Posts by Jonathan Master

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To the Judicious and Impartial Reader James Renihan is back on the podcast to discuss his latest book with James and Jonathan, To the Judicious and Impartial Reader , an exposition of what is popularly known as the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. Dr. Renihan shines welcomed light on this...
The fear of God is essential to what it means to be a believer, yet there seems to be a modern aversion to this often misunderstood theme. Tune in as James and Jonathan talk to long-time friend Keith Plummer as he shares the security and courage that the fear of the Lord is intended to give to God’...
What exactly do the terms Reformed and Reformed theology mean? Defining them is more challenging than it sounds. But in his latest book, Reformed Theology, our very own Jonathan Master has provided an excellent resource for anyone who wants a well-rounded and concise overview of these terms. Tune...
Dr. Gary Schnittjer returns for further conversation about the streamlined yet expanded second edition of his popular book on the Pentateuch. In part 2 of their interview, Jonathan and James dig deeper into what’s new in Professor Schnittjer’s book and how Gary’s experience in writing Old Testament...
torah
Gary Schnittjer’s The Torah Story: An Apprenticeship on the Pentateuch became an instant classic upon its release in 2006. Sophisticated yet highly accessible, The Torah Story approaches the first five books of the Old Testament as both internally intrinsic and interconnected, unfolding a...
The Sum of Saving Knowledge In 1650, a brilliant young theologian joined with a legendary pastor to write The Sum of Saving Knowledge , designed to summarize the Westminster Standards for the layperson. David Dickson and James Durham’s book was so popular that it was bound with almost every edition...
2,000 Years of Christ’s Power: Volume 5 Our guest—pastor, professor, lecturer, and author Nick Needham—continues his highly collectible series, 2000 Years of Christ’s Power . In volume 5— The Enlightenment and Awakening —Needham explores the many significant 18th-century developments in Church...
The Shadow of Christ in the Book of Lamentations How many sermons have you heard from the Old Testament book of Lamentations? Clearly, it’s not a “fan favorite,” but—as author and professor C.J. Williams explains—the prophet Jeremiah’s poetic laments offer us practical insights into grieving with...
Many define “worship” as the music Christians employ in Sunday services. Others hold to a certain “style” of worship. What kind of worship does God demand? In his new book, Trembling Joy: A Biblical Defense of Traditional Worship, Pastor Ryan Speck defines terms and points his readers to what...
How do you envision a triune God carrying out the divine missions? Do you picture the Son and Spirit departing the throne room—lunchboxes in hand—only to return to Heaven in the evening and report to the Father? If so, how might we understand our communion with God or the presence of Jesus in the...
Who Needs the Church? “I’m a Christian, but I don’t need a church. Nature is where I find God.” Whatever the stated reasoning, those who avoid church attendance and membership often do so without understanding why believers need the Church and the Church needs them. Guest Terry Johnson has written...
Theology for Ministry Since assuming his first pastorate in 1971, Sinclair Ferguson’s life and Bible teaching have left an indelible mark on the lives and ministries of his parishioners, students, colleagues, and friends. Our guest today edited and contributed to a Festschrift published in Ferguson...
Growing in Grace As both of our hosts are respected authors and enjoy discussing a great book, it would only follow that sometimes the interviewers would become interviewees. Such is the case today as James Dolezal grills (even fillets!) Jonathan Master, concerning his book Growing in Grace:...
Face to Face with God We celebrate Christ’s work as our high priest and mediator. Is Jesus active in those roles today? And how is Jesus “a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek?” Guest Desmond Alexander provides satisfying answers to these questions and others through the course of today’s...
Zwingli: God’s Armed Prophet In his time, Huldrych Zwingli was a deeply polarizing figure. Though clearly a leader of the Swiss Reformation, contemporaries Martin Luther and John Calvin denied Zwingli's influence, due in large part to his position on the Lord's Supper. Unlike his more famous...
The Fall of Satan and the Demons Today’s discussion began years ago when our hosts collaborated to create a college course on angels and demons. Today, Jonathan and James reconvene in our digital classroom and focus their discussion more specifically on the fall of the demons and their ringleader...
In the Fullness of Time Many Christians believe that eschatology is simply a matter of understanding a future event—what will happen when Christ returns. Over the years, students of today’s guest have observed that eschatology is defined by two points—past and future—Christ’s death, resurrection,...
Trinitarian Dogmatics It’s a question few Christians will typically entertain: how do you enjoy communion with all three persons of the Godhead in worship? Dr. Glenn Butner offers satisfying, biblical answers to many such queries in his outstanding book, Trinitarian Dogmatics: Exploring the Grammar...
God to Us Jonathan and James welcome Stephen Myers to the podcast. He’s associate professor of Historical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. Stephen explains that Covenant Theology is a wonderful, essential study. It reveals God’s character and how He binds Himself to us. It’s a...
The title of the most recent Blue Ridge Bible Conference seems an appropriate descriptor for today's episode of Theology on the Go. Jonathan and James discuss the biblical, familial, and social implications of the latest manifestation of gender dysphoria: transgenderism. Why is a decision to reject...
Jesus and the God of Classical Theism In Jonathan’s absence, James is flying solo as host, welcoming author and seminary professor Steven Duby to the podcast. Steven’s new book, Jesus and the God of Classical Theism: Biblical Christology in Light of the Doctrine of God , provides the foundation for...
Is your prayer life merely a lengthy list of requests that so often seem to go unanswered? Sarah Ivill never tires of considering the Christian’s privilege to pray directly to the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. Equally amazing is the fact that God initiates that relationship with us,...
In the Shadow of the Rock Geoff Thomas is our guest for the 200th episode of Theology on the Go . He’s a seminary professor and conference speaker who served over 50 years behind a pulpit in Aberystwyth, Wales. Geoff’s outstanding autobiography recalls the friendships gained and lessons learned...
Arminius and the Reformed Tradition Was Jacob Arminius a Reformed theologian who held to the basic tenets of Reformed soteriology? Today’s guest skillfully dissects his writings on predestination, union with Christ, justification, and more to effectively prove that Arminius’ views on salvation...
Calls to Worship, Invocations, and Benedictions Pastors and worship leaders recognize the significance of every liturgical element in the organization of a worship service. Today’s guest offers both a guide to Scripture-filled worship and some historical background on the use of these all-important...
The Works of God and the Fall of Man Dutch theologian Petrus van Mastricht ministered in a time much like our own. Emerging scientific methods, the politics of the day, and other 16 th century issues were bringing into question accepted beliefs concerning the origins of the created order and sin...
Under God, Over the People We live in an era of growing governmental interference and intervention in the life of the local church. So what is the proper Biblical relationship between the civil magistrate and the church? Our hosts reach across the pond to discuss the topic with Oliver Allmand-Smith...
The Spiritual Marriage between Christ and His Church Believers tend to regard our union with Christ as a merely spiritual or even mystical bond. But 16th-century Italian priest-turned-Protestant theologian Gilorama Zanchi maintained that our spiritual marriage with Jesus joins us as one flesh with...
On Our Bookshelves Every college professor, theologian, and pastor takes on a substantial load of book study in the daily performance of his duties. Most, however, enjoy a bit of leisure reading whenever possible, and our hard-working hosts are no exception. Today Jonathan and James discuss the...
Today’s guest asserts that natural revelation is like a work of art. And what it shows us about the Artist is Natural Theology . That’s the title of David Haines’ latest book, a biblical and historical introduction and defense of an essential element of Christian theology throughout history. Haines...
Foundations of Covenant Theology Several songs of the 60s refer to man’s need to “get back to the Garden.” Lane Tipton reminds us of a much greater place: a heavenly temple made holy by the presence of the glory of the triune God. It’s the starting place for Lane’s latest book, Foundations of...
Dr. Carl Trueman visits from that “other” Alliance podcast (Mortification of Spin) to discuss his latest book: Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution . More than an abridged version of his 2020 bestseller The Rise and Triumph of the Modern...
This World Is Not My Home We long for the end of the current pandemic and the opportunity to gather freely with old friends face-to-face. For now, our hosts make do with an online meeting with pastor, church planter, and author Mark Johnston. Mark has curated a series of his articles posted at...
When you hear the title Expository Preaching, you may expect to find a “how-to” manual written for pastors. But David Strain’s contribution to the Blessings of the Faith series speaks instead to the congregation, providing a stout defense for expositional preaching in your Reformed church. David...
Today Jonathan and James welcome—not just any old theologian—but an Adonis ! That’s Dr. Adonis Vidu, author and associate professor of theology at Gordon-Conwell Seminary. His latest book describes the Trinity and, more specifically, the doctrine of inseparable operations. Unfortunately, the...
Old Testament Use of Old Testament - Part 2 Jonathan Master and James Dolezal are beginning the new year with one of their favorite chats of 2021! So, Gary Schnittjer returns this week to conclude a fascinating and vital conversation about his book Old Testament Use of Old Testament . Released just...
Old Testament Use of Old Testament - Part 1 NOTE: To begin the new year, Jonathan and James have chosen to repost one of their favorite interviews of 2021. This two-part conversation concludes on our next episode on 1/24/22. Our hosts are delighted to welcome a friend and former colleague Gary E...
Manual of Christian Doctrine Working in close proximity for years provided many opportunities for conversation between Jonathan and James. An annual topic of concern: choosing the theology curriculum for undergraduate students, particularly those in their first year at the university. What’s the...
Do Calvinists believe in free will? Jonathan and James point to the Westminster Confession of Faith chapter 9 to help us tackle this turbulent topic. The Confession is very careful to qualify what it means for man to have free will while establishing the boundaries of human freedom. What does it...
Jonathan and James welcome Caleb Cangelosi. He’s the senior pastor of Pear Orchard Presbyterian Church in Ridgeland, MS, and the director and curator of Log College Press, an online archive of mostly 18th and 19th century documents of American Presbyterian writings. Log College Press is a free...
Though they now reside thousands of miles from one another, Jonathan and James are face-to-face today, broadcasting from the West Coast and discussing the Donatist Controversy. In the early fourth century, the Roman emperor authorized a final wave of persecution of the Church that caused some...
Chief Scottish Man Jonathan's and James' special guest is a friend with whom they share good memories. Sandy Finlayson is library director and professor of Theological Bibliography at Westminster Theological Seminary and the author of Chief Scottish Man: The Life and Ministry of Thomas Chalmers ...
Questions Women Asked (and Might Still Be Asking) Simonetta Carr returns to the podcast to share highlights from her new book. Simonetta is a contributor at PlaceForTruth.org through her column Cloud of Witnesses and an acclaimed author known for the series Christian Biographies for Young Readers...
What Hath Athens to Do With Jerusalem? What does philosophy have to do with theology, the Church, and Christian doctrine? Should Christians be interested in philosophy, and—if so—why? To address these questions, Jonathan and James invited a good friend and former colleague. Bob LaRocca is an...
Gary Schnittjer returns this week to continue the fascinating and vital conversation about his book Old Testament Use of Old Testament . Released just a few weeks ago, it has already proven to be an essential tool in the hands of Bible scholars, pastors, and students of theology. One tragic issue...
Things have shifted a bit, as James is now thriving on the West Coast while Jonathan remains in the Southeast. Regardless of the distance and time difference, both are delighted to welcome a friend and former colleague Gary E. Schnittjer. Gary joins them to discuss one of the most anticipated books...
This week, Jonathan and James chat with Ken Golden. Ken’s a writer and contributor for reformation21.org, pastor of Sovereign Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Illinois, and the author of Presbytopia and Entering God’s Rest . Today, Ken is joining us to talk about his most recent book, Eating...
Faithfulness of Christ or Faith in Christ? Jonathan and James are joined by good friend and former colleague Kevin McFadden, associate professor of New Testament at Cairn University. He is on the podcast to talk about his new book, Faith in the Son of God: The Place of Christ-Oriented Faith within...
Jonathan and James go guestless, discussing one-on-one the answer to Westminster Shorter Catechism Question 38 concerning the benefits believers will enjoy from Christ at the resurrection. Though we are already thoroughly blessed by our relationship with Christ, there are three distinct benefits...
Evangelism Around the World Jonathan and James have the privilege of speaking with Anthony Curto, professor of Missions and Apologetics at Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Anthony also has extensive experience serving as a pastor, church planter, and missionary worldwide, all of which...