The Westminster Podcast

What does it mean to preach the whole Bible as Christian Scripture? In this lecture, former Westminster president Edmund P. Clowney turns to Jesus’ description of the scribe of the kingdom who brings from his treasure “things new and old” to explore the task of Christian preaching. For Clowney, the preacher announces something genuinely new—the arrival of God’s kingdom and the renewal of all things in Christ—while proclaiming the fulfillment of promises God has been unfolding from the beginning.

Clowney warns against reducing the Old Testament to moral lessons or examples to imitate. Instead, he calls preachers to locate every passage within the history of redemption, showing how the judges, sacrifices, prophets, kings, and promises prepare for Jesus Christ. And that movement works in both directions: we preach the Old Testament in light of the New and understand the New Testament in light of the Old, as both testify to the one unfolding work of God in Christ.

If you enjoy this episode, you can access tons of content just like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wm.wts.edu⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you would like to join us in our mission to train specialists in the bible to proclaim the whole counsel of God for Christ and his global church, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wts.edu/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!

What does apologetics have to do with preaching?

In this episode of the Westminster Podcast, Nate Shannon talks with Dr. Rob Edwards about his new book, Pulpit Apologetics: A Christ-Centered Apologetic for Gospel Proclamation. Drawing on the apologetic tradition of Cornelius Van Til and his own years of pastoral ministry, Edwards argues that preaching and apologetics belong together more closely than we often assume.

Their conversation explores the apologetic character of the Apostle Paul’s preaching, the relationship between God’s Word and the world he created, and why apologetics should not be reduced to a specialized discipline for experts. Instead, the proclamation of Christ itself creates apologetic encounters, calling believers and unbelievers alike to reckon with the truth of God’s Word.

Edwards also considers what this means practically for the pulpit: how pastors can engage contemporary unbelief without allowing the culture to set the terms of the conversation, why biblical preaching must aim deeper than merely being “relevant,” and how the preacher can press the claims of Christ upon both the mind and the conscience.

Ultimately, apologetics is not simply about winning arguments. It is about bearing witness to Jesus Christ. A truly Christian apologetic therefore shares the goal of Christian preaching: to proclaim Christ and call sinners to repentance, faith, and reconciliation with God through him.

Get a copy of Pulpit Apologetics: A Christ-Centered Apologetic for Gospel Proclamation here.

If you enjoy this episode, you can access tons of content just like this at wm.wts.edu. If you would like to join us in our mission to train specialists in the bible to proclaim the whole counsel of God for Christ and his global church, visit wts.edu/donate.

Thanks for listening!

What does it mean to live faithfully as a Christian in a culture that no longer shares a Christian understanding of reality? In this lecture at Westminster Theological Seminary, Dutch art historian and Christian thinker Hans Rookmaaker explores the relationship between Christianity and culture, moving from art, music, wealth, and the church to deeper questions of knowledge, certainty, and the Christian’s starting point for understanding the world.

Rookmaaker challenges the illusion of neutral scholarship and argues that while every human interpretation is finite and shaped by its presuppositions, Christians nevertheless stand within a real, created world whose ultimate certainty is God himself. Along the way, he considers what this means for preaching, cultural engagement, and even the ordinary choices Christians make about music, art, money, and beauty. The result is a characteristically wide-ranging argument that Christianity concerns not merely a religious corner of our existence, but the whole of human life before God.

If you enjoy this episode, you can access tons of content just like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wm.wts.edu⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you would like to join us in our mission to train specialists in the bible to proclaim the whole counsel of God for Christ and his global church, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wts.edu/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!

What role should psychology play in pastoral ministry? How did Cornelius Van Til shape the biblical counseling movement? And what is the relationship between presuppositional apologetics and soul care?

In this episode, Brandon McLean Smith sits down with Jared Poulton to discuss his new book, Van Til's Counseling Movement: A Critical Analysis of Jay Adams and Biblical Counseling. Jared traces the origins of the biblical counseling movement at Westminster Theological Seminary, explores Jay Adams' theological debt to Cornelius Van Til, examines the relationship between biblical counseling and Christian integrationism, and considers how Van Til's doctrines of covenant, the antithesis, and common grace continue to shape conversations about counseling in the church today. Whether you're interested in apologetics, pastoral ministry, or the history of Westminster, this conversation offers a fascinating look at one of the Seminary's most enduring contributions to the life of the church.

If you enjoy this episode, you can access tons of content just like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wm.wts.edu⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you would like to join us in our mission to train specialists in the Bible to proclaim the whole counsel of God for Christ and his global church, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wts.edu/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Pre-order your copy of Van Til's Counseling Movement today!

Thanks for listening!

In this archival chapel sermon, Old Testament scholar Tremper Longman III turns to Psalm 139 and its deeply personal portrait of God. Drawing on the Psalms as an “anatomy of the soul,” Longman explores the comfort and, at times, discomfort of being completely known by the God who searches us, surrounds us, and formed us in the womb. He also considers the conflict underlying the psalm, the psalmist’s difficult words concerning his enemies, and ultimately how Christians read Psalm 139 in light of Jesus Christ.

If you enjoy this episode, you can access tons of content just like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wm.wts.edu⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you would like to join us in our mission to train specialists in the Bible for Christ and His global church, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wts.edu/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!