Thinking Christian: Clear Theology for a Confusing World

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Christians shouldn’t just think. They should think Christian. Join Dr. James Spencer and guests for calm, thoughtful, theological discussions about a variety of topics Christians face every day. The Thinking Christian Podcast will help you grow spiritually and learn theology as you seek to be faithful in a world that is becoming increasingly proficient at telling stories that deny Christ. Find more from James at https://usefultogod.com/.

  1. Peter Greer | How Leaders Lose Their Way—and Finish Well Instead

    قبل ٣ ساعات

    Peter Greer | How Leaders Lose Their Way—and Finish Well Instead

    Dr. James Spencer talks with Peter Greer—CEO/President of HOPE International and author of How Leaders Lose Their Way (and How to Make Sure It Doesn’t Happen to You)—about why organizations drift when leaders first drift personally, and how to course-correct. Peter unpacks the danger of identity in achievement, the difference between mission vs. methods, and why the stat that only 1 in 3 leaders finish well should sober us. We get practical: constellation mentoring (real accountability that sticks), building structures that make good choices easy, adopting intentional downward mobility (foot-washing leadership), writing/reading your own eulogy, and slowing the “need for speed” so you can actually see warning lights. A hopeful, concrete path to long-term faithfulness—at home and at work. Buy the book: How Leaders Lose Their Way at ivpress.com (use code IVPPOD20 for a 20% discount) 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٤٦ من الدقائق
  2. Mikel Del Rosario | Did Jesus Really Say He Was God? Claims, “Blasphemy,” and Historical Evidence

    قبل ٣ أيام

    Mikel Del Rosario | Did Jesus Really Say He Was God? Claims, “Blasphemy,” and Historical Evidence

    Dr. James Spencer welcomes Dr. Mikel Del Rosario—theology professor at Moody Bible Institute, host of The Apologetics Guy podcast, and author of Did Jesus Really Say He Was God?—to explore Jesus’ divine self-understanding through both words and deeds. Rather than looking only for the exact phrase “I am God,” Mikel shows how Jesus acted and spoke as God in ways his opponents clearly grasped. We walk through Mark 2 (forgiving sins) and Mark 14 (Son of Man at God’s right hand; Daniel 7 + Psalm 110) to see why the charge of blasphemy makes historical sense—and how the resurrection vindicates those claims. We also hit multiple attestation, implicit vs. explicit claims, and why this matters for preaching, discipleship, and everyday conversations about Jesus. Explore the book: Did Jesus Really Say He Was God? at ivpress.com (use code IVPPOD20 for a 20% discount) Find ouf more about Dr. Rosario at www.theapologeticsguy.com. 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٤٣ من الدقائق
  3. Eun K. Strawser | You Were Never Meant to Lead Alone: Shared Power, and Discipleship-First Leadership

    ١٨ سبتمبر

    Eun K. Strawser | You Were Never Meant to Lead Alone: Shared Power, and Discipleship-First Leadership

    Dr. James Spencer welcomes Eun Strawser—author of You Were Never Meant to Lead Alone and co-vocational lead pastor of Ma Ke Ali o—to rethink church leadership through the lens of Ephesians 4–5. Instead of celebrity or solitary leaders, Nkei makes the case for polycentric/shared leadership that distributes authority, equips the saints, and embodies mutual submission. We unpack how different kinds of authority (positional, spiritual, relational) operate in churches, and why power must be examined (not ignored). We also touch on co-vocational models, local-context leadership (Hawai‘i), accountability frameworks, and why the true metric of health is a discipled people who imitate Jesus for the good of their neighbors. Buy the book: You Were Never Meant to Lead Alone at ivpress.com (use code IVPPOD20 for a 20% discount) 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٤٦ من الدقائق
  4. Capitalism, Socialism, and the Christian’s Hope: Reading the Gallup Poll Like Disciples

    ١٢ سبتمبر

    Capitalism, Socialism, and the Christian’s Hope: Reading the Gallup Poll Like Disciples

    James and Nate unpack a recent Gallup poll on Americans’ views of capitalism—down from 60% (2021) to 54% (2025)favorable—and why that headline can mislead. Beneath it: strong support for free enterprise and small business, persistent dislike of big business, and sharp differences across age, gender, and party. Rather than picking teams (“capitalism vs. socialism”), they ask the more Christian question: where are we placing our hope? Drawing on 1 Samuel, the exile, and Daniel, they argue systems are provisional, reform is often wise, but obedience to Christ is the constant—“fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” The church’s political and economic posture should flow downstream from discipleship, not the other way around. Subscribe to our YouTube channel 🔗 Download a free resource "Making Everyday Decisions So That God Gets the Glory" from Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com To read James's article on this topic, check out his author page on Christianity.com. 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٢٨ من الدقائق
  5. Ryan Skoog | Lead with Prayer: Lessons from the Global Church

    ١١ سبتمبر

    Ryan Skoog | Lead with Prayer: Lessons from the Global Church

    Dr. James Spencer welcomes Ryan Skoog—author of Lead with Prayer and president of Venture—for a wide-ranging conversation on prayer, discipleship, and the explosive growth of the global church. Ryan shares powerful stories from persecuted and unreached regions where God’s kingdom is breaking out through church-planting movements, miraculous healings, and courageous local believers. Together, James and Ryan explore why persecution forges unity, how oral cultures disciple through obedience and memorization, and what Western Christians can learn from the prayer lives of global leaders. Ryan also unpacks insights from interviewing over 100 leaders worldwide, showing how prayer is not an afterthought but the engine of fruitful leadership. Learn how friendship with Jesus, crafting a day with God, and investing in prayer can transform your life and ministry. For Lead with Prayer resources visit https://www.leadwithprayer.com.  Purchase Lead with Prayer on amazon.com. Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel! 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٥١ من الدقائق
  6. Will Acuff | No Elevator to Everest: Spirit-Led Self-Awareness, Joyful Work, and Ending Poverty through Ownership

    ٨ سبتمبر

    Will Acuff | No Elevator to Everest: Spirit-Led Self-Awareness, Joyful Work, and Ending Poverty through Ownership

    Dr. James Spencer sits down with Will Acuff—author of No Elevator to Everest: Shift from Survive to Thrive through Spirit-Led Self-Awareness and cofounder of Corner to Corner (Nashville)—to explore how Christians can move from frantic survival to joyful, Spirit-led living. We talk practical rhythms (breathwork, journaling, contemplative prayer), why emotions are God-given “sensors,” and Will’s delete / delegate / do differently framework for designing your day. Will shares how Corner to Corner helps neighbors in historically low-income communities start and grow businesses because ownership ends poverty—with real stories of everyday entrepreneurs changing their families’ futures. We also press into discipleship that unites knowledge of God and knowledge of self, so our lives tune to the Spirit—and become life-giving to others. To find out more about Corner to Corner visit: https://cornertocorner.org/team/will-acuff/ To purchase No Elevator to Everest, visit amazon.com. Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel! 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٥٢ من الدقائق
  7. Soundbites and Slogans: Thinking Christian in a World of Half-Truths

    ٤ سبتمبر

    Soundbites and Slogans: Thinking Christian in a World of Half-Truths

    In this episode of the Thinking Christian Podcast, Dr. James Spencer is joined by Nate Giarratano reflect on recent political commentary surrounding the Israel–Gaza conflict. Instead of offering hot takes on a complex war, they examine how soundbites and slogans from public figures—like those from Marjorie Taylor Greene and Randy Fine—can distort, oversimplify, or inflame rather than inform. The conversation emphasizes why Christians must resist being swept along by unsupported claims and polarized rhetoric. With humility, James and Nate point to a posture rooted in justice, compassion, and truth-seeking, reminding listeners that every conflict involves people made in the image of God. This episode challenges believers to ask deeper questions: How do we discern what’s right when information is incomplete? How can we lament both the tragedy of war and the misuse of words that fail to honor the gravity of human suffering? Join us for a calm, theological exploration of why careful thinking and Christ-centered discernment matter more than ever in an age of political performance and digital noise. Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel! 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

    ٤٣ من الدقائق
  8. How to Die: Punk Rock, Monasteries, and the Scandal of Discipleship

    ١١ أغسطس

    How to Die: Punk Rock, Monasteries, and the Scandal of Discipleship

    In a culture obsessed with self-optimization and curated spirituality, Joshua S. Porter offers a counterintuitive call: come and die. In this episode, James Spencer sits down with the punk-rocker-turned-pastor to discuss Porter’s new book, How to Die: Chaos, Morality, and the Scandal of Christian Discipleship. Together, they unpack what it means to reject a domesticated God, embrace an untamable Savior, and walk a path shaped not by personal branding but by the cross. Drawing from Flannery O’Connor, Bonhoeffer, monastic writings, and gritty pastoral experience, this conversation invites listeners into a disruptive, deeply human, and refreshingly orthodox vision of Christian faithfulness. Whether you’re deconstructing, reconstructing, or just trying to figure out what dying to self actually looks like, this is a must-listen. To purchase How to Die visit amazon.com. Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel! 🔗 Learn more about Useful to God: www.usefultogod.com 📢 Stay Connected & Keep Growing! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian so you never miss an insightful conversation! For more resources to help you grow in faith and deepen your walk with Christ, visit Useful to God—where you'll find books, courses, podcasts, and more to equip you for faithful Christian living. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

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Christians shouldn’t just think. They should think Christian. Join Dr. James Spencer and guests for calm, thoughtful, theological discussions about a variety of topics Christians face every day. The Thinking Christian Podcast will help you grow spiritually and learn theology as you seek to be faithful in a world that is becoming increasingly proficient at telling stories that deny Christ. Find more from James at https://usefultogod.com/.

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