

The BEMA Podcast
BEMA Discipleship
The BEMA Podcast is a walk-through of the context of the Bible and the Text itself, as well as surrounding history. We deconstruct our common readings of the Bible and attempt to reconstruct them through the lens of historical context.
The main body of work is contained in Seasons 1–5, and we encourage you to start with episode 0 (or even -1) and continue in order through episode 204. Beyond that, we explore new topics, revisit old topics, and dive deeper into practical ways of living out the things we have learned together.
BEMA Discipleship is a ministry of Impact Campus Ministries.
The main body of work is contained in Seasons 1–5, and we encourage you to start with episode 0 (or even -1) and continue in order through episode 204. Beyond that, we explore new topics, revisit old topics, and dive deeper into practical ways of living out the things we have learned together.
BEMA Discipleship is a ministry of Impact Campus Ministries.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 12, 2023 • 1h 23min
313: Parables — The Good Samaritan
Brent Billings is joined by Reed Dent and Elle Grover Fricks to talk about the story of the Good Samaritan and what it looks like to love people we’d rather not.Elle Meets John Piper“On Priests and Jericho in the Second Temple Period” by Joshua Schwartz — ResearchGateThe Parable of the Good Samaritan — Reed Dent, Campus Christian FellowshipSupport The BEMA Podcast

Jan 5, 2023 • 1h 10min
312: Parables — Dissecting a Swallow
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are bringing in Reed Dent to launch a miniseries on parables, starting with a discussion about what a parable is and why anyone would want to teach in that way.Tell It Slant by Eugene PetersonThe Great Spiritual Migration by Brian McLarenKingdom, Grace, Judgment by Robert Farrar Capon“Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins from The Apple That Astonished ParisPoet & Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes by Kenneth E. BaileyThe Orthodox Heretic by Peter RollinsJoin the BEMA SlackSupport The BEMA Podcast

Dec 29, 2022 • 49min
311: Keith Simon — Truth Over Tribe
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Keith Simon, co-author of Truth Over Tribe, who co-planted The Crossing, a politically diverse church where he is the co-lead teaching pastor. He hosts a podcast by the same name, Truth Over Tribe, and teaches on Ten Minute Bible Talks.Truth Over Tribe by Patrick Miller and Keith SimonTruth Over Tribe PodcastTen Minute Bible TalksBEMA 309: On Social MediaAdditional audio production by Gus SimpsonSpecial Guest: Keith Simon.Support The BEMA Podcast

Dec 22, 2022 • 47min
310: The Nativity Story
The Nativity Story (2006 film)The Nativity Story on JustWatchBEMA 89: Written in the StarsWhen God Was a Boy by C. T. GilesFestival Edition: The Birth (w/ Katie Del Rocco) [Adaptation from Frederick Buechner] — Marty Solomon, YouTubeSpecial Guest: Maggi Billings.Support The BEMA Podcast

Dec 19, 2022 • 39min
309: On Social Media (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings address the Twitter-sized elephant in the room, talk about how each of them use social media, and consider ways all of us can engage this part of our world in a healthy way.BEMA Poll/Survey (valid through 26 April 2023)“Twitter suspends @ElonJet plane-tracking bot after Musk pledged to leave it up” — Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica“Elon Musk offloads another $3.6 billion of Tesla stock” — Dave Lee, Financial Times/Ars Technica“One More for the ‘Everything Is Going Just Fine at Twitter’ File” — John Gruber, Daring Fireball“Musk brings back Twitter Blue with new features to prevent impersonation” — Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica“On the Prevalence of Hate Speech on Twitter” — John Gruber, Daring Fireball“Goodbye, Twitter” — Ken White, SubstackBrent’s Tweet on Sabbath“Platformer: Twitter Considering Making Personalized Ads and Location Sharing Mandatory” — John Gruber, Daring FireballThought of the Day: The Social Dilemma — Marty Solomon, YouTubeBrent’s Tweet on Playback ControlsTweet Thread on Infinite ScrollingBEMA 2: Knowing When to Say “Enough”Thought of the Day: Social Media Beatitudes — Marty Solomon, YouTubeThought of the Day: Disagreement — Marty Solomon, YouTubeBEMA on FacebookBEMA on TwitterMarty on InstagramBrent on InstagramBrent’s Mastodon Invite LinkTHINGS THAT TRANSPIRED BETWEEN RECORDING AND PUBLISHINGElon’s Poll for Leadership of TwitterBrent’s Tweet Commenting on How This Episode Quickly Became OutdatedDave Lee’s Tweet on Linking to MastodonAaron Levie’s Tweet on External Linking PolicySupport The BEMA Podcast

Dec 15, 2022 • 50min
308: The Chosen S2E9 — “The Messengers”
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Maggi Billings to discuss The Chosen S2E9 (the 2021 Christmas special), “The Messengers.”The ChosenThe Chosen (TV Series) — WikipediaThe Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDbFestival Edition: The Birth (w/ Katie Del Rocco) [Adaptation from Frederick Buechner] — Marty Solomon, YouTubeThe Nativity Story (2006 film)The Nativity Story on JustWatchSpecial Guest: Maggi Billings.Support The BEMA Podcast

Dec 8, 2022 • 1h 4min
307: Tohu va Vohu (State of the Podcast)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by Brian Truschinger, Elle Grover Fricks, Reed Dent, and Josh Bossé, all together for the very first time to discuss what is happening with BEMA and what we hope for the future.BEMA Poll/Survey (valid through 26 April 2023)The BEMA LiturgyTell It Slant by Eugene PetersonElle’s Website for Hebrew ClassesThe Text In Us PodcastJosh’s Beard Progress (surgery > shaved > 1 month > 3 months)Sermon with Brian’s Toilet Story“How to Speed Listen (for Students or Podfasters)” by Hugh Rayner — University of MelbourneSpecial Guest: Brian Truschinger.Support The BEMA Podcast

Dec 1, 2022 • 60min
306: Brian David — Chiasms in John
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Brian David, who spent 37 years coaching people in software, and 25 years coaching high school sports, but now finds himself “coaching” the Text.Chiasms in John by Brian DavidBEMA 28: Images of the Desert — Ar'ar and TamariskPoet & Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes by Kenneth E. BaileyStar Wars Ring Theory by Mike KlimoJesus and the Eyewitnesses by Richard BauckhamJoin the BEMA SlackAdditional audio production by Gus SimpsonSpecial Guest: Brian David.Support The BEMA Podcast

Nov 17, 2022 • 1h 4min
305: Gary Burge — Interpreting the Gospel of John
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Dr. Gary Burge, author of Interpreting the Gospel of John, and one of the foremost authorities on John. He was a professor at Wheaton College for 25 years and now serves as a New Testament scholar at Calvin Theological Seminary.Gary M. Burge, Professor of New Testament — Calvin Theological SeminaryInterpreting the Gospel of John by Gary M. BurgeJames Dunn — WikipediaThe Anointed Community by Gary M. BurgeSociety of Biblical LiteratureC. H. Dodd — WikipediaJohn Robinson — WikipediaThe Gospel of John: A Commentary by Rudolf BultmannJohn’s Wisdom by Ben Witherington IIIActs: An Exegetical Commentary by Craig S. KeenerThe Gospel of John: A Commentary by Craig S. KeenerThe Historical Reliability of John’s Gospel by Craig L. BlombergJesus the Purifier: John’s Gospel and the Fourth Quest for the Historical Jesus by Craig L. BlombergJohn: The NIV Application Commentary by Gary M. BurgeThe Letters of John: The NIV Application Commentary by Gary M. BurgeThe New Testament in Antiquity by Gary M. Burge and Gene L. Green“The Fifth Gospel — Interview with Gary Burge” — GTI Tours Podcast #4“Why Context Matters — Interview with Dr. Gary Burge” — GTI Tours Podcast #45Gary Burge’s websiteBanias Archaeological Dig of 2020 — YouTubeAdditional audio production by Gus SimpsonSpecial Guest: Gary Burge.Support The BEMA Podcast

Nov 10, 2022 • 46min
304: The Construction of the Gospel of John
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the different elements of John’s construction and consider some of the scholarly theories and observations that have been made over the years, seeing what there might be to learn in those possibilities.Interpreting the Gospel of John by Gary M. BurgeAsking Better Questions of the Bible by Marty SolomonSupport The BEMA Podcast