ed. Stuttgart, Germany: B. G. Teubner, 1956. Originally published as 1913. Pao, David. Colossians and Philemon. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, edited by Clinton E. Arnold. Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012. Perriman, Andrew. In the Form of a God. Studies in Early Christology, edited by David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022. Philo. The Works of Philo. The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project. Edited by Kåre Fuglseth Peder Borgen, Roald Skarsten. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005. Robinson, James M. “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20.” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 270–87. Schillebeeckx, Eduard. Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord. Translated by John Bowden. New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977. Schoberg, Gerry. Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013. Schweizer, Eduard. The Letter to the Colossians. Translated by Andrew Chester. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982. Smith, Dustin R. Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024. Snedeker, Donald R. Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals. Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998. Thayer, Joseph Henry. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996. Thrall, Margaret. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. Vol. 1. The International Critical Commentary, edited by C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton. Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994. Wachtel, William M. “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” Paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005. Wessels, G. F. “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians.” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 183–202. Witherington III, Ben The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007. Yates, Roy. The Epistle to the Colossians. London: Epworth Press, 1993. Zeilinger, Franz. Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung. Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974. Footnotes [1] Since the nineteenth century biblical scholars have been divided over whether Paul wrote Colossians. One of the major reasons for thinking Paul didn't write Colossians is his exalted Christology—the very conclusion this paper seeks to undermine. A second major factor to argue against Pauline authorship is the difference in vocabulary, but this is explainable if Paul used a different amanuensis. The theologically more cosmic emphasis (also evident in Ephesians) is likely due to Paul's time in prison to reflect and expand his understanding of the Christ event. Lastly, the proto-Gnostic hints in Colossians do not require dating the epistle outside of Paul's time. Although Gnosticism flourished at the beginning of the second century, it was likely already beginning to incubate in Paul's time. [2] Eduard Schillebeeckx, Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977), 185. [3] Schillebeeckx, 185. [4] G. B. Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, New Clarendon Bible, ed. H. F. D. Sparks (Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1976), 177. [5] Caird, 181. [6] James D. G. Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, New International Greek Testament Commentary, ed. Gasque Marshall, Hagner (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 91. “[W]hat at first reads as a straightforward assertion of Christ's pre-existenct activity in creation becomes on closer analysis an assertion which is rather more profound—not of Christ as such present with God in the beginning, nor of Christ as identified with a pre-existent hypostasis or divine being (Wisdom) beside God, but of Christ as embodying and expressing (and defining) that power of God which is the manifestation of God in and to his creation.” (Italics in original.) James D. G. Dunn, Christology in the Making, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 194. [7] James F. McGrath, The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context (Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009), 46. [8] Andrew Perriman, In the Form of a God, Studies in Early Christology, ed. David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022), 200. [9] In addition, biblical unitarians routinely interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. See Anthony F. Buzzard, Jesus Was Not a Trinitarian (Morrow, GA: Restoration Fellowship, 2007), 189–90, Robert Carden, One God: The Unfinished Reformation, Revised ed. (Naperville, IL: Grace Christian Press, 2016), 197–200, Eric H. H. Chang, The Only Perfect Man, ed. Bentley C. F. Chang, 2nd ed. (Montreal, QC: Christian Disciples Church Publishers, 2017), 151–52, Jeff Deuble, Christ before Creeds (Latham, NY: Living Hope International Ministries, 2021), 163–66, John A. Lynn Mark H. Graeser, John W. Schoenheit, One God & One Lord, 4th ed. (Martinsville, IN: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, 2010), 493–94, Donald R. Snedeker, Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals (Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998), 291–92, William M. Wachtel, “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” (paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005), 4. [10] All translations are my own. [11] Stophes are structural divisions drawn from Greek odes akin to stanzas in poetry or verses in music. [12] Throughout I will capitalize Church since that reflects the idea of all Christians collectively not just those in a particular local assembly. [13] Eduard Norden, Agnostos Theos: Untersuchungen Zur Formengeschichte Religiöser Rede, 4th ed. (Stuttgart, Germany: B. G. Teubner, 1956), 250–54. [14] James M. Robinson, “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20,” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 272–73. [15] Edward Lohse, Colossians and Philemon, Hermeneia (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1971), 44. [16] Eduard Schweizer, The Letter to the Colossians, trans. Andrew Chester (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982), 57. [17] Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 84. [18] Ben  Witherington III, The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007), 129. [19] William L. Lane, The New Testament Page by Page, Open Your Bible Commentary, ed. Martin Manser (Bath, UK: Creative 4 International, 2013), 765. [20] E. K. Simpson and F. F. Bruce, The Epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Ned B. Stonehouse (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1957), 65. [21] Michael F. Bird, Colossians and Philemon, A New Covenant Commentary (Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009), 50. [22] David Pao, Colossians and Philemon, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, ed. Clinton E. Arnold (Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012), 87. [23] Lohse, 42. [24] Lohse, 43–44. [25] Scot McKnight, The Letter to the Colossians, New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Joel B. Green (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018), 144. [26] Col 1.13-14: “who rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son in whom we have the redemption, the forgiveness of the sins.” Col 1.21-22: “And you being formerly alienated and hostile in thought in the evil deeds, but now he reconciled (you) in his body of the flesh through the death to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him.” [27] In fact, we can easily skip from vv. 13-14 to vv. 21-22. [28] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 187–88. [29] Sadly, most translations erroneously insert a paragraph between vv. 14 and 15. This produces the visual effect that v. 15 is a new thought unit. [30] Bruce, 193. [31] Moses 2.65: “τὴν ἡγεμονίαν τῶν περιγείων” in Philo, The Works of Philo, The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005). See also Sirach 17.3. [32] Schweizer, 64. [33] For a helpful treatment of how the image of God relates to Christology, see Anna Shoffner Brown, “Nothing ‘Mere’ About a Man in the Image of God” (paper presented at the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Springfield, OH, Oct 14, 2022). [34] Walter Bauer et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), s.v. “πρωτότοκος,” 2.a. [35] Franz Zeilnger wrote, “Christ is temporally the first of a series that essentially proceeds from him, and at the same time its lord and head.” Franz Zeilinger, Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung (Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974), 182. Original: “als “Wurzel” ist Christus zeitlich der erste einer Reihe, die wesentlich aus ihm hervorgeht, und zugleich ihr Herr und Haupt.” [36] McKnight, 85–86. [37] The closest parallels are 1 Cor 8.6; Heb 1.2; and John 1.3, which employ the preposition δια (through). Upon close examination these three don't teach Christ created the universe either. [38] ESV, CSB, NASB, etc. Notably the NET diverges from the other evangelical translations. Roman Catholic, mainline, and unitarian translations all tend to straightforwardly render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in Col 1.16; cf. NABRE, NRSVUE, OGFOMMT, etc. [39] Chang, 150. [40] Ralph Martin, “An Early Christian Hymn (Col. 1:15-20),” The Evangelical Quarterly 36, no. 4 (1964): 198. [41] Schillebeeckx, 186. [42] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 191. [43] Karl-Joseph Kuschel, Born before All Time?, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: Crossroad, 1992), 336. [44] Dustin R. Smith, Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024), 5–6. For more on wisdom Christology in Col 1.16 see Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89, Roy Yates, The Epistle to the Colossians (London: Epworth Press, 1993), 18–19, 23, G. B. Caird, New Testament Theology, ed. L. D. Hurst (Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 2002), 46, McGrath, 44, 46. [45] See Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89. See also Yates, 18–19, 23. [46] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 190. [47] Perriman, 199. [48] Martha King, An Exegetical Summary of Colossians (Dallas, TX: SIL International, 1992), 53. [49] Joseph Henry Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996), s.v. “ἐν,” 1722. He recognized the cause was both instrumental and final. [50] William Graham MacDonald, The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament (Norfolk, VA: Bibleworks, 2012). [51] Chang, 147. Similarly James McGrath wrote, “[I]f all things were intended by God to find their fulfillment in Christ, then they must have been created “in him” in the very beginning in some undefined sense, since it was axiomatic that the eschatological climax of history would be a restoration of its perfect, original state.” McGrath, 46. [52] Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 172. [53] “God so designed the universe that it was to achieve its proper meaning and unity only under the authority of man (Gen. 128; Ps. 86). But this purpose was not to be implemented at once; it was ‘to be put into effect when the time was ripe' (Eph. 110), when Christ had lived a human life as God intended it, and had become God's image in a measure which was never true of Adam. Only in unity with ‘the proper man' could the universe be brought to its destined coherence. For one who believes in predestination it is but a small step from this to saying that the universe was created in him.” Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 178. [54] See also Paul's Adam Christology in Rom 5.12-21; 1 Cor 15.21-22, 45-49. [55] “Christus ist (durch seine Auferstehung aus dem Todesbereich) Herr über den ihm verliehenen Besitz, dessen ἀρχή und Urbild er ist, … und Haupt und Anfang der eschatologischen Neuschöpfung!” Zeilinger, 188. [56] King, 54. [57] Perriman, 200. [58] G. F. Wessels, “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians,” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 187. [59] I realize my translation is awkward, but I prioritized closely mirroring the Greek over presenting smooth English. The original reads, “συνεζωοποίησεν ὑμᾶς σὺν αὐτῷ.” [60] Schillebeeckx, 187. [61] Scholars who make this connection include Caird, New Testament Theology, 216, Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 177, McGrath, 44, Perriman, 201. [62] In fact, only two of the texts I cited above explicitly say “new creation” (2 Cor 5.17 and Gal 6.15). In all the others, Paul blithely employed creation language, expecting his readers to understand that he was not talking about the creation of the universe, but the creation of the new humanity in Christ—the Church. [63] McKnight, 152. [64] Mark H. Graeser, 493. [65] Rev 2.1, 8, 12, 18; 3.1, 7, 14. [66] See Gerry Schoberg, Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013), 280–81, 83. [67] Margaret Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, vol. 1, The International Critical Commentary, ed. C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton (Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994), 423, 26–28. [68] J. Louis Martyn, Theological Issues in the Letters of Paul (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1997), 122. [69] Martyn, 121. [70] Whether the old gods actually existed or not is a topic beyond the scope of this paper. Interested readers should consult Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019). [71] “[D]ie in Christus gegebene echatologische Welt verwirkliche sich innerhalb der weiterhin existenten irdischen Schöpfung durch die Einbeziehung des Menschen in Christus, den Erhöhten, mittles Heilsverkündigung und Taufe. Das Eschaton setzt sic him Kerygma wetweit durch und wird Wirklichkeit, indem der Mensch durch die Taufe Christi Teil wird, d. h. in Einheit mit ihm dem Anspruch der στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου stirbt (2, 20) und mit ihm auferweckt sein eschatologisches Leben erhält. Die so dem erhöhten Christus eingegliederten Menschen bilden somit in ihm und mit ihm die neue Schöpfung der Eschata innerhalb der alten! Der Christusleib ist somit als sich weitende Kirche erkennbar. In ihr bildet himmlischer und irdischer Raum gewissermaßen eine Einheit.” Zeilinger, 179. [72] “Der neue Adam … Ausgangsort, in dem sich Neuschöpfung ereignete,” Zeilinger, 199. [73] Randy A. Leedy, The Greek New Testament Sentence Diagrams (Norfolk, VA: Bible Works, 2006). This is now available in Logos Bible Software.

What is covenant faithfulness in marriage and is it still possible today? In this episode Tyler, Maron, and Barry go deeper into week 1 of our new sermon series, First Comes Love. We talk about agape love, marriage as a spiritual act, and what it means to pursue a Christlike covenant today.

We continue now to examine how to pray like Jesus. In this lesson we consider praying for our enemies as foundational to Christlike prayer. We also consider Christ's model of how we are to pray for one another as found in John 17.

Got questions for us?Join the conversation on Patreon!Submit your questions, and we might answer them on the pod. Let's connect, Stewards!Want more Exclusive Good Service Content?

In this powerful message from our Summer in the Scriptures series, Pastor Dave Hentschel unpacks Philippians 2:1–11 to explore what it means to build a gospel-shaped community. Using vivid imagery like football blindside hits to the humility of Christ, Pastor Dave challenges us to confront our spiritual blind spots and consider who's protecting our “blind side.” True Christian community isn't built through self-promotion or shallow connection, but through humility, mutual care, and sacrificial love. Drawing from Paul's profound Christ-hymn, we're reminded that "community thrives where self-centeredness dies, and self-centeredness dies when we look to the cross." Discover how relationships with a Paul, a Timothy, and a Barnabas can help anchor you in a life of spiritual accountability and growth. Don't miss this invitation to go deeper, not just in knowledge, but in Christlike love.August 3rd, 2025

Various Texts | JD Summers God's will for husbands is loving leadership in marriage that embraces God's design for masculinity and emulates Christ. God designed husbands to lead not as oppressive dictators but as loving heads who willingly bear the responsibility of caring for their families. Husbands may not feel up to the task, or they may be discouraged by past failure, but God promises to equip with strength, wisdom, and grace to accomplish his purposes. In all this, the leadership husbands are called to is leadership defined by Christlike love, a love that initiates, serves, sacrifices, and sanctifies. Praise be to Christ, who exemplifies and sustains this love in us!

Conflict is part of life—but how you handle it makes all the difference. In this message, we look at what the Bible says about navigating conflict in a Christlike way. From controlling your words to choosing forgiveness over offense, learn how to stop fighting to win the argument and start fighting to save the relationship. Featuring key scriptures from Proverbs, Matthew, and Philippians, this is a practical and powerful reminder that peacemakers aren't passive—they're wise.

This time on Perspectives FUMCSD Pastors podcast, Rev. Brittany and Rev. Hannah continue the conversation about “The Christ-Like Journey” by discussing how Jesus relied upon strangers, and so should we. It’s a concept that many of us dismiss but through the Gospel of Luke, the two female pastors demonstrate how we must rely upon strangers (who often become our friends!) as we journey through life. The digital Bible study starts with the reading of Luke 10:38-42, the account of Jesus accepting hospitality from Mary and Martha for the first time. It’s a well-known story (though we often get it confused with the account from the Gospel of John!). Rev. Brittany and Rev. Hannah take the opportunity to pack quite a few theories around the need for hospitality from strangers, including: The theme of the traveler being a common theme throughout the Gospel of Luke. How it’s easier to give hospitality than it is to receive it. To fully experience the Christian faith, we can’t just give, we also must receive. The various boundaries we seen crossed through this Gospel story and how being radically hospitable sometimes require us to cross social boundaries. The importance of attitude when it comes to hospitality and faith journeys. And that’s just the beginning of the wisdom that’s available to unpack! You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: How comfortable are you with meeting strangers? Who are you hesitant to offer hospitality to and why? What keeps you worried and distracted from receiving hospitality? Have you ever felt resentful in offering hospitality? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

This time on Perspectives FUMCSD Pastors podcast, Rev. Brittany and Rev. Hannah continue the conversation about “The Christ-Like Journey” by discussing how Jesus relied upon strangers, and so should we. It’s a concept that many of us dismiss but through the Gospel of Luke, the two female pastors demonstrate how we must rely upon strangers (who often become our friends!) as we journey through life. The digital Bible study starts with the reading of Luke 10:38-42, the account of Jesus accepting hospitality from Mary and Martha for the first time. It’s a well-known story (though we often get it confused with the account from the Gospel of John!). Rev. Brittany and Rev. Hannah take the opportunity to pack quite a few theories around the need for hospitality from strangers, including: The theme of the traveler being a common theme throughout the Gospel of Luke. How it’s easier to give hospitality than it is to receive it. To fully experience the Christian faith, we can’t just give, we also must receive. The various boundaries we seen crossed through this Gospel story and how being radically hospitable sometimes require us to cross social boundaries. The importance of attitude when it comes to hospitality and faith journeys. And that’s just the beginning of the wisdom that’s available to unpack! You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: How comfortable are you with meeting strangers? Who are you hesitant to offer hospitality to and why? What keeps you worried and distracted from receiving hospitality? Have you ever felt resentful in offering hospitality? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

Send us a textWelcome back!Today, we're tackling one of the most countercultural messages in Scripture: the call to willingly lay down our rights.We live in a world where everything revolves around my freedom, my voice, my choice. But Paul turns that upside down in 1 Corinthians 9, showing us a deeper way. He had every right as an apostle to financial support, comfort, and recognition—yet he surrendered those rights for the sake of love and the advance of the gospel.This isn't weakness. This is Christlike strength. It's the same pattern we see in Jesus, who gave up the glory of heaven to rescue us.Episode Highlights:Why the gospel calls us to lay down personal rightsPaul's radical example of surrender in ministryHow Christ's humility defines true Christian maturityWhy love must govern our freedomsThe eternal reward in giving up what you could claim now

In this powerful second part of my conversation with Dr. Ronnie Kent and Dr. James Kent, authors of The Anxiety Algorithm, we dig deeper into how faith, mindset, and God's presence can transform anxious patterns into lasting peace and joy.The Kents share how abiding in Christ—not striving—produces the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. We talk about how the Holy Spirit shields us like “filter paper,” allowing only what shapes us into Christ's likeness to touch our lives, and how to apply the Anxiety Algorithm in real-time—even during the everyday stressors like parenting, finances, and yes, even pickleball matches!We also explore the secret of true contentment and long-term wellness, plus how God invites us not just to survive anxiety but to thrive with a renewed sense of joy and freedom.Whether you're facing everyday worries or long-standing battles with fear, this episode offers practical hope rooted in Scripture, brain science, and the peace only God can bring.Key Takeaways:Abiding in Christ—not striving—produces true spiritual fruit like peace, patience, and self-control.God shields us from more than we realize, using every challenge to grow Christlike character.The Anxiety Algorithm isn't just for anxiety—it applies to anger, depression, loneliness, and beyond.Memorizing Scripture gives the Holy Spirit “ammunition” to redirect our thoughts in anxious moments.True contentment, as Paul described in Philippians, is a learned posture—and it's possible for all believers.Effort matters to God—He cheers our perseverance more than our performance or “wins.”Chapters00:00 Introduction to the Anxiety Algorithm01:55 Applying the Algorithm in Daily Life10:06 Visualization and the Holy Spirit15:15 Long-Term Wellness and Contentment21:22 Goals and Takeaways from the ConversationBUY THE BOOK HERE OR PEEK INSIDE:⁠Anxiety Algorithm⁠ https://amzn.to/44GQ8mtConnect with Ronnie and James: https://journeywise.network/anxiety-algorithm/CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:*NEW RELEASE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pickleball Passion A Marriage Devotional: 21 Days to a Stronger Connection on and off the Court⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://amzn.to/48wnvaV*⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CHOOSE 2 THINK 365-DAY DEVOTIONAL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠:⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3Hcl7v1*⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CHOOSE 2 THINK JOURNAL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: https://amzn.to/3WvinNDEMAIL: choose2think@gmail.com ⁠⁠PODCAST WEBSITE: www.choose2thinkpodcast.comMINISTRY WEBSITE:⁠⁠ www.choose2think.co⁠⁠MENTORING:⁠⁠ www.choose2think.co/coaching.html ⁠⁠FACEBOOK:⁠⁠ www.facebook.com/groups/choose2think⁠⁠INSTAGRAM⁠⁠: www.instagram.com/victoriadwalkerlydon/*When you click on these Amazon affiliate links, I may earn a teeny commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!DISCLAIMER: The Choose 2 Think Inspirational Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult your physician or doctor for all medical advice and counsel.Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/victoria-d-lydon/message⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SUPPORT CHOOSE 2 THINK MINISTRIES AND PODCAST HERE:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠PATREON: Patreon.com/Choose2Think

Link to the full podcast:https://youtu.be/8Dy-E7dyeWE?si=S5szRZCfjROrEIi7 Description:In this heartfelt conversation, Dr. Clay Jackson reflects on humility, holiness, and the deep personal cost of authentic ministry. Drawing from his own missteps and growth, he emphasizes God's relentless call to integrity, the importance of spiritual maturity, and the need for the Church to resist commercialization. Dr. Jackson challenges leaders to prioritize mission over image, authenticity over performance, and Spirit-led labor over mere excellence. With candid insights and pastoral wisdom, he calls for a return to the heart of the gospel—where character, not charisma, sustains effective, Christlike leadership.Purchase The Christian Leader Blueprint book today: https://www.ryanfranklin.org/blueprintbookDownload The Christian Leader Blueprint – Short Guide (Free): https://www.ryanfranklin.org/blueprint Take the Christian Leader™ Self-Assessment (Free):https://www.ryanfranklin.org/clselfassessment Learn more about Christian Leader™ Community Coaching:https://www.ryanfranklin.org/communitycoaching YouTube and Audio Podcast: https://www.ryanfranklin.org/leaderpodcast Connect with Ryan: Email: info@ryanfranklin.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rnfranklin/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rnfranklin/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rnfranklin/ Audio mastering by Apostolic Audio: https://www.apostolic-audio.com#leadership, #thoughtleadership, #ministry, #pastor, #pastors, #churches, #leadershiptraining, #churchleader, #churchleaders, #influence, #leadershipdevelopment, #coaching, #executivecoach, #leadershipcoaching, #productivitycoach, #productivity, #growthmindset, #theproductiveleader, #ChristianLeader, #ChristianLeadership, #LeadershipPodcast, #FaithAndBusiness, #PodcastInterview, #ChristianEntrepreneurship, #KingdomImpact, #PodcastInspiration, #LeadershipJourney, #PurposeDriven, #ChristianPodcast, #LeadershipEssentials, #LeadershipFundamentalsSend us a text

Send us a textWelcome back!In today's episode, we explore a timeless moral tension: What do we do when our freedom conflicts with someone else's conscience? From meat offered to idols in Corinth to alcohol in our modern lives, the principle remains the same—love must guide freedom.Growing up, many of us were handed an unwritten moral code. But what happens when that code isn't black-and-white in Scripture? How do we navigate the grey?Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 8 teach us that knowledge—while important—can puff us up. But love? Love builds up. When others are watching, when their faith is at stake, Paul says: “If my freedom causes them to stumble, I'll lay it down.”This is not legalism. It's not a weakness. It's Christlike love in action.Whether you're navigating questions about cultural practices, personal liberty, or sensitive matters within your community, this chapter invites you to ask not just, “Is this allowed?” but “Is this loving?”Episode Highlights:

Community is our Opportunity all hinges on us embracing our purpose as a local congregation; Helping people discover and develop a life in Christ.

This week, John welcomes Catholic evangelist John Sablan for a powerful conversation about healing, discipleship, and what it truly means to live a Christlike life. Sablan shares his personal journey from a wounded and rebellious past to a life on fire for the Lord, revealing how the love of God—and hours spent in Eucharistic adoration—radically transformed him as a husband, father, and man. Together, he and Edwards discuss the difference between going to church and becoming a disciple, and how every man is called to a life of holiness, no matter his story. If you've ever felt unworthy, stuck in sin, or unsure where to begin, this episode is for you. God is not looking for perfection—He's after your heart. Check out more of John Sablan's work at https://www.johnsablan.com/ Check out his new book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578734761 And follow him on social media: https://www.instagram.com/johnjsablan https://www.facebook.com/johnjsablan Launch a Life Changing Group for Men in Your Parish! ⛪️ http://www.justaguyinthepew.com Learn more about our pilgrimage: Walk in the Footsteps of St. Paul in Greece and Turkey with John

How do you show up for someone in the middle of their hardest moments—especially when you don't know what to say? In this heartfelt episode, coach Susan Achziger joins Heather to talk about the sacred work of ministering to people who are hurting. Susan shares her personal experiences navigating her son's addiction, mental health struggles, and deep loss—and the profound lessons she's learned about presence, compassion, and supporting others without judgment. Together, they explore why silence can be powerful, how to avoid unintentionally hurtful comments, and why the Savior's example of “weeping with” rather than “fixing for” is the model we need. This episode will leave you feeling more confident and more Christlike in how you minister. For more information about Susan and for links to access all she has to offer, please click HERE! To watch this interview on YouTube, go HERE. For more information and available downloads, go to: https://ldslifecoaches.com/ All content is copyrighted to Heather Rackham and featured coaches. Do not use without permission.  

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Southeast Baptist Podcast features the preaching and teaching of Pastor John Ray, the senior pastor of Southeast Baptist Tabernacle in Indianapolis, IN. His preaching is biblical, conversational, and encouraging as you pursue a Christlike walk.

Don't miss an amazing Book of Abraham Workshop in September. We will hold this right when we are getting to that time period in the Come Follow Me program. We will spend three days in Lindon, Utah going over aspects of the Book of Abraham in more detail than we have ever done before. You can attend in person to take full advantage of interactions, or via Zoom. Go to https://www.patreon.com/c/enlightenedgeedu/posts to learn about this opportunity. Don't miss it!In this episode Kerry and Dr. Andrew Skinner explore one of the most significant sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. They look at how the revelation on the priesthood was based in some specific historical happenings, and at how it begins with instructions about the temple and how the priesthood fits into temple restoration. They look at the role of priesthood in seeing God, in being renewed, and a host of other ways it affects our lives. They discuss how this applies to men and women. They outline the oath and covenant of the priesthood, and how it applies to men and women. They discuss the role of the Book of Mormon. They talk about theosis, or the process of becoming godly or Christlike. We are so grateful for all those who support us and make this possible. We are grateful for our executive producers, B. Fisher and K. Bradley, J. Beardall, D. Anderson, and H. Umphlett, and for all our generous and loyal donors. We are also very grateful for all our Patreon members. We are so thankful for Launchpad Consulting Studios for producing the content and for Rich Nicholls, who composed and plays the music for the podcast.

Don't miss an amazing Book of Abraham Workshop in September. We will hold this right when we are getting to that time period in the Come Follow Me program. We will spend three days in Lindon, Utah going over aspects of the Book of Abraham in more detail than we have ever done before. You can attend in person to take full advantage of interactions, or via Zoom. Go to https://www.patreon.com/c/enlightenedgeedu/posts to learn about this opportunity. Don't miss it!In this episode Kerry and Dr. Andrew Skinner explore one of the most significant sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. They look at how the revelation on the priesthood was based in some specific historical happenings, and at how it begins with instructions about the temple and how the priesthood fits into temple restoration. They look at the role of priesthood in seeing God, in being renewed, and a host of other ways it affects our lives. They discuss how this applies to men and women. They outline the oath and covenant of the priesthood, and how it applies to men and women. They discuss the role of the Book of Mormon. They talk about theosis, or the process of becoming godly or Christlike. We are so grateful for all those who support us and make this possible. We are grateful for our executive producers, B. Fisher and K. Bradley, J. Beardall, D. Anderson, and H. Umphlett, and for all our generous and loyal donors. We are also very grateful for all our Patreon members. We are so thankful for Launchpad Consulting Studios for producing the content and for Rich Nicholls, who composed and plays the music for the podcast.

In a world that feels more divided than ever, what if disagreement is actually the key to deeper, more meaningful friendships? In this message, Joel Thomas explores how Scripture invites us to move toward each other with curiosity, courage, and Christlike love. In this 4-part series, we unpack powerful principles that can help you find, build, and keep the kind of friendships your soul actually needs. Because great friendships aren't just nice—they're necessary.

The female pastors of First United Methodist Church of San Diego continue the conversation about the radical cost of Christian discipleship – this time by looking at how Jesus calls people to leave behind their families, livelihood, and comforts to follow him. It’s a conversation inspired by Luke 9:56-62. Rev. Hannah and Rev. Brittany break down the scripture verse by verse with this digital Bible study with goal of better understanding what Jesus risked when he left the comforts of his family home. Some of the radical demands of discipleship that they observe include: Deprioritizing your own creature comforts and your familial and cultural obligations. Letting go of social, family, and religious traditions of the past to look toward a new future and way of life. Stopping the seeking and following of safe, predictable paths and instead living in the moment. Looking for the messiest places on Earth, disrupting with transformative love, and letting go of prosperity theologies. There is a lot more to say about leaving home and comforts to embark into the unknown. You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: How do our homes (spiritual or physical) create safe spaces for us thrive and/or comforts that hold us back? How has Christ’s radical demand of discipleship changed your life? As a disciple of Jesus Christ, are you prepared to face rejection and/or persecution? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

The female pastors of First United Methodist Church of San Diego continue the conversation about the radical cost of Christian discipleship – this time by looking at how Jesus calls people to leave behind their families, livelihood, and comforts to follow him. It’s a conversation inspired by Luke 9:56-62. Rev. Hannah and Rev. Brittany break down the scripture verse by verse with this digital Bible study with goal of better understanding what Jesus risked when he left the comforts of his family home. Some of the radical demands of discipleship that they observe include: Deprioritizing your own creature comforts and your familial and cultural obligations. Letting go of social, family, and religious traditions of the past to look toward a new future and way of life. Stopping the seeking and following of safe, predictable paths and instead living in the moment. Looking for the messiest places on Earth, disrupting with transformative love, and letting go of prosperity theologies. There is a lot more to say about leaving home and comforts to embark into the unknown. You can keep the conversation going by joining our weekly in-person Convergence discussion group or heading over to our Patreon channel to discuss the following questions with others: How do our homes (spiritual or physical) create safe spaces for us thrive and/or comforts that hold us back? How has Christ’s radical demand of discipleship changed your life? As a disciple of Jesus Christ, are you prepared to face rejection and/or persecution? Our Patreon community is open to all – no matter where you align in your spiritual beliefs. It’s free to join and connect over the weekly episode questions. There are also two additional membership levels that allow you to unlock additional content. Check it out at https://www.patreon.com/fumcsd!

From the Father's eternal perspective, His purpose has never been shaped by sin or time—it has always been to raise sons who grow in union with Him. Chapter 9 reveals four phases of His divine plan: creaturehood, sonship, heirship, and throneship. Each phase invites us not just to receive life from God but to participate in His purpose. We learn that Adam was not created with divine life, but with the potential for it. God's goal was not merely to restore a lost paradise, but to form mature sons through moral choices, spiritual development, and shared rulership. Sonship is a starting point, not a final destination. Are we merely surviving on experiences? Or are we growing in character and capacity to participate in all God longs to share? His ultimate intention is not just our salvation—it's our growth into Christlike maturity and our place on the throne with Him. Here we go! Thanks for Listening! I hope that after listening to The Tent Talk Podcast, you'll want to start discussions with your team or small group. These resources can help guide your discipleship journey to maturity and destiny with the Father: Episode Notes & Conversation Guide DOWNLOAD HERE https://nancymccready.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/A-Summer-Book-Series-Ultimate-Intention-Chapter-9.pdf LINKS The Producer's Way School theproducersway.com Nancy's book, From Trauma to Trust www.amazon.com/dp/B096ZML6R3/ JOIN THE CONVERSATION Every journey begins with a conversation, join us on social media to get started! Facebook: www.facebook.com/nbmccready Instagram: www.instagram.com/nbmccready/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@nancymccreadyministries SUBSCRIBE Like what you hear? Subscribe to Tent Talk with Nancy McCready so you don't miss an episode! nancymccready.com/podcast/ ABOUT NANCY MCCREADY Nancy McCready is redefining discipleship across nations, cultures, and denominations. Through Nancy McCready Ministries, she partners with leaders to build deep, transformative discipleship cultures that provoke people to walk in freedom and live as mature sons of the Father. Her powerful message comes from her journey of overcoming abuse, addiction, and self-destruction to walk in true freedom. She now dedicates her life to helping others grow in intimacy with the Father and live unto Him. ABOUT TENT TALK PODCAST Tent Talk with Nancy McCready is a listener-funded podcast dedicated to helping Christians along their journey of a deeper walk with Christ. With the support of donors like you, we are able to help our listeners gain a deeper spiritual understanding and connection with the Father. Thank you for your support of the Tent Talk Podcast! nancymccready.com/giving/ Brought to you by Nancy McCready Ministries nancymccready.com/

Send us a textWelcomeWhat should a Christian do when wronged by another believer? In today's episode, we explore Paul's surprisingly radical teaching in 1 Corinthians 6 about how Christians are to approach conflict, especially when it involves legal disputes.We're reminded that our calling isn't just to win in court, but to walk in the way of Christ — even if that means choosing to be wronged for the sake of unity, witness, and love.

When friendship wounds cut deep, how do we respond with the love of Christ? In this prayer, Alicia Searl shares her personal story of heartache, healing, and hope after a broken friendship, along with the scriptures that helped her navigate forgiveness, boundaries, and Christlike compassion. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

If you’ve ever wrestled with how your personal faith connects with the pain and injustice in the world, this episode offers a path forward, not in politics or performance, but in deep spiritual formation. Alan sits down with transformation life coach and ministry leader Brenda Renderos for a tender, honest conversation at the intersection of soul care and justice, especially racial justice. Drawing from her years of experience walking with individuals toward greater wholeness, Brenda shares how a deeply rooted faith can lead to healing, redemptive engagement with our neighbors. Together, they explore: How inner transformation and outward justice are connected Why justice isn’t about guilt or shame but about love and presence What to do when justice work feels overwhelming or exhausting And how to take one Spirit-led step forward at a time This episode invites you to slow down, listen deeply, and consider how Christ might be forming you for justice that flows from the heart. Brenda’s Invitations to Dig Deeper: The prophets call out religious devotion that ignores justice (Isaiah 58, Amos 5). Jesus admonished the Pharisees for tithing religiously but neglecting 'justice, mercy, and faithfulness' (Matthew 23:23). Is my spiritual life making me more just? And is my work for justice making me more Christlike? What is shaping my view of justice? Am I looking at it through a cultural lens, a political lens, or a biblical lens? A great way to begin is by simply sitting with scripture. Read passages like Isaiah 1:17, Micah 6:8, or Luke 4:18-19, and ask: What does God say about justice? What does this reveal about his heart? What is his invitation for me in this season? What is one small way I can stay engaged this week, even if it feels slow? And trust that even the small things matter in God's bigger story. ______________________________________________________ Connect with Gem on Instagram and learn more on the Unhurried Living website and her new book, Hold That Thought: Sorting Through the Voices in Our Heads Learn about PACE: Certificate in Leadership and Soul Care Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Join in and listen to Pastor Craig talk about clearing out the things in our lives that keep us from being with Jesus.

If God has always looked like Jesus, what does that mean for how we understand wrath, judgment, and justice? What do we do with the violence in the Old Testament, or the warnings of hell in the New?In this powerful and eye-opening episode, Dr. Brad Jersak joins Johnny Ova for a deeply theological yet pastoral conversation on one of the most urgent questions of our time: What is God really like?Together, they explore:Why Brad believes Jesus (especially crucified) is the full and final revelation of God's natureHow this reshapes the way we interpret divine wrath, judgment, and Old Testament violenceWhether the doctrine of eternal conscious torment fits the character of a Christlike GodHow to read Scripture through the lens of Jesus, rather than flattening all parts of the Bible equallyWhy many traditional views of justice fail to reflect the restoration, mercy, and nonviolence revealed in ChristJohnny and Brad dig in with honesty, humility, and a shared passion for helping believers rediscover the God who is love, not abstractly, but as revealed in Jesus crucified and risen.If you've ever wrestled with difficult portrayals of God in Scripture or longed to reconcile the Bible's harshest passages with the kindness of Christ… this episode is for you.

In week 12 of our series on the Gospel of Mark, guest speaker Laurel Bunker recaps Mark 3:20-35. In this passage, Jesus reminds the crowd to love one another. If we fight each other we won't get very far. As Christians, we can't be Christlike if we don't learn to love and forgive others. Our […] The post How are you loving others like Christ? | Mark 3: 20-35 | Laurel Bunker  appeared first on Cross Point Church.