The Protestant Libertarian Podcast

Alex Bernardo
  • 4.8 (28)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Weekly

The Protestant Libertarian Podcast explores the intersection between protestant Biblical studies and libertarian philosophy. We will discuss the Bible, history, culture, economics, philosophy, and current events from both protestant and libertarian perspectives. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com. You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Check out the Protestant Libertarian Podcast page at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/theplpodcast. Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

  1. 21h ago

    Ep 292: Politics, Economics, and New Testament Interpretation with Alex Bernardo

    In this episode, Bethany Bernardo guest hosts the show to interview me about my new book Politics, Economics, and New Testament Interpretation, which is now available for purchase on all major platforms! In this book I make an extended argument that the New Testament does not endorse authoritarian socialism. In biblical scholarship and theology, political and economic categories are imprecisely defined, which enables scholars to impose the modern popular paradigm of authoritarian socialism on the text, distorting both the interpretation of the New Testament and the ways in which the church applies the Bible to contemporary questions. I argue that the Austrian school of economics provides the only consistent, universally applicable, and irreducible definitions of socialism and capitalism, while the libertarian commitment to the nonaggression principle reframes our political categories as well. I discuss how these definitions should be employed in contextual, historically plausible readings of Scripture and explain why interpretive assumptions often obscure texts in the New Testament which relate to political and economic arrangements. I also discuss many of the passages I address in my book, explain how I conducted research, my motivations for producing such a large volume, and the impact I hope it has on Christian scholarship and discipleship. This episode I just a small taste of the much larger book, so please order a copy today!   Media Referenced: Politics, Economics, and New Testament Interpretation on Amazon: https://a.co/d/0d8VdNwQ Order through LCI: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/   Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/ The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  2. Sep 8

    Ep 291: Render Unto Caesar

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/  In this episode I explore the infamous “render unto Caesar” passage from Mark 12:13-17 and its parallels in Matthew 22:15-22 and Luke 20:20-26. What exactly did Jesus mean when he uttered this phrase? Despite centuries of misreading the text, I argue that the ancient world knew nothing of the separation between church and state; reading this passage as if it affirms the modern secular/religious divide won’t do. I then explore the narrative context of the tradition in the Synoptic gospels, showing that this tradition is retained in all three Synoptics within a larger context of Jesus’ conflict with the Jerusalem establishment and should be read as such. We also cannot divorce this tradition from the Synoptic affirmation that Jesus is the Davidic Messiah and therefore transcends all earthly power. I then analyze the tradition from a historical standpoint, explaining that Jesus is not being asked about taxation in general but rather the kensos or head tax, a tax levied by Rome against conquered peoples. This tax was very unpopular, and the Pharisees and Herodians are trying to turn the crowds against Jesus or charge him with sedition. Jesus, playing on the popular idea that coinage belongs to the emperor since it bears his image, turns the tables and says they should give what belongs to Caesar back to him after forcing his opponents to produce the blasphemous coin in the temple. Jesus demonstrates that he, not his opponents, is the one with real authority, a political lesson the church has yet to learn.    Media Referenced: James Barker on Gospels: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-181-how-the-gospel-writers-copied-each-other-with-james-barker/  Mark Goodacre on Gospels: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-224-johns-knowledge-of-matthew-mark-and-luke-with-mark-goodacre/  Gospel trajectories: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-213-jesus-the-divine-messiah-and-gospel-trajectories/   Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/ The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.  Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  3. Sep 3

    Ep 290: Bible Reading Strategies

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/ In this episode, I replay a conversation I had with Doug Stuart on the Libertarian Christian Podcast about how to read the Bible effectively. I talk about my relationship with the Bible, why it is so important to me, and why I read it daily. I talk about the different ways of approaching the text, how I prefer to read it, and provide some strategies and insights into how Christians can read Scripture more effectively.   Media Referenced: Four Strategies for Reading the Bible Sermon: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-129-four-strategies-for-reading-the-bible-sunday-sermon/    Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/  The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  4. Sep 1

    Ep 289: How Christians Should Think About Economics with Anne Bradley

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/  In this episode I talk with economist Dr. Anne Bradley about how Christians can learn to think more clearly about economics. She explains why Christians should take economics seriously and the mistakes that many Americans, not just Christians, make with respect to economic reasoning. She then describes how the Christian starting point for economics must be both creation and anthropology, revealing how Genesis 1-2 reveals the need for work and productivity, as well as the value of every person. Dr. Bradley breaks down concepts such as scarcity, choice, and tradeoffs, how free markets help poor people and enable strangers to serve one another, the dangers of unintended consequences, and the state of America’s economy. We then talk about her economic influences, the relationship between the Austrian and Chicago Schools of economics, and the value she finds in her Presbyterian theological tradition.    Media Referenced: Dr. Bradley on X: @anne_r_bradley Dr. Bradley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-bradley-1725a511   Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/  The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.  Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  5. Aug 25

    Ep 288: Jesus, the Pharisees, and the People with Scot McKnight

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/ In this episode I talk with Dr. Scot McKnight about his brand-new book Jesus, People, Pharisees: Exploring the Conflict in Galilee, out now on Fortress Press. In this book Dr. McKnight argues that the popular conception of the Pharisees as legalistic, rigid, and hypocritical is fundamentally flawed and seeks to reassess who the Pharisees were historically and the actual nature of their conflict with Jesus. We discuss the popularity of the Pharisees and how they were actually the progressives of their day, connected to the Jerusalem establishment but offering a more liberal interpretation of the law. They were very attractive to the large crowds in Galilee, but when the charismatic prophet Jesus begins proclaiming the kingdom of God and the possibility of economic justice, he finds a receptive audience. The real source of the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees is the nexus of the people, and McKnight explains how this conflict works and how to more accurately interpret Jesus’ words against the Pharisees in Matthew 23. Finally, he explains how the church and the academy need to reevaluate their conceptions of the Pharisees based on the historical evidence.    Media Referenced: Jesus, People, Pharisees: https://a.co/d/0c8tRaK2 Scot McKnight Substack: https://scotmcknight.substack.com/   Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/  The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  6. Aug 20

    Ep 287: Reading the Apostle Paul | Four Schools of Interpretation

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/  In this Theology Thursday episode, I explore the four main “schools” of Pauline interpretation, including the Traditional (or Reformational) Perspective, the New Perspective, the Apocalyptic Paul, and Paul Within Judaism. I talk about the strengths of each perspective and how they all contribute something of significance to readers of Paul. The Traditional Perspective rightly observes that grace is entirely unmerited and that believers cannot earn salvation, the New Perspective highlights that the relationship between Jews and Gentiles is central to Paul’s though, the Apocalyptic school contends that there is a radical eschatological intrusion with the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, and the Paul Within Judaism school rightly recognizes that Paul wasn’t rejecting or abandoning Judaism and must be understood within the framework of Second Temple Judaism.    Media Referenced: John Collins Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-272-the-apocalyptic-worldview-of-ancient-judaism-and-christianity-with-john-j-collins/ Jason Staples Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-278-paul-and-the-resurrection-of-israel-with-jason-staples/ Mark Nanos Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-219-judeophobia-and-philippians-3-with-mark-nanos/  Frank Thielman Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-202-paul-apostle-of-grace-with-frank-thielman/  Paul Duff Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-276-paul-and-the-corinthians-with-paul-duff/    Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/  The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  7. Aug 18

    Ep 286: The Apocalyptic Paul with Nick Quient

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/ In this episode I talk with Reverend Nick Quient, pastor of First Baptist Church of Palos Verdes and host of the New Testament Theologist podcast about his reading of Paul. We discuss his conviction that Paul must be read within an apocalyptic framework and what that means for our interpretation of his letters, the relationship between apocalyptic readings and other schools of Pauline interpretation, the authorship and interpretive methods of the 13 letters attributed to Paul, major themes such as eschatology, the Spirit, and the church, the faith in/faith of Christ debate, what Paul means by “the righteousness of God”, why Romans has become the central text in Pauline scholarship, and Paul’s views on the Roman Empire.    Media Referenced: Nick on X: @NickQuient New Testament Theologist: https://www.youtube.com/@nickquient John Collins on Apocalypticism: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-272-the-apocalyptic-worldview-of-ancient-judaism-and-christianity-with-john-j-collins/    Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/  The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

  8. Aug 11

    Ep 285: Romans and the Mission of God with Jeff Roper

    Preorder my new book Politics, Economics and New Testament Interpretation here: https://libertarianchristians.com/store/politics-economics-and-new-testament-interpretation/ In this episode I talk with Dr. Jeff Roper about his book To the Ends of the Earth: Romans and the Mission of God, out now on Wipf and Stock. In this book Roper reads Paul’s letter to Rome not as a work of abstract theology but as a missionary appeal to a culturally diverse church. Roper explains the social and cultural background of the church in Rome, the tension between Jews and Gentiles, Roman attitudes towards the Spanish barbarians Paul seeks to evangelize, and the diversity within the Roman congregation. We discuss how the main themes of Romans contribute to this larger missionary goal, and why Paul is concerned about contextualizing his gospel to ensure that people from every tribe, tongue, and nation place their faith in Jesus. He then shows how Romans is a fruitful framework for thinking about missions today, and how the Western church should embrace the cross-cultural missionary challenge of Romans.  Media Referenced: To the Ends of the Earth: https://a.co/d/0h90GSvr Jeff Roper Website: www.jeffroper.com Foursquare Missions: www.foursquaremissions.org Jeff Roper Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeff.roper.7/   Sign up for LCI’s 2026 Conference in Cincinnati, OH on Saturday, October 17! Many LCI content creators, including myself, will be speaking at the event, and it will be an excellent opportunity to connect with likeminded, liberty-loving Christians. Check out the event and sign up here: https://libertarianchristians.com/conference/ The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.  Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show’s profile! Thanks!

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The Protestant Libertarian Podcast explores the intersection between protestant Biblical studies and libertarian philosophy. We will discuss the Bible, history, culture, economics, philosophy, and current events from both protestant and libertarian perspectives. Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com. You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Check out the Protestant Libertarian Podcast page at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/theplpodcast. Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the shows profile! Thanks!

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