Life and Books and Everything

Often lampooned as boring, bland, and less important than other regions in the country, might it be that the Midwest actually has its own regional identity and a story worth telling? Jon Lauck, a professor at the University of South Dakota thinks so. In this episode Kevin talks to Jon about his excellent new book The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest 1800-1900. They explore what made the region from Ohio to the Dakotas different from New England and from the South and why the old virtues of the Midwest might just be worth pursuing today.

Many of the most virulent critics seemed to object to any asymmetry between men and women in sexual intimacy.

In this episode, Kevin offers six reflections amid the firestorm surrounding an article by Joshua Butler for The Gospel Coalition.

Church attendance is declining. In this episode, Kevin reads from his recent article for WORLD Opinions where he argues for including additional data for analysis and offers a word of hope.

True revival is marked by a rediscovery of the word of God, a restored sense of the fear of God, a return to God through confession and repentance, a renewed spiritual commitment as God’s people, and, finally, a reformation if true piety.

What are Christians to make of the Asbury Revival? This episode outlines biblical examples of spiritual renewal through the ages.

Dear brother pastor,

In a spirit of prayerful expectation, I want to invite you to the Coram Deo Pastors Conference. This new event is hosted by Clearly Reformed (a new ministry I help to lead) and Christ Covenant Church (where I have the privilege of serving as senior pastor). We look forward to filling our sanctuary with nearly 2,000 pastors and church leaders at Christ Covenant Church in Matthews, North Carolina on March 12-14, 2024.

As long as there is sin and suffering in the world, the gospel will be relevant.

In the wake of the tragic MSU shooting, Christians must remember that the hope of healing lies in the truth of the gospel.

In this episode, Kevin is joined by his friend and RTS colleague, Derek Thomas as the two of them talk about pastoring, preaching, and why Derek loves Columbia, South Carolina. Derek shares about his conversion (through reading John Stott), some terrible advice from his vicar, and the differences between pastoring at a small church and at a big church. You’ll also hear the story of how Derek and Ligon Duncan were finalists for the same ministerial position (which went to Ligon!). As Derek nears retirement, this episode is a great opportunity to listen to some of the lessons he’s learned in almost five decades of ministry.

For many of us, the danger is not that we would explicitly deny the Word of God. The danger is that we nullify the truth in other, more subtle ways.

In this article, Kevin reads from a devotional he wrote for "By Faith" for the 50th anniversary of the PCA.

Kevin sits down with John for a return visit to LBE to talk about John’s new book, “Come, Lord Jesus: Meditations on the Second Coming of Christ” (Crossway). Hear what John Piper thinks about the rapture, the millennium, and why it is essential that we love Christ’s appearing. Kevin and John also talk about the long list of books John has written, what he does for fun, and what very long audiobook he is listening to.

We must never use apologetics—or for that matter, contextualization—as a way to make hard truths less noticeable or the offense of the gospel more palatable.

In this article from WORLD Opinions, Kevin encourages Christians to be bold and courageous in the face of cultural accusations.

A Princeton University president, teacher, preacher, politician, Declaration of Independence signatory, and a slave owner. As an early American patriot, John Witherspoon has been the center of some recent controversy as a statue of him may be removed from historic Princeton University library grounds.

In this episode, Kevin reads from his article written for “Princetonians for Free Speech” and adds new information to his December 2022 article regarding Witherspoon's estate at the end of his life.

Before we denounce most leaders as Pharisees and large swaths of the church as complicit in the evil deeds of darkness, let’s make sure we are not trafficking in well-meaning, but unhelpful, myths.

This article, written for WORLD Opinions, urges Christians to be aware of and address sin, but to abstain from assigning widespread guilt to the church as a whole.

If you want a longer-than-usual discussion about football, you’ve come to the right episode. After ruminating on why Americans like football so much, the three amigos turn their attention to more familiar themes, prognosticating on which Christians around today will still be known 50 years from now. This leads to a subsequent discussion about strategy versus faithfulness, and then a final conversation about the missing piety in our age.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro and Sponsor

2:11 Banter and Listener Mailbox

5:39 Why Do Americans like Football?

20:36 Who Will We Remember in Fifty Years?

42:31 How Can We Make a Difference

52:47 Have We Become Allergic to Piety?

1:05:40 Sponsor 2

1:06:21 Recent Lessons

In this Episode from an written for Christ Over All, Kevin discusses the moral and economic affects that abortion has on mothers, families, and women.

There are many worthwhile battles to fight in life. The most important, most necessary, and most dangerous is the war we must wage against sin, flesh, and the devil.

A new year means new opportunities to grow as Christians. This article written for WORLD Opinions, encourages believers to focus on spiritual development this new year instead of fighting battles outside of themselves.

A Princeton University president, teacher, preacher, politician, Declaration of Independence signatory, and a slave owner. As an early American patriot, John Witherspoon has been the center some recent controversy as a statue of him may be removed from historic Princeton University library grounds.  

In this episode, Kevin reads from his article written for “Princetonians for Free Speech” and reflects on his life as a whole, including his status as land owner and what his motives were for also owning one slave.

In this episode of Life and Books and Everything, Kevin reads from his recent article in WORLD opinions about the curse in the garden, the hope and promise of Christ's coming, and our restoration to communion with God.

Kevin reads from his article in The Gospel Coalition to encourage pastors to forego the cliche and cute and stick to preaching "the old, old story" this Christmas.

The gang is back for one last episode in 2022. There is the usual sports banter (very brief), and some good natured ribbing toward Justin, who seems to  know nothing about pop culture but still has dreams about Elvis. The three friends share some of their favorite reads from the past year, and they wrap things up discussing an article by Paul House about J.I. Packer and how to renew evangelicalism.