In this episode, “Recovering From the Bible,” Tommy Nelson describes why he is still recovering from the Bible, as well as how he prepares his sermons. Tommy Nelson served as the Senior Pastor of Denton Bible Church in Denton, Texas for nearly 50 years, which included preaching to thousands each week and mentoring hundreds of future leaders through the Young Guns discipleship program. Today, Tommy Nelson serves as the Pastor Emeritus at Denton Bible Church and is still impacting countless lives through his dynamic teaching and bestselling books.

In this episode, “Replacing Loneliness with Joy,” Todd von Helms talks with influencer Julie Hildebrand about how she was able to replace loneliness with true joy during college. Today, Julie is a faithful wife, mother of three, and spends much time mentoring and helping communities grow in faith and love for others. Check out her writing at www.goodwordproject.com

What is a revival? Are they divinely inspired, the product of human effort, or something in between? In the episode, Todd von Helms sits down with Asbury Seminary President and New Testament scholar David Watson to discuss the history and nature of revivals, including highlights from the Book of Acts, First and Second Great Awakenings, Asuza Street, and recent Asbury Revival.

John as the Fourth Synoptic Gospel? In this episode, Todd von Helms talks with New Testament scholar Mark Goodacre about his latest book, The Fourth Synoptic Gospel: John’s Knowledge of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Mark Goodacre is Professor of Religious Studies at Duke University. He specializes in the New Testament and Christian Origins. He earned his MA, M.Phil and DPhil at the University of Oxford and has been at Duke since 2005.

His research interests include the Gospels and the Historical Jesus. Goodacre is the author of four books including The Case Against Q: Studies in Markan Priority and the Synoptic Problem (Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002) and Thomas and the Gospels: The Case for Thomas’s Familiarity with the Synoptics (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012). He is well known for creating web resources on New Testament and Christian origins, including his podcast, the NT Pod. Goodacre has acted as consultant for several TV and radio programs including The Passion (BBC / HBO, 2008) and Finding Jesus (CNN, 2015-17). His newest book, The Fourth Synoptic Gospel: John’s Knowledge of Matthew, Mark, and Luke is available everywhere books are sold.

Is there legitimate historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus? In this episode, Dr. Todd von Helms interviews Dr. Dave Newton about this topic. From 1984-2012, Dr. Newton was a full-time university professor of entrepreneurship, finance, and strategy – first in the Pepperdine MBA program, then at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, and until 2012 at Westmont in Santa Barbara, CA. He has a BS in Business, an MBA in Finance, and PhD in Entrepreneurial Finance. Dr. Dave Newton teaches in the Center for Executive Development at the Rady School of Management at the University of California in San Diego, doing high-level training programs for senior executives and corporate boards all across the U.S. and in Europe. He has consulted over 400 emerging growth ventures and published more than 200 articles. Dr. Newton was formerly Contributing Editor on Small Firm Finance at Entrepreneur magazine for 5 years. He has authored/co-authored a dozen books and has taught at Calvary Chapel in Santa Barbara for more than 30 years. For more information, check out Dave’s website: https://www.newtonfio.com

Is healing somehow tied to prayer, a result of Divine intervention, related solely to doctors and medicine, or merely a coincidental part of life? What happens when people fervently pray for healing and it does not happen? “Divine healing” is at the core of a movement within Christianity called Pentecostalism. In this episode, Dr. Todd von Helms and emeritus historian Dr. Grant Wacker discuss Pentecostalism and the possibility of Divine healing. They also shed light on the differences between Pentecostalism in the United States compared to other parts of the world. Professor Grant Wacker grew up in a Pentecostal home before graduating from Stanford and Harvard and going on to teach the history of Christianity for nearly 50 years at UNC Chapel Hill and Duke University.

Professor Wacker joined the Duke Divinity School faculty after teaching in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 1977 to 1992. He specializes in American Christian history. He is the author or co-editor of nine books, including Heaven Below: Early Pentecostals and American Culture (2001, Harvard University Press), America’s Pastor: Billy Graham and the Shaping of a Nation (2014, Harvard University Press), One Soul at a Time: The Story of Billy Graham (Eerdmans, 2019), and more than two-hundred articles, essays, and book reviews. From 1997 to 2004, Professor Wacker served as a senior editor of the quarterly journal, Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture. He is past president of the Society for Pentecostal Studies, the American Society of Church History, and a senior trustee of Fuller Theological Seminary. Along with three teaching awards, he directed twenty-six Ph.D. or Th.D students at UNC or Duke.