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Gospelbound

Gospelbound

Written by: The Gospel Coalition Collin Hansen
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 Gospelbound, hosted by Collin Hansen for The Gospel Coalition, is a podcast for those searching for firm faith in an anxious age. Each week, Collin talks with insightful guests about books, ideas, and how to navigate life by the gospel of Jesus Christ in a post-Christian culture.2020 The Gospel Coalition Christianity Ministry & Evangelism Politics & Government Spirituality
Episodes
  • Top 10 Theology Stories Since 2000: Part 1

    Top 10 Theology Stories Since 2000: Part 1
    Mar 10 2026
    Join Collin Hansen, Michael Graham, and Sarah Zylstra as they look back on the top theological stories from the last 25 years. Since the year 2000, religion in America has changed dramatically. Back in the 1990s, religion in America was what Tim Keller called “thick,” meaning that in general, many clergy were held in high esteem, churches were respected, and people either belonged to a congregation or knew that would be a good idea. That’s different now. Since 2000, the percent of religious Americans has dropped and the number of nones (no religion) has jumped up from 8 percent to 22 percent. This is really important to talk about, because social commentators make a big deal out of how much time Americans spend on our screens—and rightly so! And we hear a lot about how our views on sexuality have drastically changed, how our politics have become sharply polarized, and how our mental health has tanked, especially for Gen Z. But what mainstream journalism almost always misses is that the thread running in and through and around those issues is how we think about and react to God. In This Episode: 00:00 — The Great Dechurching: belief vs. disaffiliation 00:32 — Sarah hosts: why a 30,000-foot view now 03:26 — “Factfulness” and why we overlook positive trends 05:00 — #10: Global church leadership moving south 09:02 — Theological education hasn’t moved south at the same pace 10:03 — #9: Rise of non-denominational congregations 14:49 — Data point: non-denominationalism grows from ~3% (1972) to ~14–15% today 17:27 — Why churches drop denominational labels; media amplification; scandal-by-association 20:00 — #8: China’s church growth—and crackdown 22:07 — India, Hindu nationalism, and persecution; Nigeria and the Africa frontier 25:41 — #7: The Dechurching of America 30:24 — Apologetics after dechurching: from hostility to apathy 34:25 — Are churches fewer but stronger? 36:39 — Retention vs. conversion: why evangelical identity declines less 39:09 — #6: The Great Awokening (Ferguson to Floyd) 47:20 — Four paradigms for navigating race in America 52:44 — Wrap-up: Part 2 teaser 53:10 — Outro + where to find the podcast/newsletter Resources Mentioned: Factfulness by Hans RoslingThe Reason for God by Timothy KellerMaking Sense of God by Timothy KellerA Secular Age by Charles TaylorDivided by Faith by Michael EmersonThe Color of Compromise by Jemar TisbyWe Have Never Been Woke by Musa al-Gharbi — — — 📫 SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen Things: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/podcasts/gospelbound 🎁 Help The Gospel Coalition build up a renewed church for tomorrow. Let's Build Together: Donate Today at https://www.tgc.org/together 🎧 Don’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen ▫ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gospelbound/id1499898207 ▫ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0kRYr5FTKr5ru1N7MR65Br ✅ SUBSCRIBE: ▫ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thegospelcoalition ▫ TGC Updates: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/newsletters Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    54 mins
  • How Your Church Witnesses to the World

    How Your Church Witnesses to the World
    Feb 24 2026
    When we receive applications for fellows at The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics, we ask them to answer the question, “What one thing should Christians do right now to introduce their neighbors to Jesus?” It’s not that we think there’s only one answer. It’s that we want them to identify the top priority. Last year we were surprised when every applicant gave the same answer. They talked about the public witness of gathered Christians, the church.Maybe they were responding to negative press about the church, going back 25 years to the Catholic abuse scandal at the same time the internet became ubiquitous. Or maybe they were expressing renewed appreciation for the gathered church after the COVID-era shutdowns and public disorder. Either way, they were going back to biblical concept rooted in Israel’s testimony to the nations, and the early church in the book of Acts that found favor with all. Bob Thune is a fellow for the Keller Center and writes about this so-called ecclesial apologetics in a chapter for our new book, The Gospel After Christendom: An Introduction to Cultural Apologetics, published by Zondervan Reflective. He’s also a featured teacher in an exciting new video small-group curriculum called Making Sense of Us, published by The Gospel Coalition and Keller Center. His session, recorded against the backdrop of the Statue of Liberty in New York City, covers the cultural narrative we tell each other in the modern West about liberty. We believe this curriculum can help you, especially young adults, to both evangelize and edify. When you watch and study with other church members, and even non-Christians, you can learn together about the Bible’s better story about liberty, which we live out together in the church. In This Episode:00:00 – A deeper freedom: set free from self for love 00:32 – Keller Center fellows: why the gathered church matters for witness 01:41 – Introducing Bob Thune, ecclesial apologetics, and Making Sense of Us 02:39 – Lesslie Newbigin and a missionary posture toward the modern West 05:06 – Is Omaha post-Christian? Modern Western culture everywhere 06:34 – Ecclesial apologetics despite church messiness 09:17 – Gospel doctrine and gospel culture (truth, goodness, beauty) 11:03 – Christian hospitality: making room for outsiders with conviction and listening 17:03 – Why this differs from the seeker movement 19:10 – Transition to Making Sense of Us: liberty and the Statue of Liberty backdrop 20:16 – Modern misconception: freedom as “freedom from” (negative liberty) 22:17 – Galatians 5: freedom subverted and fulfilled—freedom for love and service 24:48 – Choice as happiness: dislodging the assumption pastorally 26:55 – Cultural pressure points: teen mental health, friendship decline, obligation 29:15 – Autonomy and assisted dying/euthanasia debates 31:56 – More choice, more frustration: speech platforms and “Netflix paralysis” 33:50 – Patience for contested proposals (post-liberalism, nationalism, etc.) 35:01 – “Freedom for” the common good and a shared human project 39:13 – Three church roles: solidarity-bringer, subversive fulfillment, alternative city 43:27 – Augustine’s lesson: church power, loss, and enduring hope 44:05 – Recommended reading and resources roundup Resources Mentioned:The Gospel After Christendom by Collin HansenMaking Sense of Us by John Starke, Rebecca McLaughlin, Sam Chan, Trevin Wax, Rachel Gilson, Bob Thune, Glen Scrivener, Michael KellerThe Air We Breathe by Glen Scrivener The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis Democracy and Solidarity by James Davison Hunter City of God by Augustine of Hippo— — —📫 SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen Things:https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/podcasts/gospelbound🎁 Help The Gospel Coalition build up a renewed church for tomorrow. Let's Build Together: Donate Today at https://www.tgc.org/together🎧 Don’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen▫ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gospelbound/id1499898207▫ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0kRYr5FTKr5ru1N7MR65Br✅ SUBSCRIBE: ▫ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thegospelcoalition▫ TGC Updates: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/newsletters Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    45 mins
  • How Your Investing Could Change the World

    How Your Investing Could Change the World
    Feb 10 2026

    “Do any of us really want to be in the position where our retirement account grows in sync with the cancer ward?”

    That’s the question posed by Robin John about tobacco, responsible for 100 million deaths in the last 100 years. Naturally all of us would say no, we don’t want to benefit from other people dying. Yet as Robin points out in his new book, The Good Investor: How Your Work Can Confront Injustice, Love Your Neighbor, and Bring Healing to the World, many of us do hold mutual funds that invest in tobacco companies. We just don’t know it. Come to think of it, how much do we know about any of our investments, especially in long-term retirement accounts?

    Robin John is the cofounder and CEO of Eventide, an asset management firm dedicated to honoring God and investing in companies that create compelling value for the common good. His vision for Eventide's values-based investing shows how our work can benefit everyone and not just bolster the bottom line for a fortunate few. I’d go so far as to say our world can be a much better place if investors—and employees of all kinds—will learn from his example and prioritize what really matters now, and in eternity.

    In This Episode
    0:00 – Joy, purpose, and God’s design for everyday work
    1:49 – Why The Good Investor is ultimately a book about joy
    2:48 – Growing up in Kerala, India, and immigrating to the U.S.
    4:42 – Community, individualism, and caring for the vulnerable
    7:41 – Returning to India and confronting workplace injustice
    10:49 – Rethinking success, profit, and the purpose of work
    11:53 – Why Christians must examine their investments
    14:33 – What does it mean to “root for” a company’s success?
    15:36 – Discernment, gray areas, and biblical values in investing
    18:07 – Avoiding evil and actively pursuing the common good
    19:43 – Weaponry, conscience, and consistency at Eventide
    20:13 – The cautionary story of Bill Hwang and ill-gotten gain
    23:19 – The false divide between faith and work
    25:07 – How investing has changed since 2008
    27:14 – What ESG investing is—and where it diverges from Christianity
    31:19 – Mission alignment vs. values alignment
    32:23 – Encouragement for ordinary, faithful work
    34:44 – Legacy, goodness, and hearing “well done”

    Resources Mentioned

    • The Good Investor by Robin John

    — — —

    📫 SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen Things:

    https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/podcasts/gospelbound

    🎁 Help The Gospel Coalition build up a renewed church for tomorrow. Let's Build Together: Donate Today at https://www.tgc.org/together

    🎧 Don’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen

    ▫ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gospelbound/id1499898207

    ▫ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0kRYr5FTKr5ru1N7MR65Br

    ✅ SUBSCRIBE:

    ▫ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thegospelcoalition

    ▫ TGC Updates: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/newsletters


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    37 mins
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