Listen in to this special episode of Voices of Renewal as we hear from leading Christian scholar, Dr. Glen L. Thompson , on his new book Jingjiao: The Earliest Christian Church in China . Thompson presents the history of the Persian church’s mission to China with rigor and clarity. While Christianity remained a minority and “foreign” religion in the Middle Kingdom, it nonetheless attracted adherents among indigenous Chinese and received imperial approval during the Tang Dynasty. Though it was la...
Mar 04, 2025•32 min•Ep. 63
Macrina the Younger (327 – 379) was an early Christian saint. Macrina was elder sister of Basil the Great and Gregory of Nyssa, two early leading Christian theologians. Gregory of Nyssa wrote a work entitled Life of Macrina in which he describes his sister's sanctity and asceticism throughout her life. Macrina lived a chaste and humble life, devoting her time to prayer and the spiritual education of her younger brother Peter. To learn more about her life and renewal legacy, listen to Dr. Stefan ...
Feb 12, 2025•30 min•Ep. 62
On this episode of Voices of Renewal, we speak with Dr. Stephen Eccher, Associate Professor of Church History and Reformation Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, on the life and legacy of Huldrych Zwingli. Zwingli (1484-1531) was a theologian during the Reformation who helped bring Protestantism to Switzerland. Although less known than his contemporaries Martin Luther and John Calvin, Zwingli had a incredible impact on Reformed theology. To learn more about Zwingli, please read...
Nov 18, 2024•32 min•Ep. 61
On this episode of Voices of Renewal, we interview Dr. Michael Allen, the John Dyer Trimble Professor of Systematic Theology and Academic Dean at Reformed Theological Seminary (Orlando), on the life and ministry of Dr. John Webster. Rev. Dr. John Webster (1955-2016) was an English systematic, historical, and moral theologian. At the time of his death, he was the Chair of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews. Dr. Webster is known today for his retrieval of classic theology for today’s church...
Oct 28, 2024•29 min•Ep. 60
On this episode of Voices of Renewal, we speak with Rev. Dr. Winn Collier, Associate Professor and Director of the Eugene Peterson Center for Christian Imagination at Western Theological Seminary, on the life and renewal legacy of Eugene Peterson. Rev. Eugene Peterson (1932-2018) was an American presbyterian minister who published widely on spiritual formation and pastoral ministry. Rev. Peterson is most famous for his translation of the bible, The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language. To...
Oct 07, 2024•20 min•Ep. 59
On this episode of Voices of Renewal, we are privileged to hear from Dr. Alister McGrath, the recently retired Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University, on the life and renewal legacy of J. I. Packer (1926-2020). J. I. Packer was a Canadian evangelical theologian who wrote and taught widely on the intersection of theology and ministry. Dr. Packer retired as Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, Canada. He is perhaps best known for his enduring work, K...
Sep 16, 2024•19 min•Ep. 58
On this special episode of Voices of Renewal, we hear from Dr. Carl R. Trueman on his new book Crisis of Confidence: Reclaiming the Historic Faith in a Culture Consumed with Individualism and Identity . Dr. Trueman (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is Professor of Biblical and Religious Studies at Grove City College and previously served as the William E. Simon Fellow in Religion and Public Life at Princeton University. Join us as we discuss how creeds and confessions of the historic Church can fost...
May 15, 2024•25 min•Ep. 57
In today’s episode of Voices of Renewal, we are speaking with Robert Elmer on two of his recent books, Fount of Heaven: Prayers of the Early Church and Piercing Heaven: Prayers of the Puritans . Robert is the author of dozens of books ranging from children’s books to apologetics to devotional classics and collections of prayers. Robert is passionate about making the goodness of God known!...
Apr 08, 2024•27 min•Ep. 55
Thomas Helwys (1575-1616) an English minister, was one of the joint founders, with John Smyth, of the General Baptist denomination. Helwys founded the first Baptist church in England and advocated for full religious liberty. To learn more about his life and renewal legacy, hear from Dr. Malcolm Yarnell, Research Professor of Theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Mar 25, 2024•29 min•Ep. 56
In this special episode of Voices of Renewal, we speak with Dr. Gerald McDermott on the topic “How Christians Should Respond to Religious Pluralism.” Dr. McDermott is the retired Anglican Chair of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, AL. He is the author of dozens of books, the most recent being A New History of Redemption: The Work of the Jewish Messiah Through the Millennia (Baker Academic, 2024)....
Mar 11, 2024•36 min•Ep. 54
Andrew Fuller (1754-1815) was an English Baptist theologian, minister, and missionary. During his life, Fuller combated the ideas of hyper-Calvinism by applying the ideas of Jonathan Edwards. However, today, Fuller is most known for his instrumental role in founding the Baptist Missionary Society. To learn more about his life and renewal legacy, hear from Dr. Nathan Finn, Professor of Faith and Culture and Director of the Institute for Transformational Leadership at North Greenville University....
Feb 26, 2024•24 min•Ep. 53
In this episode of Voices of Renewal, guest host Dr. Joan Pi, Assistant Professor and Director of Choral Activities at Regent University, speaks with Dr. Melanie Ross on the topic of “Renewing Evangelical Worship”. Dr. Ross is an Associate Professor of Liturgical Studies at Yale Divinity School and the author of Evangelical Worship: An American Mosaic (Oxford University Press, 2021). Join us for an engaging conversation on the history, nature, and renewal of evangelical worship today....
Feb 12, 2024•29 min•Ep. 52
Today on Voices of Renewal , Dr. Mark Noll, one of the world’s leading historians of American Church History and Evangelicalism, speaks to us about Renewing our Commitment to the Bible. Dr. Noll is an emeritus professor of history at Wheaton College and the University of Notre Dame and is currently the Research Professor of History at Regent College. It is truly an honor to have such a distinguished guest.
Dec 18, 2023•24 min•Ep. 51
Elisabeth Elliot (1926-2015) was a missionary and a critically acclaimed author and speaker. For over half a century, her life of obedience, timeless teachings, and best-selling books have influenced both believers and seekers of the Christian faith. For thirteen years, Elliot opened her daily radio program “Gateway to Joy” with these words: “You are loved with an everlasting love, that’s what the Bible says, and underneath are the everlasting arms. This is your friend, Elisabeth Elliot.” Hear m...
Nov 20, 2023•20 min•Ep. 50
In today’s episode of Voices of Renewal , we interview Dr. Jarvis Williams on his new book The Spirit, Ethics, and Eternal Life . This episode focuses on the vertical, horizontal, and cosmic relationships Christians now have through Christ by walking in the power of the Holy Spirit. Dr. Williams is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY....
Oct 23, 2023•25 min•Ep. 49
Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands and an influential neo-Calvinist theologian. He established the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, which upon its foundation became the second largest Calvinist denomination in the country behind the state-supported Dutch Reformed Church. Today, Kuyper is remembered and studied as a proud inheritor of the Reformed tradition and proponent of biblical morality. To learn more about his life and renewal legacy, hear from Dr. Mic...
Aug 01, 2023•36 min•Ep. 48
William Perkins (1558-1602) was an influential English minister and theologian during the Elizabethan era and was also one of the foremost leaders of the Puritan movement in the Church of England. His most influential work, The Arte of Prophecying, or, A Treatise Concerning the Sacred and Onely True Manner and Methode of Preaching , is still read widely today. To learn more about Perkins’ life and renewal legacy, hear from Dr. Andrew Ballitch, the associate pastor of preaching and ministries at ...
Jul 17, 2023•23 min•Ep. 47
This is a privileged episode of Voices of Renewal, as we are speaking to a giant in the field of the History of Christianity: Dr. George Marsden. Dr. Marsden is an Emeritus Profess of History at the University of Notre Dame and a Distinguished Scholar in the History of Christianity at Calvin College. We are speaking with him on his new book An Infinite Fountain of Light: Jonathan Edwards for the Twenty-First Century (IVP, 2023) ....
Jul 03, 2023•30 min•Ep. 46
On this unique episode of Voices of Renewal, we interview Dr. Matthew Barrett, Professor of Christian Theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, on his new book Reformation as Renewal: Retrieving the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church . This book strikes at the heart of our mission to by demonstrating that the Reformation was at its core a renewal of evangelical catholicity....
Jun 14, 2023•28 min•Ep. 45
Demetrios of Thessaloniki (270?-306) was a Greek Christian martyr in the late third and early fourth century. Demetrios was martyred during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (284-305), being speared to death in prison. His Feast is celebrated by the Orthodox Church on October 26th and in the Greek tradition, he is known as the Myhrbearer, because his relics miraculously produced holy oil. To learn more about Demetrios’ life and legacy, hear from Dr. James Skedros, the Michael G. and Anastasia Cant...
May 29, 2023•26 min•Ep. 44
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian, and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have become widely influential and his book The Cost of Discipleship is described as a modern classic. To learn more about his life and renewal legacy, hear from Pastor Nicholas Abraham, Lead Pastor of Reformation Bible Church in Navarre, Ohio, and author of Living Together in Unity wit...
May 15, 2023•30 min•Ep. 43
In this episode of Voices of Renewal, we speak with Dr. Dean Weaver about the historic and present revival going on in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). Dr. Weaver was elected as the Stated Clerk of the EPC in 2021, which is the denomination’s highest elected office. The hope of Voices of Renewal is to not only recover the lost voices throughout Church history but to hear from current ministry leaders going through renewal.
May 01, 2023•8 sec•Ep. 42
On this special episode of Voices of Renewal, we look at the modern-day renewal happening in the Catholic Charismatic community. Joining us is Monsignor Joseph Malagreca, pastor of the parish of the Holy Cross in Brooklyn, NY. Besides being a pastor, he is the Coordinator of the Charismatic Renewal for the Hispanics and the Haitians in the Diocese of Brooklyn. He is also serving as the Coordinator of the CHARIS National Service of Communion for the USA. CHARIS-USA is the body that seeks to netwo...
Apr 17, 2023•25 min•Ep. 41
P. T. Forsyth (1848–1921) was a Scottish theologian in the late 19th and early 20th century. He is primarily known today as an early opponent of liberal Christianity and a forerunner to the neo-orthodoxy movement. In his preaching, Forsyth consistently pointed people toward Christ as the fullest expression of God. Her more about Forsyth’s life and legacy from Dr. TK Dunn, Professor of History and Theology at Columbia International University.
Mar 30, 2023•29 min•Ep. 40
Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) is a Church father and Doctor of the Church who fought for Christological orthodoxy in the fifth century. He was a central figure at the Council of Ephesus and helped combat heresy through his writings. Cyril was a prolific author and consummate pastor, leading the Church in Alexandria as archbishop for 32 years. To hear more about Cyril’s life and legacy, listen to Dr. Donald Fairbairn, Robert E. Cooley Professor of Early Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological ...
Dec 09, 2022•32 min•Ep. 39
Walter Maier (1893-1950) was an American radio personality, prolific author, university professor, and Old Testament scholar. He is best known for his work on the radio show Lutheran Hour in the 30s and 40s. To learn more about Maier’s life and renewal legacy, hear from Dr. Kirk Farney, Vice President for Advancement, Vocation, and Alumni Engagement at Wheaton College. Dr. Farney is also the author of Ministers of a New Medium: Broadcasting Theology in the Radio Ministries of Fulton J. Sheen and...
Nov 21, 2022•32 min•Ep. 38
Justin Martyr (100-165) was one of the first apologists for the Christian faith. Justin's most famous work, the First Apology, passionately defended the philosophical cohesiveness and reasonableness of the Christian faith to a Roman ruler set on persecuting the Church. This defense ultimately cost him his life. Hear more about Justin's life and legacy from Dr. Bryan Litfin, Professor of Bible at Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity.
Nov 07, 2022•33 min•Ep. 37
Women have been central to the work of Christian ministry from the time of Jesus to the twenty-first century. Yet the story of Christianity is too often told as a story of men. In this episode of Voices of Renewal, hear from co-authors Leanne Dzubinski (acting dean and Associate Professor in the Cook School of Intercultural Studies) and Anneke Stasson (Associate Professor of Humanities and History in the John Wesley Honors College at Indiana Wesleyan University) on their new book Women in the Mi...
Oct 17, 2022•4 min•Ep. 36
Tertullian (155-220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from the north African providence of Carthage. He is widely considered the father of Latin Christianity and was the first writer to use the term trinity to describe God. Although controversial in many branches of Christianity, Tertullian continues to be widely read today. In this episode of Voices of Renewal, learn about Tertullian from Dr. David Eastman, the Joseph Glenn Sherrill Chair of Bible at the McCallie School in Chattanooga, ...
Sep 20, 2022•32 min•Ep. 35
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) is widely considered the most influencial theologian and Christian thinker in the Western Church. His major writings – The City of God, On Christian Doctrine, and Confessions – are still widely read. He offered major contributions to the doctrines of predestination, original sin, the trinity, and ecclesiology. However, he was also a renowned teacher and mentor to the next generation of ministry leaders. To learn more about the life and renewal legacy of St. Augus...
Sep 06, 2022•30 min•Ep. 34
