Faith & Clarity - Biblical Perspectives and Biblical Wisdom on News & Cultural Issues

Philip Yancey, Dr. Mark Turman, and Gerald Griffin discuss the good and bad of the local church, the dangers of fundamentalism, Yancey’s personal life story, and the power of memoirs.    Show notes:    Dr. Mark Turman begins by introducing Philip Yancey, thanking him for his personal impact (0:10). They talk about what prompted Yancey’s memoir, Where the Light Fell, and they talk about parallels between their own lives (5:13). Then, they discuss the spiritual abuse that takes place in many churches and how that was part of Yancey’s story (10:49). Yancey talks about when he realized how backwards his church was—and that was seeing how wrong racism was (14:44). They talk about fundamentalism and why Yancey continues to ascribe to evangelicalism even after abandoning fundamentalism (18:27). Yancey continues to share his testimony and why he started writing books (25:30). They talk about the local church and Yancey’s older brother (33:05). They discuss the power of memoirs and the message Yancey wants to come through—especially to Gen Z and those who’ve left the faith (44:36). They end by talking about Yancey’s dad and the trustworthiness of Jesus (51:30).       Resources and further reading:   Where the Light Fell: A Memoir - Philip Yancey  Disappointment with God: Three Questions No One Asks Aloud - Philip Yancey  “The Denison Forum Podcast Episode 40: Digging into doubts and how to minister to Gen Z: A conversation with Barnabas Piper”- Denison Forum Philip Yancey’s blog, philipyancey.com  “3 reasons why churches fail at mental health” - Chris Legg   About the hosts    Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    Gerald Griffin is the pastor of Preston Ridge Baptist Church in Frisco, Texas. He received his MA in Christian Education from the Dallas Theological Society.   About the guest    Philip Yancey's books have garnered 13 Gold Medallion Book Awards from Christian publishers and booksellers. He currently has 17 million books in print and is published in 50 languages worldwide. He’s still “in recovery” from a bad church upbringing, searching for the possibility of a faith rooted in grace instead of fear. Philip Yancey began as an Editor and then Publisher for Campus Life magazine. In 1980 he and his wife moved to downtown Chicago where he began freelance writing. Yancey has written over 30 books, including A Companion in Crisis and his long-awaited memoir, Where the Light Fell. 

Dr. John Mark Caton, Paul Cobb, and Dr. Mark Turman discuss church safety, how to run a safety team with laypeople and specialists, and why church security is a hospitality ministry.     Show notes:    Paul Cobb begins by addressing how we so often don’t think about safety at churches, and they explain what church safety should look like (2:23). They go over some stories of crime and medical emergencies that took place at their churches (6:25). Dr. Caton explains how he became aware as a pastor of the need for better church security (16:20). They go over the biblical foundation for smart church security (21:58). Cobb discusses the principle of victim avoidance and deescalation (33:43). They also point to the importance of churches having hospitable, friendly security teams (39:41). Cobb briefly talks about their firearm policy for churches, then they return to the importance of taking security seriously, and how lay people can be involved (50:16).    Resources and further reading:   Congregational Security Inc. - Paul Cobb Century One Consulting Faith Based Security Network  “What does the Bible say about self-defense?” - Mark Legg “What does the Bible say about gun control?” - Mark Legg   About the hosts    Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    About the guests    John Mark Caton, Ph.D., is the Senior Pastor at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church for twenty-seven years and the author of several books. He received a Master of Theology from Criswell College, and a Master of Divinity with Biblical Languages degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He earned his Ph.D. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2001.   Paul Cobb consults with churches for their security and safety needs. He’s worked in corporate America, serving in the banking industry, and data centers, and specializes in project management. He serves as an elder at Crosspoint Church in McKinney, Texas.

Dr. Jim Denison and Dr. Mark Turman discuss the roots of morality, whether America was founded as a Christian nation, how to lovingly disagree with family, and why the Bible is our ultimate source of truth.    Show notes:    Dr. Mark Turman and Dr. Jim Denison discuss how culture flows from a people’s morality, and why morality is like a natural law (1:28). They talk about why everyone can’t escape truth and morality, how our deepest desires always become idols (7:05). They talk about whether a country can be moral without religion, and whether America was founded as a Christian nation (11:31). They turn to talk about discussing morality and politics with family at Thanksgiving, and love family over the long term (24:06). They discuss what Jesus means by loving him more than family (32:53). Dr. Denison leads listeners in how to pray for and talk to lost family members, and how to keep friendships beyond disagreements (45:05). Then, Dr. Denison closes by pointing to the Bible as being capital “T” truth as the foundation for our lives (51:11).   Resources and further reading:   “What does the Bible say about politics?” - Dr. Jim Denison Respectfully, I Disagree - Dr. Jim Denison   About the hosts  Jim Denison, Ph.D., is an author, speaker, and the CEO of Denison Ministries, which is transforming 6.8 million lives through meaningful digital content.  Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.

Janet Denison talks with Dr. Mark Turman about her Advent devotional series, The Songs Tell the Story, why she wrote it, and shares her favorite hymn and how to make Christmas about Jesus.    Show notes:    Janet Denison and Dr. Mark Turman discuss Janet Denison’s book, The Songs Tell the Story (along with the kid’s version), a Christmas devotional that explores the meaning and origin of our favorite holiday songs. They talk about how Janet wrote the devotional study and the history of Advent (1:02). Janet especially loves O Holy Night, and was surprised to discover its origins (6:10). They discuss why hymns were so important in history for the layperson to understand theology, and their own most profound experiences with hymns (14:42). They give insiders perspective on Christmas in the lives of ministers (20:58). They close by talking about how to use The Songs Tell the Story, and how to make the busy season focused on Jesus (28:47).    Resources and further reading:   Foundations with Janet - brand of Denison Ministries The Songs Tell the Story - Janet Denison The Songs Tell the Story (kid edition) - Janet Denison Content to Be Good, Called to Be Godly - Janet Denison   About the hosts    Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    About the guest    Janet Denison teaches others to live an authentic faith through her writing, speaking, and teaching ministry. She blogs weekly at FoundationsWithJanet.org and leads virtual and in-person Bible studies. She is also the author of The Songs Tell the Story and Content to Be Good, Called to Be Godly, among other books. Janet and her husband, Dr. Jim Denison, live in Dallas, Texas. When they’re not writing or ministering to others, they enjoy spending time with their grown children and their four still-growing grandchildren.

Mark Sayers, Mark Turman, and Mark Legg discuss the great shift the world is going through, the lingering effects of Covid, how the “gray zone” affects ministry, and how to remain a “non-anxious presence.”   Show notes:    Mark Sayers talks about his faith journey and how he started writing (2:14). The three Marks talk about the significance of our culture’s ongoing shift, and the anxiety that comes from it (8:08). Sayers discusses the role of the internet in that shift, and the “hardware” change our culture is going through, focusing on the effects of Covid (12:50). They turn to discuss the culture’s widespread sense of false security, and how abundance leads to us trusting God less (27:16). Sayers digs further into the idea of the “gray zone,” and why confusion leads to anxiety and fear, and how the Bible applies to those struggles (32:14). Sayers ends by discussing the importance of leadership, and why God’s presence is critical in times of transition (43:19).   Resources and further reading:   A Non-Anxious Presence: How a Changing and Complex World will Create a Remnant of Renewed Christian Leaders - Mark Sayers “How to lead in an unstable culture: Mark Sayers points to the true stronghold in “A Non-anxious Presence” - Mark Legg “Exhausted by the news? You may be ‘doomscrolling’”- Mark Legg The Coming Tsunami - Jim Denison, Ph.D.  About the hosts    Dr. Mark Turman is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    Mark Legg is the Associate Editor for Denison Forum. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University in 2021 with a degree in Philosophy and Biblical Studies.   About the guest    Mark Sayers is the senior leader of Red Church in Melbourne, Australia. He is passionate about spiritual renewal and the future of the church. Mark is the author of a number of books including Strange Days and Reappearing Church.  Mark lives in Melbourne with his wife, Trudi, his daughter, Grace, and twin boys, Hudson and Billy.

Patrick Miller joins to talk about why Christians should value truth over their tribe, how to talk about politics with family and friends, why Jesus was “political,” and how to avoid fear in our post-truth culture.    Show notes:     Patrick Miller begins by discussing his podcast, Truth Over Tribe, why it was started, and how it’s become so successful (1:47). Then, he talks about writing the book, and how he learned how tribalism can be a good thing in its proper place, in addition to why it’s so dangerous (7:45). They turn to consider the loss of common ground and truth in our culture (16:47). They explore the importance of love in a post-truth culture, how to talk about politics, and how the left and right can be relativistic (21:00). Miller moves to talk about why Jesus was “political” (33:13). He then turns to focus on how Christian the state should be, and why we don’t need to worry (41:29). They close by talking about the way we should use social media redemptively (50:48).   Resources and further reading:   Truth Over Tribe - Podcast Truth Over Tribe - Patrick Miller, Keith Simon “What does the Bible say about politics” - Jim Denison “Peace in Politics: How to reduce anxiety during the 2022 midterms: A conversation with Josh Miller” - Podcast “In ‘post-truth’ politics, how can we distinguish truth from falsehood?” - Steve Yount How tribal are you? - Quiz   About the hosts    Dr. Mark Turman is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    Mark Legg is the Associate Editor for Denison Forum. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University in 2021 with a degree in Philosophy and Biblical Studies.   About the guest    Pastor, Co-Director of Digital Relationships. Patrick Miller has called Columbia home since 2006. He met his wife, Emily, at Mizzou, where they both completed their undergrads. Together they have two children. Patrick started following Jesus his Freshman year of college after getting connected to The Crossing. He joined the Veritas college ministry staff team in 2010, helped co-direct the ministry in 2015, and became the Director of Crossing Twenties in 2017. He graduated from Covenant Theological Seminary in 2018 and was ordained as pastor shortly after. Patrick leads the Digital Relationships Team, co-hosts Truth Over Tribe, Ten Minute Bible Talks, leads two Covenant Seminary cohorts, and teaches Men's and Women's Bible studies.

Curtis Chang joins Dr. Mark Turman to discuss our failing trust in institutions and how to redeem them, the role of Christians in politics and the workplace, election integrity, and how to combat anxiety.    Show notes:    Curtis Chang begins by talking about his ministry Redeeming Babel, which trains Christians to engage redemptively in different kinds of communities (2:19). Chang talks about the rising distrust of institutions, and how we can help redeem them, specifically pointing to Colossians 1:15–17 (9:47). In particular, Chang and Dr. Turman talk about work and the role of jobs in Christianity (20:27). They talk about the Trinity and how it helps us understand community (29:14). Chang delves more into how we can trust broken institutions, and how throwing them away will probably lead to greater destruction (38:00). They turn to converse about idolatry, politics, election integrity, and the boundaries of governments (48:53). Chang concludes by touching on anxiety and fear (58:37).   Resources and further reading:   Redeemingbabel.org  Good Faith - Podcast with David French and Curtis Chang “Are US elections always fair?” - Denison Forum   About the hosts    Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his degree from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    About the guest    Curtis Chang is consulting professor in innovation and organization at Duke Divinity School. He has won an Obama White House award for social innovation as the founder and head of Consulting Within Reach, a firm serving nonprofits and government.  He graduated from Harvard Summa Cum Laude. He holds a faculty appointment at American University and is also a senior fellow at Fuller Theological Seminary.  He is the author of Engaging Unbelief: A Captivating Strategy from Augustine and Aquinas (IVP) and is a former Rockefeller Fellow.

Dr. Jim Denison and Dr. Mark Turman discuss how God sees America, our culture’s individualism, midterm politics, whether God is judging America, and whether people can be moral without God.    Show notes:    Dr. Mark Turman and Dr. Jim Denison discuss the Bible’s understanding of the nations, as well as the difference between individualism and collectivism (1:36). They talk about the unity of the individual and community in the Bible (9:37). Dr. Turman asks about the different political issues to consider in the 2022 midterm elections (16:36). They talk about God’s passive and active punishment of cultures, then consider if America is in that process of judgment (23:09). They talk to what extent Christians should isolate themselves from the culture (39:18). They talk about whether we can be moral without God (50:38). They end by challenging whether a nation can be “Christian” at all (54:41).    Resources and further reading:   “Let’s be civil” bundle: How Does God See America and Respectfully I Disagree - Dr. Jim Denison How Does God See America? - Dr. Jim Denison "Are US elections always fair?" - Denison Forum team “What does the Bible say about politics?” Dr. Jim Denison “Peace in Politics: How to reduce anxiety during the 2022 midterms: A conversation with Josh Miller” Podcast    About the hosts    Jim Denison, Ph.D., is an author, speaker, and the CEO of Denison Ministries, which is transforming 6.8 million lives through meaningful digital content.    Dr. Mark Turman is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.

Josh Miller, Dr. Mark Turman, and Mark Legg discuss partisanship bias, Christian hypocrisy, dealing with anger and anxiety, and how to maintain peace during political uncertainty.    Show notes:    Mark Turman begins by asking about the top five issues for the 2022 midterms, and they discuss how the different politicized news sources will cover the topics (1:45). They turn to discuss the role fear plays in politics now, and how to try to get both sides of the perspective (7:31). Josh speaks about why he wrote Peace in Politics, and the hypocrisy of many Christians when they talk about politics, especially the prevalence of anger and anxiety (20:50). They turn to humility as a crucial part of wrestling with politics for the Christian (32:52). We must not dehumanize political “opponents”, instead we show compassion first and foremost (43:08). They discuss the technology behind social media and how that contributes to our division, and how to practically deal with the intrusion of bias, anger, and anxiety in this political season (47:42).   Resources and further reading:   Peace in Politics - Josh Miller, offered as a free e-book. Allsides.com  Groundnews.com  “What does the Bible say about politics?” - Jim Denison, PhD.  Kingdom Politics - Tony Evans. (Read an excerpt: “Whose side are you on?”) Dailyarticle.org   About the hosts    Dr. Mark Turman is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.    Mark Legg is the Associate Editor for Denison Forum. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University in 2021 with a degree in Philosophy and Biblical Studies.   About the guest    Josh Miller is the Creative Director of Denison Ministries and author of First15's free e-book: "Peace in Politics." He’s also a musician, writer, and teacher for a local church in the Dallas area.

Dr. Jim Denison and Dr. Mark Turman discuss Halloween, the rise of the occult, what happens when we die, spiritual warfare, Satan and demon possession, and how to rely on God to fight against temptation.  Show notes:  Dr. Jim Denison begins by giving the background of Halloween and why we should celebrate heroes of the faith (2:15). They move on to practical advice for parenting and why we must be careful of the occult and witchcraft (10:30).  Dr. Denison discusses death and what happens when we die (13:50). They consider Satan and demons and what power they have today (23:37).  They turn to talk about spiritual warfare and why David prays for the destruction of his enemies when Christ says to love them (30:23).  Dr. Turman returns the conversation to talking about demon possession, and Dr. Denison relates a story where he helped perform an exorcism (40:20). They hone in on how the Devil strategically tempts us and how to fight it (47:15).    Resources and further reading:   “Why do so many Americans believe in ghosts?” - Jim Denison, Ph.D. “Disney’s FXX Network airs new animated series “Little Demon”” - Jim Denison, Ph.D.  “Russian troops surprised by Ukrainian robotic vacuums: A lesson in warfare, both physical and spiritual” - Mark Legg   About the hosts    Jim Denison, Ph.D., is an author, speaker, and the CEO of Denison Ministries, which is transforming 6.8 million lives through meaningful digital content.    Mark Turman, DMin, is the executive director of Denison Forum. He received his DMin from Truett at Baylor and previously served as lead pastor of Crosspoint Church.