Podcast Overview

Author

456: Nestingen - The Gospel and Repentance

10/05/26

13 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough! In this episode, we continue our conversation about repentance, reading Rev. Dr. James Nestingen’s article on the Gospel and Repentance. We discuss Luther's view of the Gospel’s relationship to repentance, preaching a doable law, and what awaits those who leave the Church in a state of unrepentance. This and much, much more on this week’s episode of the podcast.
455: Nestingen - Preaching Repentance Is a Problem

09/26/26

13 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

In this episode, we sit with Rev. Dr. James Nestingen’s writing on the gospel and repentance. We talk at length not only about law and repentance, but also about the consequences of therapeutic culture for the preaching and reception of calls to repent in the churches. If the law is known by its uses, who is the user? What is it to have a God? What do you have if you have one? How does it work? How does the law summarize the non-negotiables of creaturely life? Can the devil use the law? What is the preacher’s use of the law? How does this lead us to the topic of repentance? All this and much, much more on this week’s podcast.
453: Athanasius - Against the Wiles of Satan

09/12/26

13 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

The Cost of Discipline. In this episode, we sit with St. Athanasius and his writings on the life of St. Antony. How did Christians in the 4th century view spiritual warfare and affliction? What is the relation of discipline to prayer, piety, and resisting temptation? What did 4th century Christians think about virtues and vices, and whether they were (or weren’t) related to the Christian life? Is it better for Christians to seek a place of solitude or community when focusing on heavenly things versus worldly things? How does Mammon factor into this? What does Scripture teach about the evil one, demons, dark powers, and evil spirits? Do we as modern Christians agree with Athanasius and Antony’s views about spiritual warfare, and if not, why? This and much, much more on this week’s episode.
- Spiritual Disciplines
- Repentance
- Wisdom
- Angels
- Fasting
- Conscience
- Idolatry
- Good Works
- Hell
- Sacrifice
- Sanctification
- Holiness
- Obedience
- Satan
451: Listener Question on the Work of the Holy Spirit

08/29/26

13 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

All Apologies. In this episode, we respond to another listener question. What does it mean to “sit with a text” and yet be prepared at all times to give an apology for the hope that is in us? How does the Holy Spirit work in and through believers to testify to the truth about Jesus? Does the Spirit work through non-Christians, and if so, how and to what purpose? How has modern Christian evangelism differed from pre-modern evangelism and apologetics? What do the gospels teach us about the character of evangelism? This and much, much more in this week’s episode.
439: Rose - Explanation of UFO Phenomena

05/15/26

12 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

UFOs are Rebel Angels. In this episode, we read Father Seraphim Rose’s “classic” text, Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future, about the true nature of UFOs and the nefarious origins of modern narratives about extraterrestrials, spaceships, what’s “out there” in the universe, and so on. What do Christians have to say to a culture that is awash with UFO sightings and prolifically promises to “reveal the truth about UFOS”?
Acts 19:1-20 (Episode 429)

02/24/26

3 mins

By Daniel Emery Price | Erick Sorensen

Have You Heard of the Holy Spirit?
Breaking and Turning Stiff Necks (Proverbs 29:1-3)

01/23/26

5 mins

By Daniel Emery Price | Scott Keith

In this episode of Tough Texts, Dan Price and Scott Keith look into Proverbs 29.
424: Kleinig - The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Divine Service

01/16/26

8 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

In this episode, we learn about the Holy Spirit and the Divine Service from Dr. John Kleinig. In particular, we discuss how Christ gives the Spirit to the church through his word, how Christ institutes the divine service and empowers it with God’s Spirit, and how the church receives the Holy Spirit by faith in God’s word as it is proclaimed and enacted in the divine service. The conversation revolves around the central question: How then can we be sure that the Spirit is at work in our worship?
- Holy Spirit
- Liturgy
- Worship
- Faith
The CHA Christmas History Edition Presents: Hark the What? Angels and the Christmas Story

12/06/25

6 mins

By Daniel van Voorhis

Weekend Edition for December 6-7, 2025
416: Luther - To this office of the law, however, the New Testament immediately adds the consoling promise of grace through the gospel

11/13/25

9 mins

By Christopher Gillespie | Donavon Riley

Don’t Look Back in Anger. In this episode, we continue reading Martin Luther’s Smalcald Articles, focusing on contrition, repentance, and freedom. Why does the law need to terrify and leave us hopeless? How does attention to the self lead us into death and hell? What happens when belief is preached as something “we do” rather than something “done to” us? Likewise, when repentance is self-activated and self-actuated, what are the consequences for our daily lives? This and much, much more on this episode of the show.
Circumcision Circumstance (Acts 15:1-29)

09/25/25

4 mins

By Daniel Emery Price | Scott Keith

In this episode of Tough Texts, Scott Keith and Daniel Emery Price look into Acts 15, exploring the Jerusalem Council's pivotal role in early church history.
The Gift of Holy Scripture with Jonathan Linebaugh

09/09/25

9 mins

By Kelsi Klembara

Kelsi is joined by Jonathan Linebaugh to discuss his new book, The Well that Washes What it Shows: An Invitation to Holy Scripture.