Podcast
The Bible Feed podcast is a place for conversations about the Bible and faith in the modern world, where ordinary people come together to help each other understand the Bible better.
Latest episodes
In this episode, instead of a high level overview, we delve deep into one complex and much debated passage in Philippians 2 which says that Jesus was "in the form of God". We navigate through various translations, interpretations, and biblical contexts to uncover the essence of this pivotal scripture.
In this episode Dan and Paul embark on an exploration of John's Gospel, unraveling its sense of majesty and mystery right from the opening verses. They discuss the unique structure and content of John's Gospel, comparing it to the Synoptic Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—highlighting its distinct opening, key themes, and the explicit purpose stated in John's narrative. They delve into the significance of belief, the role of witnessing, and the powerful symbolism of water and blood, offering a compelling argument for understanding John’s Gospel as a carefully selected collection of events aimed at strengthening the reader's faith in Jesus as the Messiah.
In this episode, we discuss the relevance and impact of Christianity in the modern world. We delve into how aspects of Christianity have influenced society, not only in superficial ways like our calendar, but in deeper things such as values, moral codes, and societal norms. Many fundamental beliefs and values in Western society, such as the sanctity of life and the concept of equality, have their roots in Christian teachings. That may make Christianity relevant in modern society, but does it make it true?
Paul and Dan talk about "intertextuality" - basically, how the meaning of a text is influenced by references to other texts. The Bible (not surprisingly) is full of links between its 66 books. But how far can we take this? Can we go too far and see patterns where there are none (like seeing the face of Jesus in a slice of toast)?!
Relaunching the podcast, Dan and Laurence celebrate by pondering a lesser known Christmas story. They encounter a community of people in the temple at Jerusalem "waiting for the consolation of Israel". They discover that the birth of Jesus is firmly rooted in a backstory. Investigating mystery deaths and incomplete sentences, this is an invitation to have yourself a lesser known Christmas story!
We continue our exploration of the Divine Council worldview by looking at claims made about verses in Deuteronomy 32, the introduction to the book of Job and Psalm 82. It is useful to understand the cultural background to the text of the Bible, but we conclude that it's also important to avoid being distracted by speculative ideas from the main thrust of the Bible message about Jesus reconciling humans to God.
Is the phrase 'sons of God' used to refer to angels? If so, does that include spiritual beings with independent power to oppose God and his people? Using the framework of Michael Heiser's book, Unseen Realm, we start to examine what is termed the 'Divine Council' worldview. This involves grappling with some of the most mystifying parts of the Bible text - but hey, we're just ordinary people trying to understand the Bible better!
Dan and Laurence step into the New Testament for an introduction to the three letters of John. After exploring the stark contrasts and Torah references in the first letter they then see how the second and third letters apply the theory from the first letter to two opposite situations. And finally, little children, keep yourselves from idols...uh?
In this episode, we finish our series on the 5 books of Moses, the Torah, by looking at Deuteronomy. We find that this book acts as a stage-setter, defining how leaders of this ancient people will be described for the next 600 years. Remarkably, Deuteronomy also makes a surprise appearance at the end of that history, just before Israel were exiled to Babylon.
Where do demons fit into a Biblical theology? We look at the few places they appear in the Old Testament and find them linked to the idols worshipped by the peoples around the ancient Israelites. It turns out they are presented as having no real existence or power. So why do demons suddenly make a large appearance in the Gospels?
We continue their exploration of how these 'characters' appear in the Bible. In part 1 we reached a preliminary conclusion that they are used as terms to personify our inherent tendency to want to go our own way rather than God's way. We now look at many more of the relevant biblical passages to get to know the devil and satan better.
Dan welcomes guest, John Launchbury, to discuss the vital question: why did Jesus have to die? They explore the meaning of the word atonement and consider the pros and cons of some of the main atonement theories. As they explore the key scriptural passages involved they find that the impact of the death of Jesus can be just as profound today as it was in the 1st century - and it's all about changing us rather than changing God!
We continue our introduction episodes by looking at the book of Numbers. It's actually not just about counting things, but instead it's about a journey through the wilderness and it says much about God's overarching care for his people to protect, preserve and remain true to his promises.
Paul and Dan embark on a multi-part exploration of the terms Devil and Satan and how they are used through the Bible. They aim to lay some foundations by thinking about how our worldview might affect how we read the Bible and (eventually) start to explore some key verses. The initial conclusion is that they may not be referring to a supernatural being, as is commonly supposed.
Continuing the conversation from Part 1, Jordan and Dan find that some Psalms express doubts and uncertainties and deeply question what God is doing. But by remembering what God has done in the past the Psalmist is led back to peace of mind and trust in God, ending with a call for "everything that has breath to praise the LORD"!
In the first part of our introduction to the Psalms, Dan talks to Jordan Walton about whether the Psalter is just a random collection of prayers and songs or whether there is some structure to it. Having identified a five book structure, they start to delve into the focus of books one and two.
For the next of our Bible book introductions we take a look at the smallest of Paul's letters, his letter to Philemon. Why should a personal letter about fixing a very personal relationship be included in the scriptures? We find that it is, in fact, an incredibly revealing case study into how being a Christian should change the way we view society and people around us.
The Bible Feed core team of Paul, Dan, Josh and Laurence get together to reflect on some serious, and some less serious, themes from 2022 and look forward to our plans for 2023.
How can Jesus uniquely be called the Son of God? Does calling him the Son of God make him Deity in any sense? What is Jesus claiming when he says he is the Son of God? All these questions and more are considered in this episode.
Leviticus may not be the most appealing read, after all, what does how long you remain unclean if you touch a dead body, have to do with a Christian today? But by scratching the surface we find that the careful structure of this book points to something, or rather someone, who is so much greater than the law.